Falcons 21, Bears 14
I'm done being an apologist for Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte.
When Forte and the Bears failed to generate even an average running game during the first three weeks of the season, I blamed the offensive line. I was optimistic that his 12-carry, 121-yard Week 4 performance was the signal of a turnaround, and that a bye week would further ready Forte and the Bears to start producing consistent yards on the ground.
Instead, Forte had his worst game as a professional in last night's loss to Atlanta. He ran 15 times for a pathetic 23 yards, putting his season per-carry average at a paltry 3.4 yards. What's more, after fumbling just once during his entire rookie season, Forte put the ball on the ground for the second and third time in 2009 on back-to-back plays near the goal line. The second was recovered by the Falcons, and was one of three times that the Bears drove into the red zone and came away with no points.
Forte wasn't the only reason the Bears managed only 14 points against a defense that certainly showed vulnerability, particularly in its secondary. The offensive line did Forte no favors, and really struggled in the second half after it gave Jay Cutler consistent protection in the first. Cutler himself was spotty, missing on several deep and medium throws while incorporating some great ones. His three primary receivers (Earl Bennett, Devin Hester and Johnny Knox) all played pretty well, and tight ends Greg Olsen and Desmond Clark were bigger factors than they had been all year.
I was pretty happy with the defense. Chicago contained Michael Turner very well, and Matt Ryan was held to 185 yards with as many interceptions (2) as touchdowns. The Bears didn't generate as much of a pass rush as I would have liked - Ryan was never sacked - but their pass coverage was much stronger than it was in the first four games. Charles Tillman did a fantastic against top Falcons receiver Roddy White. The only defensive player I was truly disappointed in was middle linebacker Nick Roach, who had all kinds of trouble getting the unit set once the Falcons switched to a no-huddle offense.
As for the special teams ... let's just say it's a good thing the Bears didn't give coordinator Dave Toub the lifetime extension I proposed after the Lions game. His unit had a huge, inexcusable error, getting called for having 12 men on the field when the Falcons tried to punt on fourth down and short, leading to a first down. The fact that the Bears quickly intercepted Ryan doesn't make it any less atrocious a mistake. Chicago also had a night to forget on kickoff coverage.
