Nine thoughts on last night's performance:
1. I wanted Kyle Orton to play well but I did not expect that. Orton looked brilliant. His first touchdown pass to Rash was as precise a throw as I've ever seen him make. He also threw the ball away when he needed to. But it was his poise and passion that struck me most. He played his best football knowing that a bad performance would be front page news the next morning. I never doubted the guy taking snaps. When's the last time that happened?
2. Two words: Kevin Jones.
3. Hey Peanut. You know I love you. You have two weeks to remove your head from your ass.
4. So Devin Hester is God. Rash Davis had his coming out party (Congrats Max). Duke of Earl has tremendous potential. Brandon Lloyd was out there blocking punts. Every time Mark Bradley gets on the field, he does good things. So my question? Is Marty Booker getting cut? If not, where has he been?
5. Our special teams aren't good. They're the best I've ever seen in the sport.
6. I'm going to watch the game again in a few minutes but on first sight I was impressed by John St. Clair.
7. Greg Olsen. Not so much with the blocking. They missed Desmond Clark last night.
8. One complaint about Ronald McDonald: too much running right up the middle on first down. This offense is a different unit when they're not digging out of second and longs.
9. God it was nice to watch the Bears play football.
DAILY ADDENDUMS:
There are real reports now coming out of Indianapolis that Peyton Manning may not start against us week one. The Bears could open the season by facing the Colts and Panthers and avoiding Peyton Manning and Steve Smith.
Rod Wilson broke his arm and he's out for the year.
Shawne Merriman is weighing season-ending knee surgery. Damn, this came out of nowhere.
#2 minnie Mad Dog said . . .jut put the score on and the report on last night's game was entirely negative, only about the defense. i'm done with the chicago media.
August 22, 2008
#3 craig said . . .Nice Post, Jeff.
I was frankly shocked by just how well Orton played. You didn't mention how weak Grossman looked, by comparison, or how badly the defense played. To me, it looked like the entire defensive team was recovering from hangovers. Urlacher said about the same in interview. Hope Lovie gives the defense a moving "inspirational lecture" and expect he will. They are capable of a lot better. What's your take on the defense?
August 22, 2008
#4 Phil from SATX said . . .Even though I was resistant, KO impressed me last night. Being chosen over Rex seems to have been a big confidence boost, and boy, does it show. It was like watching an entirely different player. That said, I'll temper my expectations a bit... we've seen Rex be brilliant in single games too. Keep it up, Kyle.
A thought about the defense: Everyone says it was injuries that did it last year, but you know what else happened in the dropoff between #5 defense and #28? Babich. If the guys are all healthy and the D continues to play like it did last night... He's your common factor.
Had to run out for a second last night and missed the Kevin Jones run. Sounds like it was nice.
And yes. Best special teams ever. Dave Toub must be a genius.
August 22, 2008
#5 jeremy34 said . . .I too am worried about Babich. If this group stays healthy and does not return to top of league form, it's him - it has to be! That said, I'm not putting TOO much stock in their poor performance last night. I thought it was unfair by Aikman to talk about the drop last year - he gave a cursory mention to the injuries ("sure, we know they had injuries, but that wasn't all of it") - at this point, I'm ready to believe that it was all of it. We had to be the most injured team in the league on defense - maybe not the team as a whole, but almost all of our injuries occurred to defensive starters. In addition we had a starting strong safety who was a complete bust and who is no longer on the team.
But Aikman was making the correct point - now that these guys are back, if they keep looking the same as they did last year, something else is going on. Let's hope these guys aren't just fat and happy with all of their newfound riches. I was a little surprised there was so much TV kudos given to Urlacher's "candid" interview. He really didn't look that pissed - I think Mike Brown was probably truly pissed. I would have liked to see players throwing helmets. And btw, where has Tommie Harris been? Is it just his job to draw the double teams? His name has barely been called in the preseason. Peanut had a BAD night last night. Was McGowan not playing? Maybe that was a reason?
But I'll still say the real story of the game was the offense, and Kyle Orton. I'm still stoked.
