Bears dominate Texans, snap six-game losing skid
Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky served as a reliable field general in the battle against the Texans. (Credit: Quinn Harris-USA TODAY Sports)

Bears dominate Texans, snap six-game losing skid
by - Senior Writer - Sun Dec 13 17:23:41 GMT-05:00 2020

CHICAGO — Snapping a six-game losing streak in commanding fashion, the Chicago Bears (6-7) trounced the Houston Texans (4-9) at Soldier Field on Sunday. The Bears never trailed on the afternoon, taking a lopsided 30-7 lead into halftime and cruising to a 36-7 victory in the second half.

Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky dominated in the Week 14 contest, producing one of his best NFL performances by going 24-of-33 for 267 yards and three touchdowns. Chicago forced two turnovers, while not committing any turnovers of their own, and took advantage of a depleted Houston lineup that was missing several key playmakers.

Play-by-Play Summary:

First Half:

Texans, punt: A false start around midfield spoiled the Texans' momentum on what started off as an efficient opening drive. Houston was forced to punt.

Drive: 8 plays, 37 yards, 4:44

Score: Texans 0, Bears 0

Bears, touchdown: On the Bears' first play from scrimmage, David Montgomery burst through the line and darted 80 yards to the house for the longest run of his career.

Drive: 1 play, 80 yards, 0:12

Score: Texans 0, Bears 7

Texans, fumble: Akiem Hicks and Khalil Mack teamed up to force a fumble suffered by Duke Johnson, and Mack recovered it.

Drive: 4 plays, 15 yards, 1:18

Score: Texans 0, Bears 7

Bears, punt: Trubisky was sacked on third down, resulting in a three-and-out.

Drive: 3 plays, -5 yards, 2:12

Score: Texans 0, Bears 7

Texans, punt: The Texans took over at their own 9-yard line and gained a little breathing room before having to punt.

Drive: 4 plays, 20 yards, 1:51

Score: Texans 0, Bears 7

Bears, touchdown: Trubisky completed three straight passes to begin the possession. He went 8-for-8 on the drive, including a 5-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham in the left side of the end zone.

Drive: 12 plays, 79 yards, 6:46

Score: Texans 0, Bears 14

Texans, touchdown: A short kickoff return resulted in Houston setting up at the 14. On third down, a 48-yard reception by Johnson, who garnered a bevy of yards after the catch, moved the football inside the red zone. Watson scrambled for 14 yards and then completed a 5-yard touchdown throw to Keke Coutee.

Drive: 8 plays, 86 yards, 4:20

Score: Texans 7, Bears 14

Bears, punt: The Texans forced a three-and-out, with Trubisky throwing an incompletion on third-and-short.

Drive: 3 plays, 8 yards, 1:42

Score: Texans 7, Bears 14

Texans, safety: The Texans' offense took the field at the Houston 19. Bilal Nichols sacked Watson for a loss of 10 on the first play, and Mack sacked Watson in the end zone on the very next snap, resulting in a safety.

Drive: 2 plays, -19 yards, 0:51

Score: Texans 7, Bears 16

Bears, touchdown: Following the free kick, which resulted in the Bears taking over at their own 34, Montgomery picked up 13 yards on the ground, with an unnecessary roughness call against Houston tacking on 15 more yards. Trubisky then completed four passes in a row. The fourth pass was a short toss to Darnell Mooney, who hustled inside the pylon for a 12-yard score.

Drive: 5 plays, 66 yards, 2:42

Score: Texans 7, Bears 23

Texans, punt: The Bears accepted a holding call against the Texans, turning what would have been fourth-and-1 into third-and-14. Houston was unable to pick up a first down and punted on fourth-and-4.

Drive: 3 plays, 6 yards, 1:37

Score: Texans 7, Bears 23

Bears, touchdown: Trubisky completed a third-down pass to Allen Robinson that kept the drive alive, and Robinson then hauled in a 22-yard pass. Out of a timeout, Trubisky was sacked for a loss of eight, but he bounced back with a 16-yard pass to Cole Kmet. Montgomery rushed for 11 yards on third-and-2, and, two plays later, a 16-yard reception by Robinson set up first-and-goal. Robinson capped off his productive drive by hauling in a bullet thrown by Trubisky for a three-yard touchdown.

Drive: 11 plays, 77 yards, 1:37

Score: Texans 7, Bears 30

Texans, end of half: Watson kneeled to close out a woeful half for the Texans.

Drive: 1 play, -1 yard, 0:08

Score: Texans 7, Bears 30

Second Half:

Bears, field goal: Following an 11-yard reception by Kmet, Robinson caught a pass over the middle and raced downfield for a gain of 35 yards. The Bears were then penalized for two separate infractions, bringing up first-and-25. On third-and-20, Trubisky dumped off a pass to Montgomery, who managed to pick up 18 yards before being taken down by J.J. Watt. After that, Cairo Santos kicked a 39-yard field goal.

