Bears humiliated by Benson, Bengals
Easy does it as Cincinnati scores on 1st 7 possessions
CINCINNATI -- Cedric Benson said last week that ''my dreams are coming true'' with the Cincinnati Bengals, but he didn't mention anything about nightmares beginning for the Bears.
The Bears' former No. 4 overall pick justified his selection by general manager Jerry Angelo in one afternoon, and the Bears' 2009 season was put on notice as the Cincinnati Bengals humiliated them 45-10 Sunday at Paul Brown Stadium.
(AP)
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Bengals 45, Bears 10
The Bengals (5-2) scored on their first seven possessions as if they were playing against air. Benson ran for a career-high 189 yards while Chad Ochocinco, who called out the Bears all week on Twitter, caught 10 passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns.
The Bears (3-3) have not been this woefully prepared for a game since a head coach was headed out of town. You have to go back to when Dick Jauron and Co. lost the 2003 season opener 49-7 at San Francisco -- with a quarterback in Kordell Stewart that didn't fit a thing they were trying to do -- to find an instance of the team being this miserably outplayed.
Lovie Smith, signed through 2011, isn't going anywhere as the Bears' coach, and he said all the right things afterward.
''The Chicago Bears should never lose a football game like that,'' he said. ''I didn't have my team ready to go this week. We'll learn from this game.
''It was a total breakdown by us, but you move on. Experience teaches you a lot, and we've been in this spot before.''
The Bears were drilled 31-13 by Miami in Week 8 in 2006 to knock them from the unbeaten ranks. They rebounded to win consecutive weeks in New York after that.
But to compare this bunch to a team that reached the Super Bowl, at this point, would be an error.
Fresh off his $30 million, two-year extension, Jay Cutler threw three picks, throwing his hands up after one intended for Greg Olsen and then tossing his helmet on the sideline.
''It's really embarrassing,'' Cutler said. ''I'm embarrassed and I think everyone in that locker room is embarrassed. The coaches and the players are embarrassed.''
Surely, the excuses are going to quietly begin -- the defense is without two starting linebackers for the remainder of the season, and Tommie Harris' left knee hurts, or so the team says.
They're a better defense with Brian Urlacher, Pisa Tinoisamoa and Harris, but this was a pathetic showing at a time when the Bears had a chance to strike with the Minnesota Vikings (6-1) losing at Pittsburgh.
Forget about the Bears catching the Vikings anytime soon, and dismiss any talk of the playoffs for the time being.
The Bears must ensure they can pull out of a nosedive and are fortunate to have some NFL scheduling luck with Ohio's other team, the Cleveland Browns, coming to Soldier Field on Sunday.
But as much as Smith said the right thing about it being one wretched game and you can't overreact, being that unprepared across the board would seem to signify that something is wrong.
''We had a really good week of practice,'' Cutler said.
They sure fooled everyone.
Right tackle Chris Williams had a false start on the offense's first play and the defense surrendered the most points in the Smith era, getting overrun for 448 yards. Benson vaulted into the lead as the league's top rusher with 720 yards on the same day quarterback Carson Palmer had his best game -- 20-for-24 passing for 233 yards and five touchdowns.
''We suck, we sucked,'' linebacker Lance Briggs said. ''They completely dominated us.''
He's taking a page from the Mike Brown book there, but Brown said that in the locker room in midweek, reacting to the team's 1-3 start in 2005. Players said Smith was hot at halftime.
''We deserved anything,'' linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer said. ''He could have started kicking people in the locker room. We deserved it.''
After the game, he preached personal accountability, telling the players to examine how they can be better. It was a humbling experience, one they will try to put behind them by Wednesday. Benson won't soon forget the meeting. It was after his second-to-final carry that he jogged toward the Bears' sideline and stood and looked at it.
''I tried hard the entire game not to get too involved in my emotions,'' he said. ''It was just an emotional moment for me. There was a small part of me that couldn't resist just going up and showing a little emotion.''
Would have been nice if the Bears could have shown some, too.