August 22, 2008
#6 Northside Superfan said . . .By the end of the year we will have two very capable backs in Forte and Jones. I thought Wolfe looked good in some drills a few weeks ago, but maybe he won't be able to be much of anything in games. I'm all for smaller guys getting it done, but Wolfe is short but more importantly thin. Either way, I am glad we got two good backs in Forte and Jones.
How bad is Vernon Davis??? Tremendous athletic skills but can't run a route........ or as my 49ers friend said last night, can't even draw a route.
August 22, 2008
#7 AK said . . .Um...Jeff...I know the Chicago media can be negative, but that performance by the defense was pretty damn disturbing. The 49ers are terrible! They have a worse o-line than the Bears, no receivers and a journeyman QB. They made our pro-bowl veterans look like a bunch of high school players! Tillman? Vasher? Urlacher? Where the hell were these guys last night?!
I'm excited about Orton as well, but I don't know how it's possible not to have extremely negative feelings about the way our defense played last night.
August 22, 2008
#8 jeff said . . .Orton looked good. I hope he can keep it up.
Wasn't too happy about the FWF's booing Rex when his receivers dropped the ball, the RB went nowhere and then he had to throw it away because of an imminent sack.
Other than that, I'm sure the defense will have something to prove at Indianapolis and the offense has nowhere to go but up.
August 22, 2008
#9 Rancid said . . .northside, i'm not claiming the defense played well but the broadcast didn't mention the offense. they didn't say the name "kyle orton." t's as if the chicago media isn't happy unless they're complaining. they spent a week writing how bad the offensive line is and now they look foolish because they played a great game last night. i'm not worried about the defense.
just watched the game again..orton played better than his numbers. big drops by hester, rash and mckie - rash on a touchdown pass. this team has to stop dropping the ball.
like to see them continue to develop olsen all season. he can become a terrific safety net for ko, though i wouldn't mind seeing the damn fade route in the endzone retired. i hate that fucking play.
August 22, 2008
#10 BearDown1982 said . . .Northside - I think jeff's beef with the Chicago media wasn't that they trashed our Defensive performance but that they only talked about that and didn't say anything positive about an impressive KO and offensive performance. Everyone who saw the game last night knows our D looked bad, but how can you not say anything positive about the O? That's what makes the Chicago media look bad
August 22, 2008
#11 Phil from SATX said . . .No pressure from the front four and more bad tackling. That about sums up the problems with the defense for me. Tillman played a terrible game last night...rather have him do that in the preseason than in week 1 against the Colts.
I thought Orton looked impressive. It was nice to see a host receivers making plays. We don't have a go to guy so the ball will have to be shared by many this year. O-Line looked good...but I expect the performance from them to be mediocore as a whole throughout the season. It will be interesting to see how they do against that speedy Colts D in week one.
Special teams...Wow. We are the Va Tech of the NFL. I do wish we wouldn't put Vash out there to take punt returns in the 3rd Quarter of a preseason game though...is that really necessary?
August 22, 2008
#12 Idonije said . . .Both newspapers did pretty well on the coverage, with the Kyle success highlighting the coverage, but tempered with bad D. So this just may be a Score issue?
It was beyond bad that Soldier Field was booing an already demoted Rex. Fuck those fans. It's also a reason why Rex needs a new home. Aikman said uncharacteristically nice things about Rex (he was one of Rex's biggest detractors back in the SB season).
Rash totally had his 3rd TD catch (and Kyle's 3rd) RIGHT IN HIS HANDS! Don't do that Rash! Hester I expect to drop balls - not Rash.
Jason McKie SUCKS! He's GOT TO GO! Especially since he is INEXPLICABLY, suddenly, a HUGE part of this offense. RT WTF? Are you insane? (that would be a rhetorical question)
Kudos to PO'd for your response to the game.
August 22, 2008
#13 Idonije said . . .Great analysis overall, but I love the fade route in the endzone to Olsen. Although I disagree with how it was called. The play should start with no receivers on one side, and then Olsen should motion out to the empty side leaving only a LB or S to deal with him....that would be unstoppable if KO throws the ball high enough.
