Bears

Chicago Bears vs. New York Giants: Live updates from MetLife Stadium

Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields (1) is sacked by New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence (97) during the second quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2022, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Somebody is going to be 3-1 after Sunday.

The Chicago Bears and New York Giants square off at noon from MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Both teams are 2-1. Someone will exit this game with a 3-1 record – unless there’s a tie, of course.

Follow @bears_insider for live updates all game long. Shaw Local Bears beat reporter Sean Hammond is covering the game live from New Jersey. Follow him on Twitter at @sean_hammond and on Instagram at @bears_reporter.

Catch up on everything you need to know ahead of the game below, and stay here all game long for live updates.

Giants win, 20-12

The Bears had one more chance with 17 seconds remaining in the game, but were deep in their own territory. The Bears threw a bunch of laterals on the final play of the game, but couldn’t find an opening for a score.

The Giants won the game, 20-12.

Velus Jones Jr. muffs key punt

The Bears punted with just over three minutes remaining in the game. They pinned the Giants deep in their own territory. New York ran the ball on three consecutive plays, while Matt Eberflus used a pair of time outs to save the clock.

The Bears did a good job forcing a punt, but rookie Velus Jones Jr. fumbled on the return and the Giants recovered it. Jones was making his NFL debut on Sunday.

The Bears could’ve had the ball back trailing eight points with just over two minutes remaining. Instead, the giants took over near midfield.

Taylor leaves game, Jones returns for New York

After Daniel Jones already left the game with an ankle injury, Giants backup QB Tyrod Taylor left the game after taking a hard hit along the sideline in the fourth quarter.

The Giants were forced to put in Jones despite his injured left ankle. They ran three consecutive plays from the wildcat formation with Jones lined up out wide. Jones hardly moved on those plays.

The fourth play of the drive after Taylor left the game, Jones took a shotgun snap and handed it off. The Giants added a field goal to make it an eight-point game, 20-12, with about five minutes remaining.

Tyrod Taylor enters for Daniel Jones, throws interception

Giants quarterback Daniel Jones left the game late in the third quarter with a left ankle injury. Backup quarterback Tyrod Taylor entered the game in his place. Jones is questionable to return.

On his first possession in the game, Taylor threw a deep ball early in the fourth quarter that was intercepted by Bears safety Eddie Jackson. It marked Jackson’s third interception in four games.

Giants add a field goal

Giants kicker Graham Gano made a 44-yard field goal. It extended New York’s lead, 17-12, late in the third quarter.

Earlier on the possession, Bears rookie cornerback Kyler Gordon was flagged for a defensive pass interference penalty on a Daniel Jones deep pass intended for Darius Slayton. Gordon was a step behind Slayton on the play and was doing whatever he could to make up ground. It wound up being a 40-yard penalty.

Badgley makes his 4th field goal

The Bears drove 58 yards on the first possession after halftime. Kicker Michael Badgley made his fourth field goal of the game. He is four of four on field goals. This one came from 35 yards out.

The kick pulled the Bears within two points of the Giants, 14-12, early in the third quarter.

Fields ends half with hard hit

Bears quarterback Justin Fields took a hard hit on the final play of the first half. It went for his fifth sack of the game. Fields was slow getting up. He walked off the field on his own, but the hit appeared to have taken a toll. The Bears let the clock run out and took the game into halftime.

The Giants took a 14-9 lead into halftime.

Special teams fumble recovery leads to Bears’ field goal

Bears special teamer Josh Blackwell forced a fumble on a punt return and recovered the fumble, too. The turnover set up the Bears with great field position. The offense picked up one first down, but couldn’t find the end zone.

The Bears settled for a 40-yard field goal from kicker Michael Badgley, his third field goal of the day.

The score cut into the Giants’ lead, 14-9, late in the second quarter.

Jones fools Bears again, runs in his 2nd touchdown

The Giants drove 75 yards on seven plays and scored on Daniel Jones’ second rushing touchdown of the game. As he did on his first score of the game, Jones fooled the Bears defense with a well-executed fake handoff.

The Giants had taken over possession after Justin Fields was hit while he was dropping back to pass and fumbled the ball away. Left tackle Braxton Jones was beat on the play.

New York running back Saquon Barkley had two electric plays on the ensuing drive. He found an opening for a 29-yard gain on the first play of the drive. Later, he caught a screen pass and broke a tackle attempt by Bears linebacker Nicholas Morrow. He turned what could’ve been a loss of yards into a 15-yard gain.

