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| ARI at CIN | CAR at GB | CHI at SEA | CLE at BAL | KC at IND | MIA at PHI | NE at BUF | NO at HOU |
| NYG at DET | OAK at MIN | PIT at NYJ | SD at JAX | STL at SF | TB at ATL | TEN at DEN | WAS at DAL |
Week 11 Game Recap: Chicago Bears 23, Seattle Seahawks 30
What you need to know
| Chicago Bears |
Rex Grossman's return at quarterback was a qualified success. Qualified because he appeared at home leading the team, and threw the ball well, but he came up just short in the end. He made a crucial fumble, and was sacked five times in the second half when the pressure was on. Also, he keyed far too much on one receiver (Berrian) and when the Seahawks shut down that option, he was not always able to find an open man. Until he learns to spread the ball around, defenses will be able to get to him more as the game wears on -- which was certainly the case here.
Cedric Benson quieted his critics on the second play from scrimmage, carrying the ball 43 yards into the end zone. Meanwhile, Adrian Peterson also scored, but picked up very little in the way of yardage. The starting job is still Benson's to lose.
Wide receiver Bernard Berrian reaped the rewards of the QB switch, going over a hundred yards for the first time this season. TE Greg Olsen was the second most popular target, and Muhsin Muhammad drew the short straw. It's a shame, too, because each of the three were very impressive with their opportunities, but Grossman refuses to look away from Berrian unless he absolutely has to.
| Seattle Seahawks |
Clearly, the Seahawks are committed to the pass. In their opening drive, they passed five times and rushed once. This actually may have helped, as the running game was great in the first half, but in the second (with the Seahawks were playing conservatively, protecting their lead) they didn't get much at all on the ground.
Matt Hasselbeck may be as good or better than the other QBs grabbing the headlines, but Coach Holmgren is not a run up the score kind of guy. So instead of four or five touchdowns, Hasselbeck finishes the game with his usual two instead. He made good decisions all day long, threw accurately, and made no mistakes. You can't ask for much more from your quarterback.
The running game was sufficient, but struggled in short yardage situations. Morris scored on a 19 yard run, but later when the Seahawks were at the four yard line, they went to the air instead. Both Morris and Weaver played well, but did not exactly strike fear into the Bears defense.
The receiving corps is finally getting healthy, and that means it may be another week or two before we know what the hierarchy is. For now, it appears that Nate Burleson (one target, one TD) is the odd man out, with D. J. Hackett, Deion Branch, and Bobby Engram splitting the looks. Hackett appears to be the red zone specialist; Engram the possession receiver. Branch looked to be shaking off the rust this game and looked to be in good form, but may not be thrust back into the number one role, as the current balance is working so well.
What you ought to know
| QB Rex Grossman, Pass: 24 - 37 - 266 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - 13 - 0 |
Grossman's return to the lineup went well, but he came just short in the end. He was throwing well all day, but when the pressure was on to catch up in the second half, he was sacked five times and lost a crucial fumble that could have been avoided.
| QB Brian Griese |
Griese (shoulder) dressed as the emergency third quarterback.
| RB Cedric Benson, Rush: 11 - 89 - 1, Rec: 1 - -2 - 0 (2 targets) |
Benson started off with a 43 yard scamper into the end zone, followed it up with a 20 yard run, and then quieted down a bit. The Bears seemed to take a page from the Seahawks playbook and passed far more than they ran. Despite the limited touches, it was a good day for him.
| RB Adrian Peterson, Rush: 5 - 11 - 1, Rec: 1 - 5 - 0 (1 targets) |
Peterson was used as a change of pace back and aside from vulturing a TD, did not produce much at all. All of his carries were in the first half.
| RB Jason McKie, Rush: 1 - 0 - 0, Rec: 1 - 4 - 0 (2 targets) |
McKie ran once in a short yardage situation, and caught the ball once for four yards.
| WR Bernard Berrian, Rec: 9 - 102 - 0 (12 targets) |
With Grossman under centre, Berrian saw the majority of looks on passing plays and eclipsed 100 yards receiving. He showed good hands, but was unable to turn upfield with any of his catches.
| WR Muhsin Muhammad, Rec: 3 - 71 - 0 (5 targets) |
Muhammad was the clear loser of the QB change. He was only targeted once in the first half, but when he got his chances he looked very good.
| WR Devin Hester, Rush: 1 - -6 - 0 (2 targets) |
Hester was used as a receiver late in the game when the Bears were trailing, but did not have a good opportunity to catch anything. Earlier in the game, they tried giving him the ball for a reverse play, but pretty much everyone saw that one coming and it went for a negative six yards.
