Steelers' ineptitude in Chicago continues with loss to Bears

CHICAGO — Aaron Rodgers wasn’t available to continue his mastery of the Chicago Bears. He could merely watch from the sideline as the Pittsburgh Steelers continued their misery at Soldier Field.

The Bears converted a pair of Mason Rudolph turnovers into touchdowns, Caleb Williams threw three touchdown passes and the Steelers lost a 31-28 decision Sunday.

Rudolph started his first game of the season after Rodgers was scratched about two hours before the game because of his broken left wrist. Rudolph threw an interception and lost a fumble on a strip sack. The Bears, the NFL leader in takeaways, converted both gifts into touchdowns.

Rudolph also threw a touchdown pass to tight end Pat Freiermuth in the fourth quarter, but it was too little, too late.

The loss not only extended the Steelers’ record in Chicago to 1-13 all time, it dropped the Steelers into a tie with the Baltimore Ravens for first place in the AFC North. The Steelers and Ravens each have 6-5 records, but whereas the Ravens have won five in a row, the Steelers have lost four of their past six.

Chicago improved to 8-3 to continue its lead in the NFC North.

Rodgers had a 24-5 career record against the Bears and, for a while, it looked like the Steelers wouldn’t need his services. The Steelers held a 21-14 lead late in the first half before the Bears rallied to score 17 unanswered points.

Rudolph completed 24 of 31 attempts for 171 yards.

Williams was 19 of 35 for 239 yards. Two of his touchdown passes went to wide receiver D.J. Moore.

Trailing 21-17 at halftime, the Bears regained the lead at 8 minutes, 29 seconds of the third quarter when Williams found a wide-open Moore for a 25-yard touchdown. It came three plays after Moore was penalized 15 yards for taunting.

The first two drives of the second half ended in punts for the Steelers. On the third, a pass interference call on a deep throw intended for Calvin Austin III gave the Steelers a first down at the Chicago 35. On second down, Rudolph was sacked for a 7-yard loss and had the ball ripped from his grasp. The Bears recovered at the Chicago 46 and for the second time in the game, they turned the takeaway into a touchdown.

Kyle Monangai scored on a 2-yard run with 14:14 remaining to put the Steelers into a 31-21 hole.

Kenny Gainwell appeared to score on a 2-yard run, but DK Metcalf was flagged for holding, and the Steelers had to start fresh from the 12. On third down, Rudolph threaded a pass through several defenders, finding Freiermuth for a 3-yard touchdown pass. It ended a 17-play drive that consumed 7:47 and left 6:27 on the clock.

The Bears punted on fourth-and-2 from their 40, and the Steelers got the ball back at their 11 with 4:37 left. Rudolph’s 22-yard run on third down was negated by an illegal shift penalty. His third-and-9 pass was tipped, and coach Mike Tomlin elected to punt with 2:01 left.

The Steelers got the ball back with 1:29 left but used their final timeout on an injury to cornerback James Pierre prior to the Bears’ punt. The Steelers advanced to the Bears 47, but Rudolph’s fourth-down pass was batted down with 17 seconds remaining.

Rudolph’s first attempt of the game was a deep shot down the left sideline for Metcalf. Cornerback Nahshon Wright outjumped Metcalf for the ball, intercepting it at the Chicago 44. The Bears, who led the NFL with 22 takeaways entering the game, turned the pick into seven points. Williams led the Bears on an eight-play drive, finding Moore for a 5-yard touchdown. It came one play after linebacker Payton Wilson was flagged for pass interference, giving the Bears a first down.

A misplay on the kickoff led to the Steelers starting their next possession at the 5. All it meant was the offense had to go 95 yards for a touchdown, which it did to culminate a 13-play drive that took 7:58.

The drive ended with Metcalf taking a pitch from Rudolph and scoring on a 6-yard run. It was one of several oddities on the possession, which featured Metcalf also running an end around, Gainwell taking a direct snap in the wildcat formation and Rudolph finding little-used threat Ben Skowronek for a 21-yard reception.

The touchdown with 30 seconds left in the quarter tied the score 7-7. Rudolph was 6 of 6 for 56 yards on the drive.

Just 16 seconds into the second quarter, the Steelers had a 14-7 advantage. With the Bears at their 10, Williams was pressured into the end zone, where T.J. Watt threw him to the ground. Williams fumbled, and Nick Herbig pounced on the ball for the touchdown.

The Bears turned it over again about three minutes later when D’Andre Swift fumbled at the Steelers 48, and rookie Yahya Black recovered. The Steelers gave it right back when Connor Heyward was short on a fourth-and-1 tush push at the Chicago 30.

This time, the Bears didn’t give it back until after they had reached the end zone. The 70-yard touchdown drive spanned 11 plays and ended with Williams finding tight end Colston Loveland for a 12-yard score with 3:56 left in the half. The Bears converted a fourth down along the way.

The Steelers had better luck executing the tush push on their next drive. Heyward took the direct snap, but instead of plunging into the line, he handed off to Gainwell, who ran around right end for 55 yards before being pushed out of bounds at the 1.

Warren scored on the next play, taking a pitch and going in untouched to give the Steelers a 21-14 lead with 1:19 left in the half.

It left the Bears enough time, though, for Cairo Santos to kick a 47-yard field goal at the buzzer. And the comeback was on for the Bears.