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Gut Shot - Anthony Adams and the Bears Fall to the Pats OR Bears Let it All Hang Out After Loss to New England (Photo courtesy of Chicago Tribune)

Vote below or if you’re feeling frisky, create your own in the comments below.

Jay Cutler Superstar asks for predictions for JC’s 2009 stat line.  A certain blogger who shall remain nameless pegged him for 30 TD’s.  What was in that Cutler Kool Aide?  Maybe I should take JC with my #3 fantasy pick?

And speaking of Jay, he only had nice things to say about former coach Josh McDaniels, while he expects a rough ride from Broncos fans in his return to Denver.  Can we call him “former coach” when he never really coached Jay?   How about the guy who effectively ran him out of Denver?

Dusty Dvoracek is getting his knee scoped on Friday to verify the seriousness of his injury.   What do you think they’ll find in there?  I suspect it will be his ticket to the injured reserve list.  As any Cubs fan will tell you, In Dusty, we no trusty…”

The Bears defense is hoping to get a Manning and Bowman back for Sunday while former Bear Mike Brown visited with Waddle and Silvey.

In the “I need to go to Law School to follow the Bears” department, someone is trying to take DT Anthony Adams to the cleaners, while the Bears are suing to recoup $400k for getting the old Screw Job on a suite deal.

Lots more on Jay Cutler’s return to Denver including a different angle on the Cutler-Orton matchup coming up later this week.

BEAR DOWN!!!

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If you think the arrow is pointing up for the Bears’ offense, the once-heralded defense is another story.  Long gone is the defense that carried the Bears to Super Bowl XLI.   The defense that ranked 5th overall in the NFL in 2006 has been in steady decline in the two seasons since.  The team that ranked 3rd in scoring defense in 2006, slid down to 16th the last two seasons.  In fact, last year the team’s average PPG was 21.8 compared to 21.9 this season.  That’s a far cry from the 15.9 PPG in the Super Bowl season of 2006.  Many will point to schemes and coaching.  I’ll dedicate a separate post just to address those issues.  In the meantime, let’s break it down: (more…)

While I’m doling out praise, let me tip my cap to Matt Forte, who surpassed Gale Sayers on Sunday for most total yards from scrimmage for a rookie running back with 106 total yards on Sunday to pass the Kansas Comet’s 1374 yards set back in 1965.  That’s some pretty rare air for the Bears rookie.  Nice going Matt! 

Another bright spot on Sunday was the play of the tight ends, as Greg Olsen and Desmond Clark combined for 60 yards receiving and 2 touchdowns.  It’s amazing how much better the offense seems to work when the TE’s are involved in the game.  Note to Ron Turner – DO MORE OF THIS!!!

Devin Hester led all receivers with 80 yards on 5 catches, but for me, the most exciting Hester moment was a punt return late in the second quarter.  Devin fielded the punt in Jags territory and showed a burst that I haven’t seen much this year.  It was as if he could smell the end zone.  While he did step out of bounds at the 23 yard line while trying to plant and sharply cut back to the inside, maybe it’s a sign that he’s getting his confidence back.  It could also be a sign that the Jags are just that bad.  All I know is that if the Bears are serious about making a playoff push, they will need the Ridiculous One to return to form.

On the defensive side of the ball, it was nice to see the D-line get some pressure on Garrard.  Coach Babich must’ve read my Pre-game thoughts.  Glad I could help, Bob.  It was nice for Mark Anderson finally to show up this season.  Besides his second half sack of Garrard, he really showed some impressive closing speed on a Garrard bootleg early in the game.  Anthony Adams and Israel Idonije also showed well for the defensive line, while Peanut Tillman and Mike Brown led the secondary with 8 tackles apiece.  I can’t overlook the Danieal Manning interception and fine return work that set the tone for the game. 

No time to celebrate with a quick turnaround this week with a Thursday night nationally televised game for the few dozen people that have the NFL Network.  More news and notes to come on Monday as we look ahead to the next opponent – the Drew Brees led New Orleans Saints.

• It’s cold out there!  Do not give the Jags a warm welcome!
• Pressure David Garrard.  He needs to spend significant time on his backside today.
• Kevin Jones is inactive for the 4th straighT game.  The end is near, KJ. 
• Also noticed that Matt Toeaina is inactive.  With Dusty Dvorcek OUT and Anthony Adams dinged up, I hope there is no lack of depth at DT position today.
• I’m starting Maurice Jones-Drew today in Round 1 of my fantasy playoffs, so if the Bears let the Jags score at all, let it be Mo-Jo.  I know, Blasphemy!  I can take it if I win.
• David Haugh wrote a nice piece evaluating the Bears’ roster in the Chicago Tribune today.  Maybe David’s jumping the gun, since this is something you really start to think about when the season is over.  The Beloved are still solidly in the playoff picture, so let’s worry about next year after this year is over.  Nevertheless, it’s a good article and I suggest you check it out :http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/chi-081206-chicago-bears-nfc-north-haugh,0,4370382.column
•  I can’t believe that a judge has issued a temporary injunction to allow the Williams boys (and the three Saints) play today.  I hope that judge gets a dose of common sense and the 4 game suspensions are upheld.
• As much as l like to see the Lions suffer and would love to see them go 0-16, I will be rooting for them to beat the Vikes today.  Maybe Ford can use some of that Federal bailout money to fix the Lions!

