3 Takeaways from Bears' Week 17 Win vs. Falcons
The Chicago Bears continued their winning ways on Sunday with a 37-17 home triumph over the Atlanta Falcons.
Justin Fields made yet another case for the Bears to keep him for next season and beyond on the day the Bears clinched the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft.
Fields' performance looked even better because he threw for 268 yards without Cole Kmet in the lineup.
Fields continued his excellent connection with D.J. Moore and got a handful of other players involved in the passing game.
Chicago's defense slowed down an Atlanta offense that has been average at best for a majority of the season.
The Bears limited Taylor Heinicke and Co. to 307 total yards and no more than seven points in a single quarter.
Justin Fields Continues to Impress with Job on the Line
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Fields is making the Bears' offseason quarterback decision incredibly difficult.
The Bears quarterback threw for 268 yards and ran for 45 more yards in Sunday's win that pushed the franchise up to 7-9.
Fields played well during the recent surge in form and he has made the best case for himself to stay for next season and beyond.
Chicago can do whatever it wants with the No. 1 overall pick, but if general manager Ryan Poles feels Fields is the guy, that selection can be used on an offensive playmaker or to trade down to collect more picks.
If Chicago moves on, Fields has given other teams with quarterback needs a great set of games to watch to show what he can do as an NFL starter.
Offense Made Up for Cole Kmet's Absence
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The Bears appeared to be at a disadvantage when Cole Kmet was ruled out with his knee injury.
However, the other players behind D.J. Moore on the depth chart came together to fill in the production left open by the starting tight end.
Robert Tonyan had one of his better games with the Bears, as he had three catches for 40 yards.
Roschon Johnson, Tyler Scott, Collin Johnson and Khalil Herbert also caught passes from Fields.
Moore was still the top receiver with nine catches for 159 yards, but it meant something to the offense that the supporting pieces were not totally quiet with Fields' No. 2 option sidelined.
First Half Defense Made Difference
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The Bears slowed down the Falcons offense in the first half to allow Fields to break the game open.
Chicago limited the Falcons to two field-goal attempts on their first two series. Both of those kicks were missed by Younghoe Koo.
Atlanta punted twice and Heinicke threw an interception on three of Atlanta's four other first-half series. The Falcons scored a touchdown on their third drive.
Even though Heinicke moved the ball on the two missed field goal drives, the Bears came up with the necessary stops to force those attempts.
The defensive performance was yet another positive sign that the Bears really are a few pieces away from contending for a playoff position in the next year or two.
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