Chicago Bears End Longest Skid In Franchise History

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LANDOVER, Md. -- Four days after squandering a three-touchdown lead to mark their 14th straight loss, the Chicago Bears ended the longest losing streak in franchise history with a 40-20 walloping of the Washington Commanders on Thursday.

Nearly an entire year -- 346 days, to be exact -- had passed since Chicago's last victory. After an 0-4 start amid off-field drama and poor on-field performances, just how badly did the Bears need this win?

"Pretty bad, I'm not going to lie," tight end Cole Kmet said. "I think the emotion I felt literally until ... the clock hit zero was relief. It's been a long time coming to get this first win. We've got a lot of talent; we've just got to put it together. These types of performances can carry over, but we have to be able to execute and be in sync as a group."

Only a handful of players remain from the last Bears team to score 40 points, in a 41-17 win against Jacksonville in Week 16 of the 2020 season. Wide receiver Darnell Mooney, who was a rookie that season, hardly remembered the outcome given how many losses the Bears accumulated from that time on.

What did feel familiar was the rut the Bears' offense found itself in after a blazing start. Chicago scored a touchdown or field goal on every drive in the first half, sparked by two TD receptions from DJ Moore, and built a 24-point lead by the end of the second quarter. Quarterback Justin Fields became the first Bears player since the 1970 merger to throw for three touchdowns in the first half of back-to-back games.

A third quarter that featured two drives for Chicago, both of which resulted in punts, while Washington scored a touchdown and field goal, was the motivation the Bears used to avoid another letdown.

"We're not allowing this to happen again," Mooney said. "We felt that power of another team having that against us, and we don't want to feel that again."

Moore's huge night prevented another disappointment and helped the Bears secure a win on the road. The 25-year-old receiver caught eight passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns, the second-most receiving yards in a game in Bears history.