Picks Contest Bonus

• Simple: Give me C.J. Spiller’s total yards from scrimmage (running + receiving + passing) for the Buffalo Bills. I think Spiller is one of the best and least utilized backs in football and I think he’ll have a breakout night at home against the Dolphins. My number: 188.
• Get it right and you’ll eliminate one of your incorrect weeks.

______________________________________

This is one of the great sport columns of the year. It is a scathing criticism of football’s largest bag of douches, Dave Wannstedt:

There may not be a more unpopular figure to general Buffalo-area sports fans, let alone die-hard fans of the area’s professional football team, than Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Dave Wannstedt. Promoted to that post following the 2011 season and blessed with more individual talent at his disposal than any Bills coordinator has had in recent memory, Wannstedt’s Bills defense is currently ranked No. 31 in the NFL, including dead last against the run.

Jason Cole, a reporter who covered the Miami Dolphins in the early 2000s when Wannstedt was their head coach (and who is now a national reporter for Yahoo! Sports), spoke with WGR 550’s The Howard Simon Show on Monday and touched on the topic of Wannstedt. His opinion of Wannstedt is, to put it very lightly, less than inspiring.

“Dave is probably one of the worst coaches I have ever seen who rose to that level,” Cole told Simon. He’d later continue, “Dave has no ability to inspire people to play harder. I think he’s a very unimaginative guy.”

Wannstedt, who also was a head coach for the Chicago Bears in addition to Miami, is most famous in NFL circles for being the Dallas Cowboys‘ defensive coordinator on two Super Bowl teams in the early 1990s. (Bills fans will remember those Cowboys teams well.) Cole believes that his success in Dallas had more to do with Johnson and the way the two coaches worked together.

“He was a great foil in Dallas for Jimmy Johnson,” Cole opined. “Jimmy would come in and play the bad cop role, and then Dave would come in and be the nice guy, and say ‘oh guys, we’ll get it together, don’t worry. Jimmy’s just going nuts, don’t worry about him.'”

Cole also spoke briefly of the 2002 season in Miami, when the Dolphins – blessed with the NFL’s leading rusher (Ricky Williams) and the No. 1 overall defense in the league – blew a division lead to miss the playoffs. After Week 15 that year, the Dolphins were 9-5, a game ahead of the New England Patriots and two ahead of the New York Jets. Miami lost to a 6-10 Minnesota team in Week 16, then dropped an overtime decision to New England in Week 17, allowing the Jets – who won their last two games convincingly – to sneak into the playoffs.

Wannstedt – who would coach parts of two more seasons in Miami – lost the team from that point forward, as Cole explained with the following story (taken verbatim from the WGR 550 interview):

“He stands up in front of the team in a pre-season, and he has a basket – like a trash basket – and then he’s got four things. He’s got a Bible, a family picture, a football and a brick, and he shows how if you keep everything in order, and keep your priorities right, the picture, the football and the Bible will all fit quite nicely in the basket. But if you add the brick – which he called ‘distraction’ – it won’t fit.

“The only problem was that as he did it, he took everything out of the basket, and then he tried to put it back in. This was the football, the Bible and the picture – he tried to put them all back in, but he couldn’t remember the way that they went back in. So he was fumbling around, and then the basket fell over in the middle of all of this. It began just sort of a comedy session.

“When he put the basket back in the locker room later in the week, the players were so frustrated with him that they took the stuff and threw it in the trash can.”

Cole – who, along with the rest of us, has been highly unimpressed with the play of Buffalo’s defense – seems to imply that the bulk of the blame for those shortcomings falls on Wannstedt’s shoulders.

“Dave is not a leader of men,” Cole concluded. “He and Norv Turner have made more money off of their association with Jimmy Johnson than any two human beings ever have deserved to.”

Gets better every time.

I have been having conversations with Cameron Worrell for over a year now and they are one of the highlights of my week. But hearing him discuss his history with concussions and their lingering effects put the entire issue in context for me. We talk football during this chat – why he hates the Niners, Nate Collins, Kaepernick, defensive resentment in the locker room – but it’s the concussion discussion that makes this our finest twenty minutes.

TEE SHIRTS UPDATE!

Sales of this round of tee shirts are closed and final. Unfortunately we can’t accept any more until we switch formats come the New Year. Due to some storm-related issues in the New York area we’re a tad bit delayed on processing the orders but all tee shirts will be processed and mailed by the second week of December. If this is completely intolerable for you, send me and email and we’ll talk about it (jeff@dabearsblog.com). But it shouldn’t be intolerable to you…because they’re tee shirts.

BIGGS BREAKS DOWN 2013 SCHEDULE

If you follow Brad Biggs or any other Bears writer on Twitter, chances are you haven’t been to the sports page sites of the Trib or Sun-Times in a long, long time. (Someone will present this non-existent data to me one of these days proving social media drives traffics to newspaper sites. It doesn’t. They know it.) Here is Brad’s breakdown of 2013:

Of course, the Bears will play the traditional home-and-home with NFC North foes. In addition, the Bears will host Dallas, the New York Giants, Baltimore, Cincinnati and the team with the corresponding finish in the NFC South.

The road trips will be to Philadelphia, Washington, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and the team with the corresponding finish in the NFC West.

So, the way the standings are aligned right now, the Bears would host the Atlanta Falcons and play at San Francisco for the second consecutive season. There is a long ways to go to determine the final standings this season though.

DaBearsBlog (Noah, myself and the Reverend) will be in Cleveland. Will you?

CLARK JUDGE ON JASON CAMPBELL

Here is a large chunk of Clark Judge’s CBS Sports column on Jason Campbell taking over short or long term for an injured Jay Cutler:

“If [Campbell] has to go,” said coach Lovie Smith, “we feel very confident. That’s why we brought Jason here. I’m hopeful, but I’m not ruling Jay out by any means.”

I’m not, either. And I’m definitely not ruling out Chicago of anything. I know the Bears travel to San Francisco to play the 49ers next Monday, and I know the 49ers are always a tough out. But they have issues of their own, with starting quarterback Alex Smith suffering a concussion in Sunday’s tie with St. Louis. That means there’s a chance … and let me emphasize a chance … that it’s Campbell versus Colin Kaepernick, and, given the choice, I’ll take the veteran.

I know what I have in Campbell, and so do the Bears. He can get the ball downfield, as he did with that 45-yard shot to Brandon Marshall. He will make sound and reasoned decisions. He won’t commit the fatal mistake. He can run. He can lead. Most important, he can win … and with Green Bay pulling itself together for a run at the Bears nothing is more important for Chicago now.

As one scout told me, the key is not so much Campbell as it is Forte and Bush. Because if rhe Bears can run the ball, Campbell can sell the play-action — which is his strength. Plus, as he pointed out, the issues with Chicago’s offensive line aren’t as much a factor with Campbell at quarterback because of his ability to flush the pocket. No, he’s not RG3, but, if necessary, he is good enough to make first downs with his legs.

“Jason Campbell is more than capable,” Marshall said. “I think he came in [against the Texans] and did an amazing job and had control of the offense … really got us into some good situations and made some great checks. I think the guys around him need to step up, myself included. We let him [and the team] down, and that won’t happen again.

“I understand what Jason Campbell is. I understand how he leads. Like I said, he’s more than capable, and I’m so glad we have him in situations like this.”

He should be. Everyone in and around the Bears should be. Jason Campbell is here to prevent another collapse from happening … and he will.

Kurt Warner told Waddly & Silvy on ESPN Radio he was confident the Bears could win games with Jason Campbell at QB. I agree. One thing lost on Sunday night was it was Campbell – not Cutler or Schaub – who looked most comfortable under center and managed the conditions best. I think Campbell can beat the Niners Monday night.

MORE JASON CAMPBELL!

Jay Cutler suffered a concussion in 2010, against the the New York Giants, on a night many in attendance would prefer to forget. (I’m not sure Cutler had a choice but to forget.) I was there and on that cold, awful night in New Jersey I never saw Cutler take a hit as violently direct to the head as the hit he took from Tim Dobbins of the Houston Texans Sunday night.

The Bears rested Cutler the week following the Giants debacle against the Carolina Panthers and they should do the same Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers. That decision, made to protect the quarterback’s bruised brain, does not have to be a negative one. While no one will make the argument Jason Campbell gives the Bears a better chance to win, an argument can be made that starting Campbell gives the Bears an opportunity to become a better team.

How?

