Toronto, ON (Sports Network) - Earl Bennett caught a two-yard touchdown pass midway through the fourth quarter to lift the Chicago Bears over the winless Buffalo Bills, 22-19, at Toronto's Rogers Centre.
Jay Cutler completed 17-of-30 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (5-3), who were coming off a bye week and stopped a two-game skid. Cutler also carried the ball five times for 39 yards.
Greg Olsen was on the receiving end of Cutler's other touchdown pass. Chester Taylor carried the ball 10 times for 13 yards and a score for the victors.
"Coming off of the bye, we needed to get that fifth win and we were able to do that," Bears head coach Lovie Smith said.
Ryan Fitzpatrick connected on 31-of-51 passes for 299 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for the Bills (0-8), who are off to their worst start since dropping the first 11 contests of a 2-14 campaign in 1984.
"Just got to go back to work I guess," Fitzpatrick said. "We keep getting opportunities and I don't know somehow we find a way to have it hurt more and more. This one really hurts. I don't know really what else to say besides we did some good things out there again and came up short again."
Fred Jackson and Corey McIntyre each recorded a rushing touchdown for Buffalo, which was coming off a 13-10 overtime loss to Kansas City last Sunday and another three-point overtime setback at Baltimore two weeks ago. Steve Johnson caught 11 passes for 145 yards, while Roscoe Parrish hauled in seven passes for 60 yards and a score.
Buffalo kicker Rian Lindell had an extra point blocked late in the third quarter. Lindell had never missed an extra point before in his career, ending a streak of 321 consecutive made extra points.
Trailing by five, 19-14, in the fourth quarter, Bears cornerback Tim Jennings picked off Fitzpatrick. Jennings returned the ball 39 yards to the 23-yard line of the Bills.
Olsen caught an 18-yard pass on 3rd-and-10 to put Chicago at the five-yard line and Bennett capped the six-play drive with a two-yard TD catch. A successful two-point conversion put the Bears in front by three, 22-19, with 6:41 to play.
Buffalo got to Chicago's 44-yard line on the ensuing series, but Fitzpatrick threw an incomplete pass on fourth down.
After Chicago went three-and-out, the Bills got the ball back at their own one-yard line with 1:04 to play. Chris Harris intercepted Fitzpatrick on the third play to seal the victory for the Bears.
Following a slow start to the game, the Bears got things going late in the first quarter. Chicago began a 14-play drive from its own 19. The big play of the march came when Johnny Knox caught a 24-yard pass on 3rd-and-4 from the Buffalo 45. The Bears faced a 3rd-and-12 following a false start penalty, but the Bills were whistled for illegal use of the hands to give Buffalo a first down. Olsen capped things with a four-yard TD catch with 12:06 left in the half.
The Bears got to the 14-yard line on their next possession, but two false start penalties made for a long third down. Cutler's incomplete pass brought Robbie Gould onto the field for a 42-yard field goal attempt, which missed wide right.
Buffalo responded with a touchdown to tie it. Faced with a 4th-and-2 from the Chicago 38, David Nelson caught a 10-yard pass for a fresh set of downs. Parrish capped the 11-play march with a 14-yard TD catch for a 7-7 contest with 13 seconds left in the half.
The second half started with Jackson fumbling the football at the 40-yard line of the Bears, who took advantage with a one-yard Taylor touchdown run.
Buffalo kept the back-and-forth battle going with a touchdown of its own. Johnson's 45-yard catch-and-run highlighted the eight-play drive, which Jackson ended with a four-yard TD run. However, Israel Idonije blocked Lindell's extra point attempt to keep the Bears ahead by one, 14-13, with 2:59 remaining.
On the third play of the fourth quarter, Cutler was sacked and lost the football. Spencer Johnson recovered the ball for the Bills near midfield and Buffalo capitalized with a one-yard McIntyre TD run. A failed two-point conversion had Buffalo ahead 19-14 with 10:24 left.
Game Notes
The Bears lead the all-time series with the Bills, 7-4, including a 40-7 home rout when the teams last met during the 2006 season...McIntyre scored his first NFL touchdown...Matt Forte carried the ball 14 times for 49 yards for the Bears...Buffalo had 46 yards rushing.
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