Chicago Football Chili

I don't know about you, but I'm pretty glad we have a night game tonight.  Seems a fitting end to a long turkey day weekend.  Usually, I'm a noon-game guy, but I'm good for an exception today.

Doesn't mean I'm not watching football today.  I am.  Have the Panthers-Packers on right now, and for the moment anyway, things are alright.  Panthers up 21-13.  With common opponents being the 2nd tiebreaker (and the Bears already sporting a loss to Carolina), this is a more important side game than some folks realize. 

All told I'll have 4 or 5 games watched this weekend, if you can count a Lions game as a game.  Oh sure, I count them when WE play them, but Detroit is a tough team to watch.  I know that Detroit on Thanksgiving is a "tradition", but you know, not all traditions are good ones.  Like the Festivus "Feats of Strength".  No one wants to see that.

Or, for that matter, Green Bay tying the game with a two point conversion after a touchdown.  21-21.  This does not make me happy.

But, it's been a nice long weekend.  It's snowing and I don't have to drive in it.  Got a hot beverage brewing, and some chili already in me.  So how much can I really complain.

Panthers will find a way to win it.  Bears will dominate the over-rated Vikings.  And Monday morning won't be that bad, either.

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 02:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Well isn't this just what you hope for out of your St. Louis game?

Lovie, formerly of the Rams organization, had to be pleased.  I know I was.  Loved the first half of this game.  Especially after the pain of last week's. 

First things first:  Announcers - enough with the "what's wrong with Devin Hester" talk.  Sure, he's not run back a touchdown yet this year.  So what?  Brian Mitchell, the all-time leader (currently) in the punt/kickoff returns for touchdowns category, managed to average, oh let's see, less than one per season.  13 in 14 years.  Hester will be fine.

Loved the first touchdown, with O-Lineman Josh Beekman pushing Matt Forte over the goal line.  It reminded me of a touchdown-that-wasn't from the 80's, where Walter Payton was trying to scrape another few feet for the score and William "the Fridge" Perry literally picked him up and tried to carry him over the line.  Not legal, but very funny.  Even to Walter, who we saw laughing on the sidelines a couple of minutes later.

But enough offense.  The real story today was the Defense.  Sacks (Ogunleye with two).  Interceptions (Briggs with two - we're honoring him with next week's chili).  And just generally keeping the Rams from gaining ground.  Only 14 yards rushing today for the Rams.  Now THAT's the defense from early this season. 

Very exciting first half.  I might have slept through the second half.  Or I might have been awake.  It would be hard to tell the difference.

But the end result - Bears win.  Vikings won, too, unfortunately.  And with the Packers on Monday night this week, we might still have a three-team tie at the top.  But the six-game season that Lovie is talking about has begun with a win.

And ain't nothin' wrong with that!

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 05:09 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

So, I'm on the phone last night with a columnist from the Honolulu Star Bulletin, talking to her about the O.K. (Olin Kreutz) Loco Moco chili we have on the site, when I just start going on and on about why we really wanted to do an Olin Kreutz-themed chili.

And sure, Hawaii-born Kreutz is a hard-nosed, tough as nails Pro-Bowl center, and that would probably be enough.  But I wanted to run a little bit more by you, and then talk about the upcoming Rams game for a minute.

You've got to appreciate a great Center.  We're a bit spoiled here in Chicago, as we had Jay Hilgenberg for a long time, too.  Getting the ball in play while at the same time having the other team's biggest beast right over top of you ready to crush something requires a skills-bravery combo unique to the position.  Everyone else on the line is set for the hit they're about to take.  The center is busy multi-tasking.  Not easy.  Kinda loco.  And Olin has been doing it for us for 10 years.

Drafted in the third round of the 1998 draft out of the University of Washington, Olin is also the longest-tenured Bear.  He has either been a Pro-Bowler or All-Pro (yeah, there's a difference) every year since 2001.  And he's not afraid to provide an attitude adjustment if one is necessary.

O-lineman don't always get their props.  Kreutz deserves his.  And while an homage-chili from www.chicagofootballchili.com is probably not the same as his Morris Tropy (best Pac-10 lineman, of which Hall of Famers Bruce Matthews and Gary Zimmerman are also past recipients), it certainly is a whole lot tastier.

