Bears gut out win in Tampa

by Chris Bearman

Blogger, Chicago Tribune

Coach Bob Winuvas has worked hard on both sides of the ball to get people acclimated to his playbook on both offense and defense. The team responded well at home in his first game but faltered late in a close Saints loss. This time, the defense stepped up and earned the coach his first win in Chicago with a 24-21 victory in Tampa.

The game started off problematic for the Bears, however, as Tampa's first drive of the game got them quickly down the field using the big play. Four plays into the drive, Jameis Winston found Mike Evans in the corner of the end zone from 19 yards out to quickly take a 7-0 lead.

The Bears' offense would take time to get going as well, with Andy Dalton under duress from the onset and throughout the game. On the Bears' second drive, Dalton would commit a turnover, throwing an interception into the hands of Bucs' safety Rafael Bush. The Bears' defense, however, would bend but not break, and a long field goal attempt would be missed short by Brett Kern.

The Bears would find life in that miss, and drive down the field using a huge 23 yard run on 3rd and 1 from Reynaldo Ball to set up a shorter field for a 3 yard touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to Alshon Jeffery to tie the game at 7 early in the 2nd quarter.

Defenses would rule the second quarter until late, when a big play from Dalton to receiver Kevin White for 51 yards. This big play led to a Reynaldo Ball 1 yard romp with under 20 seconds to play. The Bucs would get a big play of their own to get into long field goal range, but Kern would again fall short to end the half at 14-7.

Early in the 3rd quarter, Reynaldo Ball would again make a big play out of the backfield, this time in the passing game. Ball would take a screen pass 38 yards to get the team within field goal range, and Marquette King would nail a 43 yarder to get the lead to 17-7.

The Buccaneers would continue their big play output, as Decatur Thomas would show the Bears why he is the current leading rusher in the GFML. Thomas would take a power off tackle play 58 yards for a touchdown, stopping and starting and looking like a vintage Barry Sanders run.

"That run got 3 players cut after this week," Coach Winuvas said after the game.

The Bears would begin to control the clock, running the ball with relative ease up the middle of the field. A solid 5 minute drive would end in a 6 yard Reynaldo Ball touchdown, his second of the game, and a 24-14 lead.

The Bucs would not be denied, however, and would continue to fight. Jameis Winston would find Luke Stocker wide open for a 21 yard touchdown pass, narrowing the gap to 24-21. After a failed attempt to run out the clock by Chicago, the Bucs would get a chance to drive 50 yards to get into Brett Kern's range for a tying field goal. However, Jameis Winston would make his one and only mistake of the game, as he threw a ball that newly signed cornerback Josh Wilson would make a break on and catch with under 30 seconds left, sealing the win for the Bears.

For the Bears, Andy Dalton was erratic but rushed all day long in the pocket, completing only 15 of 29 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown to go with an interception. The running game was solid, with Reynaldo ball getting 14 carries for 70 yards and 2 touchdowns, while veteran Matt Forte contributed 42 yards on 7 carries in a change of pace role. The receiving was led by Kevin White's 3 catches for 68 yards, but Alshon Jeffery (3/26) had the lone receiving touchdown on the day. Defensively, young newly signed linebacker Zach Vigil had 2 tackles and a sack, while Josh Wilson was the hero with the interception. The leading tackler was safety Reggie Nelson with 4.

For the Bucs, Jameis Winston went 13 of 22 for 198 yards and 2 touchdowns but a fatal interception late. Decatur Thomas was a beast this game, getting 16 carries for 198 yards and a touchdown. Mike Evans led all receivers with 3 catches for 41 yards and a touchdown, while safety Rafael Bush (1 tackle and 1 INT) and linebacker Bruce Carter (5 tackles) led the Bucs in a losing effort.

"Defense has to do a better job being more consistent. We made stops and some big plays, but too many missed assignments and tackles. I know we are learning the playbook, but sometimes you have to execute," Coach Winuvas said of the defense. "Decatur Thomas is a talent, to be sure, but we made him look a lot better than he really is."

"While I am happy with the win, we have a ton of work to do to get to where we need to be. We have to keep Andy (Dalton) clean, we have to get open for him, and we have to keep running the ball like we have. I like what our offensive line did in the run game. We'll continue to get them worked up and see what happens," Coach Winuvas continued.

With the win, the Bears move to 3-5 on the season and into a three-way tie for last place in the NFC North. Can the Bears get it together and make a move on the seemingly invincible Vikings? Or will they falter and collapse down the stretch?