Late Rally Falls Short As Bears Lose 25-20 In Oakland

Despite a late rally by Caleb Hanie and the offense, the Chicago Bears were unable to overcome a 12-point fourth quarter deficit, as they fell 25-20 to the Oakland Raiders. With the defeat, the Bears saw their five-game winning streak come to an end and remained tied with the Detroit Lions for second in the NFC North.

In the absence of the injured Jay Cutler, the Bears offense was forced to rely on Hanie to overcome a second half deficit. Hanie delivered an admirable performance, completing 18/36 for two TD's. However, Hanie also threw three interceptions, including a costly pick at the end of the first half in the red zone. Johnny Knox proved to be the main weapon through the air for Chicago, as he had four catches for 145 yards and a TD.

While the Raiders offense had success moving the ball down the field, Chicago limited Oakland to only one touchdown, which came on a Michael Bush run late in the fourth quarter. Sebastian Janikowski delivered a perfect performance in the kicking game, converting all six of his field goal attempts. Carson Palmer completed 21/37 for 301 yards in the win.

The Bears will hope to bounce back from this loss when they host the Kansas City Chiefs next week. Oakland will travel across the country to face the Miami Dolphins next week.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

Despite a strong performance from their defense, the Chicago Bears will need to put together a fourth quarter rally if they hope to win their sixth straight game, as they trail the Oakland Raiders 18-7 heading into the final quarter.

While the Bears defense has delivered a strong performance, forcing a Carson Palmer interception and limiting the Raiders offense to just six field goals, the Chicago offense hasn't been able to find much of a rhythm. The offense managed to run only nine plays in the third quarter and couldn't muster any sort of attack against the Raiders defense. Starting in the place of the injured Jay Cutler, Caleb Hanie has thrown three interceptions.

Although the Raiders offense has been able to move the ball over the course of the game, the Bears have managed to keep them out of the end zone. However, Sebastian Janikowski has been perfect, nailing all six of his field goal attempts, including two field goals in the third quarter.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

While the Bears offense has continued to struggle in the absence of starting QB Jay Cutler, the defense has continued their excellent play, as Chicago trails the Oakland Raiders 12-7 at the half.

After struggling to move the ball in the first quarter, Caleb Hanie and the Bears offense put together an impressive drive to take the lead late in the second quarter. The TD came on an excellent throw from Hanie to Johnny Knox, who scored from 29 yards out.

Following the TD, the Raiders put together a drive of their own, with Carson Palmer hooking up with Marcel Reese for a 47-yard gain on a screen pass. However, the Raiders couldn't find a way to get in the end zone, as the Chicago defense limited Oakland to its third field goal of the game.

Chicago had the chance to take the lead heading into the half, as a huge kickoff return by Knox gave the Bears the ball in Oakland territory. The Bears eventually drove down deep into Raiders territory, but Hanie was picked off by Kamerion Wimbley, who returned the ball all the way back to the Oakland 12 yard line. Sebastian Janikowski converted his fourth field goal of the game to give the Raiders a 12-7 lead at halftime.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

We all knew that the Chicago Bears would miss star quarterback Jay Cutler while rehabbing from thumb surgery, but now Bears fans have a better idea of just what kind of hill their team is going to have to climb. Early in the second quarter of Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders, the Bears currently trail 6-0, and have gotten little to nothing going with the passing game so far.

Caleb Hanie, the quarterback starting for Chicago today in place of Cutler, is just 3-for-8 passing for 25 yards so far, but even worse, he's already thrown two interceptions and been sacked once. The team's running game has been working, with Hanie, Matt Forte and Marion Barber combining for 58 yards rushing on 9 carries, but it's slowly becoming clear how limited Chicago's passing offense will be going forward.

