CHICAGO | Even a stormy or uneventful day is salvageable if there's good stuff on TV.
Sunday, the Bears had Tim Jennings, whose stunning play continues to make their 6-1 season sparkle.
"He's having an all-Pro season," Lance Briggs said. "We needed a spark on defense today and he provided it — twice.
"A big reason for us winning is Tim Jennings."
The 5-foot-8 cornerback scored the Bears' sixth interception return touchdown this season by taking a Cam Newton pick 25 yards down the right sideline for a 20-19 lead midway in the fourth quarter.
Jennings also intercepted Newton at the Bears' 43 late in the second period, giving him a team-leading six.
"Everyone knew No. 89 (Steve Smith) was the guy and they were gonna go to him on every pass play," Jennings said. "The defense was aware of that and I wanted to stay aggressive and if the opportunity was there, just kinda be close and make the tackle.
"On every play, every passing down, I was there and minimized his ability."
Smith finished with seven catches for 118 yards, but no touchdowns.
The Bears' six return TDs are a single-season franchise record and the defense shows no signs of taking its foot off the pedal.
"That's our mentality. Every time we're out there, we feel we got to get some takeaways," Jennings said. "Any time we get our hands on the ball, we want to score because that gives us a better chance to win."
On a day when the offense was napping for 3 1/2 quarters, Jennings provided plenty of sunshine.
"That was an ugly win. Offense didn't play well. Defense didn't play well. So we just had to keep fighting," he said.
Cornerback Charles Tillman doesn't see this amazing streak of return TDs ending anytime soon.
"The sky's the limit and that's a real answer," said Tillman, who has two return TDs this season. "I don't want to put limits on myself. Never.
"We were down the whole game but kept playing, kept playing, kept playing, until we finally pushed through. We're gonna turn it up even more."
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