Down 4 points, under 2 minutes with the ball placed on the 3-yard line…update the record to 2-5, right? Naw, not with a methodical game winning drive under the steady hand of #14. In what was otherwise a classic game of field position and field goals, it came down to what field general could administer the coup de grace…and it was Brian Griese, not native son Donovan F. McNabb.
Bend But Don’t Break: The defense turned in a solid performance, holding a potentially explosive offense to 16 points. The odd thing is there weren’t any turnovers…but that proved to not be an issue. Brian Urlacher played well enough in his matchup with Brian Westbrook, and the secondary made enough plays to limit any damage from their aerial attack. Tommie Harris is a beast, and seriously needs to be given every effort for the biggest and best contract we can offer him…he is everything we want in a Chicago Bear and has the potential to add his name in Canton.
DH Effect: I’ve never seen anyone in the game of football influence a game so much without even touching the ball (on ST). It’s like when pitchers won’t throw to a big hitter, I want to mock opposing teams fans with my best impression of a squawking chicken.
Game Management: No turnovers and making the plays when they had to, the offense deserves equal amounts of propers for this win (& Robbie's solid game). This puts us at 3-4 with a nice road win under our belt. Next week is Detroit, where a win will even up our record heading into the bye week, equipped with a new identity, momentum and self-confidence. Keep the faith. If this game is a microcosm of the season, maybe we've got 'em right where we want 'em.
BEAR DOWN!
#2 Al in WI said . . .Fuck it feels good to win! 1:54 on the clock, 97 yards to go, no timeouts? Griesie handles his fucking business and hits his recievers (TEA time, Hester and MOOOOOSE!) who came up big when it counted, just like they did last week. Wasn't always pretty, but a win is a win - and this one was HUGE!
October 22, 2007
#3 big rob said . . .I'm happy but more relieved than anything. The Bears have pulled themselves back from the brink for at least another week anyway. That last drive was brilliant by Griese, and the line. I just wish he would play like that the other 58 mins of the game. In 3 of his 4 starts he's played mediocre or worse only to turn it around in the final 2 mins of each game. Of his 8 td passes this year 4 have come with under two on the clock.
Congrats to Moose also for finally showing up. That was his finest game in probably a full season. He caught the ball, and made some plays down field.
Brian Urlacher, great effort leading the way for the still banged up defense. Hopefully a step in the right direction.
Having said all that, it's hard for me to get too excited over game like that. They could have just as well have lost, and have many, many areas that need improvement.
I'll leave that for tomarrow or another day, and just enjoy the win for now.October 22, 2007
#4 Brian Griese's QB rating said . . .MMMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October 22, 2007
#5 Bill said . . .97.8
October 22, 2007
#6 Green Lantern said . . .OK - quick thoughts. If that doesn't end the Grossman vs Griese nonsense I don't know what can. I still support Rex and say the coaches ruined him, but he had his chances. Griese has more poise.
Turner - why do you wait until desparation time to keep Hester in as a primary receiver? Berrian deserves to be benched for his matador block that cost us a TD.
Loive - take control and bench him in favor of Hester.
Defense was helped by an anemic red zone Philly ofense. Let's not get carried away.
Play calling was better - more play action on first down helped.
It's a real solid imporvement.
October 22, 2007
#7 GrieseDAChainMover said . . .could we kickoff the detroit game right now? pumped.
October 22, 2007
#8 Midway Monster said . . .Wooooo 97 yards no timeouts... way to go bears way to go Griese. GO BEARS
October 22, 2007
#9 Shady McBears Fan said . . .Yeah bud! I'll take a win any time. and a 97 yard drive to boot. Way cool - Feels good!
-- Midway --
(from Carmel By The Sea, CA)October 22, 2007
#10 Joe said . . .Griese just told reporters had had no radio communication with the coaches for that 2-minute drill. Does that sound extra SHADY to you? In Philly? Hey if Griese can run the offense like that without radio communication, give that green sticker to Cedric so maybe someone can tell him who to block.
October 22, 2007
#11 Joe said . . .Big win and I love it...but can we at least try something different when running the ball? Ced is going to be 2 inches shorter if he keeps running straight into the brick walls of opposing defensive lines. And for a measely two yards most of the time! How 'bought a little Wolfe to the outside? How 'bought anybody with speed to the outside?
October 22, 2007
#12 HesterFan23 said . . .And I second the idea of benching Berrian. Enough with this guy already!
October 22, 2007
#13 johnny said . . .First off, WOW!!!
This was a great game. I hated the fact that we had to settle so many times, but the Defense stuck with it, and the offense, did a nice job getting down the field.
I have one negative, and I want to get that out of the way -- AA. Archeleta should not start, he just seems like he is always a step behind everything.
