Eddie Jackson's 2 Defensive TDs Lead Bears Past Panthers, 17-3

CHICAGO (AP) — Rookie safety Eddie Jackson became the first NFL player to score multiple defensive touchdowns of 75 yards or more in a game, leading the Chicago Bears to a 17-3 victory over the Carolina Panthers on Sunday.

Jackson ran back a fumble recovery 75 yards on the game's opening possession and returned an interception of Cam Newton 76 yards for a score early in the second quarter to give Chicago a 14-0 lead.

He became the first Bears player since Fred Evans in 1948 — and the first NFL player since Tennessee's Zach Brown in 2012 — with two defensive touchdowns in a game.

Chicago also sacked Newton five times and intercepted him twice.

The big plays by Jackson and the defense lifted the Bears (3-4) to their second straight win even though they got dominated in just about every statistical category.

Listen: Bears audio highlight reel from Ron Gleason:

Carolina (4-3) held huge advantages in yards (293-153), time of possession (38:35-21:25), offensive plays (69-37) and first downs (20-5).

Newton completed 21 of 34 passes for 211 yards and ran for a team-high 50. But the Panthers dropped their second straight game.

Chicago's Mitchell Trubisky was 4 of 7 for 107 yards in his third NFL start. The No. 2 overall pick threw a 70-yard pass to Tarik Cohen, but did little else.

Jordan Howard also had a quiet afternoon, even though Panthers star linebacker Luke Kuechly missed the game because of a concussion. He ran for just 65 yards after going off for a career-high 167 against Baltimore last week.

Jackson's big day came exactly one year after he broke his leg playing for Alabama against Texas A&M.

A fourth-round draft pick, he scooped up the loose ball near the end zone after Curtis Samuel botched a lateral and was barely touched on the way to the end zone.

Early in the second quarter, Chicago's Prince Amukamara tipped a pass intended for Kelvin Benjamin. Jackson hauled in the interception and had a clear path on the way to a 76-yard TD.

Carolina's Graham Gano kicked a field goal late in the half. The Bears then had a huge opportunity when Trubisky connected with Cohen on that 70-yard pass to the 5, but had to settle for a 19-yard kick by Connor Barth that made it 17-3.

INJURIES

Panthers: Two-time All-Pro C Ryan Kalil (neck) returned to the lineup after missing five games, but lasted only one quarter. He was hurt in a season-opening win over San Francisco. ... LT Matt Kalil, his brother, limped to the sideline following a Panthers run early in the second quarter, but started the second half. ... RG Trai Turner injured his left knee late in the third blocking on a pass play and left the game.

Bears: DL Roy Robertson-Harris injured his hamstring defending the kickoff return following Jackson's second touchdown.

UP NEXT

Panthers: Visit Tampa Bay on Oct. 29.

Bears: Visit New Orleans on Oct. 29.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press.

Read more
f

We and our partners use cookies to understand how you use our site, improve your experience and serve you personalized content and advertising. Read about how we use cookies in our cookie policy and how you can control them by clicking Manage Settings. By continuing to use this site, you accept these cookies.