Scales don't lie -- it's a win
BY MIKE MULLIGAN mmulligan@suntimes.com
Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is hit by Chicago Bears' Julius Peppers during the first half.
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TORONTO -- ''Balance'' was the buzz word throughout the Bears' bye week. From ownership through the team president, the general manager, the coach, the media and the fans, everybody seemed to want the same thing: a ying for a yang, a run for a pass, a complement for the defense and special teams.
''We talked, as I said, about the balance,'' Bears coach Lovie Smith said after Sunday's 22-19 victory over the Buffalo Bills. ''All of us were on the same page as far as being able to get our running backs more involved with it, and we were able to do that today. Last week we talked about being patient. We said, 'Hey, look at our team today -- this is what we would like to be.' Again, it was a good mix.''
Offensive coordinator Mike Martz wasn't exactly defanged, nor quarterback Jay Cutler declawed, but the Bears' offense wasn't the pass-happy, sack-happy, giveaway-happy entity it had been before the break. And on a quiet afternoon in Canada, it did just enough to trump the hapless Bills before 50,746 at Rogers Centre. The victory spared the Bears the indignity of being the first victim of the winless Bills and underscored a bitter fact about the opposition: The Bills don't have the faintest idea of how to win.
Despite a balanced attack by the Bears -- technically 31 runs against 30 pass attempts, although four of Cutler's five carries were scrambles off passes -- the game was right there for the Bills. With Buffalo ahead 19-14 with 9:16 left, Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick missed a wide-open Steve Johnson sprinting down the right sideline. Bears corner Tim Jennings intercepted the underthrown pass and returned it 39 yards to the Buffalo 23 to set up the winning touchdown.
''I was beaten on the play,'' Jennings admitted.
''I thought I had six,'' Johnson said.
Simple as that, the Bears went from a team on the decline to a 5-3 model ''ready to make a run,'' as Smith said last week, with the rejuvenated Minnesota Vikings coming to Soldier Field next Sunday after defeating the visiting Arizona Cardinals in overtime.
Angelo pleased with position
General manager Jerry Angelo told WBBM-AM (780) before the game that he likes how the Bears are set up for the second half.
''We had a little time to regroup, which came at a good time for us,'' Angelo said. ''Did a lot of inventory. We know what we need to do going forward, particularly with the offense.
''When you go into the season, the two things I am mindful of ... [First], identify who you are. I think that is critical. We always have a picture of who we want to be and what we think we can be, but you don't know until you start playing games, particularly those first few games. In my mind, it probably goes into Game 3. And then that tells you pretty much who you are. And then, equally important and not easy to do, accept it. You have to accept that fact.''
Angelo then went into a diatribe about the 2005 Bears, with rookie fourth-round pick Kyle Orton at quarterback, saying they ''played into the strength of our team'' -- defense and special teams -- and ''didn't let our offense beat us.'' He said the Bears won a lot of games because they stayed within that framework.
Watching Cutler hand off the ball and throw high-percentage passes against the Bills, you couldn't help but wonder if that's what the Bears want out of their former Pro Bowl quarterback: Kyle Orton-style game management.
''I thought Jay did a great job of managing the game,'' running back Chester Taylor said. ''That's what any quarterback's job is -- managing the game.''
The smaller victories
The Bears were far from spectacular on offense, but they did enough to win, and they did things they haven't done well this season, such as convert third downs, score on the goal line and take advantage of red-zone opportunities while limiting turnovers. Cutler was sacked only once, on a play in which he was stripped of the ball while trying to elude the rush. It was the only turnover of the game.
Was Cutler asked to do less than usual-
''No, this is pretty much the same game plan we've had all year,'' he said. ''Lot of plays and high volume. Mike [Martz] called a really good game, did a good job of keeping them off balance. We weren't just going empty [backfield] -- we were going empty with two-TE sets, running the ball. I think he's getting a little bit better feel of what we're good at, what we can do.''
Coming off a bye and playing at a neutral stadium with as many Bears fans as the alleged home team, the Bears found balance with OK performances on both sides of the ball and on special teams. That might be good enough to beat half the teams in a mediocre NFL, but it doesn't look like a long-term winning formula.
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