NFL: Carolina Panthers beat Chicago Bears after coming from behind
Sunday 5 October 2014 22:15, UK
The Carolina Panthers came from 14 points down to beat the Chicago Bears 34-21 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
The Panthers took the lead in the first quarter after a mix-up in a punt return, but Chicago then came storming back with three touchdowns without replay to take control of the game.
After scoring a late TD before half time, Carolina turned the table in the second half and limited Chicago to just a field goal before a late turnover and touchdown sealed the game.
Former Bears tight end Greg Olsen had a huge game with two touchdown catches and 72 yards receiving, as the Panthers snapped a two-game losing streak to regain the lead in the NFC South.
Philly Brown gave Carolina the lead when he picked up the loose ball when a Bears special teams player hit the intended punt returner before he actually caught the ball.
As everyone stopped when penalty flags flew in, Brown was the only one to realise the ball was live as he scooped it up and raced 79 yards into the end zone.
Bears offence
Chicago then took charge showing all of their offensive potential, with Matt Forte grabbing a ten-yard TD pass from Jay Cutler before the quarterback then ran in his first TD for three years to go ahead.
Alshon Jeffery hauled in a 25-yarder to make it 21 unanswered points for Chicago, but they let the Panthers back into the game as Olsen caught a nine-yard strike from Cam Newton just 12 seconds before the break.
That gave Carolina cause for hope and they emerged a far better side in the third quarter. The next score was crucial and it came with a one-yard run from running back Chris Ogbonnaya – who was only signed on Monday to help with a Panthers injury crisis.
Robbie Gould stopped the bleeding and got the Bears back in front by three points heading into the fourth quarter with a 45-yard field goal.
Graham Gano tied it up again with a field goal just four-and-a-half minutes from the end, when the game was settled by a turnover for the Panthers as Forte fumbled and the hosts recovered the ball.
Six plays later Newton found Olsen for the second time to put the Panthers ahead with 2:18 left on the clock. Cutler was unable to get anything going in response and a sack fumble secured the win to send the Panthers to 3-2.