Anyways, enough with that.
What can I say about this game. It was awesome, and I loved that 97 yard drive. I didn't have a lot of faith when we had about three plays of passes across the middle for four yards, but when the play calling got right, it was a thing of beaty.
Greg Olsen is a beast, and we have finally found out the different ways to use him. Hester didn't have any return yeards, but they gave us good position a few times. Also, that screen to Hester looked nice.
Big win, kept the season alive. I'll save more for another time!
October 22, 2007
#14 HesterFan23 said . . .now i want to hear all the BG haters now......he played a hell of a game...... he is only getting better each game..........now we need to work on the run game and get CB out of the backfield and have someone else with balls run the football.....the bears played well but defense needs to play better.......bears need to get AA out of the starting defense. he is really hurting the defense....he just sucks......
October 22, 2007
#15 HesterFan23 said . . ."Griese just told reporters had had no radio communication with the coaches for that 2-minute drill."
I wondered, because he was looking over there a few times and yelling something as well as shaking his head.
Very interesting...
October 22, 2007
#16 said . . .Okay, last thing for a while...
Did you guys see how Griese stepped up in the pocket, and avoided 2 or 3 sacks and instead got completions?
That was one of the best things I saw today.
October 22, 2007
#17 Shady McBears Fan said . . .Totally HesterFan23, the one that sticks out in my mind was the one where Benson didn't pick up the blitz to the right, someone (I forgot who) came unblocked and Brian sidestepped him, got hit with an arm, but made a nice throw over an Eagles CB right to Olsen who ran for a 1st down!
October 22, 2007
#18 BearDown1982 said . . .Totally HesterFan23, the one that sticks out in my mind was the one where Benson didn't pick up the blitz to the right, someone (I forgot who) came unblocked and Brian sidestepped him, got hit with an arm, but made a nice throw over an Eagles CB right to Olsen who ran for a 1st down!
October 22, 2007
#19 Nicole is CELEBRATING in this blue city said . . .Holy shit!
October 22, 2007
#20 BearDown1982 said . . .WHOOOO HOOO VIVA DA BEARS!!!
Jeff: Gould did well keeping us in the game however, he did miss his first attempt. I would say he did well but I would argue the word 'solid' should be kept for games without a missed attempt.
October 22, 2007
#21 Doug Buffone said . . .I've never yelled in anger so much during a Bears game, only to be left so happy in the end!
Go figure...we have the ball at the 40 all game, but score our first TD with 97 yards to go, no timeouts, and under 2 minutes to go. I just can't believe it.
Big cudos to Brian Griese. I thought he played well most of the game...wish we would throw the ball down field more often. (especially to Devin!) And Moose, glad you could join the party buddy! Say what you want about him, but at least he fights for yardage after the catch and blocks. (Bernard, you should be ASHAMED of yourself after that BS out there) Tight ends played very well. I thought that call on Olsen looked like BS to me, but we got some iffy calls too. Cedric Benson continues to leave me wanting way more...c'mon Ced, what the fuck?
Defense played alright. We got bailed out by McNabb making poor throws to open receivers a couple of times, but that is what it takes from time to time. Urlacher stepped up...and I thought McBride did well at corner. (he seems pretty physical too, at least compared to Vash most of the time) We need to get back to our turnover happy ways on defense though. Two games without causing a TO...c'mon D, that ain't you.
All in all...I am happy as hell right now!
October 22, 2007
#22 Pissed Off said . . .As I've just said on my Score 670 postgame show, the Bears won the game but are no where near a playoff team or super bowl calibur team. They got lucky and got a big win; but this was ugly again. Hopefully it'll get better but this is no excuse to cream your pants.
Griese: Great drive at the end of the game. That showed real poise. But before some of you send him to Canton in order to win some personal grudge match against some other fans, remember the following plays and keep it in perspective.
1. Griese missed a wide open Hester for a sure touchdown in the first half because of his cautious approach, and weak arm.
2. Griese's fumble at the 1-yard line. That is inexcusable, and something Rex was under attack for, and yet not a word about Griese.
3. The sack Griese took on the second to last drive that cost the Bears 13 yards of field possesion and resulted in having to start the last drive at the 3-yard line.
If not for a holding penalty against the Eagles that took away a crushing 1st down around the two minuet warning these topics would be on the front burner. So let's not over-react just yet.October 22, 2007
#23 Windy City Packer Fan said . . .We can do this! We can do this! Lions next week, if we dont fuck the dog like we did last week to an inferior divisional opponent at home, there is light at the end of the tunnel and that light is the playoffs, wait maybe its the division. I cant make it out right now but it will be much clearer next week.