August 22, 2008
#14 Pissed Off said . . .Amen Phil I don't think McKee should ever touch the ball except on the occasional dump off. Why the runs up the middle? Terrible play calling. And I agree that the defensive problems are stemming from little pressure from the D-Line. I hope once we get ABrown Ogun Tommie and whoever else in their for real the pressure will be revved up and the D will be in business, but if that doesn't happen then both coordinators need to go next year.
August 22, 2008
#15 jeff said . . .Thanks Phil, that game actually gave me a glimmer of hope for this season, the teeniest, tinyest, preseason glimmer but a glimmer nonetheless of how this offense might not suck as bad as we thought. I'm glad most everyone is still even keel on the game and not acting as though we won a superbowl. Its just preseason. We lost the game but you gotta feel good about what Kyle was able to do...but still....preseason. If Kyle keeps this up, which I still dont see happeing (sorry for the negativity) thru the start of the regualr season and moreso deep into the season, I'll give him his due. I cant say the same for the coaches because of the whole QB derby farce though.
I dont know if I agree but assessments from media are that McKie is one of the best FBs in the NFL. Like Phil, I dont see it but I'm not a talent scout by any means, especially for FBs, maybe the most obscure position in football.
August 22, 2008
#16 Phil from SATX said . . .you know what phil? i like mckie but where was he last night? he didn't come to soldier field.
August 22, 2008
#17 Phil from SATX said . . .I think Polite has to be a better option than McKie. Doesn't he? You think we might have been a little better off trying to pick up Brian Leonard in 2007 instead of Dan Bazuin in the second round? Just maybe? (I know we'd have had to move up 10 spaces, but man does this organization love to ignore offense)
Thinking that Jason McKie is a great option at fullback is emblematic of an offensive philosophy that strives for mediocrity.
August 22, 2008
#18 Jimbo said . . .Good hands, McKie has, but not NEAR a good enough blocker and an even worse runner. That's 1 out of 3, not good enough.
August 22, 2008
#19 Brian in Sec 430 Row 25 said . . .Ok. I'll admit, i didnt think Orton had the ability to play like a starting NFL QB. I was pissed when he won the job. But... he made every throw (4 of which were 15+ yards) last nite. The TD passes (all 3 to Davis and the one to Olson that was called back) were perfectly thrown. The O-Line played great. There wasnt always a hole, but no sacks in the 1st half!!! Actually i think only rex got sacked with the #1 line.
I just can't get over how legit Orton looked. he stepped up in the pocket to avoid a sack. he make short, medium, and longer medium passes. He got rid of the ball early. Made no mistakes. Had great touch on a couple passes. Found wide open guys (bradley on that broken coverage pass). If he can play like that consistantly (20 points in the 1st half, which should have/could have been 24 or more) is freaking awesome.
I could do without all the McKie in the flat business. Especially if he's gonna drop stuff.
Forte and Jones looked great. Shit its nice to see RB's who hit the hole at full speed. I see Jones as more of a power back and Forte as the speedy shifty guy. That 1-2 punch is gonna be good this year.
O-line played pretty good. Indy's D is gonna be alot tougher, but overall a HUGE improvement.
Booing Rex was unclassy and un-necessary. That being said, he didnt look very good in the 3rd quarter with the 1's. We went stright back to hurried passes, incompletions, and a near INT. He isn't playing with confidence right now... but cant blame if for that. I love that he came out and threw a bomb... should have been a TD if it wasnt for the interference. I have to say though, Rex is a class act. He's never bitched. He's been treated like shit since that Monday night game in arizona in 2006. I hope the best for him, he needs a new place to play. The fans of chicago (at least the ones at the game) hate this guy. It just kinda sucks to see... he already lost his job, why add insult to injury??? If hes wearing burnt and navy, and not losing games anymore, he should be getting support. Chirst you would think he was clubhouse cancer like TO or something.
The D will be fine. They played bad... i would hate to be the indy Offense, cause they are gonna be fired up. Did you see mike brown light that reciever up over the middle on the first (or second)
GO bears!
