Winning ugly is better than losing ugly

Winning like this shouldn't be viewed as a failure. I didn't see the Bucs lay down for the BEARS. I see that another team with an inferior record played us tough. We're still short-handed on D and we sat Tait in a game that we expected to win. If it mattered everyone would have suited up. Keeping them from beating us showed we can accomplish winning when we should. Like you said if winning was easy then the Saints wouldn't have lost to inferior talent. I saw good and bad and my stomach was in knots but we prevailed and that mattered more. I'm sure that some people will find a reason to be doubtful and that's their choice. Just like I choose to see the benefits to winning,again. Just like no one could bring up anything bad about Rex that won't stop people from doubting him. I'm just like everyone else:I hated to see a team we had down come back and play us into overtime. I really didn't see anyone on the sideline panicing like you would expect when a team comes back to life. I didn't see any quit and that's important. Devin Hester proved that sometimes you'll have an off-game. I'm sure he'll be back. WE WILL BE FINE!! GO BEARS!!!!

Of course im gonna celebrate the win. we spent the last few weeks nitpicking the flaws. its time to praise a 12-2 team(that cliched homefield) instead of bashing them. lets just be happy they are not 2-12

While it could of been smoother, a win is a win. Ten years from now the only thing that will be remembered about this game is the final score. At the very least, appreciate the win today and let Lovie focus on smoothing out the rest for the next game.

scary win...the reality is we will be knocked out early in the playoffs if this level of play continues.

Rex goes over 300 yds, 2 TDs, 0 picks, and nobody even mentions it. If we're going to dump on him when he's bad, let's give him some credit when he's good! Way to go, Rex!

These bears can really get someone to have a heart attack! Like what's said in the past, a team is comprised of an offense, a defense, and a special team. Thanks Rex for playing well and giving your team a good chance to win. You are still give me a heart attack when you're lobbing to your backs on a screen. Teams are going to figure out that a roll out option is the back and a wounded duck could be recipe for a int TD! Nevertheless, I really appreciated a game well played by Rexy!

Devin's a great player, but humility and humble pie were eaten today. Let your actions do the talking!! Any team can respect you and bring you back to humanity very easily. Protect the ball in traffic!!!! Your big runs will come, but don't give it away!

As far as the defense, it's tough being shorthanded, no matter which professional team you're playing. I hope you heal up, both physically and mentally! You're the key to winning in the playoffs, and hopefully, with the help of the almighty, the Super Bowl!

Go Bears!!!

The win is good, but not huge as homefield advantage doesn't mean as much in the NFL as in some other sports. Rex had a very nice game, but my concern is what he didn't do when the game tightened up -- A couple three and outs at the end of regulation and a few badly missed receivers on crucial pass plays. He really seemed to tighten up. The defense was, frankly, atrocious pretty much the whole second half. In any kind of close Playoff game with the defense reeling and Rex still not able to perform in the clutch, I say its "bye Bears" in the first game.

okay. homefield advantage. yikes.

ha ha.

This season has been something else. I'm hoping the Bears can ride the overrated chants to victory in their second-round playoff game.

The question now becomes who will be playing the bears at Soldier Field. Dallas? New Orleans? really--this season above all others should remind us that every team in the league is beatable. even san diego.

The defense again gives up more than expected from a so-so team. But, hey, those other guys are paid the big bucks to play, so on any given Sunday, you know. That's why they play the game, but I hope the Bears don't call it in next week!

They had the best front 4 in football that made a cheap secondary look good. Now they have no front four, and the defense is really really weak! Expect shoot outs from here on out. Oh yeah , dump Tank now!

