Don't say I never gave you anything.
I've just finished watching a tape of Super Bowl XLI under the assumption that the Indianapolis game plan - at least offensively - shouldn't change much. Two things about that: (1) Devin Hester's opening kickoff touchdown loses none of its luster when the outcome is already known and (2) It is a very sad game to watch otherwise. Here's my attack plan for Sunday night in three parts. (The Bears have opened as 9 1/2 point underdogs.)
1. David Haugh is right: Ron Turner's complete abandonment of the running game in the third quarter of the Super Bowl has grown more implausible over time. I don't expect to see that again but I reiterate my belief that this offense will be at its most successful when they spread the field on first down. Slant and screen them to death - even if you only gain four and five yards a clip. Create manageable second downs to support what will be an over-worked John St. Clair.
2. Everything is lined up for the Bears to be able to mount a significant pass rush, specifically up the middle. Jeff Saturday is out a couple months. Ryan Lilja is on PUP. Charlie Johnson is starting at right guard. All this while the quarterback competes on a bum knee. Attack. Don't get complacent and expect Tommie Harris to have a field day. The Bears are crazy if they don't send Brian and Lance up the middle a half dozen times and move Peyton's pocket.
3. Use Hester and Olsen out wide at the same time. I maintain that these two players create mismatches that will drive defensive coordinators insane. Linebackers are too slow to stay with Olsen and Skunk forces a safety to take him on over the top. With this set of less-than-intimidating wide receivers, Ron Turner can ill afford to rely on Orton-to-Lloyd or Orton-to-Davis to light up the scoreboard.
#2 Phil from SATX said . . .First!
Go Bears!!!September 2, 2008
#3 Rancid said . . .Does anyone have any memory of whether our D sucked in the 2007 preseason? I am hoping it did - because those guys came out like a ball of fire when it counted against the Chargers in that first game. I'm sure I wouldn't have worried about it last year, when dreams of returning to the Super Bowl were front and center.
I agree with all of Jeff's points - and let's not forget about a new weapon in Kellen Davis - who looks almost like a clone of Greg Olsen - skills-wise, anyway. Speaking of tight ends, do we know whether the Dez Dispenser will be back for the game?
I hadn't mentioned anything about the game I saw on Sunday - what I came away with was that Hanie DOES look good enough to play in this league - recognizing that we don't know how his skills may break down when facing 1st team pass rush, etc. - and also Brandon Rideau looks good enough to keep as well. Was there anyone who did more with his chances in preseason than him? That said, I still don't know how you keep him.
I'd be seriously shocked if someone doesn't grab him off our practice squad - how about the Cowboys, who have only two healthy WRs? (breaking news is he was added to practice squad - why they waited is beyond me).
Regarding Hanie, usually someone who scrambles as well as he does is paired with a below-average arm, but he has a good arm. Not sure what's not to like about him. Not saying he should be our starter right now, and we know all development is purely self-study from here on out, but he could be in our future.
Any guesses on how our former flame Joe Flacco will turn out as the now-starter in Baltimore? I'll be curious to see.
September 2, 2008
#4 Oaktown34luv said . . .This is like Christmas! A thread about an actual game with actual results and therefore actual meaning! I just wet myself with joy.
I am so ready for Bears football I simply can't echo the sentiments of those Bears fans who are negatively predicting a 6 win season full of disappointment. My opinion is that the Indy offense is vulnerable with their injuries to God Himself (err... I mean Peyton Manning) and His line, and that gives us the slim slit of daylight we need to stick it to them. Objective, hell no! but it's great to be a fan at the beginning of the season. Who'd have thought any of the last three seasons would end up the way they did at the beginning? So I figure if everyone says we're destined to suck and miss the playoffs, then that's the one thing that sure-fire can't happen.
September 2, 2008
#5 Reality said . . .Week 1 and optimism prevails. The Bears' D is loaded with talent. Is there another team team that looks as good as our "D" on paper? The only 'if' is can we can we stop the run. And if we can't do it with 4 down linemen then we can stack the box or we can blitz to get to the QB and break up the play that way. Either way the "D" will dominate this year.
