If me playing against the computer on All-Pro difficulty is any kind of predictor of how an NFL game plays out—and I think we know that it is—then the Bears will win 21-18, with Rex Grossman throwing touchdowns to Bernard Berrian and Devin Hester, and Hester running a kickoff back for a touchdown.

Actually, I think that's how I'm going to make my picks for the rest of the season. It will reduce the amount I have to think about some less-than-inspiring matchups (Bears-Seahawks and Bears-Broncos jump to mind) and if Tank Johnson gets a sack, it adds some much-needed comedy.

Also on the Bears' Madden roster is , who has been elevated to Ronnie Lott status by some fans in this, the winter of the Bears' safety discontent. I'm not saying Harris is Lott, or even a healthy Mike Brown, but I can imagine a world where the Bears have Harris and win that Vikings game and at least one of the two Detroit games. Even if they still get swept by Detriot, 4-4 with a 2-2 record in the division is far less of a hole than 3-5 and 1-3 in the division.

But ifs, buts, candy, nuts and Merry Christmases aside, we are stuck with more or less a clunker of a late game today. But according to in today's paper, this is the perfect time for Cedric Benson to rush for 100 yards. To borrow from Terry Bannon , Benson had better put up a good game if he doesn't want to join the ranks of Rashaan Salaam and Curtis Enis.

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(Incidentally, I have racked up a 1,800-yard season with Salaam on Madden '97 for Sega Genesis. I know. You're amazed at how little I have to do with my free time.)

So you have the audition for Cedric Benson's Bears legacy to look forward to, as well as the . I guess if they wanted to have Grossman return as a starter, back-to-back road games are as good a time as any, keeping him away from the boos of Soldier Field. As for Kyle Orton, well, I don't know why they bother to keep him on the roster if they're just going to bounce between Griese and Grossman.

Partly cloudy, reasonably pleasant and possibly windy in Oakland today. Comment board and auto-refresh on the right as always, and I haven't changed my e-mail address from rstrohl@tribune.com.

FIRST QUARTER

Ben, this is decidedly not a Redskins sweatshirt. It is one from my fine alma mater. And Tina, I don't know why you are subjecting yourself to this, but hey, maybe Devin Hester will make it worthwhile. He won't on the opening kickoff, as it bounces to the left corner at the 4, and Hester returns it to the 20. The snap gets fumbled, and I couldn't catch which offensive lineman recovered it, but he gains a yard. On a fake end around, Benson goes up the middle for four and the only person it fools is the announcer. Swing pass to Adrian Peterson is short of the first and the Bears continue to be the only team in the NFL that has failed to score on their opening possession. That's pretty sad. Punt goes to the 35, returned to the 36.

The Raiders fake a handoff and that one fools everyone, cameraman, me, Mark Anderson, and Josh McCown takes off on an empty left side of the field and isn't dragged down until the 40. Huggy Bear's kid, Justin, gets a first down inside the 30, gets a yard on first down, then Lance Briggs drops McCown for a loss of six on second down. Dumpoff closes the gap for a Sebastian Janikowski field goal, and he nails the 38-yarder as the Raiders show the Bears how to score on an opening possession.

Raiders 3, Bears 0, 9:18 left in the first quarter

There was some confusion on my part there, I added an extra play for a while, and I don't know why. It is rectified, so I have that going for me. Hester fields the kick in the back of the end zone and returns it 19 yards to the 10. The Raiders guy who tackled him (Schweigert, don't care to find out his first name right now) stays down there for a while, presumably to jaw at him a bit. To Dave Dryasdust, there is a print crunch, so features that are easily accessible on the Web are left out of the paper. From the 11 (not the 10), Benson gets five up the middle, then Griese hits Desmond Clark on the left sideline for 10 to the 26. Benson picked up a blitz nicely there. Benson gets a couple up the middle. Pitch right to Benson and he gets seven just shy of the sticks. Benson into the left side of the line, slides around the end of the pile and gets three for the first as the clock will roll under 6:20. Griese hits Bernard Berrian on the left side just beyond the sticks for another first down. From the 47, Benson loses four on a draw. The Raiders were not thinking pass at all on that one. Hester split wide right, Griese never looks over that way, instead going up the left sideline into double coverage for an incomplete pass to Berrian. Fred Miller starts falsely, 3rd and 18 (Benson lost three, not four on first down). Checkdown to Peterson gets nothing much. Punt goes to the 18, almost dropped at the 15, but he wiggles out of it and gets back to the 18.

