National Football League

Every cream's a nightmare; 'O' & 'D' share blame, frustration for this one

Published Oct. 18, 2010 10:16 p.m. ET

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The staples of a losing team were present in the Bears' locker room Sunday at Soldier Field.

The slumped shoulders. The hushed voices. And the fast, mass exodus of frustrated players.

Yet the Bears seemed to recognize that there was greater meaning to the 23-20 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

''I feel like we did miss an opportunity, and we can't get that game back,'' safety Danieal Manning said ''I don't want to take anything from [the Seahawks], but we beat ourselves.''

Added linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa, ''You're supposed to dominate at home.''

Especially against an inferior opponent when you consider yourself an elite team. Tinoisamoa didn't say that, of course, but that's the Bears' reality. They came in 4-1, tied for the best record in the NFC, and they hosted the Seahawks, winless in their last 13 road games outside the weak NFC West.

Despite all that was amiss for the Bears on Sunday, they still managed to generate some drama late in the fourth quarter when Devin Hester returned a punt 89 yards for a touchdown, prompting Robbie Gould to try an onside kick.

But former Notre Dame tight end John Carlson easily recovered the ball, and the Seahawks closed out the game.

Bears coach Lovie Smith was diplomatic at his news conference.

''You have to be ready each and every week to play our best ball, and we didn't play our best ball,'' he said.

Smith was more candid in his postgame interview with WBBM-AM (780).

''I did a terrible job in getting the team ready,'' he said.

PROBLEMS START EARLY

The Bears' offense -- even with the return of starting quarterback Jay Cutler -- couldn't find a rhythm running or throwing. Not including two quarterback scrambles, Bears running backs Matt Forte and Chester Taylor attempted just 12 runs while Cutler was sacked six times.

''We weren't on the same page,'' left tackle Frank Omiyale said.

Meanwhile, the Bears' defense couldn't find Matt Hasselbeck -- he wasn't sacked and was pressured only once -- and couldn't neutralize a run offense that entered the game ranked 29th.

The Seahawks unveiled new featured back Marshawn Lynch, a former first-round pick acquired in a trade with the Buffalo Bills. But the Bears struggled even more with Justin Forsett, who gashed them for 67 yards on just 10 carries, including a nine-yard touchdown.

''We pride ourselves on hitting and tackling, and I don't know if we did that like we're accustomed to and what the fans here are accustomed to,'' Tinoisamoa said.

The problem started in the first quarter. Though the Bears scored on the opening possession, their defense quickly conceded a six-play, 80-yard touchdown drive that encouraged the Seahawks.

''This is not something we've done,'' Hasselbeck said. ''We haven't gone on the road, played the early game [well] and had emotion and had the passion and energy.''

How did the Bears' offense respond? It went three-and-out on the next three possessions, gaining just six yards.

The most alarming game statistic: The Bears were 0-for-12 on third downs. (On average, their third-down attempts were from about eight yards.)

This wasn't a problem unique to Sunday. Since they converted a respectable 6 of 14 (42.9 percent) third-down tries against the Detroit Lions in the opener, the Bears have converted just 7 of 60 (11.7 percent) in the last five games.

''We have a third-down package, and we're not executing it,'' Cutler said.

The Bears may want to burn that package and craft a new one.

But that wasn't all.

'WE'VE GOT A LONG WAYS TO GO'

Early in the fourth quarter, the Bears' offense burned two timeouts and squandered a key field-goal attempt. After a 14-yard scramble by Cutler, the Bears had a first down at the Seattle 34. But on third-and-six, the Seahawks -- as they did throughout the game -- blitzed a defensive back and sacked Cutler for an 11-yard loss that put the Bears out of field-goal range.

''This was a really big day,'' Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said. ''We made a vow ... for our guys to really answer the call, play in all phases and go for it.

''The reason we take such pride in this win is that Chicago is such a great football team. They were 4-1 going in ... so this is a big deal.''

But how good, really, are the Bears?

''Whatever happened before this, whatever happened today doesn't matter anymore,'' Bears defensive end Julius Peppers said. ''We've just got to get better for next week [against Washington]. We've got a long ways to go. Today made that obvious.''

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