Another Falcons collapse: Foles' 3 TDs lead 30-26 Bears win

Chicago’s Nick Foles threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to hand the Atlanta Falcons another humiliating defeat, rallying the Bears from a 16-point deficit for a 30-26 victory

Via AP news wire
Sunday 27 September 2020 16:45 EDT
Bears Falcons Football
Bears Falcons Football (Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Chicago s Nick Foles threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter to hand the Atlanta Falcons another humiliating defeat, rallying the Bears from a 16-point deficit for a 30-26 victory on Sunday.

The Bears, improving to 3-0 for the first time since 2013, became the second straight team to overcome a double-digit deficit in the fourth quarter to beat the Falcons (0-3).

This one could spell the end for sixth-year coach Dan Quinn, who desperately needed a good start after two straight losing seasons.

A week ago, Atlanta became a national laughingstock after failing to pounce on an onside kick, allowing the Dallas Cowboys to finish off their comeback from a 39-24 deficit to win 40-39 on a field goal as time expired.

Under Quinn, the Falcons also blew a 28-3 lead in the Super Bowl after the 2016 season and lost to the New England Patriots.

This time, it was Foles who guided the improbable comeback after taking over for Mitchell Trubisky in the third quarter. The former Super Bowl MVP had two apparent touchdown passes overturned by official reviews — and still managed to pull out the victory.

Foles threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Jimmy Graham to make it 26-16 with 6:24 remaining. The Falcons still appeared in good shape after the Bears failed on a 2-point attempt.

But Chicago got the ball back and moved quickly down the field. Foles connected with Allen Robinson on a short pass that turned into a 37-yard touchdown when Isaiah Oliver and Blidi Wreh-Wilson both missed tackles, allowing the receiver to scoot down the sideline.

After the Falcons went three-and-out on their third straight possession, Foles connected with Anthony Miller for a 28-yard touchdown with 2 minutes remaining.

The Falcons still had a shot, but Matt Ryan was intercepted by Tashaun Gipson to seal it.

Foles finished 16 of 29 for 188 yards.

INJURY REPORT

Bears: RB Tarik Cohen left the game in the second half with a knee injury. S Sherrick McManis was knocked out by an ailing hamstring.

Falcons: The Falcons played without six starters, including WR Julio Jones (hamstring). Also missing were LB Foye Oluokun (hamstring), OT Kaleb McGary (knee), DE Takk McKinley (groin), S Ricardo Allen (elbow) and CB A.J. Terrell (COVID-19 reserve list). The Falcons then lost WR Russell Gage (concussion) in the first half, and DT Grady Jarrett (hip) hobbled off in the second half.

UP NEXT

Bears: Return home to face the Indianapolis Colts next Sunday.

Falcons: Head to Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers in a Monday night game to finish off Week 4.

___

Follow Paul Newberry on Twitter at https://twitter.com/pnewberry1963 and find his work at https://apnews.com/search/paulnewberry

___

More AP NFL: https://apnews.com/NFL and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in