Hasselbeck Says Briggs Takes Game to “Another Level”
“He’s huge,” Hasselbeck said. “I think he’s arguably one of the best defensive players in the game. I think he’s a great player. Going into the game we fully expected him to play. He didn’t play, and that was a big deal…so for us to sit back and say, ‘Hey, we beat them at their place, we can do it again.’ That would be a dangerous way to feel because Lance Briggs did not play in that game. He is big, big-time difference maker and a great football player. So as hard as this game is going to be, the fact that he’s back up takes it to another level.”
Hasselbeck is right. Lance Briggs is one of the best defensive players in the sport. But the Saeahawks did not beat the Bears on the ground or by exploiting the middle of the field. They beat the Bears by going after LoveRod’s soft corner coverage and finding Mike Williams in space on pivotal third downs. I’m not sure Lance Briggs would have been a distinguishing factor in that area.
Julius Peppers. Oh, I know, the Bears paid his too much money to cut him, and he has had a wonderful season — All-Pro when you consider what he has done with Harris starting — but I mention his name here for game-specific reasons: He isn’t going to get owned by a rookie tackle again, right? This is the game — the start of a month of games — that the Bears really paid all that money for.
I think Julius Peppers’ performance against the Seahawks and rookie Russell Okung was perhaps his worst (and only truly bad one) of the 2010 season. I don’t think that performance has sat well with him all season and I expect an inspired effort on Sunday.