Special Teams domination is also in the bag. Kick returns, kick coverage and field goal kicking are all excellent. This is our strongest unit. They will even block an occasional kick. You can count on it.
As for "O" yeah we have some big 'ifs' on O that have been listed on this site over and over these past few months. But do not worry. Because the thing about football is it is an extremely emotional game. A big hit here, an INT there, sprinkle in a sack or 3 along with a nice kick return and you get MAJOR emotional energy going for you. The "D" and ST will most definitly make these type of plays all year, generating lots of emotional energy. Then the "O" will feed off that energy, (now that the human momentum killer is on the bench), and our o-line, foaming at the mouth with the emotional energy will do their job and the new shifty RB's will make 1st downs. Then every now and then we will take a shot down field to one of our elusive WR's or TE's and take it to the house.
The emotional energy is key. It cannot be wasted (ie no stupid turnovers, fumbled snaps or -14 yard sacks). If we don't waste the emotional energy the "O" will respond by playing above their heads and we will have success all year.
GO BEARS!!!! Knock the snot outta somebody!!! Ya gotta believe!!!
September 2, 2008
#6 DTB said . . .Addai's a pretty slippery runner and our run D and tackling last season/this pre-season wasn't exactly stellar.
Here's to a healthy #30 to fill the holes.
September 2, 2008
#7 jeff said . . .LINE HELP...
http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/09/02/bucs-send-buenning-to-bears/
September 2, 2008
#8 Phillip from NYC said . . .nice work, dtb.
just saw that myself. getting some details on him.
September 2, 2008
#9 Phillip from NYC said . . .I'll take this, but let's hope he's not gonna be another guy who ends up being a lame duck because of persistent injury issues.
"The Chicago Bears acquired offensive guard Dan Buenning from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tuesday in exchange for an undisclosed 2009 draft pick.
Buenning was originally selected by the Buccaneers in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL Draft and has appeared in 25 regular season contests with 23 starts during his NFL career.
The Wisconsin product started all 16 contests in 2005 at left guard and helped pave way for Carnell Williams to rush for 1,178 yards in his rookie season. In 2006, Buenning started seven of nine contests he appeared in before being placed on injured reserve with a knee injury. Last season, Buenning was declared inactive for all 16 regular season contests and one playoff game."
September 2, 2008
#10 craig said . . .Ya beat me to it!
September 2, 2008
#11 Phil from SATX said . . .About Buenning, our new guard:
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/aug/04/sp-buenning-battling-for-backup-berth/
September 2, 2008
#12 BearsTransplant said . . .Thanks for all that info guys - that article Craig posted was EXCELLENT. After reading that, I have high hopes for this guy. Anything stick out for you about that article? Such as, how aggressive and prolific the Bucs have been about drafting linemen year after year, thus making Buenning expendable?
I kid you not, it's entirely possible that the Buc's fourth best guard could be the Bears best LINEMAN.
This is good Bear fans. GOOD!
September 2, 2008
#13 Idonije said . . .He wouldn't be one of "Angelo's Guyz," if he hadn't had a serious knee injury.
Anyone else looking forward to Dwight Freeney vs. John Tait? Or how about Robert Mathis vs. St. Clair? We needed a quality tackle two weeks ago. This is just silly.
September 2, 2008
#14 The Spirit of JM said . . .So glad to here JA is atleast trying to make something happen on the O-Line, the more experienced bodies the better in my mind.
September 2, 2008
#15 Duff Diggler said . . .I hate to be the first one to throw a wet towel on this post but I can't help myself. You can call me a cynic if you like but will someone please tell me, for the love of the levees in New Orleans, where all of this optimism is coming from? Did anyone watch pre-season? Forget that did anyone see the off-season? You can say it doesn't matter all you want but if it doesn't matter why the heck do we have it? To me the worst team to start off against is the Colts. Isn't there some way we could open against like Oakland, Detroit or Notre Dame? Sad to say but the Bears are gonna get killed in this game. Try as I might I can't find a positive spotlight on this season.
