Texans Daily

Texans Fall to Bears in Lovie Smith's Return to Chicago

Lovie Smith's return to Chicago against the Bears did not go as planned for the Houston Texans

Matt Galatzan

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The Houston Texans headed north to Chicago to take on the Bears at Soldier Field, hoping for their first win of the season. 

But for Texans head coach Lovie Smith, it was likely a bit more than that, making his return to the place that earned him an NFC Title, an NFL Coach of the Year Award, and took him to a Super Bowl appearance as the head of a new franchise. 

Unfortunately for Smith, his homecoming did not go as planned, with a late Davis Mills interception costing his team late in the 23-20 Bears win.

On offense, the Texans were led by rookie running back Dameon Pierce, who rushed 20- times for 80 yards and his first career touchdown - the vast majority of which, however, came in the first half. 

And through the air, the Texans were inconsistent at best, with Mills completing 20 of 32 passes for 245 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. 

On the other side of the ball, in true Smith fashion, the Texans defense made things difficult on Bears quarterback Justin Fields, holding him to 8 of 17 passing for 106 yards and two interceptions. 

The Texans also sacked fields five times and hit him ninie more times throughout the afternoon.

In not-so-Smith fashion, things were a bit different defending the run for Houston, however, with the Texans giving up 186 yards rushing in the first half alone, as well as 240 yards on 40 carries for the game. 

Second-year back Kahlil Herbert led the way for the Bears, rushing 20 times for 157 yards and two touchdowns.

The Bears would use the late Mills interception to set up a Cairo Santons field goal, sealing the win.

Following the matchup with the Bears, the Texans (0-2-1) will now return home to turn their attention to yet another tough opponent when Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles Chargers come to Houston on October 2. 

Kickoff against the Chargers is set for 12 pm central time. 

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Matt Galatzan
MATT GALATZAN

Matt Galatzan the Editor-In-Chief of TexansDaily.com. Galatzan graduated from the University of Mississippi, where he studied integrated marketing communications, with minors in journalism and business administration. Galatzan started in the sports journalism industry under Mike Fisher at DallasBasketball.com in 2014, which at the time was part of the 247Sports network. He also spent two years covering the SMU Mustangs for PonyStampede.com on the 247Sports network. When DallasBasketball.com and CowboysCountry.com moved over to Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation network in 2020, Galatzan followed suit, eventually being taking over as the Managing Editor and Publisher of LonghornsCountry.com and AllAggies.com a year later. Through the years, Galatzan has conducted a handful of high-profile one-on-one interviews to add to his resume — in both writing and podcasting. Some of his biggest interviews have been with Mavs owner Mark Cuban, former Longhorns players Dan Neil and Phil Dawson, and many other recruits, and current/former players for each of the teams he has covered. Galatzan is also a full-time employee in the digital media department for Audacy and KRLD FM's 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, which is the official radio home of the Dallas Cowboys. You can find Galatzan on all major social media channels. For any inquiries, please email matt.galatzan@gmail.com