The San Francisco 49ers' pursuit of the NFC's No. 1 seed and the right to remain at Levi's Stadium through the duration of the postseason is alive and well after a thrilling 42-38 win over the NFC North champion Chicago Bears (11-5) on "Sunday Night Football." The 80 combined points makes this game tied for the third-highest scoring affair of the 2025 season.
For the second week in a row, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy produced five touchdowns, making him just the seventh player in NFL history with five-plus total touchdown performances in consecutive games. Purdy is the first to do so since Russell Wilson in 2020 after he threw for five touchdowns in a Week 16 "Monday Night Football" win at the Indianapolis Colts. Purdy produced 303 yards through the air, three passing touchdowns and a pick six on 24 of 33 passing while also adding 28 yards on the ground and two scores on six carries. Running back Christian McCaffrey added to his NFL Offensive Player of the Year campaign with 140 yards rushing and a touchdown on 23 carries in addition to 41 yards receiving on four catches.
Purdy got the scoring going on the game's first play when a throw over the middle to wide receiver Jauan Jennings was deflected into the air. Chicago linebacker T.J. Edwards then ran under the ball for the interception and ran it back 34 yards for the touchdown just 15 seconds into the game. Purdy immediately rebounded to lead the 49ers (12-4) all the way down the field for touchdowns on six of their next nine drives -- possessions that ended with a passing touchdown to tight end Jake Tonges from a yard out, a 10-yard scramble by Purdy, a 5-yard rush from running back Christian McCaffrey, a 3-yard read-option keeper run by Purdy, a Houdini-like scramble to hit fullback Kyle Juszczyk for a 6-yard score and a 38-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Jennings.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams went drive for drive with Purdy, throwing two deep touchdown passes of over 35 yards in the first half: a 35-yarder to wide receiver Luther Burden on a vertical route down the left side of the field and a 36-yarder to tight end Colston Loveland on a free play because of an offsides penalty on the 49ers. Williams is now the first Chicago quarterback with multiple touchdown passes of 30 or more air yards in a game since Josh McCown back in 2013. He finished with 330 yards and 2 touchdowns on 25 of 42 passing. Running back D'Andre Swift picked up the scoring slack in the second half, sprinting away from the San Francisco defense for rushing touchdowns of 3 and 22 yards out.
After a 29-yard field goal from Bears kicker Cairo Santos that gave Chicago a 38-35 lead with 5:22 left to play, Purdy answered with the 38-yard scoring strike to Jennings with 2:15 left to play. Williams then marched the Bears down to the 49ers' 2 where they had one last chance with four seconds left. San Francisco's pass rush flushed Williams out to the left, and Williams' last-second heave to the end zone fell short of Jahdae Walker to seal a 49ers victory.
San Francisco can clinch the NFC's No. 1 seed and the NFC West division title with a home win over the current top-seeded Seattle Seahawks (13-3) in Week 18. The Bears remain the No. 2 seed entering the final week of the 2025 regular season.
Early on in Purdy's 49ers career, he relied on a star-studded cast with playmakers like Deebo Samuel, Brandon Aiyuk, George Kittle and Christian McCaffrey. With Kittle sidelined with an ankle injury, McCaffrey was the only one of those players on the field for San Francisco Sunday night. Many of the plays Purdy made in Week 17 were created by his scrambling, whether it was his 6-yard passing touchdown to Juszczyk after evading two Bears defenders or his 10-yard rushing touchdown. Countless completions by Purdy were also made outside the pocket with Purdy on the run. With him playing at this level, the 49ers are one of the NFC's most dangerous contenders.
Williams played well, but he left a number of throws on the field, including his final throw that skipped just short of Walker as time expired. A number of misses on checkdowns and underneath throws to both Swift and Monangai and others hurt Chicago in critical spots, especially on the Bears' final drive. The ceiling is high for Williams, but he needs to refine his mechanics to ace the little things, which on the game's final possession, became a big deal.
