Unbeaten Titans hold off fast-starting Bears

When the Bears took their first possession of the game and moved almost effortlessly through the stingiest defense in the NFL to take a 7-0 lead, it seemed almost too good to be true.

It was.

The Bears didn't score again until 4:55 remained in the game, and in between they rarely threatened the Tennessee Titans, who kept their perfect record intact en route to their ninth straight victory, 21-14 at chilly Soldier Field.

"You're not going to move it up and down the field like that all the time on them," said Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We put together a good drive, made some plays in that opening drive. But we knew it was going to be one of those days - a battle."

It was.

In between their two scoring drives the Bears managed just 93 yards of total offense.

But despite the lack of offense, the Bears had a chance to tie late in the game with a second-and-1 from the Titans' 32-yard line with 3:07 left, but their next three plays lost a total of 3 yards. Tennessee got the ball back and ran out the clock.

The loss dropped the Bears to 5-4 and into a tie for the lead in the NFC North with the Minnesota Vikings, who defeated the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, dropping them to 4-5. The Bears play at Green Bay next Sunday.

After taking the early lead, the Bears' next seven possessions produced a total of 1 first down. That lack of production, combined with some of the worst field position in recent memory, allowed the Titans to score 3 straight touchdowns.

"We played down close to our end zone most of the time, and eventually if you don't get field position, it'll end up leading to points for the opponent," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "That's what happened."

On eight of the Bears' nine possessions after drawing first blood, they began "drives" inside their own 18. Unable to move and improve their field position, the Bears allowed the Titans to score on drives of 22, 56 and 52 yards.

"We needed to get a few first downs and flip field position," said quarterback Rex Grossman, who started in place of injured Kyle Orton. "First downs kind of breed more first downs. You get on a roll and get to the rest of your plays. That (poor field position) was the big deal right there for the most part."

It was not an impressive performance by Grossman, who made his first start in 11 months. He completed 20 of 37 passes for 173 yards with 1 interception, 1 touchdown pass and a passer rating of 64.4, lower than in any of Orton's eight games and more than 26 points beneath Orton's 90.8 for the season.

But there were some bright spots for the beleaguered backup.

After the Bears' defense forced a three-and-out on the game's opening possession, Grossman led the offense on that methodical, 14-play, 75-yard drive that consumed 6:20. The drive was capped by a 5-yard TD pass to Matt Forte.

But then field position deteriorated, and the offense went into hibernation.

"It's only frustrating when you don't do something about it," Turner said. "That's part of football. It's a field-position game, and when you get backed up like that you have to get a couple first downs to get out of there, and we weren't able to do that."

Grossman and the offense had opportunities, but they rarely capitalized, converting just 3 of 14 third-down plays. Forte, who ran for 64 yards on 13 carries in the first half, managed just 8 yards on 7 carries after halftime.

The Titans didn't change anything defensively after the Bears' opening drive or at halftime. They just did what they've done all season - only better.

The Bears' defense didn't play badly, considering the Titans spent most of the afternoon in plus territory.

But 35-year-old Kerry Collins had by far his most productive day of the season, completing 30 of 41 passes for 289 yards, a full 90 yards more than he had in any other game. Collins was sacked just once and threw 2 TD passes, twice as many as he had in the previous five games combined.

But the Bears eliminated the league's No. 3 rushing attack, allowing the Titans just 20 yards on 29 carries; that's 0.7 yards per attempt. They held rookie Chris Johnson, the AFC rushing leader coming in, to only 8 yards on 14 carries, 0.6 yards per try.

It wasn't much consolation.

"It doesn't matter, if you lose," Bears defensive end Alex Brown said. "It doesn't matter what you do. I know they didn't run the ball a whole lot, but we still gave up 7-yard passes, 10-yard passes.

"We've got guys coming free, unblocked, (but we) can't get there (for the sack). Why? I don't know.

"I'm going to stop right here because I don't want to say something that I'm going to regret tomorrow."

Grading the Bears

Game ball

He didn't quite match the gaudy number that Brian Griese put up against the Bears earlier this season, but Titans quarterback Kerry Collins was a dominant force nonetheless. For the first time since 2005, Collins threw for 2 touchdowns in a game, and for the first time this season, he threw for more than 200 yards in a game (289). He also tied a Bears record for an opponent by stringing together 12 consecutive complete passes.

Quarterback: 1.5 balls

Geez, Rex Grossman looked like Joe Montana on the Bears' first drive of the game - leading them on long drive and a touchdown - but the rest of the game he resembled a freshman going up against the varsity. Knockdowns, easy misses and spotty decision-making. How much longer is Rex our quarterback?

Running back: 3 balls

Another nice game from rookie Matt Forte. Where would the Bears be without this guy? Forte finished with 72 yards rushing on 20 carries and led the team with 7 catches for 54 yards and a TD. One question, though: What's the deal with Kevin Jones?

Receivers: 1.5 balls

Greg Olsen (5 catches) was solid, as was Devin Hester (4). But when Marty Booker (zero catches) and Rashied Davis (1) are nowhere to be found, that's not a good thing.

Offensive line: 3 balls

More than good enough against Tennessee's vaunted defense. They opened up holes for Forte and gave Grossman enough time. This loss certainly doesn't get pinned on them.

Defensive line: 2 balls

Registering just 1 late sack and applying very little pressure on the QB all day vs. shutting down the rushing game ... discuss.

Linebackers: 2 balls

How good is Lance Briggs? Double Nickels (13 tackles) continues to play like a man possessed. Good thing because his two partners combined for just 8 tackles.

Secondary: 2 balls

Earlier in the week, safety Mike Brown admitted the defense was the weak link on the Bears, and he showed he meant to change that by coming out on fire (8 tackles). Corey Graham (fumble recovery) also was impressive, but the bottom line is the secondary gave Titans receivers more cushion than a Barcalounger, and it cost them.

Special teams: 1 ball

At one point, the Titans began 6 of 7 drives at their own 44 or better, while the Bears had 7 of 8 drives begin inside their own 20. That's not getting it done. Neither is Robbie Gould getting a field goal blocked. One positive, though: Devin Hester is getting real good at making fair catches.

Coaching: 1 ball

Kerry Collins killed the Bears with his arm in the first half. After Bears coaches spent halftime making adjustments, Collins came out in the second half and killed the Bears with his arm. Hello?

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Photo Galleries</h2> <ul class="gallery"> <li><a href="/story/?id=249459">Photos from the game <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> </ul> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=249458">Bears feeling pressure because they aren't providing it <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=249476">Titans continue to feast on NFC North <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=249479">Stopping Titans' run game not enough <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=249465">Orton hopes to play vs. Packers <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=249452">Imrem: Titans a lot like Bears used to be <span class="date">[11/10/08]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>