Bears' goal-line stand stifles Eagles
Football Betting Lines
09/29/2008 -
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kyle Orton threw a career-high three touchdown
passes and Chicago had a spectacular goal-line stand late in the fourth
quarter to come away with a 24-20 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Orton completed 18-of-34 passes for 199 yards and was picked off twice for the
Bears (2-2), who had lost their previous two games by a total of six points.
Matt Forte ran for 43 yards on 19 carries and added 42 yards on five
receptions.
Donovan McNabb, playing after suffering a chest contusion last week, connected
on 25-of-41 passes for 262 yards with a TD and was intercepted once for the
Eagles (2-2), who were shorthanded offensively. Pro Bowl running back Brian
Westbrook sat out with an ankle injury and tight end L.J. Smith was also out
with a back injury.
Correll Buckhalter ran 16 times for 66 yards and a touchdown in the loss.
Robbie Gould kicked a 41-yard field goal with 10:28 remaining in the final
quarter to extend Chicago's lead to 24-20.
The Eagles then drove from their own 24 to the Chicago one, but the Bears
defense stiffened, first stopping Tony Hunt on a second-down run for no gain,
then grabbing Buckhalter and stopping him for no gain on third down on a leap
attempt up the middle.
Philadelphia called a timeout and decided to go for it on 4th-and-goal, but
defensive end Alex Brown got into the backfield to slow down Buckhalter, who
was stopped by a host of defenders shy of the goal line with 3:32 remaining.
On the ensuing possession, Forte broke through the initial wave of defenders
for a 10-yard gain, converting a 3rd-and-4. The Bears ran out most of the
remaining time, and after a punt, McNabb hit Reggie Brown on a 14-yard pass
play to the Chicago 47, but Brown never got out of bounds and the clock
expired.
It was a form of redemption for the Bears, who blew big leads the previous two
weeks in losses to Carolina and Tampa Bay.
"I thought we corrected some things so it was good to get that win in the
end," said Bears coach Lovie Smith. "A lot of guys stepped up. Offensively, we
moved the ball and with the pass did some good things."
Meanwhile, the Eagles couldn't convert in big situations, converting 2-of-13
third down chances. Philadelphia lost despite outgaining the Bears in yardage,
340-256.
After the game, McNabb was asked about the impact of not having Westbrook.
"When you lose a guy like Westbrook it's tough," said McNabb. "I think we ran
our offense and gave the other guys opportunities to make plays and they did
that. Once again, (if) we probably would've scored in the red zone, we
wouldn't be sitting up here answering these questions."
The Bears struck first with Orton throwing 19 yards to tight end Greg Olsen in
the back middle portion of the end zone just 1:55 into the game, with Chicago
needing just three plays to drive 59 yards.
The Eagles tied the game with 8:49 remaining in the first thanks to McNabb's
22-yard TD strike to rookie DeSean Jackson, with the football barely sailing
over Chicago linebacker Brian Urlacher in the end zone.
Orton gave the Bears a 14-7 lead with a 23-yard scoring connection to Marty
Booker, just 62 seconds into the second quarter. The Bears needed to move the
ball just 24 yards to the end zone following a muffed punt return by Jackson.
Buckhalter caught a 19-yard pass from McNabb and then plunged into the end
zone from a yard out with 11:40 to go in the half, tying the game again.
The Eagles missed an opportunity to go ahead after Darren Howard came up with
an interception in Chicago territory, as David Akers missed a 50-yard field
goal attempt.
Orton then boosted the Bears to a 21-14 lead with a 20-yard TD pass to Devin
Hester, who got behind Asante Samuel along the right sideline with 1:16
remaining in the half.
Chicago had a golden chance to widen its lead early in the third after McNabb
was picked off by Kevin Payne. That gave the Bears the ball at the
Philadelphia 11, but two plays later Orton was intercepted by Quintin Mikell
in the end zone.
Akers clanked a 47-yard field goal try off the right upright later in the
third, but Orton was sacked and fumbled on the ensuing play and the Eagles
took over at the 28. They drove to the two for a first down, but after a sack
and two incomplete passes Akers was forced to kick a 24-yard field goal with
4:22 left in the third.
A bad handoff exchange by Orton gave the ball away again to the Eagles, this
time at the Chicago 31 in the final minute of the third. That turned into an
Akers 31-yard field goal with 13:21 remaining.
Game Notes
McNabb, who is from Chicago, has a 4-2 record against the Bears, including
playoffs...Bears wide receiver Brandon Lloyd suffered a knee injury in the
second quarter and didn't return...The Eagles host Washington on Sunday, while
the Bears play at Detroit in their next game...Despite a .500 record, the
Eagles were pushed to the basement in the NFC East after four games, with the
Giants (3-0), Washington (3-1) and Dallas (3-1) ahead of them...Reggie Brown
had six catches for 79 yards...Buckhalter suffered a lower back contusion in
the third quarter before returning...Bears cornerback Charles Tillman suffered
a shoulder injury in the third...Chicago played without Pro Bowl defensive
tackle Tommie Harris, who sat out with a sore left knee.
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Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The following is a list of inactive players
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BALTIMORE RAVENS AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS, 8:30 P.M. (ET)
Ravens - 3rd QB Troy Smith, CB Samari Rolle, S Dawan Landry, CB Evan Oglesby,
BILLS (+10) at Steelers SPORTSBOOK LINES
It's impossible to gauge how a team will react after something like the Steve Everett situation, and it probably doesn't matter. That being said, the Bills are going to lose several games this year where they keep things close but fall short in the end to superior teams. Ben Roethlisberger and company could have a field day against Buffalo's decimated defense, but I like the Bills to cover.
