Bears vs Falcons: 11 Things We've Learned from Both Teams After Bears Win

The Chicago Bears looked very impressive on Sunday in a 30-12 victory over the Atlanta Falcons. The Bears defense came to play, as usual, but it was the offensive performance that stood out for me.

QB Jay Cutler was solid, as his only interception was off a tipped pass that really wasn't his fault. He finished with 312 yards passing and two TDs to go along with that one INT for a QB rating of 107.8.

The line generally did a decent job of blocking, although Gabe Carimi had some trouble early and J'Marcus Webb is still a work in progress at left tackle.

Matt Forte continued his solid play, totaling 158 yards of offense, leading all Bears receivers with five catches.

Matt Ryan, meanwhile, was busy sidestepping a Bears pass rush that finished with five sacks and officially 11 QB hits. (TV announcers gave the Bears credit for 14 hits).

The Falcons running game did well but was limited because of an early Bears lead that forced Ryan and Atlanta to throw the ball 47 times. Micheal Turner rushed the ball for 100 yards on 10 carries.

The Bears also won the turnover battle, three-to-one, so again, it was an impressive performance. So what specifically did we learn from this game? Read on, young football fans, and you will find out.

The Regular Season 'Second Gear' Is No Myth (at Least for Bears)

All throughout the preseason, the Bears were telling everyone not to worry about the preseason performance, that things would ratchet up a notch once the regular season started.

Well, it appears they were correct.

Brian Urlacher, who had a very productive day, believes that it's hard to get up for preseason games. Well, it seems he has a point.

There was a noticeable intensity boost in this game as compared to what we saw in the preseason, and the Bears were rewarded for this effort with a win.

Roy Williams turned it on when had to after looking questionable in preseason. Williams caught all four balls thrown his way on Sunday.

The Falcons, however, failed to find a second gear, as they came out flat against the Bears.

Bears Running Game Misses Marion Barber

Backup running back Barber did not dress for Sunday's game as he continues to battle a left calf injury that has plagued him since the third preseason game.

Whether they missed his spark, the running game was one of the few areas in which the Bears did not dominate the Falcons on Sunday.

Matt Forte gained 68 yards in 16 carries, but he only averaged only 2.5 yards per carry when you take away his biggest run.

Meanwhile, Kahlil Bell gained just 24 yards on 10 carries. In all, Bears averaged 3.3 yards per attempt on the day.

Fortunately, the passing game was clicking early. Still, when it's time to eat up the clock, the Bears need to do a bit better than this.

I admit this is nit-picking, as it's hard to find much fault in such an impressive Bears win. But a return to health for Barber should help.  

Falcons' QB Matt Ryan Shows Why He's "Matty Ice"

Ryan was under a lot of pressure form the Bears defense on Sunday, yet mostly kept his cool and maintained his composure.

Sure, he had a rough day and ended up with just a 76.5 QB rating. But his moniker of "Matty Ice" seems appropriate. According to the television broadcast, the Bears hit Ryan 14 times during the game, yet he threw just the one interception.

And that INT was the result of a very athletic catch by Brian Urlacher.

Despite almost constant pressure and five sacks, Ryan completed 31-of-47 passes for 319 yards. Still, he failed to lead the Falcons into the end zone.

But don't let Sunday's beating fool you—Ryan is the real deal. He may not be among the upper echelon of NFL QBs just yet, but he's getting there.

He boasts "all of the requisite intangibles for the job. He is tough, competitive, smart and poised."

And he has ice water in his veins.  

Jay Cutler's Preseason Improvement Is No Fluke

It's one thing to look good in the preseason, but it's quite another to prove it on an NFL Sunday during prime time. Yet that's exactly what the Bears QB did against the Falcons.

Cutler came into camp having lost weight and displayed better mechanics. He wasn't throwing off his back foot as much, and he also seemed to be more of a vocal leader.

But it's what happens during games that count that really matters, so Cutler's performance against Atlanta was very good to watch.

Cutler completed 22-of-32 passes for 312 yards, many of those yards coming in the first half.

He also threw two touchdown passes, and generally stayed away from throwing balls into coverage, a problem he has had a tendency to display throughout his career.

Instead of forcing the ball, Cutler needs to continue to learn to throw it away when his receivers aren't open. All in all, it was a very good day for the Bears QB.

The one interception he did throw was actually not his fault. The ball was tipped before Kroy Biermann ran it back 50 yards for a TD in the fourth quarter.  

Bears Pass Rush Is Alive and Well, Thank You

During the preseason, there was much talk about how the Bears only had one sack in four games. Well, you can put that concern to bed after watching the pressure they were able to muster against Atlanta.

And, despite losing the nasty Harvey Dahl, this is a pretty solid offensive line the Bears defense went up against.

They ended up with 14 QB hits, and five sacks on the day. Julius Peppers was quiet early but responded with two sacks, as did Henry Melton, who is my breakout candidate for 2011.

The pressure generated from the inside was especially nice to see. Defensive tackle seems to be in good hands since the departure of Tommie Harris.

The Bears played with just three defensive ends on the active roster, but that didn’t keep the defensive line from racking up five sacks.

Amobi Okoye, who had the only preseason sack, also contributed a sack.

We have to point out that Atlanta was missing two of its starters on the offensive line, however.

