With first place in the NFC North on the line Sunday, the Chicago Bears came up short in a 21-19 loss to the Detroit Lions at Soldier Field.
Quarterback Jay Cutler, in obvious discomfort after returning from a groin injury sustained Oct. 20, was unable to propel his team to victory. The Bears fell to 5-4 with the loss.
Quarterback Jay Cutler, in obvious discomfort after returning from a groin injury sustained Oct. 20, was unable to propel his team to victory. The Bears fell to 5-4 with the loss.
Cutler was 21-for-40 for 250 yards, one touchdown and one interception for a passer rating of 69.8 and was removed late in the game due to an ankle injury sustained late in the first half.
"He was a soldier today," receiver Brandon Marshall said of Cutler. "From the second drive, he had all kinds of things going on with him from his waist down. I just tried to encourage him the whole game to hang in there. He led us. Unfortunately, we didn't get the win. .... He was fighting till the end."
The Lions (6-3) scored on a 14-yard pass from Matthew Stafford to Calvin Johnson with 2:22 left for an eight-point advantage at 21-13.
Josh McCown took over for Cutler on the Bears' last drive after it was announced that Cutler had injured his ankle.
Coach Marc Trestman said afterward that Cutler had his ankle taped at halftime and he and the trainers felt he still could be effective. Trestman said Cutler was "courageous" but was removed late in the game because the two-minute drill would have required him to move around too much.
McCown (6-of-9, 62 yards) hit Marshall (seven catches for 139 yards and two TDs) on an 11-yard TD pass with 40 seconds remaining to make it 21-19. A two-point conversion attempt failed as Matt Forte was stopped on a run up the middle. The Lions then recovered the Bears' onside kick.
"He was a soldier today," receiver Brandon Marshall said of Cutler. "From the second drive, he had all kinds of things going on with him from his waist down. I just tried to encourage him the whole game to hang in there. He led us. Unfortunately, we didn't get the win. .... He was fighting till the end."
The Lions (6-3) scored on a 14-yard pass from Matthew Stafford to Calvin Johnson with 2:22 left for an eight-point advantage at 21-13.
Josh McCown took over for Cutler on the Bears' last drive after it was announced that Cutler had injured his ankle.
Coach Marc Trestman said afterward that Cutler had his ankle taped at halftime and he and the trainers felt he still could be effective. Trestman said Cutler was "courageous" but was removed late in the game because the two-minute drill would have required him to move around too much.
McCown (6-of-9, 62 yards) hit Marshall (seven catches for 139 yards and two TDs) on an 11-yard TD pass with 40 seconds remaining to make it 21-19. A two-point conversion attempt failed as Matt Forte was stopped on a run up the middle. The Lions then recovered the Bears' onside kick.
Cutler said he was able to play through the groin injury but the ankle problem limited his mobility.
"I didn't want to put Josh in that situation, I wanted to finish the game," Cutler said. "The best option for the team was to put Josh in, especially with the (two-minute) situation. You had to be able to move a little bit and I just wasn't able to do it. ... (The groin) held up OK. You take the ankle out of the equation and I would've been fine."
"I didn't want to put Josh in that situation, I wanted to finish the game," Cutler said. "The best option for the team was to put Josh in, especially with the (two-minute) situation. You had to be able to move a little bit and I just wasn't able to do it. ... (The groin) held up OK. You take the ankle out of the equation and I would've been fine."
Cutler said he asked the Bears coaches throughout the second half whether they thought he could still be effective on the bad ankle.
"I asked at one point, 'Do I look OK? Am I still getting it done?' I just felt really restricted in the pocket with what I was able to do. ... I knew Josh was ready to go and I didn't want to get to a point where I was hurting us more than I was helping us."
The Lions also beat the Bears in Detroit 40-32 on Sept. 29, meaning the Bears needed to win Sunday to negate the tiebreaker Detroit began the day owning. The Packers (5-4), minus injured starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers and backup Seneca Wallace, lost to the Eagles 27-13.
"We didn't get it done," Marshall said. "We don't like the Detroit Lions, we really don't like them. I'm sure there are some good people in Detroit, but as far as their football team, I can't wait to see them in the playoffs."
