LONDON -- The Chicago Bears can’t expect to spot a team 17 points and win.
Not with their offense.
The Bears stormed back from a 17-0 halftime deficit to take a lead into the fourth quarter, but Chicago ran out of gas at the end and allowed the Oakland Raiders to squeeze out a 24-21 victory.
The lack of urgency the Bears displayed in the opening 30 minutes was alarming. The Bears were still jet-lagged from Friday morning’s touchdown at Heathrow Airport, or disinterested, or maybe both, because that effort did not resemble a playoff team.
Chicago had visions of entering the bye at 4-1. That’s over. The Bears will now spend the next two weeks piecing together what went wrong, particularly on offense, where the Bears managed only 236 total yards and 42 rushing yards.
Monday’s transcontinental flight back to Chicago just got extra uncomfortable.
QB Breakdown: Chase Daniel looked like a backup early and late. In between, he fared pretty well, tossing a pair of touchdown passes to Allen Robinson. But Daniel had an inexcusable first-half interception to Raiders linebacker Nicholas Morrow on a poorly thrown ball over the middle that set up an Oakland touchdown. That just can’t happen. Daniel roared back to life after halftime, but floated another bad pick near the end of the game. You can’t pin the loss on Daniel, but he definitely would like to have a couple throws back.
Pivotal play: Lifeless throughout the first two quarters, the Bears received a much-needed spark after halftime when the Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and rookie running back Josh Jacobs botched a pitch attempt and the Bears recovered deep inside Oakland territory. With a short field, the Bears finally cashed in on a David Montgomery 1-yard touchdown run that shifted momentum back in Chicago’s favor. The Bears later received huge lifts from Tarik Cohen (71-yard punt return), Anthony Miller (32-yard catch), Sherrick McManis (forced fumble inside the 1-yard line) and Robinson, but the momentum swung on that Oakland turnover. The Bears failed to sustain that momentum, but without that fumble the game is probably a blowout.
Describe the game in two words: Pure rubbish. The Bears can’t afford to lose games like this. Yes, the international travel is a hassle. But Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was packed with Bears fans. Sunday was technically a home game for the Raiders, but it sure didn’t feel like it. There were Bears fans everywhere, and they were loud -- when the Bears gave them something to cheer about. It was a wasted opportunity.
Silver lining: The Bears have extra time to get players back after the bye week. Not only did Chicago miss quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and wide receiver Taylor Gabriel in Week 5, but defensive lineman Akiem Hicks left early with a left elbow injury. And kicker Eddy Pineiro appeared to re-aggravate his right knee injury, but he stayed in the game.