Shuffling continues on Bears' D-line

Several moves were made on the Bears' defensive line to make up for the loss of tackle Henry Melton, who is out for the season with a torn left ACL.

Nose tackle Stephen Paea moved to Melton's 3-technique spot for a handful of snaps, defensive end Corey Wootton played some at the 3-technique, and former backup Nate Collins played both tackle spots for a whopping 58 snaps.

According to Pro Football Focus, Collins had his second-highest grade of the season.

Landon Cohen, signed as a street free agent just two days before the game, played 14 snaps, while undrafted rookie Zach Minter remained inactive for the fourth straight week.

“You're going to miss Henry Melton,” coach Marc Trestman said. “He's one of the best players on our football team at what he does. But Nate stuck it out, Landon stuck it out, Corey went inside and helped out, and the guys fought.”

Paea suffered a foot injury during the game that is not expected to keep him out this week against New Orleans.

According to press-box statistics, Julius Peppers led all Bears linemen with 6 tackles and had his first sack of the season. Wootton was credited with 4 tackles, 1 more than Collins.

Because Cohen came from a Dallas Cowboys defense that is similar to the Bears, he got the nod over Minter. “We felt he could give us more on game day than Zach could,” Trestman said.

Running on empty:Matt Forte (95 yards, 14 carries) played 72 of the 73 total snaps on offense, while backup Michael Bush played just two, a discrepancy that coach Marc Trestman blamed on the large deficit much of the day.#8220;It was a two-minute drill than anything else,#8221; Trestman said. #8220;But we want Michael to be part of our football team, and we hope to get him into the mix.#8220;There's nothing but a positive in that area. It's just difficult because we don't want to take Matt off the field either.#8221;Successful job share:Cornerback Zack Bowman got 26 snaps spelling starter Charles Tillman, who was limited to 41 snaps because of lingering groin and knee injuries. The two corners limited Calvin Johnson to just 4 catches for 44 yards, even though he was targeted 10 times.Tillman is expected to be limited again this week in practice.#8220;He was better this morning than he was a week ago at this time,#8221; coach Marc Trestman said. #8220;I thought he played well for the time he was in there, and we're optimistic that it's coming along.#8221;Just kickin' it:Adam Podlesh, whom Pro Football Focus ranks 34th among punters, had a gross average of only 40.2 yards at Detroit, and just 28.2 yards net when Michael Spurlock's 57-yard return is factored in.#8220;I think we've got to continue to get better in all aspects of our football team,#8221; Marc Trestman said, #8220;and that includes our punting game.#8221;