NFL: 49ers edge Bears, end losing skid

SAN FRANCISCO — Mike Singletary didn't exactly hand it to his old team. That didn't matter — Jay Cutler handed the desperate San Francisco 49ers a much-needed win.

Frank Gore ran for 104 yards and a touchdown, Cutler threw a career-high five interceptions with his last coming in the end zone on the game's final play and San Francisco snapped a four-game losing streak by beating the Chicago Bears 10-6 on Thursday.

Niners quarterback Alex Smith won for the first time in eight starts since Week 2 in 2007, 17-16 against St. Louis — but it was interesting until the end.

After Singletary elected to punt against his former team on fourth-and-6 from the Chicago 34 with 2:53 left, Cutler drove the Bears to the San Francisco 12 with 13 seconds remaining. After an incompletion on first down, Michael Lewis picked off Cutler's next attempt in the end zone as time expired. That sealed San Francisco's first win since a 35-0 rout of the Rams back on Oct. 4.

The game was far from a pretty display by two struggling teams still hoping to make the playoffs.

Four days after the 49ers (4-5) committed four turnovers that led to 24 points in a 34-27 loss to Tennessee Titans, they were penalized nine times and Smith threw an interception and was sacked twice. San Francisco did just enough right to win.

Cutler took chances away all game from Chicago (4-5), which had 10 penalties and lost its second straight and fourth in five. Patrick Willis wreaked havoc on the Bears with 11 tackles.

Cutler threw four or more picks for the second time this season and has an NFL-worst 17 in all. He became the first Bears QB since Billy Wade in 1962 to have two four-INT games in a season.

The Bears got field goals of 50 and 38 yards from Robbie Gould in a game that quickly became about who could keep possession of the ball and make the fewest mistakes.

It marked the first time Singletary faced his former team as a head coach. The Hall of Fame linebacker spent all 12 of his NFL seasons with the Bears, capturing two Defensive Player of the Year awards, being selected to 10 Pro Bowls and winning the Super Bowl following the 1985 season.

Singletary wanted little to do with the hype of him facing the Bears, insisting he couldn't think about anything but coaching the 49ers to victory to save the season.