Bears coach Matt Eberflus defends Shane Waldron's goal-line call for Doug Kramer in loss to Commanders

LANDOVER, Md. — Handing the ball off to a 300-pounder at the goal line is amusing when you’re running away with a game. It’s absurd when you’re counting on that to take that lead in the fourth quarter.

The Bears made a lot of errors in their 18-15 loss to the Commanders on Sunday, ending in a botched Hail Mary defense that left no one covering the tip to wide receiver Noah Brown in the end zone for a touchdown with no time left. But their miscue at the goal line with six minutes left might have been their biggest gaffe.

With the Bears down 12-7 and lining up in the I-formation for third-and-goal at the Commanders’ 1-yard line, offensive coordinator Shane Waldron called for a surprise handoff to backup offensive lineman Doug Kramer. He had been filling in at fullback the last few games, but only as a lead blocker.

Quarterback Caleb Williams held the ball out into Kramer’s chest, but he never got his hands around it and fumbled. Commanders defensive tackle Jer’Zhan Newton, a former Illini like Kramer, recovered it and squashed the Bears’ chance to take the lead.

“You’re excited, and I appreciate Shane for having the trust in me to call it, but I made a mistake and dropped the ball on the 1-yard line,” Kramer said.

Asked what went wrong on the play, he replied, “I fumbled it.”

Bears coach Matt Eberflus said he didn’t consider interjecting when he heard Waldron call the play and, in fact, was confident because the team has practiced it for a few weeks.

“We’ve worked the mechanics of it, the handoff to him, and we’ve just got to do it better,” Eberflus said. “It’s just wedge-blocking, and you’re on the 1-yard line and you’ve got a big guy getting the ball.”

More O-line trouble

The already-fragile Bears offensive line took a few more hits Sunday. Left tackle Braxton Jones and left guard Teven Jenkins each left the game with a knee injury, and backup guard Bill Murray hurt his pectoral muscle. Eberflus didn’t have specifics on the severity of those injuries.

When Jones went down, the Bears sent in third-round pick Kiran Amegadjie at left tackle. Amegadjie, who played high school ball at Hinsdale Central, had played just nine snaps on offense this season. He had two key blocks on D’Andre Swift’s 56-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter.

“I had to just get that one guy, and there was nobody left, so I tried to make a play,” Amegadjie said. “It was probably the best feeling I’ve ever had on a football field in my life. It was awesome.”

The Bears finished the game with him at left tackle and Kramer at left guard. Veteran guard Nate Davis, their highest-paid lineman this season at $8.8 million, was a healthy scratch for the second game in a row.

Major meltdowns

The Kramer kerfuffle was just one of the Bears’ wasted opportunities offensively. Williams converted a third-and-two and pushed into Commanders territory by hitting DJ Moore for seven yards late in the third quarter as he tried to rally the Bears from a 12-0 hole. But the gain was nullified by right tackle Darnell Wright getting flagged for illegal formation. Jenkins committed a false start, and soon the Bears were punting from their own 40.

They also squandered a scoring chance late in the first half when they had a first down at the Commanders’ 23 but ended up punting on fourth-and-27 after Williams took a 15-yard loss on a sack.

Sweat’s shin

Star defensive end Montez Sweat had a sack and one other tackle for loss against the team that traded him last season. He also left with a shin injury and wasn’t on the field to pressure quarterback Jayden Daniels on the game-winning Hail Mary.