Sep 25, 2011; Chicago, IL, USA; Green Bay Packers wide receiver Greg Jennings (85) runs with the ball in the first quarter against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

According to several sources, Greg Jennings is likely going to remain in the NFC North. The question is, is he going to play for the Vikings or Packers? Either way, the Bears still have to face him. Bears fans should be “rooting” for the Vikings to get him, just because we don’t want to watch Aaron Rodgers carve up the Bears secondary with Jennings as a weapon. The Vikings just traded Percy Harvin, so Christian Ponder is in need of a receiving threat. Despite a 2012 season plagued with injuries, Jennings still caught 36 passes in 8 games, so when healthy, he’s valuable.  (more…)

The offense looked good coming out of the blocks early, with Jay Cutler stretching the field with some deeper throws.   Then, the Bears jump-started that broken down bus that they got off of running and actually moved the ball on the ground.  A little bit.  They toted the rock 38 times for 120 yards – barely over 3 yards per attempt.

On the other side of the ball, the Rams offense was in way over their heads, even against the banged up Bears defense.  It seemed like the Bears did a decent job holding Steven Jackson in check, but when you look at the final stats, he totaled 112 yards on 28 carries.  Jackson is a complete BEAST and is truly the only thing going for the Ram offense.  Kyle Boller is really bad and consistently missed easy throws.  Let me thumb through my notes and see what else jumped out at me.  (more…)

So we’re on to lucky Week 13 and the luck comes in with the pitiful  St. Louis Rams coming to town to face off against our humbled 4-7 Chicago Bears. The Bears started 3-1 and have gone 1-6 since while the Rams have only been able to muster 1 win all season.

There’s not much left to say about the season.  If the Bears somehow manage to lose this game, Lovie Smith and company might as well go jump in Lake Michigan because they’ll be sleeping with the fishes.  Let’s get right to the Keys to the Game:

Action Jackson

No big secret here – the Rams offense goes through this guy.  Steven Jackson is a beast and the only good thing going for the Rams.  With Marc Bulger on the bench and Kyle Boller at the controls, the Rams offense shouldn’t post much of a threat otherwise.

The Bears are already shuffling their defense around to bring the surer-tackling Kevin Payne into the lineup at Danieal Manning’s expense.

(more…)

Guys I Like this Week

1. Matt Forte vs Cleveland – I am calling Forte out…perform this week or I drop you from 2 of my squads…Cleveland???  Come on…and in the orange jerseys to boot…this has to be his week!!!
2. LeSean McCoy vs NYG – Westbrook’s concussion gives McCoy a chance to shine…not the best matchup, but AZ ran pretty well against the Giants last week.
3. Kevin Smith and Steven Jackson in the Toilet Bowl (StL @ Det) – This is probably the worst game on the schedule this week, but both defenses are suspect and I think both RBs have a chance to shine.
4. LaDanian Tomlinson vs Oakland – I don’t know why because LT has been disappointing, but there is something appealing to me about LT at home versus Oakland with a firm chip on his shoulder that sounds like a winning combo to me in favor of LT owners… (more…)

Nov. 12 at San Francisco, 7:20 p.m., NFL Network

At first glance, you see San Fran on the schedule and chalk this up as an easy win, but taking a closer look, this game is fraught with peril.  The Bears travel west to SF for a Thursday night game.  That’s a double whammy – traveling west is always tough and the home team always has an advantage in short weeks.

Besides all that, former Bears great Mike Singletary will pull out all the stops in this prime time game to show his former team and the nation that he can be a great head coach.  It hurts to say, but I think the Bears stumble here.  49ers 26-22.  L

Nov. 22 PHILADELPHIA, 7:20 p.m., NBC

This is the second consecutive prime time date, this time at home after extended rest.  The Eagles roll into town and the circus that surrounds them all season with the Mike Vick signing will be close behind.  I think the Eagles will fade a bit this season and the Bears will be tough at home, so this one’s a winner.  Bears 27-20.   W

Nov. 29 at Minnesota, noon, FOX

I don’t know if old man Favre will still be playing by the time the Bears roll to Minnesota.  Personally, I think this is the season when he finally breaks down playing on that concrete in the roller dome.  Without Favre, the Vikes should still be formidable with their defense and Adrian Peterson leading the way on offense.  The Bears have struggled in the Metrodome in recent years, tallying just one win in the last 5 seasons.  That trend continues in ’09.  Vikings 21-13  L

Dec. 6 ST. LOUIS, noon, FOX

The Bears bounce back big from a tough matchup at Minnesota and take it out on the Rams.  Aside from Steven Jackson, this Rams team doesn’t have much going for it.  Being one-dimensional plays right into the Bears hands.  Cutler, Forte and Olsen carve these guys up.   34-10.  Big W

The Bears get through a tough stretch of the schedule at 2-2.  No need to panic Bears fans.  We’ve still got the 4th quarter to close out the ’09 campaign.

BEAR DOWN!!!

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Home Games:  Packers, Lions, Vikings, Saints, Bucs, Jaguars, Titans, Eagles

Road Games: Packers, Lions, Vikings, Falcons, Panthers, Texans, Colts, Rams

The Bears home schedule is scaring me already.  They essentially have 7 playoff teams on their own tur.  I’m counting the Lions as the only non-playoff team and the Saints and Eagles as almost playoff teams since they were still on contention at seasons end.  What does that matter you ask?  It’s a whole lot closer to the playoffs than the Bears were this season.

We get a few breathers with a trip to Atlanta and Houston, although Houston is slowly getting stronger and building a good team.  Any match up against the Panthers turns into a lot of talk about how Steve Smith manages to burn us.  Let’s hope the Rams stay down and down bounce back next year, as they are likely to do.  You can’t tell me a team with that much talent is going to roll over again. 

I’m a little irritated the NFL put Bears-Colts in Indianapolis when they already have the advantage and play better in the dome.  It would be more fun to put the Colts in Soldier Field in December and see how the elements and home field advantage helps the Bears.  Making the Bears travel to Indiana will only set the stage for another embarrasment, likely on Monday Night.  The Saints appear destined to be forced to travel to Chicago every year and relive the misery of their lost season last year.  Why not bring the Colts to Chicago for a change and send the Bears down to New Orleans for once?

The Bears will certainly have their hands full with great runnings backs with Adrian Peterson, Maurice Jones-Drew, Michael Westbrook, Steven Jackson, plus the Panthers are starting to look like a solid running team.  The Bears will need all their defensive tackles to stay healthy and competitive this time or allow more career days for running backs.

Oh and I can just see the Donovan McNabb interviews when he comes to Chicago about if he wishse he played for the Bears.  I seriously doubt he’ll be in the Bears uniform so McNabb will have the opportunity for another homecoming to put a whooping on the Bears. 

I reserve the right to change my picks during the off season depending upon personnel changes on the team, but I’m going to come out right now and say 9-7 for 2008.  Wins against Packers, Lions, Vikings, Panthers, Falcons, Saints, Bucs, Texans, and Titans.  Losses against Packers, Lions, Vikings, Colts, Rams, Jaguars, and Eagles.