Giants vs. Bears final score: Chicago holds off late N.Y. rally for second close finish in as many weeks

Bears stave off fourth quarter-rally from New York to start 2-0

The Chicago Bears held on late for a victory Sunday against the New York Giants, 17-13, and their second win in as many games. Chicago jumped out to a 17-0 lead before allowing the Giants to creep back into the competition. The game came down to one play in coverage as time expired: Giants wide receiver Golden Tate and Bears safety Eddie Jackson were jockeying for position in the end zone, but the ball fell haplessly to the turf. It was deemed irrelevant as Tate was called for offensive pass interference. 

Chicago improves to 2-0 while the Giants fall to 0-2. The Bears were fortunate to escape injury to running back David Montgomery, but New York was not so lucky. It is believed that running back Saquon Barkley suffered a torn ACL in the first half. His season will be over if that diagnosis is confirmed Monday. 

Why the Bears won

Chicago capitalized on some first-half mistakes by its opposition. Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky led the offense on a creative drive that lasted nearly eight minutes to start the game. On New York's first possession, quarterback Daniel Jones fumbled and the Bears tacked on a field goal to go up 10-0.

Matt Nagy's team had a 17-0 advantage at halftime after a missed goal from Giants kicker Cairo Santos to end the first half. Realistically speaking, it was a deep hole for a Jason Garrett led offense to climb out. Chicago was able to dictate the pace of the game holding the ball nine minutes longer than New York. 

Why the Giants lost

The Giants lost a big part of their offense when Barkley went down with an injury. They relied heavily upon the air attack and the offensive line did not allow Jones much time in the pocket. His first-quarter fumble was devastating to their efforts. The rookie led the league with 11 fumbles lost last season and threw an additional 12 interceptions. Those concerns were on display once again.

Although Jones has shown promise, New York is not going to be able to win games with that level of turnover from its quarterback. The young signal caller must do a better of putting his team in a position to succeed. Fans witnessed too many individual errors that led to larger problems as the game progressed. 

Play of the game

It was 4th-and-1 with a little less than four minutes remaining. Trubisky faked a handoff to running back Tarik Cohen and ran a bootleg right. The intended pass for tight end Jimmy Graham was deflected into the air and miraculously fell into the arms of an awaiting teammate -- offensive tackle Bobby Massie. 

The play resulted in a first down and allowed Chicago to drain more clock, which proved helpful. The Giants ran out of time, not plays.

What's next

Chicago travels to Atlanta in Week 3. The Falcons are now 0-2 after playing two projected NFC contenders: Dallas and Seattle. On Sunday Atlanta's suffered a devastating last second loss stemming from a blown 20-point lead. 

New York enters a brutal three-game stretch that begins with the 49ers next weekend. The San Francisco game is followed by away games against the Rams and Cowboys. A potential 0-5 start would undermine the discipline that Bill Belichick disciple Joe Judge has attempted to instill in his team. 

[Sep 20, 2020 at 4:04 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

Wild ending to this one. The Bears jumped out to a 17-0 lead then allowed 13 unanswered points. It came down to one play and Chicago was able to hold on.

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:56 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

Unfortunate news for the New York star.

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:45 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

The Bears keep the drive going with a reception by... *checks roster* Bobbie Massie...

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:31 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

The spread has been Giants +5/+6 this week so a week goal would give them the cover if that score held. They obviously have bigger goals for the outcome of this game though.

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:15 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

Elsewhere in the NFC East:

Cowboys trailing Falcons, 29-17, with 7:01 remaining in Q3
Eagles trailing Rams, 24-16, with 2:14 remaining in Q3

Washington travels to Arizona for a 4:05 p.m. ET kickoff.

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:12 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

With his late Q3 reception, Golden Tate became the first skill player in this game with 40+ yards.

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:11 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

These numbers are constantly changing so you can find them live: https://www.williamhill.com/us...

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:11 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

Will there be an OT?

No: -1800
Yes: +900

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:10 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

William Hill has odds on Q4: 

Giants score more: -230 

Tie: +500 

Bears score more: +280

[Sep 20, 2020 at 3:08 pm ET · Josh Edwards]

Saquon Barkley exited the game with 28 yards on four carries. Dion Lewis has eight carries and just 13 rushing yards. Daniel Jones and Sterling Shepard also have carries.