Chicago Bears vs. Arizona Cardinals: Live updates from State Farm Stadium

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Chicago Bears return to action on Sunday with a matchup against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium in Arizona. Head coach Matt Eberflus and his team will try to rebound from last week’s dramatic loss against the Washington Commanders.

This game will feature a matchup between Bears quarterback Caleb Williams and Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray. Both won the Heisman Trophy while playing for coach Lincoln Riley and both went on to become the No. 1 overall draft pick (Murray in 2019; Williams in 2024).

Shaw Local Bears beat writer Sean Hammond will be reporting live from Arizona. Follow Hammond on X at @sean_hammond, on Instagram at @bears_reporter and on Threads at @bears_reporter. Shaw Local enterprise reporter Michal Dwojak will be reporting from Chicago. Follow Dwojak @mdwojak94 on X and also on Threads. Shaw Local Bears analyst Marc Silverman will provide his thoughts on X at @WaddleandSilvy.

Below is everything Bears fans need to know ahead of the game. Stay here all game long for live updates.

Cardinals win

The Cardinals cruised in the second half and closed out a win, 29-9, on Sunday at State Farm Stadium. The Cardinals racked up 350 total yards against a Bears defense that hadn’t allowed 21 points in nearly a full calendar year.

Caleb Williams finished his afternoon 22-for-41 passing for 216 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions.

Cardinals score a safety

The Bears allowed a safety midway through the fourth quarter after running back D’Andre Swift was called for a penalty in the end zone. The score gave Arizona a 20-point lead, 29-9.

The Bears ruled out right tackle Darnell Wright with a knee injury. Wright appeared to injure his knee when Caleb Williams took a fourth-down sack earlier in the game. Wright came up limping. He played the following possession, but later exited the game.

Williams takes sack on 4th down

On the first play of the fourth quarter, the Bears went for it on fourth-and-10 from the Arizona 44-yard line. Caleb Williams had no time to make a play. The pocket collapsed from both sides and Williams took his fifth sack of the game. Cardinals outside linebacker Zaven Collins was credited with the sack.

The Bears turned the ball over on downs.

It led to another Cardinals field goal on the next possession. Arizona leads, 27-9, with 14:02 remaining in the game.

Cardinals add field goal

The Bears received the opening kickoff of the second half, but couldn’t do anything offensively. They went three-and-out and were forced to punt.

Kyler Murray led Arizona 69 yards on 13 plays on the following possession. Arizona made an easy field goal to extend its lead. The Cardinals are up, 24-9, midway through the third quarter.

Bears defense breaks down in final seconds of 1st half

The Bears defense was working hard to keep the Cardinals out of field goal range in the waning seconds of the first half. They had just scored a field goal to make it a five-point game.

But then everything fell apart.

With 12 seconds on the clock, Cardinals running back Emari Demercado found open space on his way to a 53-yard touchdown run up the right side of the field. The touchdown gave the Cardinals a 21-9 lead heading into halftime.

Caleb Williams is 11-for-24 passing for 137 yards with no touchdowns and no turnovers. Rome Odunze has 87 yards on four catches. The Bears will receive the kickoff to start the second half.

Santos adds his 3rd field goal

On third down, Caleb Williams rifled a pass toward Keenan Allen right at the line to gain – but the ball flew through Allen’s hands. It went down as an incompletion.

Bears kicker Cairo Santos made a 53-yard field goal just before halftime. The Cardinals lead, 14-9. The Bears have scored a field goal on each of their past three possessions. Santos is three-for-three on the day.

Dexter’s penalty leads to Cardinals touchdown

The Bears defense stood tall in the red zone. Defensive tackle Chris Williams sacked Kyler Murray on third down. It looked as if the Bears had held the Cardinals to three points, but defensive tackle Gervon Dexter was called for a personal foul penalty on the field goal try, which gave the Cardinals 15 yards and an automatic first down.

The Cardinals took advantage of it. Running back Trey Benson scored a touchdown a few plays later. Arizona extended its lead, 14-6, with 3:14 to go in the first half.

Steward punches the ball out; Santos makes 53-yard kick in rain

Bears undrafted rookie cornerback Reddy Steward punched the football out of the hands of Marvin Harrison Jr. after Harrison caught a 21-yard pass from Kyler Murray. Bears safety Elijah Hicks recovered the fumble for the Bears.

It was a big turnover for a Bears defense that didn’t create any turnovers last week in Washington.

On the next Bears possession, rain started falling at State Farm Stadium. The stadium, which has a retractable roof, had the roof open for the game. Bears kicker Cairo Santos made a 53-yard field goal try in the rain at an indoor stadium.

The Cardinals hold a slim lead, 7-6, in the second quarter.

Odunze’s big gain leads to 3 points

The Bears found their first points on a 29-yard field goal from kicker Cairo Santos. Bears receiver Rome Odunze set up the score when he caught a wide-open 44-yard pass from quarterback Caleb Williams. Odunze took advantage of a busted coverage and Williams lofted an easy pass to him.

