Former UW Huskies star ties NFL record in season debut

Chicago Bears fans have been waiting a while for the return of former UW Huskies star Kyler Gordon.

The fifth-year cornerback made that wait worth while with a record-tying performance in his season debut.

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After a calf injury kept him out for the first five weeks of the season, Gordon returned to the field in style Sunday, racking up three sacks and two forced fumbles in the Bears’ 31-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Gordon’s three sacks, which surpassed the 2 1/2 he had over his previous 45 career regular season games, matched an NFL record for the most by a defensive back since the stat started being recorded in 1982, according to the NFL Researcher account on X. The record-tying day came at the expense of a fellow Husky, as Gordon’s three sacks were against Michael Penix Jr.

The first sack came on a second-and-9 play early in the third quarter that helped lead to a turnover on downs two plays later. On Atlanta’s next drive, Gordon got to Penix just as he was about to throw on a third down and forced a fumble that was recovered by the Falcons but led to a punt on the next play. And with the Falcons threatening to make a fourth-quarter comeback down 31-23, Gordon came off the edge and came up with another strip-sack of Penix that the Bears recovered with 2:54 left.

WELCOME BACK, KYLER GORDON

📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/mLaoOqQgPt

— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) October 18, 2026

“Huge spark there for us on the defense,” Bears head coach Ben Johnson told reporters postgame. “I thought (defensive coordinator Dennis Allen) put him in some good spots, but he’s so twitchy, he’s very hard to block as a blitzer, tight in coverage also.”

The 26-year-old Gordon, a Mukilteo native who attended Everett’s Archbishop Murphy High School, added two quarterback hits and had a tackle for loss on Atlanta running back Bijan Robinson on a third-down play in the second quarter.

Sunday’s game was just the sixth played by Gordon, including the playoffs, since signing a three-year, $40 million contract extension with the Bears before last season. He dealt with multiple soft-tissue injuries last year and spent two separate stints on injured reserve.

Kyler Gordon making an impact in his return

CHIvsATL on FOX/FOX One
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/bvbLhSQdWx

— NFL (@NFL) October 18, 2026

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