Postgame analysis: Bears 34, Cowboys 18

Chicago cornerback Charles Tillman returned this interception for a touchdown in the Bears' 34-18 win over the Cowboys on Monday night. The interception was one of five thrown by Dallas QB Tony Romo. (AP)

In a showdown of 2-1 teams looking for a third win, it was clear on Monday night that Chicago was better-suited for the task, whipping the Cowboys from start to finish.

The Bears (3-1) dominated on both sides of the ball, particularly on defense. The unit picked off Tony Romo five times and returned two for touchdowns in a 34-18 win at Cowboys Stadium.

It was a game involving one quarterback who didn’t make any mistakes and another who had
too many to count. Jay Cutler had a 140.8 quarterback rating with two scores and no picks, and Romo finished with a 60.1 rating, five picks and just one score.

Major Wright’s two interceptions in the second half were big, but it was Lance Briggs’ 74-yard interception for a touchdown coupled with Charles Tillman’s 25-yard pick and score in the first half that doomed the Cowboys (2-2).

When the game turned: The Cowboys trailed 17-7 midway through the third quarter. After Romo was picked off by Major Wright on a deflected pass, Dallas got it back after a DeMarcus Ware sack and forced fumble at the Bears’ 27. But on the next play, Romo was hit by Henry Melton as he was throwing and the ball popped straight to Briggs, who looked like a tailback on his 74-yard return for a touchdown. Where the Cowboys were hopeful to cut the lead to 17-14, instead it was 24-7 and Chicago never looked back.

Highlight moments: Chicago’s Devin Hester is arguably the most exciting return
specialist in NFL history, and he has his moments as a receiver, too. One of them came on a third-quarter, 34-yard touchdown catch where he beat rookie cornerback Morris Claiborne on the Bears’ first possession of the second half. The play was reviewed when it appeared the ball might have hit the ground, but replay officials upheld the score.

The first touchdown of the game occurred in the second quarter when Tillman took advantage of miscommunication between Romo and Dez Bryant and picked off a pass in the flat and scored for a 10-0 Chicago lead.

Leading 27-10, the Bears put it away for good on an easy 31-yard touchdown connection from Cutler to Brandon Marshall, who was wide open in the middle of the field and glided into the end zone for Chicago’s final touchdown.

Top-shelf performances:

Cutler -- 18 of 24 for 275, 2 TD, 140.1 QB rating
Brandon Marshall -- 7 catches, 138 yards, TD
Wright -- two interceptions
TE Jason Witten -- 13 catches, 112 yards, TD

What they said about Romo’s five-interception performance:

Romo -- “We’ve got to fix a few things, and they’re simple things. But the No. 1 thing is to protect the football. I know that. We preach it every day. It’s obviously frustrating that I was the one to turn it over tonight. The last couple of interceptions were just stupid. Down three scores, you’re trying to get back in the game. But I’ve got to be smarter.”
Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones -- “I’m disappointed. I know our fans are disappointed. But I know nobody is more disappointed than Tony. I am definitely surprised with how the game went tonight and the turnovers. We can’t have that many and expect to win.”
Bears CB Charles Tillman -- “Rush and cover. Rush and cover. That’s what we do. I think our D-line did a great job of harassing Tony and the offensive line. They made him make some throws he wasn’t set for. And defensively, we were in position to make plays.”

Numbers you should know: After DeMarco Murray rushed for 131 yards in the first game of the season against the Giants, Murray has 106 yards combined in three games, after just 24 yards on 11 carries. More than just the lack of yards, Murray’s average is way down. He's getting just 2.5 yards per carry in the last three weeks.

Injury update: The Cowboys were already down a few defensive starters in Anthony Spencer,Jay Ratliff, Barry Church and Kenyon Coleman and that was before LB Bruce Carter missed most of the first half with a hip injury. Carter was able to come back for a few plays in the second half.

Going forward: The Cowboys enter their bye week with a 2-2 record and look at a dismal five-game stretch ahead of them that includes four road games -- at Atlanta, Philadelphia, Carolina and Baltimore with a home game against the defending champion Giants in the middle. The Bears have a good shot of getting to 4-1 with a road game next Sunday against Jacksonville before their bye week.