It is time to forget, Lovie Smith believes. Forget these first ten games of the up-and-down 2008 campaign and concentrate on the six-game season in front of us. It is time to forget that in the five games since beating the Lions 34-7, the Bears have allowed 144 points. No. Lovie's right. It is time to forget.
Forget the golden years of Papa Bear and 73-0.
Forget Richard Marvin Butkus, once called by Sports Illustrated "the most feared man in the game."
Forget 85, 46 and the Buddy Ryan Monsters of the Midway.
If the Chicago Bears are going to make the postseason in 2008, they're going to have to do so with offense. Explosive offense. No more clock control and field position. No more "running off the bus." It's time to spread it out. It's time to involve everybody. It's time to put the season on Kyle Orton's big shoulders and fragile ankle. It's time to throw out the paradigm of "Chicago Bears football" and acknowledge this fact: if you don't score a lot, you're going to lose.
This starts against a Rams team that can't put the ball in the endzone but will. A Rams team that has no passing game but will feature a rejuvenated Mark Bulger Sunday. This Rams team also happens allow more yards than any team not playing in Detroit or Kansas City. They allow more points than anybody else in football. The Bears need to gear it up for the homestretch and Sunday provides the perfect opportunity.
A new philosophy takes the stage in St. Louis. Score. Every time you get the ball. Score. Because rest assured...the other team will score every time they get it.
#2 Z said . . .First!!
Packers suck!
Vikings Suck!!
But so do we!
We don't have to. The pieces are there. We need change. Some kind of change. You know, change we can believe in.
November 18, 2008
#3 Urlacher FTW said . . .And Jeff is tragically correct like he often is.
RT, it is up to you and Orton to save this thing, by giving it to Forte till we lull them to sleep on the run and then light it up through the air. Olsen we need u too buddy. WR's feel free to catch more than 5 passes as a unit. Shit feel free to catch 5 passes all by your self.
November 18, 2008
#4 BRIANsong said . . .The name is being put back! The only real good thing about this whole disgusting mess is that the Bears are in total control of their fate. They win 6 straight and they guarantee theirself the division. They hand Minn and GB each a loss to make them a best possible 10-6 and take the division 11-5. Total control. What they do with it is yet to be seen. Any losses from here and we must depend on what other teams do, any division losses and it's basically over. What will it take for this team to play with heart?
November 18, 2008
#5 Ronaldo said . . .To be honest, they beat Minnesota and Green Bay and they'll win the division. None of these teams are going better than 4-2 down the stretch.
November 18, 2008
#6 JP said . . .Light it up, baby!
November 18, 2008
#7 Max said . . .I have some optimism about the season today and it's simply this. Maybe this butt-whoopin is just what the Bears needed to get them fired up and embarresed about being humiliated like that.
Maybe the blowout will cause them all to take a good hard look at themselves and say, "WE ARE BETTER THAN THIS...If our at least our EFFORT should be BETTER than this."
It's all tied up in the division and the second half of the season is where anything can happen.
Here's to hopin the Bears turn it around this week.
Bears 34
Lambs 0November 18, 2008
#8 KentuckyBearsFan said . . .Still negative today...
Any bets on what sorta numbers Marc Bulger puts up on us? I say he goes 28-40 for 300 yds 3 TDs 2 INTs. Talk to me tomorrow when I am in a better mood
November 18, 2008
#9 jdawg said . . .1. I stopped watching the Green Bay game at halftime. I can't remember the last time I did that. The team looked lifeless. I saw the score at the end of the 3rd quarter, and was glad I did not put myself through that misery.
2. If Orton really did suffer a "high ankle sprain" two weeks ago, I'm surprised he played. I had a similar injury years ago playing basketball, and the doc told me recovery would be 4 to 6 weeks. The first reports on Orton's injury said he would be out 3 to 4 weeks, which is in the same ballpark....yet he played a freaking NFL football game in only 2 weeks, plus there was talk about him not missing ANY games including the Titans game 1 week after the injury. Either some doc needs to be fired or the "high ankle sprain" was just an average sprain. There's only so much an ankled tape can do.
3. Hester next year should only return punts and kickoffs...as a wide receiver, getting dinged up slows him down. Manning is FASTER THAN HESTER right now returning kicks.
4. Either the cornerbacks forgot how to play footbal (or more likely) the cornerback positioning SUCKS. Last week reminded me of Dave Wannstedt's horrible D which was like 60 minutes of Prevent Defense which had the corners playing 10 to 15 yards behind the wide receivers. That's why the Bears have been giving up so many 3rd-and-longs lately.
5. U.S. CONGRESS HAS MADE THE GENERAL MOTORS BAILOUT CONDITIONAL ON THE DETROIT LIONS WINNING AT LEAST ONE GAME THIS YEAR. If the Lions go 0-16, thousands to millions of American workers will lose their jobs as the auto companies go bankrupt. It's best for America if someone loses to the Lions in the next six weeks...but let one of the other teams "take one for the country" instead of the Bears, okay Lovie?
(scenario soon to made into a horrible movie by Hollywood)
November 18, 2008
#10 Packfan said . . .Haven't posted in a while because I've had a case of the Bears blues and blahs.
