INDIANAPOLIS – The Bears scored their only two touchdowns of Sunday's game against the Colts in the fourth quarter but couldn't overcome another double-digit deficit in a 21-16 loss at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Caleb Williams established career highs in all passing categories with 52 attempts, 33 completions and 363 yards. The rookie also threw his first two NFL touchdown passes but accounted for three turnovers with two interceptions and a lost fumble.

Fellow rookie Rome Odunze had six receptions for 112 yards and his first NFL TD. Cole Kmet caught 10 passes for 97 yards. And DJ Moore had eight catches for 78 yards. But the Bears rushed for just 63 yards on 28 attempts. Roschon Johnson ran for 30 yards on eight carries and D'Andre Swift added 20 yards on 13 attempts.

"Definitely feeling the loss," Williams said. "It sucks every single time taking a loss. It never gets easier, never gets better. I am still proud of my guys, proud of the steps we've taken so far. The things we did today compared to last week and the week before, the steps we're taking, super excited about this future of the offense, the team, the defense, special teams."

The defense delivered another strong performance, intercepting two passes and limiting the Colts to 306 yards and 15 first downs. One Indianapolis touchdown came after an offside penalty on the punt return team extended a drive and another occurred after Indianapolis had recovered a Williams fumble at the Bears' 16.

"Disappointed in the loss," said coach Matt Eberflus. "I thought we had some really good opportunities out there to win the game. I was proud of the way the guys fought throughout the entire game, and my message to them in the locker room afterward was just this: It was missed opportunities. We had opportunities to win that game.

"The first thing we have to do is honor the football … That's the most important thing in winning, and we've got to do a good job. And then once we do get takeaways, we've got to score off those opportunities. They scored on those opportunities, and we did not."

In the first half, the Bears generated 247 yards while possessing the ball for 19:23, but they failed to score. Their two best chances came late in the second quarter.

First, they had first-and-goal from the 4 but were unable to get into the end zone on four plays. Khalil Herbert took a direct snap out of the shotgun and gained two yards on first down, was held to one yard on second down and was stuffed for no gain on third down. On fourth-and-goal from the 1, Williams pitched the ball on an option play to Swift, who had no running room and retreated, losing 12 yards.

"[The offense] was better than the first couple weeks, I thought," Kmet said. "We had a lot of sustained drives. I feel like we ran a lot of plays today. It felt like we were out there a lot, time of possession and all that stuff. But we've just got to finish in the end zone and be better in that regard.

"That first one before the half, that's not the identity that we want to carry. We want to be a team that you get inside the 5, you're able to run the ball and shove it down a team's throat and just get points that way. Disappointed in that. We need points there and we just weren't able to get it done."

On the final snap of the first half from the Colts' 45, Williams' Hail Mary pass into the end zone was deflected and caught by Moore at the 1. But the veteran receiver was tackled immediately short of the goal line.

"The Hail Mary, shoot, I was so close," Moore said. "Got to find a way to score on that. To not come away with points in the first half was a dagger in the heart."

The Bears rallied in the second half, cutting the deficit to 14-9 on Williams' 1-yard touchdown pass to Odunze midway through the fourth quarter and 21-16 on Williams' 6-yard TD strike to Kmet with 2:01 to play. But the Colts picked up a first down on Jonathan Taylor's 13-yard run and ran out the clock to clinch the win.

Taylor rushed for 110 yards and two TDs on 23 carries. Colts second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson completed 10 of 20 passes for 167 yards with two interceptions and a 39.0 passer rating. He also rushed for 24 yards on eight carries.

"I was proud of the way the defense fought today," Eberflus said. "Had a couple of nice takeaways, had a nice fourth-down stop after some sudden changes. Had a nice turnover in the red zone down there to stop a score.

"But overall it's just got to be better. We've got to do a better job as a team, honoring the football and just doing the details right and playing better. My hat's off to the Colts. They won the game, but we left one out there today."

The Bears opened the game by marching to the Colts' 38. But Cairo Santos' 56-yard field goal attempt came up short. The drive was sustained by Williams' passes of seven yards to Kmet on third-and-6 and eight yards to Moore on fourth-and-1.

It appeared the Bears defense had generated a takeaway late in the first quarter. Montez Sweat had Richardson wrapped up when DeMarcus Walker swatted the ball out of Richardson's hand. Andrew Billings caught it, but officials ruled that Richardson's forward progress had stopped.

The defense followed with a takeaway that counted. On third-and-goal from the 4, Richardson's pass was deflected by Jack Sanborn and intercepted by Tremaine Edmunds in the end zone.

Williams rainbowed a 47-yard completion to Odunze down the left sideline to the Colts' 33. But three plays later, Williams' pass intended for DeAndre Carter along the sideline was intercepted by cornerback Jaylon Jones.

The Bears defense then gave up back-to-back big plays, a 40-yard pass from Richardson to uncovered tight end Kylen Granson and Taylor's 28-yard TD run, which gave Indianapolis a 7-0 lead midway through the second quarter.

On the first play from scrimmage in the second half, Richardson's overthrown pass was intercepted by Jaylon Johnson, who returned it two yards to the Bears' 48.

The offense picked up one first down, setting up Santos' 53-yard field goal that cut the deficit to 7-3 with 12:51 left in the third quarter.

The Bears were forced to punt from their own end zone following a third-down sack of Williams, but they retained possession when the Colts' Tyler Goodson was penalized 15 yards for roughing punter Tory Taylor.

On the next play, Williams' pass intended for Odunze was broken up by safety Nick Cross and intercepted by Jones at the Bears' 45.

The Bears defense then produced another huge play, as Walker and Edmunds teamed up to hold Taylor to a 1-yard gain on fourth-and-3 from the Chicago 38.

The defense forced a three-and-out on Indianapolis' next possession. But on fourth-and-2 from the Colts' 28, Daniel Hardy jumped offsides as Indianapolis was set to punt, giving the Indianapolis a first down.

The Colts took advantage, extending their lead to 14-3 on running back Trey Sermon's 1-yard TD run with :21 to play in the third quarter.

Williams threw his first NFL touchdown pass to Odunze to make it 14-9 but was unable to complete the subsequent two-point conversion pass. The rookie quarterback connected on 8 of 9 passes for 64 yards on the drive.

Williams then lost a fumble on a strip-sack that the Colts recovered at the Bears' 16. Indianapolis converted the turnover into Taylor's 1-yard touchdown run, making it a two-score game at 21-9 with 5:22 to play.

The Bears cut the deficit to 21-16 on Williams' TD pass to Kmet, but the offense did not get the ball back.

With the loss, the Bears fell to 1-2. They'll return home next Sunday to host the Los Angeles Rams at Soldier Field.