Bears game 2: Sunday Sep. 19 at DAL on Fox

[Magnetic Curses]

cowboys fans are a very special kind.

 

but the excuses started last week. they lost because of alex barron, this week they lost because of team unity. how about they got beat by a better team?

[UMFan83]

cowboys fans are a very special kind.

 

but the excuses started last week. they lost because of alex barron, this week they lost because of team unity. how about they got beat by a better team?

 

I dunno, where's Vance when you need him?

[Soul]

cowboys fans are a very special kind.

 

but the excuses started last week. they lost because of alex barron, this week they lost because of team unity. how about they got beat by a better team?

 

I dunno, where's Vance when you need him?

 

The 'Boys have a lame coach. I'm not sure why JJ seems to like him so much.

 

When I look at the Cowboys and the Chargers, I see similar traits. Tons of talent, all the potential in the world -- and coaches that act as a training harness, keeping them from being as good a team as they could possibly be.

[Butterscup1679666578]

Another player I was pretty impressed with yesterday was Toeaina. He seemed to be in on a lot of plays.

[jersey cubs fan]

cowboys fans are a very special kind.

 

but the excuses started last week. they lost because of alex barron, this week they lost because of team unity. how about they got beat by a better team?

 

I dunno, where's Vance when you need him?

 

The 'Boys have a lame coach. I'm not sure why JJ seems to like him so much.

 

When I look at the Cowboys and the Chargers, I see similar traits. Tons of talent, all the potential in the world -- and coaches that act as a training harness, keeping them from being as good a team as they could possibly be.

 

It's kind of funny that in a sport where coaching matters Jones treats the position almost like you'd prefer to see a MLB owner treat it, indifferently.

[Magnetic Curses]

i like wade's defense, but it's really enigmatic. when it works, it works, when it doesn't, it gets abused.

 

but the 3-4 is really hit or miss, imo.

[soapy]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

[UMFan83]

Also, one expected but annoying thing about the coverage of this game is that all the analysis about this game online has not been about how suprising it is that the Bears are 2-0, its all about how the Cowboys are 0-2. Again like I said I'm not at all surprised, so I'm not upset about it, I just wish there was more viewpoints to read about regarding the Bears outside of our local sites.

 

Anyone come across any Bear-friendly articles in the national media and the big 4 (ESPN, SI.com, CBSSports, FoxSports) this morning?

[jersey cubs fan]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

I read MMQB this morning wondering what King would say about the game. He bumped the Bears up high in his rankings, but his only talk of the game was Dallas struggling and the Bears offensive line being worse than he thought. He talked about 3 QBs who won their games, and not one of them was Cutler. Don Banks who had the Bears in the bottom 5 or so to start the season said he's not sure how the Bears have won and assumes they probably won't keep winning.

[Guest]

The first game ball goes to Martz. Recognizing after the first two series of downs that MAJOR adjustments need to be made and then making those adjustments.

 

Game ball #2 goes to Cutler. Put yourself in his shoes after the last knock down/sack of the second series of downs. You absolutely have to be fearing for your life at that point, and he goes out there and throws two quick passes and gets into the endzone and makes the entire Dallas defensive coaching staff poop their panties. That was all kinds of awesome!

 

Game ball #3 goes to the linebacking crew. All 3 starters killed it yesterday.

 

The defensive line definitely didn't look good yesterday, but the cover 2 performed the way it's basically supposed to. More pressure on Romo, and this game isn't close. The few times they did apply pressure, Romo tossed up ill advised throws that could have easily been intercepted if someone was in the right spot (like DJ Moore on his two catches).

 

Lots of highlights to yesterday's game. My favorite might have been watching Peppers lay out Barber in the backfield on one particular pass play. It might have been a completed pass, but all Barber saw were stars. :yahoo:

[Banedon]

Also, one expected but annoying thing about the coverage of this game is that all the analysis about this game online has not been about how suprising it is that the Bears are 2-0, its all about how the Cowboys are 0-2. Again like I said I'm not at all surprised, so I'm not upset about it, I just wish there was more viewpoints to read about regarding the Bears outside of our local sites.

 

Anyone come across any Bear-friendly articles in the national media and the big 4 (ESPN, SI.com, CBSSports, FoxSports) this morning?

 

Melissa Isaacson had one on ESPN this morning (along with like 3-4 Cowboys articles).

 

Peter King had nary a mention of the game...you'd barely knew it existed, though he has the Bears ranked like number 8. He countered that positive by bashing the O-line in his "things I didn't like" segment.