October 22, 2007
#24 Shady McBears Fan said . . .For some reason all of the flights to Phoenix in the first week of February are sold out. What the hell?
October 22, 2007
#25 ron - not a rex hater - but not a Griese lover said . . .I agree Doug, the performance was not dominating by any means, however, the team showed heart when they could have packed it up for 2008.
This game was a must win by ANY means and they pulled it out, and all that counts right now is a win. The reason people are excited and giddy is because the season could have been over right now. I don't think anyone is drinking enough Bears kool-aid to believe that was actually a superb performance - but it WAS a performance that got the job done on the road.
Next week is a must-win statement game at home against Detroit. Let's get some revenge.
October 22, 2007
#26 Scuba Man said . . .Anyone see griese pointing to his helmet... Thats right. word is that his head set was on the fritz during the drive. What a f'n time huh... But that is what a veteran pro does. Handles. His. Business.
Allow me to repeat.
Handles His Business.Is he Tom Brady? no. And thats ok. He marched, he looked solid. He hit some 20 30 yd passes. Nice. tossed a few bad balls, then three a few good ones right after them.
Is the game giving me the Ups and Downs. Yeah its an emotional roller coaster. jsut like last week. Only this time I finished UP and that is nice. Good on the O for getting shit done. And good on the D for looking better (not back, but better).
Lets hope the d keeps getting healthier, shows up 4-4 at the bye, and 8-4 or 7-5 end of Nov. and 4 straight wins in decemeber (healthy) to roll into the play offd 12-4 or 11-5
October 22, 2007
#27 Coxy said . . .Bubbles were nice today.
October 22, 2007
#28 Bill said . . ."Hey Bryan Cox, at least you got Griese at QB!!" Said to me right before the punt that put them on the 4 to the laughing of the eagle fans. I didn't say anything, just nodded. Griese then shut that place up. I looked for the guy after the td but he was already out.
October 22, 2007
#29 Shamen said . . .This thing about the helmet going out on that drive is disgusting. There is a REAL problem in the NFL. The PAtriot cheating thing got swept under the rug for some reason. The conventional wisdom says it's either because they cheated in the SB or because the league found evidence that it's widespread.
Seriously - this is NOT something we shoudl ignore just becasue we won. In fact, SINCE we won we should press the issue. I think any hoem team that cannot make the signals work shoudl get SOME type of penalty. Maybe a 5 yard delay of game for each play the signals don't work. I bet they'd get it fixed in a damn hurry then!
October 22, 2007
#30 Coxy said . . .The good: 386 yards of offense and NO GIVEAWAYS!
The bad: only 72 yards rushing and no takeaways.
Ced got 17 carries and only managed 46 yards? Horrible. Berrian is really starting to piss me off with the drops and the lazy routes and the missed blocks. Then he makes a critical 25 yard catch on that last drive and you realize that he helps and hurts. Kind of like Rex most games when he was starting. We darn well better draft a receiver or two this spring as well as pick up a quarterback. Griese can do the job for the short term, but he's not the solution. Props for that last drive, but he did miss Hester in the end zone early and had that *awful* fumbled snap when we were on the doorstep. I'm not going to get overly excited about this win, but I am starting to get rather excited about Greg Olsen. He's going to be like Jeremy Shockey - line him up all over and let defenses scramble to try to cover him.October 22, 2007
#31 Bill said . . .Also. Let's wait until Hester learns the offense til we bench Berrian in favor of him. Moose on multiple occasions had to whisper his route to him before some plays.
Let's not forget about the false start rule saving olin's ass. That was crazy. Never heard of that in my life.
October 22, 2007
#32 HesterFan23 said . . .I see your point Coxy on Hester not being ready for full time yet.
The Olin snap was clearly due to the dirt on the field. That's got to be the WORST field I've EVER seen for a new stadium. HORRIBLE - and we haven't even had any cold weather yet.
October 22, 2007
#33 Windy City Packer Fan said . . .That snap really scared me...
October 22, 2007
#34 Decatur Staleys #7 said . . .Sorry, but you have got to check this one out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uv23pqH9iG0
October 22, 2007
#35 Shady McBears Fan said . . .hmmm...the best drive the Bear have all season,an BG can't hear Ron Turner on the helmet audio.
Makes me wonder....
October 22, 2007
#36 said . . .Seriously, Brian should just audible on evey play. Pass on a run defense, run on a pass defense etc. That would help Cedric Benson. He doesn't do well when we hand him the ball into a wall of run-suspecting players.
I wish Turner would be more creative with the running attack. Don't you think they might benefit from the element of surprise?