Drive: 7 plays, 56 yards, 4:23

Score: Texans 7, Bears 33

Texans, turnover on downs: An incredibly time-consuming drive ended in disheartening fashion for the Texans. On fourth-and-1 at the Chicago 41, Darren Fells caught a 15-yard pass. Houston eventually reached the 3-yard line, and blinding sunlight in the right side of the end zone resulted in a wide-open Jordan Akins failing to catch what would have been a touchdown pass. Thereafter, a touchdown run by Watson was reversed following a replay review, which determined that he was down at the 1. On the next snap, Watson was hit in the elbow by a pass rusher, forcing him to leave the game prior to fourth-and-goal. A.J. McCarron entered in Watson's wake and was sacked by Roquan Smith, resulting in a turnover on downs.

Drive: 17 plays, 62 yards, 8:30

Score: Texans 7, Bears 33

Bears, punt: The Bears were unable to move the sticks after getting flagged for a false start on first down.

Drive: 3 plays, 7 yards, 1:02

Score: Texans 7, Bears 33

Texans, turnover on downs: Brent Urban and Mario Edwards Jr. sacked Watson, helping bring about the Texans' second straight turnover on downs.

Drive: 4 plays, -10 yards, 1:05

Score: Texans 7, Bears 33

Bears, field goal: A 13-yard carry by Montgomery and a 10-yard catch by Anthony Miller led to a 32-yard field goal by Santos.

Drive: 8 plays, 28 yards, 4:13

Score: Texans 7, Bears 36

Texans, punt: Smith sacked Watson on third down, and the punt unit then came onto the field.

Drive: 3 plays, -4 yards, 1:43

Score: Texans 7, Bears 36

Bears, punt: Two incompletions by Trubisky and one short run by Montgomery culminated in a punt. However, Sherrick McManis forced a fumble on the ensuing return, with Coutee coughing up the ball, which was recovered by Josh Woods.

Drive: 3 plays, 3 yards, 0:43

Score: Texans 7, Bears 36

Bears, punt: Following the turnover, Chicago wound up punting again, this time from Houston territory. The Bears were pushed out of field goal range when Trubisky was sacked on third down.

Drive: 5 plays, -3 yards, 4:02

Score: Texans 7, Bears 36

Texans, end of game: Fittingly, the game ended on a sack by the Bears. Houston reached the Chicago 25 before Edwards dropped Watson in the backfield for a loss of 14, causing the clock to expire. The Chicago defense racked up seven sacks — the most single-game sacks by the Bears since 2005 — in the blowout win, which marked the Bears' first victory in nearly two months. As for the Texans, they were eliminated from playoff contention as a result of the loss.

Drive: 10 plays, 41 yards, 4:06

Final Score: Texans 7, Bears 36

Statistical Breakdown:

Chicago Bears: 1st Downs: 23; Total Plays: 59; Total Yards: 410; Total Drives: 11; Yards per Play: 6.9; Passing Yards: 241; Rushing Yards: 169; Red Zone: 3-4; Penalties: 7-44; Turnovers: 0; Defensive/Special Teams TDs: 0; Time of Possession: 29:35

Houston Texans: 1st Downs: 17; Total Plays: 64; Total Yards: 263; Total Drives: 11; Yards per Play: 4.1; Passing Yards: 155; Rushing Yards: 108; Red Zone: 1-2; Penalties: 6-50; Turnovers: 2; Defensive/Special Teams TDs: 0; Time of Possession: 30:25

"Bear Down" Team MVPs:

Passing: Mitchell Trubisky (QB): 24/33, 267 YDS, 8.1 AVG, 3 TD, 0 INT, 3-26 SACK, 126.7 RTG

Rushing: David Montgomery (RB): 11 CAR, 113 YDS, 10.3 AVG, 1 TD, 80 LONG

Receiving: Allen Robinson (WR): 9 REC, 123 YDS, 13.7 AVG, 1 TD, 35 LONG, 13 TGTS

Defense: Roquan Smith (LB): 12 TOT, 8 SOLO, 2 SACKS, 2 TFL, 0 PD, 3 QB HITS, 0 TD

Special Teams: Pat O'Donnell (P): 5 NO, 199 YDS, 39.8 AVG, 1 TB, 2 IN 20, 48 LONG

Up Next: Next up for the Bears is an NFC North battle versus the Minnesota Vikings (6-7), who defeated Chicago 19-13 at Soldier Field in Week 10. The Bears will aim to avenge that loss when they take on the Vikings at noon CST on Sunday, Dec. 20. The Week 15 matchup will be an indoor contest at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.

Highlights:

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