I don't know if this has been said before, but I'm saying it now. This is the year of the "inferior" conference. Basketball saw the "inferior" east overcome the "superior" west in the NBA (Heat over Dallas). Baseball saw the "inferior" NL overcome the "superior" AL in MLB (Cards over Tigers). Football will see the "inferior" NFC overcome the "superior" AFC when DA BEARS win the Superbowl. Maybe then all of you will stop believing that whatever the media says is the gospel truth, and start believing in your HOME team. Then again, (by that time) there will be no more room left for you on the bandwagon. Enough said. Going back and forth with most of you is pointless because you will never be happy. DA BEARS are the only constant from last year's NFC playoffs that improved or even stayed as good, this year. That would make them the ONLY NFC team that (currently has the playoffs locked up) with playoff experience. They are (and probably will finish the season) undefeated against the NFC. Yet many of your crystal balls are telling you the Bears are in for an early playoff exit. You sicken me. I suppose this is why they play the games...

These blogs are ridiculous! This was a good win? All I've seen from the Bears this season is narrow wins against very bad teams. The media in Chicago will spin the Super Bowl Shuffle too early again and the Bears will be sitting at home again after their first game in the playoffs. What happened to that heralded defense, which has given up more yards and points in the last few weeks than most believed they would give up all season? Lots of fans are going to be wondering what went wrong again come January.

my my as an ex raider fan when i lived in calif you people have a 12-2 team 1st round bye and all you do is complain complain. remember any team can beat another team in the nfl on any sunday regardless of record....en joy the moment for all the players.....sportswriters be positive not negative that's all the news fit to print.......

I wonder what some of these so called fans are like in the everyday lives.Please chill out cheer up try Viagra. The fact is that the Bears have won more games over the last 2 years than any other team in the NFL.They have scored more and given up less than any other team in the NFC and Rex Grossman has his act back together. In short the Bears are winners and you guys are losers.

I love the Bears, I am hoping as much as anybody that they make a deep run into the playoffs. But if they don't get straightened out soon it will be another early exit.
Period!

Bryan, if you're looking you would see that the BEARS are WINNING narrow victories against inferior talent . But the other GREAT teams are LOSING to inferior talent. Why come down on the BEARS for doing things better than the other division leaders? Does losing to Washington mean that we can stop taking the Saints serious? And shouldn't we stop talking about the Cowboys since the Saints annihilated them last week? We may have a glass house but I think we're the first to avoid the stones. If you are still looking you would see that we sat 2 DBs and our LT. Losing your starting Lt can be a recipe for disaster. Sitting a starting CB with an injury that he could've played through and giving up a few extra yards against a QB that you probably didn't prepare for isn't as bad as you think. This is no different than the Vikings game last year when we sat the best players on D and lost the momentum for the playoffs. At least this time we didn't get creamed. I can understand you want to doubt them but that can be just a choice you make. Being negative is easier than believing and having your hopes crushed in the long run. I'd rather think that the sky is the limit and the only limit is the sky. I'm not defeated before I try. GO BEARS!!!!

What happened to Tank Johnson is unfortuante. If I learned anything as a deputy sheriff/prosecutor, it's that "stuff happens" to everybody. Name one person who hasn't committed a crime at some point in their lives (and, in this case, an unconstitutional restriction on the right to "keep and bear arms").

Sure, he made a bad judgement call (even if it's a bad law, he shouldn't have risked the damage to the team and the millions he makes every year). Yes, it's not the first time, and the team is justified in some internal discipline for the distraction. On the other hand, athletes have problems just like other people..and in this case the justice system will take care of it (and possibly a league suspension after that....and that should be enough!). Before throwing stones at Johnson, remember he's human--just like the rest of us.

Mark O'Brien (professor of law, business & English...with a degree in history thrown in for good measure!)

Roman responds: Yeah, it's a really stupid law to require people to register their firearms. God knows we need more guns around. I can't believe some of the bloggers blamed the cops for the fact Posey was unarmed at the bar, as if it would have been better to have a convicted felon armed robber walking around with a concealed weapon.

Hey guys, how about we give Grossman some props?
This kid faced intense media scrutiny and a tremendous amount of pressure to have two great games in a row. He may or may not be the long term answer at QB, but he's got a ton of heart. Go Rex! And go Bears!