Now, the Rams.  They're not very good.  Which for us, right now, is probably a good thing.  Gotta put the last two weeks behind us and start building some momentum as we head down the stretch.  That said, we still have to win the game. 

I'm reminded that, pre-season, Mike and Mike in the Morning on ESPN predicted our Bears to go 5-11.  This game can make that prediction obsolete.  A few more puts us in the playoffs.

And that, my friends, is Living Well.

 CHILI DAN 

Posted by dawn2 at 10:20 AM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

This defeat was just awful.  Wow, was this bad.  With a few minutes to go, and the Bears down 34-3, in my best "eternal optimist" mode, I said something like "Well, with 2-point conversions, we're only down by 4 scores". 

But really, unless I'm quoting President Lincoln, I shouldn't ever be saying "four score'.

This was amazingly bad.  Especially when you consider that it wasn't amazingly bad.

It's not like the Bears were fumbling and throwing interceptions all day.  Or penalizing themselves into oblivion.  No, they just plain played poorly.  Consistently poorly.  All phases of the game. 

Which is what the Lions do.  Or the Bengals.  Or the 49ers.  A playoff-bound team might be expected to have a fumbling, interception-laden, penalty-intensive off-game once in a year.  But to not score, not stop scores, not get in good field position, not keep your offense on the field, and all without having some jaw-dropping "I can't believe they did that" moment.  It's hard to just explain away.  If it were a mistake-fest, you might feel that this could be corrected easily.  But I don't think it can.

The Bears-hater, Joe Buck, who announced the slaughter, suggested that the Bears have it easy next week with the St. Louis Rams.  And while it's true that the Rams have not played well this year, and a good team should expect to beat them, I don't know that my Bears today should expect to beat them.  They really need to fix themselves.  I hope they can.

I promise I'll be more optimistic in a couple of days.  This one was hard.

 CHILI DAN 

Posted by dawn2 at 03:43 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

I guess you might call this "going negative".

The election season is over, but I can't help but to be reminded of the paradox that is politics.  You see, people want to vote FOR something, but can really be swayed by advertising that is AGAINST something.

Which leads us to this week's game. 

I really want the Bears to win.  I am FOR the Bears.  You can count on it.  Every week.

But that green-and-gold-jerseyed, block-of-cheese-wearing, leaper-hugging, Favre-worshipping-but-mind-bogglingly-Rodgers-accepting, Mongo-McMichael-stealing, no-bigger-than-Naperville-Aurora-but-somehow-professional-football-team-sporting, Packer-Backer burgh of Bart-Starr-blowhards IS GOING DOWN!!!

Just sayin'.

I'm CHILI DAN, and I approved this message.

Posted by dawn2 at 08:18 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)

Uh, gee, Tennessee.  How will you fare against the Bears?

As a one-time short-term resident of the Nashville area, I have a bit of a conflict when it comes to this game.  I loved my time in Music City, and grew to somewhat appreciate the local team (when the Bears weren't miraculously on the other network, of course).  So it has me tossing and turning.  Do I want the Bears to win in a mega-blowout, or just a regular blow-out?

Sure, I appreciate the majesty of the 8-0 Tennessee Titans, almost all with their second string quarterback.

But we have a second-string quarterback starting too!  So there!

The best-case scenarios of the 2nd string QB change are this Titans one, where the cagey veteran takes over for the troubled youngster and leads the team to victory, and the Drew Bledsoe to Tom Brady change in which the hotshot youngster leads the way after the veteran's injury.

I don't know if we can call Rex cagey at this point in his career.  Still too early.  Though not early ENOUGH to be scenario two.  (Though this is as good of a time to once again mention 3rd stringer hotshot Caleb Hanie, for whom my wife says I have a man-crush).

So we may have to reinvent the wheel for our miracle story if we're going to get it done with Rexy. 

Actually saw the Titans game last week against the Packers (I was out of town, and did not have immediate access to my Bears).  It was a great football game in two ways: 

1)  It was a hard-fought, tight, overtime extravaganza, and

2)  The Packers lost.

I came away from it thinking the Titans are beatable.  They can be shut down.  And the beauty of it all is that you just need to outscore them - not crush them. 

So brew up the chili on this cool November Sunday.  And let's put these Southern fellas on ice.

 CHILI DAN

Posted by dawn2 at 08:28 PM | Permalink | TrackBacks (0)