Bears' Adams not a 'down' lineman
When Anthony Adams was notified about two hours before the Bears' season opener at Indianapolis that he was going to be inactive, the one question he knew he couldn't ask himself was ''Why?''

Thomas, Noah make Bulls unpredictable
After going 3-4 during their recent road swing, the Bulls returned home confident they could take advantage of a more favorable schedule in December. But two games into the month, the Bulls (8-11) have dropped two straight and are looking to regroup again. Perhaps the least surprised person is coach Vinny Del Negro, who has been saying for weeks that the early part of the season will be a roller-coaster ride.

Versteeg nets a Pat trick
Those two spectacular passes Kris Versteeg delivered in the Blackhawks' victory over Anaheim on Wednesday were no fluke. The rookie winger has gotten better with each game and finds himself in position to do what teammate Patrick Kane did last season -- lead NHL rookies in scoring. The assists Versteeg earned for setting up Martin Havlat's game-tying goal and Jonathan Toews' winner in the 4-2 victory over the Ducks gave him 15 and 22 points in 23 games.