October 22, 2007
#37 Shady McBears Fan said . . .Sort of kidding. Ron Turner has called some pretty good plays and he can do a good job of utilizing the tight ends, but he can't seem to get the offense to click on a consistant basis...
October 22, 2007
#38 StartOlsen said . . .Regarding that botched snap:
"The Bears caught a break in the fourth on a bad snap that seemed disastrous, but instead turned out to be only a 5-yard penalty. On an apparent bit of miscommunication, the snap sailed through Griese's legs and was recovered by safety Sean Considine, who took off running.
Because the ball was snapped beyond a quarterback under center, the play was whistled dead and Chicago was hit with a false start. The Bears settled for Robbie Gould's 45-yard field goal that ticked off an upright for a 12-9 lead."
Never heard of that rule before, but alright! We'll take it. *Exhale*
October 22, 2007
#39 Shady McBears Fan said . . .No bitching. We won.
You're forgetting Berrian had some HUGE catches late in the game.Ill say this agian- game ball to McBride. Are you kidding? For a rookie, late rounder, to come in and play that well against an offense that good?
He had a great day.October 22, 2007
#40 JL said . . .For the record, BB had ONE good catch during the 4th quarter. Other than that he was below average. He whiffed on a block in the red zone that could have landed McKie in the endzone, ran tired routes, and just couldn't get on the same page as Griese until the season was literally in his hands. Which I give him credit for. I'd like to see Berrian return to 2006 form as much as anybody, but I feel like he's got his head elsewhere. Didn't he just hire agent Drew Rosenhous?
October 22, 2007
#41 Shady McBears Fan said . . .Skeptics, stop worrying about the 1 or 2 plays/calls that could have changed the outcome of this game - a win's a win and football's a game of inches and breaks anyway. What a patient 2 min drill executed with poise by Griese, with no timeouts. His veteran experience and discipline won that drive for us.
We gotta start planning for pooch kickoffs and punts so we can start with even better field position. And even though we didn't get a TD until late we got points on the board to keep pace on the road.
It feels like you're in the 1940s, but when satellite games are amiss there is no better way to experience Chicago football than through play by play from Jeff Joniak. ENDZONE - TOUCHDOWN! TOUCHDOWN BEARS!
October 22, 2007
#42 JL said . . .For the record, BB had ONE good catch during the 4th quarter. Other than that he was below average. He whiffed on a block in the red zone that could have landed McKie in the endzone, ran tired routes, and just couldn't get on the same page as Griese until the season was literally in his hands. Which I give him credit for. I'd like to see Berrian return to 2006 form as much as anybody, but I feel like he's got his head elsewhere. Didn't he just hire agent Drew Rosenhous?
October 22, 2007
#43 Shady McBears Fan said . . .Agree that BB should've blocked for McKie - but the larger question is why do we roll off 3 straight non-running plays on 1st and goal? 2 Benson pushes would've gotten the job done. I mean, if all he's going to do this year is push piles a few yards forward then at least let him do that in the red zone.
October 22, 2007
#44 BearDown1982 said . . .Good question. It boggles the mind why your #4 draft pick, who's now 'the guy', isn't pounding it in the endzone from the 3 for 6.
October 22, 2007
#45 StartOlsen said . . .Impressive win? No, but for anyone to say they aren't a little excited after your team drives 97 yards for the winning TD?!?!? Gimme a break. I certainly don't think anyone is making plans for Arizona as a result...but hey, you gotta start somewhere.
Anyways, Bernard's BLATANT missed block on the pass to McKie in the flat was disgusting. I'm getting very,very tired of his mental lapses. It will be interesting to see what excuse he has for that one...I'm sure one is coming. I don't think Devin is ready to be in the #1 or even #2 receiver spot yet, but they do need to get him on the field more often. It's evident that he is faster than anyone else on the field...more fly routes.
Anyone watch any of the Pats game today? Those guys are absolutely sick.
October 22, 2007
#46 said . . .Am I talking to myself? Trumaine McBride. Unheralded MVP today.
Phil where are you?
Doug, you nitpicker, go fuckyourself. Save the bitching about Greise for a game where he DOESN'T throw for 300 yards and the game winning score. Ya he missed Hester- all QBs miss guys. Get off his fucking ass you loser.
In case you missed it- he just won.We were all talking about this- remember?- coming into the Detroit game 3-4, a chance to get revenge, right an embarrasment, and get to .500.
Bear the fuck down
October 22, 2007
#47 startOlsen said . . .bear down, chicago bears
let every play clear the way for victory
bear down, chicago bears,
put up a might with a fight so fearlesslywe'll never forget the way you thrilled the nation
by putting Hester in the formation....October 22, 2007
#48 Nicole is CELEBRATING in this blue city said . . .wait- who in the NFC is that much better than us? If we get to 4-4 next week, we can possibly go on a roll, end up with 10 wins.
