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The Chicago Bears keep finding ways to lose games in the Matt Eberflus era, and this one was served up to the New Orleans Saints on a silver platter. Not only were the penalties slanted in the Saints' favor with 8 for 71 yards against the Bears and just 1 for 5 on New Orleans, but Chicago turned the ball over five times to zero from the Saints.
Considering all the mistakes from Eberflus' team, the fact this was only a 24 to 17 loss is remarkable.
The Bears did outgain the Saints 368 yards to 301, and they had more first downs, 20 to 18, but overcoming a 5-0 turnover margin is something that hasn't been done in 25 years.
NFL teams have now lost their last 101 games when losing the turnover battle 5-0.
— Kevin Fishbain (@kfishbain) November 5, 2023
That dates back to Oct. 4, 1998, when the Bears lost 5 fumbles against the Lions but won 31-27 thanks to a 21-0 fourth quarter. Erik Kramer had 2 TD passes, Edgar Bennett had 1 (cc: @readjack).
Let's look at the Bears' playing time breakdowns and a few individual stats.
OFFENSE
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Tyson Bagent was responsible for four of Chicago's turnovers, with a fumble and three interceptions. He was 18 of 30 passing for 220 yards, with 2 touchdowns and a passer rating of 65.3. He also had 70 yards rushing on 10 attempts.
D'Onta Foreman led the Bears with 20 carries for 83 yards.
Cole Kmet caught both of Bagent's TD throws on 6 receptions for 55 yards.
Darnell Mooney led the Bears with 82 receiving yards on 5 catches.
DJ Moore caught 3 for 44 yards with a fumble.
Teven Jenkins was the only starting offensive lineman that wasn’t penalized.
DEFENSE
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T.J. Edwards filled the stat sheet with 15 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 QB hit, and 1 pass defended.
Jack Sanborn had 9 tackles and a TFL, plus another tackle on special teams.
Eddie Jackson had 6 tackles in his first game back since October 15.
Montez Sweat had 2 tackles and a pass defended in his Chicago debut.
The Bears' defense had zero sacks and just 2 QB hits while allowing 3 TD passes and a passer rating of 118 for the Saint quarterbacks.
SPECIAL TEAMS*
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*The above image has players who only played in the third phase.
Trenton Gill punted 2 times for 95 yards with a net average of 37.5.
Cairo Santos doinked one of his 2 field goals but made both extra points.
To check out the complete Bears vs. Saints box score, I find that ESPN has an easy-to-navigate site, so hit that link if you want to see all the numbers.
All statistics and snap counts are taken directly from the NFL's Game Statistic and Information System, as are the accompanying pictures.
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