I don't know what the bears have to do to earn some respect. We're 11-2 with home field advantage, 10-0 against NFC teams, second in the league in scoring, tied for the league's best record, I can go on and on. Yet all I keep hearing and reading about is the team's short comings. When Rex Grossman was Struggling just 2 weeks ago, 500 people responded in the blog. Now those same people who was ready to hang him can't get on here and give him props. I thought the Bears showed a lot of heart by not panicing when the Bucs made their run. I wonder who ESPN's flavor of the week will be this week to beat the Bears in the playoffs now that the Saints loss. Go Bears!!!

Did you watch the same game as the rest of us Grabowski. Funny Rex has his best game in a long time and you still have to bash him. If you actually watched the game when the Bucs scored in the begining of the 4th, Rex led the Bears down the field to put them up by 14. Then after the Bucs scored again the play-calling on offense became very conservative. Run, run and pass on 3rd and long. It is not Rex's fault that Lovie chose to go that route. Also two of your so-called badly thrown balls should have been caught. I can understand why Lovie decided to run when the Bears where backed up at the 10 but after Benson got 9 yds. why didn't he let Rex and the O try to win the game with a little under a minute left? This was after the D finally forced the Bucs into a 3 and out at midfield. For all the negatives said about the D they do tend to step it up when it matters the most. I don't know about the rest of you but I'm happy the Bears clinched and now it's tinme to get healthy and get everyone back on track. Hope Hester gets his head on straight and hope him being on O was a glimpse of what the Bears are concocting for the playoffs. GO BEARS!!!

The Ammendments to our Constitution mostly stand the test of time - the obvious one that doesn't is the 2nd one which essentially allows any idiot to buy a gun. This ammendment was crafted in the 1780s during a time when this country was concerned about the ability to mount a response to local uprisings!! Good luck try to over-tun it though...

Roman responds: Exactly, you can't overturn it because the gun lobby is too powerful and is in the pockets of too many politicians. And that's the exact reason tobacco is legal. Tobacco leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths per year yet it's legal? Does anyone else find that unbelievable?

The Bears DID win on Sunday. That's all that counts, I guess. All I see is a tired defense who can't stop the run and now cannot stop crossing routes. I see two criminals who are given the benefit of the doubt because they are keys to a successful season. If Tank Johnson was a regular guy, he would be held without bond. I saw that with Leonard Little in St. Louis when he drunkenly killed an innocent person. We'll keep seeing things like this because there's too much money that comes with winning. It's a shame that my kids will have to see this. And for the Bears fans to cry "Give Tank a chance." Shows that you will allow anything just to get a chance at a Bears championship. Lovie Smith has no control over his team and he deserves no respect from the fans.

Roman responds: Great point about Leonard Little. That guy should be in prison.

Roman responds: Exactly, you can't overturn it because the gun lobby is too powerful and is in the pockets of too many politicians. And that's the exact reason tobacco is legal. Tobacco leads to hundreds of thousands of deaths per year yet it's legal? Does anyone else find that unbelievable?

Tobacco/Guns are harmful, yet legal. What a shocker! You know what else is harmful yet legal? Alcohol. You know what else? Foods that are high in cholesteral and fat. Bottom line is, do not turn this into a political debate about gun control because one moron (Tank Johnson) decided to pretend he was Tony Montegna. The problem in this case is not gun control. He got caught because he did not take the appropriate steps to register his firearms, if anything this could be a sign that the gun control policies are working.

Now the morons who want to crucify Tank Johnson for stupid decision making in his life are not going to be satisfied if the Bears dump him. Something, may I add that if the Bear management does dump Johnson, they will be very sorry for in the future. Because the message will be for future players that you can expect to be thrown out and under the bus if you have any strife in your life that they find uncomfortable to deal with.

The morons who want to dump Johnson now want to attack and overturn the 2nd Amendment that gives every American the right to own weapons for self defense, sport or hunting purposes. What a joke! These stupid and uninformed people need to learn what is going on in England to see what the results of outlawing weapons to lawabiding citizens will result in happening.

