ATLANTA – The Bears self-destructed Sunday night in Atlanta, failing to capitalize on numerous opportunities on both sides of the ball in a frustrating 21-14 loss to the Falcons.

The offense came away with no points on three of four red-zone trips, committing two costly turnovers and turning the ball over on downs with :29 left in the game after reaching the Atlanta 5.

Greg Olsen caught five passes for 57 yards and 1 TD in Sunday night's loss in Atlanta.

The defense failed to scoop up a fumble and dropped a would-be interception on back-to-back plays, and later allowed the Falcons to score the winning touchdown with 3:06 remaining in the game.

“For us, it was a game of missed opportunities,” said linebacker Lance Briggs.

The loss dropped the Bears (3-2) into a second-place tie with the Packers (3-2) in the NFC North, two and a half games behind the Vikings (6-0), who edged the Ravens 33-31 earlier Sunday.

After Michael Turner’s 5-yard touchdown run gave the Falcons (4-1) a 21-14 lead with 3:06 to play, the Bears marched from their own 12 to the Atlanta 5. But Jay Cutler failed to connect with tight end Desmond Clark at the 5-yard line on fourth-and-six.

It was a fitting end to a mistake-filled game for the Bears. Cutler passed for 300 yards and 2 touchdowns, but he was also intercepted twice by Falcons safety Thomas DeCoud. The first pick came on the Bears’ first possession of the game on third-and-nine from the Atlanta 12.

The Bears trailed 14-7 late in the third quarter when Clark’s eight-yard catch on third-and-eight resulted in a first down at the Atlanta 1. After an incomplete pass, running back Matt Forte fumbled on back-to-back plays. He recovered the first loose ball at the 1, but the Falcons smothered the second at the 2.

“We had a lot of opportunities to win the football game,” said coach Lovie Smith. “You can’t make those types of mistakes on the road against a good football team.

“When you have the ball in the red zone, you need to be able to get some points, and those turnovers really hurt us a lot. You’ve got to be able to put points on the board in those situations.”

Even with all the miscues, the Bears tied the game 14-14 on Cutler’s 2-yard TD strike to Greg Olsen on third-and-goal with 6:14 left in the fourth quarter. The score capped an eight-play, 92-yard drive that was highlighted by Cutler’s 30-yard scramble and his 41-yard completion to Olsen to the Atlanta 6.

But after the TD, Eric Weems returned the ensuing kickoff 62 yards to the Chicago 41. Matt Ryan then set up Turner’s go-ahead score with completions of 16 and 15 yards to tight end Tony Gonzalez.

“Just like we’ve won with all three phases kicking in, everyone contributed to [the loss], starting with me,” Smith said. “I have to do a better job. We all have to do a better job.”

Falcons linebacker Mike Peterson corrals Jay Cutler in the Bears' 21-14 loss Sunday night in Atlanta.

The Bears lost despite outgaining the Falcons 373-253, converting 9 of 16 third-down opportunities, holding Turner to just 30 yards on 13 carries and intercepting two Ryan passes.

“When you’re ineffective defensively and offensively, you have to really go back to the drawing board and figure some things out,” Briggs said. “But when you are effective offensively and defensively and just miss some opportunities, then you’re just kicking yourself.”

Briggs was kicking himself after failing to pick up a Turner fumble that was caused by linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa in the second quarter. On the next play, Danieal Manning dropped a would-be interception.

“When you’re on the road, you’ve got to play well,” said defensive end Adewale Ogunleye. “You’ve got to be consistent. We had too many opportunities to win the game and just didn’t capitalize. Hats off go to the Atlanta Falcons. They deserved to win.”

The Bears took a 7-0 lead on Cutler’s 23-yard touchdown strike to rookie Johnny Knox down the left sideline on the first play of the second quarter.

But after Cutler’s overthrown pass intended for Olsen over the middle was picked off by DeCoud, the Falcons scored TDs on their final two drives of the second quarter to grab a 14-7 halftime lead.

Atlanta receiver Roddy White turned a short Ryan pass into a 40-yard TD with 9:03 left in the period, and Ryan later rifled a 10-yard scoring pass to Gonzalez with just :04 remaining in the half.

Ryan completed 19 of 33 passes for 185 yards with 2 TDs, 2 interceptions and a 68.4 passer rating. He was picked off in the second half by cornerbacks Zackary Bowman and Nate Vasher. 

The Bears struggled to move the ball on the ground all game. With Forte limited to 23 yards on 15 carries, Cutler led the team in rushing with 34 yards on three attempts.

The Bears also committed nine penalties for 65 yards, including three that crippled their final drive. After a pass interference penalty on Falcons linebacker Curtis Lofton on third-and-17 at the 31 gave Chicago a first down at the 14, guard Frank Omiyale (false start) and receiver Earl Bennett (pass interference) were flagged on back-to-back plays, resulting in second-and-25 at the 29.

After an incomplete pass, Cutler connected with Bennett for 24 yards over the middle, leaving the Bears with fourth-and-one at the 5. But veteran left tackle Orlando Pace was flagged for a false start, pushing the ball back to the 10. Cutler then failed to connect with Clark on the next play.

“[That was] very disappointing,” Smith said. “Even with [all the miscues], we still put ourselves in position at the end to tie the game and have a chance to win the game and kind of self-destructed a little bit there. So, yeah, that is disappointing.”