Top ten reasons why the Bears will not be over .500 this year:
Here's why:
10. Same year same quarterback (s). If it hasn't happened now with these guys it ain't gonna. Deciding between these two QB's is like trying to pick who to vote for in 08'.
9. Devin Hester. If it ain't broke don't fix it. Putting #23 at receiver opens him up to more chances for injuries and I'm sorry but he is not cut out to be a receiver in the NFL. He is to small and needs a lot of open room and vision to be able to make incredible plays.
8. Ron Turner. Nough said.
7. Running back. Whose starting again? Tim Worley?
6. Tackling. What's that?
5. Offensive Line. To little to late.
4. Schedule. Even though the Bears difficulty ranks 10th many of the teams that they will be playing are young and on their way up.
3. QB...Did I mention that already?
2. Minnesota...I hate to say it but they will probably win the division and we play them twice.
1. Jerry Angelo....It's clear this team is not interested in returning to the big game anytime soon. Why else would they do so little in the offseason? You can only ride a Superbowl loss so long.
September 2, 2008
#16 jeff said . . .ummmm......
yeah.....
sooo Jeff.......i happened to notice that it's week one of the 2008 regular season........
.....yet still no t-shirts......
yeah.......................................
September 2, 2008
#17 animal said . . .the t-shirt changed abruptly....busy man but working on it
September 3, 2008
#18 Luke said . . .Really, I feel like a schitzo. Or a Presidential candidate. Back and forth. Bears will be great! Bears will suck. Great! Suck. Great! Suck... you get the picture.
We just dont know. We'll have an idea after the Colts game, but remember, the first game doesn't necessary set the whole season. Remember the season we started with a loss in Washington, and were like 1-3 after a loss to Cinci? and Mike Brown freaked out on everyone, and then we went on to be like 11-5 under Orton the rook?
We won't know a whole lot until week 5. Ill reserve judgement, or at least try, until then.
0-4 we are screwed. Bad as we feared.
1-3 bad news, possible turnaround, little hope
2-2 ya, we are who we thought we were
3-1 Holey Shit. Really?
4-0 we are all dancing Super Bowl jigs and singing the praises of KO and Co.We shall see. 4 weeks. Not preseason. Not week 1. 4 weeks until we can truly judge.
September 3, 2008
#19 shonbear said . . .Okay Jerry, now let's sign Willie Anderson for a year.
September 3, 2008
#20 animal said . . .Hey Spirit,
wow that was way more gloomy than anything I posted and I thought I was being gloomy.
You can't say that jerry didn't do anything. What about the following:
Lance Briggs
Brian Urlacher
Devin Hester
Tommie Harris
Robbie Gould
Rex Grossman (no good QB's in draft, no choice, he knows the system)Let go of Bernard Berrian which was fine for that ridiculous price on a guy that has been dropping key passes and on the decline. Same with Moose.
They signed all their rookies before the rest of the league again.
The offensive line was addressed in part with the draft with Chris Williams, sure there was failure there, but it will probably end up good.
Picked up Forte in the draft and Jones in FA.
The O line needed more and they finally got this TB guard.
All in all, it's coming together. they play these games because there is no way of telling who is going to win, who is going to get the momentum at the right time, who is going to make the big game winning play. Once you get that win, it creates a fire and continues on. Consider the Bears on a two game winning streak right now until further notice.
I'm standing by this, write it down!
If we win the Colts game, we go 3-0 to start at a minimum whether we really deserve it talent wise doesnt even matter, only the emotional wave that carries you into that moment is what matters because then they have the confidence and swagger to know they are good enough. After that happens there is no stopping them.
That's the way I go into the Colts game knowing that one game can and likely will make the difference for the rest of the season. It's the same as the SD game last year, we finish that game like we should have and it would have at least carried us to the playoffs. We had that game in hand, this one means even more.