The "gun lobby is too powerful and is in the pockets of too many politicians?" Is that so? Tell that to Mayor Daley and other politicians of his ilk whose phoney lawsuits aimed at legitimate gun manufactors have continuously been tossed out of court. If you applied the same illogical reasoning all auto companies should be prevented from making cars because their use results in the deaths of innocent people. The same could be said for those companies who make airplanes, knives, baseball bats, etc. How stupid can people like Roman Modrowski be?

The founding fathers of America, knowing what history had taught them in Europe, wrote the 2nd Amendment to enable the average citizen to defend body and property from lawbreakers. So because six lousy guns were found, by a police task force breakin worthy of international terrorists, all guns should be removed from the American people? What an incredible, over the top, reaction to a miner incident! I sure hope that the Bear management does not allow media morons to pressure them into releasing Tank Johnson. It would not be fair to him, his teammates and the clear thinking Bear fan.

Thoughts on the game:

Grossman played very well, took chances when appropriate, and checked down effectively. The 4th quarter drive was especially impressive when the offense responded after Hester's fumble which led to TB's touchdown.

The defense was actually playing well going into the 4th quarter. The Hester fumble was a big momentum changer for TB's offense. I think Rivera made a mistake with blitzing in the 4th quarter for two reasons - it allowed some long completions without significant time running off the clock, and the Bears aren't a very good blitzing team because they don't do it very often.

A much better strategy would have been what they did in the Ram game. The Rams moved down the field late in that game to score their last touchdown but it cost them several minutes off the clock. Let Rattay pick you apart, but keep them inbounds. More plays run by the offense means more turnover and offensive mistake possibilities.

If the Bears want to blitz in the playoffs like they did in this game, they had better start practicing it a lot more.

On the Tank situation - none of us has enough information to have a reasonably informed opinion as to what the Bears should do. I don't mean whether he should play again this year, I mean whether he should be permanently removed from the team. As for playing this year, I would suspend him for the remaining two games and see if he can develop a plan acceptable to all the parties involved as to how he can change the direction his life has taken recently.

I really rather talk about the team and the results from the season so far. It's hard to believe that the BEARS should pass 400 points scored in the season,maybe in the next game.Thomas Jones should go over 1200 yards in the next game after so many people called for his head after he was trying too hard. After he got his confidence he just got better and better. I think mixing him and Benson in keeps them both fresh and allow them to give the BEARS a solid 1-2 punch. The O Iine has allowed only 18 sacks and you really can't be much better than that. With Rex being a little slow of foot that is actually excellent protection. I think when we look back on this season we will see that it wasn't as dire as we perceived it. I kept looking on the bright side because I really think that there was alot of bright side. I think Turner expected Rex to conform to his gameplans when he should have realized that it should be the other way around. He should've utilized Rex's abilities better and made him understand what the adjustments were for. I don't think Rex ever felt threatened until he had to split reps with Griese. I really think that helped him. On D we are so short-handed. We have only partially replaced Mike Brown and then had to replace his replacement. We haven't had our total number of DBs together in a game since the Jets if not before that. We've been short for several weeks. The D line(I'll nimble around the subject) has had it's share of injury through the season. Whale has missed time and probably hasn't been healthy all season. I won't be surprised to find that he's had a nagging injury that we don't know about. The interior is suffering from injury and absence and we've basically have sent only the front line in to create pressure. We haven't blitzed because we are so short handed with our DBs. Once we're as healthy as we can be I'm sure we'll gamble a little more. D.Manning needs to not get sucked in too much in run support. A couple of times he was caught out of position because he was peeking into the backfield.That's inexperience and trying to compensate for the shortage. All and all I figure we'll be fine for the post season. We will have a little different appearance from what we've shown lately. Like I've said: we've been in exhibition mode for a few weeks now. Our ability to make the post season hasn't been in jeopardy since week 5 of this season. We've had a lead for weeks that was insurmountable. Not many teams had the luxuries that we were afforded. They've had to fight and claw for position and we've been ahead of the game.They've been looking up and we've been manning the posts. We are not the team with doubt. The other teams are. They are losing to each other every other week and I'm sure they have more faith in us than our fans do. Somewhere along the line I hope that change.That said,GO BEARS!!!!

