EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Back-to-back blowout losses by the Giants had unglued the early season expectations that surrounded the team. A 3-0 start with little dazzle from the Bears brought out the skeptics. Sunday night’s game was supposed to solve the mysteries of just what kind of teams the Giants and Bears have.
Good luck untangling that.
The Giants got a surprisingly stout performance from their defense, and discovered just enough offense in the second half to beat the Bears, 17-3, at New Meadowlands Stadium.
The Giants (2-2) avoided the team’s first 1-3 start since 1997 and moved into a three-way tie atop the N.F.C. East. Dallas, 1-2, did not play.
The Bears (3-1) headed back to Chicago wondering about the state of their starting quarterback and the legitimacy of their recently built aspirations.
The Giants recorded 10 sacks, knocking Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler out in the first half with a concussion and the backup Todd Collins out in the fourth quarter with a blindside hit. The Bears were held to 110 total yards and 6 first downs. They converted none of their 13 third-down attempts, instead losing a total of 23 yards and 2 turnovers on those plays. They would have been better off punting a down early.
Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw broke free for 129 yards on 23 carries against the league’s top-ranked rushing defense.
Yet for much of the game, it appeared the Giants’ best chance of scoring would be to keep the Bears’ offense on the field and attempt to push it back into Chicago’s end zone. By halftime, the Bears had been sacked nine times, had committed two turnovers and had managed to have minus-13 yards of net passing yardage.
They trailed by three points.
Full story: Giants 17, Bears 3 – Giants Finally Find a Rhythm, but Their Identity Is Still Missing – NYTimes.com