That was an impressive win over an unimpressive opponent. But good teams pound on weak foes, and that's what the Bears did today against the St. Louis Rams.
Whether they can maintain that momentum next week in Minnesota is debatable.
But those five sacks, including two by Adewale Ogunleye and two by Tommie Harris, should at least give that unit some confidence. They got a taste today, and that could prove big.
I thought Lovie left Kyle Orton and Matt Forte in there too long, but they both came out unscathed.
The same can't be said for Mike Brown or Des Clark. Key situations.
I thought the biggest play was the pass rush. That could be a catalyst for the rest of the season. The Rams are horrible, but confidence can be a key ingredient in improving.
They actually ran stunts instead of just lining up four down linemen and having them look like statues.
That made a huge difference. Yes it was against the Rams but it was the right adjustment for a change.
The Bears have speed at both the DE and LB positions and that is what you have to utilize. Play to your strengths.
What a difference between Forte and Benson.
Forte is the man and the fact that he can pass block and catch the ball has opened up things for Orton.
And to think that some people actually wanted to keep Benson on the team and ease Forte into the line up.
Say what you want about Kyle Orton but the man does not panic and that is a lot more than you can say about Rex.
The Bears need to do everything they can in the off season to get a game breaker WR.
Congratulations to Lovie and the rest of the Bears. They exceeded all expectations by defeating a team that had no reasonable expectation of beating them ... and they did it convincingly.
At least for a half.
The defence finally played the entire 60 minutes, but even with all of the turnovers they generated, the offence wasn't able to pad the lead in the second half, so my Bears Mug is still half empty.
I got a kick out of Lovie's post game observation: " We wanted a 1-0 record [in the current 6-game season] and we're in the best position we could be in."
What a load, and what a stupid comment!
The "best position we could be in" would have been if they had beaten the Packers last week. Instead they're still mired in a menage e' trois with Green Bay and Minnessotta. If they were playing bridge instead of football (and that's debatable) they could invite Detroit to round out the foursome, or at least play the dummy hand.
As far as all of these post game comments and weekly media sessions are concerned, I'm sick to death of it.
It's all canned, it's all vanilla, and everything that the coaches and players utter (mutter?) is entirely predictable, and might as well be read from a script.
There are never any answers, or accountability. Just the usual banal, self serving tripe.
It's like elevator music to this sport's enthusiast's ears. If they have nothing of consequence to say then I wish they'd just put a sock in it.
*missing people like Dennis Green, Bob Knight, Lee Elia, Sparky Anderson, George Hallas, Jim Mora,and Mike Ditka. At least they had a pulse*
And while I'm on the subject of postgame interviews:
Rex Grossman frequently wilted against the onslaught of the opposing team's pass rush; but he always stood strong in the pocket during the postgame press conferences, no matter how badly he played.
In that respect I have to hand it to the kid. I don't know if I'd have been able to take that kind of abuse, (however well deserved) and still been able to reply in a thoughtful, articulate, and civilized manner.
I've never been a big Grossman fan, but he did shoulder his share of the blame, and for this he should be commended.
The defense needed a strong showing after a pathetic performance at Lambeau last week. They not only showed up big time, but they looked re-focused on attaining their goals. Lovie renaming this a 6-game season might have something to do with it. Next week's tilt in front of a national TV audience at the Metrodome will be their toughest test, in terms of mentally handling the pressure of beating a divisional opponent on the road with playoff hopes and aspirations at stake.
Kyle Orton managed the game, but honestly, the Rams didn't have any bite to their defense. He didn't need to have a stellar game, but needed to make sure he didn't let the Rams get anything back.
I will continue to say that Matt Forte is an incredible running back, and is hands down this team's MVP in 2008. I do worry about him being overused, but he hasn't shown signs of deteriorating yet. I still think that he was down on that play...shouldn't have been a fumble. I blame FOX for not giving solid camera shots of that play. He was down by contact, but alas, he still had a great game.
Did I reference "Sparky Anderson" in my previous post?
Lol ... I meant to say Earl Weaver.
He was a real piece of work, and worth the price of admission, regardless of how his team was playing at any given time.
REX still had more TD passes than Orton has had. In similar amount of games.
REX still had more TD passes than Orton has had. In similar amount of games.
They actually ran stunts instead of just lining up four down linemen and having them look like statues.
That made a huge difference. Yes it was against the Rams but it was the right adjustment for a change.
The Bears have speed at both the DE and LB positions and that is what you have to utilize. Play to your strengths.
What a difference between Forte and Benson.
Forte is the man and the fact that he can pass block and catch the ball has opened up things for Orton.
And to think that some people actually wanted to keep Benson on the team and ease Forte into the line up.
Say what you want about Kyle Orton but the man does not panic and that is a lot more than you can say about Rex.
The Bears need to do everything they can in the off season to get a game breaker WR.
The offense is going to be slightly better than average, it's the 'D' and key situations that are going to make or break the season. The first half was almost a mirror of the Indy game for the defense and created problems all day. If they maintain that philosophy and take a chance periodically on the quick slant, they'll create more turnovers, and more importantly, control the game. We'll get a better picture next week, but I have a feeling Lovie Babich is feelin' the heat and, therefore, listening to player input.
Looked more like a Brian Brown defense to me.
Chris Willette
Re Rex, the Bears have moved on. Can you?
