CHICAGO, Caleb Williams endured the first four-interception game of his NFL career Sunday night, then delivered the key completion that helped the Bears beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-24. Cairo Santos kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired, giving Chicago a victory despite five turnovers and a lost 14-point lead.
Williams insisted the mistakes never weakened his willingness to throw. “I don't get gun shy,” he said. That confidence mattered on Chicago's final possession, which began with 2 minutes, 51 seconds remaining and all three timeouts available. Williams connected with a wide-open Colston Loveland for 38 yards to put the Bears in position for Santos' winning kick.
The late response followed a costly fumble by wide receiver Luther Burden III on Chicago's next-to-last drive. Burden took a helmet-to-helmet hit and lost the ball deep in Bears territory. Tampa Bay capitalized with Bucky Irving's 6-yard touchdown run and Baker Mayfield's successful two-point conversion, drawing even at 24-24.
Chicago never fell behind, extending a stretch of four consecutive victories in which it has not trailed. According to ESPN Research, the Bears became the third team in the past 20 seasons to commit at least five turnovers, never trail and still win. The game, Chicago's third straight appearance in primetime, also brought Williams his first game-winning drive in the fourth quarter or overtime this season. He had six in 2025, tied for the second-most.
Williams opened with consecutive touchdown drives to establish a 14-point first-quarter advantage. The trouble began on Chicago's third possession, when he tried to squeeze a goal-line pass to Rome Odunze between two defenders. Williams acknowledged that he “got greedy” on the throw. Two more interceptions followed in the second quarter on passes he said were intended to go out of bounds.
His fourth interception came in the third quarter. A pass intended for Burden was deflected by Buccaneers cornerback Jacob Parrish and caught by linebacker Alex Anzalone. Tampa Bay blitzed on 66% of Williams' dropbacks, the third-highest rate he has faced in his career. Those pressures produced three of his interceptions, although both of his touchdown passes also came against the blitz.
Coach Ben Johnson expressed frustration with the performance but saw value in the way Chicago handled an unfamiliar late-game test. He said the team had prepared for situations requiring a decisive score with little time remaining and demonstrated that readiness on the final drive. Johnson also said he felt as calm calling plays on that possession as he had at any point during the game.
Williams said Chicago needed better answers to repeated blitzes and acknowledged his own responsibility to avoid mistakes. Before Week 9, he had thrown only four interceptions across his previous 15 regular-season games, dating to Nov. 2, 2025. He recalled three-interception outings at Gonzaga College High School and during his Heisman Trophy-winning USC season against Notre Dame. Both ended in losses, making Sunday's victory a different outcome even as he identified plenty to improve.