Ya, Dallas looks good and they beat our ass. That was early and things change. We killed Seattle last year, then they came in to the playoffs and took us to OT>
Who else?
Green Bay? HA.
The south? funny?
The west? We'll find out vs. Seattle.IT AINT OVA
TILL ITS OVA!!!!!!October 22, 2007
#49 Portuguese_Bear said . . .Oh yeah, the snap scared me too! I was going bananas and they call it 'by rule'. Alright, no heart attack just yet.
I gotta admit, I had cold chills when BG threw that pass. I held my breath and prayed. PRAISE GOD it's a W in the books.
October 22, 2007
#50 Megan said . . .Another miracle next week in Detroit? I don´think so...
October 22, 2007
#51 Decatur Staleys #7 said . . .YAY!! Bear DOWN!
(from my computer in sunny Cincinnati)October 22, 2007
#52 mikebdot said . . .NFL Network will replay the Bears game
Tues Oct 23rd 8:00PM EST
I can't wait to see it.
October 22, 2007
#53 Rancid said . . .Just wanted to mention something about the Griese fumble. The announcers said "oh he stepped back too early", but I'm pretty sure that happened after the "snap" that ended up 20 yards behind the line of scrimmage. At this point, I'm going to blame every fumble exchange on Kreutz, until he shows me he can play like a Pro Bowler center should play. I fear the Vikings were right about him. Why is it our lineman get to the second level of their D and never seem to hit anybody after doing so? It's like they're doing a f'in drill in practice.
I still think we should run a hurry up the whole game. We have the speed to do it. Make the defense tired and then, bam, right in the kissa (up the middle with Benson).
October 22, 2007
#54 Phil from SATX said . . .Obviously I would have preferred a 16-0 season, but I have to admit that I am having a lot of fun watching my team this year.
October 22, 2007
#55 JB said . . .It took me a while to get here, but I's ready. To me this game was like having a tour through the Usinger's sausage factory and being so disgusted that I almost gave up sausage entirely during the tour. However, at the end, the finished product was... oh so delicious. It's been said already but (speaking of sausage) what a gutty, gutty win. Both teams had to have this win, and one team took it.
The good and the bad:
The good:
Brian Griese - This is one of the few positions that I now have nearly complete confidence in. Let's remember that while there were very few points scored in this game, there were many scoring drives, and completely without the benefit of turnovers. This guy is solid, competent and confident. If he had a better arm, he could be right up there in the top QBs. But he's got the brain, and that's more important.
Devin Hester - How about Dick "Enough of You - Hit the Bricks Already" Stockton having as a game summary the fact that the "brilliant" punter kept Hester to zero return yards? Was that great analysis or what? How about, Devin Hester created great field position ALL DAY for the Bears? Wasn't THAT the story, you morons? I'll exchange that every single game for highlight reel returns - we've already got a passel of those.
MOOOOOOSE! - I might even give him MVB of this game. What veteran leadership shown. He saved a drive with his heads up tutelage and time out on Hester. He made plays, picking up where he left off at the end of the last game. He's showing he still has some skills left, and more importantly, plenty of fight left. Way to play in instrumental part in the game that had to be won.
Brian Urlacher - Came to play today. You could still tell he was hurting, especially early - I remember a play where he tried to make a tackle and looked like Superman with two Kryptonite earrings on. But he hung in there and made a lot of plays. Him and Briggs switched performances today.
Lovie Smith - It looked to me like Smith took over the D coaching today, with strict instructions to revert to the Cover 2. As maddening as it was to not get sacks, it was an effective game plan that limited the scoring. That looked more like Lovie than Babich. Didn't like it while I was watching it but can't argue with the results.
The Bad:
Defensive line - Almost no sacks? Against this line? Darwin Walker out again and apparently Anthony Adams is not as good as Antonio Garay? WHERE ARE OUR ENDS AND WHAT ARE THEY DOING? Their performance sucked.
AA - Yeah, at best you're mediocre, at worst you shouldn't be playing. Rather have Chris Harris than you, and for me, that's saying something. And it looks like you're rubbing off on the other white guy in the D, Hunter Hillenmeyer, who had a horrible game to my eyes as well. (BH transcends race, and even humanness).
Cedric Benson - I used to scoff at those who said that Benson "ran lazy" and didn't show fire in his body language. Guess what? They were right, I was wrong. Is there any other back in the league you can think of that has less winning body language than this guy? He lays on the ground after his runs, no urgency about getting up and back to the huddle, no sparkle, nothing. I'm ready for a heavy dose of AP, who looks professional and acts like he wants to play, that it's important to him.
