CHICAGO — Caleb Williams struggled in his Chicago debut but the defense saved him and Tyriq Stevenson returned an interception 43 yards for the game-winning touchdown as the Bears beat the Tennessee Titans 24-17 on Sunday.
The Bears, who went 10-24 over the past two seasons, were in the running to make the playoffs but were trailing 17-0 at the half.
They contained the Titans from there, spoiling Tennessee coach Brian Callahan's debut.
The No. 1 overall pick completed 14 of 29 passes for 93 yards and a completion percentage of 55.7. The Heisman Trophy winner at USC became the first quarterback drafted with the No. 1 pick to win his first start since 2002, when David Carr led Houston to a win over Dallas.
The last 15 No. 1 picks, beginning with Cincinnati's Carson Palmer in 2003, have a combined record of 0 wins, 14 losses and 1 tie in their first start.
The Bears had pulled within 17-16 on a Cairo Santos field goal, but Stevenson's basket midway through the fourth quarter put Chicago ahead.
As DeMarcus Walker tried to sack him, Will Revis frantically threw the ball to Stevenson, who caught it and ran untouched down the sideline for a two-point conversion pass from Williams to D'Andre Swift to make the score 24-17.
Jaylon Johnson sealed the victory with just over a minute left, intercepting a deep pass intended for Tyler Boyd on fourth down at Tennessee's 40 and giving fans who had spent most of the afternoon booing a reason to cheer.
As Williams struggled, Chicago's vaunted receivers were quiet as well. DJ Moore caught five passes for 36 yards and Keenan Allen rushed for 29 yards in his Bears debut.
Chicago had 148 yards of total offense and its only touchdown came on special teams. Daniel Hardy blocked a punt in the third quarter and Jonathan Owens recovered the ball and returned it 21 yards to put the Bears up 17-10.
Owens' play drew cheers from the crowd and delighted his wife, Simone Biles, who responded to a comment on X's post asking how she was feeling by saying, “I nearly had a heart attack.”
Santos made a 50-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to cut the lead to 17-13.
The Bears then had a great opportunity when Darrell Taylor strip-sacked Revis and TJ Edwards recovered the ball at the Tennessee 31, but they again trailed by one on a field goal.
Revis started his sophomore season by completing 19 of 32 passes for 127 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Tennessee's Tony Pollard ran for 82 yards and one touchdown.
