News fromthe bunker: Brandon’s burst is back
ATLANTA — Brandon Marshall is healthy again. Warn the league.
The Bears wide receiver exploded on the first play Sunday — a 20- yard pass down the middle of the Atlanta Falcons’ defense — and never stopped, totaling a seasonhigh 113 yards on six catches after finally recovering from an injury to his right ankle.
“Brandon is such a charismatic player,” said coach Marc Trestman, who vowed last week to involve him more. “The first catch of the game was big, just the playmaking.”
He outpaced Julio Jones and Roddy White — remember when they were touted as the NFL’s best receiving duo? — by five yards all by himself. Marshall’s yardage was his most in 12 games.
“I know he felt 100 percent the last couple weeks,” quarterback Jay Cutler said. “But he’s finally now getting a little bit of burst back.”
Marshall had catches of 47, 25 and 15 yards in a statement that far eclipsed the “Bunker Down, No Noise” T- shirts he printed for the Bears last week.
“I’m just proud of our offense for bouncing back and bunkering down,” said Marshall, choosing his words with purpose. “There was a lot of noise in the dome today. There was a lot of noise all week. We did good.”
Marshall’s 47- yarder — on which he lined up in the right slot, ran toward the left sideline and caught a pass over Robert Alford — led to the Bears’ first touchdown, a catch by Josh Morgan, with about six minutes left in the first half.
“We justmade plays,” Marshall said. “Jay was dropping those balls in places that only him, and a few guys, can.”
But the receiver claimed he wasn’t satisfied with the offense.
“My ankle felt good,” he said. “This was the second week we were able to put me in the game plan. Like I said, it wasn’t good enough. We’ve got to get better. We have a long way to go. We started slow.
“If we can have the week we had last week, when we bunkered down, we blocked the noise out, we can be a good ballclub.”
Trestman seemed as appreciative of Marshall’s practiceweek as he did his Sunday.
“He was all- out,” he said. “He was very communicative with Jay in meetings. It really helps us with our guys to see those guys working at it.’’
Tight end Martellus Bennett still was chattering about his stiff- arm while Matt Forte credited Marshall’s presence, in part, for his 157 total yards.
“He was a big target for us,” Forte said, “and also can block in the run game.”