Bears Lose Opener to Redskins 9-7

By Benjy Lipsman in News on Sep 12, 2005 5:45PM

After 5 preseason games with included a Apprentice-like quarterback competition but no first round draft pick, we finally got to see the real Chicago Bears as they opened the regular season in Washington against the Redskins. As Chicagoist expected, the Bears-Redskins game was a low scoring affair with two of last year's three worst offenses playing each other. Washington won 9-7, with their three field goals enough offense to counter the lone TD in the game -- scored by the Bears.

The game marked the debut for rookie QB Kyle Orton, who became the first Bears rookie QB to start the season since Zeke Bratkowski in 1954 (Bears has a QB named Zeke?). While Orton's numbers weren't phenomenal, he did show enough poise and promise that he could be a capable QB once he has some time to develop. A 4th round draft pick, nobody had any plans for Orton other than backup clipboard holder just 6 weeks ago. So it'll take time for him to familiarize himself with his teammates on-field while also adjusting to the pro game. He went 15/28 for 141 yards but threw a critical interception as the Bears moved into field goal range. Nonetheless, Chicagoist remains optimistic that we'll avoid the weekly press conferences announcing who'll be the starting QB for the upcoming game.

The Bears running game was more a source for concern yesterday because neither Thomas Jones nor Cedric Benson looked very sharp. Jones should have benefitted from extra reps with the first team offense during Benson's holdout. But he only gained 31 yards on 15 carries. Benson made his debut in the 4th quarter and gained a whopping 10 yards on 3 carries. If Ron Turner wants to return this offense back its running roots, we're going to need a wee bit more than 41 yards running to compete...

On the other hand, the Bears defense looked pretty decent. They gave up a lot of yards, but they did hold Washington to under 10 points. Lovie's defenses tend to be a bit more free roaming than methodical. So the opponents will gain more yards, but also turn the ball over more. Next week will be the true test of the defense, when they have to defend Detroit's three stud wide receivers. The Lions knocked off the Packers pretty handily yesterday, suggesting that Chicagoist was right to pick them to win the NFC North.

Photo via Yahoo!News