The Chicago Bears held off the New England Patriots 30-24 on Thursday Night Football at Soldier Field, improving to 5-2 behind another big night from quarterback Caleb Williams. The victory was overshadowed, however, by a serious-looking knee injury to veteran tight end Cole Kmet in the fourth quarter.
The Bears won the game, 30-24, with Chicago moving to 5-2 on the season while the Patriots fall to 4-3 and 1-3 on the road. It capped an entertaining prime-time matchup between two quarterbacks taken at the top of the 2024 NFL Draft, with the hosts finally pulling clear in the final minutes.
Caleb Williams Answers Every Question
Caleb Williams threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns as the Chicago Bears cooled off Drake Maye and the New England Patriots in the 30-24 win. Williams finished 22-of-33 for 308 yards and two touchdowns as Chicago improved to 5-2.
A Record-Setting Return
Williams was playing in his second game back after being sidelined by a right hamstring injury, and he became the first Bears quarterback to throw for more than 300 yards in consecutive games since Mitch Trubisky had a three-game run in 2018. He leaned heavily on wide receiver Luther Burden III, with the duo linking up four times through the air for 130 yards and a touchdown.
On the other side, Drake Maye went 24-for-31 for 321 yards and two touchdowns, though he also threw a costly interception in the end zone in the first half. New England had won three consecutive games behind Maye, who threw 10 touchdown passes and just one interception during that streak before Thursday's setback. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson caught five passes for 93 yards and a touchdown for the Patriots.
Santos’ Clutch Kick Seals It
With the game still in reach for New England, kicker Cairo Santos delivered the dagger. Williams took a nearly costly sack on Chicago's final possession, but Santos drilled a career-long 58-yard field goal to extend the lead to two scores with 1:34 to play, a blow that effectively sealed the home team's victory. The kick stands as the longest of Santos' career and the third-longest in Soldier Field history. New England still found the end zone late, but a Patriots field goal only made it 30-24 with 37 seconds left, leaving Chicago needing just an onside-kick recovery to close it out.
Cole Kmet’s Scary Injury Overshadows the Victory
The celebration at Soldier Field was tempered by an injury to one of the locker room's most respected veterans. With 5:46 to play in the fourth quarter, Kmet caught an 8-yard pass from Caleb Williams and took a hard hit while running up the Bears' sideline, colliding with Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and linebacker Robert Spillane before immediately grabbing for his knee.
Kmet got to his feet with the help of trainers but could not put weight on his right leg, and he gave the crowd a thumbs-up as he was carted back to the locker room, where he was quickly ruled out for the remainder of the game. Afterward, the Bears ruled him out and coach Ben Johnson was grim about the outlook, saying, “I don’t think it looked very good.”
The tight end's importance to the roster was not lost on his quarterback. Williams said, "I don't have the words to describe what Cole is to me, what Cole is to this team, this organization. He's the longest-tenured Bear, I believe. And so he's been through it, and it's challenging, it's tough and I'll be with him." Kmet finished with three catches for 28 yards; entering Week 7, he had logged the eighth-highest snap count on offense and had missed only one game over his seven-year career due to injury.
Medical observers who watched the replay voiced early concern about the severity. Physical therapist Jeff Mueller described the contact as forcing Kmet's right knee into valgus, raising concern for an ACL or MCL issue. The Bears have not confirmed a diagnosis, and further testing is expected to determine how long the veteran tight end could be sidelined.
What's Next for Both Teams
The win continued a strong stretch for a Bears team that has leaned on resilience under first-year coach Ben Johnson, whose squad has had a penchant for overcoming adversity. It was also an emotional night in Chicago, with the Bears playing their first home game since the passing of legendary former coach Mike Ditka earlier this month. Fans who followed that story can revisit the tribute to the «Da Coach» legend for more on his legacy with the franchise.
For a full breakdown of how the matchup was expected to unfold before kickoff, the lineups and broadcast details were covered in the preview of the Patriots-Bears showdown. Chicago will now shift its attention to a home date against the Seattle Seahawks, while New England looks to regroup after falling to 1-3 on the road this season. Fans can follow all the latest results and storylines from around the league on the NFL news page.
With Kmet's status uncertain, rookie tight end depth and the Williams-Burden connection are likely to take on even greater importance for Chicago's offense in the coming weeks as the Bears try to build on their 5-2 start.