Commander Country

Game Summary: Washington loses 31-15 to Bears

All of the action, recapped as it happens for the Washington Redskins.

Tony Thompson

Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports

Tonight marks the first the first Monday Night Football match-up between two of the most storied NFL franchises in history, the Washington Redskins and Chicago Bears. While it is still early in the season, they both face an uphill climb given the undefeated teams sitting atop their divisions.

First Quarter

First-round pick Montez Sweat recorded the first sack of his career after flushing quarterback Mitchell Trubisky out of the pocket and running him down. The sack came on third down to get the defense off the field and give the offense their first opportunity.

The first touchdown of the game came when the Redskins' offense was on the field, but not in the way they had imagined. Former Washington safety Ha Ha Clinton Dix picked off an errant throw from Case Keenum intended for Trey Quinn and took it to the house.

The Bears take an early 7-0 lead on the first interception thrown by Keenum this season.

Brandon Scherff was being attended to by the medical staff after a play in which he was rolled up by Chicago Bears defensive tackle Roy Robertson-Harris and Washington Redskins guard Ereck Flowers.

Scherff limped off the field and was momentarily replaced by journeymen offensive lineman Tony Bergstrom.

He was originally designated as questionable to return

Second Quarter

What would have been devastating news for a team already hit hard by the injury bug, a seemingly annual event, has been avoided as Scherff returned to the field, though not without a hiccup, missing a block on a third down pushing the Redskins backwards and leaving kicker Dustin Hopkins to attempt a 43-yard field goal that he missed.

It's gone from bad to worse here in the second quarter for the Washington Redskins when Chicago Bears edge rusher Khalil Mack beat tackle Morgan Moses around the edge and knocked the ball free from Case Keenum's hands.

It is the second turnover in the game for Keenum and the Redskins. The Bears scored moments later on an easy pitch and catch between Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and receiver Taylor Gabriel, his second of the game.

It's starting to get out of hand in the nation's capital. Cornerback Kyle Fuller just picked Keenum off. 

To recap tonight's offensive drives: 
Pick six
Punt
Missed field goal
Fumble
Interception
Keenum has had a hand in all three turnovers thus far.

This is now a game for the die-hards. The Bears take a 28-0 lead behind Trubisky's third touchdown pass to Taylor Gabriel. The 36 yard pass was originally ruled incomplete before referee Walt Anderson reviewed it.

The first half has mercifully come to an end, but not before the Redskins mounted a heroic last gasp drive that resulted in a field goal to cut the deficit to 25.

Keenum's first half stats are abysmal. 9 of 14 for 92 yards while being sacked and turning the ball over three times a piece. Meanwhile his counterpart Mitchell Trubisky has thrown as many touchdowns as he has incompletions.

Third Quarter

The greatest comeback in Redskins history is a 24 point come-from-behind victory with Kirk Cousins at the helm in 2015. This Bears defense is far superior to that 2015 Tampa Bay Buccaneers team, so it feels unlikely that it will be topped tonight.

Washington received the kickoff to start the half and quickly moved down field before Keenum decided to find his favorite receiver on the night, Bears safety Ha Ha Clinton Dix, who has two picks and 99 interception return yards, which is only three less than Keenum has thrown for through two plus quarters.

The Washington defense stiffens as the injured Eddy Pineiro pushes the kick wide following the fourth turnover of the night. The Redskins still trail 28-3.

Okay, it's clear that Keenum has not played well in this game. In his defense, however, the left side of his line is less than stellar and is going up against maybe the best defense in the entire league. It'd be wise to take care of the ball, but he has been under extreme duress for the majority of the night.

The Redskins get into the red zone for the third time tonight and capitalize, cutting the score to 28-9midway through the third quarter. "Scary" Terry McLaurin comes down with a contested catch into double coverage. 

Every week McLaurin does something to show he is the real deal, scoring in every game this year. The two point conversion failed when Keenum threw the ball to what was presumably his intended receiver, the two yard-line. Chris Thompson was open in the flat on the failed play.

With a chance to get off the field on 3rd and 8, Chicago hit the Redskins' defense with a screen for 25 yards. Compounding his missed tackle, safety Landon Collins, who was juked in the open field by Tarik Cohen on the play, caught up to him and appeared to pull out some kind of finishing move, slamming him to the ground and earning a personal foul for his efforts.

One play after the Redskins recovered a fumble that wasn't, as the player was ruled down by contact, Trubisky throws an interception to Josh Norman, his first pick of the year. The Redskins take over inside their own five yard-line.

Chris Thompson is nothing if not efficient. He ripped off a 33 yard screen pass to get the Redskins out around midfield. In a limited role, he is always efficient as a receiver coming out of the backfield. Plus, he's got a great last name.

The Redskins burn a timeout to avoid a delay of game penalty. There is just no way Jay Gruden will need those timeouts if this game magically gets close. 

The third quarter comes to an end with the Redskins still trailing 28-9.

Fourth Quarter

Vernon Davis attempted his second hurdle of the season but Prince Amukamara was having none of that, backing off and catching him. Honestly, that's a pretty good result as opposed to getting upended and landing horribly.

It's unclear if tight end Jeremy Sprinkle can actually catch the ball or not. He dropped one early in the first half and just let one go straight through his hands in the flat on first-and-goal.

Lisa Salters is reporting that Adrian Peterson is upset that he's not on the field for this goal-to-go situation. Can't say I blame him as Chris Thompson isn't the prototypical goal line back, despite being used like one on this series. 

The Redskins score on a 97-yard drive, converting a 4th-and-goal when Keenum hit Paul Richardson for the score. 

The second two point attempt of the night was unsuccessful. The Bears trail by 13 with just over 13 minutes remaining. The game is surprisingly not over.

Bears wideout Taylor Gabriel, who some might remember from scoring three separate times tonight, has been ruled out with a concussion.

Big 3rd and four results in Trubisky throwing a desparation pass to Tarik Cohen down the left sideline. The Redskins defense gets off the field.

This seems insane, but Keenum and the offense are one drive away from putting pressure back on Trubisky, who despite what his numbers say tonight, is not a world beater.

Booger McFarland thinks that the Redskins should go for it on 4th-and-1 down 13 in the fourth quarter. He's getting a hang of this analytics movement.

McLaurin makes a play by getting inside leverage on Kyle Fuller, securing the catch and keeping the Redskins' faint hopes alive.

Peterson was stopped just short of the line to gain on 3rd-and-1 bringing up another 4th down where a quarterback sneak went horribly. Keenum attempted to jump over the line and reach the ball out only for it to be knocked out by Bears linebacker Danny Trevathan. It was an ill-advised attempt to say the least and might be the final nail in the Washington coffin.

Another field goal for Eddy Pineiro and the Bears puts them up 31-15 with just under two minutes to play.

Ballgame.

The Washington Redskins lose 31-15 and fall to 0-3 on the season behind the effort of quarterback Case Keenum. It's not easy to win games in the NFL, turning the ball over five times (and almost six) makes it almost impossible. Between giving the ball away and the dreadful red zone performance, the calls for rookie Dwayne Haskins are about to get a lot louder.

Published
Tony Thompson
TONY THOMPSON

Home/News