A special thanks to Matt for sending me this pic.

In the rat race that is the Chicago Bears season, there is one guy that Bears fans hate to see on field.  Brad Maynard.  Of course, it means the Bears are punting and I, for one, have seen enough of him.  The worst part is that quality of most of his punts has been awful.  I know that distance doesn’t tell the whole story but he is averaging a career low 38.7 yards per punt, netting only 34.7 yards, both lingering near the bottom of  the NFL.  Also, keep in mind that 36 of his 47 punts have come from the Bears side of the 50.  His below average numbers can only lead me to believe that at age 35, Brad is, well, getting old.  And he’s going to need more than Dr. Scholls to fix the problem.

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With as much help as the Beloved received over the weekend, for much of the game, it appeared that it would all be for naught.   A flat, lethargic effort in the first half made it seem like the Bears would send the thousands of Chicago faithful home frozen and heartbroken and give the Vikings an early Christmas present.  Thankfully, someone actually did something at halftime to spark the team.

It’s been a tale of two seasons for the 2008 Chicago Bears.  Early in the season, it was a matter of not finishing games, letting three critical early-season games slip through their fingers in the second half.  Lately, it’s been the Bears waking up and closing strong after lackluster starts.  On Monday night, it took the outstretched paw of DE Alex Brown to block Mason Crosby’s 38 yard field goal attempt with 25 seconds remaining in regulation to save the game and quite possibly the season for the Bears, as the Bears survived with a 20-17 overtime victory.

The Bears came out looking like the team with nothing to play for as they were pushed around on both sides of the ball throughout the first half and trailed 14-3 heading into the locker room at halftime.  Meanwhile, the hated rivals from Green Bay seemed to convert every third down and make all the key plays in the first half. 

The turning point seemed to be early in the third quarter when the Bears got the big break they needed as Brad Maynard’s punt deflected off Packers gunner Jerrett Bush and was recovered by Jason Davis.  Kyle Orton hooked up with Greg Olsen moments later to cut the deficit to 14-10.  The Bears defense hunkered down and held the Pack to a lone field goal in the second half and the offense and Matt Forte did enough to get the job done.

As well as the defense played in the second half, special teams has to get the game ball.  Danieal Manning continues to shine as the kick returner, with a stellar 71 yard return, where he carried would-be tacklers some 20 yards. He also keyed a first half Alex Brown interception with a well timed corner blitz, tipping Aaron Rogers’ pass attempt.  Yes, the Bears actually blitzed effectively. 

Brad Maynard didn’t let the cold affect him with a couple of booming punts in the first half and a great pooch punt that pinned Green Bay inside the 10 yard line.  The hero, of course, will be Robbie Gould, who for the second straight week kicked an overtime field goal to nail down a victory to keep the NFC North title in question going into the final week of the season.  Check out my video of the game winner below.

On to Houston.  GO BEARS!!!  GO GIANTS!!!

Honors

Congrats to Lance Briggs, the Bears’ lone Pro Bowl selection.  This makes the fourth straight trip to Hawaii for Lance, who has taken over as the leader of the Defense.  Tommie Harris makes it as a first alternate, while Olin Kreutz, Greg Olsen and Brad Maynard get the nod as second alternates.  In the “things that make you go ‘huh?’” selections, Brian Urlacher (pictured above being blocked by Maurice Jones-Drew) and Devin Hester join as third alternates.  Really?  Devin Hester can’t crack the starting lineup as kick returner on his own team.  I guess it shows how slowly news travels around the NFL.  Click here for the 2009 NFL Pro Bowl Rosters.

Speaking of kick returners, Danieal Manning earns NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors after his 83-yard opening kick return against the Saints.  It was the first opening kickoff return since Devin Hester’s opening kickoff return in Super Bowl XLI.  Ahh, remember when?  Manning leads the NFL in kick returns this season with a 29.5 yard average. Nice work Danieal!

Power Rankings Around the Web

Bears are ranked smack dab in the middle of the Power Rankings on both ESPN , CBS Sportsline and Sports Illustrated. FoxSports is a little more generous, with a ranking of 13, ahead of the streaking Eagles and the playoff-bound Cardinals. 

What Vegas Thinks

The Bears have been installed as a 4.5 point favorite on Monday night against the rival Packers, who slapped the Beloved around at Lambeau earlier this year.  It’s payback time!  The total for the regular season home finale is 42.  With temperatures expected in the single digits with below-zero wind chills, those points might be tough to come by.  Not that I advocate going to the window.  But if I did, I would go under.