| WR Rashied Davis, Rec: 1 - 36 - 0 (2 targets) |
Like Hester, Davis was mainly looked to late in the game.
| TE Greg Olsen, Rec: 7 - 43 - 0 (8 targets) |
Olsen was often Grossman's second read (after Berrian), and he was very consistent, catching all but one ball thrown his way.
| TE Desmond Clark, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (2 targets) |
Clark is clearly the number two target between the two tight ends. He fumbled the ball on his only reception and did not get a second chance.
| PK Robbie Gould 3 - 3 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 11 points |
Gould hit all three field goal attempts.
| CHI Rush Defense |
In the first half, they weren't able to contain Maurice Morris. In the second, they did better, but Morris still was able to get free for a couple of ten+ yard runs.
| CHI Pass Defense |
The Bears did not look too bad in this department. They were consistently beaten all day, but managed to avoid looking foolish against a very good passing attack.
| QB Matt Hasselbeck, Pass: 30 - 44 - 337 - 2 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 3 - 5 - 0 |
Hasselbeck was awesome, going 30 for 44 for 337 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He could have padded those stats in the fourth quarter, but with even the slimmest lead, Holmgren's play calling is quite conservative. He also threw a sure TD pass to D. J. Hackett with seconds remaining in the first half, but the pass was dropped as he went down in the end zone. He spread the ball around the entire game, forcing the Bears to cover the whole field.
| RB Maurice Morris, Rush: 18 - 87 - 1, Rec: 1 - 19 - 0 (3 targets) |
For the second game in a row, Morris started in place of Shaun Alexander, and had an excellent game against a stout run defense. He did not run the ball often, but when he did, proved effective. He was far more effective in the first half; when the Seahawks had the lead, the Bears were able to key on the run and shut it down for the most part. Normally used as a change of pace back, he was weak on short yardage plays.
| RB Leonard Weaver, Rush: 2 - 11 - 0, Rec: 4 - 23 - 0 (6 targets) |
Weaver was the main third down back, and consequently a frequent dump-off option for Hasselbeck. Most of his targets were of the everyone else is covered variety.
| RB Shaun Alexander |
Alexander was inactive due to injury (wrist, knee, ankle)
| WR D.J. Hackett, Rec: 9 - 136 - 1 (13 targets) |
Hackett was Hasselbeck's favourite receiver on the day, and also a popular end zone target. His numbers could have been even better had he held on to a perfect pass in the end zone, just before the first half ended.
| WR Bobby Engram, Rec: 8 - 84 - 0 (11 targets) |
Engram was reliable as usual, pulling in nearly everything thrown his way. He did have one red zone look, but his main value was in moving the chains, as he accounted for four Seattle first downs.
| WR Deion Branch, Rec: 4 - 31 - 0 (7 targets) |
Branch did not post big numbers in his return to the field after a long absence due to injury, but he did look good when his number was called. Coach Holmgren appeared to be resting him at times, and Hasselbeck spread the ball around, which partly explains the low yardage total.
| WR Nate Burleson, Rec: 1 - 4 - 1 (1 targets) |
With the return of Deion Branch to the lineup, Burleson slid to number four on the depth chart, as well as continuing his kick return duties. He made his one catch count however, but the fact that it was his only target is a little worrisome for his prospects going forward.
| TE Marcus Pollard, Rec: 2 - 33 - 0 (2 targets) |
Pollard was not looked upon to catch the ball often, but came through when they needed him to. Both catches were for first downs.
| TE Will Heller, Rec: 1 - 7 - 0 (1 targets) |
Heller caught the only pass thrown to him, and was primarily used as a blocker.
| PK Josh Brown 3 - 4 FG, 3 - 3 XP, 12 points |
Brown had a good day overall. After an uncharacteristic miss early in the game, he nailed his next three attempts. He also gets bonus points for an excellent tackle of Devin Hester on a kick return.
| SEA Rush Defense |
The Bears scored a 43 yard TD on the second play of the game, and followed it up with a 20 yard run by Benson. The Seahawks looked much improved in the second half, but they weren't tested much as the Bears were throwing the ball a lot.
| SEA Pass Defense |
The Seahawks were able to contain Berrian -- he got his catches, but was unable to turn any upfield -- but for most of the game, Grossman was able to get the ball to his receivers. Later in the second half, the pass rush stepped up its game and recorded five sacks.
