Chicago's Damian Harrell catches one of his two touchdown passes Sunday.

ROSEMONT, Ill. - The Desperados saw their chances of claiming a first-round bye and winning the division evaporate by the first quarter here Sunday afternoon in Chicago.

By the early part of the fourth quarter, the possibility of closing the regular season on a winning note ended as well.

The Chicago Rush broke open a tie game at the half to score 20 straight points en route to a 75-63 win here at the Allstate Arena.

The loss dropped the Desperados to 12-4 as they prepare for another playoff run in attempt to land their elusive trip to the ArenaBowl.

But to get there, the Desperados will have to win three games as they enter the playoffs as the No. 3 seed in the National Conference. The Desperados will face the New York Dragons Friday night (6:30 p.m., CDT) at American Airlines Center.

Dallas entered the day with an outside shot to unseat Philadelphia as the top seed. However, the Soul crushed New York 59-30, to finish the regular season 13-3, which included two wins over the Desperados.

While Dallas is hoping to get a third shot at Philadelphia, the Desperados will try to defeat the Dragons for a third time, after winning a pair of two-point games this season.

After learning of Philadelphia's win, the Desperados decided to pull quarterback Clint Dolezel at halftime, with the scored tied 35-35.

"I didn't want to end like this," said Desperados head coach Will McClay, whose teams are 40-8 in the last three years. "We're paid to win games, no matter the circumstances. So we're disappointed. But I think the guys will realize the importance of what we need to do. It's win or go home. I think we'll bounce back."

While the Desperados were trying to save their starting quarterback from an injury, they did have another setback when wide receiver Josh Bush suffered a broken ankle late in the fourth quarter. Bush, who had returned a kickoff for a touchdown in the first quarter, entered the game second in the AFL with a 21.3 yard average.

Bush, who took over the return duties for Will Pettis in the middle of the season, finished the year with four returns for touchdowns to lead the league.

"It's tough because he's a guy who has accepted his role and done a great job for us," McClay said. "We're going to miss him."

McClay said that either defensive back DeShane Dennis, or Pettis, who will return next week despite missing the last two games because of a concussion, will replace Bush on kickoff returns.

Backup quarterback Chris Sanders, who won four starts in place of Dolezel early in the season, showed some rust in his first two series, before leading the offense to four straight touchdowns to end the game.

Unfortunately, the Desperados couldn't slow down Chicago's offense, which scored touchdowns on all 11 possessions, never turning the ball over once.

Chicago quarterback Russ Michna threw for 181 yards and four touchdowns and ran for two more.

For the Desperados, Dolezel also threw four scores - all in the first half - while Sanders passed for two and ran for two touchdowns, including one on the final play of regulation.

Marcus Nash had 10 catches for 114 yards and three touchdowns, while Andrae Thurman added nine receptions for 99 yards and two scores.

The Desperados have plagued by penalties all season, were flagged 15 times Sunday for 92 yards. Chicago had just four penalties for 30 yards.