But once the Bears were in the red zone, the struggles began. Williams threw three consecutive incompletions from the 11-yard line and the Bears were forced to take the three points.

Arizona still leads, 7-3, with 11:51 to go in the second quarter.

Cardinals score first

Tyrique Stevenson finally entered the game on defense on the team’s third defensive possession. He replaced Terell Smith, who started the game.

The Cardinals scored first in the final minute of the first quarter. Facing a first-and-goal from the 2-yard line, the Cardinals brought out a goal-line package with some extra size. They sent tight end Trey McBride in motion and handed off to the sizable tight end.

McBride found himself one-on-one with Bears safety Kevin Byard. McBride’s size was too much for Byard, who tried to force him to the sideline. The refs ruled it a touchdown for the Cardinals.

Arizona leads, 7-0, with 46 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Tyrique Stevenson begins the game on the bench

The Cardinals received the opening kickoff, so their offense took the field first. Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson appeared to be benched, as expected, to start the game. Backup Terell Smith started at outside cornerback with Jaylon Johnson for the Bears defense.

Additionally, the Bears started Jacob Martin and Dominique Robinson at the defensive end spots. Undrafted rookie Reddy Steward was the first nickel cornerback off the bench. Steward appeared to be playing ahead of Josh Blackwell, who had previously been the nickel with Kyler Gordon sidelined by a hamstring injury.

Chicago Bears announce inactive players

Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson is active and will dress for the game. The team announced seven inactive players on Sunday, and Stevenson was not among the list.

Still, the Bears will be without three starters on defense. Cornerback Kyler Gordon, safety Jaquan Brisker and defensive end Montez Sweat will not play. The Bears already ruled out Brisker on Friday but Sweat and Gordon were listed as questionable ahead of Sunday’s game.

Other inactive players include running back Khalili Herbert, left tackle Braxton Jones, rookie tackle Kiran Amegadjie and defensive tackle Byron Cowart.

Will Tyrique Stevenson start this week?

Eberflus has not said publicly if there will be any repercussions for cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who didn’t appear to have his head in the game last week when Washington’s Hail Mary play began.

Is Stevenson’s gaffe enough to get the second-year corner benched? Eberflus refused to answer questions about it this week, while also noting that Stevenson had a great week of practice. Still, that doesn’t mean the Bears won’t sit Stevenson. Here’s how they could potentially handle it.

On Sunday morning, Fox analyst Jay Glazer reported that Stevenson will not be starting. According to Glazer, when Stevenson learned he would not start on Wednesday, he pulled himself out of practice.

Pressed yet again on Friday on if Stevenson would start, here’s what Eberflus said: “I’m not gonna talk about who’s gonna be starting there at that particular spot. Again, I’ve talked to Tyrique. He’s had a really good week of practice. He’s done well with refocusing in. And I appreciate his efforts moving into the next phase, which is Arizona.”

Latest injury news

The Bears have already ruled out left tackle Braxton Jones with a knee injury. Additionally, rookie Kiran Amegadjie – who stepped in for Jones last week at left tackle – has been ruled out with a calf injury.

So the Bears are down to option No. 3 at left tackle. The team activated fourth-year tackle Larry Borom off injured reserve on Saturday. Borom is expected to start Sunday’s game at left tackle. Borom has not played this season. He injured his ankle in the preseason finale and has been on IR for the first eight weeks. He did, however, return to practice last week, so he has had two full weeks of practice to get back into game shape.

Safety Jaquan Brisker will miss his third consecutive game with a concussion. Elijah Hicks is expected to start in place of Brisker.

Several players are questionable to play Sunday. Notably, cornerback Kyler Gordon (hamstring), defensive end Montez Sweat (shin) and left guard Teven Jenkins (knee) are questionable.

What to expect from the Cardinals

Murray has the Cardinals offense rolling. Arizona can score points, although the Bears defense will be one of the toughest opponents it has faced this season. The bigger problem for the Cardinals is the defense. Arizona is one of the worst defenses in the league. That could be good news for Williams and the Bears.

Here are the top five storylines to watch in this Week 9 matchup.

How can the Bears rebound after last week’s Hail Mary loss? This is the type of week that tests teams. Can Eberflus rally his team through a difficult week?

Silvy believes this Bears team deserves better than what Eberflus has to offer. Read his full weekly column here.

What did I miss this week?

Here’s what else was happening at Halas Hall this week.

[ Why isn’t Chicago Bears RB Khalil Herbert playing? Should the Bears trade him? ]

[ Bear Down, Nerd Up: Jayden Daniels had a huge day scrambling, even before Hail Mary touchdown pass ]

[ What Tyrique Stevenson, Matt Eberflus, Chicago Bears said Monday after loss to Commanders ]