Arrelious Benn caught a 51-yard touchdown pass from QB Blake Bortles with 2:49 remaining in the fourth quarter as the Jacksonville Jaguars rallied for a 17-16 win over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.
The Jaguars now have won back-to-back games for the first time since the 2015 season. It also marked their first road victory over an NFC North opponent since they defeated Detroit in the 2008 season.
Jacksonville running back Chris Ivory scored on a one-yard run in the fourth quarter, marking his first since joining the Jaguars and the 25th rushing score of his 73-game NFL career.
Benn’s only catch of the game gave the Jaguars (2-3) with their first lead after the Bears jumped out 13-0. It marked Benn’s first touchdown reception with the Jaguars and his first TD reception since 2011 when he was a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Bortles completed 20 of 33 passes for 271 yards, one TD and one interception. The win over Chicago marked the fifth come-from-behind fourth quarter victory of Bortles’ career. Bortles entered the game 1-14 on the road as a starter.
Five different Jacksonville receivers – Allen Robinson, Marqise Lee, Allen Hurns, Benn and Julius Thomas – caught a pass of 10-plus yards in the game. Hurns caught five passes for 74 yards and has caught a pass in every game in which he’s played and he extended his streak of 36 consecutive appearances with a reception. On the season, Hurns has now caught 20 passes for 300 yards and one TD.
Jason Myers’ 30-yard field goal with 4:59 remaining got the Jaguars to within 16-10. Myers has made eight of 10 field goals and all 11 PATs this season.
The Jaguars had five penalties – their fewest of the 2016 season – and fewest penalty yards (50) since 2015.
Defensively, linebacker Paul Posluszny led the team with 11 tackles, 10 solo, including one tackle for loss. For the season, he has now registered 46 tackles, 35 solo, and leads the club in tackles.
Linebacker Telvin Smith finished second on the team with eight tackles against Chicago, including one tackle for loss. Smith has now registered six-plus tackles in 21 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the NFL. In five games this season Smith has registered 40 tackles.
Safety Johnathan Cyprien registered six tackles, four solo, and one pass defensed. He has made at least five tackles in every game this season.
Chicago QB Brian Hoyer, starting again in place of injured Jay Cutler, led the sputtering Bears offense with 302 yards on 30-for-49 passing. Jordan Howard’s 1-yard scoring run – the first of his NFL career gave Chicago (1-5) a 10-0 lead in the second quarter. Connor Barth kicked three field goals.
The Jaguars are home this Sunday to face the Oakland Raiders (4-2) at EverBank Field. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.
COMEBACK CATS: The Jaguars overcame a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Bears, which is tied for the sixth-largest comeback in franchise history and the largest comeback since 2014, when the Jaguars trailed the New York Giants by 21 points, the largest comeback in franchise history, in the second quarter and won, 25-24. The comeback from a 13-point fourth quarter deficit was just the second time in franchise history in which the team has trailed by 10 or more points in the fourth quarter and won.
NORTMAN NAILS IT: Fifth-year punter Bran Nortman punted five times for 275 yards and a 52.2 net avg., including two punts inside the 20. In his 69-game career, Nortman has now registered 100 career punts inside the 20, including nine this season.
COLVIN MAKES DEBUT: Third-year cornerback Aaron Colvin made his 2016 debut and registered five tackles, including one tackle for loss. Colvin missed the first four games of the season, as he was serving a suspension for violating the NFL policy for performance enhancing substances. Colvin eclipsed the 100 career tackle mark and now has 103 career stops 86 of them solo tackles.
