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Cutler, Gould give Chicago Bears something to celebrate

Quarterback Jay Cutler had a lot of obstacles to overcome Sunday, not the least of which was his own critical mistake at crunchtime.

Cutler's only interception came just seven yards from the Oakland Raiders' end zone with 6:50 left in a game the Chicago Bears led 19-17 and were poised to put out of reach.

But 18-year veteran safety Charles Woodson stole Cutler's pass intended for tight end Martellus Bennett. The Raiders moved quickly from their own 9-yard line to the Bears' 22, where Sebastian Janikowski's 41-yard field goal gave the visitors a 20-19 lead with 2:05 remaining.

It was the Raiders' third lead in a seesaw game that dropped them to 2-2.

Cutler and the Bears were staring straight into the face of an 0-4 start, one in which the quarterback's only mistake would no doubt be cited as the primary reason for the latest loss.

"I don't even think about that," Cutler said. "Can't linger on it, can't worry about it because we've got (another) shot and guys are depending on me to go out there and get it done."

To add to Cutler's difficulty factor, he was playing without injured Pro Bowl wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, who missed his third straight game, and behind a cobbled-together offensive line.

He still completed 5 of 8 passes to four different receivers for 41 yards, including a fourth-and-5 hookup with Bennett and put the Bears in position for Robbie Gould's 49-yard game-winning field goal with two seconds left.

The 22-20 victory was the Bears' first of the year after 3 losses, and it touched off a wild on-field celebration around Gould, whose 54-yard field goal with 13:01 left had given the Bears a 19-17 lead.

The emotional victory also came in a game Cutler wasn't even supposed to play because of a strained hamstring that a national report said would keep him out at least another week.

"Jay is a tough son of a buck," John Fox said after his first victory as Bears coach. "He fought (through) an injury. Some lesser guys may not have been out there, but he was. All in all, he played outstanding and well enough for us to win. My hat's off to his toughness, battling through that game.

"I think it was a tribute to Jay."

Cutler shook off a sack on the second play of the game-winning drive and then a drop by Marquess Wilson, who bounced back with 2 catches for 13 yards later in the drive.

"The mental and physical toughness it took for (Cutler) to be out there and then to perform like he did was pretty amazing," Fox said.

Cutler completed 28 of 43 passes for 281 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception and a passer rating of 89.4.

Unable to sprint away from trouble, he was sacked three times. But a banged-up O-line kept him clean for most of the afternoon.

A bad situation up front became worse almost immediately. On the third play from scrimmage, center Will Montgomery went down with a fractured fibula that likely will end his season.

So left guard Matt Slauson, who hadn't snapped a ball in an NFL game in at least three years, took over for Montgomery. Patrick Omameh, claimed on waivers after being cut by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a month ago, took over at left guard.

The O-line already was playing without nine-year veteran left tackle Jermon Bushrod (concussion/shoulder), who was replaced by 2014 seventh-round draft pick Charles Leno, who started and finished an NFL game for the first time. Two-time Pro Bowl guard Kyle Long was playing just his fourth game at right tackle.

Cutler said the line's ability to jell was "huge," especially against a Raiders defense with three exceptional pass rushers.

"When it's Aldon Smith and Khalil (Mack), they are two guys that are elite pass rushers, and Justin Tuck inside," Cutler said. "Couldn't be more proud of (the O-line), especially with the injuries and guys stepping up."

Cutler had not played since he was hurt trying to make a tackle after throwing an interception late in the second quarter of the second game. He he was able to practice all of last week, though on a limited basis. After testing his hamstring Sunday morning, Cutler said he felt "good enough" to start.

"I felt good about our game plan," Cutler said, "and we thought we would give it a shot and see how it went."

It went just fine.

• Follow Bob's Bears and NFL reports on Twitter @BobLeGere.

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