Olin Kreutz - Worst game I've ever seen out of him.
Bernard Berrian - Sorry, this should have been at the top. What a sorry ass performance. What happened to this guy? He's got Bensonitis. Sit him and don't sign him next year. Yeah, I know, he made one catch in The Drive. He's dead to me. Kudos to the otherwise-awful announcing crew for pointing out to the world the unforgiveable not-really-trying block on the should-have-been TD play. Live that one down, you loser. You apparently can't catch a ball if there's a defender within 5 yards of you. How about fighting through the opposing hands, out-concentrating and out-muscling a DB? Congratulations on your new agent - use him to piss off another NFL team, not us.
Ron Turner - Sorry, but I still blame lack of offensive production on RT. I just wonder what a real O coordinator could do with this team. All he had to do was continue with the game plan of the Vikings game. Quick passes, pitchouts to the RB, heavy dose of TEs. I didn't see much of any of that. He especially botched the running game. We cannot move the ball on the ground in plain jane fashion. And for whatever reason, we can't move the ball left in any configuration. He wasted bunches of plays with this stupidity. And horrible playcalling in the red zone. This team needs to play action fake on nearly every play, and it does it only about 10 times a game.
Did I miss anybody? Oh yeah, Brian Baldinger - what an ass. Focusing on the bad interference call in favor of Berrian while totally glossing over the HORRIBLE and OBVIOUS pass interference on the next play to Bradley - that one, not called clearly as a makeup (which you don't see much of in football), would have given us the ball at the 10. Plus lots of other stupid stuff. I hate you Brian Baldinger.
One more - Robbie Gould, don't EVER miss a 39 yarder with a clean snap, no wind. Okay? We expect excellence out of you, and those 3 points off the board were CRITICAL. You almost pooch-screwed the last one too, watch it there Pro Bowler.
So that's it, I'm re-pumped, time to really put it all together against the Lions and then a reenergizing BYE week. Get healthy, get on a run. I surely hope this stirring victory galvanizes the team.
Way to go Bears!
October 22, 2007
#56 mikebdot said . . .For the record, I wrote the heading last night, not Jeff...so I guess if you have any beefs with the wording it's me you should argue with...but even with that one miss, I think Robbie had a solid game...solid, not great.
Phil, what a monologue...ummm, do you have anything to say about Ayenbedajo or Isreal Idonije? you covered just about everyone else. jk phil...good day my friends...good day.
October 22, 2007
#57 Bill said . . .I know Berrian missed the "block" on that play to McKie, but I fucking hate pick plays. He just ran a poor route. He should not have even LOOKED at the guy he was trying to get in the way of. That's the key to a pick play. You run your route, claim your space, and let the defender take himself out of the play. I don't think he UNDERSTOOD what he was supposed to do, that is all on Turner (or the WR coach). I repeat, that was not a BLOCK, it was a poor ROUTE.
Some notes on officiating
I was glad to see Bradley out there more. He was interfered with on that deep pass. It could be argued it was underthrown, but it still could have been a jump ball. The pass to Hester in the end zone that was broken up was a perfect play by the defender breaking up the pass, but there was illegal contact on the corner that released Hester to the safety. The call on Olsen was complete BS. He was within 5 yards and didn't "push off" at all. The "bad call" on the Eagles that sparked a drive that ended up in a FG was not a bad call. The "press coverage" was a hold. He held onto the receiver's jersey. I'm not sure why that wasn't clear to Balldingler. Or Dick. Or whoever it was talking all kinds of stupid.Lovie finally made a challenge on a play that he should have challenged. Color me befuddled.
October 22, 2007
#58 Bill said . . .On Comcast Sports one of the ex-Bears said the D was in the 46 some of the time. The Trib essentially said the same thing - Urlacher lined up over one of the tackles. (With the key thing of the 46 being two LBs on one side and a safety acting like an LB.)
I get so DAMN sick of announcers who seem to know less about the game than I do. That whole "Philly's punter is doing a great job" crap is IGNORANCE. But in fainess, the fact that the Bears did little with the field position made the risk worth it for the Eagles. Could you imagine the score if opponents gave the Patriots that kind of field position all day? I think they'd score 50 points. We have to be much more aggressive on offense and not wait until we're behind at the end.