The Bears have actually done a good job of stifling Oakland's offense so far, limiting the Raiders to 65 total yards while sacking Carson Palmer twice, but they've been able to capitalize on both of Hanie's interceptions with Sebastian Janikowski field goals. Chicago is currently 7-3 on the year and riding a five-game winning streak, but their road to the postseason doesn't look too easy right now.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

We already all knew that the Chicago Bears would be without quarterback Jay Cutler when they face the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. Few injuries this season have gotten more attention than Cutler's thumb surgery, which has forced the contending Bears to turn to inexperienced back-up Caleb Hanie as they hit the stretch run of the season.

Hanie is making the first start of his NFL career on Sunday in place of Cutler, although he's not the only Bears player to be inactive against the Raiders on Sunday. Here's the full inactive list, from Oakland's official Twitter feed:

- QB Jay Cutler

- QB Josh McCown

- CB D.J. Moore

- DT Anthony Adams

- TE Andre Smith

- LB Jabara Williams

- OG Ricky Henry

Cutler and nickelback D.J. Moore are the big names here. McCown is expected to become Hanie's back-up next week, but after signing so recently the club clearly isn't comfortable letting him run of the offense yet. After some more reps in practice, expect McCown to be activated soon to give the team an alternative to Hanie and current back-up Nathan Enderle.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

The Oakland Raiders face the Chicago Bears on Sunday afternoon as they hope to end Chicago's five-game winning streak, but they'll be doing so without star running back Darren McFadden. The 24-year-old former first-round pick was exceptional for Oakland early in the season, rushing for 610 yards and 4 touchdowns over the team's first six games.

Here's the full Oakland inactives list, via the team's official Twitter feed:

- RB Darren McFadden

- QB Jason Campbell

- WR Jacoby Ford

- WR Denarius Moore

- RB Taiwan Jones

- DE Jarvis Moss

- OG Bruce Campbell

The team has certainly missed McFadden, but it's worth noting that the Raiders' rushing offense hasn't really skipped a beat. Back-up Michael Bush has started recently, and he's ran for 461 yards over the past four weeks in McFadden's absence. Oakland's third in the NFL in rushing yards per game, so expect Chicago to be challenged there.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

Though Sunday's game vs. the Oakland Raiders will be the Bears' first game in 2011 without Jay Cutler available to play, it won't be their first game completely without him. ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported today that Cutler flew himself out to Oakland to support Caleb Hanie in the first start of his career, and will be on the Bears' sideline during the game.

The last time that Hanie took the field, in the 2010 NFC Championship game vs. the Green Bay Packers, Cutler watched Hanie throw a touchdown and two interceptions as the Packers advanced to the Super Bowl amidst speculation that Culter should have played through an MCL tear. If Hanie can navigate the Bears to the playoffs, Chicago hopes to find themselves back with Cutler under center with a shot at the Super Bowl.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

Though many fantasy owners that were starting Jay Cutler may have been forced into picking up Caleb Hanie after Cutler's injury, it would be wise to look elsewhere for fantasy production from the quarterback position in Week 12. numberFire.com has Hanie projected as the No. 26 overall QB for the week, which would put him at the very bottom echelon of starting quarterbacks in Week 12.

Though Hanie may in fact provide some fantasy value this season, his talent is still a mystery to almost everyone outside of the Bears brain trust, and his Week 12 match up on the road in Oakland is not very favorable. The Raiders are in the NFL's top 10 in sacks in 2011, and the Bears' game plan figures to call on Matt Forte early and very often.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.

With Jay Cutler out indefinitely, the Bears' offense will take on a new look in Week 12 in beyond. With the unproven Caleb Hanie taking over for Cutler, the Bears figure to lean heavily on star RB Matt Forte, and in Week 12, numberFire.com projects Forte as the No. 4 overall running back for the week.

Though teams will certainly be looking to stop Chicago's running game, Forte should get a lot of touches regardless, and that's what fantasy owners are looking for. Forte has averaged only 60.5 yards rushing in the past two games, but with Cutler out he also figures to be used heavily in the red zone, which could sustain him from a fantasy prospective even if teams suppress his yardage totals by stacking the box.

For more on this game, check out the Bears blog Windy City Gridiron and Raiders blog Silver and Black Pride. Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more Chicago sports scores and updates.