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© Oak Park Journal photo of the Chicago Bears
Dan Peters Sports Editor
Oak Park Journal
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Bears
Rise to the task. Thrash Vikings 39-10
by Dan Peters The “Good News Bears” showed up tonight at Soldier Field. After the Chicago defense fell flat last week on Monday Night Football against the Lions, one would wonder what really happened the past few weeks? This game, the whole team showed up to play football The Bears defense, which has struggled more than the offense most of this season, had its greatest effort Sunday Night. Julius Peppers went from doubtful to dominating with two sacks, even though he seemed to be still suffering from his knee problem against Detroit. Goals set, Goals achieved. Protect their quarterback Jay Cutler, generate a pass rush and eliminate big plays on defense. These changes were obvious and necessary, and it took little time to see how it would work. The Bears accomplished all three of those goals. They also scored on offense, defense and special teams in an impressive 39-10 rout of the Vikings. “The defense needed to come back from the last couple weeks really and they came back strong, led by Julius Peppers,” Smith said. “I thought he had great pressure on the quarterback, playing the run, just an outstanding performance by him and the rest of the group.” Veteran safeties Chris Harris and Brandon Meriweather were benched and replacements Major Wright and Chris Conte didn't have any glaring errors. But this was against Donavan McNabb who has had far better days at Soldier Field. “Coming off of last week we wanted to get back on the field as soon as we could,” Smith said after the Bears improved to 3-3. “Guys worked hard last week to correct some things. You talk about all three phases contributing. Tonight that was definitely the case.” The Bears defense would record five sacks, including two by Pro Bowl end Julius Peppers, Stopping Adrian Peterson, shutting down the Vikings offense The Bears defensive performance limited Vikings running back Adrian Peterson to 39 yards on 12 carries, his lowest output in eight career games against the Bears. “Whenever you can hold a great player like Adrian Peterson down like that, you have a chance to win,” Smith said. “All three phases really showed up,” Smith said. “Hopefully that’s who we are, the team that you saw tonight.” The passing game emerged tonight On offense, the Bears knew what they needed to do, protect Cutler and give him more time to throw. The Bears already found a way to run the ball. Cutler was more at ease in the pocket and had plenty of time to hit Johnny Knox, Roy Williams and Devin Hester downfield on deeper routes. All of it was available because the Vikings were dialed in on Matt Forte. "We managed them," Cutler said of the line. "A lot of five-step (drops) and play action, left some extra guys in, shift a little bit. Whenever we help them out like that and get the ball out of my hands, it's going to be easy on me. It's not that difficult. Our game plan was really solid, and we need to be very judicious going forward with what we can and can't do." Cutler completed 21 of 31 passes for 267 yards with two touchdowns, no interceptions and a 115.9 passer rating. The line also protected Cutler, he was sacked only once. “There is no question about his ability,” said center Roberto Garza. “There hasn’t been a question about his ability. It’s about us getting the job done and protecting him. We were able to do that and he made some big plays for us.” The Vikings would capitalize on the only Bears turnover with a 4-yard Adrian Peterson touchdown run to pull within 26-10. But then the Vikings made a serious mistake, kicking to Devin Hester. He raced through a small hole on the right side to go 98 yards for a touchdown, the 16th return touchdown of his career. The rout was on, and the Bears never looked back. “Does it surprise me? It used to, but not anymore,” Smith said. “I’ve seen so many great plays, great runs by him. (Hester) You do tend to expect him to break it each time he touches the ball. There hasn’t ever been anyone like him, so we’re all kind of witnessing history every time he touches it.” Hester left the game at the start of the fourth quarter with a chest injury. Early indications are it isn't serious. A balanced game for Forte, again Forte continued his dominance carrying the ball, rushing for 87 yards on 17 carries and catching a team-high six passes for 36 yards. The running back entered Week 5 leading the NFL with 785 yards from scrimmage. Welcome to the NFL Stephen Paea. Making his Pro Football debut after being inactive the first five games, rookie defensive tackle Stephen Paea stormed up the middle and sacked Vikings quarterback Donovan McNabb in the end zone for a safety, giving the Bears a 9-0 lead midway through the first quarter. It would be the first safety allowed by Minnesota in some 35 years. The Bears head to London next to face a rejuvenated Tampa Bay Bucs team. Every week presents itself with new challenges. Following the trip to England, The Bears will get a week off, and get ready for their next challenge, Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles |
