Simmons Debuts, Swift Scores Three: Bears Rout Seahawks 34-17 in Seattle
Chicago's trade-deadline splash paid off instantly on Monday night, as the Bears dismantled the defending champions to move to 6-2.
The Bears went into Seattle on Monday night and made the loudest statement of their season, beating the Seahawks 34-17 to improve to 6-2 — and their newest star needed exactly one drive to justify the price Chicago paid for him.
A statement from the opening drive
Jeffery Simmons, acquired from Tennessee just days earlier in a deal that included two first-round picks, sacked Sam Darnold on Seattle's opening possession and never slowed down: six tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and a pass defensed in his Chicago debut, per NBC Sports. The Bears' offense answered with a 17-play touchdown march to open the game, and Caleb Williams was clean all night — 24 of 34 for 247 yards, a touchdown to Luther Burden and no turnovers.
Seattle hung around into the second half behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who caught six passes for 118 yards and a score, and a Cooper Kupp touchdown set up by a forced fumble that briefly cut it to 20-17. But Darnold finished 17 of 34 for 188 yards and was picked off in the fourth quarter — a tipped ball returned deep into Seattle territory — and kicker Jason Myers had a brutal night, missing an extra point and having a 33-yard field goal blocked.
Swift takes over after the break
D'Andre Swift ground out 69 yards on 27 carries, but all three of his touchdowns came after halftime, the last with 4:41 left to put it away. Seattle converted just 1 of 11 third downs, went three-and-out five times, and committed three unnecessary-roughness penalties in the second half.
What it means
The loss drops the defending champions to 4-4, with three defeats in their last four games, and Seattle Sports notes it ended a 30-game streak of never losing by more than four points — the fourth-longest such run of the Super Bowl era. Chicago, meanwhile, looks like a team that traded for a difference-maker because it believes this season is the one.