(Reuters) - Jay Cutler comfortably won a battle between two unpredictable quarterbacks to lead Chicago to a 34-18 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on Monday as the Bears feasted on a string of Tony Romo mistakes.

Romo matched a career-high five interceptions, two of them returned for touchdowns, and was never able to get in tune with his receivers in front of a hugely disappointed Dallas crowd.

The Bears led by just three points at halftime but took full advantage of Romo's second half meltdown as Lance Briggs intercepted one of his errant passes and ran 74 yards to give the visitors a 24-7 lead.

Cutler fared decidedly better, tossing two touchdowns in the second half, with the final effort finding Brandon Marshall for a 31-yard completion that put his team 34-10 clear in the fourth quarter.

The Chicago quarterback had suffered a similar fate to Romo against the Green Bay Packers on September 13 when he coughed up four interceptions, was sacked seven times and publicly berated his offensive line.

But Cutler, who completed 18-of-24 passes for 275 yards and no interceptions against the Cowboys (2-2), has rebounded and pushed the Bears (3-1) into a tie with Minnesota for the NFC North lead.

(Writing by Jahmal Corner in Los Angeles; Editing by John O'Brien)