The Chicago Bears beat the New York Jets in Week 4 of the 2026 NFL season to get to 3-1 on the year and right behind the Minnesota Vikings for the NFC North lead.
But this seemingly innocuous score of 23-12 was a whole lot worse than the 11-point difference appears to be. In fact, this win for Chicago was one of the most dominant of the century.
ESPN’s Ben Solak shared how the Bears were so dominant on Sunday, as Chicago ran 89 plays in Week 4 compared to the Jets’ measly 32. A 57-plus play difference has happened just four times since 1970, and hasn’t happened this century.
Bears’ Week 4 win over Jets was most dominant NFL win seen since 1999
“The Bears had 89 plays to the Jets’ 32 today,” Solak shared. “That’s only the fourth game since 1970 with a play differential of 57+, and the first such game since 1999. That’s dominance.”
While the Bears didn’t blow out the Jets this weekend, they did completely dominate them from start to finish. This play differential is a key statistic that highlights that.
Running 89 plays in one game is a ridiculously high mark and deserves major attention, especially since the Jets ran less than half that many, with just 32 on the day.
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There are a few other ridiculous statistics from this game that further highlight how dominant the Bears were. The Jets had 32 total plays. The Bears had 34 first downs.
The Bears had a ridiculous time of possession of 42 minutes and 45 seconds. The Jets had the ball for just 17 minutes and 15 seconds.
While the score might not have indicated that this Bears vs. Jets matchup was such a lopsided victory for the Bears, the statistic from Solak highlights just how rare and impressive a performance this was from the Bears.
