The Chiefs need to get the ball in 23-year old RB Dexter McCluster’s hands more as he has the speed and moves to make a lot of big plays.  McCluster has played in 12 games for the Chiefs so far this year in which he has carried the ball 90 times for 425 yards (4.7 ypc) and he has caught 36 passes for 203 yards (5.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  McCluster has also returned 4 punts for 43 yards (10.8 avg) and 18 kickoffs for 421 yards (23.4 avg) so far this year.  So McCluster has touched the ball 148 times overall for the Chiefs so far this year and he has 1,092 total all-purpose yards.  He is averaging 91.0 all purpose yards per game so far this year and 7.4 yards per touch.

The defense was incredible for the Chiefs today and they are the reason they won this game over the Bears.  The Chiefs sacked Bears’ QBs 7 times today, as they were playing in the Bears’ backfield quite a lot in this game.  LB Derrick Johnson led the way for the Chiefs on D today with 8 tackles, 1 sack, 2 tackles for a loss and 2 QB hits.  Rookie OLB Justin Houston also had a huge impact on this game for the Chiefs.  Houston had 7 tackles, 3 sacks, 3 tackles for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 2 QB hits).  LB Jovan Belcher was also solid with 7 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss for the Chiefs today.  Safety Jon McGraw, CB Javier Arenas and CB Brandon Carr each picked off one pass apiece in this game for the Chiefs.  The Bears finished up with 93 yards rushing on 24 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 24 passes (45.8%) for 88 yards in this game.

The offense just did enough to win today for the Chiefs.  Tyler Palko completed 17 of 30 passes for 157 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  His TD pass was on a Hail Mary on the last play of the second quarter to Dexter McCluster.  Palko got yanked in this game for one play as Kyle Orton dislocated his index finger on his first pass, which fell incomplete.  Dexter McCluster was the offensive star of this game for the Chiefs.  He carried the ball 9 times for 61 yards (6.8 ypc) and he also caught 4 passes for 46 yards (11.5 avg) with 1 TD grab in this game.  Thomas Jones (16 carries for 36 yards) and Jackie Battle (11 carries for 15 yards) didn’t do much against the Bears today.  WRs Dwayne Bowe (4 rec, 49 yards) and Steve Breaston (5 rec, 41 yards) led the way in the passing game today for the Chiefs.  The Chiefs finished up with 113 yards rushing on 37 carries (3.1 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 31 passes (54.8%) for 139 yards as they had possession of the ball for 32:42.  The Chiefs are now 5-7 on the year.

The Chiefs are fading fast as they have lost four games in a row by a combined score of 95-25!  But they did play hard on defense last week in their 13-9 loss to the Steelers.  The Bears lost a tough game 25-20 on the road against the Raiders last weekend, so they have to be happy to be coming home this Sunday where they are 5-1 on the year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Chiefs have the ball:  The Chiefs are planning to start Tyler Palko in this game and that’s a huge mistake.  With that in mind, the Chiefs will likely try to keep the ball on the ground with Jackie Battle, Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster splitting carries.  The Bears are only giving up 98.6 yards rushing per game, but 4.7 yards per carry, so the Chiefs should have some success on the ground.  The Bears have 16 interceptions this year already, so Tyler Palko won’t likely be the QB long for the Chiefs in this game.  Kyle Orton would love to get revenge on the Bears for dealing him, so I look for him to eventually get into this game.  When Orton does play, he will be able to get the ball to Dwayne Bowe, Steve Breaston and Jonathan Baldwin.

When the Bears have the ball:  The Chiefs are going to have to go all out to stop Matt Forte and Marion Barber this Sunday.  That will be easier said than done as the Bears are averaging 121.8 yards rushing per game so far this year.  The Chiefs want to stop the Bears’ running game and put the pressure on QB Caleb Hanie.  Hanie had a rough time early on in his first NFL start last weekend in Oakland but he finished strongly.  The Chiefs hope that they can put enough pressure on Hanie (it’s unlikely to happen) to force him into making some mistakes with the football.  Hanie’s favorite target in the passing game in his first start was WR Johnny Knox and he’s really fast so whoever’s guarding him might need some help over the top.

PREDICTION:  BEARS 23, CHIEFS 17