Touchdown, Bears … Michael Haynes, a 45-yard interception return! Touchdown, Bears … R.W. McQuarters, a 75-yard punt return! Touchdown, Bears … McQuarters again, 90 seconds later, an 85-yard punt return!
You sat there wondering how good the Bears could be if the offense could score.
But then McQuarters’ second TD got called back. In 84 years of pro football, George S. Halas’ organization never has had a man score twice in a single game on punt runbacks.
You sat there wondering what McQuarters must be thinking.
“I was thinking, `Oxygen!'” he said. “`Oxygen!”‘
And that’s the way these Bears left pretty much everybody Sunday–breathless. Out of words. Out of ways to describe a 19-17 sudden-death, safety-last takedown of Tennessee. Out of means to account for a three-game roll over the 49ers, Giants and Titans.
You sat there wondering a number of things that you were at a loss to explain, like:
When/why/how did this become a fun team?
“Three in a row, that’s all I know,” said the poetic David Terrell. “Three in a row, so you know what that means?”
No, what does that mean?
“That means next week we go for four.”
Can these be the Bears? Our Bears? Da Bears? The team with the backups in the backfield? The team with the backups at defensive back? The team that was 1-5? The team held to nine points by the Eagles, then 10 by the Redskins, then seven by the Buccaneers?
While you sat there wondering Sunday and maybe shaking your head in disbelief, so did their opponents.
“Nothing against Chicago,” said cornerback Samari Rolle of the Titans, “but their offense isn’t that good.”
“Should we give up just three points and still lose?” said Tennessee linebacker Keith Bulluck. “When you give up three points and you’re in overtime, well, that’s crazy.”
No, that’s the Bears. And that’s this season the Bears are having–crazy.
How else to explain a 6-foot-8-inch offensive tackle blocking a field goal to save the day in his first game in two years?
“Marc Colombo said it all week!” Terrell announced at the top of his lungs. “He said all week he was going to get a block! And he got a block!”
Crazy.
And what about Terrell himself, dropping a pass–not for the first time on this day–on a third-and-19 after Craig Krenzel had laid it right in his lap? But then making a great grab on a fourth-and-2 with 1:47 to play when a drop would have virtually assured Lovie Smith’s team a 17-14 defeat?
“Coach came back to me in a crucial time and said, `D.T., you’re our guy,'” Terrell said.
It took guts, brains, desperation, something to call Terrell’s number one more time with the day he was having. Krenzel didn’t care what it took. “David’s a great player,” he said. “I’m going to go to David whenever I can.”
Crazy.
Oh, and what about Haynes, of all people, a 275-pound defensive end, picking off a pass and chugging nearly half a football field for a score?
“I’m carrying that ball home with me,” Haynes said. “I’ll have it painted and put it in a nice place.”
McQuarters laughed and did an impersonation of Haynes, huffing and puffing after his long run. Oxygen was the word for the day for the team from the Windy City, this newfound success being a real breath of fresh air.
After all, it isn’t every day that these three first-round draft picks–Colombo, Terrell and Haynes–have contributed to a Bears victory at the same time.
Throw in linebacker Lance Briggs’ best game of the year … wide receiver Bobby Wade’s clutch catches … Brad Maynard’s booming punts … Anthony Thomas’ tireless rushing … Adewale Ogunleye’s constant pressure on the quarterback … Hunter Hillenmeyer’s huge sack in overtime …
You sat there wondering what this once-bad team suddenly had become.
“This team’s incredible,” Colombo said. “This is a great team.”
The Bears? Incredible? A great team?
Crazy.
