Giants Defense Suffers Another Fourth-quarter Collapse in 24-20 Loss to Bears

The New York Giants couldn’t hold on at a snowy Soldier Field, blowing their fourth fourth-quarter lead of the season as they fell to the Chicago Bears 24 to 20.

Their 11th consecutive road loss drops New York to 2–8. It overshadows another promising performance from rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart, who left the game with a head injury late in the third quarter.

Dart, who appeared to suffer his injury on the third-quarter fumble that the Bears eventually turned into points, was replaced by quarterback Russell Wilson, who failed to move the offense.

The Bears were without star receiver D.J. Moore for most of the game, who left in the second quarter, yet still managed to find a late offensive rhythm behind quarterback Caleb Williams.

Williams led the Bears to a thrilling double-digit comeback over New York, capping the comeback with a 17-yard touchdown run with 1:47 remaining in the game.

That final Chicago scoring drive was set up by punter Jamie Gillan, who shanked his final punt attempt 26 yards, the ball landing at the Bears' 47-yard line. Four plays later, Williams was off to the races with the game-winning score.

The Giants, as has frequently been the case this season, struggled in the red zone, converting just one of four trips into a touchdown. Curiously enough, they had a golden opportunity to convert another.

Still, on 4th-and-1 from the Bears' 1-yard line, in the fourth quarter, Giants head coach Brian Daboll elected to have Younghoe Koo, making his Giants debut, kick a 19-yard field goal to make it a 10-point game again.

Before his injury-induced exit, Dart was having another fine outing. He rushed for 66 yards on six carries, including a 24-yard touchdown, one of two rushing touchdowns he posted in the afternoon, and his fifth straight game with at least one rushing touchdown. That made him the first quarterback in NFL history to accomplish that feat.

In the air, he completed 19 of 29 passes for 242 yards, finishing with a 91.5 passer rating.

The Giants missed the mark early on, failing to convert twice on fourth down in the first half, first on a stuffed quarterback run, then on a perfectly placed end-zone throw ripped from tight end Daniel Bellinger’s hands by a defender.

Wide receiver Darius Slayton, who had a few key drops last week at home, rebounded with a remarkable one-handed catch late in the first quarter, followed by a 38-yard grab that set up New York’s first touchdown. Slayton exited at halftime with his ongoing hamstring issue but returned in the third quarter.

Johnson also stood out, bouncing back from a rough outing last week with several key catches downfield.

Defensively, the Giants struggled early against the run but tightened up in the second half, coming up with a crucial fourth-quarter stop before losing Dart.

The Giants will return home with several questions, among them the status of Dart, who will enter the protocol this week.

More importantly, questions continue to swirl about whether defensive coordinator Shane Bowen and/or head coach Brian Daboll will retain their jobs following yet another epic collapse.

The loss to Chicago drops New York to 2-8 and extends their road struggles as well as looming coaching criticisms. The Giants will host the Packers next week at MetLife Stadium.

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