SportsDirect Inc. Ad
SportsDirect Inc. Ad
SportsDirect Inc. Ad
National Football League
Kansas City 10, Chicago 3
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, December 4, 2011
Where: Soldier Field, Chicago, Illinois
Temperature: 46°
Head Official: Jerome Boger
Attendance: 61973

Dexter McCluster caught a 38-yard Hail Mary from Tyler Palko at the end of the first half and the visiting Kansas City Chiefs ended a four-game losing streak with a 10-3 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

McCluster finished with 107 total yards and Ryan Succop kicked a 21-yard field goal for the Chiefs (5-7), who racked up seven sacks en route to their first win since Oct. 31.

Things went from bad to worse for the Bears (7-5), who were already without quarterback Jay Cutler and lost running back Matt Forte to a right knee injury in the first half. Without Forte, who leads the league in yards from scrimmage, the Bears’ offense grew even more anemic.

Caleb Hanie completed 11 of 24 passes for 133 yards with three interceptions in his second career start in place of Cutler (broken thumb). The Bears went 0-for-11 on third down. Hanie also threw three interceptions in a 25-20 loss to Oakland that ended the Bears’ five-game winning streak.

The Chiefs weren’t much better (6-for-20 on third down), thus allowing Chicago to hang around. Hanie drove Chicago to the Kansas City 20-yard line with just over four minutes left, but an ill-advised pass to Roy Williams bounced off several defenders and was intercepted in the end zone by John McGraw.

It was one of two bounces that went Kansas City’s way.

The Chiefs took a stunning 7-3 halftime lead when Palko's prayer was answered. Chicago’s Brian Urlacher had a chance to intercept it, but teammate Chris Conte batted it out of his hands and into the lap of McCluster.

Kansas City hadn’t crossed midfield prior to that 16-play, 87-yard drive. It was Palko’s first touchdown pass since taking over for Matt Cassel (broken hand) three weeks ago. The ironic part is he was only back in the game because former Bear Kyle Orton left with a dislocated index finger after throwing just one pass.

Orton, who entered at the start of the second quarter, didn't return after taking a big hit on his hand from Major Wright while attempting a flea-flicker. Orton’s injury came shortly after Forte left after taking a helmet to his right knee late in the first quarter. He walked off the field under his own power.

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Kansas City   Chicago
Dexter McCluster Player Marion Barber
9 Attempts 14
61 Yards 44
6.8 Avg Yards 3.1
0 Touchdowns 0
32 Long 15
Receiving
Kansas City   Chicago
Dwayne Bowe Player Johnny Knox
4 Receptions 5
49 Yards 53
12.2 Avg Yards 10.6
0 Touchdowns 0
14 Long 17
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Kansas City 252 113 139 1 1 3 7.0 1
Chicago 181 93 88 0 1 0 2.0 1
Upcoming Games
  • Chicago will play their next game on the road against Denver. The Bears have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.
  • Kansas City will play their next game on the road against N.Y. Jets. The Chiefs have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .000 after a loss.