The Chargers beat the Chicago Bears, 17-16, Sunday as Eddie Piñeiro missed a field goal with time expiring, his second missed field goal of the game.
After the first three drives of the game ended in punts, the Bears made it to the Chargers' 15-yard line. Piñeiro, however, missed a 33-yard field goal attempt off the right upright with 2:14 remaining in the first quarter.
On the ensuing Chargers possession, Philip Rivers was intercepted by cornerback Kyle Fuller, with the Bears taking over at L.A.'s 24. Chicago advanced to the 4-yard line, but did not get any farther, settling for a successful 22-yarder by Piñeiro with 14:45 left in the second quarter.
The next time the Bears got into the red zone, advancing to the Chargers' 9-yard line, the Bolts defense made Chicago settle for a field goal again. Piñeiro's successful 25-yarder made the score 6-0 with 4:16 to go in the half.
On the Bolts' next drive, Rivers found wide receiver Mike Williams for a 19-yard connection, moving the ball to the Bears' 19 yard-line. Melvin Gordon then scored the Chargers' first points of the day on a 19-yard touchdown run, culminating a four-play, 75-yard drive.
Gordon's first rushing score of the season plus an extra point by Chase McLaughlin handed the Bolts a 7-6 advantage with 2:12 remaining in the half.
The Bears advanced all the way to the Chargers' 1-yard-line on their next possession, but the Bolts made another goal-line stand. Running out of time, Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky spiked the ball with one second left. Piñeiro then converted a 19-yard field goal with time expiring, giving the Bears a 9-7 halftime lead.
On the Bears' first drive of the second half, running back David Montgomery scored a 4-yard rushing touchdown with 8:08 to go in the third quarter. After Piñeiro nailed the extra point, the Bears led 16-7.
Rivers then engineered a 14-play, 73-yard scoring drive that took 7:29. The possession culminated in a successful 20-yard field goal by McLaughlin, cutting the Bolts deficit to 16-10 with 42 seconds left in the third quarter.
Chargers cornerback Casey Hayward picked off Trubisky on the Bears' next possession, running 37 yards to the Chicago 20-yard-line.
The Bolts were unable to get a first down, resulting in a 42-yard field goal attempt by McLaughlin that missed wide right.
The Bears took over possession, still leading 16-10, at the Chargers' 42 with 10:53 left in the fourth quarter.
Four plays later, defensive tackle Damion Square forced a Trubisky fumble that was recovered by Melvin Ingram in the defensive end's first game back from injury.
Starting their drive at the Bears' 26, the Chargers moved up to the 11 after a Bears' face mask penalty. This set up an 11-yard touchdown reception for Austin Ekeler from Rivers.
McLaughlin tacked on the extra point to give the Bolts a 17-16 advantage with 8:04 remaining in the game. The drive took just three plays, 26 yards and 1:21 to complete.
On the ensuing Bears drive at the Chargers' 37, defensive end Joey Bosa sacked Trubisky, which led to a punt.
On third down for the Bolts, Rivers' 11-yard pass to tight end Hunter Henry fell inches shy of a first down, forcing the Chargers to punt.
Trubisky then evaded pressure and ran for 12 yards to advance his team to the Bolts' 21. The Bears then kneeled to set up a game-winning field goal with time expiring. However, Piñeiro missed the 41-yard attempt with no time on the clock, preserving a 17-16 Bolts victory.
In the victory, Rivers passed for 201 yards and threw one touchdown and an interception. Bosa dominated with seven tackles, two sacks, four tackles for a loss, and three QB hits, while rookie safety Roderic Teamer contributed a game-high eight tackles, plus a sack, a pass deflection, and a QB hit.
In defeat, Bears running back David Montgomery rushed for 135 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries.
The Chargers bring their 3-5 record back home to face the Green Bay Packers next Sunday at 1:25 p.m. PT. Kickoff will take place at ROKiT Field at Dignity Health Sports Park.
Take a look through live action photos from Week 8's matchup against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.
