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The Chicago Bears finished the 2022 season with a 3-14 record, the most losses in the NFL this year and the most in franchise history.
Here’s how the season unfolded.
Equanimeous St. Brown whipped the football at the wall behind the end zone in celebration early in the fourth quarter.
The Bears wide receiver caught an 18-yard touchdown pass from Justin Fields in stride, and the burst of energy within Soldier Field at the team’s first lead of the game was immediate.
The Bears started slow with a scoreless first half but roared back after halftime for a 19-10 victory over the 49ers.
After a 2.8 passer rating at halftime, Fields rebounded to finish 8-for-17 for 121 yards, two touchdowns, an interception and an 85.7 passer rating. Bears players slid in a puddle-filled end zone at the end of the upset to celebrate.
>>> Read more about the Week 1 win here
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The slow-motion replay aired again and again on the video board and TVs around Lambeau Field.
On fourth-and-goal at the 1-yard line with the Bears trailing the Packers by two touchdowns, Bears quarterback Justin Fields caught a shotgun snap and clawed his way toward the goal line. A wall of Packers players stopped his progress, and officials ruled him short.
Bears coach Matt Eberflus threw the challenge flag, but after several minutes of looking at the replay, the call stood.
The Bears could not make it a one-score game, and they couldn’t recover. The Packers pulled off a 27-10 win, their seventh straight in the rivalry.
>>> Read more about the Week 2 loss here
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Roquan Smith came up with a big play just when the Bears needed it at Soldier Field.
Smith jumped in front of Texans quarterback Davis Mills’ pass to Rex Burkhead for an interception and returned it 18 yards to the 12-yard line with just more than a minute to play.
Kicker Cairo Santos followed with a 30-yard field goal to give the Bears a 23-20 victory to improve to 2-1.
>>> Read more about the Week 3 win here
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The Bears knew they would have a challenge stopping Giants running back Saquon Barkley at MetLife Stadium, and Barkley made his mark with 146 rushing yards.
Giants quarterbacks Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor also carved up the Bears defense, combining for 98 rushing yards in a 20-12 victory.
The Bears had a late chance to go on a tying drive after the defense came up with a stop, but rookie returner Velus Jones Jr., who was making his NFL debut, muffed the punt. Giants running back Gary Brightwell recovered it, and the Giants held on to win.
>>> Read more about the Week 4 loss here
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Seemingly left for dead after falling into a 21-3 hole early in the second quarter, the Bears mounted an impressive rally at U.S. Bank Stadium and eventually took a 22-21 fourth-quarter lead over the Vikings.
But the Bears ultimately came up short in a gut-wrenching 29-22 loss.
Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins provided the game-winning score, capping a 17-play, 75-yard touchdown march with a 1-yard sneak with 2:26 remaining. Cousins then hit Justin Jefferson for a 2-point conversion.
The Bears’ last drive ended with 1:01 left to play when receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette had the football ripped away from him by Vikings cornerback Cam Dantzler after a 15-yard reception.
>>> Read more about the Week 5 loss here
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Velus Jones Jr. fell to the ground at the 9-yard line at Soldier Field, and the football hit him in the face mask and bounced to the field.
The Bears rookie returner tried to jump on the fumble, but the Commanders recovered it at the Bears 6-yard line.
Two plays later, Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. scored on a 1-yard run, and following a failed two-point conversion, the Commanders had a 12-7 lead midway through the fourth quarter.
A mistake like Jones’ muffed catch in a game in which the Bears failed to score from within 5 yards of the end zone three times was too much. The Commanders left Chicago with the ugly 12-7 win — their second of the season. The Bears (2-4) lost their third straight.
>>> Read more about the Week 6 loss here
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In the press box at Gillette Stadium before the game against the Patriots, Bears general manager Ryan Poles told reporters what he saw as the next step for his young team.
“For the age of our team, there have been a lot of games where we’re knocking on the door to win games,” Poles said. “The next step is learning how to finish.”
Nearly five hours later, the Bears granted his wish, scoring 23 unanswered points from late in the second quarter into the fourth quarter to pull off a 33-14 victory over the Patriots.
The game had some historical significance beyond the Bears beating the Patriots for the first time since 2000 and the first time ever in New England. It prevented Patriots coach Bill Belichick from passing Bears founder George Halas for sole possession of second place on the all-time wins list, for a week at least.
>>> Read more about the Week 7 win here
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Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott is no longer rusty. The Bears found that out the hard way at AT&T Stadium.
In his second game back from a thumb injury that caused him to miss five games, Prescott completed 21 of 27 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns in a 49-29 Cowboys victory. Running back Tony Pollard, taking a full load with Ezekiel Elliott out, rushed for 131 yards and three touchdowns.
In nine drives before the kneel-down, the Cowboys scored six touchdowns, punted twice and Prescott threw an interception to Eddie Jackson on the other.
Quarterback Justin Fields and the Bears offense put up 371 yards but couldn’t match the scoring pace as the Bears fell to 3-5.
>>> Read more about the Week 8 loss here
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The Bears defense struggled to slow the Dolphins and wide receivers Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle for nearly three quarters at Soldier Field, but it finally came up with stops on three consecutive drives late in the game.
