Another week, another nail-biting victory for the Chicago Bears. This time, however, they needed to hold onto a lead instead of trying to overcome a late deficit. The Bears held on against the Pittsburgh Steelers to win 31-28 and improve to 8-3 on the season to keep sole possession of first place in the NFC North.
Chicago needed to overcome numerous injuries on their defense, particularly at the linebacker position, to handle Pittsburgh's offense on Sunday. Quarterback Mason Rudolph, playing in place of the injured Aaron Rodgers, dinked and dunked his way down the field to keep the Steelers in the game. It was close for much of the day, but Bears head coach Ben Johnson and quarterback Caleb Williams pushed the ball downfield to keep the Steelers at bay.
The game came down to the final possession, with the Steelers needing a field goal to tie. That's where the Bears defense, who had two big takeaways on the day, made one last stop to preserve the victory.
It wasn't the prettiest win you will ever see, but the Bears dug deep to increase their chances of playing postseason football. Here are our takeaways from Sunday's win:
1. This was the best Bears win of the season
You could say this was the best Bears victory this season simply due to the fact that they defeated a team over .500 for the first time in a month and a half. But this win goes deeper than that. The Bears were pushed to the brink with some of their injuries on both sides of the ball. They had no starting linebackers and lost another to injury. Left tackle was a big question mark, and cornerback depth was tested yet again. As Johnson said in his postgame speech, they could have rolled over and said it wasn't their day. But they didn't.
Everyone found a way to pull on the same end of the rope and do what needed to be done to get the win. It was gritty on defense, having to deal with death by a thousand cuts while facing the dink-and-dunk Steelers offense. On the other side of the ball, Williams and the offense capitalized by turning takeaways into touchdowns, something that they haven't always been able to do. Combined with Johnson outcoaching Mike Tomlin, this was an excellent victory. Even if it didn't always look pretty.
2. Nahshon Wright is more than just a good story
Where would the Bears be without Nahshon Wright? It's a question that no one would have asked back in July and August, even when the veteran cornerback was standing out during camp.
Wright was supposed to be a fringe roster player at best and has now become one of the most important players on the roster. He made another incredible interception on Sunday, stealing the ball away from DK Metcalf on the Steelers' opening possession, but was also a factor everywhere else. Wright totaled six tackles and two pass breakups to go along with his interception and earned the highest PFF grade of any Bears player on Sunday.
Wright has been a boom-or-bust player when it comes to pass defense this season, but you can live with that when someone like Kevin Byard is playing behind you. He plays and attacks the ball like a wide receiver would, something he knows a little bit about from his days growing up, as he told NFL Network's Stacey Dales, which isn't the norm for defensive backs.
At the start of the season, Wright was seen as a nice story and someone who was just filling in while Jaylon Johnson got healthy. Now, he's a dangerous defensive weapon who can turn the tide in any game. It's time to start recognizing him as such.
3. Caleb Williams has made big strides in his game
Some may say this was Williams' best game this season for the Bears. After all, he threw for 239 yards and three touchdowns, all of which were strikes to his receivers. He also missed quite a few receivers and had arguably his worst play of the year when he fumbled the ball in the end zone thanks to a TJ Watt sack.
We don't need a book report every single week on the Bears quarterback. Not anymore, at least. While I wouldn't say this was Williams' best game, I saw plenty of strides in his game from where he was a couple of months ago, and he continues to stack positive performances each and every week.
Williams was decisive from the pocket on Sunday, something we haven't seen consistently. Perhaps that play from Watt encouraged him to not try and bail out of the pocket as much. He attacked the middle of the field with anticipation, trusting his receivers and the calls coming from Johnson. He even got the Steelers to bite on a couple of hard counts. You can see the comfort in the offense and with his teammates grow every single week.
Looking at the stats is one thing, but if you watch Williams and how he's operating the offense, you can see the strides being made in his game. We've come a long way from the first couple weeks of the season.
4. Montez Sweat is finally living up to his contract
Two years ago, the Bears paid defensive end Montez Sweat to be the team's game-changing pass rusher after acquiring him via trade from the Washington Commanders. Since then, Sweat hasn't had the consistent production the Bears were hoping for, and questions about his ability to be an upper-echelon edge rusher began circulating. Perhaps he just needed some time to adapt to a new defensive scheme.
Sweat has been on a tear since facing his former team back in Week 6. Over the last six games, Sweat has totaled 6.5 sacks, nine QB hits, eight tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, and two pass breakups. He arguably had his best game of the season this past Sunday when he notched two sacks, three tackles for loss, a forced fumble, and two QB hits. Sweat nearly had a third sack on Rudolph, who miraculously escaped to throw the ball away.
With the injuries piling up on all levels of the defense. The Bears desperately needed this type of play from Sweat, who is their highest-paid player, earning $25 million this season. Sweat is showing he can be a difference maker, and with the Bears (hopefully) getting healthy soon, that is going to be a key factor when it comes to making the postseason.
5. The rookies showed out on Sunday
Remember back in Week 2 when the Bears' rookies saw little to no action against the Detroit Lions? We've come a long way since then. It's important to remember rookies take time to develop and that results don't always show right away. I have been guilty of that impatience as well. But on Sunday, we saw essentially the entire 2025 draft class show out, with each member making significant contributions.
Tight end Colston Loveland had four catches for 49 yards and a touchdown, while receiver Luther Burden had three for 46. Second-round tackle Ozzy Trapilo got his first start at left tackle and performed well against a fierce Steelers pass rush. Ruben Hyppolite saw his first extended reps before getting hurt, while Luke Newman filled in at fullback and right guard. And of course Kyle Monangai continued to show he's capable of carrying the load at running back with 48 rushing yards and a touchdown.
It's a great sign the Bears are finding homegrown players to rely on in the present while showing promising traits for the future. Especially when many veterans were out due to injury. Hopefully this is a game we will look back on as the true arrival for this draft class when they become entrenched starters for years to come.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Bears vs. Steelers: Takeaways from Chicago's close win
