Heartbreak in Chicago. A stunning playoff loss reveals the harsh reality: no guarantees for next year, only the sting of a missed opportunity.
The Chicago Bears' season came to an end on Sunday night at the hands of the Los Angeles Rams.
The Bears needed another fourth-quarter comeback, as they found themselves down 17-10 with 1:50 left. Chicago got the ball back and got into the red zone.
The offense eventually slowed down and faced a 4th-and-4 on the Rams' 14-yard line. Caleb Williams was pressured and had to make a throw to the end zone. The magic stayed alive, as Cole Kmet caught an improbable touchdown pass to tie the game at 17.
The Bears won the coin toss in overtime, and the defense got a big-time stop. However, Williams threw an interception on the ensuing drive, giving the ball back to Los Angeles.
The Rams went down and hit the game-winning field goal, eliminating the Bears with a 20-17 overtime loss.
After the game, a somber Ben Johnson went to the podium. He was asked about carrying momentum into "next year," but noted the NFL doesn't work that way.
"Next season is next season," Johnson said. "It's a whole different group. It's a whole different chapter. You know, we'll have to write a whole brand new story. That's the thing about this, is you put in all this work and you sacrifice, and you trust the people around you. You know, you can't take any shortcuts. So, I wish I could say that this is momentum from year one. It doesn't work that way. Honestly, I don't even wanna talk about next year yet. There will be a time and a place for it, but we're still hurting. We had a great opportunity here this year to make a name for ourselves. I'm proud that we were able to get to this point, and disappointed that we fell short."
The Bears pulled out all the stops to try to reach the NFC Championship.
With Ozzy Trapilo injured, they trotted out left guard Joe Thuney at left tackle, a position he had played occasionally with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Johnson kept his aggressive mindset on fourth down, much as he did last week against the Green Bay Packers. He attempted six fourth-down conversions and picked up first downs on three of them.
It can be easy to say that there is some upward momentum for this team after how year one went under Johnson, but nothing is certain in the NFL.
Either way, there is a lot to be happy about in Chicago in the near future.