1. It will force the offensive coordinator to finally embrace the team’s offensive strength: the run game. When Cutler went down in 2010, the Bears ran the ball 40 times with Forte and Chester Taylor for over 200 yards. They threw sixteen passes with Todd Collins and won the game 23-6. This was all under the run-averse Mike Martz! Without Cutler on Monday night I imagine Mike Tice will allow his offensive line to do what they do best: run block for sixty minutes.
2. It will force Tice to make a call and stick with it. I’m assuming Campbell will not have the same power to audible at the line of scrimmage.
3. It strengthens the position of quarterback. The Bears offensive line didn’t suddenly get better at pass protection Sunday night and it is not a long shot to believe this team could lose Cutler in big spot in December or January. Getting Jason Campbell four quarters with this line, with these receivers, against a quality defensive opponent, will help keep the Bears from being one snap away from disaster down the stretch. (Clark Judge wrote an excellent piece on Campbell Monday. You can read it by CLICKING HERE.)
4. It might give the quarterback some perspective and I think he needs it. I’ve never played quarterback in the NFL. I’ve never called plays for an organized football game of adults. But I think Jay Cutler can use a game off, a game to watch the flow of play, a game to follow the trajectory of the play-calling. I think it might be beneficial for him to see a quarterback throwing the football away, checking down to what the defense is allowing, sliding to avoid massive contact. And if Jason Campbell ever were to have a terrific night, specifically throwing the ball, I think it would light a fire under Cutler and send a distinct message. The message? You can’t turn the ball whenever you want and expect to be the starting quarterback for the Chicago Bears ad infinitum.

If the season came down to Monday night’s result the Bears would be desperate to have Jay Cutler under center. But I could make a successful argument it is more important to have Cutler healthy for the month of games to follow, three of which are to be played against NFC North foes with winning records.

So get Cutler healthy Monday. Get better in the meantime. Or maybe he’ll just check out fine with the doctors this week and I’ll have wasted a few hours on this column.

Administrative Note: Please continue to send ideas for site redesign to jeff@dabearsblog.com. Thank you.

I’ve always been honest with you, the readers of this site. Because although 97% of the content is provided by one individual (me), this place has always been and will always be about you guys. I build the city. You populate it and provide its often insane personality.

At the end of December we’re leaving the Tribune’s ChicagoNow blog network – our home for the past four years. This was not an easy decision. Being part of a large network – especially one owned by the Tribune – comes with a certain amount of journalistic cache and more importantly comes with a tech team ready to troubleshoot problems as they arise. (It also came with a monthly paycheck.) But for two very specific reasons I could no longer allow the benefits of the ChicagoNow network outweigh the negative experience for both myself and the readers.

First, many of you have emailed me over the last few years, complaining about the awful experience this site provides in the comments section. Comments appearing out of order. Comments taking ten minutes to load. Inability to post links in the comments. Inability to control name-stealing troll monkeys. While I believe the ChicagoNow folks have done their best to solve those issues either they don’t seem to improve or new issues arise and we’ve lost some truly loyal readers/commenters as a result. That, to me, is unacceptable.

Second, I hate the way this site looks. Despise it. And I spend too much time and energy attempting to create something special to be embarrassed when I direct a friend or colleague to DaBearsBlog. I dealt with that embarrassment in 2011 because, quite frankly, I needed the monthly check I was receiving. But two things have changed in 2012. (1) Due to a few things breaking my way, I have more money. (2) We are having a great year – to parallel the Bears – with the podcasts, the tee shirts, traffic…etc. And I want the site to look as good as it should.

Last week I made the decision to go back on our own. Before informing ChicagoNow of that decision I sent them a note asking, in no uncertain terms, for a raise. My thought was I could withstand these issues in the short term while Noah and I spent the early part of 2013 designing and developing the new and improved DaBearsBlog. When the pay bump was refused I said, “Fuck it, let’s go.” And so we’re going.

On January 1st 2013 we will be live at DaBearsBlog.com. The transition won’t be seamless but we’ll make it as seamless as possible. We’ll set up a commenter identification system to limit trolls. We’ll have separate sections for news, audio/podcasts and main threads. We’ll have a constantly standing store to sell shirts and such. We’ll also be adding a new wing to the blog where I’ll present some long form pieces about the whole of the sports world: golf, soccer, NASCAR…etc. You don’t have to read them but they’ll be there. And it’ll all look good.

Since we have six weeks, I welcome your ideas and input. Email me (jeff@dabearsblog.com) and let me know what you’d like the site to be. We won’t incorporate every idea but we’ll do our best.

This feels right. It’s time. We thanks Jimmy and the folks at ChicagoNow for their work over the last four years. It was a good period for the site.

Sincerely,

Blogpere.