Kris--I agree with you that the issue with the Tank Johnson case isn't the fact that he owned guns--it was the fact that he didn't register himself as a gun-owner. I'm one of the people calling for Johnson's suspension--but not because he's a gun-owner. It's because he broke a fairly clearly-defined law.

Bob--"The founding fathers of America, knowing what history had taught them in Europe, wrote the 2nd Amendment to enable the average citizen to defend body and property from lawbreakers. "

The founding fathers of America, knowing what history taught them in Europe, also composed the Constitution in a manner that counted Africans and their descendants as three-fifths of a human being, something that wasn't ever "rectified" 9and I use the term very loosely) until Abraham Lincoln wanted to put an economic squeeze on the South during the Civil War. And even then, voting rights for said people weren't guaranteed legally until later.

General address: Could we put a moratorium on the Libertarian propaganda, please? Listen--when people start taking accountability for their actions and demonstrate a capacity for mature, rational thought, then other people will stop crying for your guns to be taken away.

I see nothing wrong in principle with people owning guns--nor, however, do I see any problem with mandating that people either register their weapons or register themselves as owners of weapons. You need a license to drive a car in this country--and cars, unlike guns, aren't designed to hurt people.

Sure, the idea of overturning the 2nd Amendment is stupid. But so are the childish, knee-jerk reactions of people who think anything that keeps them from doing whatever the hell they want is somehow a violation of their rights. Show of hands--how many gun owners' lives are dependent upon the food they kill? Show of hands--how many American gun-owners live in places where they are required to use a gun to defend themselves? Grow up and own up: most Americans own guns because they want to, not because they have to. I agree that law-enforcement in this country doesn't exactly operate in a fair and equitable manner--but what else is new? Most gun-owners don't really have to worry about unfair law enforcement, because most of them aren't black.

Calling people like Roman "stupid" because they dare insinuate Tobacco and firearms should be illegal is just that--stupid. I realize I'm on a blog comment thread, but any adults are encouraged to step forward. Tobacco only harms people. Firearms only harm people. Alcohol harms people when used improperly. Comparing any of these three to driving a car, flying a plane, or eating meat and cheese is the dumbest load of bovine excrement I've ever heard. Just because it should be legal for people to use any of these things doesn't mean that people should be given carte blanche to use them whenever and however they deem appropriate. There's enough evidence detailing the harmful effects of tobacco, firearms, and alcohol to justify restricting where, when, and how they may be used. Just like we do for automobiles and aircraft.

this is the nfl, not to mention a sport. remember that any team can be beaten on any given day. when teams come prepared then its going to be a good game. it took 2 1/2 quarters for the bucs to show up but it did turn out to be a close one, to close for me. i live right in the heart of bucs country, and listening to every whinny crack and excuse for why the "PEWter and red lose is sickening. the bears won and that is all that matters right now. true the bears have a few things to work out and get right (grossman comes to mind). the secondary is the main weekness that i see. with mike brown out the safety position is hurting drasticly, then add in the defencive line and we have trouble. the linebackers can only do so much.

speaking of linebackers, did you see that monster crunch on rittay? WOW!!!!

clark played an outstanding game. mckie reminded me of MATT SUEY, exceptional. the o line played great. the only real flaw was the depleated secondary.

being in tampa fl all i hear is that the bucs almost won with a 3rd string qb. what i saw was a former starting qb find wholes in a 2nd and 3rd string secondary, (i know now i sound like one of them). but that is the trueth. do you think that our corners and safties can cover against someone like brees the way he is playing right now? with pressure up front yeah maybe but the secondary has to play better or our playoff season will end january 14. 3 weeks before the super bowl.

the bears played a great game and should be proud of it. but problems need to be addressed before our playoffs start, or the 49ers or seahawks will do what carolina did last year. i love the bears and hope that doesnt happen.

ok ive ramble on long enough. thank you for reading and for all the bear fans, BEAR DOWN CHICAGO BEARS........

