Chicago Bears fans had been hungry for it since the season began. They wanted to see why the Chicago Bears felt compelled to spend a top 10 draft pick on Colston Loveland. Teams don't usually use high selections on non-premium positions like that. They got their answer on Sunday in Cincinnati when Loveland torched the Bengals for 118 yards and two touchdowns. The signature moment of course was his 58-yard catch and run that put the Bears ahead with 17 seconds left in the 4th quarter after the team had squandered a 14-point lead.
It was pure heroics on Loveland's part. The fact that he did it as a rookie made it all the more impressive. What Bears fans didn't know at the time was it was also historic. Loveland was declared the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his performance. A press release revealed that this was the first time since 2002 that a rookie tight end has claimed the honor. Jeremy Shockey was the last one. Loveland is also only the third Bears rookie in history to win it, joining Jordan Howard and Anthony Thomas.
Colston Loveland beat out some incredible names.
Think about that. The past 27 years encompass the careers of Rob Gronkowski, Travis Kelce, Zach Ertz, Antonio Gates, Jason Witten, George Kittle, and Jimmy Graham. None of them managed to win the award as rookies. What Colston Loveland just did is incredibly rare and a testament to the impact he had on his team's fortunes. Even funnier? It came in the first game of his career, where he had more than five targets. Bears fans had been screaming for weeks to get him more involved.
The first time Chicago does it, he rewrites the record book—just another addition to what has been a crazy season for this team. One thing is certain. After seeing what happened, it's almost certain the Bears will make sure to get Loveland the ball a lot more moving forward. He has all the tools to be a difference-maker. Now the team has seen it up close.
