By Jeff Zrebiec, Dan Wiederer and Kevin Fishbain
BALTIMORE — Quarterback Tyler Huntley had a solid outing while starting in place of injured star Lamar Jackson on Sunday, guiding the Baltimore Ravens to a 30-16 victory over the Chicago Bears.
Huntley, the 27-year-old journeyman who made the Pro Bowl with Baltimore following the 2022 campaign, completed 17 of 22 passes for 186 yards against Chicago, his first start of the season. He threw one touchdown pass and did not commit a turnover, as Baltimore ended a four-game losing streak and improved to 2-5.
He also outdueled Chicago’s Caleb Williams, who passed for 285 yards, but also threw one interception and did not find the end zone. Chicago, which had won four straight games coming into this game, slipped to 4-3.
Ravens played the game they needed without Lamar Jackson
The Ravens didn’t ask Huntley to do a whole lot. They ran the ball a bunch and emphasized short passes. Huntley got the ball out quickly, and if he didn’t like the look that he wanted, he was willing to take off. The Ravens weren’t explosive on offense, but they were efficient and effective. The Ravens badly need Jackson back, and they are hopeful that will happen Thursday night against the Miami Dolphins, but Huntley played about as well as you can expect for a backup quarterback starting his first game of the year. — Jeff Zrebiec, Ravens beat writer
Bears miss an opportunity against Huntley
The Bears might not have been thrilled about the Ravens’ practice report mishap, but the result — facing Huntley instead of Jackson — should have been a recipe to steal a road game without multiple starters in the secondary. Instead, for the second time in four years, Huntley beat the Bears, and the defense made him look like an above-average starter.
Huntley finished the game with a 116.9 passer rating while completing 77.3 percent of his passes, and he was 11 of 12 in the first half. He did it with his legs and his arms, and the Bears rarely had an answer after the three-and-out on the opening drive. They can point to being down Tyrique Stevenson and Kyler Gordon at corner, but the front seven was intact, and they couldn’t get that one impact play to change the game. The takeaway magic ran out, and we saw what this defense, albeit undermanned, looked like against a backup quarterback who was on the practice squad until Friday. The opening drive three-and-out turned out to be fool’s gold, and it won’t get easier next week against JaMarr Chase, Tee Higgins and company in Cincinnati. — Kevin Fishbain, Bears beat writer
What’s up with the Bears’ offense?
Rickety. That’s the best way to describe the Bears’ offense right now after another uneven performance that hindered the team in its first loss in 42 days. The offense just can’t find its groove, and it’s a cleanup process that may be far more demanding than outsiders realize.
The biggest slip-up Sunday came with nine minutes remaining, with the Bears down three points and backed up deep in their own territory. Williams, on a pass over the middle to Rome Odunze, was intercepted by cornerback Nate Wiggins, a costly giveaway that set up Baltimore’s 9-yard touchdown drive for a 23-13 lead.
That will be the play that sparks the most conversation after the Bears’ loss, an unfortunate turnover that symbolized the afternoon. Still, it was a messy day throughout. Eleven more penalties total by the team, including two false starts plus two intentional grounding fouls against Williams. The second grounding violation came in the final seconds of the first half, with Williams pressured and firing a pass into no-man’s land on the left side of the field.
The penalty not only cost the Bears 10 yards, but it also required them to use their final timeout to avoid a 10-second runoff with just 22 seconds remaining. Soon after, the half ended with a 9-yard Williams completion over the middle and then a 58-yard field goal attempt on a fire drill as time expired.
Cairo Santos’ kick came up short. That was the kind of day it was for the Bears, just too much sloppiness in key situations to upend a quality opponent on the road. — Dan Wiederer, Bears beat writer
A good first step for Baltimore
Only one team in modern NFL has made the playoffs after starting 1-6. The Ravens clearly understood this week that any chance of them saving their season hinged on them beating a Bears team Sunday that came in with a four-game winning streak.
It was a rough week, with so much attention on the injury status of Jackson and the morale of the locker room. The Ravens, however, came out and played with the desperation befitting the circumstance. The defense created a key fourth-quarter turnover, the offense answered the call every time the Ravens needed points and head coach John Harbaugh and much-maligned offensive coordinator Todd Monken made the right calls. The Ravens have a long way to go, but they had to start somewhere. — Zrebiec
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