Kyle Monangai’s two rushing scores carry Bears past Jets in a game of volume and missed finishes

A game Chicago held from the start

Chicago did not need a barrage of big plays to take command. It opened the scoring with 23 seconds left in the first quarter, when Monangai punched in a 1-yard run, then built the margin methodically before halftime. Jason Sanders answered for New York with a 36-yard field goal at 8:15 of the second, but Cairo Santos hit from 30 yards twice — once with 2:29 left in the quarter and again as time expired — to send the Bears into the break up 13-3.

That halftime edge matched the shape of the afternoon. Chicago kept the ball for more than 41 minutes, ran 56 more plays than the Jets and finished with 233 rushing yards. New York, by contrast, managed only seven first downs and went 0-for-7 on third down. Even before the game’s final margin was settled, the numbers already pointed to a lopsided fight for possession and field position.

Monangai was the clearest reason that advantage kept growing. He carried 30 times for 146 yards and both Bears touchdowns, giving Chicago a dependable answer whenever it needed one. Tyson Bagent complemented that work by completing 25 of 34 passes, and the Bears spread those throws around efficiently: Rome Odunze had six catches for 94 yards, Luther Burden III added four for 63, and Colston Loveland caught six for 57. Chicago did not find the end zone through the air, but it kept moving the chains.

The Jets had one late strike, but not enough possessions

New York briefly hinted at a comeback early in the third quarter. Sanders connected from 30 yards at 7:00 to cut the deficit to 13-6, trimming the game back to one score. The level of threat did not last long. With 2:26 left in the quarter, Monangai finished another Bears march with a 5-yard touchdown run, restoring a 14-point cushion at 20-6.

Santos added a 21-yard field goal at 10:01 of the fourth quarter, and that looked close to decisive. The Jets did answer quickly on the scoreboard when Geno Smith hit Isaiah Williams for a 58-yard touchdown at 9:16, but the failed extra point left New York down 23-12 and still needing two possessions. That missed kick mattered because the Jets never got any closer.

Williams’ touchdown accounted for the game’s most explosive Jets moment, and his two catches produced 73 yards. Outside of that, the offense rarely sustained anything. Braelon Allen led the rushing attack with 59 yards on 14 carries, but New York ran only 32 plays all day. The Bears defense added three sacks and seven quarterback hits, with Devin Bush, Dayo Odeyingbo and Austin Booker recording the sacks. For a team that finished turnover-free, the Jets still spent too much of the afternoon giving the ball back through punts, stalled downs and penalties.

Our take

This was a comfortable Bears win, but not a flawless one. Chicago outgained New York by a wide margin, dominated first downs and possession, and still scored only 23 points because it left work unfinished near the goal line and gave the ball away twice. The Bears went 2-for-6 in the red zone, Bagent was intercepted once, and D’Andre Swift lost a fumble. When a team runs 88 plays and reaches six red-zone opportunities, that should usually produce a more emphatic scoreboard than an 11-point result.

That is the main improvement case for Chicago. The run game was reliable, the passing game was organized and the defense limited New York to 157 total yards, so the foundation was strong. The next step is cleaner finishing. Settling for three field goals and surrendering two turnovers is the kind of combination that can keep an opponent alive longer than necessary, even on a day when the rest of the stat line is firmly one-sided.

For the Jets, the concerns are even more direct. Twelve penalties for 76 yards, no third-down conversions and no touchdowns in two red-zone trips made sustained football almost impossible. The defense did produce useful resistance at times — Minkah Fitzpatrick intercepted a pass, Brandon Stephens recovered a fumble and Demario Davis had a sack — but it was asked to handle far too much volume. When one team possesses the ball for 41:32 and the other manages only eight drives, the margin for error disappears quickly. Chicago understood that formula and kept leaning on it until the game was gone.

Scoring moments

1. Period 1 · 0:23

   Kyle Monangai 1 Yd Rush (Cairo Santos Kick)

2. Period 2 · 8:15

   Jason Sanders 36 Yd Field Goal

3. Period 2 · 2:29

   Cairo Santos 30 Yd Field Goal

4. Period 2 · 0:00

   Cairo Santos 30 Yd Field Goal

5. Period 3 · 7:00

   Jason Sanders 30 Yd Field Goal

6. Period 3 · 2:26

   Kyle Monangai 5 Yd Rush (Cairo Santos Kick)

7. Period 4 · 10:01

   Cairo Santos 21 Yd Field Goal

8. Period 4 · 9:16

   Isaiah Williams 58 Yd pass from Geno Smith (Jason Sanders PAT Failed)