CHICAGO (AP) — Dennis Allen’s defense dominated his former team, and the Chicago Bears beat the New Orleans Saints 26-14 on Sunday for their fourth straight win.
Allen, the Bears’ defensive coordinator, had to like what he saw in his first game against the Saints since they fired him as head coach midway through last season after 2 1/2 years. The Bears forced four turnovers and sacked Spencer Rattler four times.
Montez Sweat set the tone with an early strip-sack that led to a field goal. Nahshon Wright set up the game’s first touchdown with a long interception return, and the Bears (4-2) overcame a spotty performance by Caleb Williams to match their best streak since the 2018 NFC North championship team closed the regular season with four straight wins. They also had a much easier time after winning 25-24 at both Las Vegas and Washington.
New Orleans (1-6) continued its worst start since opening 1-7 in 1999 under then-coach Mike Ditka, the Hall of Famer and Super Bowl-winning coach with the Bears.
Williams completed 15 of 26 passes for 172 yards and an interception. But Chicago got huge contributions from the running backs.
D’Andre Swift, coming off a 108-yard game against Washington, ran for a season-high 124 yards and a touchdown.
Rookie Kyle Monangai added a career-high 81 yards and a touchdown, helping Chicago stop an eight-game losing streak against the Saints. They hadn’t beaten New Orleans since 2008.
Rattler was 20 of 32 for 233 yards while throwing three interceptions.
Chris Olave caught five passes for 98 yards and two touchdowns. His 57-yard reception near the end of the first half set up a 21-yard TD, and he hauled in a 14-yarder on the opening drive of the third quarter to pull the Saints within 20-14.
The Bears held New Orleans to 13 yards before a 91-yard touchdown drive near the end of the half. Olave beat cornerback Tyrique Stevenson on a 57-yard reception to the 21, and he hauled in a 21-yard touchdown two plays later, cutting it to 20-7 in the closing minute.
The Saints went 80 yards for a touchdown on the opening drive of the second half, with Olave’s 14-yarder cutting it to 20-14.
Chicago then drove from the 28 to the 1, only to settle for a field goal by Jake Moody after center Drew Dalman got flagged for a false start when he double-clutched on a fourth-down snap at the goal line.
Moody, filling in for the second straight game with Cairo Santos sidelined by a quad injury, added a 33-yarder midway through the fourth, making it 26-14, and Tremaine Edmunds intercepted a tipped pass thrown by Rattler to help seal the win.
Injuries
Saints: RB Kendre Miller (knee) left the game after he was hurt in the first quarter.
Bears: Stevenson (shoulder) and TE Cole Kmet (back) were injured
Up next
Saints: Host Tampa Bay next Sunday.
Bears: At Baltimore next Sunday.
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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl
Andrew Seligman, The Associated Press
