The Chicago Bears learned the old mantra that football is a game of inches the hard way on Sunday as they fell to the Cleveland Browns in overtime, 20-17.
The Browns were down 10 points entering the fourth quarter when Joe Flacco found Amari Cooper for a 51-yard touchdown pass to tie the game with 3:08 left and forced overtime. In the extra frame, Dustin Hopkins kicked a go-ahead 34-yard field goal with 32 seconds left to play in the game.
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Darnell Mooney of the Chicago Bears reacts after failing to haul in a Hail Mary pass in the end zone during the fourth quarter against the Browns in Cleveland on Dec. 17, 2023. (Jason Miller/Getty Images)
Bears quarterback Justin Fields had one more chance. He launched a final Hail Mary attempt down the field into a sea of Browns defenders and Bears wide receivers. One Browns defender knocked the ball down but Bears receiver Darnell Mooney got his fingertips on the ball as he fell down.
Mooney bobbled the ball a few times before losing control of it and watching it bounce off his feet and into the hands of D’Anthony Bell for the interception.
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Cleveland closed out the win.
Browns quarterback Joe Flacco runs the ball in the second half against the Chicago Bears, Dec. 17, 2023, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Flacco, despite throwing three interceptions and getting sacked four times, was 28 of 44 for 374 yards and a two touchdown passes. Cooper, along with the touchdown, had four catches for 109 yards. David Njoku had 10 catches for 104 yards and a touchdown.
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Fields was 19 of 40 for 166 yards, a touchdown pass and an interception. He had a touchdown pass to Cole Kmet. D.J. Moore led the way with four catches for 52 yards.
Cleveland stays in position to make the playoffs as it picked up its ninth win of the season. The Browns are only behind the Baltimore Ravens for the top spot in the AFC North.
Browns safety Tanner McCalister, left, and teammate cornerback Mike Ford celebrate with fans during the game against the Chicago Bears in Cleveland on Dec. 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
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Chicago dropped to 5-9 on the season.
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