The ecstasy and the Rex-stasy were both in full view as the Bears beat the Chiefs 20-10 in their home opener on Sunday. Devin Hester provided the ecstasy with a 73-yard punt return for a touchdown, a 31-yarder that set up one of Robbie Gould's two field goals and a 95-yard kickoff return that should have netted six more points for the Monsters of the Midway. It was called back because of a holding penalty, though, and the Bears had to be content with a slim margin of victory. Hester wasn't the only Bear to have a good game on Sunday. Cedric Benson quieted any talk about being too soft to succeed as the feature back by rushing for 101 yards and outplaying his opposite number Larry Johnson. L.J., a Benson supporter, was shut down by the Bears defense and spent another week compiling material for his next anti Chief rap. Maybe Benson can return the favor and remind Johnson that things can get better if you keep trying. Either that or he can come up for a derogatory rhyme for Damon Huard for Johnson's next single.
So the Bears ran the ball with authority, dominated on defense and made big plays in the kicking game, why didn't they blow out Kansas City? The answer to that question is Rex Grossman. The always-embattled quarterback actually started quite well, leading a 15-play, eight minute drive that ended with Chicago's first touchdown of the season early in the second quarter. Hester and Gould extended his lead to 20-7 in the third quarter and you'd think that Grossman would be able to take it easy and manage the Bears to a comfortable win.
If that's what you thought, you're thinking of the wrong quarterback. Late in the third, Sexy Rexy threw a terrible interception off his back foot that led to a field goal and then took a bad sack that led to another long K.C. drive. The special teams made another big play, blocking Dave Rayner's kick, but Rex threw another pick in the fourth, albeit on a great defensive play by Donnie Edwards, and the Bears found themselves in a lot more trouble than they should have against a team as bad as the Chiefs. Danieal Manning intercepted Huard, though, and the Bears defense kept things under wraps for the rest of the game.
The thing that saved Grossman today, aside from his world-class defense, is that Huard is one of the few QBs in the league that fails to measure up to Rex's level of play. Huard threw a touchdown pass to the rookie Dwayne Bowe but spent a lot of the game on his back or overthrowing receivers before getting pulled for Brodie Croyle in the final quarter. The Chiefs offense was miserable for the second straight week, something that Croyle simply isn't going to fix by himself, and the problems start on an offensive line that neither creates running room nor protects the quarterback well enough to sustain drives. It's hard to say much about their defensive situation, Herman Edwards thinks it's mighty fine, because they haven't played an offensive juggernaut yet and because they've given up crippling touchdowns to the Texans defense and Hester in successive weeks.
The Bears were a lot closer to 0-2 this week than they should have been and Grossman is the overwhelming reason why. How much longer can they suffer with a quarterback who makes boneheaded decisions that limit their chances to win games? I know they were able to make it to Miami in February despite Grossman's haphazard signal calling but doing it twice seems like a bridge too far. The margin between NFL teams is too slim for Grossman to keep giving opponents chances to win games.
