The NFL has announced today that the game time for the Week 12 matchup between the Chicago Bears and the Philadelphia Eagles at Soldier Field will be flexed.  The game, originally scheduled for 12:00pm CST on November 28, has been moved to 3:15pm CST.  This comes after the Bears big win against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday and the record-breaking performance by Michael Vick and the Eagles on Monday night, both wins moving the teams into a tie for first place in their respective divisions.

While both teams currently stand at 6-3, most people will probably heavily favor the Eagles.  The Bears do have a few things going their way.  They will be coming off an extended break after playing on Thursday night this week and the Eagles will be coming off a slightly shorter than normal week after playing on Sunday night against the New York Giants.  Either way, the NFL sees this as a game worth watching.  I’ll be hoping that intangibles play a factor and give the Bears an edge.  It could be a cold, sloppy snow bowl at Soldier field.

Flex Note: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Baltimore Ravens game was also flexed to 3:15pm CST on November 28th.  The changes were announced today because the NFL must announce flex scheduling changes at least 12 days prior to the game.

 The Bears offense has it’s hands full going up against the Giants defense, ranked 7th in the league.  Even more troubling is the dominance of Michael Strahan, Justin Tuck, and Osi Umenyiora to get after the quarterback.  If the Bears can keep the ball away from the Giants sack attack they still have a chance in this game.  The Giants rely a lot on their pass rush the way the Bears relied upon turnovers for the defense to excel last season.  If Lovie wants to win this game, this will be a game won by the art of deception and decoys. 

I hope the Bears utilize the hands of Adrian Peterson and keep the action spread out all over the field.  Normally I am a fan of running between the tackles and picking up tough yards.  If the Bears can get a running game going with Adrian Peterson, the Bears will do everything they can to control the tempo of the game.  When the Bears are forced into passing you should get your fill of screen passes, dump offs to the sideline, and maybe a few more appearances of the end around with Hester. 

If you are not in Chicago, let me fill you in.  I just looked out my window and there is a HEAVY snowfall coming down.  Weather reports indicate 3 inches will fall today but the snow isn’t melting.  It’s hitting the ground and accumulating quickly.  Field conditions tomorrow will pretty bad by game time.  The only thing this takes away from the Bears offense is the deep bomb to Berrian. 

Field conditions will be in the Bears favor tomorrow to establish a running game and using short, quick passes to confuse the Giants defense.  The Bears need a good, accurate game from Grossman and another game from Peterson with effort he showed last week.  Look for Bears receivers to be downgraded to blockers on every play.  The x-factor on offense is Greg Olsen and Desmond Clark that may find themselves open for a big play or two.

Giants offense v. Bears Defense

 The Bears are capable of putting up big points with the play makers on the roster, but it won’t matter if the defense keeps giving up 30+ points a game.  Eli Manning put up a terrible performance last week against the Vikings, who are not known for having a great secondary.  The troubling part is Eli has been very relaxed all week in interviews and New York reports are a little frustrated with how much he appears to not care. 

Two things could happen here.  Eli could be going down the road of Bad Rex by ignoring his critics and try to win the game on Sunday with a great play.  This would play to the Bears advantage unless he throws a pass towards the portion of the field where Adam Archuleta is too busy chasing butterflies.  Charles “peanut” Tillman will have to shadow Plaxico Burress the entire game and give him no room to come up with a big play. 

Brandon Jacobs is out but Derrick Ward is in, so the Giants running game will be ready.  The best the Bears defense can hope for is a little rust on Ward.  With the field conditions messy, the Giants will give Ward every opportunity and then some so shake it off.

The x-factor for the Giants will be Jeremy Shockey and if the Bears can contain him.

Special Teams

If the Giants want to win they will kick away from Hester.  Look for some creative package by the Bears to try to make something happen.  If the Giants kick short I wouldn’t be suprised if the Bears try a lateral to get Hester involved.  Anything can happen with Bears special teams on the field.

This could be a game with a lot of field goals, be prepared to see a lot of Gould.