In a game delayed nearly two hours by severe weather, Robbie Gould's 38-yard field goal gave the Chicago Bears a 23-20 overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday at rain-soaked Soldier Field.
The Bears improved to 6-4 and moved into a first-place tie with Detroit in the NFC North.
'We always talk to our players about creating turnovers and not turning the ball over, and we did a very good job of that today,' Bears coach Marc Trestman said. 'That allowed us to stay in the game and be in the game.'
The Bears intercepted Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco twice and had no turnovers.
The Ravens got the ball first in overtime but were forced to punt, setting the Bears up at their own 21. On a key third-and-9, Josh McCown hit tight end Martellus Bennett for a 43-yard gain to put the Bears in scoring position.
Subbing for the injured Jay Cutler, McCown hit 19 of 31 passes for 216 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions.
'I'm really proud of how our football team rallied around Josh,' Trestman said.
Alshon Jeffery had a game-high seven receptions for 83 yards.
Ravens kicker Justin Tucker's 21-yard field goal with three seconds remaining forced the extra period, a full 5:01 since the opening kickoff.
The game was temporarily suspended due to severe weather late in the first quarter and resumed at 2:25 p.m.
Matt Forte (18 carries for 83 yards, 5 catches for 42 yards) took a pass from McCown and galloped 14 yards for a touchdown to put the Bears ahead 20-17 with 10:33 left in regulation.
Gould kicked a 46-yard field goal as time expired in the first half to pull the Bears to within 17-13. That remained the score entering the final quarter, as weather conditions took their toll on the offenses.
Flacco's 5-yard TD pass to Torrey Smith gave the Ravens a 17-10 lead with 4:30 left before halftime. The drive covered 80 yards in nine plays and featured a questionable roughness penalty for a Julius Peppers hit on a sliding Flacco.
Bears rookie defensive end David Bass intercepted a Flacco pass and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown to tie the game at 10-10 with 8:38 to play in the second quarter.
Gould's 20-yard field goal had cut the Ravens' lead to 10-3 with 8:50 left before halftime.
Fans were instructed to clear the stadium seating area and relocate to the nearest covered concourse with 4:51 left in the first quarter and the Ravens leading 10-0. Officials then huddled and decided to suspend play.
Fans were seen being pelted by rain and buffeted by high winds as they made their way to shelter, with the going particularly slow in the 400 level of the West stands. Media members were told to back away from the glass windows of the press box.
Around 2:10 p.m., Bears and Ravens players began making their way back out to warm up and fans began returning to their seats. The game resumed after a delay of 1 hour, 53 minutes.
The Soldier Field turf figured to be treacherous, with large pieces of sod being dislodged on the Bears' first series since resuming play.
Bears defensive tackle Stephen Paea suffered a toe injury in the second quarter and was ruled out for the game.
The Ravens took a 10-0 lead on a 52-yard field goal by Tucker with 4:51 to play in the first quarter, just before play was suspended.
The Ravens struck first, scoring on a 1-yard run by Ray Rice to take a 7-0 lead with 9:58 left in the first quarter. The score was set up by a 47-yard run by Rice. The 66-yard drive took six plays.
In the first half, McCown completed 10 of 20 passes for 84 yards. His passer rating was 61.2.Flacco completed 11 of 17 for 101 yards and one TD. He was intercepted twice and had a passer rating of 60.8.Rice rushed 10 times for 70 yards and a TD. Forte had six carries for 47 yards.Smith had four catches for 26 yards and a TD for the Ravens. Forte and Brandon Marshall each had three first-half catches for the Bears.
During the delay, the Bears could track the progress of NFC North leader Detroit, which led Pittsburgh 27-20 at halftime. The Steelers rallied to win 37-27.
Post a Comment