Bears comeback to beat Bills 16-12 Save Email Print

Posted: 11:46 PM Aug 26, 2005 Last Updated: 11:46 PM Aug 26, 2005

STORY FROM www.chicagobears.com The Bears' stifling No. 1 defense didn't allow a touchdown in Friday night's 16-12 preseason win over the Buffalo Bills at Soldier Field, but quarterback Chad Hutchinson wasn't as fortunate. In a miserable performance that could cost him the starting position, Hutchinson completed just 3 of 14 passes for 33 yards and had one of two interceptions returned for a touchdown. Booed vociferously by a partisan crowd of 48,107 in the Bears' first home preseason game, Hutchinson also was sacked three times while registering an embarrassing 0.0 quarterback rating. Bill Smith The Bears defense did not allow an offensive touchdown Friday night in their 16-12 victory over the Buffalo Bills. Hutchinson was replaced at halftime by rookie fourth-round draft pick Kyle Orton, who turned the boos into thunderous cheers on his second possession. The former Purdue star energized the Bears and the crowd by engineering an impressive 12-play, 79-yard touchdown drive. Playing with poise and throwing with accuracy and authority, Orton completed 7 of 9 passes for 74 yards to five different receivers capped by a 2-yard TD to tight end Desmond Clark, drawing the Bears to within 12-10 with 4:09 left in the third quarter. Orton completed passes of 18 yards to Justin Gage, 16 yards to Gabe Reid, 12 yards to Bobby Wade, 11 yards to Clark and 10 yards to Muhsin Muhammad. Orton was replaced by Kurt Kittner after the touchdown, exiting with a 113.4 quarterback rating. The Bears eventually rallied to win on Adrian Peterson's 3-yard TD run with 1:32 remaining. The score came two plays after Peterson's 21-yard dash around right tackle on third-and-six resulted in a first down at the Buffalo 8. Peterson was stopped on the subsequent two-point conversion run, but his TD assured the Bears (3-1) of their first winning preseason since 1994. Chicago's rushing attack continued to excel as Jones (14 carries for 94 yards) and Peterson (10-49) combined to rush for 143 yards on 24 carries, a 6.0-yard average. Hutchinson, meanwhile, struggled for the second time in as many starts since replacing the injured Rex Grossman. After the four-year veteran from Stanford misfired on his first three attempts, his quick out intended for Bernard Berrian in the left flat was intercepted by cornerback Nate Clements and returned 31 yards for a score. Buffalo's Rian Lindell missed the extra point attempt, but the Bills led 6-0 with 4:07 left in the first quarter. The Bears drew to within 6-3 on Doug Brien's 28-yard field late in the first period after Thomas Jones' 40-yard run resulted in a first down at the Buffalo 18. Hutchinson nearly had another interception returned for a TD late in the first half when his ill-advised pass deflected off Jones and was picked off by Takeo Spikes. The Bills linebacker returned the ball eight yards to the Chicago 9-yard line before lateralling to Clements, who stepped out of bounds at the 3. With linebacker Jeff Posey draped all over him, Jones had little chance to catch the pass. The Bears defense responded as Adewale Ogunleye pressured quarterback J.P. Losman into an incompletion, Losman was sacked by Hunter Hillenmeyer for a loss of 20 yards after retreating to recover a fumble and Nathan Vasher held running back Willis McGahee to a three-yard gain. The Bills settled for Lindell's 38-yard field goal, widening the margin to 9-3 with 1:55 left in the half. Lindell's 44-yarder early in the third quarter made it 12-3 before Chicago rallied. The Bears No.1 defense continued its preseason dominance, limiting the Bills to 88 total yards on 37 first-half plays. The unit, which entered the game ranked first in the NFL against the run, held McGahee to just 39 yards on 18 carries while also sacking Losman twice. On the game's opening drive, Brian Urlacher dropped McGahee for a three-yard loss on third-and-one, forcing a Buffalo punt. Later in the half, Vasher tackled McGahee for a seven-yard loss on a pitch to the left, Mike Green and Urlacher broke up passes they nearly intercepted and Ogunleye registered his team-leading fourth sack of the preseason. News & notes: Defensive tackle Tommie Harris exited the game in the first half with a chest strain. ...Todd Johnson started at strong safety in place of Mike Brown, who was excused from the game for personal reasons. ...Fully recovered from a calf injury, Brad Maynard averaged 46.7 yards on six first-half punts in making his preseason debut.

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