Before the Bye…

I consider the next three games the completion of the first phase of the Chicago Bears season. They’ll take on the Rams at home Sunday before a two-week road journey at Dallas (Monday night) and Jacksonville. All three games are winnable but if the Bears are going to consider this first leg a success they must win 2 of 3. The Dallas game is interesting, however, because it provides this team an opportunity to (somewhat) erase the taste of the Packers loss on national television, in primetime.

Pog Mo Groin

(For those who don’t what phrase I’m playing off above, here is a tutorial.)

Is this year’s bizarre Bears trend going to be groin-related? Jeff Fisher told the media, after the Rams 31-28 victory over Bob Griffin and the Redskins, he pulled Steven Jackson from due to a strained groin. From Bernie Miklasz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

when I asked coach Jeff Fisher about why Jackson didn’t play after spiking the ball and drawing a 15-yard penalty. Fisher said Jackson had a groin strain, and that it wouldn’t have been right to put him back in. With Jackson out, the Rams turned to rookie RB rushed 15 times for 83 yards including a 53-yard breakaway. And, of course, the late fumble that could have led to an unhappy outcome for the Rams. Here’s what I don’t understand: when a player comes out of a game because of an injury, the news is announced in the press box. That’s the custom. Well, this time, that custom was broken. The Rams never disclosed the reason for SJ’s removal. No announcement was made. That prompted a lot of speculation. Seems to me, the Rams could have avoided that by simply disclosing the injury.

Needless to say the Bears will be at a considerable advantage if the Rams come to town without their workhorse back. (They are nearly double-digit favorites already.) Steven Jackson’s career has basically gotten lost on bad teams in St. Louis but I think he’s one of the great running back talents in the league.

On J’Marcus Webb at Left Tackle

After watching the All-22 tape of the Bears loss to the Packers, two things became abundantly clear to me: (1) J’Marcus Webb was beaten in almost every single one-on-one matchup he encountered throughout the game and (2) Mike Tice did a horrendous job giving him help. If the Bears were considering making a change at left tackle they can not reopen the competition. That won’t work. They have to hand the job to Chris Williams and let him play there for two or three weeks. Do I think they’ll do this? Absolutely not. But I think it’s the only way a change can be successful.

Picks Contest & Tee Shirts Update

I will be posting a Picks Contest Standings on the bye week – the week of October 14th. If you haven’t made at least one selection by Sunday October 7th you will be mathematically ineligible for the contest. Some of you – including myself – are off to flying 2-0 starts!

We will be putting another round of tee shirts on sale that week as well. They will go on sale Wednesday October 10th and the sales window will close on Halloween. This will be the time to order shirts if you want to give them out as Christmas gifts. (We’re also considering putting the image on a long sleeve tee and perhaps even a hoodie. Updates to come.)

I just figured I’d stick this video on the site for the day. Why? Because I actually sat through about thirty-five minutes and realized I was losing my mind.

“Let’s talk about grip!”

Today root for two games: Ravens over Eagles, 49ers over Lions.

Also take a look at the Rams and Redskins down in St. Louis as you begin your scouting efforts for next week at Soldier Field.

The Week’s Lines.

Remember:

• You only pick one team against the spread.
• Once you select the team they are unavailable to you for the remainder of the season.
  
• It is NOT a survival pool. The highest winning percentage at Week 15 will be awarded the prize. If there are ties, we’ll decide in Weeks 16 and 17 by increasing the number of games selected incrementally.
  
• You don’t need to pick every week. But you must make ten selections between Week One and Week Fifteen. If you picked in Week One you do not need to pick in Week Two if you don’t like the games.
  
• DO NOT MAKE YOUR SELECTION IN THE BODY OF ANOTHER COMMENT. YOUR SELECTION SHOULD BE IT’S OWN COMMENT AND CONTAIN ONLY THE NAME OF THE TEAM YOU ARE SELECTING. (Otherwise it’s a terrible bitch for me to tally up each week.)
• Picks are due by kickoff of the early games Sunday. Picks will only be accepted in the comments of THIS post.

(Home Team in CAPS)

NEW YORK GIANTS -7 Tampa Bay

PATRIOTS -13.5 Arizona

Minnesota -2 INDIANAPOLIS

New Orleans -2.5 CAROLINA

BUFFALO -3.5 Kansas City

PHILADELPHIA -2.5 Baltimore

Oakland -2.5 MIAMI

CINCINNATI -6.5 Cleveland

Houston -7 JACKSONVILLE

Dallas -3.5 SEATTLE

Washington -3.5 ST. LOUIS

PITTSBURGH -4 New York Jets

SAN DIEGO -6.5 Tennessee

SAN FRANCISCO -7 Detroit

A bunch of y’all got off to 1-0 starts to open the season, including myself. I am taking the Colts +2 this week and gambling on Andy Luck’s first NFL win.

There are a few undeniable facts associated with rooting for a team quarterbacked by Jay Cutler.

