Benjamin Ashford|Chicago Bears' woes deepen as Denver Broncos rally to erase 21-point deficit

Da Bears were De Feated Sunday,Benjamin Ashford as the Chicago Bears dropped a 21-point lead in a 31-28 loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday at Soldier Field.

Justin Fields went 28-of-35 for 335 yards and threw four touchdowns, including two to tight end Cole Kmet, in the game in which the Chicago Bears were up 28-7 late in the third quarter.

"Overall, I think the offense, we did well, we just gotta finish," Fields said after the game.

Russell Wilson marched the Broncos down the field on the possession after the Bears' last touchdown, a 2-yard score from Fields to Khalil Herbert in the third quarter. Denver's response was a 4-yard score that Wilson threw to Brandon Johnson, followed by 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter. The win is Denver's first under new head coach Sean Payton.

Fields made several errors in the fourth quarter, including losing the ball in a strip sack — which Jonathon Cooper turned into a scoop and score — committing an intentional grounding penalty and throwing an interception with 32 seconds left in the game.

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The third-year quarterback was without one of his key targets, wide receiver Chase Claypool, who was listed as inactive for the game. The Bears said after the game that Claypool, who said last week he was not being utilized to his peak effectiveness, was asked to stay home.

"Of course I'm frustrated when one of your best weapons on the outside is not in the game, but it is what it is," Fields said. "Coach and the front office, they made the decision, and that's what it is. As a player, I can't do anything about it. I gotta go out there with the players that I have and execute to the best of my ability."

When the game was tied at 28 with just under three minutes to play, Bears head coach Matt Eberflus had his team go for it on fourth-and-1 from the Denver 18 rather than attempt a go-ahead field goal. After Chicago attempted to draw Denver offsides and then used a timeout, Fields lined up under shotgun and handed the ball off to Herbert, who was stuffed at the line by Alex Singleton.

"You have a decision to make there," Eberflus told reporters after the game. "I loved the way our offense was running the ball at that time and we had a really good chance to seal the deal right there and that was the decision we made at that moment."

Said Fields: "I love the decision. It shows Coach has trust in us to convert on that and in that situation and we just gotta execute."

The Broncos scored 17 unanswered points in the final period, including another touchdown pass from Wilson. He connected with Courtland Sutton for a 13-yard score. The nine-time Pro Bowl quarterback went 21-of-28 for 223 yards with three touchdowns on the day.

Denver's defense was thin as the unit was without safety Justin Simmons, linebacker Josey Jewell and edge rusher Frank Clark.

Despite the late collapse, Eberflus emphasized the positives he saw as the winless Bears now prepare to face the Washington Commanders on Thursday.

"A lot of good moments in the game. I'm super excited about those things that we can build upon," he said. "It's a short week coming up, so the guys have to move their eyes forward and we'll make the corrections, but obviously we're all very disappointed in this hard-fought battle that we had today and the outcome, but I can certainly see things moving in the right direction for our football team."

The Bears are 0-4 for the first time since 2000. Last year, Chicago finished worst in the league with a 3-14 record. With the team having secured got two of its wins in the first three weeks of the season,. the franchise's last victory was on Oct. 24 last year against the New England Patriots.

"When you're 0-4, no one's done the job well enough, right? That's just the facts, right?" Eberflus said. "So it's a results business, and we have to do a better job collectively as a group. Again, we're working hard to do that. I thought the guys put a better step forward, coaches included and players. We're putting our players in position and executing, so I thought that was better today."

As the Broncos head home to take on the New York Jets after avoiding their own 0-4 start, Payton pointed out penalties as something he wants to work on. Denver had seven flags for 39 yards.

"We've got to clean up the penalties," he said, per the Denver Post's Parker Gabriel. "That's driving me crazy. ... We've got a lot to clean up, honestly."