Running backs approaching 30 years old and crossing over 30 years old used to be viewed as declining assets. That's not the case for Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry (31), who went off for 216 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-24 Week 17 win at the Green Bay Packers, and McCaffrey (29) on Sunday night. The 49ers lead back joined Pro Football Hall of Famer LaDainian Tomlinson as the only two players in NFL history with three seasons of 2,000-plus scrimmage yards and 15-plus touchdowns. McCaffrey racked up 121 of his 140 yards in the first half on Sunday night, the most first-half yards rushing in his career. Two of the game's best running backs of the last decade remain two of the game's best in 2025.
Both defenses are now bending but not breaking. The Bears drove down to as close as the 49ers' eight, but they couldn't find the end zone. Chicago settled for a 29-yard field goal, and they now lead 38-35 with 5:22 left to play. It's the Bears' first lead since Brock Purdy's pick-six that put Chicago up 7-0 15 seconds into the game.
Chicago took advantage of San Francisco left tackle Trent Williams' absence by hitting quarterback Brock Purdy on his third-and-7 throw at the Bears' 43. Given the way Purdy has been playing, it would have made some sense to go for it on fourth down, but 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan opted to punt. The Bears take over on their own 11 in a 35-35 game with 11:23 left to play.
D'Andre Swift is heating up with consecutive rushing touchdowns to begin the second half, the second of which came on a 22-yard breakaway. Swift cut back to the middle after taking the handoff out of the pistol to the right side of the line, and that's when he turned on the jets for the touchdown. Swift now has his fifth career multi-touchdown game and his second in the last three weeks. It's tied 35-35 with 14:54 left to play.
Purdy appeared doomed to be sacked after the Chicago Bears initially covered San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk on the play-action rollout to the left, but Purdy danced his way around two Bears pass rushers to then hit Juszczyk in the left front corner of the end zone for the six-yard touchdown. Purdy now has four total touchdowns, two passing and two rushing, as the 49ers take a 35-28 lead with 4:52 left in the third quarter.
Juszczyk
On third-and-goal at the two, Bears running back D'Andre Swift takes an outside handoff all the way into the end zone to the tie the game at 28. Both defenses have been unable to get stops tonight, and that trend continues on the opening drive of the third quarter. It's 28-28 with 9:51 left in the third quarter.
Purdy pulled the football on the read-option keeper and sprints into the end zone for a three-yard rushing score. He is now up to three total touchdowns (one passing and two rushing) for the 49ers to give San Francisco a 28-21 lead with 3:23 left in the first half. San Francisco's 28 points are their most first-half points (28) since 2022 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams realized he caught the 49ers offsides, so he hurled the football deep to rookie first-round tight end Colston Loveland for a 36-yard touchdown pass to tie the game at 21 with 12:20 left in the first half. The 49ers and Bears are trading touchdowns with four touchdowns on the game's last four drives. Williams is now the first Chicago quarterback with multiple touchdown passes of 30 or more air yards in a game since Josh McCown back in 2013.
Christian McCaffrey is cooking Chicago's defense. He motored into the end zone with ease on the toss play to the right for a five-yard touchdown to put San Francisco back in front, 21-14, with 13:44 left in the first half. McCaffrey is averaging 8.2 yards per carry, 82 yards rushing on 10 carries, early against the Bears. CMC's five-yard rushing touchdown is his ninth in the last six games, the most in a six-game span by a 49er since Deebo Samuel in 2023.
Burden left his defender in the dust on a vertical route downfield, and Williams hit him in stride for the 35-yard touchdown. The Bears and 49ers are once again tied, this time at 14-14, with 2:58 left to play in the first quarter.
Since his game-opening pick-six, Purdy has locked in. He's completed four of his eight throws since for 63 yards and a touchdown while also scrambling 14 yards, including the 10-yard rushing touchdown to put San Francisco ahead 14-7 with 4:52 left in the first quarter.
A third-and-4 incompletion by Caleb Williams to wide receiver DJ Moore doomed the drive. The 49ers take over at their own 34 in a 7-7 game.
