Gould Sainted in Bears Win

Chicago keeps playoff hopes alive

The Bears kept their playoff hopes alive at Soldier Field Thursday night with an overtime win over the New Orleans Saints.
 
It started with a bang last night against the Saints, thanks to Danieal Manning's return for a touchdown on the opening kickoff.  Manning's 83-yard touchdown run laid the groundwork for the Bears' offensive dominance during the first half of play. 
 
Despite the strong showing of the Bears offense early on, Chicago quarterback Kyle Orton didn't have the best game of his season.  His 172 passing yards came from 24 completions on 40 attempts, none of which resulted in a passing touchdown.  Chicago built a two-touchdown lead but Orton's inability to connect with a receiver in the end zone forced the Bears to cough up their lead late in the game.
 
The Bears went into the final minutes of the game with a slim 21-17 lead and a showdown ensued during the last moments of regulation play. 
 
New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees hit wide receiver Marques Colston for an 11-yard touchdown pass with just over 3 minutes left in regulation to give New Orleans its first lead at 24-21.  Chicago fought back to get within field goal range and in the final seconds of the foruth quarter a 28-yard Chicago field goal courtesy of Robbie Gould sent the game into overtime.
 
The Bears won the coin toss, and got another big break when the Saints' Roman Harper bumped Devin Hester on a deep pass down the middle to set Chicago up at the 15.  After Orton stumbled back and put the ball in the middle of the field, Gould ended it with a 35-yarder.
 
The pair of Robbie Gould field goals sealed the Bears' victory, placing them at 8-6 on the year and setting them one half game behind the division leading Minnesota Vikings.
 
With the Bears' second straight win and third in four games, the Bears finally appear to be hitting their stride after a convincing 23-10 win over Jacksonville on Sunday.  They'll try to make it three in a row - something they haven't done since the 2006 Super Bowl Season - at Green Bay a week from Monday.
 
Copyright AP - Associated Press
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