Chicago Football Chili

With the Eagles appropriately kicked to the curb (ok maybe I had some doubts about this one before the game), we can move on to the really fun stuff - Division play!

There's nothing quite like beating one of the regulars!  Oh, sure, Detroit isn't the Packers, but we need to exercise some patience.  No cheeseheads until November.

So I really want to get UP for this game.  But really, what can you say about the Lions.  If they didn't play every single Thanksgiving, most of America would have forgotten that they exist.  So, to pass the time during halftime, I did the kind of thing that a Generation X pop-culture geek who also likes football would do - I tried to come up with the Detroit musician who most reminded me of the team.

So, first, I eliminated all artists from the Motown label.  The Motown sound is legendary.  The Lions are not.  And I also eliminated Bob Seger.  Too consistent for too long.  And Ted Nugent.  The Motor City Madman is just too intense for these pedestrian footballers.

Alice Cooper?  Hmmm.  He IS scary.  But he's also a great golfer, so he covers a lot more green than the Detroit offense.  Getting closer, though.

Sonny Bono?  Interesting.  He had some big success a long time ago, and then was essentially eclipsed by the talent around him.  Very similar, but he reinvented himself as a Congressman for a successful second half comeback.  No second half comebacks for the Lions.

Ultimately, I decided the Lions were most like Detroit legend Suzi Quatro.  Yes, you remember Suzi.  She played Leather Tuscadero on "Happy Days" (you know, Pinky's little sister - lead singer of Leather and the Suedes?). 

Anyway, Suzi hit the scene way back many years ago, had a tiny little bit of success in the U.S., and is still actively performing, though you've probably not noticed her very much.  If you lived in Detroit, she'd probably cross your mind once in awhile.

And THAT sounds like the Lions to me.

So, looking forward to Sunday, when we'll be "Stumblin' In" to the Silverdome to take on the Suzi Quatro Lions.  Should come out of it 3-2, and 1-0 in the Division.

Go Bears!

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 09:59 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Gotta tell ya, I’m pretty secure in my masculinity.  I can wear pink in public and carry my wife’s purse when she needs her hands for other things, with nary a blink or a blush.  Which is why I feel comfortable, right now, saying that I can’t get Roberto Garza’s Buns off my mind.

It’s true.  The Bears offensive lineman has buns like no other.  I saw them in the newspaper earlier this week, and I have to admit I’ve become a bit obsessed about them.    

I’ve just got to get my hands on them.  Might even sink my teeth into one of them later this evening.

My wife understands, and that’s why we went to the Jewel to pick up a box of Roberto Garza’s Super Buns from the freezer case.  He has Super Donuts, too.

And to be fair, they’re not HIS, per se, as he doesn’t own the company, but the Jewel flyer in the paper called them Robero Garza Super Buns, and at that point I was hooked.

Really, I’m happy to see any kind of advertising or promotional tie-in that has an NFL player not named “Manning” in it.  And I think there’s a lot of possibility here. 

Brett Favre’s Retirement Homes (still under construction).

Israel I-Dijonnaise.

Terrell Owens “Throw your QB under a Bus” Service.

There’s probably a whole lot more.  And really, any idea that ultimately keeps me from thinking about Roberto Garza’s Buns is probably a good one.

Which reminds me, they really need to bring back the Honeybears.

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 03:25 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Sometimes, I worry.

Like say for instance, about Devin Hester.

The Bears front office is notoriously silent on all issues related to… well, everything.  And Hester’s rib injury is no different.  Is it a bruise, is it torn cartilage, what is it?  And how long will he be out?

Or, for that matter, is he EVEN out?  He’s questionable for Sunday, but they’re not saying “no” for sure.  For those who play fantasy football, this is something we need to know.  Especially if your league counts special teams play.

Devin says he hurt himself twisting to avoid a tackle and had a couple of days where it hurt to breathe.  It would seem that taking big breaths would be necessary as one burns 108 yards from the endzone for a touchdown.  I’d be at big breaths at about 5 yards, myself.  Add some pain to that, and I’d be making it a “fair catch” day, all day long (as if anyone would let me off the bench).  It doesn't sound serious though, like half a season serious.  But you just never know with the Bears front office. 

We'll play optimist and assume this is minor.  So the question then becomes, how well has he recovered?  Well, it’s Friday and he still hasn’t practiced all week.

Sigh.

At this point, I’d call it off.  He won’t play.  If he does, it would be as a special teams decoy.  There are no points to be made on Devin Hester this week.

Rest him.  Get him well.  Then bring him out in primetime vs. Philly next week.  

Posted by dawn2 at 03:44 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Oh, it was painful to watch the end of this game.  When you end up on the wrong end of the score, you've got to hope you've gotten there because the other team flat out beat you.  But that didn't happen today. 

