Al Pacino told everyone it’s a game of inches, and it played out that way in the waning seconds Thursday night for the Chicago Bears against the Washington Commanders at Solider Field.
Trailing 12-7 with 30 seconds remaining in the game, the Bears faced fourth-and-goal from Washington’s four-yard line with an opportunity to take a very late lead, and for a moment, it looked like they had.
Bears wide receiver Darnell Mooney got his hands on a pass from Fields just barely inside the end zone. But Mooney couldn’t catch it cleanly with Commanders cornerback Benjamin St-Juste draped all over him in coverage.
Mooney ended up making a spectacular, juggling catch, but there was one problem with it. By the time he finally secured the football, St-Juste had driven him just on the other side of the goal line, making what seemed at first like a game-winning catch come up inches — or maybe just even just an inch — short of a touchdown.
The wild play only added more heartbreak to the Bears, who had two other chances inside Washington’s five-yard line during the game but failed to score on them. One opportunity ended with second-year quarterback Justin Fields throwing an interception and another drive concluded just outside the goal line as well with the Commanders stopping Chicago on fourth-and-goal from the one-yard line.
So, sometimes all it takes is an inch to win a football game. Pacino certainly knew that during his speech in “Any Given Sunday” and now the Bears know, too.