Like I said earlier, I think the hardest thing to come to terms with is that the D is pretty lousy. We were all prepared for the O to be, at best, a work in progress, but the D was what we were going to hang our hats on -- who gave us our identity -- and now we live in some bizarro-world.
This Sunday we'll see who has some pride left on that side of the ball.
November 18, 2008
#11 Willie from Chicago said . . .Ya, you do suck
November 18, 2008
#12 Willie from Chicago said . . .Guys, shouldnt we bench Orton just so he can rest up for the Vikings game? I think Rex can handle the Rams and lead us to a W. I dont know why KO was out there in the first place last Sunday, he was clearly favoring that ankle.
November 18, 2008
#13 Willie from Chicago said . . .Lets get one thing straight, the Bears will not blow out the Rams if they win, this will be a game that the Bears are almost going to blow (as they have done in previous games) and fin a way to hold on for the W.
Bears 28
Rams 21November 18, 2008
#14 Crown said . . .Maybe the Bears defense should watch this, the greatest speach ever in a movie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myyWXKeBsNk&feature=related
November 18, 2008
#15 KentuckyBearsFan said . . .For this week, I would:
1. Fire Babich
2. Bench Harris and start Adams or Harrison
3. Put Briggs in the middle and move Urlacher to the outside.
4. Start Graham over Vasher
5. Get Forte 20 plus carries and activate Kevin Jones.
6. Replace Hester for Manning on returns.
7. Let Idonije play DE for at least one drive. (He used to play end in college, maybe he can get some pressure).
8. Make the corners jam the receivers at the line.
9. Make that fiery LB coach, Chan, the defensive coordinator.
10. WINNovember 18, 2008
#16 NGB said . . .Oh wait, I'm retarded...I looked at the schedule wrong, the Bears already beat the Lions twice this year already. (I have this bias that makes me believe that St. Louis and/or any state with a 4% property tax AND stagnant economy doesn't actually exist.)
And, I uh...also have a mild hangover. And yes, I know last night was only Monday. Rare non-holiday Tuesday morning hangover for me.
Hooray! I'm waiting for Lovie to say the dumbest thing yet:"We're still 5 games ahead of anyone not tied for 1st in the division."
November 18, 2008
#17 Ronaldo said . . .The only good thing that can come out of that embarrassment of a game is Babich getting canned. He was not qualified to be a DQ for any NFL team. Let alone one of the better defensive teams in the NFL. He was a mistake from day one and should be tossed out on his ear.
November 18, 2008
#18 Pankster in Da Carolina's said . . .Jeff, I think you're almost right.
I think the emphasis of this team should be on it's lone positive at this point, the offense (mainly KO and Forte). But I don't think we should try to outgun teams in shoot em up style, we don't have the personnel to keep it up. What I do think is we should maximize the time with the ball. This doesn't mean we should run every play. We should emphasize using our personnel, that means letting KO do his thing and mixing in some Forte.
November 18, 2008
#19 Windy City Packer Fan said . . .ram week wish it was Babich Patch Fired at by a rifle squad but this here is what the lord has dealt us, Crown you hit it on the head mix it up hell it can't hurt. I would also ADD PEANUT HEAD Tillman that fucker dont tackle he is as sorry as Vasher's ASS and its a wonder every week under injuries tillman is always questionable why? Did K Payne miss a tackle and hit his sorry ass he dont tackle!!
enough bullshit lets start this 6 game onslaught of ass whippins and go to the fuckin post season!!!!!!BEAR DOWN!!BEAR THE FUCK DOWN!!!!!!November 18, 2008
#20 Windy City Packer Fan said . . .Bill, good to hear from you again.
I understand the frustrations, and I have read many posts from all of you questioning your team's emotion and apparent lack of 'fight' in the way they played.
It appears, however, that there is still alot of fight left in the Bears; it appears that somebody put a fist through the wall in the Lambeau field visitors locker room Sunday.
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/article/20081117/PKR01/81117163/1058/PKR01
There is still some of that 'Ditka attitude' left with somebody. I say you find out who that is and give him a leadership role for the rest of the league.
Bear in mind, (no pun intended), this post is not meant to talk smack, as much as it is to show my admiration for a player (or coach) who is still willing to display his displeasure for the way in which the team is (or is not) working together.
P.S. No way packfan is a representation of the Packer Nation. Put on the Jets jersey and tune in to CBS at 3:15 this Sunday.
November 18, 2008
#21 Max said . . .'give him a leadership role for the rest of the league.'
Sorry, change the word 'league' to 'team.' My mistake.
November 18, 2008
#22 Max said . . .Crown,
I am down with that, except his name is Lloyd Lee. I only know that because my old roommate was Japanese and, as he put it, was just really excited to see a fellow asian on an NFL sideline in some capacity other than photographer
November 19, 2008
#23 Z said . . .Any bets on who put the hole there?
My bet is on Dusty.
November 19, 2008
#24 Bill said . . .I miss Jordan so I am taking post # 23 too.
Go Bears!!!
I'll never stop cheering for you. Just give me something to cheer about.
November 19, 2008
Thansk for the link, WCPF. It was good to know that somebody cared. I'll bet it WASN'T Tommie Harris.
Mike Brown is our leader now, by words and by action. He is playing with abandon and given his history will likely have a season ending injury doing so. But he is showing us he can't play any other way. I wonder if the millionaires club even notices?
November 19, 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.