The turnovers are coming in bunches right now. The Chicago Bears defense had another four takeaways Sunday in a 26-14 victory against the New Orleans Saints at Soldier Field.
It marked the fourth straight game with at least three takeaways — and the franchise’s first four-game winning streak since the final four games of the 2018 NFC North title season.
Running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai scored first-half touchdowns to propel the Bears to a 20-0 lead. The Saints fought back to within six points in the second half, but the Bears led the entire afternoon.
The defense had three interceptions and a fumble recovery. Cornerback Nahshon Wright, safety Kevin Byard III and linebacker Tremaine Edmunds picked off Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler, and defensive end Montez Sweat had a first-quarter strip-sack that defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. recovered.
The Bears now have 15 takeaways over the last four games after having only one in the first two games. They improved to 4-2, matching their start to last season.
The Bears rushing attack came up big for the second week in a row. Swift finished with 124 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries, and the rookie Monangai went for 81 yards and a score on 13 attempts.
Week 7 photos: Chicago Bears beat New Orleans Saints 26-14
Quarterback Caleb Williams finished 15 of 26 passing for 172 yards with one interception.
In addition to the four takeaways, the defense had four sacks. Edmunds led the Bears with nine tackles, a sack and an interception. The Saints offense, which had only four turnovers through six games, matched that number in four quarters Sunday.
Here’s how the game played out.
Inactives: Cairo Santos, Grady Jarrett won’t play; D’Andre Swift is active
Bears coach Ben Johnson walks on the field before playing the Saints on Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025 at Soldier Field. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
As expected, Jake Moody will kick for the Bears again Sunday. Starting kicker Cairo Santos, who was ruled out Friday, is listed as inactive and will miss his second consecutive game with a thigh injury.
Defensive tackle Grady Jarrett is also inactive and will miss his third straight game with a knee injury. Running back D’Andre Swift, who was questionable heading into the game with a groin injury, is active and expected to play.
Other Bears inactives are quarterback Case Keenum, wide receiver Jahdae Walker, linebackers Noah Sewell and Ruben Hyppolite II and guard Luke Newman. Keenum will serve as the emergency third quarterback should Caleb Williams and Tyson Bagent be ruled out with injuries during the game.
Jarrett battled through his knee injury to play in Weeks 2 and 3, but the Bears have elected to give him more time off since then.
The Bears called up Moody from the practice squad Saturday along with defensive tackle Jonathan Ford.
Running back Travis Homer will make his season debut after being activated off injured reserve. Homer missed the first five games with a calf injury. He should see significant action on special teams.
Homer took the roster spot that the Bears cleared when they released defensive end Tanoh Kpassagnon on Friday. Defensive end Austin Booker and linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga participated in practice this week, but both remain on IR and won’t play Sunday.
Halftime: D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai score TDs as Bears take 20-7 lead
Bears running back D’Andre Swift scores a touchdown during the second quarter against the Saints on Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, at Soldier Field. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
Two takeaways from the defense and touchdowns from running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai propelled the Bears to a 20-7 halftime lead against the Saints on Sunday at Soldier Field.
Swift scored on an 11-yard run, while the rookie Monangai punched in a 1-yard score for his first NFL touchdown.
The Bears defense came into the day with 11 takeaways in its last three games, and that run has continued.
In the first quarter, defensive end Montez Sweat stripped Saints quarterback Spencer Rattler and defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. jumped on the fumble. That set up the Bears with favorable field position and led to a field goal by kicker Jake Moody.
Early in the second quarter, cornerback Nahshon Wright sneaked in front of a receiver to pick off Rattler and returned the interception 38 yards to the New Orleans 30-yard line. The offense needed just four plays to punch in the 11-yard touchdown run by Swift.
Moody, kicking for the injured Cairo Santos, made field goals from 27 and 39 yards.
Quarterback Caleb Williams threw an interception in the first half, but it didn’t wind up costing the Bears points. It was his third interception of the season.
The Bears went ahead 20-0 on Monangai’s touchdown, and it looked as if that might be the score at the break before Rattler connected with wide receiver Chris Olave for a 57-yard shot downfield. Olave beat cornerback Tyrique Stevenson by a step on the play.
Two plays later, Rattler connected again with Olave for a 21-yard touchdown that brought the score to 20-7. The Saints will receive the kickoff after halftime.
Catch up on all of our coverage.
Stay current with the latest Bears news by subscribing to the Chicago Tribune for $1 — and sign up for our free Bears Insider newsletter.
