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Mitchell Trubisky enjoys contributing to Chicago Bears' OT win over Baltimore Ravens

By Todd Karpovich, The Sports Xchange
Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky warms up before facing the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, October 15, 2017. File photo by David Tulis/UPI
Chicago Bears quarterback Mitchell Trubisky warms up before facing the Baltimore Ravens in an NFL game at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, Maryland, October 15, 2017. File photo by David Tulis/UPI | License Photo

BALTIMORE -- Chicago rookie quarterback Mitchell Trubisky showed poise with his arm and feet, helping the Bears come away with a 27-24 overtime victory over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday.

Trubisky dodged a defender and ran 19 yards for a first down in the second quarter. The Bears later used some trickery to score a touchdown when Tarik Cohen took a handoff from Trubisky and threw a 21-yard pass to tight end Zach Miller in the corner of the end zone.

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"This was a lot of fun," said Trubisky, who absorbed four sacks. "We were playing in a hostile environment. It's a tough place to play. We were playing a good team and we won."

Trubisky did a solid job managing the game and completed 8 of 16 passes for 113 yards with a touchdown. He also picked up 32 yards rushing on four carries.

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Trubisky became just the first rookie quarterback to win in Baltimore in the John Harbaugh era.

He made other key plays that were a big part of the win. Trubisky picked up a bad snap in the end zone and threw an incomplete pass that prevented a safety. He also threw an 18-yard pass to Kendall Wright that helped set up the winning kick.

It was an all-around encouraging day for the Bears, who snapped a 10-game losing streak on the road.

Trubisky was the second overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft from North Carolina, where he set season records for passing yards (3,748), touchdowns (30) and total offense (4,056) last year.

The Bears are confident his game will translate to the NFL. Trubisky certainly provided a huge dose of optimism moving forward.

Chicago coach John Fox was happy with the collective effort of his team.

"It's all about the hearts of the players," Fox said. "The players, the coaches and everybody, we're all in it together. You tell them what we have to do to win the game, and it was evident they did."

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Special teams were one of the few bright spots for the Ravens and kept them in the game against the Bears.

Bobby Rainey returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown midway through the third quarter that gave the Ravens some life.

Rainey was signed by the team on Tuesday when Terrance West was ruled out with a calf injury. The journeyman Rainey made an immediate impact.

"I kind of knew they brought me here to play," Rainey said. "In the position I was in, I had to learn quickly. As a professional, you just have to pick up and go."

Michael Campanaro also returned a punt 77 yards to pull the Ravens within 24-22 with 1:37 left in the fourth quarter. Flacco completed the two-point conversion with a pass to Nick Boyle that sent the game to overtime in the eventual 27-24 loss.

"We didn't play the way we want to, but I think we showed fight all the way to the end," Campanaro said. "We have to play better in the first four quarters. I think guys showed fight. Hats off to the Bears. Big win for them. We're going to bounce back next week."

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Pernell McPhee, who was picked by the Ravens in the fifth round of the 2011 draft, got a measure of revenge against his former team for letting him go.

McPhee had a key sack against quarterback Joe Flacco in the second quarter and played a key role in a dominant day for the Bears.

McPhee, who signed with Chicago as a free agent in 2015, led a defense that kept Baltimore's offense out of the end zone for the entire game.

The Bears limited the Ravens to three of 18 (17 percent) on third down.

"It was still in my system -- being a Raven, playing like a Raven," McPhee said. "That's how I was bred into this NFL world. That was my birth, just playing like a Raven, being a Raven."

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Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco had another subpar game. However, he did not get much help from his teammates.

Flacco was 24-of-41 passing for 180 yards with two interceptions, had a 48.8 passer rating and did not complete a pass for more than 17 yards.

Flacco was hampered by receivers who struggled to catch the ball and breakdowns on the offensive line that led to three sacks.

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Baltimore's offense did not manage a touchdown in the overtime loss to the Bears.

So far this year, Flacco has thrown for 1,003 yards with four touchdowns and eight interceptions for a 66.1 passer rating. He missed all of training camp with a sore back.

"You have to be able to deal with the ups and downs of a season and continue to roll through," Flacco said. "It's still early on and we're a 3-3 football team. It does not feel good. Obviously, losses are going to affect you in a certain way. We have to keep our heads down and keep going."

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Injuries continue to mount for the Ravens. This time, though, they're even more costly.

Tight end Maxx Williams had to leave Sunday's game with an ankle injury. He was hurt after catching a pass, but he lost a fumble on the play that ended a potential scoring drive on the 19-yard line.

Williams had missed the past three games with another ankle injury.

Wide receiver Breshad Perriman suffered a possible concussion when he was hit attempting to catch a pass in the second quarter.

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The ball caromed off of him into the hands of Bears cornerback Bryce Callahan, who returned it 52 yards to set up Chicago's first touchdown. Perriman also missed his entire rookie season with a knee injury.

Baltimore already has a league-high 16 players on injured reserve and had seven players inactive because of injuries against Chicago. Perriman and Williams were the Ravens' top two picks in the 2015 draft.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh has been defiant in dealing with the injuries this season.

"It just doesn't matter. It is not something we think about," Harbaugh said about the injuries. "It is not something we quantify. We don't waste any energy thinking about that. You just go and get ready for the next game."

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