Nice to see rex have a good game and bears win. Now if they can win 2 games at home in playoffs they get a chance in the superbowl.

I'm Just saying that last game was indoors in st louis, and this game was in upper 40 degree temps. Next weeek in detroit is indoors, and lovie will probably sit rex in last game at home vs pack. So, Rex hasn't had to play in the cold, with gloves, since his 1.3 qb rating game. And it doesn't look like he will be playing outside in the cold where he doesn't seem to be able to grip the ball, until the playoffs.

So while these games are fun to watch and the wins are nice, it won't mean a thing when the playoff games in soldier field in the freezing cold get here. My forecast is for cold temperatures and plummeting qb ratings for rex. Maybe we could have a contest and pick a qb rating for rex in the bears first playoff game, i'll start with 36.5, mostly in first half, with griese on the field but rusty in the second half. Anyone else have a number in mind? Come on Rex fans step up with those 100 plus ratings (maybe there will be a winter thaw with unseasonably high temps and rex will be able to throw accurately!!)

Just so you know, i do want the bears to win superbowl, thats why i hope griese is ready to get them there. Who knows the superbowl is in miami where its warm and humid, so maybe rex would be able to grip the ball and play well there, if the bears can make it there somehow...

Tele, why is it that Rex will be the only QB who plays in the cold in your eyes? If our running game was idled I would say worry. Just about every team that has to come to Chicago with the exception of the Giants play in warm weather or climate controled stadium. In those stadiums the temperature isn'y 40something like it was Sunday. The thing about Rex is he played at good game where it means the most : Between his ears and above his shoulder. He didn't screw up. Most of what he was doing,during his bad Rex time, was silly passes that were short or into the arms of the Defender. There was only one close INT but, finally, a WR played DB and attemted to break it up. Weather isn't this man's Krytonite. People want to say he has small hands and he's too short to see over his linemen. There are a lot of QBs nowadays who are just as short if not shorter and with hands as small or smaller. When you're messing up excuses are made by people that that 's the reason when it may not have a ring of truth. He was always this size and it never stopped him before. It was all mental. And now that the monkey and everyone else is off his back he's free to work in obscurity. Not one person on this blog questioned his play from Sunday. If anything the wondered if he would revert to bad Rex because of what was in their mind. Not what they had seen. HE..WILL...BE...FINE..WE WILL BE FINE. That said,GO BEARS!!!!

for all you bears haters out there i think this win showed you a lotta heart....yea there were some flaws on the defense but once vasher and johnson and tank return we should be good as well as tait to the o line...hester did have an off day but hes always been a make or break player..hopefully he will be ready for the playoffs...with homefield this year earlier than last year the bears should be smarter than last year and hopefully prepare much better for any saints stud offense or dallas cowboys team that might come to chicago in JANUARY....road to the superbowl comes through CHITOWN BABY

The schedule comes out every season and everyone looks at and says, “The bears should win this game easily.� That is not how professional sports work the difference between the top and the bottom is much slimmer than people realize. That’s why you play the games and if the Bears don’t show up they will get their block knocked off. Fortunately for Bears fans they have been showing up all year long…. SUPERBOWL CHAMPS BABY!!!

Trust me, any win is better than any loss...

It wasn't too long ago that the Bears were mentioned in the same breath as the Cardinals...

Be happy with success, no matter how it is achieved...

Especially if we want to go ahead and crown you already...

It could be worse...

You could be a Cards fan!!!

Mr. Donald...Is there a place I can buy "cliff notes" to yer postings???...jk...I wonder if you all will be snivvling if the Bears win the Super Bowl the same way they have been winning all year...Never mind, I know tha answer would be yes...Merry Christmas everyone!!

Another "ugly" win against a poor team.
Support your BEARS and say some prayers (for the playoffs)
Restore the Roar!