PHILADELPHIA — The only team that entered Week 13 with a better record in one-score games than the Chicago Bears (6-1) was the Philadelphia Eagles (7-2), who were tied with the Broncos for the most one-score wins in the NFL.

So naturally, this pivotal NFC showdown ended in relatively close fashion, with the Bears beating the Eagles 24-15 to record their fifth straight win.

After only 12 games in the Ben Johnson era, this win is the most impactful and biggest for the franchise in years. Chicago remains in first place in the NFC North and is one step closer to clinching a playoff berth.

Friday’s win went a long way in changing the conversation about whether the Bears are as good as their record. They beat the defending Super Bowl champions on the road and legitimized their place in the NFC hierarchy.

Chicago Bears (9-3)

Turning point: Four plays after Caleb Williams’ third-quarter interception, the Bears’ defense forced a turnover on downs against the Eagles’ famed tush push. Cornerback Nahshon Wright ripped the ball from quarterback Jalen Hurts, something that has happened only one other time since the Eagles began regularly running the play in 2022. After failing to capitalize on Kevin Byard’s interception two drives before, the Bears’ offense ran a 12-play, 92-yard touchdown drive.

Most surprising performance: The Bears had the ball for 21 minutes in the first half thanks to their dominant rushing attack. D’Andre Swift, who notched his third 100-yard rushing game this season, and Kyle Monangai, 130 rushing yards, were especially effective between the tackles, where they had 114 of their 142 first-half rushing yards. By halftime, that was the most rushing yards the Eagles’ defense gave up between the tackles since Week 17 last season. The Bears finished with 231 yards between the tackles. Friday marked the first time that the Bears have had multiple 100-yard rushers in the same game since Nov. 10, 1985, when Walter Payton (107 yards) and Matt Suhey (102) carried the Bears to a 24-3 win over the Lions.

What to make of the QB performance: Chicago ran for 282 yards (second most this season) and was dominant on the ground early. When the Bears got away from that formula with a series of incompletions by Williams during a two-minute drive to end the first half, it felt as if it led to the offense sputtering in the final four minutes of the first half and first four of the second. Williams had eight off-target passes in the first half (tied for his most in either half of his career) and finished 17-of-36 for 154 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. Williams’ completion percentage (47%) was the second lowest in a game in his career. — Courtney Cronin

Next game: at Green Bay Packers (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox)

Philadelphia Eagles (8-4)

It feels as if the Eagles have reached the most important moment in their season. A collapse against the Dallas Cowboys was followed by a discouraging home loss to the Bears in which the offense was familiarly listless for most of the game, and their defense looked suddenly vulnerable.

The boos that consistently rained down at Lincoln Financial Field spoke to the frustrations toward a team that is not playing to its talent.

The Eagles have some time to reflect and correct before next Monday’s game at the Los Angeles Chargers. At 8-4, they’re still the favorites to win the NFC East, and they have a rather friendly closing schedule, with two games against the Washington Commanders and a matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders.

But things have felt a little shaky around this team for much of the season. Now is the time for the defending champs to show the ’25 squad has what it takes to make another run.

What to make of the QB performance: Hurts threw only his second interception of the season and lost a fumble on a third-quarter QB sneak. It marks his first multiturnover game since Week 10 of 2024. It was just Hurts’ second fumble on the tush push since the Eagles started using the play regularly in 2022. The other was in 2023 Week 8 against Washington.

Biggest hole in the game plan: The Eagles’ defense had a very difficult time against misdirection runs. Monangai and Swift routinely found cutback lanes that led to chunk gains.

Trend to watch: The Eagles have been poor at bouncing back from losses. This performance had similarities to their 38-20 loss to the New York Giants in Week 8, when Philadelphia looked flat on a short week after losing to the Denver Broncos. This organization has become accustomed to winning but still needs to rebound better from losses. — Tim McManus

Next game: at Los Angeles Chargers (Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN)