Week 3 recap: Justin Fields sacked 9 times as the Chicago Bears offense struggles in a 26-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns

As the seconds wound down Sunday afternoon at FirstEnergy Stadium, Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields had been sacked more times than he had completed a pass.

That’s how badly the Bears rookie’s first career NFL start went in a 26-6 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

In the days after coach Matt Nagy announced Fields would start in Week 3 instead of injured veteran Andy Dalton, Bears nation was ecstatic over the chance for the team’s first-round pick to show what he can do in a full game.

Instead, the game quickly unraveled into a disaster.

Led by Myles Garrett’s 4 ½ sacks, the Browns defense sacked Fields nine times. Five other players had at least a share of a sack.

Meanwhile, Fields completed 6 of 20 passes for 68 yards and had three carries for 12 yards. Running back David Montgomery had 10 carries for 34 yards.

The Bears offense netted just 47 yards and didn’t find the end zone, settling for a pair of field goals by kicker Cairo Santos.

The Bears defense at least kept it close through three quarters, sacking Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield five times. Outside linebacker Khalil Mack had two and Robert Quinn had 1 ½.

But running back Kareem Hunt evaded tackles by Deon Bush, Khyiris Tonga and Eddie Jackson to break for a 29-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter as the Browns began to pull away.

Mayfield completed 19 of 31 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown, and the Browns piled up 215 yards on the ground behind running backs Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt. Odell Beckham Jr. had five catches for 77 yards in his return from an ACL injury.

The Bears defense, which had four takeaways to help Fields pull off the Week 2 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals despite a rough outing, didn’t force a turnover this time around.

Here’s how the Week 3 game unfolded in Cleveland.

Pregame

If Justin Fields was anxious as he prepared to make his first start Sunday against the Browns in Cleveland, Chicago Bears teammate David Montgomery didn’t notice during the week of practice.

“He comes in with the winning mentality,” Montgomery said. “You would think from a magnifying glass he’d have so much pressure on him just being in the position that he is. But he’s so calm and composed. He’s just taking every rep as a game rep, and it’s very cool to see.”

Fields’ opportunity to start in the Week 3 game comes ahead of schedule because of Andy Dalton’s left knee injury, which NFL Network reported is a bone bruise.

The first-round draft pick replaced Dalton and played the entire second half of the 20-17 victory against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 2. He and the Bears (1-1) are hoping he can take a step forward after an entire week of preparation to be the starter.

Fields said his teammates kept him comfortable as he gets ready to make that leap.

“They have a lot of trust in me,” he said. “Them just having my back and having confidence in me that I’m going to go out there and execute, that has kept me comfortable and kept me poised and confident.”

The Browns (1-1) are coming off a 31-21 victory over the Houston Texans in Week 2. Quarterback Baker Mayfield hurt his non-throwing shoulder in that game but is good to go for Sunday. The Browns also should welcome back wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who has been out since October with a torn ACL.

Inactives announced

Bears safety Tashaun Gipson will not play in Sunday’s game while recovering from a hamstring injury.

The Bears have two veteran backups in Deon Bush and DeAndre Houston-Carson who could fill in for Gipson, who has six tackles and a fumble recovery for the Bears in two games this season.

The Bears previously announced quarterback Andy Dalton and nose tackle Eddie Goldman would be out with knee injuries. Other Bears inactives are wide receiver Breshad Perriman, cornerback Artie Burns and tight end Jesper Horsted.

For the Browns, safety Richard LeCounte III, linebacker Sione Takitaki, defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo, guard Michael Dunn, offensive tackle Chris Hubbard and defensive tackle Tommy Togiai are inactive.

1st quarter: Cairo Santos connects

Chicago Bears kicker Cairo Santos made a 47-yard field goal with 8:40 to play in the first quarter to give the Bears a 3-0 lead against the Browns. It was the 30th-straight made field goal in the regular season for the kicker.

Bears quarterback Justin Fields started his first drive as starter in good field position after the Bears stopped the Browns on fourth-and-5 on their first drive. Robert Quinn and Angelo Blackson sacked Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield for a loss of 9 yards to push the ball to the Bears’ 47.

David Montgomery opened the drive with a 16-yard run. But the Bears followed with a 1-yard Montgomery run and a 7-yard Fields scramble. Montgomery was then stopped for no gain on third-and-2, and the Bears sent out Santos.

2nd quarter: Khalil Mack goes to the locker room

Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack left the game with a foot injury in the second quarter. He is questionable to return.

