Monday Morning Quarterback

After a lackluster performance in Week 1, the Bears rebounded in a big way to defeat a preseason Super Bowl favorite.

Jay Cutler looked like the quarterback the Bears traded for after the 2008 season, and although the running game was basically nonexistent, the Bears looked like a team that could contend for the NFC North division title.

Does it sound familiar? That’s what many people were writing after Week 2 of last season when the Bears defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers at Soldier Field.

This year’s version comes after a solid 27-20 win against the Dallas Cowboys in a game where almost nobody gave the Bears a fighting chance.

Even Vegas oddsmakers had the Bears as more than a touchdown underdog against the Cowboys.

But Chicago pumped out a performance that tested, and eventually showed, the team's fortitude, resiliency and play-making ability.

It might have been Cutler’s gutsiest performance for Chicago. After getting knocked down, hit and pressured on what seemed like every drop back in the first quarter, Cutler--and the offensive line–rallied to put on a passing display that took advantage of all of the Bears’ playmakers.

They stretched the field with wide receivers Johnny Knox and Devin Hester, whose acrobatic touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone made ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 Play-worthy highlights.

Even the oft-forgotten Greg Olsen reeled in a reception that he turned into a 39-yard TD catch-and-run.

The defense gave up more than 400 yards of offense, but only 13 points in the process. We remember that equation from Week 1, huge amounts of yards do not always equal a large number of points.

The defense forced three turnovers, the last of which resembled the vintage Chicago Bears philosophy of ball hunting and gang tackling. Roy Williams’ fourth-quarter fumble forced by the combination of D.J. Moore's tackle and Charles Tillman’s strip, effectively sealed the game for the Bears.

While Matt Forte never got going on the ground, Martz used him and Chester Taylor like Marshall Faulk when he was with the Rams. Forte, who hauled in a TD on a semi-fade route from three yards out, now has three receiving TDs in the first two games, one less than he had his first two seasons in the league.

It’s nice to be 2-0--a lucky 2-0 at that--but the measuring stick for this team will never be the Lions or the Cowboys. With the Vikings falling to the Dolphins and Brett Favre looking closer to age 50 than 40, the Packers will be the Bears’ biggest challenge.

But the Bears still are only who we thought they were: a very scary, but inconsistent team that can compete with anyone when they play at their peak.

That certainly happened Sunday in Dallas; we’ll see about next Monday when the Bears play…the 2-0 Packers.