The Chicago Bears had the perfect opportunity to get back on track when facing the Cincinnati Bengals, after losing a wildly disappointing game to the Baltimore Ravens without Lamar Jackson. But through the first half, it was another underwhelming night for the team.
Trailing 20-17, they were feeling the effects of a 99-yard kick return touchdown from the Bengals to begin the game. But, a bigger worry for them all night had been the nonexistent production from wide receiver Rome Odunze.
What Happened to Rome Odunze?
A first-round pick for Chicago last season, Odunze had an underwhelming rookie season before slowly elevating to the WR1 spot in his sophomore campaign. Under Ben Johnson as the new head coach, his numbers were looking markedly better than last year.
But, in the clash against Cincy, he was nowhere to be found. With half of the fourth quarter already in the books, the Bears had managed to take a 41-27 lead, but the stat line from their first option was jarring.
Targeted three times, he hadn’t registered a single catch, still standing at 0 receiving yards for the outing. For the biggest piece to their offensive puzzle, and the highest-ranked wide receiver on the team at 23rd on PFSN’s WR Impact, his numbers were puzzling.
DJ Moore throws a touchdown to Caleb Williams!
CHIvsCIN on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/SK5g8iSNV9
— NFL (@NFL) November 2, 2025
On the season, he was in the top-20 across the NFL in receiving yards with 473 yards entering Week 8, while his five receiving touchdowns were a top-10 number across the NFL.
Even with his individual struggles, the running game for Chicago had come alive, with Kyle Monangai, in his first game as a starter, tallying 175 rushing yards at the time of writing. The breakdown for the Bears was pretty even, but with more than 25 carries to his name, Monangai had been the most impactful member of the offense.
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On the other hand, the passing attack had been solid throughout, with Caleb Williams throwing for 280 yards and three touchdowns, with Colston Loveland having his best game as a starter with 118 yards and two touchdowns.
Falling behind just 10 seconds into the game, it was an uphill battle for Chicago. But thanks to some creative playcalling, which included two receptions, including a touchdown for Williams, they were able to take firm control and deliver their highest scoring game of the year.
For the Bengals, the only success was through the passing game, as Joe Flacco threw for a career-high 470 yards in a distributed attack to all of his weapons, which included 121 and 111 yards for Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase, respectively.
It was impossible to predict just how insane the ending would get between these two sides. With the Bears holding a comfortable lead, a touchdown by the Bengals still left them six points behind.
However, they were able to find success with the onside kick, immediately capitalizing to get a one-point lead. The Bears had 50 seconds to make it count. Chewing 25 seconds off the clock to get the first down, it seemed like the situation was all too dire.
But then a spectacular connection to Colston Loveland saw the rookie tight end break two tackles before running into the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown that gave Chicago a 47-42 lead, which proved enough to get them the win.