BEAR DOWN!!!

Happy Turkey Day

Happy Thanksgiving to all my loyal readers!  Your reward is getting to sit through the epic match-up of the Detroit Lions and Tennessee Titans.  What a complete scheduling disaster.  I thought you were supposed to fall asleep on the couch after eating the turkey, not before.  But don’t worry, after enjoying your wonderful feast, you get to return to the television to enjoy the nail-biting drama of the Seattle Seahawks against the Dallas Cowboys.  I hear the Seahawks are 12 point underdogs, which ironically is the same number of people that subscribe to the NFL network and get to see the only decent game of the day.  The Arizona Cardinals taking on the Philadelphia Eagles is a good match up, especially given the recent drama in Philly after the McNabb benching.  It would make for great national television, but it will go into obscurity on the NFL network instead.

Let’s Simmer Down

The Bears beat the St. Louis Rams last weekend to stay tied in first place in the division.  I realize the Bears got spanked the week before by the Packers, but can we all just simmer down?  They beat the Rams, who are I think are tied with the Raiders for the most lost franchise in football.  Despite their record I think the Chiefs are on the upside but that’s for another day.  Of course the Bears were going to beat the Rams, yet after the victory many Bears fans are suddenly talking playoffs again.  I blame it on the ups and downs of Chicago baseball carrying over into football.

The BIG Game

There is no way to understate the importance of this weekend’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.  Both are tied for first place in the division and will duke it out on prime time Sunday night.  Based on the rest of the NFC, there won’t be any Wild Card teams coming out of the NFC North this year.  Getting to the playoffs will likely mean winning the division or go home.  The Bears already beat the Vikings once this year, so the sweep would help lock up the title.  Last time the game turned into a shoot out, this game don’t be surprised if the game turns into a defense battle.  A loss would not count the Bears out, but it will mean the showdown on December 22nd between the Packers and Bears at Soldier Field will be big.

Switcheroo

What has happened to Bears football?  The offense has become explosive and the defense has turned timid.  Kyle Orton and Matt Forte look like a bonafide offense, even without a top receiver to keep defenses busy.  The Bears have managed to utilize a dominant back that can play all fazes of offense and use a receiver by committee approach.  Having a clear number 1 receiving threat is helpful, but the Bears have found having a corps of good receivers is giving offenses more trouble than anything else.  It may be frustrating for fantasy owners, but for real football it has proven effective.  Meanwhile the defense has broken down and become a shell of its former self.  They still play well against the run and can shut down running backs, but the secondary as imploded and given up big days to extremely average receivers.  For years the defense was able to shoulder the pressure of winning games for the offense, no we will have to see if the offense can do the same.

Beaming With Pride

I would like to take a moment to say how proud I am of Matt Forte.  I talked all preseason about how great I thought this kid would be and he has delivered.  He carries himself with humility after a great game and takes it in stride when he has a mediocre game.  Young players have a tendency to get down on themselves and he has managed to stay even tempered through the ups and downs.  He is handling to pressure of being the number one running AND receiving option on the offense with great poise.  I have to pinch myself and remember he is only a rookie.  He is already over 900 yards rushing and could break records by the end of his rookie season that haven’t been touched since guys named Payton and Sayers were wearing Bears jerseys.  After all these years we finally have a running back.

Draft Talk Already?

Is it too soon to talk about how badly the Bears need a talented free safety?  Early draft predictions show a few good prospects in the first round and the Bears secondary looks pitiful.  Rookie Craig Steltz wasn’t a bad gamble, but he turned out to be another strong safety to compliment Mike Brown.  It’s a good move to ensure depth at the position but it means there still isn’t a clear solution for free safety.  The Bears need a smart, speedy player out of college that can terrorize receivers down field and break up passes.  The rest of the defense isn’t suffering that bad, but the inability to prevent big pass plays is making the rest of the defense play tentatively and second guess themselves.  They almost seem to get frustrated and give up on themselves when they start to give up big pass plays.  A good safety out of the draft that can stop big plays could be enough to return this defense to dominance.

Footnote

Even though I just said the Bears defense could drastically improve with a talented free safety, that doesn’t take the front four off the hook.  The Bears couldn’t sack a potato and at the end of the season there will have to be questions answered why they can’t get any pressure.  Tommie Harris is running out of excuses for not looking like the kid the Bears drafted and made a Pro Bowl appearance.  I want a legitimate answer why Mark Anderson went from rookie sensation to bust.  This was supposed to be a highly talented group of kids that were going to terrorize the quarterback all season.  We’ve reached the breaking point.  It’s time to start giving other players a shot to play and see if they can deliver.  Start Anthony Adams and Matt Toeaina at tackle and see what they can do.  The Bears were thin at defensive tackle last year and signed Matt Toeaina in mid-season.  He responded by coming up with some very nice tackles on Adrian Peterson in the backfield.  Maybe he could put up a repeat performance against the Vikings.

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