The Bears’ defense has been all over the place this season, and it was as erratic as ever in their 30-24 victory Thursday against the Patriots at Soldier Field.
The defense opened by forcing a turnover on downs and two three-and-outs, then got an interception in the end zone by linebacker D’Marco Jackson to keep points off the board. It also was fantastic on third downs, holding the Patriots to 2-for-7.
But it allowed an exasperating, inexcusable 48-yard touchdown pass just before halftime on a throw underneath from quarterback Drake Maye to running back Rhamondre Stevenson.
The Bears shut down the Patriots’ running game but got torched by Maye for one of the best games of his career.
Kyler Gordon suddenly looks as though he’s going to make a run at Defensive Player of the Year, but Jaylon Johnson has struggled for weeks.
So what exactly is this defense? Even coach Ben Johnson had a tough time pinpointing that Friday as he sized up a unit that has allowed the most yards per play in the NFL (6.3) but ranks eighth in points allowed (20.4).
‘‘I hate to look back at last year, but we’re a better defense than we were a year ago,’’ he said. ‘‘[But] we’re not taking the ball away quite as much. If we can continue to harp on getting those takeaways, you’re going to see more consistent defensive play.’’
The Bears led the NFL with 33 takeaways last season; they’re on pace for 24 this season.
Johnson saw what he wanted in the defense’s ‘‘super-hot’’ start, but Maye started punching back in the second quarter and never stopped. He finished 24-for-31 for 321 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for a 117.8 passer rating.
While Johnson gives defensive coordinator Dennis Allen autonomy, he’s highly engaged in that side of the ball, even as the offensive play-caller. Whereas Matt Eberflus sounded lost when talking about offense and Matt Nagy struggled to discuss defense, Johnson has a clear vision of how he wants the Bears to play defensively.
‘‘Our play style is the most important thing,’’ he said, pointing to an aggressive, physical approach in which swarms of tacklers converge on the ball.
He called that last part ‘‘non-negotiable’’ and was dismayed by how badly the Bears failed in it on Stevenson’s big play. They faltered at every level of the defense, and Johnson vented that his staff had spent ample time practicing for situations just like that.
The Bears lined up in a prevent coverage with two safeties at the goal line, and there were five defenders between Stevenson and the end zone when he caught the ball at the Bears’ 46. Yet he barely was touched.
That play changed the game.
If the Bears had been able to close out the final 14 seconds of the first half, they would have come out of halftime with a 20-7 lead and the ball. They could have buried the Patriots at that point. Instead, the game went down to the final minutes, and they needed a career-long 58-yard field goal from Cairo Santos to ensure victory.
The week before, the Bears let a 31-7 lead in the fourth quarter dwindle to a one-score game in which the Falcons had the ball and a chance to tie the game with more than three minutes left.
The Bears know better than anyone not to play around like that. Their run of comebacks last season had as much to do with opposing defenses whiffing on chances to finish them off as it did with the offensive heroics of Caleb Williams and others, and they’re now leaving that door open for their opponents.
Six of their remaining 10 games are against teams in the top half of the NFL in scoring, so they’re unlikely to continue getting away with such inconsistency.