Brock Purdy's third down pass being deflected on third-and-6 triggered San Francisco's first punt in three games. Thomas Morstead's boot pinned the Bears inside their own 20 at the 16 to begin their next drive in a 7-7 game with 7:44 left in the first quarter.
Chicago didn't run the ball once, and quarterback Caleb Williams threw consecutive incompletions after a seven-yard connection with tight end Cole Kmet. The 49ers will take over at their own 20 after a punt for a touchback in a 7-7 game with 9:59 left in the first quarter.
Purdy marched the 49ers down the field for a touchdown to make up for his opening play pick-six. Tight end Jake Tonges became uncovered on the play-action rollout on first-and-goal from the one, and Purdy hit him with ease to tie the game at 7-7 with 10:57 left in the first quarter. He completed three of his six throws on the drive for 52 yards and the score. Caleb Williams and the Bears' offense will take the field for the first time next.
Austen Peasants is in at left tackle for the 49ers
Purdy stared down an in-breaking route, which allowed Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson to break up the pass and deflect it into the air. Chicago linebacker T.J. Edwards then ran under the ball for the interception and ran it back 34 yards for the touchdown. The Bears lead 7-0 15 seconds into this game.
Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the San Francisco 49ers offense will take the field first
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams could make franchise history across the next two weeks: he needs 600 yards to become the first 4,000-yard passer for the Bears and seven passing touchdowns to become the first quarterback with 30 in a season.
| Longest active drought without 4,000-yard passer | Seasons | Last time |
|---|---|---|
Bears | 105 | Never |
Jets | 57 | 1967 (Joe Namath) |
Browns | 41 | 1980 (Brian Sipe) |
Titans | 33 | 1991 (Warren Moon) |
Johnson has the Bears running the football more, lining up under center more and using two-tight end sets more in an effort to be able to be more multiple both running and passing the football out of the same formations. Having the run and the pass more married up schematically has paid dividends for Chicago.
| Bears ranks last two seasons | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
Designed run rate | 27th | 9th |
Under center rate | 17th | 4th |
Play action rate | 30th | 2nd |
Two-plus tight end sets rate | 22nd | 7th |
The Bears are lightyears better offensively in Year 1 under head coach Ben Johnson.
| Bears offense ranks, last two seasons | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
PPG | 28th | 10th |
Total YPG | Last | 5th |
Yards/Play | Last | 10th |
Explosive plays | 29th | 1st |
McCaffrey has 1,039 yards rushing and 849 yards receiving this season, which has him 151 receiving yards from his second career year with 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards. No player -- Roger Craig (1985), Marshall Faulk (1999) and McCaffrey (2019) -- has ever totaled two such seasons.
| Christian McCaffrey ranks this season entering Week 17 | NFL Rank | |
|---|---|---|
Touches | 372 | 1st |
Scrimmage yards | 1,888 | 2nd |
Scrimmage TD | 16 | 3rd |
Wide receiver Rome Odunze is out with a foot injury while cornerback Nashon Wright (hamstring/illness) will play.
San Francisco average 1.2 more yards per rush when Kittle is on the field this season (4.2) versus when he is off the field this season (3.0). The 49ers are also 30-8 when all three of quarterback Brock Purdy, running back Christian McCaffrey and Kittle play since 2022. Since 2022 when one or more of that trio doesn't play, they're 16-18, including the postseason.
| 49ers in past four seasons including playoffs, By Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle status | All 3 Play | All other games |
|---|---|---|
W-L | 30-8 | 16-18 |
PPG | 29.0 | 22.6 |
* Kittle (ankle) inactive tonight
McCaffrey's NFL-high 372 touches this season are the most by a player coming off of a season with four or fewer games played in NFL history. He is on pace for 421 touches this season. That would make McCaffrey:
Kittle (ankle) didn't practice all week because of an ankle injury, and he will be inactive for "Sunday Night Football" against the Chicago Bears. Wide receiver Ricky Pearsall (knee, ankle) will play after practicing in a limited fashion all week.
