CHICAGO _ Bears quarterback Mitch Trubisky threw six touchdown passes to drive the Bears to a 48-10 victory over the Buccaneers on Sunday at Soldier Field.
The win gives the Bears their first three-game winning streak since September 2013.
Playing against a depleted Bucs secondary, Trubisky became only the second player in NFL history to throw five touchdown passes to five different receivers in the first half of a game, according to the NFL communications department. The other player was Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers in 2014 against the Bears.
Trubisky was one touchdown pass off his season total of seven in 12 games in 2017. Seven is also the NFL record, held by eight players, including the Bears' Sid Luckman in 1943.
The Bears easily marched 75 yards for a touchdown to open the game with a 7-0 lead.
Trubisky found Trey Burton for a 39-yard touchdown pass with 12 minutes, 20 seconds to play in the first quarter. Buccaneers safety Justin Evans fell down chasing Burton, leaving the Bears tight end free to make a diving catch in the front right corner of the end zone. Trubisky also had a 23-yard run on the drive.
Trubisky floated a 14-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Allen Robinson for his second touchdown and to give the Bears a 14-0 lead with 2:11 remaining to play in the first quarter.
Before Trubisky's third touchdown drive of the first half, a pass to Tarik Cohen, Buccaneers kicker Chandler Catanzaro made a 30-yard field goal to cut the Bears' lead to 14-3 to open the second quarter. Bucs quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick threw consecutive incomplete passes from the 12-yard line to force the Bucs to kick.
Bears outside linebacker Khalil Mack had a sack and forced fumble against Fitzpatrick. Mack has a sack and forced fumble in each of his four games this season.
Josh Bellamy gave the Bears a 28-3 lead with 8:59 to play in the second quarter. The four-play touchdown drive included Trubisky's 47-yard pass to a wide-open Burton.
Before the half was up, Trubisky would throw one more touchdown pass, this time the Bears got more creative. In a two-quarterback formation with Chase Daniel standing next to him, Trubisky flipped a pass to Taylor Gabriel, who scored for a 3-yard touchdown. It was the fifth different receiver to score a touchdown in the first half for the Bears.
The final touchdown of the game was a Gabriel 3-yard catch in the third quarter.
The Buccaneers didn't score their first touchdown of the game until early in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Jameis Winston, who replaced Fitzpatrick to open the second half, found tight end Cameron Brate for a 16-yard touchdown pass to cut the Bears' lead to 45-10.
