The Chicago Bears suffered a stunning 18-15 defeat to the Washington Commanders on Sunday when quarterback Jayden Daniels completed a Hail Mary touchdown pass as time expired at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland.
Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was captured on video taunting Commanders fans with his back turned to the play when the final snap occurred.
The second-year cornerback then rushed to defend the pass, which was tipped before Noah Brown secured it in the end zone for the Washington victory.
Stevenson, who declined post-game interviews, later posted on social media: “To Chicago and teammates my apologies for lack of awareness and focus…. The game ain’t over until zeros hit the clock. Can’t take anything for granted. Notes taken, improvement will happen.”
The Bears had taken the lead with 25 seconds remaining on Roschon Johnson’s 1-yard touchdown run and a successful two-point conversion. Chicago had battled back from a 12-0 deficit late in the third quarter, sparked by D’Andre Swift’s 56-yard touchdown run.
“When you lose a game like that, that’s a tough one to swallow,” Bears coach Matt Eberflus said. “Was excited how they battled back to have a chance to win that game. It’s important to look at that, too.”
Eberflus addressed the failed defensive execution on the final play.
“It comes down to that last play and we’ve practiced that play a hundred times since we’ve been here. I’ll have to look at what the execution was on that, but we have a body on a body, boxing guys out like basketball at the very end. We have one guy at the rim that knocks the ball down,” he said. “We’ve got a tip guy that goes behind the pile. I’ve got to look at it and detail it out and make sure we’re better next time.”
Take a look —
Oh my god this is hilarious.
Tyrique Stevenson taunting right before the Hail Mary 😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/k63uhlZIaC
— Will Compton (@_willcompton) October 28, 2024
The loss dropped Chicago to 4-3 and last place in the NFC North. Stevenson allowed four catches for 90 yards on nine targets as the nearest defender, while Daniels, playing through a rib injury, threw for 326 yards. The Commanders had been kept out of the end zone until the final play.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams completed 10 of 24 passes for 131 yards, posting a quarterback rating of 59.5.
“I’ve got to be better,” Williams said. “I’ve got to get the ball out of my hands. I’ve got to throw it out of bounds in that situation. The toughest part about the job is you want to go out and make plays and do special things, but you also have to understand that’s the play.”