Bears Blitz

Published by Gabe Salgado on December 2, 2012
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

All week we had heard that while Seattle is an improved team this year, they struggle on the road.

The Seahawks were just 1-5 away from CenturyLink Field coming into today’s game with the Bears.

The conditions were perfect for a Bears victory today. They were at home against a team that had lost three consecutive road games.

Combine that with one of the league’s top defenses, a rabid Soldier Field crowd, and a rookie quarterback on the opposite side, all signs were pointing towards a Bears victory.

I guess somebody forgot to tell Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson because he had other plans.

He wanted to prove that the Seattle’s road struggles were just temporary.

He also wanted to prove why he’s a top candidate for Offensive Rookie of the Year. Unfortunately for the Monsters of the Midway, Wilson did just that.

Lovie Smith’s defense was only able to sack him twice. The rookie from Wisconsin was able to use his feet to avoid pressure from every angle.

The Bears defense was unable to match his speed, they failed to contain the athletic signal caller, and the Seahawks used this to their advantage.

Credit must also be given to Seattle’s offensive line. They played a big part in today’s victory.

Despite the two sacks they managed to keep the Bears’ pass rush at bay. They gave Wilson time to throw and room to run.

The Seahawks offense stepped up their game significantly in the second half. They outscored the Bears 13-3 in the fourth quarter and overtime combined.

The defining moment came within the last three minutes of the fourth quarter on the Seahawks final offensive possession of regulation.

The Seahawks were down 14-10 and they started from their own 3-yard-line.

The 24-year-old Wilson would lead Seattle on a 97-yard drive and capped it off with a touchdown pass to Golden Tate.

This gave the Seahawks a 17-14 lead with :24 seconds remaining. 

The game would never have gone to overtime had it not been for the big arm of Jay Cutler and the leaping ability of Brandon Marshall.

That play would put Robbie Gould in position to kick a 46-yard field goal to keep the Bears hopes for a win alive.

Unfortunately the field goal would prove to be futile as the extra period would be the Bears undoing.

The Seahawks won the overtime coin toss and elected to go on offense first.

This put an already exhausted Chicago Bear defense back on the field just moments after Seattle’s go-ahead touchdown.

Russell Wilson would put his team on his back once again and lead the Seahawks to victory.

This time, Pete Carroll’s offense would go 80 yards and win the game on Wilson’s second touchdown pass of the day to Sidney Rice. 

The Seahawks walk out of Soldier Field with the 23-17 victory and have now won two-in-a-row over the Bears.

Wilson, the third round draft pick would account for 364 of Seattle’s 459 offensive yards.

For the second time in three weeks, the Bears found themselves at the mercy of a dual-threat quarterback.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the Wisconsin franchise who wears the mustard and relish won their game against the fading Minnesota Vikings today.

This means that the Bears are no longer in first place in the NFC North division.

Despite both teams having an 8-4 record, the Packers own the tie-breaker thanks to their Week 2 victory at Lambeau Field.

The Bears still hold the top spot in the Wild Card but only by one game. Plus, the schedule gets tougher from here.

Next week the Bears travel to Minnesota to take on those same Vikings. Even though the Bears defeated them last week, the Metrodome has always been a difficult place to play.

The Bears have only won in the dome twice since 2006. Two weeks from today is the rubber match with Green Bay.

That series has been very one-sided in recent years as the Bears are just 1-4 in their last five against their arch-rivals.

These next two weeks are extremely crucial as it will most likely determine the NFC North champion.

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