Thursday Night Football: Bears hold off Panthers 16-13
The Bears did themselves a favor with a 16-13 victory over the Panthers on Thursday Night Football.
Chicago owns Carolina's first-round draft pick as part of the Bryce Young trade, and the Panthers fell to 1-8 in tying the Cardinals for the worst record in the league. The Bears now are 3-7.
Young drove the Panthers from their own 9 to the Chicago 41 with 1:54 remaining, but he threw three consecutive incompletions. Frank Reich opted to try a 59-yard field goal and Eddy Pineiro's kick was short.
The Panthers gained only 213 yards, and Young finished 21-of-38 for 185 yards. Adam Thielen had six catches for 42 yards.
Ihmir Smith-Marsette scored Carolina's only touchdown on a 79-yard punt return in the first quarter. It was the Panthers’ first return for a touchdown since Nov. 26, 2017, against the Jets, and Smith-Marsette became the seventh player in franchise history with a punt return touchdown.
The Bears took their first lead with 6:33 remaining in the third quarter when D'Onta Foreman scored on a 4-yard run for the team's only touchdown. Cairo Santos kicked field goals of 54, 36 and 39 yards.
The Bears gained 295 yards with rookie Tyler Bagent going 20-of-33 for 162 yards. DJ Moore caught five passes for 58 yards against his former team, and Foreman, another former Panther, had 21 carries for 80 yafds.
The teams combined for 12 punts and 12 penalties, but neither team turned it over.
