CHICAGO (AP) — Justin Fields played the second half after Andy Dalton exited with a knee injury against his former team, and the rookie quarterback from Ohio State used Chicago’s stellar defensive performance to direct the Bears to a 20-17 victory over Joe Burrow and the Bengals.
Roquan Smith returned an interception 53 yards for his first career touchdown, one of three straight picks thrown by Burrow during the decisive stretch in Chicago’s first win of the season.
The 2019 Heisman Trophy winner never had a game like this as a pro or in college. He was not picked off more than once in his first 11 NFL games, and his high at Ohio State and LSU was two.
Coming off one of his best games as a pro and facing a defense that struggled in a season-opening loss, Joe Burrow looked as if he might be in for another big outing.
Fields took over on Chicago’s final drive of the second quarter after getting in on a handful of plays prior to that.