After blanking the Packers in the previous week, the Patriots prepared to take on the team with the number one overall defense in the NFL: the Chicago Bears. This game marked the first game the Patriots played on the new FieldTurf at Gillette Stadium. Turnovers dominated the entire game as both teams turned the ball over a total of nine times; in the first half alone Benjamin Watson caught a Tom Brady pass at the Bears' 1-yard line but was hammered and the ball popped into the Bears' hands; later Laurence Maroney was stripped of the ball in the Bears redzone; the Bears for their part surrendered a Rex Grossman interception by Asante Samuel and a Grossman fumble in the Pats' redzone. The Patriots scored first with a one-yard Maroney run in the second quarter. The Bears responded with a field goal with 4:04 remaining. The half ended with Gostkowski making his longest field goal of the season and his career with a 52-yarder to make the score 10-3. In the second half, running back Cedric Benson scored the Bears' next touchdown with a two-yard run with 14:53 remaining in the game. The touchdown came after a defensive pass interference penalty call that resulted in a 45-yard gain for the Bears. The Patriots responded by marching down field and scoring on a Brady touchdown pass to Watson to make the score 17-10; this drive was highlighted by a nine-yard first-down run by Brady in which he faked out Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher. After another defensive pass interference penalty that gave the Bears 1st and 10 at the New England 18-yard line, the Patriots second-ranked defense stopped the Bears. limiting them to a field goal, putting the score at 17-13 with 3:31 left. The game closed on a Dillon fumble which gave the Bears one final chance to drive down field, but quarterback Rex Grossman threw his third interception of the night to cornerback Asante Samuel. The Patriots then knelt down to end the game and improve their record to 9-3. The three interceptions by Samuel were the most interceptions by one player in one game since Roland James in 1983. As part of his 6-catch effort, Kevin Faulk eclipsed the Patriots' franchise running back reception record. (Tony Collins, 261) Also with the win, Tom Brady became the Patriots' all-time winningest quarterback. (Steve Grogan, 75 wins)
Answer this question: How many more points did the Patriots score in the first half over the Bears?
7