Conclusion: These Chicago Bears must do what their predecessors couldn't: overcome the devastation

Pull out the receipts if you can bear it.

Where would the Chicago Bears' Sunday loss to the Washington Commanders rank on the list of heartbreaking, devastating, gut-wrenching and unbelievable losses?

It's certainly worse than last year's losses to Denver, Cleveland and Detroit. The last loss to cause a blow of this magnitude was the 2018 NFC Wild Card “Double Doink” game against Philadelphia.

Finding the right words to accurately describe the feeling is a real challenge. On a night so close to Halloween, the bears enjoyed their treats too early. In the end it was all a trick.

This leaves the Bears in 2024 where they have been in the past. However, these bears must find a way to do something their predecessors were unable to do: leave the unimaginable behind them.

“Just in disbelief,” Bears defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker told FOX 32 after the game. “I couldn’t believe it ended like that.”

The victory was there. The Chicago Bears had a record of 5-2. After playing gritty football for three quarters, the Bears put together a fourth quarter that showed grit, poise and determination.

Roschon Johnson's one-yard touchdown with 23 seconds left gave the Bears the lead. The defense only had to defend a Hail Mary pass for 52 yards. Daniels changed the narrative with his powerful throw.

FINAL: 18-15.

The pain of this one piece is only described by dropped jaws and agonizing screams. That pain likely left Bears fans around the world speechless in the hour that followed the game. Others who could talk probably pointed out the setting of the “Hail Mary” piece as if that could turn back time.

“This is just a terrible loss,” Walker said. “We have to be able to process this.”

The Bears started to process it a little bit after the game. They started going over everything and talking about what was supposed to happen.

“As long as we had everything in front of us and kept them out of field goal range, that was the plan,” Bears nickelback Josh Blackwell said.

After doing everything they could to keep Washington at bay and hold the Commanders to four field goals instead of letting them get into the end zone, the offense came together thanks to the magic of Caleb Williams. He led two drives in the fourth quarter to the one-yard line.

One ended with a fumble on an inexplicable handoff to Doug Kramer, the other was Johnson's touchdown.

Then, in the game-winning Hail Mary, Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson was seen pointing to the crowd as the play was stopped. He refused to speak in the locker room after the game but apologized on social media later Sunday.

“To Chicago and his teammates, I apologize for the lack of attention and concentration,” Stevenson posted on X after the game. “The game isn’t over until there are zeros on the clock. I can't take anything for granted. Take notes, improvements will occur.”

Considering everything that happened – from the adversity to leading with 23 ticks to go – it's no surprise that most of these Bears are struggling to balance Sunday with another moment of their football lives.

“I’ve never been a part of a loss like this,” Bears safety Kevin Byard said.

These Bears may not know that there is intense pain inside them right now, but Bears fans know it well. The “Double Doink” game in the Matt Nagy era, the 2013 season finale against Green Bay – the Chris Conte Game – in the Marc Trestman era, and both the 2010 NFC Championship Game and Super Bowl XLI in the Lovie era Smith are all moments that give rise to unrest.

Still, the Bears are 4-3 and are nearly halfway through a football season that could see them contend for the postseason with a bounce or two. As devastating as Sunday was, the season is not over yet. It was after the moments mentioned above.

“We’re not going to just lie down,” Bears safety Kevin Byard said. “Lick your wounds and let’s get back to work.”

The most shocking part of these past losses, however, is the end result. The Bears teams that suffered this devastation never truly recovered.

The Nagy era never reached the level of football of the 2018 team. Smith never made it to the Super Bowl again. The Trestman era was over just a year later.

The Eberflus Era has a chance to overcome this devastation. You have the chance to pick up the pieces.

“It takes a strong spirit and a strong belief in who you are,” Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said. “It’s one game, right? I know. It's like I said: if you lose on the last play, it's going to hurt, right? “

The problem is: it couldn't be easier.

After next week's road game against the Arizona Cardinals, the NFC North battle looms. Arizona has won its last two games after losing to the Packers.

The Packers and the Lions also won on Sunday. Green Bay found a way to win a game in which they were struggling. Detroit beat Tennessee, proving that the Lions are currently playing in a different class of football.

Eberflus has put together his preferred personnel selections for this offseason. Shane Waldron, Eric Washington and other position coaches are seasoned veterans, but find me a coach who has been through these struggles.

At the start of this season, the task was to fix the offense. The Bears have shown they can do it.

The main thing now is to ensure that this Sunday does not impact next Sunday and beyond.

“We always do that,” said Eberflus. “That’s what we’re going to do here.”