Franklin, a stalwart defender

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CHICAGO -- Drew Brees passed to Jimmy Graham along the sideline. He found the tight end over the middle. They hooked up for long plays and short ones, all over the field. That New Orleans connection was just too much for the Chicago Bears. Brees threw two touchdown passes, Graham tied an NFL record with another 100-yard game and the Saints beat the Bears 26-18 on Sunday to remain unbeaten. "We knew the formula coming into this game was to remain patient, to run the football effectively, to be very efficient in the passing game and to take care of the football, priority No. 1," Brees said, "and we were able to do all those things." Brees was 29-of-35 passing for 288 yards in his first victory in four career games at Soldier Field. Garrett Hartley matched a career high with four field goals as New Orleans (5-0) picked up its first win in Chicago since a 31-10 victory on Oct. 8, 2000. Graham continued his torrid start for the Saints, catching 10 balls for 135 yards in his fourth consecutive 100-yard game -- matching an NFL record for a tight end. Tony Gonzalez was the first to accomplish the streak in 2000, and Graham matched the surge in 2011. Graham and Brees said they spent more time together during the off-season, and it looks as if all that work is paying off. "Im just blessed to be with such a great quarterback and a guy who has so much trust in me," Graham said. Graham helped the Saints hold onto the ball for 36 minutes, and Brees team had no turnovers. The ball control was crucial with Alshon Jeffery putting together a career day for the Bears (3-2). Jeffery had 10 receptions for a franchise-record 218 yards, breaking Harlon Hills mark of 214 at San Francisco on Oct. 31, 1954. He also had a 3-yard touchdown grab in the second quarter. "What I did out there, Im more concerned about the W, not about what I did," he said. "Its a team thing. It took 11 guys to get 200-plus yards or whatever I had." Jefferys 58-yard catch set up Jay Cutlers 2-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Marshall, and Matt Forte ran in the 2-point conversion to trim New Orleans lead to 26-18 with 2:11 remaining. The Bears got the ball back with 21 seconds left and no timeouts. Cutler then passed to Jeffery in the middle of the field for 21 yards, but time expired before they could run another play. "Its just a few plays here and there," said Cutler, who was 24 of 33 for 358 yards and two touchdowns in Chicagos second straight loss. "Against a team like that, the way they played offensively and ate up the clock its hard to rebound if you miss three or four plays in the game." It took a while for Brees to get started, but New Orleans defence made sure he had plenty of time to get warmed up. The Saints sacked Cutler twice while limiting the Bears to one first down in the first quarter. Chicago had just 51 yards when it got the ball back with 5:57 left in the first half. After two field goals by Hartley -- including a 19-yard chip shot after Cutler fumbled on a sack by Malcolm Jenkins deep in Chicago territory -- Brees started to find his rhythm. He connected with Graham on pass plays of 29 and 38 yards to get New Orleans to the 7 with 7:23 left in the half. This time, the Saints got into the end zone. Brees rolled out on second down and flipped the ball to Pierre Thomas, who fought through D.J. Williams tackle attempt and extended his right arm over the goal line for the 2-yard touchdown that made it 13-0 with 5:57 remaining. "When my name is called to do the job, I go out there and do my best," said Thomas, a Chicago native. "Thats all I can really ask for. When my name is called, just go out there and perform." The Bears responded with a seven-play, 80-yard drive that ended with Jefferys TD. But they gave the ball back to Brees with 2:41 left in the half, plenty of time for the star QB to direct another scoring drive. Thomas had a big 2-yard run on fourth-and-1 from the Chicago 27, and then went 25 yards for the score on a screen play with 23 seconds to go. Thomas second TD reception made it 20-7 and was the result of a perfect call by Payton, who still has a deft touch when it comes to play-calling after missing last season as a result of the bounty scandal. "It was a screen play away from the pressure," Brees said. "So you had everybody going one direction and here we are throwing a screen and getting linemen out. The key is your ability to get linemen out and down the field. "That was a big play. Big momentum gainer going into halftime." NOTES: The Saints also won a road game against the Bears in 2002, but that victory came in Champaign because Soldier Field was being renovated. ... Bears DT Nate Collins hurt his left knee in the third quarter and did not return. ... Bears DT Stephen Paea was inactive due to a toe injury. Landon Cohen got the start just 10 days after he was signed off waivers. Matt Jones Redskins Jersey ." Inbee Park began her bid to become the first golfer to capture four straight majors in one season