5 things to watch — plus our Week 7 predictions
Bears defensive coordinator Dennis Allen, center right, watches the fourth quarter against the Lions on Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025, at Ford Field in Detroit. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
The Bears enter their Week 7 matchup against the Saints riding a three-game winning streak. Despite the Saints’ 1-5 record, the Bears (3-2) aren’t underestimating them or worrying about a letdown.
“I don’t know what that word means,” coach Ben Johnson said this week. “We’re going to embrace what the mission is, and that’s to beat a really good football team coming to town. … They continue to ascend, so we won’t overlook this opponent.”
Both Bears coordinators, Dennis Allen (defense) and Declan Doyle (offense), overlapped on the Saints coaching staff from 2019 to 2022.
Allen downplayed his history with the Saints, but defensive tackle Grady Jarrett said: “It’s always personal. Whenever you play the game, it’s got to be personal. … Whenever it’s the opposite team that you used to go against or had something to do with, it might add a little extra juice to it. For him, it would definitely mean a lot to go out there and put up a good showing.” Read more here.
Scoring is up, ‘but we’ve got to get a lot better’
Bears coach Ben Johnson goes over plays in the second quarter against the Lions at Ford Field on Sept. 14, 2025, in Detroit. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
With the Bears scratching the surface of what they aspire to become offensively, there’s a mighty long way to go to build a juggernaut like the one Ben Johnson was an integral part of in Detroit.
Five games into the season, the Bears have done something the franchise has accomplished only three times since 1958 — score 21 points or more in each game. Entering Week 7, the Bears (3-2) are 10th in the NFL in scoring, averaging 25.2 points per game.
That’s significant growth when considering the franchise ranked 28th last season and has finished in the top 10 only four times in the previous 30 years — 2018 (ninth), 2013 (second), 2006 (second) and 1995 (eighth). Seven times in that span the Bears were bottom five in scoring. Read more here.
‘Pretty cool series of events’
Bears kicker Jake Moody is hoisted by teammates after kicking a game-winning field goal against the Commanders on Monday, Oct. 13, 2025, at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Jake Moody had a lot of time to think over the last month. In early September, Moody lost his job with the 49ers. A month later, he became a hero when he kicked a 38-yard field goal to give the Bears a 25-24 win over the Commanders at Northwest Stadium as time expired on “Monday Night Football.”
As they attempted to exorcise the demons that followed them ever since Jayden Daniels’ 52-yard Hail Mary a year ago, the Bears turned to someone who didn’t live through that experience and who barely had time to meet all his new teammates.
Moody made four field goals Monday, and his teammates mobbed him and carried him on their shoulders after his game-winning kick went through the uprights. Read more here.
Latest Bears stadium news
The former Arlington International Racecourse is seen at sunrise on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
A Chicago Bears digital billboard glows at sunrise just off of Route 53 at the former Arlington International Racecourse on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
Rows of trees on the southern edge of the former Arlington International Racecourse are lit by the sunrise on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
The former paddock is marked by a circle and cross at the former Arlington International Racecourse on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
The former Arlington International Racecourse, facing east at sunrise, on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
An aerial photo shows the former Arlington International Racecourse on March 12, 2024, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
The former Arlington International Racecourse is seen on May 19, 2025, in Arlington Heights. The Chicago Bears own the property and may build a new stadium and entertainment district there. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
The view from the neighborhood northeast of the former Arlington International Racecourse on Dec. 30, 2024, in Arlington Heights. The Chicago Bears own the property and could potentially build a stadium there. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
A digital billboard advertising the Chicago Bears sits near the practice track of the former Arlington International Racecourse near Route 53 and Northwest Highway on June 25, 2024, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
The former Arlington International Racecourse is seen on March 12, 2024, in Arlington Heights. The Bears purchased the Arlington Heights property last year. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
The grandstand at the former Arlington International Racecourse is dismantled on Sept. 25, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
The shell of the grandstand remains at the former Arlington International Racecourse as crews continue to demolish it on Aug. 31, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune
Riders wait for a Metra train at the station in downtown Arlington Heights on Sept. 29, 2021.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune
People wait for a Metra train in downtown Arlington Heights on Sept. 29, 2021.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune
Downtown Arlington Heights features a small park, condos, retail shopping and dining on Sept. 29, 2021.
Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune
People walk through the intersection of Vail Avenue and Campbell Street in downtown Arlington Heights on Oct. 14, 2021.
