Tavon Austin’s 65-yard touchdown run — his fourth straight this season from beyond midfield — jump-started a 21-point first quarter and the defense made some big plays, too, in a 42-21 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.
Coming off their bye, the St. Louis Rams (5-6) followed up a 30-point rout of Indianapolis in front of their largest crowd of the season, about half of them clad in Bears orange. Late scores by rookie backup running back Benny Cunningham and defensive end Robert Quinn helped finish off the Bears (6-5), who remained tied for the NFC North lead.
Josh McCown passed for 352 yards and two touchdowns with an interception for Chicago, which had won four straight in the series. The Bears had a 62-yard punt return for touchdown by Devin Hester nullified by a holding penalty in the fourth quarter.
Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.