CHICAGO — Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall were simply too much to handle. So was Tim Jennings.
Cutler threw two touchdown passes to Marshall, and Jennings had two of the Chicago Bears’ three interceptions against Eli Manning in a 27-21 victory over the winless New York Giants on Thursday night.
The Bears (4-2) snapped a two-game slide following a 3-0 start. New York is 0-6 for the first time since the 1976 team dropped its first nine, a stunning turn for a franchise that won the Super Bowl two years ago.
“We see things each and every week that tell us we cannot just be good, we can be very good,” Bears coach Marc Trestman said. “But we also know there’s a lot of work ahead.”
The Giants came in clinging to the idea that they could claw their way back into the NFC East race because every team in the division has a losing record. It’s hard to see that happening, the way they’re playing.
“We’re all sick of it,” coach Tom Coughlin said. “We’re all sick of losing, but we put ourselves in this position. There is only one way to get out of it.”
Cutler and Marshall were in tune early on, connecting for two touchdowns, and Jennings returned an interception 48 yards for a score as Chicago built a 24-14 halftime lead.
The Bears were up by 13 when New York’s Brandon Jacobs ran it in from the 1 in the closing seconds of the third after Jennings got called for interference against Hakeem Nicks near the goal line. That cut it to 27-21, but Jennings made up for it in a big way when he picked off an overthrown pass by Manning intended for tight end Brandon Myers at the 10 with 1:54 left in the game.
Cutler was 24 of 36 for 262 yards after throwing for 358 against New Orleans last week. Marshall played a huge role in this one after venting over a lack of catches against the Saints, finishing with nine receptions for 87 yards. Martellus Bennett had 68 yards on six catches against his former team, while Alshon Jeffery had just one reception after going off for a franchise-record 218 yards in the previous game.
Robbie Gould kicked two field goals, including a 52-yarder in the third quarter that gave him 12 straight conversions from 50 or longer, and the Bears eased at least a few nerves, even if this win came against one of the NFL’s four winless teams
Manning, the owner of two championship rings, completed 14 of 26 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown, but he ran his league-leading total to 15 interceptions while matching last season’s number. He had passes picked off on the first two possessions, with Jennings’ 48-yard TD coming on the second one.
“He’s trying as hard as anybody, to stay away from interceptions as well,” Coughlin said. “You’re not going to go back to not throwing the football. That’s not something that’s going to happen. He’s been too successful for so many years throwing the ball.”
Rueben Randle had 75 yards receiving and a touchdown for New York. Brandon Jacobs, starting for the injured David Wilson, ran for 106 yards and two scores, but the Giants fell yet again.
Cutler threw for 179 yards in the first two quarters, Marshall had 65 and the Bears racked up 227 yards in the opening half. The Giants (212 yards) moved the ball in the early going but had trouble hanging onto the ball again