The Chicago Bears had some impressive wins coming into Thursday’s matchup against the New England Patriots, but a 30-24 win over the team that just won the AFC last winter would be their new marquee victory. 

With the game being on short rest, both teams knew they would go through some ups and downs. However, the Bears found a way to hang on to win. It wasn’t pretty, but they found a way to get the job done. 

Head coach Ben Johnson, to his credit, found a way to get the offense to score 30 points in a situation that doesn’t look good for most teams. Out of all the plays that the team made that led them to victory, these five stick out as the "most important."

1. Caleb Williams long completion to Luther Burden

After going up 3-0, the Bears got the ball back and needed another big drive. They set themselves up to score again when Caleb Williams hit Luther Burden for a huge gain. This set the tone for a big game for not only these two players individually, but the offense as a whole.

2. D'Andre Swift gives Bears an early two-score lead

Playing with some sort of nagging injury, D'Andre Swift was very good on Thursday. This touchdown run gave the Bears a 10-0 lead, and they never looked back from there offensively. Being up by 2 scores gave the Bears some comfort going into the rest of the game.

3. D'Marco Jackson's end zone interception halts a promising drive

If the Patriots were to go up 14-13, things might have dramatically changed. However, D'Marco Jackson made an interception in the end zone to stop New England right in their tracks. They've needed different people to step up on defense, especially in the backfield, and that's what happened here.

4. Colston Loveland's touchdown to open the second half

After a tough ending to the first half, the Bears needed to come out strong in the third quarter. Colston Loveland, who is starting to get going, made a big reception and capped off the drive with a touchdown. On this play, he showed just how hard he is to bring down when he's trucking hard.

5. Cairo Santos' game-winning 58-yard field goal

Is it normal to trust your kicker to set a new career-long record 12 years into his NFL career? Is it normal to ask him to do it in a situation that wins you the game? No, it is not. But that is the confidence that Ben Johnson has in his players. Cairo Santos put the Bears up by two scores with his career-long 58-yard field goal, giving the Patriots no chance of winning the game. If he missed, New England would have had a chance to get the ball at midfield to win it. At the end of the game, this became the most important play of them all.