Re the Rams game, the Bears played okay for one half. Horrible play calling in the second half and equally horrible execution. Don't know why Forte or Orton were still in the game after the 3rd quarter (even halftime). Orton had a very good, workmanlike first half. The Rams weren't going to stage a comeback, so why not let him sit the second half and protect his gimpy ankle. Why not give Forte the second half off?
One prediction, if the Bears continue to try to involve Hester in the offense more, they will lose. Olsen is the key to a successful Bears offense followed by Forte. Hester is not a highly skilled receiver, just a fast one. He has to have the ball thrown perfectly to catch it. I would be happy to see him moved solely to returning kicks and punts, and replace him with Wolfe.
Get Lloyd off the field. The team does not like him and he's not good enough to overcome their dislike with an unequaled set of receiving skills (a la TO).
I am just happy the Rams did not go pass crazy on us. THAT is our real problem.
Chris from Willette - Please just let Rex go! Anyone still looking at that man's stats in a positive way is either a family member or someone unwilling to be rational. His jersey is about as popular as a Palin tee-shirt.
I guess today's (Monday 11/24/08) revised blog page is how the Chicago Bears should play defense and probably the offense too! Confuse the hell out of you until finally think "WAIT A MINUTE, Roman is over there under FULL COURT PRESS!" Instead of looking for his mug. Why in the hell is R.Kelly pictured but not the popular and loveable R. Mandrowski? Well anyway once you find your way home, it's back to SOS just a different blog look.
No wonder Microsoft can't sell people on Vista - it actually sucks unless you are technologically savvy.
Oh, SPEAKING of the Bears they didn't look that impressive. It was the Rams and they are terrible, this is how the team supposed to played against a lesser opponent. Show me this week in and week out then I will be impress. If scoring 40 points I would have been more impress.
Anybody watch the Colts - Chargers game? If so, noticed how Ron - Chico - Rivera was getting T.V. face time all night with the defense blitzing, pressuring and knocking the QB on his butt. Yeah they lost but hey, it was an exciting game and last minute field goals decide defensive challenge games. Not that crap we saw in Green Bay!
Now that is the defense we Chicago Bears fans are used to seeing but it got traded away! Maybe it had to do with egos, or hooking a buddy up with a job, I don't know. I do know the Chargers defense showed more gumption then the Bears defense has lately.
Don't get me wrong I am happy with the win. I am glad the defense played better but NOT ONE PLAYER should boast about anything. Play like this again for the next five games and rack up wins and I will get goose-bumps again!
At least we found our QB and a Running Back - Please don't overuse the guy!! But we still lacking in the wide receiver department! Use the Tight Ends more in the passing game. Greg Olsen can be that BIG TALL receiver until we draft one for now! He has shown he can play, so what the hell are Ron Turner and Lovie Smith looking at in game film.
Hester it is time for some critism now! - Just a little - It is apparent you are extremely tentative on punt returns as well. Play with the reckless abandoment you did prior to signing the contract! If you don't know how to take the money you have now and invest it where you not worried about money after your playing days are over, the other millions that are tied up in incentives in your new contract is not a guarantee you will keep or even make that money.
Mr. Hester it is time for you to play FOOTBALL and stop tip-toeing on the field!
Some of you have this game completely wrong!
The defense woke up. Maybe they will fall back to sleep next week, but for a week they played with fire. Yes, it was the Rams, but I don't think the Lions would have done any better. If you can't run against the Bears they are capable of making you pay.
The biggest shocker was SLASHBACK Hester! Some of us have been waiting 2 yrs to see this. We are overjoyed right now.
As a SLASHBACK, there will be more screens, more reverses, & more direct snaps to Hester. The Bears are finally comparing plays from scrimmage vs return plays & taking advantage of Hester's talent.
We've all seen Hester's tentativeness on returns. A lot of that has to do with the disorder on special teams. It's not just Hester. The whole unit has slipped in getting in position for key blocks.
That's not a problem for SLASHBACK Hester. The play is designed. It either works or it doesn't. No tentativeness means MEGA speed!
Imagine this SLASHBACK play:
The Bears in the I formation. Best wideout goes in motion to weak side drawing best corner. Hester, FB, & QB break to strong side on snap. C snaps & pitches wide to Hester in motion towards strong end. FB & QB delay just long enough for pitch to pass them.
You now have 6 blockers (C,G,T,TE,FB,QB) for Hester in full speed around the strong side end. There's no way it gets stopped for a loss if everyone does their job. The potential for a game breaker is HUGE!
Bears line up in I again after huge gain. Defense cheats & keeps best corner to check Hester. Wideout goes in motion & gets matchup vs weaker corner.
This is what SLASHBACK Hester can mean to the Bears. Go Bears!
Roman, I agree with you on two fronts: First, when you said it's a good sign that the Bears pound teams they're expected to. Second, I too was wondering what Orton and Forte were doing in there during the 4th quarter. Seriously, what has happened to Kevin Jones? A skilled, speedy RB made inactive. WHY?? I sincerely hope Forte doesn't get burnt out with all he does. They have four RBs! Use them!
Anyway, it's good to see a win and it's good to see the Bears defense do what they did regardless of who the opponent is. Will it carry over? We'll see. The players this season seem to perform best during primetime games. And it would be nice to see Chicago wipe the field with the Vikes for the whole nation to see.
Mike - I agree. That was the only blemish I saw in the Rams game. I cringed watching Forte take those snaps late in the 4th against a beaten opponent with nothing to lose. All I could think of was the Bears were trying to bolster his stats. I understand that, but he is just too important on this team. Lovie certainly caused me to raise an eyebrow...