PRO FOOTBALL : McMahon Comes Off Bench to Rally Bears Past Buccaneers, 27-26

Chicago quarterback Jim McMahon, sidelined since suffering a separated shoulder 11 months ago, started the second half of Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay and rallied the Bears to a 27-26 victory.

McMahon, who separated his right shoulder on Nov. 23 when he was slammed to the ground by Charles Martin of Green Bay on a late hit, was activated Thursday. Sunday, he replaced starter Mike Tomczak with the Bears trailing the Buccaneers, 23-14.

McMahon got the Bears going as he scrambled 8 yards for a first down and completed 4 of 6 passes for 41 yards before the drive stalled when McMahon was sacked by Ron Holmes. Kevin Butler missed a 47-yard field-goal attempt.

McMahon was at his best in the final quarter, leading the Bears on two long scoring drives. He capped an 85-yard march by plunging over from a yard out with 5:31 left. Butler missed the extra point and the score was 26-20.

With 2:44 remaining, McMahon took over on the Bears’ 29 with one timeout left. He passed to Willie Gault for 19 yards, completed a 6-yard swing pass to halfback Neal Anderson and then threw 19 yards to rookie Ron Morris.

A 16-yard pass to Gault gave the Bears a first down at the 11 and, two plays later, Anderson took a flip from McMahon in the right flat and vaulted into the end zone to complete a 6-yard touchdown pass play. Butler this time made the extra-point kick to give the Bears the win.

“I admire McMahon more than any quarterback in the game,” Tampa Bay linebacker Scot Brantley said. “He’s not a follower but a trend setter. He’s like a linebacker in a quarterback’s uniform.”

McMahon finished with 17 completions in 24 attempts for 195 yards as the Bears, 5-1 and atop of NFC Central Division, beat the Buccaneers (3-3) for the 10th straight time.

“The line did a good job at the end and gave me enough time to do what I had to do,” McMahon said. “Two minutes left was plenty of time.”

McMahon was placed on the injured reserve before the season, following off-season surgery to repair his rotator cuff. Fears that the operation might end his career were erased Sunday.

After Tampa Bay set a club record with 20 points in the first quarter, the Bears closed to 20-14 on two big plays in the second quarter. Frank Garcia’s 13-yard punt gave Chicago possession at its own 35, and Tomczak passed to Gault for 20 yards. Two plays later, Anderson skirted left end for a 38-yard touchdown run.

Chicago scored again on a 65-yard punt return by Dennis McKinnon. McKinnon, who returned a punt 94 yards for a touchdown in a season-opening victory against the New York Giants, became the first player in club history to return two punts for touchdowns in the same season.

The game drew a sellout crowd of 70,747, with 3,567 no-shows.