September 3, 2008
#21 Rancid said . . .Really, I feel like a schitzo. Or a Presidential candidate. Back and forth. Bears will be great! Bears will suck. Great! Suck. Great! Suck... you get the picture.
We just dont know. We'll have an idea after the Colts game, but remember, the first game doesn't necessary set the whole season. Remember the season we started with a loss in Washington, and were like 1-3 after a loss to Cinci? and Mike Brown freaked out on everyone, and then we went on to be like 11-5 under Orton the rook?
We won't know a whole lot until week 5. Ill reserve judgement, or at least try, until then.
0-4 we are screwed. Bad as we feared.
1-3 bad news, possible turnaround, little hope
2-2 ya, we are who we thought we were
3-1 Holey Shit. Really?
4-0 we are all dancing Super Bowl jigs and singing the praises of KO and Co.We shall see. 4 weeks. Not preseason. Not week 1. 4 weeks until we can truly judge.
September 3, 2008
#22 Spirit Of JM said . . .I'm pretty pleased with this signing. If he pans out this is yet another reason to have some patience as a fan. Here we are all calling for older formerly really good but now losing it O lineman. Why? Because we've heard of them. They have a scouting dept. for a reason. It seems to me that this was a guy that they could foresee becoming available and so they wait for him. I know, he might not pan out and then all "we suck" fans will rejoice and wallow in their negativity but at face value from what I've read about him, this looks like a great guy to pick up.
September 3, 2008
#23 jeremy34 said . . .Don't get me wrong, I'm a die-hard Bears fan but I'm also a football fan. I guess the realist side of me is kicking in. I have to acknowledge that my enthusiasm is curved by the crappy decisions of the organization.
The bottom line is that until this team gets serious about signing a REAL quarterback and a REAL running back and a DOMINATE DEFENSE we are outside looking in. Do we really think Orton or Grossman or some weird weekly rotation of them (which could very well happen) is going to stack up to the likes of Manning (Eli or Peyton) and Brady? Right! And Forte? Smith? Give me a break. Maybe I'm still bitter about the Jones trade. We had a great thing and gave it away. Where is all this talent on defense everyone is talking about? Just because someone was good in 2006 doesn't mean crap two years later. This league chews players up and spits them out.
Can someone please tell me the last year New England finished under .500? How about Indy? How about Dallas? What's the difference? They don't keep the same players every year. And yet these guys are in the hunt each and every year.
Let's face it. We are stuck with the Superbowl loser curse and could be for many years.
At least we have Fantasy Football right?
September 3, 2008
#24 Spirit of MS said . . .I agree, seems to be a great pickup. Sounds like Tampa Bay likes to get them some good interior offensive linemen, we'll take em on the other side of the ball...its' all about winning games right?
Animal I remember that Cincy game, my first Bears game in new soldier field and Orton threw four picks I think in the first half and then five total in the game. However, the next game I went with my roomate who is a 49ers fan and we were beating the 49ers 40 - 0 at half. That was a good time.
September 3, 2008
#25 Rancid said . . .I counter with 10 reasons to be optimistic about Week 1:
10. Kyle Orton. The glass is half full. He's improved. He doesn't make big mistakes. This is his time.
9. Devin Hester. NEVER PUT HIM ON ANY LIST OF NEGATIVES. EVER. AGAIN.
8. Dave Toub. As awful as Ron Turner is, Toub is that awesome. Turner is a liability. Toub will make something magic happen.
7. No Cedric Benson.
6. The last two games of last season. That's our D at full strength, healthy, motivated. That's what we'll look like in Week 1.
5. Defensive line. We have no defense for an awful offense except for an awesome defense. Tommie's healthy and he'll be an MVP candidate this year. Mike Brown is the leader that wills this team to flat out win.
4. Schedule. We catch Indy hobbled with injuries and Carolina without Smith. Those are revenge games. And they start some season momentum.
