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Audibles From the Long Snapper

| October 27th, 2009

David Haugh is preaching Lovie Smith’s job safety in the Tribune.  He argues that Lovie has earned patience due to a successful win-loss record while also using the McCaskey family’s unwillingness to buy out his contract as the principal reason for his security.  The only real way Lovie can earn the faith of the fans is for his team to beat up Cleveland Sunday and beat Arizona next week – a team that poses a legitimate threat to a fragile defense.  Results.  That’s it.  Missing the playoffs three second consecutive years after a Super Bowl appearance can not be excused.

Tommie Harris did not practice last week and thus did not play, according to the Trib.  And Brad Biggs runs his synopsis of the Harris ordeal over in the Sun-Times.  Can I make one impassioned plea to both of the major Chicago newspapers?  Stop writing about Tommie Harris.  Tommie Harris doesn’t matter.  He hasn’t mattered in an awful long time.  The Bears didn’t fail defensively on Sunday because of a lack of Tommie Harris anymore than they made a Super Bowl run because of a lack of Tommie Harris.  He was a supremely talented player once who has displayed an amazing emotional instability, couple with a lack of physical durability.  He’s an afterthought.

When I wrote, oh I don’t know, all summer, that the Bears did not have two viable safeties on the roster…some people snickered.  Well Nathan Vasher is now getting looks at safety.  I don’t know everything about football but I know this.  When you’re turning to a guy who struggles in coverage and can’t tackle to fix your secondary, it’s not a good sign.

Read this article and you’ll understand why losing to the Browns, at home, could lead to riots.