*Bears end Packers' hopes for home-field advantage*
By Dennis Sheehan and Bill Marquard PA SportsTicker Contributing Writers
CHICAGO (Ticker) - When Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner awoke at 3 a.m. Sunday to hear 40 mile-per-hour winds howling outside his hotel room, he devised a run-oriented game plan that included short passes only.
That approached worked in brutal conditions at Soldier Field as the Chicago Bears ended the Green Bay Packers' hopes for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs with a 35-7 victory.
The Bears' victory handed the NFC's top seed to the Dallas Cowboys, who defeated the Carolina Panthers, 20-13 on Saturday.
Adrian Peterson rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on a career-high 30 carries and the Bears blocked two of Jon Ryan's punts, one of which Corey Graham returned seven yards for a touchdown.
The game was played in Lambeau-Field like conditions on the shores of Lake Michigan with a game-time temperature of 16 degrees. The 40 mile-per-hour gusts produced a wind chill of minus-one.
In a scene reminiscent of the movie "March of the Penguins", the referees nestled the ball between their feet at the line of scrimmage after each play to keep it from blowing away.
"I've played in the NFL for 17 years and this weather was the worst I ever played in," Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre said. "It was cold as hell. Wind means everything. Chicago handled it better."
While the Bears were eliminated from the playoffs last week, there's something about the Packers that brings out the best in them.
Chicago completed a season sweep of Green Bay, also posting a 27-20 victory at Lambeau Field in Week Five.
"We certainly haven't been able to achieve most of our goals this year," said Bears quarterback Kyle Orton, who earned his first win more than two years. "Sweeping the Packers was one of those goals and we achieved it."
Orton only passed for 101 yards but posted his first victory since defeating the Atlanta Falcons, 16-3, on December 15, 2005. He did not play last season while serving as the Bears' emergency third quarterback.
Asked how he handled the chilly conditions, the bearded Orton quipped, "I have a lot of hair on my face. It kept me warm."
The Bears set an early tone, putting together an 18-play, 67-yard drive on their opening possession that consumed nearly 11 minutes.
Chicago settled for Robbie Gould's 31-field goal, but the early drive showed the Bears that they could have success on the ground. Chicago rushed for 139 yards.
"We needed something like that," Turner said of the quick start. "We ran the ball well against a very good football team."
"The ball was moving all over the place on passes," Orton added. "We wanted to run the ball and control the clock."
Favre, who is used to playing in adverse conditions, struggled through one of the worst performances of his career. He completed 17-of-32 passes 152 yards and two interceptions. In the first half, however, Favre was only 2-of-7 for nine yards
"Our run blocking was sporadic early on," Green Bay coach Mike McCarthy said. "The execution was very poor."
Despite controlling the game, Chicago managed only a 6-0 lead late in the first half. Gould added a 35-yard field goal with four minutes left in the second quarter.
Ryan Grant, who ran for 100 yards on 14 carries, appeared to provide a spark for Green Bay, ripping off a 66-yard TD run just 52 secobds later to give Green Bay a 7-6 lead.
But Ryan endured a nightmarish day. In addition to the two blocks, he fumbled a punt and got off a 9-yard kick that led to the Bears' go-ahead score.
Chicago took a 13-7 halftime lead on Peterson's 8-yard TD run with 53 seconds left in the first half.
The Bears padded the lead on Orton's 3-yard TD pass to Desmond Clark with 8 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter.
From there, the Packers unraveled, as Graham scooped up a punt blocked by Charles Tillman and returned it 7 yards to make it 28-7 just over a minute later.
Linebacker Brian Urlacher put the finishing touches on the Bears' rout by returning an interception 85 yards for a score with 11:34 left in the contest
The Bears ran 41 plays in the first half and possessed the ball for nearly 24 minutes. Peterson carried 22 times in the opening half, the most by any running back this season.
The Bears defense dominated despite missing four starters - linebacker Lance Briggs, cornerback Nathan Vasher, defensive end Mark Anderson and defensive tackle Darwin Walker.
"It says a lot about our players to do that," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "We have guys looking for a chance to play."