August 22, 2008
#20 PolygonHell said . . .My bottom line on last night's performance is this....I am MORE discouraged about the 2008 season than I was before the game. Why would I be more discouraged when we had so many positives on Offense and Special teams? The answer is simple, the defense was as bad as I could ever imagine our defense being. And worse yet, it is the 2nd time this year AT HOME in which a HORRIBLE offense from 2007 riped us apart. If I was given the choice, I would MUCH rather have watched a game where the defense was a beast and the offense struggled. We have proven we can go a long way with an average offense and a awesome defense, but there is no evidence to support us being a winning team with a solid offense and a terrible defense. The fact these performances were against the Chiefs and 49ers cannot be overstated...that is a disaster. Time for Lovie to but his D Coordinator hat back on and help babich fiqure out what the hell is wrong...and in a HURRY.
Since, I do not want to be 100% negative I would by lying if I said KO's perfromance was just what the Dr. ordered....should have been 3TD's if not for the drop of what seemed like a well thrown ball in the endzone.
August 22, 2008
#21 Phil from SATX said . . .I thought Orton played well, as did the offensive line, pass protection in particular. I can live with that type of offensive performance all year (here's hoping).
Special teams we're incredible again despite the fumbled return and Hester getting away with one running out of the endzone.
The defense was just plain bad. It's hard to see what they were doing well, they didn't pressure the quarterback, they didn't stop the run they always seemed to be miles off in coverage, and they couldn't tackle.
Hopefully the D situation is an aberation.
Grossman looked like someone who didn't want to be out there, he didn't look on, his long ball to Bradley would have been a touchdown without the interference call, but it was one play. He had one pass that was almost picked off (bad decision), and he threw one away to avoid the sack.
I still think the crowd booing every none positive play by Grossman is just classless, but I guess they paid for the tickets.
It was interesting to hear Aikman relate the story of Rex working with Kyle in the film room after the decision had been made.
Again it's still preseason, so you have to be careful reading too much into it.
August 22, 2008
#22 Swubber said . . .Don't know anything about Kevin Jones yet. LOVED the first run! Matt Forte is really reminding me of a young Thomas Jones - in being able to do everything well. He just looks like a playmaker. The thing about Thomas Jones is that he was enough of a professional and a competitor to take it upon himself to get the job done, even if he had to improvise to get there. That is totally what I got out of Matt Forte last night - he's going to do whatever he needs to do to get the job done. If he needs 3 for a first, he's going to get it. If there are no holes where there're supposed to be, he'll shift over a little. If it takes a bailout checkdown pass, he'll catch it and hunch low to squirt through some people.
Bottom line, this kid is a BALLER.
What enormous refreshment that is to a parched Bear fan.
August 22, 2008
#23 jdawg said . . .Jimbo what are you talkin about? Jones is clearly a shifty-speedy type. Now i dont know if i would say the same thing about Forte. I reckon him as more of an allround back
August 22, 2008
#24 craig said . . .yes -- it was nice to see KO play well. Let's hope they can build on this, even though it was SF playing what I assume is a pretty vanilla D.
I hope our D picks it up. I don't put this on Babich because this is Lovie's D, make no mistake about it. It almost seems like they thought they could just show up and kick some ass.
I guess they weren't out of chewing gum.
August 22, 2008
#25 mikebdot said . . .Ditto everyone on how well Rex has handled fans/media during his time in Chicago and how shitty it was for people to boo him last night.
Another thing that's come to my attention is how vanilla teams seem to be playing Orton. Seattle blitzed the hell out of Rex, but laid off on Kyle. Here Biggs notes that SF blitzed the hell out of GB last week, but didn't do much of that this week. Thoughts? Are they scared of the Neckbeard?
August 22, 2008
#26 jdawg said . . .You all do realize that Mike Martz is the OC for the 49ers, right? The same Mike Martz whose offense scorched our asses twice last season, right? He couldn't possibly have had anything to do with the niners success last night on offense.
You all think we really want to show our hand regarding blitzes, etc. to bring pressure against such an offense? You think the 3rd game of preseason is bullshit? You think we wouldn't use that knowledge to our advantage?
Just sayin'.
August 22, 2008
#27 Phil from SATX said . . .2 points:
Yeah, I'm depressed for Rex. I don't think he should be the starting QB but I still feel, under different circumstances (for the last 5 years) he could have been groomed into a good QB.
