Caleb Williams threw two touchdown passes and the Chicago Bears beat Cleveland 31-3 on Sunday in one of the coldest games ever at Soldier Field even though the Browns’ Myles Garrett moved within a sack of the NFL’s single-season record.
The Bears (10-4) heated up early on a day when the gametime temperature was 8 degrees, scoring two first-quarter touchdowns and breaking the game open with two more in the third.
It was just the sort of performance they needed coming off a loss at Green Bay that knocked them from first to seventh in the NFC, with a rematch against their rivals at home next week looming.
Garrett had 1 1/2 sacks, giving him 21 1/2 on the season and leaving him one shy of the record shared by New York Giants Hall of Famer Michael Strahan (2001) and Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt (2021). He got to Williams in the second quarter on a third down at the Cleveland 8, and he and Shelby Harris took down the quarterback early in the fourth. A four-time All-Pro, Garrett has at least one sack in eight straight games and has 17 1/2 in that span.
Williams shook off a string of shaky outings, finishing 17 of 28 for 242 yards. He completed fewer than 60% of his passes in each of the previous six games.
D’Andre Swift ran for 98 yards and two touchdowns. DJ Moore added 69 yards receiving and two scoring catches with Rome Odunze missing his second straight game because of a foot injury.
Rookie Luther Burden caught six passes for 84 yards, including a 40-yarder.
D’Marco Jackson intercepted Shedeur Sanders deep in Cleveland territory in the third, leading to a touchdown for Chicago. Jaylon Johnson picked off a pass in the end zone late in the quarter, helping the Bears bounce back after having a five-game win streak snapped last week. They also won their fifth straight home game since a season-opening loss to Minnesota.
The Browns (3-11) have dropped three straight and six of seven.
Sanders was 18 of 35 for 177 yards and three interceptions. He was sacked five times in his fourth start. The Browns announced the highly publicized fifth-round pick and son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders will be their starter for the rest of the season after passing for 364 yards and three touchdowns while also having a rushing score against Tennessee last week.
Bears fans braved dangerously cold temperatures at Soldier Field.
“This is Bear weather. I come to every game like this. If they tell me it’s going to be cold, I buy the tickets right away. This is what I want to be out here doing,” said Bears fan Ryan. “There’s probably 15 articles of clothing on me, and I’m perfectly warm.”
As wind chills dipped below zero, fans still pulled up bright and early for their tailgates, doing everything they could to stay warm.
The Bears had roving medical teams throughout the stadium as well as four warming shelters in different areas to keep fans safe.
Fans say the sunshine helped out a bit, as well as the Bears sending them home happy with a win.
“The sun was on us at the start, so we got the nice warmth, and then it set, and you had to keep yourself going in. But, you know, we were scoring touchdowns. We were making plays,” said Bears fan Alex.
