Bears’ Bell catching on as a running back

If there is a ray of hope in the Bears’ moribund offense, it’s the play of running back Kahlil Bell.

While sharing time with Marion Barber in the two games since Matt Forte went down with a sprained knee, Bell has rushed for 105 yards on 24 carries and a 4.4-yard average.

In each game Bell has been the Bears’ top receiver with 5 catches, picking up an additional 67 yards.

In the same two games, Barber has rushed 38 times for 141 yards, a 3.7-yard average, and has caught 2 passes for 32 yards.

Bell rushed for 220 yards on 40 carries (5.5-yard) as an undrafted rookie in 2009 but was inactive for all 16 games last season. Before this season he had just 1 catch in the NFL, and he caught just 29 passes in four years at UCLA.

“It’s funny because I’ve never really been thrown to before in any part of my career,” said the 5-foot-11, 219-pound Bell. “So no one has every really known I could catch, except my mom.

“My mom used to take me out, and she would tell me: ‘Run 10 yards and turn around, and as soon as you turn around the ball is going to be on you.’

“As a little kid, you just want to catch the ball. (So) I turn around, and the ball hit me in the nose and I had a nosebleed for five hours.

“That’s my story behind how I learned to catch. But my goal has always been to be an every-down back in the NFL, and that’s being able to block, run and catch the ball.”

It wouldn’t be a surprise if Bell plays a bigger role than Barber in the offense this week.

Ugly numbers: Caleb Hanie has completed more than 50 percent of his passes in just one of four starts and has been intercepted nine times and sacked 14 times.In the past three games, the Bears have averaged just 87.7 passing yards per game.Hanie did not receive a vote of confidence Monday from coach Lovie Smith.#147;Right now we#146;re disappointed in our quarterback play,#148; Smith said. #147;It hasn#146;t been as good as we would like it to be, but you can say that about other positions.#147;A lot of times, with the backup quarterback, you don#146;t know what you have until he has to play. We have been in the position this year where we have seen quite a bit of our backup quarterback, and the play hasn#146;t been what we need it to be.#148;Part of the game:Coach Lovie Smith did not fault Seattle defensive end Anthony Hargrove for the collision that sent wide receiver Johnny Knox to the hospital with a back injury that required surgery Monday.#147;(The) guy was playing hard; (it was) an unfortunate play,#148; Smith said. #147;It#146;s a violent sport, and you don#146;t see hits like that very often. But I can#146;t say that it was dirty or anything like that.#148;Knox was placed on injured reserve Monday, as was rookie free safety Chris Conte, who suffered a foot/ankle sprain before halftime Sunday.Running back Armando Allen, defensive end Thaddeus Gibson and wide receiver Max Komar were promoted to the 53-man roster from the practice squad. Running back Robert Hughes was added to the practice squad.Smith said quarterback Jay Cutler (thumb), running back Matt Forte (knee) and safety Major Wright (shoulder) were all getting better, but Wright probably is the only one who has any chance to play Sunday night at Green Bay.