Biggest Takeaways from Chicago Bears' Week 10 Win

The Chicago Bears needed a win in Week 10 to get within a game of .500 in the standings, and they improved to 4-5 on Sunday afternoon after defeating the St. Louis Rams 37-13.

The Bears gained 397 yards of total offense on the afternoon, and Chicago's defense held the Rams to just 285 yards of offense. The Bears scored on two big plays on offense in the first half, and they never looked back.

"The whole football team is growing," said head coach John Fox after the game, per Kevin Fishbain of ChicagoFootball.com. "This is a new system with a lot of new players as far as relating to coaches and coaches relating to players. We are starting to know our football team better."

The Bears played well on both sides of the ball on Sunday afternoon, and they will have to do that again in Week 11 when they head back home to Soldier Field to take on the 7-2 Denver Broncos.

What are our biggest takeaways from Chicago's victory over the St. Louis Rams in Week 10? 

Shea McClellin Played Well in His Return to the Lineup

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Shea McClellin (50) started for the first time since Week 5 on Sunday against St. Louis.

Shea McClellin injured his knee in Week 5 against the Kansas City Chiefs, and he returned to the field for the first time on Sunday against St. Louis after missing the team's last three games.

Chicago struggled at times defensively without McClellin in the lineup, but the defense looked much better with him on the field in Week 10. Chicago did give up a touchdown to running back Todd Gurley on St. Louis' first possession of the game, but the defense played well after that first touchdown.

McClellin finished the contest with a game-high eight tackles, and he forced St. Louis' first turnover.

Backup running back Tre Mason came into the game in relief of Gurley, and McClellin met the former Auburn tailback in the hole and stripped the ball away. The football dropped to the turf, and McClellin was able to recover it.

"Excellent, physical tackle by McClellin in the hole, then the presence of mind to strip/recover the ball. Strong play," tweeted CBSChicago.com's Dan Durkin. 

McClellin played physically against the run all afternoon, and the defense held the Rams to just 94 yards on the ground. 

He still needs to improve against the pass, but when healthy this season, McClellin has shown he has what it takes to be an effective inside linebacker in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio's scheme. He is not flashy, but he has consistently been one of the team's best against the run this year. 

Undrafted rookie Jonathan Anderson and veteran LaRoy Reynolds flashed during McClellin's absence, but McClellin proved on Sunday he is the team's best option at the position moving forward.

Bears Have an Embarrassment of Riches at Running Back

L.G. Patterson/Associated Press

Jeremy Langford had a productive game through the air for the Bears against the Rams.

Running back Matt Forte missed his second straight game in Week 10, but Chicago proved against the Rams that it has an embarrassment of riches at the position.

Rookie Jeremy Langford carried the ball 18 times for 72 yards with one touchdown and registered three catches for 70 yards against the San Diego Chargers in Week 9, and he had another strong showing against the Rams. 

The 23-year-old ran the ball 20 times for 73 yards and scored one rushing touchdown, and he finished the game with seven catches for 109 yards with one touchdown. His strong performance on Sunday put him in elite company.

"Jeremy Langford joined Walter Payton and Gale Sayers as [the] only Bears with 100-plus receiving yards, [a] rush[ing] touchdown and [a receiving] touchdown in a game," tweeted Randall Liu, the NFL's director of NFC football communications, after the game.

Langford struggled early in the running game, but he appeared to get stronger as the game wore on. He has terrific speed (4.42 40-yard dash), and he showed that off in the second quarter when he scored an 83-yard touchdown on a screen pass from quarterback Jay Cutler.

"Jeremy is just fast as crap," said center Matt Slauson after the game about the rookie's long touchdown, per the Chicago Sun-Times' Adam Jahns.

In addition to Langford's strong game on the ground and through the air, backup Ka'Deem Carey played well for the second straight game.

The Bears drafted Carey in the fourth round of the 2014 draft, but he was used sparingly last season and has been inactive much of this year. He got the start against the Chargers in Week 9 and finished the game with 28 yards on seven carries. Throughout much of the game against the Rams, Carey was the more effective back on the ground.

He carried the ball 14 times and gained 56 yards, but the 23-year-old did lose a fumble late in the contest. As the game wore on, offensive coordinator Adam Gase was willing to line up Carey in the backfield with Langford out on the outside to create mismatches in the passing game.

Langford's and Carey's performances in the last two weeks do not necessarily signify the end up Forte's run in Chicago, but the two running backs have proved the team can still be successful without the 29-year-old in the lineup.

Tracy Porter Impressed at CB for 2nd Week in a Row

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The Bears signed Tracy Porter to a one-year deal this offseason with the hope he could help bring some stability to the cornerback position, but he struggled with injuries in training camp and the preseason.

