Tony Romo has a night to forget, as Bears down Cowboys

• Romo throws a career-high five INTs in Cowboys' 34-18 loss to the Bears
• Romo throws for 307 yards, posting a 60.1 passer rating
• Bears QB Jay Cutler and WR Brandon Marshall connect seven times for 138 yards and a TD

ARLINGTON, Texas -- It was one of those nights for Tony Romo.

One of those rough nights, with the oft-maligned Dallas Cowboys quarterback matching a career high with five interceptions that stained a 34-18 loss.

"It's just going to suck for a few days now, obviously," Romo said after the Chicago Bears returned two of his picks for touchdowns. "It's going to sit there in your stomach and just eat at you."

Wait until he sees the film. Get the Maalox.

The first interception came on a quick throw to a spot in the left flat, when Romo and intended receiver Dez Bryant were not on the same page. And when the quarterback reads "zig" while the receiver sees "zag," bad things tend to happen.

Bryant didn't read the blitz that was coming. And when he didn't adjust his route accordingly, the football hit Charles Tillman in the numbers. The 10th-year cornerback returned one of the easiest picks of his life for a 25-yard touchdown that made it 10-zip late in the second quarter -- and provided an omen for impending doom.

The next pick stymied a threat early in the third quarter, when Tim Jennings deflected a slant pass to Kevin Ogletree and Major Wright caught the pop-up at the 6-yard line.

The third one was the worst, even if it can be argued that it was actually a fumble. Midway through the third quarter, Romo tried to take cover while under duress, and Bears defensive tackle Henry Melton punched the ball loose. It popped into linebacker Lance Briggs' hands as he ran downhill. And he kept running, 74 yards for a touchdown.

Briggs, another 10-year vet, has been viewed with a suspicion on an aging defense that is supposedly slowing down. It didn't look like that on the pick-six that helped the Bears (3-1) move into a tie with the Minnesota Vikings atop the NFC North.

"I've never seen Lance run that fast," marveled Bears defensive end Julius Peppers. "I was kind of surprised."

Peppers, shifting all across the line on passing downs, was part of a front that generated just one sack but forced some of the mishaps with constant heat on Romo and was determined to prevent the quarterback from making plays outside of the pocket.

"We just tried to contain him, keep him in the pocket," Peppers added. "When he scrambles, that's when he does stuff."

Romo was indeed in the pocket on the fourth interception, an underthrown pass over the middle for Miles Austin that was easy pickings for backup safety D.J. Moore in the fourth quarter.

On the last one, late in the fourth quarter, Romo looked deep right for Ogletree and Wright floated over from the middle of the field to intercept.

"I should have turned upfield," Wright lamented of his return as he left the visitor's locker room. "I could have run it back all the way."

A defensive player grumbling about leaving points on the field.

That pretty much summed up the frustrating night for Romo and his team, embarrassed before 90,080 at their football palace.

"All I know is we have a long way to go," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said, eyeing the very long bye week ahead. "I'm glad we have the time off that we have. That'll give us a chance to reassess and look in the mirror."

Taking a peek at Romo's passer rating for the game would be like stopping to look as they clean up the accident scene. But here it is: 60.1.

Why so high? Romo completed 72% of his 43 passes for 307 yards.

It's just that too many of the ones he missed on were disasters.

You know what comes next: Romo will be blistered again by fans calling into the talk-radio shows, lambasted as the reason the Cowboys will never win big again with a streaky quarterback who can sometimes light it up … and sometimes crash and burn.

Five picks will be the chorus line.

"I think I've thrown five before," Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, who didn't throw any interceptions amid a sparkling performance on Monday night, said of Romo's outing. "It happens. He's been there. He'll come back and play well."

Romo had a night to forget, for sure. But he didn't exactly have a ton of help. The leaky offensive line didn't protect him, the rushing attack averaged 2.9 yards per carry.

And whenever it appeared the Cowboys might claw back into the game, something else bad happened.

The Dallas defense, which entered the game ranked No. 1 in the NFL after back-to-back games against rookie quarterback Russell Wilson and struggling passer Josh Freeman, wasn't spared.

Whenever it needed to make a big stop, Cutler -- who passed for 275 yards and 2 TDs, with a 140.1 efficiency rating -- would typically roll right, fling it off his back foot or something and make Dallas pay. Once he connected with Devin Hester for a 34-yard TD. Several times he found his BFF target, Brandon Marshall (7 catches, 138 yards), including a 31-yard, garbage-time TD.

And the one time when Dallas forced a Cutler gaffe -- DeMarcus Ware looped around on a speed rush and forced a fumble recovered by Victor Butler -- Romo gave it right back on the pick to Briggs.

"When the defense is playing like that, it's hard to lose," Cutler said.

As they left Texas, that defense undoubtedly wished it could take Romo with them.