QUARTERBACK: C Jay Cutler was poor early (2 fumbles and an INT) and struggled through three quarters (37.5 rating). But he came through in the end, completing 12-of-14 passes for 106 yards and a TD in the fourth quarter.

RUNNING BACKS: B - Matt Forte gained 44 yards on his first 4 carries, including a 13-yard TD run. He finished with 70 yards on 15 carries (4.7 avg). He also had five reception for 24 yards. Michael Bush had 3 carries for 5 yards.

RECEIVERS: C+ Brandon Marshall was the only WR with a reception in the first half. But Marshall (9-98) and Earl Bennett (3-47) came through in the final three drives to help Jay Cutler turn a bad day into a good one.

OFFENSIVE LINE: C Jay Cutler has to take some of the blame for at least a couple of the six sacks the Panthers had. The running game was successful early but petered out. Roberto Garza’s false start was the only penalty the line was charged with.

DEFENSIVE LINE: B Not the dominant effort the Bears have had previously this season, but good enough to win. Julius Peppers had two sacks and a forced fumble and impacted other plays with pressure on Cam Newton.

LINEBACKERS: B Brian Urlacher had 7 tackles and a deflected pass that could have been an INT. Lance Briggs had 7 tackles, but no big impact plays. Nick Roach had 2 tackles.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: B Tim Jennings gave up some plays against Steve Smith — no shame there — but also had 2 INTs, including a pick-6 in the fourth quarter. Charles Tillman was solid. Chris Conte had a tough day but it didn’t cost him.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B Typical of the kind of day it was, Robbie Gould missed a 33-yard FG in the fourth quarter but mad the 41-yard game-winner. Bears handled 7 squib kickoffs to get mostly good field position.

COACHING: B Bears made the most of an underwhelming performance and gave themselves a chance to win at the end. When you’re 6-1, that’s nothing to complain about.