by teeing off at 7 a. Custom Atlanta Falcons Jersey . -- The Orlando Magics rebuilding process will continue without Glen Davis. http://www.nflofficialauthentics.com/nfl-jerseys/tennessee-titans/perrish-cox-jersey-c-1_107_2740.html . Lonnie Chisenhall left quite an impression in Johnny Manziels home state. Chisenhall had nine RBIs and three home runs in a five-hit game, Michael Brantley scored five times and the Cleveland Indians beat the Texas Rangers 17-7 Monday night. Brandon Scherff Jersey . Although the crowd didnt get to see the home side win, they did witness a moment to remember as the Impact scored their first-ever MLS goal. Saturday was about the occasion rather than the result, but Montreal head coach Jesse Marsch will be buoyed by what he saw from his team. Rashad Johnson Jersey . Five times this season he never got off the bench at all. He hadnt scored in double digits in the first 20 games before contributing 18 to the Boston Celtics 106-98 victory over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night.CARSON, Calif. -- Although the Los Angeles Galaxy opened their MLS title defence with the result Landon Donovan wanted, hes hoping they dont regret their missed chances to make it even better. Sean Franklin scored on a dramatic 27-yard strike just after halftime, and the Galaxy began their run at a third straight league championship with a 1-0 victory over Real Salt Lake on Sunday night in the first leg of the Western Conference semifinals. Franklins first goal in more than five months provided a small advantage for the third-seeded Galaxy when the clubs head to Utah on Thursday for the second leg. The Galaxy were good, dominating possession and effectively shuttering Reals attack, but they could have been even better. Donovan and Robbie Keane had numerous chances up front throughout the match, but repeatedly failed to provide additional cushion for the Galaxy. "We put a lot of pressure on them throughout the night, so theres going to be some cracks," Donovan said. "Robbie and I need to do a better job with our counterattacks. Usually were better than that. I have a feeling were going to have a lot more chances Thursday as the game goes on as they open up and expose themselves, and were fine with that." Jaime Penedo posted his fifth shutout in 10 MLS matches for the Galaxy, who are in search of their league-record fifth MLS Cup title. Los Angeles is trying to become the first MLS team to win three consecutive titles despite losing two key components of its previous championship teams: star midfielder David Beckham and goal-scorer Mike Magee. The Galaxy are in prime position to make that run, but a couple of extra goals would have helped from an otherwise one-sided game. Keane barely missed a goal on a breakaway in the 85th minute, pushing a low shot just wide of the far post. The Irish international star scored 16 MLS goals for the second straight regular season. "We certainly left a few chances out there, but we cant score every time," Keane said. "I wwasnt connecting with the ball properly.dddddddddddd You have nights like this. Its not something Im going to lose any sleep over." Salt Lake, which had a four-game unbeaten streak and a lengthy break before the playoffs, might have a sleepless night after an ineffective performance at StubHub Center. Los Angeles largely controlled the flow against second-seeded Salt Lake in a matchup of franchises with three of the last four MLS titles between them. "On a different night, Keane and Donovan are going to kill you on those," Real coach Jason Kreis said. "We werent good enough. We gave the ball away cheaply so many times in so many dangerous spots. ... Players need to be better. Were just missing some simple passes. Our better players need to be better, and they will." Keane and Donovan both missed on impressive runs in the opening minutes, and Reals Chris Schuler slid in from behind to knock the ball off Donovans foot at the goalmouth in the 42nd minute. But Franklin thrilled the Galaxys lively sellout crowd in the 47th minute when he collected an errant pass from Keane well outside the penalty area and put a rocket of a shot inside Nick Rimandos left post. Franklin, a stalwart defender, hadnt scored since May 26. "The ball just came out on top of the box, and I had time and space to hit it," Franklin said. "Once I opened my eyes up, the ball was in the back of the net." Real had its best chance in the 80th minute, but substitute forward Devon Sandoval fell down on contact with a Los Angeles defender while closing in on Luis Gils pass in front of the Galaxy goal. Los Angeles entered the playoffs unbeaten in four straight games after allowing just one goal in its entire October schedule. The Galaxy have never lost in the two-leg conference semifinals since MLS adopted the playoff format in 2003, advancing eight times. These clubs met in the MLS Cup final in 2009, with Real Salt Lake winning its only league title on penalty kicks. cheap nfl jerseys cheap jerseys cheap jerseys cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '