All that matters early in seasons are wins. The rest is noise. Wins matter and the Bears got one yesterday with a brilliant defensive effort. Thoughts on the defense…

• Pick your player on the defensive line. Peppers, Paea, Izzy, Melton, Okoye…etc. They were the stars of this game and their dominance is the reason the Bears are 2-1.
• Is there any doubt Amobi Okoye was crazy to leave the Bears this offseason? He belongs in Lovie’s system.
• Tim Jennings has already met my four interceptions for the season prediction after three games. He’s on his way to the Pro Bowl. (His fourth down play on the Bradford slant attempt was a thing of beauty.)
• Urlacher looked better. Not great but better.
• Lance Briggs looked great.
• Chris Conte is always a few steps late on throws down the sideline. If Gibson makes the back shoulder grab in front of Conte this might have been a different contest.
• Major Wright finds the ball. His health is always a concern but you can’t have enough players who find the ball.
• Peppers can say whatever he likes but his personal foul penalty was the act of an idiot rookie. It could have cost the Bears this game and he should be smarter than that.

Now onto the offense…

• Three things became to clear to me, watching this offensive line play today. (1) J’Marcus Webb is not any good. (2) Gabe Carimi can be a vicious blocker. (3) Chilo Rachal apparently DOES NOT KNOW THE SNAP COUNT. How many times do the Bears let a guy jump before they replace him?
• Catch the ball, receivers. Both Marshall and Jeffery had huge drops in this game.
• That being said, it was fun to watch Marshall and Jeffery win one-on-one battles on the outside when the Bears needed them to do so. Jeffery was uncoverable on the comeback route in the fourth quarter.
• Michael Bush was serviceable but the Bears missed Matt Forte’s explosiveness in the passing game.
• Kellen Davis sightings! Multiple!
• Did any play sum up the Bears day on offense better than Devin Hester’s ill-time leap/ball through his hands moment in the end zone? A silly play call. A poor execution.

It is a solid if unspectacular victory. The offense, especially the offensive coordinator, have a long way to go if this team’s to have a special season. The defense is championship caliber.