McCown passes to the left side for a first down to the 32, then slides out of pressure from Darwin Walker and checks down to Fargas for not much. There's offensive pass interference, the Raiders center was blocking downfield before the pass and it's 1st and 20 from the 22. Huggy Bear Jr. gets one, maybe two on a stretch play to the right. Checkdown to Fargas and he picks up a couple more, 3rd and 15. Shovel pass to Fargas and Adewale Ogunleye sniffs it out and lights him up for a gain of nothing. Shane Lechler's punt goes to the 28, returned to the 30 with flags all over the place after the whistle. Fox was about to cut to commercial, but they came back when they realized that a fight is good television. Charles Tillman came in late on one of the Raiders, but they're calling a personal foul on the Raiders' Jarrod Cooper. Bears ball at the 45. The announcer (not sure who, this is Fox's Z-team) said it indeed was Cooper who attacked first, and after Garrett Wolfe loses three yards, Fox shows us Cooper shoving Tillman because he thought it was Tillman running over him, not his own teammate, as was the case. Griese goes up the left sideline, too far for I think it was Berrian, then a pass over the middle to Berrian is almost picked off. Punt fielded at the 18, stripped out of the hands of Johnnie Lee Higgins at the 20, and recovered by the Raiders right there. TV timeout with :55 left.

Run up the middle gets three, then a pass to Jerry Porter on the left side gets the first down and brings us to the end of the quarter.

Raiders 3, Bears 0

SECOND QUARTER

Fargas up the middle for not much, and Lance Briggs was slow to get up, but he appears fine. Fargas up the middle again, and again gets not much, 3rd and 7. McCown gives up under pressure from Ogunleye, and Urlacher touches him down for the sack. Punt is returned 10 yards or so to the 36.

Quick out left to Hester is sniffed out immediately for no gain. Why do they keep trying that John Shoop play instead of using his speed? Benson up the middle slips and falls for a gain of one. Griese to Muhsin Muhammad over the middle on the underneath route and Moose turns the corner up the left sideline to the Raiders' 38. Benson gets no gain up the middle. Check that, a loss of one to the 39, then Griese hits Clark for what appears to be a gain of five, but two Raiders can't drag him down, he shakes them loose for the first down to the 25. Benson cuts in the backfield and shoots through a hole to the 24 for a gain of six, then gets five more for the first down off tackle left and the clock rolls under 9:00. Play action to Benson, Griese rolls right and hits John Gilmore, who gets the first down, but Muhammad blocked his guy in the back, 1st and 14 from the 19. Misdirection run up the middle gets nothing and the announcer said, "Nobody buyed the fake. Uh, bought the fake, I should learn the language." Pressure coming, Griese rolls out of the pressure and throws the ball away. Do I smell a draw to set up the game-tying field goal? No, not even a draw, just a straight run up the middle and Peterson gets five or six and here comes Robbie Gould. It's good.

Bears 3, Raiders 3, 6:51 left in the half

The wind has blown the ball off the tee twice, so Trumaine McBride will hold it this time. The return man stumbles in the end zone so decides to down it for a touchback. Ben, I don't bother myself with minor-league football, either in video game format or live. If the folks in the minors were to use the polling disaster that is this season to install a playoff, I might feel different. Until then, no. McCown underthrows Porter on the left side, good coverage by McBride. Fargas finds a hole and gets through it but is destroyed a yard shy of the sticks by Danieal Manning. Fargas then gets the first down anyway on 3rd and 1. From the 31, Tim Dwight takes an end around left for a couple. I was going to remark that I had no idea that he was still in the league, but apparently he wasn't until the Raiders called him a couple weeks ago. McCown checks down to Fargas for five yards, 3rd and 3 as the clock rolls under 4:15. McCown again to Porter, and again McBride is shutting down Porter and bats the pass down. Hester fields the punt at the 16 and runs out of bounds at the 12.