Bears' playoff hopes alive with OT victory

Bears' playoff hopes alive with OT victory
December 23
Chicago Tribune
"With one stretch of his hand, Alex Brown reached up and saved the Bears' season.

The defensive end maneuvered his way through a couple of Packers linemen, lifted his right hand and deflected Mason Crosby's 38-yard field goal attempt with seconds left in regulation.

``Unbelievable," Brown said. ``You want to make the offensive lineman think you're going to go here, and try to make a move and it kind opened up right there. You get a hand up and hope the kicker kicks the ball to your hands."

Crosby did.

The block kept the Packers from escaping Soldier Field with an improbable win. Instead, the Bears remained in the playoff picture as Robbie Gould's 38-yard field goal in overtime gave them a 20-17 come-from-behind win, the second overtime victory in as many games.

The Bears (9-6) could win the NFC North by defeating the Houston Texans Sunday and with a Vikings loss to the New York Giants.

``Amazing," Brian Urlacher said. ``We were resilient. We played terrible the first half. Came out in the second half and made some plays when we had to. The offense puts some points on the board at the end. We block a kick. Wow. I'm so excited for our team, man."

Totally dominated throughout almost all the game, the Bears found to heat up in the bitter cold. Battling a temperature of 2 degrees and a wind chill of minus-13, the Bears almost found a way to freeze themselves out of the playoffs.

``Well at halftime, we just talked about not going out like that," coach Lovie Smith said. ``Team effort. It's big. We're trying to get into the playoffs, and the guys just weren't going to be denied."

Two Kyle Orton interceptions, a passive pass rush, a barely existent running game, and a sharp Aaron Rodgers all spelled disaster the Bears. But they dug deep late, thanks to some strong running by rookie Matt Forte. He rebounded from a slow start and sore right big toe, breaking through with a 26-yard run to spark a game-tying drive. Forte picked up a crucial first down on fourth-and-1, then finished with a 2-yard touchdown to tie the score 17-17 late in the fourth quarter.

Then the Bears almost blew it. Adrian Peterson was called for unnecessary roughness on the ensuing kickoff as he pushed Will Blackmon out of bounds. Blackmon's 32-yard return and the 15-yard penalty gave the Packers the ball at the Bears. Rodgers drove his team to the 19, but Ryan Grant got dropped for a loss on third-and-5. Crosby's field goal attempt followed with 25 seconds remaining, but the swarm led by Brown assured overtime.

The Bears won the toss after the coin flipped bounced off Urlacher's head. On the first play of overtime, Orton found Greg Olsen for a 17-yard pickup, and a horse-collar tackle by Aaron Rouse added another 15. The Bears ran Forte twice, then on third-and-9 from the 34, Orton hit Forte for a 14-yard pickup as Forte took advantage of A.J. Hawk falling to the ground. It helped set up Gould for the 38-yard game-winner."
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