3. Devin Hester ... Did I mention him already?
2. NFC North. The quarterbacks: Rogers, Kitna, Jackson. .... This group scares someone?
1. Jerry Angelo ... It's clear this man is patiently building us a dynasty on defense the right way by showing loyalty to our studs. We're a couple pieces away on offense. And people will begin to respect Jerry when we show that last year was a superbowl hangover fluke -- an exception not the rule.September 3, 2008
#26 said . . .It wouldn't be right to have an NFL season on this blog without a Bears fan who hates everything about the Bears. Do all teams have these "fans" or is it just us?
September 3, 2008
#27 Phillip from NYC said . . .I think Spirit is one of those guys who boo our QBs at the games.
September 3, 2008
#28 Taylor said . . .Some people have been saying lately that Manning operating at 70 or 80% is still going to be the best QB in the league. This might be true, however, isn't something like HALF of the Colts' D going to be second string? If we were facing the same team we faced back in Miami during the winter of '06 then I would be (understandably) concerned. But we're not, and frankly I think we're better than them.
Spirit, I really hope you get to eat your words come Sunday night. Maybe it's silly, but I really think that being positive does a lot for a team that's on the knife edge of having a GREAT season. Let's push 'em over on the positive side, yeah?
September 3, 2008
#29 animal said . . .Not something I want to hear first thing in the morning.
http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/09/03/bears-tommie-harris-hurting/September 3, 2008
#30 jeff said . . .Oh Christ.
Tommie Harris hurt?
F@#& me.
September 3, 2008
#31 Mike Phipps said . . .it's all rumor at this point. tommie will play from what i'm hearing.
September 3, 2008
#32 jeff said . . .Spirit of JM-
It's going to be really hard to take you seriously until you figure out the proper usage of to/too or domniate/dominant. As for your opinions, QB is not nearly as desperate as you think. Orton will be serviceable but probably out after 5 games and, unless I remember incorrectly, the backup took us to a Super Bowl (two words) not too long ago. I'd strongly encourage all to withold opinions on the D until the first actual game. They may end up sucking but I think it's fair to assume they won't. Great players who finished the season on a high note last year with a lot to prove this year. Let's try optimism on for a bit. What's the harm?
September 3, 2008
#33 Chicago DZ said . . .here here.
September 3, 2008
#34 No Name Dude said . . .Tommie Harris. He's had leg problems since his 2nd season. The way he plays there's no way around it. Sigh. Let's see if Anthony Adams can play the 3-technique. That being said, I'm so pumped for Sunday night, I can bearly stand it.
September 3, 2008
#35 Spirit of JM said . . .http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3jHgGh0S7o
Get the sexy in there
September 3, 2008
#36 craig said . . .I will hold back any more negative comments! I hope you guys are right and I if so I will eat my words Monday morning.
GO BEARS!
September 3, 2008
#37 jeff said . . .The Harris rumors are, so far, just that. But here's a nice writeup on why Tommie is so important to this defense (not that we don't know it already).
September 3, 2008
#38 Phillip from NYC said . . .craig, i linked it a week or two back but rick gosselin of the dallas morning news...thebest football writer in the county, i think... says tommie harris is head-and-shoulders the best d tackle in the game.
September 3, 2008
#39 Phillip from NYC said . . .Maybe I'm being an echo chamber here but the ST is reporting that Harris is on the field in full pads for practice today, so presumably he's alright for Sunday.
September 3, 2008
#40 KentuckyBearsFan said . . .Also, the Bears are using huge speakers at Lucas Oil Stadium to simulate crowd noise. I had no idea that they did this sort of thing, but that's pretty cool.
September 3, 2008
#41 craig said . . .Just to say...from home watching the Bears, I can not remember once when I booed the QBs the last three years. I was happy that anyone but Chad Hutchinson (and similar QBs) was lining up under center.
I DO remember, feeling like Rex Grossman was going to give me a HEART ATTACK in 2006 because of his ability to alternate GREAT plays and games with STUPID drives and games. And then 2007 was just disappointing all around. And Kyle was just a rookie with an incredible D winning games in 2005.
September 3, 2008
I did see that, Jeff, and on your recommendation added Gosselin to my daily diet of RSS feeds :)
September 4, 2008
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.