October 22, 2007
#59 Bill said . . .Mikebdot:
I have to differ with you on the Berrian play. My recollection from the replay was that McKie already had the ball when Berrian essentially got out of the linebacker's way and let him make the tackle. It didn't look like a pick play - usually the "pick" takes place before the ball is thrown. Again, it's based on recollection, but I remember it as McKie having the ball and Berrian being in a position to make a block and choosing not to. But maybe I'm wrong. I wish I would have TiVo's the game. I don't get NFL Network becasue I'm not paying $20 a month or whatever Comcast charges to get it and a buch of soccer channels.October 22, 2007
#60 mikebdot said . . .OK - one more thought about idiot announcers. Did you see the graphic that said the Bears had the ball over 40 minutes? That was obviously wrong, yet Stockton went on like it was correct. "What an amazing turnaround from the first half, when they were behind by quite a margin.
I'll say! Since they were behind, they had less than 15 minutes at half time. There was 5 minutes left. So to have 40 minutes they woudl have had to have THE ENTIRE SECOND HALF (25 minutes up to that point.)
"But it says so right on our graphic! How can that be wrong??"
Morons.
October 22, 2007
#61 mikebdot said . . .Bill: I could be remembering wrong. I know for a fact that it was a pass, but if Berrian makes contact (since he wasn't looking at whether or not the ball was thrown and at the defender instead) it's possible they call pass intereference (in his mind). I'll check and mea culpa, say it was marginaly, or challenge further.
I did DVR the game, so I'll make sure or at least comment further. I just got DVR on Thursday. It's already paid for itself. $120 per year so I can watch whatever I want when I want.
October 22, 2007
#62 Pissed Off said . . .Bill: I could be remembering wrong. I know for a fact that it was a pass, but if Berrian makes contact (since he wasn't looking at whether or not the ball was thrown and at the defender instead) it's possible they call pass intereference (in his mind). I'll check and mea culpa, say it was marginal, or challenge further.
I did DVR the game, so I'll make sure or at least comment further. I just got DVR on Thursday. It's already paid for itself. $120 per year so I can watch whatever I want when I want.
October 22, 2007
#63 Northside Superfan said . . .Great analysis by everyone. StartO you need to chill out. I loved the game, except the first 58 minutes. Griese put it together nicely at the end. Wish he didnt fumble snaps, and miss open WRs for TDs due to weak arm but I guess if we win every game in the final two minutes I'll take that too. Cant wait for next week. I want kickoff to be today. Griese likes to win on the road I guess, lets have him and the team put something together at home and win next week, he's due. 500 would be great going into the bye. Hester changes games, I love it. Loved the D today, Westbrook was all but shut down and if you can do that you will beat the eagles. Though we are not where we were last year, we did win and it feels good. Lets keep that feeling rolling for weeks to come.
October 22, 2007
#64 Phil from SATX said . . .Why the hell was there such a negative bias against the Bears in the coverage of this game? That stat they kept showing said "Devin Hester--0 Return Yards" like he did something wrong! How about "Devin Hester--0 Returns", that would have given a more accurate picture.
I think an interesting thing about this game is that it highlighted a few of the blessings-in-disguise that might be behind what, to me, is still basically a lost season (with the Patriots in the league, every team in the NFL might as well say that anyway). Consider...
1) Brian Griese. There is a very, very small list of NFL QBs who could pull off a 97 yard drive with no timeouts in the closing seconds to get a win. Griese is on it. No, he's not Brady or Manning, but he is a good, smart, solid QB who can play this position for a few years while we bring another young guy along. That frees up money that would have been spent on Rex or another free agent in the offseason.
2) Bernard Berrian. Now, personally, I still like Berrian, and I hope the Bears keep him. But, so far this year, it has become clear that a) we can live without him if we need to, especially with Olsen, Hester and Bradley emerging as receiving threats and b) If we want to keep him, there is no way is new asshole agent can possibly demand the kind of big money he was going to demand. All Angelo has to do is show Rosenhaus the tape of that missed block. So there's more money that's freed up for offseason spending.
3) While the play on both sides of the ball has been inconsistent this year, contrary to what Jay "complete moron who knows nothing about any sport but somehow gets paid to pretend like he does" Mariotti says, we do not need to rebuild this team. The PIECES of an elite team on defense are very much still there and many of them are there on offense. Hopefully, with some good draft picks and some good moves, we can upgrade the o-line and RB positions and be ready to go next year.
Having said all that, I'd like to pose a question. I know that John St. Clair and Terrance Metcalf are not NFL starting material, but how could these guys possibly be any worse than Tait and Miller are playing. Now, I'm more or less off the Benson bus at this point, but I still mostly blame the O-line. Every running play that falls apart, its because those guys part like the red sea.
October 22, 2007
#65 mikebdot said . . .Thanks for the correction, MikeB. But is a receiver allowed to block once the ball is in the air though? If not, I was led in the wrong direction by the announcers. Great analysis by you on the other bad calls - and of course Baldinger was lauding the call on Olsen.