 

But yeah, very little Bears praise.

[Soul]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

The thing is, I think Martz has already put together good offensive football teams without worrying about producing good run game numbers.

 

I'm moving away from expecting a run game, or worrying about it. One of the pleasant surprises I've seen from this bunch so far has been the screens. For years upon years the lack of any sort of screen ability has frustrated me. Now it's like a light switch being turned on. They're getting big plays on various incarnations of the screen, and it serves as a surrogate for a run game since it's a high percentage play when executed well, and they're getting it done.

 

If they can keep doing that, it really plays to our strength since we can't plow open holes, and both of our running backs have shown solid receiving skills.

 

The one downside I see is 3rd and 4th and short yardage. They'll likely not do very well in those situations unless they can get creative.

[Banedon]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

I read MMQB this morning wondering what King would say about the game. He bumped the Bears up high in his rankings, but his only talk of the game was Dallas struggling and the Bears offensive line being worse than he thought. He talked about 3 QBs who won their games, and not one of them was Cutler. Don Banks who had the Bears in the bottom 5 or so to start the season said he's not sure how the Bears have won and assumes they probably won't keep winning.

 

I sent Peter an email this morning on his lack of coverage of that game.

[jersey cubs fan]

Also, one expected but annoying thing about the coverage of this game is that all the analysis about this game online has not been about how suprising it is that the Bears are 2-0, its all about how the Cowboys are 0-2. Again like I said I'm not at all surprised, so I'm not upset about it, I just wish there was more viewpoints to read about regarding the Bears outside of our local sites.

 

Anyone come across any Bear-friendly articles in the national media and the big 4 (ESPN, SI.com, CBSSports, FoxSports) this morning?

 

Melissa Isaacson had one on ESPN this morning (along with like 3-4 Cowboys articles).

 

Peter King had nary a mention of the game...you'd barely knew it existed, though he has the Bears ranked like number 8. He countered that positive by bashing the O-line in his "things I didn't like" segment.

 

But yeah, very little Bears praise.

 

Isaacson is a national writer now? Or is it one of those espnchicago things?

[soapy]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

I read MMQB this morning wondering what King would say about the game. He bumped the Bears up high in his rankings, but his only talk of the game was Dallas struggling and the Bears offensive line being worse than he thought. He talked about 3 QBs who won their games, and not one of them was Cutler. Don Banks who had the Bears in the bottom 5 or so to start the season said he's not sure how the Bears have won and assumes they probably won't keep winning.

 

Will they keep winning? I don't know, but the bolded is just weird. What do you mean you don't know? That's stupid.

[Soul]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

I read MMQB this morning wondering what King would say about the game. He bumped the Bears up high in his rankings, but his only talk of the game was Dallas struggling and the Bears offensive line being worse than he thought. He talked about 3 QBs who won their games, and not one of them was Cutler. Don Banks who had the Bears in the bottom 5 or so to start the season said he's not sure how the Bears have won and assumes they probably won't keep winning.

 

I sent Peter an email this morning on his lack of coverage of that game.

 

He'll have plenty of comments about the Bears when we lose a game and he drops us 10 slots. King must've had someone from Chicago kill his dog once, or something.

[Guest]

If the Bears beat the Packers there will be all sorts of media jumping on the bandwagon.

[soapy]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

The thing is, I think Martz has already put together good offensive football teams without worrying about producing good run game numbers.

 

I'm moving away from expecting a run game, or worrying about it. One of the pleasant surprises I've seen from this bunch so far has been the screens. For years upon years the lack of any sort of screen ability has frustrated me. Now it's like a light switch being turned on. They're getting big plays on various incarnations of the screen, and it serves as a surrogate for a run game since it's a high percentage play when executed well, and they're getting it done.

 

If they can keep doing that, it really plays to our strength since we can't plow open holes, and both of our running backs have shown solid receiving skills.

 

The one downside I see is 3rd and 4th and short yardage. They'll likely not do very well in those situations unless they can get creative.

 

Right. I don't think they need, and I don't expect, a really good running game. But you need to be able to get a few yards on the ground when needed (particularly 3rd-4th down as you said) and they haven't shown that yet.

[Guest]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

The thing is, I think Martz has already put together good offensive football teams without worrying about producing good run game numbers.

