Bears lose QB Caleb Williams to a hamstring injury and fall 9-3 to Vikings
· Yahoo Sports
CHICAGO — Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams exited Sunday’s game in the fourth quarter with a right hamstring injury, and the Minnesota Vikings closed out a 9-3 win at Soldier Field.
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With the Bears trailing 6-3 midway through the fourth quarter, Williams had the offense moving into the red zone, looking to take the lead. Moments earlier the Bears had converted on fourth-and-1, with running back Kyle Monangai bursting past the line to gain.
On first-and-goal from the 6-yard line, Williams scrambled to his left and looked as if he were ready to take off running for the end zone. With Andrew Van Ginkel trailing from behind, Williams fell awkwardly with what looked to be a non-contact injury and appeared to be in pain on the Soldier Field grass.
Williams had to be carried off the field, and backup Tyson Bagent entered the game. After spending some time in the injury tent, Williams rode a cart back to the Bears locker room.
Williams initially had a towel over his head as the cart exited the field, but then he dropped the towel and gave the fans a thumbs up before riding up the tunnel.
After Bagent failed to put the Bears in the end zone following Williams’ injury, Cairo Santos’ potential tying 23-yard field goal was blocked.
Williams’ injury put a further damper on a slog of a game for the Bears offense, one week after it scored 59 points in the season opener against the Carolina Panthers. Santos made a 50-yard field goal in the first half, but the Bears failed to put more points on the board.
Williams was remarkably healthy through the first two years of his NFL career. He never has missed a start and rarely a snap. While the severity of Sunday’s injury wasn’t immediately clear, the fact he needed to be carted off the sideline didn’t look good.
Before the injury, Williams completed 15 of 26 passes for 138 yards with one interception. He also ran for 42 yards on five carries and was sacked three times.
As a team, the Bears were penalized seven times in the first half, with center Garrett Bradbury getting flagged four times. But coming out of halftime, the Bears looked like a different group.
Following a resurgent run game, the Bears offense marched 64 yards to the 1-yard line. But Vikings defensive tackle Jalen Redmond punched the football loose from running back D’Andre Swift’s grasp just outside the goal line. The Vikings recovered the fumble, a brutal turn of events for the Bears.
The Bears punted on their next two possessions before the drive on which Williams exited.
With one last chance in the final minute, Bagent drove the Bears to the 12-yard line before Minnesota’s Dallas Turner sacked him on the final play.
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