This was a preseason game. I think the defense played vanilla, both scheme-wise and emotionally. The latter bothers me. The former doesn't.
Reason for hope: I suspect Mike Brown entered the locker room post game ready to kick some ass and chew some gum. I hope he was out of gum.
August 22, 2008
#28 mikebdot said . . .I don't think it means they're scared of the Beard (although most are - at least of the Boogie-Beard itself, if not the man behind it) - I think most teams have their regular D which they prefer to play and they use the blitz as needed and as advised. With Rex, all teams were advised to blitz heavily, because it generally paid dividends. With Kyle, until he proves otherwise, the game plan called for their base defense - especially since he likely has the same rep that we've given him - inaccurate and prone to being picked off.
As good as he was yesterday, I don't know what would have been a better way to defend him. So far blitzes where people pour up the middle seem to have been the most effective against us - I guess I would have done that. BTW, don't you think that the 49'ers D probably feels almost as bad at letting one Kyle Orton get the best of them as our D should for letting JT O'S do the same?
I also disagree with those here and all the media who are saying that the principal issue was terrible tackling. I mostly thought people were out of position, not missing tackles. I saw enough missed tackles to last me a lifetime last year, but that wasn't what I was watching last night.
Pressure was close but not quite there, allowing for the QB to do pretty much what he wanted. And they gashed us good on at least 3 of those screens. It was pretty good coverage by Hillenmeyer on that insanely fast tight end - almost defended it perfectly. I'll ask again - was McGowan out for that game or playing?
August 22, 2008
#29 jeff said . . .Phil: McGowan was indeed on the field. I know he allowed that 3rd and 10 TD from Alex Smith, in conjunction with Tillman and Manning. The guy found the spot in the zone. Manning is not a very good player right now. But the increased reps will do nothing but help him. Hopefully it's enough to actually make him a better option than Manning Jr. They really ought to trade him soon (Jr.), but it's really hard to tell what the management is actually thinking about these players.
August 22, 2008
#30 Jimbo said . . .defense always stinks in the preseason.
August 22, 2008
#31 jeff said . . .Swubber. I guess the point i was trying to get across was their running games seem to complement eachother, regardless of how you want to define it. Good news for a team who had to suffer through that joke of a running game last season.
Funny, everyone in the media is now jumping on the "this D sucks" band wagon. Yeah we got smoked last night... and against the cheifs at home. I think this falls under preseason doesnt matter. This works to our advantage. Indy is gonna look past our D... i know it. Right now its hard not to.
They did have 2 nice red zone stands... signs of life. We have too many good players on D to suck that bad. They just arent focused.
August 22, 2008
#32 Peoria Matt said . . .they have write about something. and they don't - outside of brad biggs - want to write positive things
August 22, 2008
#33 Al In WI said . . ."defense always stinks in the preseason."
I'd have to disagree. The Bears D stinks in the regular season also.
I thought last years D gave up a lot of yards......they are going to look like the '85 Bears compared to this squad. I'd look for a lot of 100 yard rushing games by the opposition this year.
August 22, 2008
#34 Phil from SATX said . . .That's the Chicago media. I know NY has this tough reputation, but I think the Chicago media is worse. Far worse actually. It's kinda of an interesting split between how the chicago media treats the Bears and the Vikings and Packers are treated in theirs. Honestly most of the MN media flat out roots and hypes their team every year. The Vikings have been en route to the super bowl for about 20 years now according to them.
Same in GB all kool aide, all the time.
On the other hand the Chicago searches for negativity and then when they get on somebody they aren't happy until they distroy the guy.August 22, 2008
#35 Decatur Staleys # 7 said . . .Peoria Matt, that's crazy talk right there. Last year's D sucked balls, we know that, we also know all the guys who were missing and our huge whiff on Archuleta who was singlehandedly responsible for about 762 missed tackles in the first half of the season.
I know it looked bad yesterday, but there's no way you can project that into saying this year's D is that much worse than last year's - that's a flat out impossibility, at least until guys start going down (and no, Rod Wilson doesn't count). I don't know why things were so bad yesterday - I've already said that there were 14 points that were preseason-based. We know Peanut and Vasher are great corners, and neither had a good game yesterday. I believe in our linebackers - how could you not - but they didn't have a good game either. I saw the damage Ogunleye and Brown did last season- I expect the same to happen in this season, but it didn't happen yesterday. Why not? Probably because these guys are all veterans, and that game was meaningless.