I know that a lot of attention is going to fall on Greg Olsen for his two fumbles, and rightly so.  They were certainly game-changers, and not in a good way.  And I'm sure there's going to be a lot of ball control work this week at practice for the young man.  But I contend that those drops could have been overcome. 

No, the Bears lost this game with about two and a half minutes left when they forgot who they were.

Let's go back in time - not too far.  Just a month ago. 

It was then that coach Lovie Smith named Kyle Orton his starting quarterback.  At the time, it was sold as the safe option.  Rex Grossman is too inconsistent, there's just too much instability there.  But Kyle, he can better manage the offense.  He's an offense manager.  A conservative choice.  The kind of guy who will allow the defense and special teams to shine, and do enough to keep the team on the right side of the win column.

But with two and a half minutes left to play, after a 9-yard Matt Forte run, someone decided that the Bears were an arial juggernaut.  So much so that they can afford to pass on 2nd down and 1 in a game in which they're behind by three with just over two minutes left.  And when the incomplete didn't serve as enough of a lesson, they repeated the folly.  Leaving them one chance to take that one yard by the ground.  Which failed.

Really, there needed to be three runs at that yard.  We have running backs who provide different looks, who have different skills.  One of them could have made it through.  Yes, the Panthers would be expecting it.  And as Brett Favre/Thomas Jones proved today, multiple runs at that one yard don't always work.  But with where the Bears were on the field, and with the amount of time left, the runs were the right call.  Nothing tricky.  Just ball control.  Moving the chains.  Save the fireworks for another, more appropriate time. 

The Bears forgot who they were.  They forgot that their offense is designed to move forward slowly and steadily.  They got too clever.  And they lost.

They didn't have to.    

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 09:54 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Here it is, time to see if the Bears are for real.

Why not?

Carolina's a potentially good team with a strong running game.  They don't have a Peyton Manning the way last week's losing opponent does, and I don't think there are many folks who would place them ahead of the Colts as a legitimate contender for the whole thing.

But that doesn't mean that they roll over and die.  Here's how I see it:

Does Kyle Orton get that first TD from the air this week?  Yes he does.  1 TD, 1 INT.  175-200 yards.

Does Matt Forte take off where he left off, and finish with another 100 yard game?  Not quite, because the Panthers have some actual real-game film to see now.  But I think he should be good for 80-90, and that the Bears will mix up the running game a bit this week with looks for a few guys.  Look for Kevin Jones to be at 40+.

Can the Bears defense stop the Carolina running game?  Not to the same extent as last week with Joseph Addai.  Carolina is going to really push their runners, and if the D stays on the field too long, then you could see some rushing TDs in the second half from our foe.  I'm out on a limb, though, and saying the Bears D doesn't tire.  Carolina will score once on the ground and will have a combined 140 yards.

How does that Bears O-Line hold up?  Very well, thank you.  They'll allow two sacks, but for the most part will hold steady and let the team move downfield.  Was happy to see the team bring back Fred Miller for some reinforcements.  Looks like management knows the weak spots and are being very proactive in holding it together for that predicted-by-me late season surge.

Final Score:  Bears 20 - Carolina 13.  They're not shoot-em-ups - just good ground control football.  This one defines the Bears as a team not to be taken lightly.  Might have a couple of bumps in the next few weeks, but this one works out just fine.

Posted by dawn2 at 03:35 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

For three years on the plains of the Midwest, there roamed a Moose.  Muhsin Muhammad, the Carolina Pro Bowl wide receiver, signed as a free agent with the Bears in 2005 and built a following around town as a person who was a hard-worker, a teammate, a pro. 

So you can imagine the shock and surprise when he told Sports Illustrated earlier this year that the Chicago Bears is “where wide receivers go to die.”

Or, at least, you would think there would be SOME shock and surprise.

A little maybe?

Well, yeah, there was a little.  But mostly there was collective nodding.  Deion Sanders agreed with him on ESPN.  And the locals here in the City of Broad Shoulders who loved him on the field pretty much gave him the pass. 

How does that happen?

Well, Moose played a great deal of the 2005 season with a broken hand.  We instinctively remember that.  Moose would routinely take the blame for missed passes that might normally have gone to one of the young QBs throwing at him.  And we appreciate him having stepped up like that.  And at our core, we know we were lucky to have a good receiver like Moose play for us and help mentor the team.  Because, historically, Chicago HAS been where wide receivers go to die.  This is a ground-game town.

So, we still love you Moose.  And when you suit up against us this weekend, back in your old Carolina blue, we’ll be wishing a good game for you (albeit one in which your team loses).

And we won’t hold that SI statement against you, because we Chicagoans are a pretty well-centered group.

We save all our delusions for the Cubs.

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 10:14 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Well, how about that?