I thought it would be a game decided by a single play and it absolutely was. These were two dead even teams and the team that made the fewest mistakes won. Simple as that. Here are some thoughts…

• The boos Kellen Davis was hearing last night at Soldier Field are just the beginning as he becomes the poster child for the offense’s futility. Davis is a third string tight end, nothing more, and the quicker the Bears realize that the better off we’ll all be.
• Think about all the plays the Bears could have made. What if Robbie Gould makes the field goal? What if Brandon Marshall caught the perfectly thrown touchdown pass? What if Matt Forte or Kellen Davis catch the seam routes thrown to them? Either of those plays dramatically alter the course of this game. It just wasn’t the Bears night.
• I knew that when Michael Bush fumbled on fourth-and-one.
• We spent all week talking about J.J. Watt and he was almost a non-factor. We spent less time talking about Danieal Manning and he delivered his best performance of 2012. Hard to dislike the guy or the player.
• Hey Jay, slide.
• Hey Jay, if you’re concussed, get the hell off the field. Don’t go out there for another half quarter with a brain injury. The tough guy thing is in the books. Your health is key to this team winning a title.
• You saw the difference between Jason Campbell and Jay Cutler and it’s this: Cutler doesn’t check down. He doesn’t think conservatively. It can be infuriating at times but it’s the difference between a boring offense and an explosive one.
• I simply don’t like the Mike Tice approach to offensive football. When I can sit in a tavern and predict, with solid accuracy, 75% of your play calls…your play calls ain’t very good. If the Bears are going to struggle in the postseason, Tice is going to be the primary reason.
• The Bears have the best defense in football. I’m not complaining about them.
• How many interceptions does Tim Jennings intend to have this year? 20?
• Arian Foster played a tough, intelligent football game and his touchdown catch was simply an exceptional play.
• Okay, one complaint about the Bears defense. Chris Conte and Nick Roach. When you get up to the line of scrimmage, make a tackle.
• I am this close, THIS CLOSE, to making DaBearsBlog a non-Devin Hester as wide receiver zone. I can’t write about it anymore. It is too frustrating. Why would you throw 30-yard down field jump balls to Hester? It doesn’t make a lick of sense. Alshon Jeffery can’t get back to this field fast enough.
• Offensive line was good last night in pass protection but I’d be careful with jumping to conclusions. With that weather and those field conditions it is very difficult to rush the passer.
• Did Adam Podlesh decide one good punt was enough? Because EVERY other punt was awful.

There’s more but it’s a long week ahead. The Bears are 7-2 and grouped with the top teams in the NFC. They have a lot of work to do on offense if they’re going to string three playoff games together. But it can be done. And it starts against another good defense in San Francisco Monday night.

Above is the official prime time game thread picture: Cowbear.

Three final thoughts as the Texans come to town:

• The Bears can conceivably have this game wrecked by their inability to contain J.J. Watt and the Texans pass rush. Tonight is the kind of night where Mike Tice has to hunker down and give Matt Forte 30-35 touches. Force the run game. Use screens to keep the linebackers honest. Quick tosses outside to Hester and Marshall on first down to keep out of thirds and long. Be clever tonight, Mike.
• One or two plays can dramatically alter the outcome tonight and that means special teams must be special. Dave Toub’s group has been coming along in recent weeks but if the Bears are to win the field position battle Adam Podlesh must be better than he’s been all year. (He’s been among the bottom third statistical punters this year.)
• Health status of Owen Daniels is a huge factor. If he doesn’t play the Bears have a significant advantage. If he plays and is limited the Bears have a significant advantage. If he’s ready to go the Bears have a matchup nightmare on their hands.

Bear down.

Early Games:

• Two of the four current NFC division leaders tee off at 12 PM CT and it sure would be nice to see them both drop games. Another Giants loss (at Cincinnati) would essentially relegate them to a battle for a three or four seed come playoff time. Atlanta travels to New Orleans to face a resurgent but unable-to-tackle New Orleans Saints side. Geaux Saints.
• Who do you want contending down the stretch, Detroit or Minnesota? If you haven’t decided, here’s a simple primer. The Vikings are led by a former Bears defender, feature one of the most remarkable injury comeback stories in modern sports history (AP) and basically are no threat to anyone come playoff time. The Lions are a bunch of jackasses.
• Pull for San Diego over Tampa. Why? Go take a look at the playoff standings in the AFC. We’re getting awfully close to having the six teams sorted out by Thanksgiving due to the rise of the Andrew Luck Colts. I’m rooting for late drama and that can be achieved with Norv and the boys maintaining relevance. If they lose today the field in the AFC will more than likely be two-back with seven to play.

