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National Football League
New Orleans 26, Chicago 18
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, October 6, 2013
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Temperature: 60°
Head Official: Scott Green
Attendance: 62361

Saints 26, Bears 18: Drew Brees passed for 288 yards and two touchdowns as New Orleans improved to 5-0 with a victory at Chicago.

Brees completed 29-of-35 passes but saw his NFL record streak of nine consecutive games with more than 300 yards passing coming to an end. Pierre Thomas caught both touchdown passes and finished with nine receptions for 55 yards while tight end Jimmy Graham made 10 catches for 135 yards.

Jay Cutler was 24-of-33 for 358 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (3-2), who lost their second game in a row after opening with three wins under first-year head coach Marc Trestman. Alshon Jeffery caught 10 passes for a team-record 218 yards and a TD.

The Saints dominated the first half and took a 20-7 lead into the break after Brees' second touchdown pass to Thomas with 23 seconds remaining. The Bears struggled to move the ball, save for an 80-yard drive capped by Cutler hitting Jeffery with a 3-yard scoring pass with 2:41 left in the second quarter.

Garrett Hartley tied a career high with four field goals for New Orleans to help stave off Chicago's fourth-quarter rally. Cutler hit Brandon Marshall with a 2-yard touchdown pass with 2:11 remaining and Matt Forte's run for the two-point conversion made it a one-possession game, but the Saints recovered the onside kick to end the threat.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Graham had his fourth consecutive game with more than 100 yards receiving, tying the NFL record for tight ends shared by Tony Gonzalez. … The Bears, who entered leading the NFL with 14 takeaways, did not record one for the first time since Week 11 of last season against San Francisco. … Brees (1-4) and coach Sean Payton (1-3) won for the first time at Soldier Field.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
New Orleans   Chicago
Pierre Thomas Player Matt Forte
19 Attempts 12
36 Yards 55
1.9 Avg Yards 4.6
0 Touchdowns 0
9 Long 14
Receiving
New Orleans   Chicago
Jimmy Graham Player Alshon Jeffery
10 Receptions 10
135 Yards 218
13.5 Avg Yards 21.8
0 Touchdowns 1
38 Long 58
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
New Orleans 347 64 283 2 4 0 3.0 1
Chicago 434 94 340 2 1 0 1.0 1
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game at home against N.Y. Giants. The Bears have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • New Orleans will play their next game on the road against New England. The Saints have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.