USA Today
Bears Play Game of Giveaway
The Arizona Cardinals offense usually needs little help putting up points.
The Bears offense gave it to them just the same and then spent all of Sunday unsuccessfully playing catch-up against Kyler Murray in a 33-22 loss at Soldier Field.
Andy Dalton matched a career high with four interceptions and the Cardinals drove a total of 76 yards for 24 of their points.
Arizona needed to move only 43 yards to take a 14-0 lead and was never caught.
"You know, in the end that's what it comes down to is those turnovers, the momentum and the short fields for them against that offense and that team," Bears coach Matt Nagy said. "It's hard to overcome."
Dalton, playing because of Justin Fields' broken ribs, finished the game 26 of 41 for 229 yards with two touchdown passes. But the turnovers kept hounding him.
The Bears outgained the Cardinals 329 yards to 257 and David Montgomery rushed for 90 yards while hauling on passes for 51 yards, but the Bears never had the chance to regain the lead once they went into the locker room down 21-7 at halftime.
Arizona had to throw only 15 times to score 33 points.
"You can't turn the ball over is what it comes down to," Dalton said. "We moved the ball really well today at times and we've just got to do that more consistently.
"We can't give them more opportunities and give them short fields."
The first three interceptions came on deflections, either off a receiver's hands or a defender's. The last was a screen pass Dalton took full responsibility for after he threw it directly at defensive lineman Zach Allen.
"The thing that's unfortunate in this league is tipped balls usually don't find the ground," Dalton said. "They usually find the other hands. You saw it three times."
The Cardinals had to drive only 76 yards for three touchdowns and a field goal after their four takeaways."
This wasn't all the Bears had go wrong. For the second straight home game the helmet headsets went out and Dalton couldn't hear offensive coordinator Bill Lazor call plays.
"They can talk to me, Andy couldn't hear Bill," Nagy said. "Bill was calling the play, I had the walkie talkie, so Bill was saying the play to me and I was relaying it into Andy."
It was either that, or as Nagy said, "... you're yelling plays like high school."
The Bears handled the elements—wind, cold and rain—the way a warm weather or dome team might be expected to, as they had the bad hands.
Dalton's first pass went off the hand of wide receiver Jakeem Grant and Jalen Thompson intercepted it. The return to the Bears 28 set up Arizona's first touchdown.
Rain, 40-degree temperatures and strong wind may have influenced some of the tipped passes.
The weather with wind rain and cold could have been a factor against the Bears in some cases. Grant let one punt hit the ground and had the first Andy Dalton pass go off his hands for an interception.
"I was definitely cold," Grant said. "Just playing in Miami for five years, it was just a shock to me with 17 mph winds. I was like 'oh my god, I don't know how the punt's gonna be. Coach, I don’t know.' But I think the weather conditions was definitely a little bit of an effect, just you know, being able to secure the catch and look it all the way through.
"I think that in games like that we've got to have major focus."
So much for Bear weather.
Tight end Cole Kmet had a pass go right off his chest and to Budda Baker, and returned 77 yards to the Bears 15 to set up a TD for a 14-0 Cardinals lead. Dalton suffered a left hand injury trying to make a tackle on the play, much like Jay Cutler once did with the Bears.
"I'm going to get it evaluated and see whats going on," Dalton said. "Obviously it didn't affect me. I was able to play the whole game. We'll see how it goes this week."
Whether Dalton is even playing next week at Green Bay is uncertain and depends on Fields.
The Bears felt they established some offensive momentum even in a game they trailed 33-14.
"We wanted to try to get the run going and different things and so I mean it took us a while," Dalton said. "Once we kind of got settled in we were able take it down the field."
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