Robbie Gould's 32-yard field had pulled the Bears to within one at 14-13 with 9:17 to play. The score was set up when Chris Conte intercepted a Stafford pass and returned it 35 yards to the Lions' 9. But a holding penalty on guard Matt Slauson negated a TD run by Forte. Then, on third-and-goal from the 14, Cutler passed to Alshon Jeffery in the deep corner for an apparent score. But the call was reversed and the Bears had to settle for the field goal.
Gould kicked a 25-yard field goal with 7:30 to play in the third quarter to make it 14-10. At one point during that eight-play, 69-yard drive, Cutler fell to a knee and appeared to clutch at his sore left groin. Cutler returned after an accelerated rehabilitation from a torn left groin muscle suffered Oct. 20 in Washington and showed no ill effects early in the game.
Stafford hit Johnson on a 4-yard touchdown pass to give Detroit a 14-7 lead on the opening drive of the second half.
The game was tied 7-7 at halftime. The Bears drove to the Lions' 4 before a Cutler pass was tipped by Ndamukong Suh and intercepted by DeAndre Levy in the end zone with 24 seconds left until intermission.
Stafford hit Kris Durham on a 5-yard touchdown pass to cap a 12-play, 85-yard drive and pull Detroit into a 7-7 tie with 5:57 left in the first quarter.
On the game's opening drive, Cutler led the Bears on a 5-play, 65-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard pass touchdown pass to Marshall for a 7-0 lead. Marshall had three catches for 61 yards on the drive.
In the first half, Cutler was 12-for-18 for 148 yards, a touchdown, an interception and a passer rating of 87.3.
Marshall caught three passes for 61 yards and one TD. Jeffery had four catches for 54 yards. Martellus Bennett had three catches for 25 yards. Forte rushed for 35 yards on 12 carries (2.9 avg.).
McCown led the Bears to a 27-20 win over the Packers last Monday night. It was the Bears’ first win in Green Bay since 2007.
The Lions also beat the Bears in Detroit 40-32 on Sept. 29, meaning the Bears needed to win Sunday to negate the tiebreaker Detroit began the day owning. The Packers (5-4), minus injured starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers and backup Seneca Wallace, lost to the Eagles 27-13.
"We didn't get it done," Marshall said. "We don't like the Detroit Lions, we really don't like them. I'm sure there are some good people in Detroit, but as far as their football team, I can't wait to see them in the playoffs."
Robbie Gould's 32-yard field had pulled the Bears to within one at 14-13 with 9:17 to play. The score was set up when Chris Conte intercepted a Stafford pass and returned it 35 yards to the Lions' 9. But a holding penalty on guard Matt Slauson negated a TD run by Forte. Then, on third-and-goal from the 14, Cutler passed to Alshon Jeffery in the deep corner for an apparent score. But the call was reversed and the Bears had to settle for the field goal.
Gould kicked a 25-yard field goal with 7:30 to play in the third quarter to make it 14-10. At one point during that eight-play, 69-yard drive, Cutler fell to a knee and appeared to clutch at his sore left groin. Cutler returned after an accelerated rehabilitation from a torn left groin muscle suffered Oct. 20 in Washington and showed no ill effects early in the game.
Stafford hit Johnson on a 4-yard touchdown pass to give Detroit a 14-7 lead on the opening drive of the second half.
The game was tied 7-7 at halftime. The Bears drove to the Lions' 4 before a Cutler pass was tipped by Ndamukong Suh and intercepted by DeAndre Levy in the end zone with 24 seconds left until intermission.
Stafford hit Kris Durham on a 5-yard touchdown pass to cap a 12-play, 85-yard drive and pull Detroit into a 7-7 tie with 5:57 left in the first quarter.
On the game's opening drive, Cutler led the Bears on a 5-play, 65-yard drive that ended with a 32-yard pass touchdown pass to Marshall for a 7-0 lead. Marshall had three catches for 61 yards on the drive.
In the first half, Cutler was 12-for-18 for 148 yards, a touchdown, an interception and a passer rating of 87.3.
Marshall caught three passes for 61 yards and one TD. Jeffery had four catches for 54 yards. Martellus Bennett had three catches for 25 yards. Forte rushed for 35 yards on 12 carries (2.9 avg.).
McCown led the Bears to a 27-20 win over the Packers last Monday night. It was the Bears’ first win in Green Bay since 2007.