On the field he is capable of making both the most spectacular and the silliest throw you’ve ever seen. At times it seems he is capable of completing a pass to quite literally all twenty-one other men on the field. His ability to use his legs to avoid sacks saves him hitting the turf 5-10 times a game and his belief that he can make any throw on the field probably lands him on back just as many times. He has no problem calling out teammates on the sideline for an inability to do their job.

Off the field, he doesn’t give a shit. He doesn’t give a shit what you think or I think. He doesn’t give a shit what Brad Biggs or David Haugh or Sean Jensen thinks. He doesn’t give a shit what Woodson, Waddle, Silvy, Ditka or the ghost of Brian Piccolo think either. He’s smug. He’s arrogant. He thinks he’s smarter than the rest of us, what with his Vanderbilt degree hanging on the wall. Fans want their NFL quarterbacks to spit platitudes and cliches at reporters. Cutler tells the truth and he may be the most transparent player in the NFL. What he allows fans and media members to see they don’t always like.

Cutler’s greatness can not exist without the capacity for evil on display Thursday night. It is the same mind. The same arm. It is not Good Rex/Bad Rex. These are not different men on different days. The Jay Cutler at Lambeau against the Packers was the same man at Soldier Field Sunday against the Colts. If Brandon Marshall and Devin Hester make a couple catches he would have put the Bears in position to win a game in which he threw four picks and was sacked seven times. For Cutler there is a fine, fine line between the interception and touchdown. Not only are either possible each time he cocks back his arm but one gets the sense there is little emotional distinction between them for Cutty.

And wouldn’t I be hypocritical to criticize how Jay handles the media? I have grown over the years to despise 90% of the individuals comprising Chicago media over my seven years operating this here website. If I had to sit in front of them twice a week and listen to their constant inanity I would most likely raise my head to the sky and scream for several minutes. When a writer asks Jay if he “envisioned” a performance like Thursday night, I applaud Jay for not walking away from the podium while loudly mumbling “asshole”.

I acknowledge who he is on the field and understand him off it. The four-pick possibility and cantankerous interview are the price you pay to accept Jay’s skillset and bask in the glory of his frequent brilliance. That is who Jay Cutler is. And I don’t see him diverging from that path anytime soon.

Here are my rapid fire reactions:

• I tend to harbor particular plays. Often one play. And I would love to see this game play out without the Gabe Carimi personal foul. I believe that play flipped the momentum entirely and it was inexcusable.
• So was the play of the rest of the offensive line, including Kellen Davis. There is really very little positive to say about this group when it comes to pass protection. (You’d have to add Matt Forte’s pair of whiffs to that as well. Complete protection meltdown.)
• This was an outstanding defensive effort from the Bears. Outstanding. They pressured Rodgers all game, they covered well down field and forced the Packers into consistent check downs. They deserved to win.
• And I love the Bears use of their front four. I saw Melton at left end, Peppers at tackle and McClellin set-up like a blitzing linebacker over the left guard. I was not expecting it. Neither were the Pack.
• What can you say about the fake field goal? We’ve given Dave Toub a lotta credit around here for some of his genius play-calling. He (and the rest of the Bears coaching staff) were out-coached last night. That was a masterstroke by McCarthy and company.
• Urlacher looked better. Not great. Better.
• Brandon Marshall can’t drop that touchdown pass.
• Devin Hester can’t drop that first down toss over the middle.
• Lance Briggs can’t drop that interception.
• The Bears lost last night because they made far too many physical errors.
• You’d almost have to break down Jay Cutler’s night play-by-play to understand it. My overall opinion  is Cutler can’t allow his temperament to control his physical performance. He was pissed off at his offensive line and his wide receivers and he adopted a careless attitude toward where he threw the football. That is a losing mentality and a substantial factor in the Bears losing.
• I continue to be thoroughly unimpressed by Adam Podlesh.
• Matt Spaeth sighting!
• I have zero problem with Cutler chewing out J’Marcus Webb on the sideline. Someone has to if the kid is going to allow one of the best pass rushers in the game to hit the franchise quarterback at will. My issue with Cutler? He shouldn’t have stopped at Webb. He should have gone after Chris Spencer too.

Overall it is a terrible offensive performance. Terrible. But it’s also the second week of the season. If this happened in December the Bears would be in serious trouble. But it’s September. Now we find out what Mike Tice and Jeremy Bates have got in the coaching tank.

Three quick points:

1. The Bears can’t put themselves in a hole tonight. The game the Packers wish to play is get up by a few scores and unleash their pass rushers on the overwhelmed Bears offensive line. Cutler must be accurate and smart with the football early.
2. I expect Dave Toub has cooked something delicious for the special teams this  summer. Tonight would an ideal time to serve the meal.
3. Julius Peppers. Big players need to play big in big games. Play big tonight, Julius.

Bear down.

It is sophomoric. But then again, so am I.

Tradition.

Tradition.

Without our traditions…our lives would be as shaky as…as…as a fiddler on the roof!

Normally by Wednesday we here at DaBearsBlog (it’s just one guy) are beginning the transition from the game before to game ahead. This week – because the NFL has somewhat ludicrously forced the game’s longest rivalry into their opening Thursday night slot – we have no such luxury. We move on to Lambeau…

WHY DO I LIKE THE CHICAGO BEARS THIS WEEK?

• I always like the Chicago Bears.
• I broke down the emotional ramifications of this contest in yesterday’s post and I stand by those. Here is the sentence that sums it up: “The Bears have an opportunity to sound the first danger alarm of the Aaron Rodgers era in Green Bay, Wisconsin.”
• There are two UNPRECEDENTED beliefs I have heading into this pivotal road contest. (1) I firmly believe the Bears will be able to score 20-30 points on the porous Packers defense. (2) I believe, unless Sunday was a clever rope-a-dope, Brian Urlacher is the Bears’ primary defensive liability. If Urlacher can’t go full steam, Aaron Rodgers and Jermichael Finley will destroy them over the middle of the field.
• I’m going to say this every week the Bears remain healthy: I don’t know what group of corners in the NFL – outside perhaps the Jets – can cover this group of Bears receivers. (And even that perhaps is weak since Marshall has had tremendous success against Revis.)
• In the past it has always seemed the Packers could muster a cut-back/stretch run game against the Bears even when they failed to do so against the rest of the league. Well the team I watched San Francisco manhandle Sunday is not going to generate the type of consistent ground attack that made Ahman Green and Ryan Grant such pests.
• Greg Jennings terrifies me and Greg Jennings is  nursing a groin injury that may keep him off the field Thursday night. (One has to believe, even if Jennings plays, he’d be slowed down by anything going wrong down there.)
• This is a benchmark contest for Julius Peppers, Israel Idonije, Shea McClellin, Corey Wootton…etc. If the Bears do not muster a pass rush from the perimeter they will lose to the Packers. They HAVE TO hit Rodgers.
• Last Christmas the Bears were down to their third running back, started a non-entity at quarterback (Sorry, Josh) and still ran the ball for 161 yards against the Packers. The Bears should be able to serve the Pack a steady diet of Forte and Bush to achieve the dual goal of keeping Rodgers off the field and draining the energy out of the Lambeau faithful.
• I’m a firm believer that cornerbacks thrive on confidence. On swagger. And if Peanut Tillman is not ready to go Thursday night I think Tim Jennings will carry the banner well on the outside. I don’t see how he’s not fired up after seeing himself on tape Monday. (Hell, I was.)
• You hear this all the time: there will be no surprises because these two teams know each other well. You know what? The Packers don’t know THIS Bears team at all! Nobody does. Rod Marinelli and Lovie Smith can go into the notebook and simply adapt one of the dozen game plans they’ve used against Rodgers/McCarthy over the last three years. Can Dom Capers? Absolutely not. Capers has sixty minutes of Bears tape to work off and thirty minutes of those were essentially garbage time. The Bears have a significant advantage in terms of preparation which is crucial for a short week.
• Since the Bears released Ryan Quigley this week I am assuming (I know, I know) Adam Podlesh was just bad Sunday and not injured. Because he WAS bad. And he can’t be giving the Packers attack short fields all night.
• I believe Jay Cutler is going to outplay Aaron Rodgers.

These games are always close. Always within a touchdown or so. I see the pattern staying true and Robbie Gould winning this one with a late, short field goal.

Chicago Bears 30, Green Bay Packers 27

Bears at Packers does not require over-hyping. It requires no hype at all. But the stakes of the Bears visit to Lambeau Thursday night need not be understated either.

The Packers are ripe on the vine. They have lost their last two games, both at home, by a combined twenty-five points. They were outplayed in January by the New York Giants and out-muscled Sunday by the San Francisco 49ers. Your 2012 Chicago Bears have an opportunity Thursday night to not only send the Packers to an  0-2 record and an early two-game hole in the NFC North. The Bears have an opportunity to sound the first danger alarm of the Aaron Rodgers era in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

How do I know? Here’s an actual email I received Monday morning:

Perspective from the GB owners box: Unless something drastic happens, something I can’t see happening, that is an 8-8 team at best. CCC

15-1 is fast becoming a memory of years gone by for those who love the green and gold. (I am fundamentally opposed to attaching the word “nation” to every fan base . It don’t add up.) The Packers are staring down the possibility of having lost a quarter of their home games before the 2012 campaign is even warm. Many, especially on the national media level, will view Thursday night as the perfect rebound opportunity for the Super Bowl favorites. It will be an opportunity to reassert their home field advantage and reestablish themselves as one of the titans of the NFC. They have come to a fork in the road and beating the Bears will allow the Packers to pivot their season in a positive direction.

The Bears cannot allow it. As desperate as the Packers may be Thursday night, the Bears must approach their voyage to Lambeau with an equal serving as desperation. They must be desperate to end the Packers run at the top. Desperate to continue Green Bay’s downward trend. The waters of criticism surrounding this organization are warm and the Bears must simmer it to a boil.

And all it takes is a victory. One more point than the other guys. It won’t ensure the Bears a playoff spot or Super Bowl trip. It won’t guarantee them supremacy in the division. But it would be the first significant statement of the new-look football club in Chicago. That statement? The road to winning the NFC North no longer travels through Wisconsin.

‘Tis Packer Week.