Meanwhile, the Bears were able to get pressure with only their front four, which allowed them to drop seven in coverage for most of the game.

Falcons Offensive Line Struggled Without Two of Its Starters

For every positive, there is a negative and in this case, the positive (Bears pass rush) could have been partly the result of a Falcons line that was missing two of its starters.

Not to make excuses for Atlanta, as they still have all-world Tyson Clabo on its line, but as Bears fans know all too well, continuity on the O-line is critical.

Of course, the concern for Atlanta is that they may miss Harvey Dahl and Todd McClure more than they thought they would.

Center McClure was out due to a knee injury, while right guard Dahl signed as a free agent with the Rams.

Still, they were able to fend off the Bills to re-sign right tackle Clabo and also re-signed left guard Justin Blalock, so the hope was that the line would hold up very well.

But Dahl, rated as the No. 3 guard in the league by Pro Football Focus last season, was a nasty presence on the line.

This has to be a concern for Atlanta, if nothing else to keep Matt Ryan from getting killed.

Missed Tackles and Sloppy Play Hurt the Falcons

Atlanta's tackling was atrocious on Sunday, and had a lot to do with a performance by a Bears offense that isn't supposed to be this good.

Sure, Cutler and company deserve credit, and I've given it to them throughout this slideshow. But it's only fair to point out that missed tackles made it easier for the Bears to operate on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Falcons play was very sloppy. They missed interception opportunities, failed to fair catch near the goal line and fumbled. Three turnovers is playing right into a Lovie Smith-coached team's hands.

The secondary did not wrap up, especially Dunta Robinson.

Dropped passes and penalties also hurt the Falcons. Give the Bears credit for playing great defense, but the Falcons need to tighten up some things or they will continue to beat themselves. 

Sean Weatherspoon basically helped Forte into the end zone with an arm shove on one scoring play.

The soft zone defensive scheme played right into Cutler's hands, leaving guys wide open at times.

Next week won't get any easier, as the Falcons are facing the Eagles.

Bears Relatively Healthy Despite Injuries to Two Players

The Bears did not escape the game unscathed, as right tackle Lance Louis left the game with an ankle injury and did not return.

Also, Roy Williams left with a groin injury. There is nothing to report on either injury as of right now, but at least the Bears have capable replacements for each. 

Williams started at wide receiver, and looked good, but Johnny Knox is a more than capable replacement. Knox led the team with 960 yards receiving in 2010, and had three catches for 60 yards on Sunday.

As for Louis, the timing is bad because he had been finally starting to look like he was reaching his potential. Still, the Bears put Chris Spencer, who has played guard as well as center in his career, in his place and left Roberto Garza under center.

Anthony Adams was replaced at nose tackle by Matt Toeaina, as Adams has missed practice and preseason game time dealing with a strained calf.  

As previously mentioned, Marion Barber continues to sit out with an injury. Rookie sixth-round pick J.T. Thomas was placed on injured reserve, but he did not look good during training camp anyway.    

Still, this team, while the linebacking is thin, did not suffer any season-altering injuries.

Lack of Contract Extension Not Affecting Forte

Matt Forte's performance on Sunday showed that the contract impasse between he and the team is certainly not distracting the Bears running back to the point of affecting him on the field.

Forte gained 68 yards rushing and 90 yards receiving and blocked well at times too.

He did nothing to hurt his assertion that he is one of the top backs in the league. He had two impressive big plays—a 56-yard TD reception and a 27-yard run.

Forte does so many things well and is such an important piece to this Bears offense, as demonstrated by how he makes defenses miss with his open field cuts, while also showing an ability to bounce off of tackles.

If he continues performing this well, his asking price is only going to go up.

Bears Special Teams Are Still Special

The worries over the poor play of Dave Toub's unit during the preseason were proven to be no concern after all. Yes, the vaunted special teams are back, Bears fans!

Falcons return man Eric Weems did not make an impact. Robbie Gould's kicking was terrific, both in terms of field goals (perfect on all three attempts), and on the strength of his kickoffs.

If there was one thing to criticize Gould about, it was that he lacked enough leg to kick the ball into the end zone. With the new rules, that is no longer a problem.

Meanwhile, Adam Podlesh, who struggled at times in camp, averaged 48 yards on his punts and pinned Atlanta deep in its own territory, something that former Bears punter Brad Maynard was known for.

Devin Hester was used on kick returns and did well. Last year, he was only used in punt returns, so it's good to see him back in kick coverage.

Corey Graham made some good special teams tackles, so all in all, it was a good day for special teams in Chicago.

Brian Urlacher and the "Over 30" Crowd Still Getting It Done

Despite being on the other side of 30, Urlacher proved that he is far from done. The Bears great middle linebacker had a terrific performance on Sunday.

Urlacher made an extremely athletic interception in the fourth quarter, and also picked up a lose ball for a score later in the game. 

He led the team with 10 tackles. In fact, all of the Bears vets on defense had solid showings against Atlanta. Charles Tillman had yet another strip, causing a fumble, and Julius Peppers contributed two sacks.

Defensive tackle Henry Melton was very good too, so this Bears defense, if it stays healthy, should be good enough to keep the team in games even when the offense doesn't perform as well as it did on Sunday.

And that defense is led by No. 54.