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Foles shocks Falcons; Bears now 3-0

ATLANTA (AP) — Nick Foles rekindled that Super Bowl magic.

The result was a stunning victory for the Chicago Bears.

Taking over for the erratic Mitchell Trubisky in the third quarter, Foles threw three touchdown passes in the final 6 1/2 minutes Sunday to lead the Bears to a 30-26 triumph over the shell-shocked Atlanta Falcons.

While the Falcons became the first team in NFL history to blow fourth-quarter leads of at least 15 points in back-to-back games, the Bears improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2013.

They might have a new quarterback going forward, even though Trubisky was picked No. 2 overall in 2017 to be the cornerstone of the franchise.

At the very least, there’s a QB controversy in the Windy City.

“It’s not easy coming in cold like that,” said Foles, who completed 16 of 29 passes for 188 yards. “But if you can approach it with a mindset of ‘Hey, one play at a time, you can’t get all those points back in one throw,’ that helps a lot.”

He’s got a bit of experience in pressure situations.

In 2017, Foles took over as Philadelphia’s starter late in the regular season after Carson Wentz went down with a season-ending injury. The backup wound up leading the Eagles to their first Super Bowl title, winning the MVP award in the biggest game of all.

Foles returned to the No. 2 role behind Wentz the following year, endured an injury-plagued season after signing a big deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2019, and was traded to the Bears before this season to put some heat on the underperforming Trubisky.

After Trubisky threw an interception that led to a field goal, pushing the Falcons to a 26-10 lead, Foles got the call.

Making Foles’ performance even more impressive: He actually had two apparent touchdown passes overturned by video reviews, allowing the Falcons to maintain their 16-point lead well into the fourth quarter.

After the Falcons went three-and-out on their third straight possession, Foles heaved one with a rusher in his face and connected with Anthony Miller for a 28-yard go ahead touchdown with 1:53 remaining.

Foles finished 16 of 29 for 188 yards.

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