Let's not go crazy here, aiight?
August 22, 2008
#36 trueblue said . . .Well linebacker Rod Wilson done for the season broken arm.
August 22, 2008
#37 Jimbo said . . .Knowing Manning, he'll probably play.
August 22, 2008
#38 BRIANsong said . . .Question: Will Marty Booker make this team??
I dont know if we will (or can afford to) carry 6 wideouts. With Davis and Hester locks, Lloyd looking good, and Bennett showing promise, that leaves one spot for either Marty or Bradley.
Personally i think we should keep them both, but booker hasn't had many looks in the preseason, and i dont think he made much noise in camp. You could argue for Bradley based on age and upside. You can argue Booker for experience, good team mate, and vet status. Thoughts??
August 22, 2008
#39 Viva said . . .Jeff asked the question above as well. Booker's been confused about his lack of playing time. It could be a case of the Bears trusting his ability and attempting to evaluate the others.
August 22, 2008
#40 animal said . . .Larry Mayer said on Da Site a couple weeks ago, "Marty Booker is not going to get cut," and sighted his leadership.
http://www.chicagobears.com/news/ChalkTalkStory.asp?story_id=5001
With that said, Mayer never fails to maintain the party line, so Marty will make this team. Taking that a step further, Mayer has said repeatedly, that Bradley needs to step up his game.
My guess is that the Bears will need Bradley's knowledge of the system, and his special teams play... he is the only legit speed threat opposite Hester as well.
I think they will cut Bennett. We do not have the luxury of keeping two developmental Wide Out's (Hester is #1)...
Bye the way, anyone, including Dennis Green, who gets excited about a vanilla D in the preseason has no business in the business of football. Our Defense, if healthy, will be stellar this year, and if Babich decided to give an offense more looks for Indy to dissect we would all justifiably be on his ass. Fear not the Lovie smokescreen.
August 22, 2008
#41 animal said . . .screw the negativity.
KYLE ORTON FOR PRESIDENT! KYLE ORTON FOR PRESIDENT! KYLE ORTON FOR PRESIDENT! KYLE ORTON FOR PRESIDENT! KYLE ORTON FOR PRESIDENT!
August 22, 2008
#42 johnny el paso said . . .seriously, I've never been a believer in neckbeard. Ive always been a Rex guy.
And it IS preseason.
BUT
It was great to see something so closely resembling a real NFL QB last night.
Rashied was awesome- he should definitely be starting.
Forte looked good.
NICE to see Dusty D making plays.August 23, 2008
#43 jonathan said . . .Face it Grossman faithfulls, Grossman sucks the big one. I agree with the fans on booing him. The Grossman faithfuls make all these excuses for Grossman and its pitiful. Grossman gets blitzed and Orton doesnt. Opposing coaches see Orton more of a threat than Grossman. Grossman panicks when put under pressure where Orton checks down and does not put his team in a whole.
August 23, 2008
#44 jeff said . . .the '85 bears lost 3 of 4 preseason games too. maybe someone should look at how those games were lost & see if there are any similarities. of course, if history is to be repeated the next game is a must-win....
August 23, 2008
#45 jdawg said . . .viva, no chance of cutting bennett.
August 23, 2008
#46 Max said . . .just re-watching the game.
it looks to me like Tommie is mainly worried about his knees.
August 23, 2008
#47 Z said . . .Yeah i agree with Jeff. There is no way Bennett is going to get cut. 3rd round pick. Lotta upside, it just doesnt make any sense.
August 23, 2008
The odds on this many excellent players on D playing like crap if healthy all year is pretty small. The D will be fine. ST will strike fear in our opponents all season.
KO looking good. All we need you to do is protect the football, play within your abilities and move the chains. Keep that D fresh and you will have the short field to play with all year. Am definitely excited about the Jones/Forte possibilities and the WR's may be scrappy enough to do their part to contribute.
Again. '08 Bears. O-Line or Bust
August 23, 2008
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