However, a Bears offense that had been humming most of the game couldn’t come up with a winning drive as the Dolphins hung on for a 35-32 victory.
QB Justin Fields rushed for 178 yards — an NFL record for a quarterback in a regular-season game — and a touchdown and completed 17 of 28 passes for 123 yards and three touchdowns.
It was a positive performance for the Bears offense, until it couldn’t come through at the end.
>>> Read more about the Week 9 loss here
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Bears quarterback Justin Fields had another incredible running game at Soldier Field, rushing for 147 yards, including a 67-yard touchdown.
But that wasn’t enough to help the Bears to a victory.
Lions coach Dan Campbell earned his first road win with the 31-30 victory. It was the Lions’ first victory on an opponent’s turf since beating the Bears on Dec. 6, 2020, at Soldier Field.
The Lions took the 31-30 lead on Jamaal Williams’ 1-yard touchdown run with 2 minutes, 21 seconds to play. That capped a 91-yard drive that included a 44-yard pass from Jared Goff to Tom Kennedy, who got by cornerback Jaylon Johnson.
>>> Read more about the Week 10 loss here
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Bears quarterback Justin Fields tossed the third-down pass into the air, and the ball glanced off the hands of leaping running back David Montgomery.
Falcons safety Jaylinn Hawkins dived to intercept the pass and seal the 27-24 victory over the Bears at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The Bears had a chance to tie the game or take the lead after the Falcons took the three-point lead on kicker Younghoe Koo’s 53-yard field goal with 1 minute, 47 seconds to play.
Fields gained 1 yard and 4 yards on back-to-back runs, coming up after the first clutching his left shoulder. But the interception on third-and-5 pushed the Bears to their fourth straight loss.
>>> Read more about the Week 11 loss here
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Mike White won the battle of the backups at MetLife Stadium.
The Jets quarterback, filling in for benched starter Zach Wilson, threw for 315 yards and three touchdowns in a 31-10 victory over the Bears.
Trevor Siemian, who started in place of injured Bears starter Justin Fields, completed 14 of 25 passes for 179 yards with a touchdown and an interception on a wet afternoon in New Jersey.
Siemian was the starting quarterback, then the backup, then the starter in the 90 minutes leading up to the game.
>>> Read more about the Week 12 loss here
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Justin Fields and the Bears offense had a chance to break a nearly four-year losing streak to the Packers at Soldier Field.
Down by a point late in the fourth quarter, the Bears were marching downfield when Fields threw a pass toward Equanimeous St. Brown. Packers cornerback Jaire Alexander was there instead to make the interception at the 28-yard line.
The Packers takeaway followed by a touchdown and 2-point conversion on the ensuing drive sealed their 28-19 comeback victory — their eighth straight win against the Bears, who last won in the rivalry on Dec. 16, 2018.
>>> Read more about the Week 13 loss here
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Quarterback Justin Fields reached 1,000 rushing yards for the season and the Bears defense had three takeaways at Soldier Field.
But neither was enough to stop the Eagles from recording their 13th victory of the year.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts passed for 315 yards and ran for 61 to fuel a 25-20 win over the Bears. It was the seventh straight loss for the 3-11 Bears.
Fields finished with 95 rushing yards on 15 carries. He also completed 14 of 21 passes for 152 yards and two touchdowns.
>>> Read more about the Week 15 loss here
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The sprinkling of Bears fans who still were standing in the subzero windchill at Soldier Field as the clock ticked down weren’t gifted with a victory.
The Bears defense had three takeaways but also gave up 254 rushing yards, including three touchdowns on the ground in the second half, in the Bills’ 35-13 victory. It was the Bears’ eighth straight loss.
Bears quarterback Justin Fields completed 15 of 23 passes for 119 yards. A week after hitting 1,000 rushing yards for the season, he had seven carries for just 11 yards. The Bears scored a touchdown on their opening drive of the game but managed only two Cairo Santos field goals after that.
>>> Read more about the Week 16 loss here
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The 2022 Bears now own the longest losing streak in a single season in franchise history.
The Bears’ disastrous 41-10 loss to the Lions on New Year’s Day at Ford Field was their ninth straight, topping eight-game streaks in 1978 and 2002. The Bears last won a game 69 days ago, a 33-14 road victory over the New England Patriots.
At 3-13, they also tied the franchise record for losses with the 1969 (1-13) and 2016 (3-13) teams. If they lose the season finale against the Minnesota Vikings, they would set a team record for losses in the second year of the NFL’s 17-game season.
The 31-point margin of defeat was the Bears’ worst this season, topping a 22-point loss to the Buffalo Bills a week earlier. There weren’t many positives for the Bears except that the loss doesn’t hurt their chances at a high draft pick.
>>> Read more about the Week 17 loss here
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The Bears lost to the Vikings in their season finale at Soldier Field — but they notched a win for their future.
The Bears’ 29-13 loss, coupled with the Texans’ 32-31 victory over the Colts, gives the Bears the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft.
With quarterback Justin Fields sidelined by a strained hip, the primary outside storyline in a game quarterbacked by both Nathan Peterman and Tim Boyle was whether the Bears would lose to secure a higher draft pick.
