For Bears, unpleasant reality sets in

No one expected the Bears to be 5-8 on the heels of last season's Super Bowl appearance, least of all the players.

"With all the expectations and with everything we believed that we could do, it's been real bad," said defensive end Alex Brown, who had the Bears' only sack against the Redskins in a 24-16 loss Thursday night. "The saying (is), 'Never in a million years,' and the year came this year. It was bad; everything was bad; nothing went the way we felt that it would go. It's pretty much over now."

Realistically the Bears are out of playoff contention and it could become official, mathematically, very soon.

"Not many teams get in with an 8-8 record," coach Lovie Smith said, "or deserve to get in with an 8-8 record."

Of the Bears' remaining three games, two are against NFC North rivals Minnesota and Green Bay. There are still goals to accomplish, and the task is simple.

"You play football," Brown said. "You're doing what you love to do, that's why you go play. When there's nothing to play for as far as winning the division or the playoffs, you play because you love the game. You play for pride. You have to have pride.

"You can't just go out there and b.s. You have to go play to win, that's what it's about. Unfortunately we haven't done a whole lot of that this year."

Sack sidetracked: Defensive tackle Tommie Harris claims he would have had his eighth sack of the season on the play that was interrupted by a fan running onto the field in the first quarter.

The ball had already been snapped but the play was stopped and a half-dozen security personnel wrestled the offender to the ground and dragged him from the field.

"I was going to get the sack,'' Harris said. "I beat the dude with an inside move, and then (the fan) bumped me. I was like, 'What the heck?' I was checking myself to see if I was stabbed because he hit me, he bumped me.

"He was just laughing. I think somebody bet him some money, but I didn't want to whoop him because I didn't know if he had something on him.''

Harris said he was in the process of splitting two Redskins linemen en route to quarterback Jason Campbell when the play was whistled dead.

Waving the flags: The Bears had 9 penalties Thursday night, including 8 in the second half, giving them 19 infractions in the past two games.

Crowd noise could be partially responsible for the 4 false start penalties, but there were other factors.

"Every time you get a penalty, you've got to say it's a lack of focus," coach Lovie Smith said. "Normally plays like that end up beating you, and that's what happened."

Offensive tackles John Tait and Fred Miller and guards Roberto Garza and Terrence Metcalf each had 1 false start, and Metcalf was also flagged for being downfield illegally on a screen pass that wiped out a 25-yard gain by Adrian Peterson.