Bears debut WR Chase Claypool, trail Dolphins 21-17 at halftime

The Bears’ defense is going to be outmanned virtually every week, especially after unloading Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith, and that’s certainly been a problem against the Dolphins.

Despite doing all they can to control time of possession, the Bears went into halftime trailing 21-17. Dolphins kicker Jason Sanders missed a 29-yard field goal with seven seconds left.

Quarterback Justin Fields is playing another efficient game and has completed 11 of 15 passes for 94 yards and two touchdowns for an 128.9 passer rating. He also has run six times for 54 yards.

The Dolphins took control when linebacker Jaelan Phillips blocked a punt in the middle of the second quarter and Andrew Van Ginkel scooped it up for 25-yard touchdown return to put Miami up 21-10.

New wide receiver Chase Claypool made his debut on the third snap and got four targets in the first quarter. He caught two passes for 13 yards on four targets in the first half. He also drew a 28-yard pass-interference penalty.
With Claypool active, the Bears benched rookie wide receiver Velus Jones, their third-round draft pick. Jones had his best game of the season last week with 38 yards of total offense and is not injured.

The Bears also lost starting cornerback Kindle Vildor. He injured his ankle on a deep pass to Tyreek Hill in the first quarter in which he committed pass interference and gave the Dolphins first-and-goal the 1-yard line. He is questionable to return.