Late Afternoon Games:

• Dallas vs. Philadelphia is a death match between two of the most heavily-publicized crap teams in recent memory. The loser of this game sees their season drift off to sea. The winner more than likely needs to put together a 6-1 streak to close out 2012 for a crack at the tournament.
• Seahawks vs. Jets might seem innocuous enough but it may have some bearing on the Bears. The Cowboys and Eagles are scheduled for the prime time tilt on December 2nd but – ratings aside – NBC will more than likely flex out of the game should neither team be relevant. Slated for noon that day? Bears vs. Seahawks with both teams around the 8-9 win mark. (This game has particular relevance to me because I have a ticket.) So if you want that game to hold strong in the afternoon, root for the Jets.
• Rams over Niners would be nice for the numbers but it would also create an angry Harbaugh squad next Monday night. As a Bears fan you’d almost rather the Niners beat the Rams by 40+.

Game thread goes LIVE middle of the day.

DaBearsBlog Picks Contest

You know the rules. Pick a team you haven’t picked. Hope Crown loses.

(Home team in CAPS)

NEW ENGLAND -10.5 Buffalo

Have you read a masterful condemnation of Dave Wannstedt’s career? You can do so by CLICKING HERE (and thank me later). Tom Brady vs. Wanny? Yeah, I’ll take the good one. New England Patriots 41, Buffalo Bills 16

New York Giants -4 CINCINNATI

Are the Giants great? Not until January. But contrary to the New York media a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers does not constitute a slump. If they lose this one, maybe. New York Giants 30, Cincinnati Bengals 20

TAMPA BAY -3 San Diego

Vincent Jackson revenge game? Nope. Too much Doug Martin, the current darling of the NFL and the man I think will end up winning ROY. Tampa Bay Bucs 26, San Diego Chargers 24

Denver -3.5 CAROLINA

If someone could give me a reason Peyton Manning won’t put up 350-400 yards of passing offense I’d take the Panthers. Anyone? Someone? Denver Broncos 28, Carolina Panthers 20

MIAMI -6 Tennessee

I guarantee you one thing: I won’t watch a single snap of this game. Miami Dolphins 17, Tennessee Titans 13

BALTIMORE -7.5 Oakland

The most humorous contract negotiation in recent memory will be taking place between Joe Flacco’s agent and the Baltimore Ravens. It’ll involve the phrases “But guys!” and “Oh c’mon!” from the Flacco side. (His season has been deflating like a March birthday balloon in late April.) Baltimore Ravens 23, Oakland Raiders 18

Atlanta -2 NEW ORLEANS

I would absolutely take the Saints for the upset here if they showed the ability to make a SINGLE tackle against the Eagles Monday night. Atlanta is going to lose one of these games, aren’t they? Oh fuck it. New Orleans Saints 33, Atlanta Falcons 27 (OT)

Detroit -2 MINNESOTA

One of these teams is going to hit midday Sunday with a winning record and a logical chance to win the final wild card slot in the NFL. Lions going one way, Vikings going the other. Trends continue. Detroit Lions 24, Minnesota Vikings 14

SEATTLE -6 New York Jets

Seattle is the most difficult place to play in the league and the Jets are the league’s most fragile offense. Seattle Seahawks 16, New York Jets 9

Dallas -1.5 PHILADELPHIA

At what point does the NFL stop force-feeding the NFC East on the country? Cowboys stink. Eagles stink. Redskins. Folks will dress this result up as mattering. It doesn’t. Dallas Cowboys Score a Few Points, Philadelphia Eagles Score a Few Points Less

SAN FRANCISCO -11 St. Louis

How are the Rams scoring in this game? Greg. The. Leg. San Francisco 49ers 24, St. Louis Rams 12

CHICAGO -1 Houston

16-13 Bears. To read the full game preview, CLICK HERE.

Sélection du blogpère – Detroit

Both of tonight’s teams played the Chicago Bears. The combined score? Bears 82 – Colts/Jags 24.

Tonight’s picks contest bonus is all about Andrew Luck, the only player really worth tuning into NFL Network to see tonight. But the question is a tricky one. I want:

Luck’s total yardage – Luck’s passer rating = __________?

So if you believe Luck will throw for 300 yards and have a passer rating of 98, you would submit 202 as your answer. We will replace a missed week with a correct week for anyone who answers within 2 points of the actual answer. Thus a submission of 202 would be correct for any total between 200-204.

I think Luck throws for 260 yards. Passer rating of 85.5. My total is 174.5.

Good luck.