Eileen T. Meslar / Chicago Tribune
Arlington International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights is seen on May 1, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Workers gather in a parking lot outside of the former Arlington Park to begin demolition on May 30, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition continues on the grandstand at the former Arlington International Racecourse on July 11, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
The grandstand of the former Arlington International Racecourse is razed on Sept. 25, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune
Selso Nuñez, of Palatine, dressed in Bears garb, peeks over the gate of Arlington International Racecourse as he looks for a spot to watch the fireworks following a day of races on Sept. 25, 2021.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune
The former Arlington International Racecourse is shown behind the Arlington Park Metra train station on Oct. 28, 2021.
After buying the former Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights in 2023, the Chicago Bears proposed building a $2 billion stadium there as part of a 326-acre development including entertainment and residential uses. (Chicago Bears)
Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune
Clouds pass over the now-closed Arlington International Racecourse on Sept. 6, 2022, in Arlington Heights.
Chris Sweda / Chicago Tribune
A rendering of the plan is shown as representatives from the Chicago Bears present their concept for building a new stadium and entertainment district on the site of Arlington International Racecourse during a public meeting at Hersey High School in Arlington Heights on Sept. 8, 2022.
Hart Howerton/Chicago Bears
A rendering released by the Chicago Bears shows the view from the proposed stadium of the Arlington Park entertainment district.
E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune
The synthetic racing surface is being removed from the track at the Arlington Park International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights on Feb. 8, 2023.
Eileen T. Meslar / Chicago Tribune
The Arlington International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights is seen on May 1, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Construction equipment stands ready for expected demolition at the former Arlington International Racecourse at sunrise on May 30, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition continues on the grounds of the former Arlington International Racecourse on June 13, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition crews hired by the Chicago Bears begin knocking down the grandstand at the former Arlington International Racecourse on June 16, 2023, in Arlington Heights. The Bears are looking at the site to build a possible new stadium for the team.
Trent Sprague/Chicago Tribune
Demolition continues of the main grandstand at the former Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights on Aug. 1, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition of the grandstand continues at the former Arlington International Racecourse, Aug. 7, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition of the grandstand continues at the former Arlington International Racecourse, Aug. 7, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
Demolition continues on the grandstand and surrounding structures at the former Arlington International Racecourse, Sept. 25, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune
Arlington International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights is seen on Feb. 8, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
A Metra train passes the former Arlington International Racecourse at sunrise on May 30, 2023, in Arlington Heights.
Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune
Arlington Park International Racecourse in Arlington Heights is seen on Sept. 29, 2021. The Chicago Bears have signed a purchase agreement for Arlington International Racecourse, the near-century-old facility that likely hosted its final horse race last Saturday.
Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune
Arlington Park International Racecourse is seen on Oct. 6, 2021, in Arlington Heights. The Chicago Bears have signed a purchase agreement for Arlington International Racecourse, the near-century-old facility that likely hosted its final horse race.
E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune
A view of the former grandstand of Arlington Park International Racecourse property in Arlington Heights is seen on Feb. 8, 2023.
Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune
The former Arlington International Racecourse is seen at sunrise on May 30, 2023, in Arlington Heights. Demolition is expected to begin soon.
Trent Sprague/Chicago Tribune
Crews demolish the main grandstand of the former Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights, July 14, 2023. The site may become the future home of the Chicago Bears.
Trent Sprague/Chicago Tribune
Main grandstand demolition continues at the former Arlington International Racecourse in Arlington Heights, Aug. 1, 2023.
Show Caption
1 of 43
The former Arlington International Racecourse is seen at sunrise on May 23, 2025, in Arlington Heights. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
One of the Illinois legislature’s biggest opponents of the Bears’ plan to relocate outside the city introduced legislation on Tuesday that could stall or hinder the team’s efforts, but significant questions remain about whether the bill will garner enough support or when it might be voted on.
The legislation from state Rep. Kam Buckner of Chicago — a former University of Illinois football player who represents the district where Soldier Field is located — calls for greater transparency around stadium deals in Illinois and could require the team to dig deeper into its pockets. It remains silent, however, about major financial issues, including whether the franchise would have to pay off outstanding debt for the 2003 Soldier Field renovation, a point some opponents of the team’s move have said is a bare minimum for their support.
“I want to at least lay down the tracks for what the rules of engagement are for us,” Buckner told the Tribune. “We’ve asked the Bears to come forward with a plan and show their work and show how this is a net benefit to the people. I think they’ve fallen short of that. And so, I think now the ball is back in our court. It’s incumbent upon us to tell what we need to hear from them.” Read more here.
Originally Published: October 19, 2025 at 6:00 AM CDT