SportsDirect Inc. staff
Sep 27, 2010
Robbie Gould kicked a 19-yard field goal with four seconds to play, lifting the Chicago Bears to a 20-17 victory over the visiting Green Bay Packers on Monday night.
Jay Cutler threw for 221 yards and a touchdown and Devin Hester returned a punt 62 yards for a score as the Bears moved to 3-0 for the first time since 2006 - the year they went to the Super Bowl.
Greg Olsen had five receptions for 64 yards and a touchdown for Chicago, which overcame an early 10-0 deficit to remain the only unbeaten team in the NFC.
The Bears' defense set up the winning kick by forcing a huge turnover at midfield. Linebacker Brian Urlacher stripped the ball from James Jones along the sideline and Tim Jennings recovered at the Packers’ 46 with 2:18 to play.
Aaron Rodgers finished 34-for-45 for 316 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Packers (2-1), who were whistled for a franchise-record 17 penalties.
Rodgers also ran for a 3-yard touchdown, capping a 12-play, 72-yard drive to give Green Bay a 17-14 lead with 6:52 remaining.
Hester had given Chicago its first lead in the opening minute of the fourth quarter with his eighth career punt return for a touchdown and his first since Dec. 30, 2007.
Tight end Jermichael Finley had nine receptions for 115 yards for Green Bay.
Green Bay had an impressive drive to open the second half, but came away empty when Julius Peppers blocked Mason Crosby's 37-yard field goal attempt.
The Bears also failed to capitalize on a great scoring chance when Cutler missed tight end Desmond Clark on fourth-and-goal at the 1 late in the third quarter.
The Packers took a 7-0 lead on their first possession of the game, going 60 yards in six plays. Rodgers threw a 7-yard strike over the middle to Greg Jennings for the score.
Crosby extended the lead to 10-0 with a 37-yard field goal with 4:41 left in the half. The kick capped a 14-play drive that consumed more than 7 1/2 minutes.
The Bears finally got on the scoreboard in the final minute of the half, helped by Hester's 28-yard punt return.
Cutler hooked up with Johnny Knox for 31 yards before connecting with Olsen on a 9-yard scoring pass to make it 10-7 with 26 seconds left in the half.