Not many Chicago Bears fans had hope that they were going to get the ball back at the end of the game to win it against the Washington Commanders, until one fatal mistake gave them life.
With a little over three minutes left in the fourth quarter and down 24-22, the Bears' defense was struggling to stop the run and get the Commanders off the field. Washington got to the Bears' 40-yard line and faced a third and one. Then the most important play of Chicago's season occurred.
Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels tried to hand a slick, wet ball to running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt, but never got a clean hand off, and it was fumbled and recovered by Nahshon Wright. The momentum completely shifted in favor of the Bears.
Chicago took it right down the field and set their backup kicker, Jake Moody, up with a 38-yard field goal to win the game. Moody nailed it right down the middle, and the Bears escaped with a critical 25-24 road victory over the Commanders.
The lead up after the Commanders is the stuff of legends for Bears
After the game, Bears running back D'Andre Swift spoke with the media about the moment Daniels fumbled the ball and what they were thinking. Swift kept it simple.
"We got an opportunity to go finish the game. Let's do it."
Swift certainly stepped up in a big way as he gained 34 of the Bears' 36 yards on the drive to set Moody up with the game-winning. The biggest plays on that final drive were the 10-yard run to get them into field goal range and two plays later, a 15-yard run by Swift to get them in the red zone.
The MVP of the game was Swift, as he racked up 108 rushing yards on 14 carries and caught another two passes for 67 yards and a 55-yard touchdown. He averaged a season-high 7.7 yards per carry in the game.
Read more: Jake Moody said what all Bears fans were hoping for after game-winning FG
ESPN commentator Troy Aikman said it best that whoever walked off that field in a loss is going to think about the missed opportunities. The Commanders messed up a chance at the end, and the Bears took full advantage of it to improve to 3-2 on the season.