 

I'm moving away from expecting a run game, or worrying about it. One of the pleasant surprises I've seen from this bunch so far has been the screens. For years upon years the lack of any sort of screen ability has frustrated me. Now it's like a light switch being turned on. They're getting big plays on various incarnations of the screen, and it serves as a surrogate for a run game since it's a high percentage play when executed well, and they're getting it done.

 

If they can keep doing that, it really plays to our strength since we can't plow open holes, and both of our running backs have shown solid receiving skills.

 

The one downside I see is 3rd and 4th and short yardage. They'll likely not do very well in those situations unless they can get creative.

 

I'm not ready to give up on the running attack. Opposing teams will need to adjust to the adjustment Martz made and fear Cutler's arm, which should take pressure off the line and open up holes for the running game. I feared the 5 and 7 step drop when I first heard about the Bears implementing that into the offense, since this line isn't good enough to protect long enough for plays to develop.

[jersey cubs fan]

He'll have plenty of comments about the Bears when we lose a game and he drops us 10 slots. King must've had someone from Chicago kill his dog once, or something.

 

Dr. Z is the guy who routinely bashed the Bears win or lose. Peter King doesn't seem to have a huge problem with them. They just don't have a Romo or Favre who he's in love with and therefore talks about all the time and overrates. King's got a thing for the NFC East, but everybody overemphasizes that division.

[Magnetic Curses]

and what was witten yelling at the coaches about? i think everyone assumes he wanted back in, but his head hit so hard i wouldn't be surprised if he was just arguing for health care reform.

[Soul]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

The thing is, I think Martz has already put together good offensive football teams without worrying about producing good run game numbers.

 

I'm moving away from expecting a run game, or worrying about it. One of the pleasant surprises I've seen from this bunch so far has been the screens. For years upon years the lack of any sort of screen ability has frustrated me. Now it's like a light switch being turned on. They're getting big plays on various incarnations of the screen, and it serves as a surrogate for a run game since it's a high percentage play when executed well, and they're getting it done.

 

If they can keep doing that, it really plays to our strength since we can't plow open holes, and both of our running backs have shown solid receiving skills.

 

The one downside I see is 3rd and 4th and short yardage. They'll likely not do very well in those situations unless they can get creative.

 

Right. I don't think they need, and I don't expect, a really good running game. But you need to be able to get a few yards on the ground when needed (particularly 3rd-4th down as you said) and they haven't shown that yet.

 

Right, but converting a few more 3rd and 1's isn't going to equal a better run game perception. It won't increase anyone's ypc and it will only positively affect a few plays.

 

I think this team should focus on what they can do well. I'm not disagreeing with anything you said. The point I'm starting to come to with this team is that I think it would be a mistake to fall into the trap of running the ball just because of some notion that "you need to be able to run it."

 

Nay, I don't think in an offense like this that you do "need to be able to run it." You need to do what you do well; emphasize your strengths and de-emphasize your weaknesses. 3rd and 1 is likely to be a weakness all year. They can and should work on it. But if that means running more often instead of creative pass plays, then I'd rather live with the 3rd and 1's not being all that great, in favor of an overall offensive scheme that emphasizes what we do well the other 90% of the time.

[jersey cubs fan]

The running game is not just a Martz thing though, they haven't been able to run for a while. The offensive line started falling apart in the super bowl season and they haven't been able to run since. They have been bottom of the barrel yd/game and yd/carry for three plus years.

[UMFan83]

The Cowboys made mistakes, but the Bears also played very well. I think it's a little funny that the whole national story is that the Cowboys are blowing it and no (or little) consideration is being given to the idea that the Bears might actually just be a decent team.

 

The Martz/Cutler combo has been fantastic so far. If the offensive line could get it together (not likely) and they could just put together a moderate running game, this offense could put up big numbers.

 

I read MMQB this morning wondering what King would say about the game. He bumped the Bears up high in his rankings, but his only talk of the game was Dallas struggling and the Bears offensive line being worse than he thought. He talked about 3 QBs who won their games, and not one of them was Cutler. Don Banks who had the Bears in the bottom 5 or so to start the season said he's not sure how the Bears have won and assumes they probably won't keep winning.

 

I sent Peter an email this morning on his lack of coverage of that game.

 

He'll have plenty of comments about the Bears when we lose a game and he drops us 10 slots. King must've had someone from Chicago kill his dog once, or something.

 

Wait the same Peter King who before last season predicted we'd reach the Super Bowl?

[Soul]

Everyone would like to have a better run blocking line, no doubt. But having an OC like Martz, who can succeed without needing to run the ball as a primary strategy, seems like a nice way to sidestep the issue.