There probably aren’t many Bears players who deserve their own moment in the spotlight as much as backup safety Jonathan Owens does. So it was kind of fitting that he was in the right place at the right time Sunday at Soldier Field.
When teammate Daniel Hardy knifed through the middle of the Titans’ line to block a punt in the third quarter, the ball squirted right to Owens, who eagerly grabbed it and sprinted 21 yards for a touchdown that ignited the Bears’ sideline and the Soldier Field crowd and sparked the team to a 24-17 victory in the season opener.
‘‘We had a rush going, and I’m rushing and getting ready to cover with a guy [when] I heard a ball getting blocked,’’ said Owens, who is married to gymnastics superstar Simone Biles. ‘‘I just looked, and the ball’s bouncing there. There’s guys around me, and, I don’t know, God works in mysterious ways — a perfect bounce right into my hands.
‘‘Someone said it was the Bears’ first touchdown of the season. That was pretty dope to hear. But, man, it’s the home opener. Just to hear that crowd and see the sideline and your guys are dabbin’ you up and hitting you on the head, it was just super-exciting. I couldn’t explain it. It didn’t feel like real life.’’
It was the game-changing play the Bears desperately needed. They were trailing 17-3 in a disappointing performance that already had elicited boos from the home crowd. The momentum shift was palpable.
‘‘Absolutely,’’ Hardy said. ‘‘Even without the fans, on the sideline, it was amazing. Just seeing teammates and everybody, all the energy everybody had, it’s a fantastic feeling.
‘‘And it wasn’t just me. I blocked the punt, but J.O. did a fantastic job not quitting on the play. Scooping that up and scoring is something we needed. A huge momentum shift for the team.’’
The touchdown put the Bears back in the game and unleashed a relentless aggressiveness that put the bite back in their defense. From that point on, the Bears allowed no points and only 57 yards on 23 plays, with two sacks and three takeaways.
Edge rusher Darrell Taylor’s strip-sack that linebacker T.J. Edwards recovered led to a field goal that pulled the Bears to 17-16. On the ensuing drive, defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker’s near-sack forced an ill-advised backhand flip by quarterback Will Levis that cornerback Tyrique Stevenson intercepted and returned 43 yards for a touchdown that gave the Bears a 24-17 lead.
‘‘I honestly didn’t expect [the interception],’’ Stevenson said. ‘‘Our main thing was to get off the field, get the ball back to [quarterback] Caleb [Williams] and let him do his thing. If [Levis is] going to make dumb decisions like that, we’re going to make him pay for it.’’
The dominance of the Bears’ special teams and defense was reminiscent of the ‘‘Miracle in the Desert’’ in 2006, when the defense and special teams scored all the Bears’ points in a 24-23 victory against the Cardinals — capped by Devin Hester’s game-winning touchdown on a punt return — on the way to a Super Bowl appearance.
This team is far from that point, but this was a step in the right direction.
‘‘It’s one hell of a team — a team full of dogs,’’ Stevenson said. ‘‘At some point, it’s going to be the offense helping us out. They’re our kickstand; we’re their kickstand. There’s going to be games like this; it’s the NFL. Anything can happen at any moment. The fact that they were still going out there with their head up gave us the energy. We went out there and did our job.’’