Fields, Mooney connect for 56-yard gain

For the first time all season, Bears quarterback Justin Fields connected with his favorite target on a deep ball.

Fields and receiver Darnell Mooney executed an impressive 56-yard completion midway through the first quarter. Mooney made a leaping effort to haul in the catch. The play sparked a scoring drive for the Bears, who wound up settling for a 22-yard field goal from kicker Michael Badgley.

The score cut into the Giants’ lead, 7-6.

Daniel Jones scrambles for a touchdown

Giants quarterback Daniel Jones had back-to-back nifty fake handoffs, both of which fooled the Bears defense. On the first one, he connected with tight end Daniel Bellinger for a 12-yard gain. On the following play, Jones kept the ball and scrambled for a 21-yard touchdown. He had a block ahead of him from tight end Tanner Hudson that helped him reach the end zone.

Jones gave the Giants their first lead, 7-3, midway through the first quarter.

Bears score first

The Bears defense forced the Giants to punt on the opening possession of the game. It was a quick three-and-out for Daniel Jones and the Giants.

Justin Fields and the Bears drove 65 yards on 10 plays, with the help of 14 penalty yards, and kicker Michael Badgley made a 29-yard field goal. The Bears took an early lead, 3-0.

Earlier, on third down from the Giants’ 32-yard line, Fields scrambled, picked up a first down and slid to the turf while taking a hard hit to the helmet. The tackle drew a late hit penalty, which moved the Bears into the red zone.

Inactives update

As expected, kicker Cairo Santos, running back David Montgomery and cornerback Jaylon Johnson are officially listed as inactive Sunday and will not play. Additionally, safety Dane Cruikshank, linebacker Matt Adams, guard Ja’Tyre Carter and tight end Ryan Griffin are inactive.

Notably absent from the inactive list is receiver Velus Jones Jr., who is expected to make his regular season debut.

Also active and expected to play is defensive end Robert Quinn, who dealt with an illness this week but did practice on Friday.

Bears add new kicker ahead of Sunday’s game

On Saturday, the Bears signed kicker Michael Badgley to the practice squad and immediately elevated him to the active roster for Sunday’s game.

Starting kicker Cairo Santos, who prior to Saturday was the only place kicker on the roster, did not travel with the team to New Jersey. Santos has been away from the team for several days dealing with a personal matter.

Badgley, 27, is in his fifth professional season. He spent three seasons with the Los Angeles Chargers from 2018-20. He split time last season between Indianapolis and Tennessee. He briefly signed with Jacksonville in August but didn’t last long with the Jaguars.

Badgley has made 80.5% of his field goal attempts during his career, and made a career-best 59-yard field goal in 2018.

Latest injury news

Bears running back David Montgomery (ankle) and cornerback Jaylon Johnson (quad) were ruled out on Friday. Neither will play Sunday.

Running back Khalil Herbert is expected to be the featured back after a big game last week against Houston. The Bears also elevated running back Darrynton Evans from the practice squad ahead of the game.

Look for cornerbacks Kindle Vildor and Jaylon Jones to fill the void with Johnson out at cornerback. They stepped up last week in Johnson’s place.

Receiver Velus Jones Jr. is questionable with a hamstring injury, but was a full participant in practice Friday. Jones could potentially make his NFL debut. The rookie third-round draft pick missed each of the first three games due to the injury. The Bears could use him with receiver Byron Pringle going on injured reserve this week.

What to expect from the Giants

The Bears and the Giants are two teams in similar situations. They have new general managers, new head coaches and young quarterbacks on their rookie contracts.

They also both have winning records through three games, which not a lot of NFL pundits saw coming. Here’s five things to watch in Sunday’s game.

Giants quarterback Daniel Jones will square off against Bears QB Justin Fields. The Bears have yet to get the passing game going with Fields, but they have leaned on a strong rushing attack through the first three weeks.

Also check out the Shaw Local Bears Insider podcast to get ready for the game.

What else did I miss this week?

Here’s the latest news out of Halas Hall this week.

Sean Hammond

Sean Hammond

Sean is the Chicago Bears beat reporter for the Shaw Local News Network. He has covered the Bears since 2020. Prior to writing about the Bears, he covered high school sports for the Northwest Herald and contributed to Friday Night Drive. Sean joined Shaw Media in 2016.