Bears Trample Over Panthers

What a turnaround from the past two weeks. The Chicago Bears completely changed their approach offensively, and dominated the Carolina Panthers in a 34-29 victory.

Chicago’s offense finally showed some commitment to the run, calling 31 run plays versus only 18 pass plays. With the limited pass plays, Jay Cutler only amassed 102 yards in the air on 9 of 17 passing and an interception.

The big story of the game was Matt Forte. Forte followed a career-low rushing performance of two yards in Week 3 with a career-high rushing total of 205 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries. Second-string running back Marion Barber made his regular season debut as a Bear and finished with 17 yards of his own and one touchdown.

Chicago’s defense continues to miss the presence of safety Chris Harris. Overall, the Bears’ defense surrendered 543 total yards. Panthers rookie quarterback Cam Newton passed for 374 yards and a touchdown, along with two rushing touchdowns. Carolina running backs DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart combined for 134 yards rushing.

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Chicago also let Panthers receiver Steve Smith run loose in the secondary, tallying eight catches for 181 yards. Former Chicago Bears tight end Greg Olsen added an additional five catches for 50 yards and a touchdown.

The lone bright spot for the defense was in the first quarter, when cornerback D.J. Moore returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown.

Luckily, the Bears’ special teams helped pick up the slack of the defense’s poor performance. Devin Hester set an NFL record for all-time punt returns in the second quarter when he took one 69 yards to pay dirt. In the third quarter, Julius Peppers blocked a Olindo Mare field goal attempt, securing a Bears lead.

Hopefully, this will be the beginning of things to come for the Chicago Bears. Especially since they will have to go on the road and face the undefeated Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football.

By Clyde Speller
ProFootball-fans.com Chicago Bears Correspondent