What happened to the defense that was supposedly incapable of stopping the run?  They stopped the run, that’s what they did!  And Joseph Addai isn’t a marginal back (I’m sure he was a top-5 pick in your fantasy football draft).  This means something.  It means that the Bears CAN stop the run.

Am I making that pronouncement too early?  I don’t think so.  It is said that once you display a skill, you own that skill.  You may not be consistent with it, but you own it.  And that means that the Bears can find a way to stop a world-class runner.

And this is wonderful news.

Impressive win last night, and I’d have enjoyed it a lot more if I would have thought it possible.  I had a few games like this in 2006, where I was so positive that the team would find a way to lose that I couldn’t enjoy the victory.  I think I get this by being a lifelong Cubs fan.  

But there we were after 60 minutes had ticked off the clock with a decisive victory over a team that many regard as one of the absolute best in the league.  

Yes, Manning didn’t practice all pre-season.  But he knows the plays, has much of the same team around him who also know the plays, AND had a good night on the field.  250+ yards is nothing to sneeze at.  So, flukish as it may feel, this is no fluke.  The Bears WON this game.  They won it.  They didn’t “not lose” it.  They won it.

And they will win more.

All pundits who predicted 4-10 seasons for our Bears, please line up for your humble pie.  May be a few more weeks til we can officially serve it up, but the writing is on the wall.

Happy Monday, Bears fans!

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 09:06 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

About 24 hours to the regular season kickoff!  Are you ready for some football?!?

Q&A

Will Peyton Manning start for the Colts?  Of course he will.  But will he finish, that is the question?  Go Defense!

Will Matt Forte rush for 100 yards?  The Bears will want him to, but I think the Colts hold him to 88 on the ground.  Running game will be responsible for about 120 yards overall.

What's going to be the Orton TD to Interception ratio?  Even.  2 TD, 2 Picks.

Will Devin Hester score a TD on Special Teams?  No.  The Colts are too afraid to kick to him while the score matters.  But we will get 6 points from this unit that aren't Robbie Gould related.

Well, then how about a reception TD for "Anytime"?  Yes.  Devin will pull down an Orton pass for a 15-25 yd TD.

Can the defense stop Indianapolis RB Joseph Addai?  No.  At least not at first.  Addai will land in the 130-140 range, with a lot of early running and one score.  He'll lose some steam in the second half, as I believe the Colts will be counting on him too much.

Can the defense stop Peyton Manning?  Yes.  Manning finishes with 250 or less passing yards (for Manning, that's considered stopping him).

Do the Bears win?  Call it a moral victory -- Colts 27 - Bears 24.

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 04:53 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

We are drawing ever closer to opening kickoff in what I believe will be a surprising season of Bears football.

If you have any kind of ear to the ground, you pretty much hear everything about the Bears being questioned this pre-season.  The QB, the running game, the coaching staff, the offensive line, the receiving corp, and even the defense - all areas that are being put through the wringer.  Seems only special teams and the tight ends are getting any slack.  And while we've talked a bit about a few of these areas already, I truly believe there is only one unit that has a make-or-break your season aura hanging over its head.  And that is the offensive line.

The defense is the sexy thing to worry about right now, but we have too many good players on the D for us to have a meltdown.  Yes, there will be an injury or two.  Perhaps a good player or two start to regress back to "normal player".  But overall, the depth here is such that we will have something between relatively consistent good play (which is to say, a bad game or two but mostly effective), to really, really good.

Others have written off the playmakers on offense, as there is no one who leaps out as a superstar at first glance.  We don't know that to be true, and we certainly have a couple of players with potentials for breakouts.  But I'm conservative here.  I think they'll be good enough to stay on the field awhile, get to the red zone, and put enough points on the board to win...

IF...

the offensive line holds up.  This is the make-or-break.  The team knew we needed help here, and used their 1st round pick to bring in reinforcements.  But Chris Williams is injured and unpracticed.  If he heals fast enough to help, he may still not have the kinds of reps and gameplay to be effective this season.  Terrence Metcalf is no longer injured but still unpracticed.  May be a few games til effectiveness.  Dan Buenning is new, acquired in trade this week, and will get some playing time.  But it's a new playbook, and may be awhile until he's acclimated to it.

So this is where the season rests.  If we can get solid play from the returning healthy O-Line veterans, and some solid play from young guys early, then we stand a chance to surprise.  By mid-season, we should have Metcalf and Buenning in full-ready mode and maybe even Williams looking to get in once in awhile.  And if this happens, well...

The pundit world is picking the bears to be a 4-12 to 6-10 team.  I am picking the bears to be an 8-8 to 10-6 team.  My bet is an effective-enough O-Line early, and a solidly-effective O-Line late, along with a top-5 defense, the best special teams in the league, and a consistent offense - not a lot of big plays, but a whole lot of steady.  It's a formula that adds up to a winning season. 

But it all rests on that O-Line. 

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 04:50 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)