Health & Fitness
Familiar Formula Works for Bears in Win Over Panthers
Matt Forte rushes for 205 yards while Devin Hester and the defense do enough to hold off the Carolina Panthers as the Chicago Bears move to 2-2 on the season.
Walter Payton, Gale Sayers... and now Matt Forte.
These are the only Chicago Bears running backs to rush for more than 200 yards in a single game. That is good company.
The Bears offense set out to make a statement on Sunday: "We can still run the ball".
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In fact, the first drive of the afternoon, the Bears had nine-straight runs that led to Robbie Gould's first field goal of the day. Forte ran hard all afternoon and ripped off long runs when the Bears really needed them.
And this was a day that they really needed it.
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The passing game was ineffective as Jay Cutler went 9-for-17 for 102 yards and an interception—no TD's.
But the run game worked and once again, Devin Hester added an exclamation point with a 73-yard kick return and a 69-yard punt return for a TD.
The Bears certainly needed every point against the pesky Panthers. Rookie quarterback Cam Newton looked impressive but made a few rookie mistakes.
The first came early in the game when he tried to force a pass into tight coverage deep in his own territory. The result was a tipped pass, and an interception for a touchdown by defensive back D.J. Moore. Newton's Panthers played well after that point, moving the ball at will against the Bears' usually stingy defense (543 total yards).
In the end though, it wasn't enough to pull out a victory.
Next week the Bears play the resurgent and undefeated Detroit Lions on Monday Nigh Football.
How will they fare? Let me know your thoughts!
9:34 Panthers FG 29-yarder by Olindo Mare. (3) 4:19 Bears FG 20-yarder by Robbie Gould. (3) 3:20 Bears TD Cam Newton pass intercepted by D.J. Moore at the Carolina 20 for 20 yards. (6) 3:20 Bears PAT Robbie Gould extra point is good. (1) 2ND QUARTER 14:55 Panthers TD 1-yard run by Cam Newton. (6) 14:55 Panthers PAT Olindo Mare extra point is good. (1) 13:24 Bears TD 17-yard run by Matt Forte. (6) 13:24 Bears PAT Robbie Gould extra point is good. (1) 11:32 Bears TD 69-yard punt return by Devin Hester. (6) 11:32 Bears PAT Robbie Gould extra point is good. (1) 6:29 Panthers TD 2-yard run by Cam Newton. (6) 6:29 Panthers PAT Olindo Mare extra point is good. (1) 0:06 Panthers FG 39-yarder by Olindo Mare. (3) 4TH QUARTER 14:55 Panthers FG 38-yarder by Olindo Mare. (3) 6:41 Bears FG 24-yarder by Robbie Gould. (3) 1:23 Bears TD 3-yard run by Marion Barber. (6) 1:23 Bears PAT Robbie Gould extra point is good. (1) 0:04 Panthers TD 3-yard pass from Cam Newton to Greg Olsen. (6)
