Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports
What do you see when you think of Josh McCown? Is it Ivan Drago? Maybe it’s a stretch but that’s what I see. For those of you not following, Ivan was the “unbeatable” Russian from Rocky IV. Maybe it’s because the Bears fans HOPE he is Ivan, who supposedly went 100-1 in his matchups. Isn’t that what we want in McCown; a great, strong showing?
McCown is hitting what may be the game of his career this Monday night when he faces the Green Bay Packers. A win would put the Bears back up with the Packers in a tie for first place of the division; a loss would put the Bears two games back as well as behind Detroit. Halfway through the season in one of the most competitive divisions, third place is not where you want to be. Luckily, Martellus Bennett isn’t too worried about McCown starting in place of injured veteran Jay Cutler.
“It’s just like eating Cheerios and having Corn Flakes,” he told the media. “They’re pretty much the same. They both get the job done. You’ve got to add sugar to both, though. We are the sugar and the flavor of the offense. As long as they don’t get soggy, we’re good.”
What benefits Josh McCown is not only the fact that he has weapons around him such as Matt Forte, Brandon Marshall, Martellus Bennett, and Alshon Jeffery, but he also has a lot of experience. Drafted in 2002, McCown has been in the league for 11 years and has played in 60 regular season games. He’s a student of the game and there’s rarely a time you see Cutler talking to the coaches without McCown being right behind him.
Those that didn’t think he could get the job done may have been surprised and felt a sigh of relief when they watched him go 14 for 204 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
“You don’t want to lose your quarterback,” Coach Marc Trestman said. “We don’t want to lose Jay. But we’re lucky to have Josh. He’s an experienced player in that he has the ability to move the football team and make good things happen, and take care of the football.”