Too hot: Jay Cutler
The quarterback apparently got his hands on some night vision goggles. He wasn’t the same player who had struggled in night games all season. Most of his passes were on point, like his 7-yard dart to Greg Olsen and 2-yard floater to Desmond Clark for scores. And he had success despite banging up his throwing hand near the end of the first half. If that hadn’t occurred, Cutler might have had another touchdown toss before halftime to boost his 96.5 first-half rating.
Too cold: Josh Bullocks
The veteran safety was just right for most of the game before he got cold at the worst time: the fourth quarter. First, he allowed receiver Greg Lewis to get in front of him for a 27-yard pickup. Then Bullocks was late getting over to help Zack Bowman on the next play, Brett Favre’s 12-yard hookup with Sidney Rice. Bullocks also was the defender on the next play, Percy Harvin’s 12-yard reception. It all led to Adrian Peterson’s 1-yard touchdown run to tie the score 23-23. But this was a tough spot for Bullocks, who was filling in for the injured Al Afalava.
Just right: Greg Olsen
All season, fans wondered what happened to the Cutler-to-Olsen connection that was much hyped before the season. Well, it was in full swing Monday night. Olsen had three catches for 47 yards in the first half and showed his great hands on a touchdown toss from Cutler. The duo, however, did fail to connect on an early second-quarter play in the red zone, causing the Bears to settle for Robbie Gould’s 42-yard field goal.