He missed the first two games of the season, but he has been one of Chicago's best cornerbacks when on the field this year. 

Porter plays aggressively at the line of scrimmage, he is a solid tackler and he is at his best when the ball is in the air. Last week against San Diego he recorded three tackles, one pass deflection and forced one fumble. On Sunday against St. Louis, he finished the game with three tackles and two pass deflections.

He received praise from the Chicago Tribune's Rich Campbell late in the game for his pass breakup on fourth down.

"Tracy Porter has such a good awareness of situations and routes," Campbell tweeted. "Drives on the 4th-and-6 route, breaks it up, and that should be it here."

Chicago's cornerbacks have struggled this season, but Porter has helped stabilize the position over the last couple of games with his strong play against the opposing team's best wide receivers.

Jay Cutler Is in Full Control of Chicago's Offense

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Cutler parlayed his strong Week 9 performance against the Chargers into another strong performance on Sunday afternoon against the Rams.

The veteran quarterback completed 19 of his 24 passing attempts for 258 yards with three touchdowns and finished the game with a 151.0 quarterback rating. According to Chicago Bears radio network sideline reporter Zach Zaidman, Cutler's 151.0 quarterback rating on Sunday was the highest of his career.

Cutler connected with Langford for an 83-yard touchdown on a screen pass, and he also hit backup tight end Zach Miller in the flat for an 87-yard touchdown pass. In addition to his two big splash plays in the passing game, Cutler also showed off his athleticism in and out of the pocket.

The former Vanderbilt Commodore was sacked twice, but he did a nice job of stepping up in the pocket to avoid pressure throughout the afternoon. He also carried the ball three times for 24 yards.

Cutler has looked comfortable in Gase's system all season long, and Slauson thought Cutler made a lot of good checks at the line of scrimmage before the snap of the ball against St. Louis.

"So many of [Jay Cutler's] checks were just right on point," Slauson said, per Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. "A lot of his checks were a lot of our biggest plays."

Cutler missed the second half of Chicago's Week 2 game against the Arizona Cardinals and all of Week 3 against the Seattle Seahawks because of a hamstring injury, but he has still thrown for 2,045 yards with 13 touchdowns and five interceptions this season. He currently has a quarterback rating of 95.3, which would be the highest of his NFL career.

The veteran signal-caller played within the system all afternoon in Week 10, and he credited his teammates for his performance on Sunday.

“We knew we were going to need to run the ball consistently and efficiently to be able to compete with these guys,” Cutler said, per Fishbain. “We just got some big plays. Guys on the outside were making some plays. The offensive line blocking the front and blocking downfield made my life easy.”

Following back-to-back strong performances against San Diego and St. Louis on the road, Cutler will have a chance in Week 11 to give the Bears their fifth victory of the season against the Broncos at Soldier Field.

Zach Miller Is Proving He Is a Reliable Option in the Passing Game

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In Week 9 against the Chargers, Miller came up with one of the most impressive catches of the 2015 season. The Bears were trailing San Diego 19-14 with just under eight minutes left on the clock, and Cutler threw a bullet of a pass to Miller in the open field. The ball hit Miller's right hand, and he was able to corral it for an impressive one-handed catch.

"It was one of those things where instincts kind of take over," Miller said after the game, per ESPN.com. "I really didn't have time to go up with two, because he put some juice on it. I went with one and, thankfully, pulled it down."

On Sunday against the Rams, Miller did not have to wait until the fourth quarter to make an impact on the game.

Chicago started its first offensive possession at its own 14-yard line, and following Langford's one-yard loss on a run up the middle, Cutler found Miller in the flat to his left on the team's second play from scrimmage. 

Miller caught the ball, paused just long enough to slow down linebacker Akeem Ayers, and he ran all the way to the end zone for an 87-yard touchdown. He was pursued by cornerback Trumaine Johnson down the field before he cut to the outside to keep Johnson from tackling him in the open field. After the game, he admitted he watched himself on the video board to see where Johnson was.

"I was looking at the guy chasing me," Miller said, per Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. "I knew he was closing in."

Miller finished the game with five catches for 107 yards, and he scored another touchdown in the second quarter on a pass from Cutler in the end zone.

Martellus Bennett is still the team's No. 1 tight end, but Miller has proved in the last two weeks he can be a reliable target in the passing game. He does not possess the ability to run over defenders like Bennett does, but Miller has good hands and runs crisp routes.

If nothing else, Miller's emergence in recent weeks will force opposing defenses to keep an eye on him in the passing game, which could possibly open up more opportunities for Bennett.

Statistical information courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise noted.

Matt Eurich is a Chicago Bears featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.

Follow @MattEurich.