BENGALS (-7) at Browns SPORTSBOOK LINES
All you can ask out of your NFL team is that it has a plan. You may not always agree with it as a fan, but as long as it appears the organization is going in some sort of direction, you have to go with it. Which brings us to the Cleveland Browns. You flip a coin to determine whether Chuck Frye or Derek Anderson should start the preseason opener. You start Frye in Week 1, but pull him in the first half. And then you deal him to the Seahawks for a sixth-round pick? Hmm... the Bengals could get six turnovers again this week.
COLTS (-7) at Titans SPORTSBOOK LINES
Tennessee signed ex-Colts cornerback Nick Harper in the offseason so that should help slow down Peyton Manning. Just ask Jason David and the Saints. Oh wait... One of these weeks, I'm going to learn to not pick against Tennessee, which has won seven of its last eight games. But it's not happening against Indy.
TEXANS (+6.5) at Panthers SPORTSBOOK LINES
Houston's Mario Williams, the first pick in the '06 draft, has more touchdowns than Reggie Bush after one week. Somehow I don't see that lasting. Meanwhile, Carolina bottled up what was expected to be a pretty high-octane offense in St. Louis in Week 1. Could this be the Panthers' defense everyone expected last year? Maybe. This feels like a 20-16 Carolina win.
RAMS (-3) vs. 49ers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Absolutely love this game. Everyone's favorite pick for this year's surprise team -- the 49ers -- laid an egg on Monday night (not that anyone was watching with the game ending in the middle of the night for those of us on the East Coast). St. Louis wasn't much better, delivering a lackluster effort against the Panthers that included two Steven Jackson fumbles and panic from his fantasy owners. Jackson rebounds this week, and the Rams get their first win.
PACKERS (+1.5) at Giants SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Do you really trust this guy to win an NFL game if Eli Manning can't go? I say no. I'd feel alot better about this Packers team if it had any semblance of a running game, but I still think Green Bay's defense is good enough to give it a 2-0 start.
JAGUARS (-10) vs. Falcons SPORTSBOOKS LINES
Does it scare me to pick Jacksonville to cover a double-digit spread after it scored just 10 points last week against the Titans? Absolutely. But can I bring myself to pick Atlanta under any circumstances? No. Check out this poll on ajc.com. It asks what Atlanta's most urgent deficiency is: offense, defense, specials teams or all of the above. "All of the above" has 57 percent of the votes. Ouch.
SAINTS (-3) at Buccaneers SPORTSBOOKS LINES
I'm picking way too many road teams this week. Oh well. New Orleans has had some time to reflect on its lackluster showing in the opener, and the Buccanneers just aren't a very good football team. Anyone else surprised Tampa Bay hasn't made a move to sign Byron Leftwich? I thought that's what they do.
VIKINGS (+3) at Lions SPORTS BETTING LINES
Run the ball and stop the run. Minnesota can do both, and that will keep them in a lot of games this season. Even though it was only one week, Adrian Peterson looks like he was a steal at No. 7 in last year's draft. Not only will he produce, but Peterson delivers excitement to what otherwise would be one of the league's most boring teams.
DOLPHINS (+3.5) vs. Cowboys SPORTS BETTING LINES
Lost in the Tony Romo lovefest is just how bad the Cowboys' defense was last week. I know they're banged up, but Dallas' 'D' allowed 438 yards to the Giants' offense, and backup running back Derrick Ward averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Cam Cameron's decision to split carries between Ronnie Brown and Jesse Chatman sounds about as can't-miss as Larry David's plan to show up to Marty Funkhouser's party a night late. Still, gotta go with Miami to cover at home.
SEAHAWKS (-2.5) at Cardinals SPORTS BETTING LINES
I'm probably missing something, but this game seems too easy. Arizona blew Monday night's game against the 49ers in typical Cardinals fashion, and the Seahawks beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns. Love Seattle in this one.
BRONCOS (-9.5) vs. Raiders SPORTS BETTING LINES
Special teams was a major story line in Week 1. Take a look at the Broncos. They had to rush on to the field to get a Jason Elam field goal as time expired against the Bills. Denver drove into Buffalo territory on eight of 10 drives but came away with just a pair of field goals and a touchdown. Look for more scoring from the Broncos this week against an Oakland defense that gave up 36 points to Detroit in Week 1.
BEARS (-12) vs. Chiefs SPORTS BETTING LINES
Everyone talks about Rex Grossman when dissecting the Bears' offense, but Chicago's quarterback got no help in last week's loss to the Chargers. Meanwhile, Kansas City confirmed what we all thought while watching Hard Knocks: The Chiefs are going to stink this year. It could be a rough first month for Larry Johnson fantasy owners. Kansas City's RB was limited to 43 yards on 10 carries in Week 1, and the Chiefs face the Bears, Vikings and Chargers the next three weeks, all formidable run defenses.
RAVENS (-10) vs. Jets SPORTS BETTING LINES
A big dose of Willis McGahee and a usual sound defensive effort will give the Ravens their first win. According to Football Outsiders, no team in the NFL rushed only three defenders on pass plays last year more than the Jets. And according to my special Jets correspondent Ben Stauber, New York did the same in Week 1. Whoever starts at quarterback for the Ravens should have all day to throw.
PATRIOTS (-3) vs. Chargers SPORTS TRASH TALK
Friends and I were discussing how Bill Belichick goes about paying his $500,000 fine for cheating. Does he just write one check to the NFL? Do you need some sort of clearance to make such a monstrous financial transaction? I guess I shouldn't complain about the security deposit I have to put down on my new apartment. Anyway, two of the league's best teams square off in what should be a good one Sunday night. The Patriots always respond well just when you think they're in trouble. And their offensive attack was the story in Week 1.
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from mysportsbook.com.
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