More good than bad for Grossman
Rex Grossman's numbers in Saturday night's 31-28 victory over San Francisco were impressive on paper, but he also provided some ammunition for his critics.
Grossman and the first-team offense played the entire first half, and the fifth-year quarterback completed 13 of 20 passes for 2 touchdowns and a whopping 211 yards, as he threaded several long passes with precision.
But he fumbled another snap from center, which he recovered, was picked off by former Bear Walt Harris for a 52-yard TD return, and then very nearly made the same mistake on the next possession.
Still, Grossman's 112.7 passer rating was more than double last week's 51.1, when he fumbled three times, including 2 center snaps.
The Bears improved to 3-0 in the preseason.
"Any time you score 31 points in the first half, it's good,", Grossman said. "The offensive line did a great job of allowing me to see the field.",
On the Bears' first play from scrimmage, Grossman went deep for 45 yards, dropping a bomb into the waiting hands of Bernard Berrian (3 catches, 79 yards), who got behind the 49ers' secondary.
Cedric Benson's 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 put the Bears up 7-0 just 3:23 into the game.
Devin Hester's 30-yard punt return gave the Bears great field position at their 49 on the next possession, and Grossman 30-yard strike through coverage to tight end Desmond Clark got them in the red zone. But Grossman dropped another snap, as he did twice last week, and he heard a smattering of boos.
The Bears settled for Robbie Gould's 37-yard field goal, which caromed in off the right upright for a 10-0 lead with 7:14 left in the first quarter.
On the first play of the second quarter, the Bears went up 17-0.
Grossman found a passing lane by side-arming a 25-yard TD to a wide-open Berrian, whose inside fake left 49ers cornerback Shawntae Spencer trailing the play and made it look easy for the Bears.
Grossman talked last week about getting better, and he accomplished that, according to offensive coordinator Ron Turner.
"He got a lot better,", Turner said. "He got a lot better at making quick decisions, making the right decisions and throwing the ball with excellent accuracy. I thought he made big strides."
The 49ers closed to within 17-7 after the Bears' Drisan James fumbled a punt that was recovered at the 7-yard line. Maurice Hicks scored a on a 2-yard run with 11:51 left in the half.
The Bears responded with Grossman's 2-yard TD pass to Clark, which was set up by the quarterback's 30-yard strike to Bradley.
The long return by Harris, who was drafted in the first round by the Bears in 1996 and started for six years, closed the gap to 24-13. Grossman had plenty of time to throw, but Harris jumped in front of rookie tight end Greg Olsen for the pick.
On the Bears' next possession, Grossman almost committed the identical mistake on a pass intended for fullback Jason McKie that linebacker Manny Lawson broke up and nearly intercepted with 50 yards of open field between himself and the end zone.
Turner didn't want to deal in what-ifs, concerning the "almost" interception.
"It didn't get picked,", Turner said. "You can always say, 'Almost this, almost that.' We had one ball that was picked, so obviously we have to correct that, (it was a) poor read.
"Rex played well. He's not going to play perfect. I don't know a quarterback out there that's ever played perfect. But he played really well, did a lot of good things.
"Everyone wants to focus on the one bad play and obviously we'll get that corrected, but Rex is a (heck) of a football player."
Grossman and the offense got an opportunity to end their stint on a positive note when Brian Urlacher forced a fumble by Niners running back Michael Robinson and cornerback Nate Vasher recovered and returned 15 yards to the San Francisco 20.
Adrian Peterson's 3-yard TD run, which was set up by Greg Olsen's 16-yard catch, put the Bears ahead 31-13 at halftime.