For Edinger, Kick Is a Breeze

Paul Edinger ignored the gusting winds and the memories of the two makable field-goal attempts he’d already missed as he walked onto the field, thinking of nothing but his target.

With the winds howling again, Edinger focused on the left upright and kicked -- hard. Most in the stadium probably figured it was another miss as the ball sailed left and low, but not Edinger.

The ball curved right just as he knew it would, skimming over the bar for a 45-yard field goal with five seconds left that gave the Chicago Bears a 27-24 victory over the Washington Redskins on Sunday.

“After those last two kicks, I said in my mind I was going to aim it there and I’m not going to second-guess myself,” Edinger said. “It ended up right down the middle.”

As the Bears celebrated, the Redskins watched in stunned silence.

“I almost didn’t even watch it, because I thought no way he’s going to make it, because of the conditions the way they were and what happened before,” Redskin quarterback Tim Hasselbeck said. “I didn’t believe it until I saw guys on their side run across the field.

“It takes the wind out of you, because we thought we were in it. It’s so hard to be in games and lose closely.”

It was the fifth loss in six games for the Redskins (5-10), who have lost six games this year by four points or less.

The Bears (7-8) have won four of their last five. They must win at Kansas City next Sunday to finish at .500 and avoid their fourth losing season in five years under Dick Jauron.

“It’s more pride and heart right now,” Bear running back Anthony Thomas said. “We can’t go to the playoffs, so we just want to try and go .500 and get something started for next year.”

Thomas rushed for a season-high 141 yards, and Rex Grossman improved to 2-0 as a starter. Facing Steve Spurrier, his coach at Florida, he completed 19 of 32 passes for 249 yards and two touchdowns.

The loss spoiled a stellar effort by Hasselbeck. After finishing with a zero quarterback rating last weekend, Hasselbeck got off to a horrid start Sunday, throwing incompletions on his first six passes.

But he completed 16 of his last 19, throwing for 209 yards and two touchdowns. He finished with a rating of 116.9.