JB, thanks for reminding me, there were a few more things I forgot:
Good: Great job Oline on pass protection, although once again it was more because of a different QB back there who's getting it out faster and stepping up into the pocket better (good call by someone earlier). Oline is terrible on run blocking though.
Bad: No defensive turnovers? WTF is going on with these guys? Something that was a staple of our D is GONE. I don't see guys diving for, and anticipating, deflections. We have seemingly replaced guys who "had a nose for the ball" with ones who don't.
Kickoff coverage - what happened to dropping these guys inside the 20 like earlier in the year? Kickoff coverage looked just average.
Two HORRIBLE D plays - Archuleta and Tillman waiting for Westbrook and allowing themselves to be split for the first down.
Ricky Manning taking a pass on old Donovan McNabb, allowing him to get the first. That was pitiful.
I don't mean to focus on the negative, because believe me, I am psyched. But there are certainly things to be fixed.
October 22, 2007
#66 Phil from SATX said . . .Phil: I'm honestly not sure what the rule states regarding "blocking" while the ball is in the air, but my feeling is that OUGHT to be pass interference, even if it isn't defined as such. It's why I hate that WR screen play to Steve Smith. We ran the play to Hester, but Moose's timing was PERFECT. He started blocking just as Hester caught the ball.
There might be something in the rulebook that allows for blocking while the ball is in the air if the player catching the pass is behind the line of scrimmage. I guess that would allow a screen pass since when the ball is in the air an O-lineman is technically impeding a play on the ball from the D-lineman/LBer. If that's the case, Berrian needs to understand the rules and do everything within the rules to make for a successful play.
I still think Kreutz f'ed up the snap to Griese on the 1. Just because he is the common ingredient. I gave Rex a pass in the pre-season if you'll recall too, so that's a preemptive "chill out" to PO'd. :)
I think we play much better against Detroit this time around. Perhaps Vasher can come back? Anyone know how close he was to playing this week? They're probably just planning on waiting until after the bye. And with the way McBride played, I'm not sure I blame them.
I'm not sure why everyone is on AA for that game. I'll watch the game again, but I seem to recall him making a few tackles behind the line in key situations. I know he "gave up" the TD pass, but that is where our D has space in it in that coverage. That is the system. It is what it is. Would you blame Urlacher if McNabb didn't overthrow the TE on the other possible TD throw because he didn't drop back far enough?
Is there a blatant AA screw up that I missed? It's not as though he gave up a deep ball by letting the receiver behind him. I thought he was solid.
October 22, 2007
#67 mikebdot said . . .I am anxious to watch the game again, and thanks to Decatur for showing me when I can see it because I unfortunately had to reset my receiver after the game and it wiped out my recording. Otherwise I would have watched the entire game again, despite the other sports on.
AA just seems "around" every play but not "making" plays, and certainly not making impact plays. A day late and a dollar short is what I'd call him. And I'd describe yesterday's Hillenmeyer game as the same.
And I agree with comments about left side of the line, although they're still okay on pass blocking, but they can't run block worth a shit.
All reports have Vasher out until the bye week. But I thought Walker was practicing last week? Why wasn't he in there?
Ian Scott is available for signing... just a thought. He's interior, but any ideas from anyone about why the ends were so ineffective in that game?
October 22, 2007
#68 Bart Start said . . .Phil: I didn't see your beef with AA and Tillman until after my post. I didn't particularly like that play, but in retrospect, they were making sure they didn't give up a 60 yarder (like last week...). Still, they both should have been decisive and ran towards him, picked him up and slammed the bastard to the ground. The whole team doesn't make sound tackles, they always slap for the ball as they tackle. I hate it with a passion, especially when it's a running back. If the guy fumbles a lot I can see doing that occasionally, but every play?
Of course, the secondary got so used to being able to do that every play last season because the ball carrier was stood up by the time they got there. This season the holes have been bigger. Anderson and Ogunleye are both speed rushers and end up running themselves out of the play. They remind me of Dwight Freeney, without the ability to get pressure on a regular basis. Even though Anderson put up some big sack stats last season, he just doesn't push the offensive line much. He breaks free and rushes in every so often, but he just doesn't move bodies around. Nor does Ogunleye. Even Harris and Adams/Walker don't get much push in there. We really miss Dusty.
October 22, 2007
#69 Chi-Town Joe said . . .Well looks like the Bears will be 6-10 this year.
October 22, 2007
Bear down? No, more like "GO LUCK!!!"
October 22, 2007
Here at DaBearsBlog, you are free to kill us or the Bears as you so wish. You are not free, however, to be an asshole. So if you spew racism or ill-meaning foul language (cursing about football is just fine) or anything of that ilk, your comments ain't gonna last long, jerk.