Mack spent several minutes in the medical tent before walking to the locker room.

Earlier in the game, he had helped the Bears come up with a big stop when the Browns went for it on fourth-and-1 from the Bears 20-yard line. Mack sacked quarterback Baker Mayfield for a loss of 11 yards, the second Bears sack of the first quarter.

2nd quarter: Browns tie it on a 57-yard field goal

Browns kicker Chase McLaughlin made a 57-yard field goal with 12:31 to play in the second quarter to tie the game at 3-3.

The Browns got off to a good start on the drive thanks to running back Kareem Hunt, who had an 18-yard catch from Baker Mayfield and a 12-yard carry on the drive.

But after an offensive holding penalty put the Browns in third-and-15 from the Bears 39-yard line, cornerback Jaylon Johnson helped stop a Mayfield pass to Odell Beckham Jr.

2nd quarter: Browns score a TD right before halftime

Baker Mayfield hit Austin Hooper for a 13-yard touchdown pass with :19 seconds to play in the second quarter to give the Browns a 10-3 lead against the Bears at halftime.

The first half did not go well for the Bears offense and rookie quarterback Justin Fields in his first start.

The Browns, who entered the game with three sacks, sacked Fields four times in the first half. Myles Garrett had 2 ½ sacks, Jadeveon Clowney had one and Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah shared the other sack with Garrett.

Fields completed 3 of 4 passes for 29 yards and had one 7-yard carry.

After Cairo Santos made a 47-yard field goal on the Bears’ first drive, the Bears went three-and-out on their second and third drives. On the latter, Fields was sacked for a loss of 5 yards on consecutive plays.

They started their fourth drive well, with Fields hitting Darnell Mooney and Allen Robinson with 9 yards passes.

But after a Germain Ifedi false-start penalty pushed the Bears to third-and-6 from their own 38, Garrett sacked Fields for a loss of a yard, and the Bears punted.

Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack left the game with a foot injury and spent most of the second quarter watching the game on the sideline without a helmet.

Mayfield completed 15 of 24 passes for 166 yards and the touchdown pass to Hooper.

3rd quarter: Khalil Mack returns, but Browns add a FG

Browns kicker Chase McLaughlin made a 41-yard field goal for a 13-3 lead over the Bears with 9:32 left in the third quarter.

The Browns opened the drive at the Bears’ 44-yard line after Demetric Felton had a 23-yard punt return. Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield hit Odell Beckham Jr. with a 26-yard pass to get the Browns to the 15.

But the Browns committed a holding penalty, and Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack then got his second sack of the game on the drive after returning from his foot injury.

On third-and-30, Mayfield scrambled 12 yards, and McLaughlin went in to make his second field goal.

The Bears announced inside linebacker Joel Iyiegbuniwe was out for the game with a hamstring injury.

3rd quarter: 31 straight FGs for Cairo Santos

Bears kicker Cairo Santos made a 22-yard field goal with 1:43 to play in the third quarter to cut the Browns lead to 13-6.

The Bears faced third-and-19 from their own 40 after a Jason Peters holding penalty. With Fields under pressure on the play, he launched a pass downfield to Allen Robinson. Browns safety John Johnson III intercepted it, but officials called him for pass interference for pushing off Robinson first.

The call gave the Bears the ball at the 12-yard line. After David Montgomery rushed for 5 yards, Fields tripped with defenders on him, and the Browns got their seventh sack of the game. Fields’ 11-yard pass to Montgomery got the Bears to the 4, but coach Matt Nagy opted to kick the field goal rather than go for it on fourth-and-2.

4th quarter: Kareem Hunt gets by Bears defense

Browns running back Kareem Hunt rushed for a 29-yard touchdown for a 20-6 lead against the Bears with 14:46 to play in the game.

Hunt got by tackle attempts by Bears defenders Deon Bush, Khyiris Tonga and Eddie Jackson to score on the third-and-3 play.

It was one of three big plays for the Browns on the drive.

Quarterback Baker Mayfield hit Odell Beckham Jr. for a 16-yard pass early in the drive, and Hunt turned a screen pass into a 23-yard gain.

4th quarter: Browns add another FG

Browns kicker Chase McLaughlin made a 52-yard field goal to push the lead to 23-6 against the Bears with 10:40 to play in the game.

Baker Mayfield’s 15-yard pass to Odell Beckham Jr. got the drive going, and Nick Chubb also broke for a 14-yard run on the drive.

Mayfield threw incomplete on third down, and the Browns turned to McLaughlin rather than go for it on fourth-and-2.

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