Rough day for Bears' tailbacks

Cedric Benson's lackluster preseason, when he averged 2.3 yards per carry, caused some concern, but it was downplayed by coaches. Against the Chargers, Benson averaged just 2.2 yards and lost a fumble early in the third quarter.

"It was a great play by the defender (Pro Bowl nose tackle Jamal Williams)," Benson said. "I don't even realistically think he was trying to cause a fumble. He just got his hands in across my chest and knocked the ball out."

Adrian Peterson briefly replaced Benson early in the fourth quarter, and the starter donned a baseball cap, leading some to wonder if he thought he was being replaced permanently.

"I didn't think I was done," Benson said. "I was just keeping the sun out of my eyes."

Peterson picked up 38 yards on just 7 carries (5.4-yard average), but he also lost a fumble -- early in the fourth quarter at the Chargers' 44-yard line.

"I think it slipped out," he said. "I don't know if that guy (linebacker Stephen Cooper) even hit it."

The Chargers turned the takeaway into their second touchdown, which was more important to Peterson than messing up the chance he was given at crunch time.

"Turning it over and them going for a score, that was it," Peterson said. "It doesn't have nothing to do about getting a chance."

Not possessive: Because the Bears' offense managed just 11 first downs (to the Chargers' 19), and totaled just 202 yards of offense (to the Chargers' 263), and especially because the Bears turned the ball over four times to the Chargers' 2, they were dominated in time of possession 37:03-22:57.

"We left our defense on the field too much," said wide receiver Bernard Berrian, who led the Bears with 5 catches and 83 receiving yards. "When you do that, you don't have the ball in your hands, you can't score. You can't do anything."

The Bears had just one possession that lasted more than six plays -- the 8-play drive that ended in Robbie Gould's 27-yard field goal. The Bears' longest "drive" of the game was 35 yards that ended with Adrian Peterson's fumble. The Chargers had four drives of eight plays or longer.

Sack attack: Rex Grossman was shaken up on the first series when he was rocked by blitzing outside linebacker Shaun Phillips who was unimpeded to the quarterback after being unblocked off the right side. Grossman, who was sacked 21 times all of last season was nailed three times Sunday, including one by safety Eric Weddle, who also appeared to come clean.

"They did a pretty good job with their blitzes," Grossman said, "and they had some stunts with their defensive linemen that made it hard to pick up."

Not panic time: Even though the loss left the NFC North-favorite Bears in the cellar after the Vikings, Packers and Lions all won, wide receiver Muhsin Muhhamad tried to put it in perspective.

"It only counts for one (loss)," said Muhammad, who had just 1 catch for 8 yards. "This is a non-conference game. We lost a non-conference game last year to the Patriots. They all count as one."