Bears game 13: Sunday, Dec 12 vs NE on CBS

[jersey cubs fan]

A rare CBS game for the Bears as New England comes into town 6 days after a big division matchup with the J E T S. Patriots were 2.5 point favorites in this somewhere but the game is off the board until MNF ends. Everybody in the race won except for Tampa, and they could still easily finish 10-6. I don't know where all the tie breakers currently lie, but I just hope the Bears can win 2 more. I think both of the AFC East matchups remaining are winnable games. The Patriots do not have a defense. I think Belichik can come up with a scheme to offset the Bears success with that quick passing game they utilized so well against Detroit. But Chicago should still be able to put points on the board.

 

The big concern is this passing defense vs Tom Brady. If Chicago comes out with the same defensive effort they had in the first half against Detroit, Brady is going to slice and dice his way to easy victory. The Bears can't count on New England coughing up the ball, as they only have 9 giveaways this season. They are going to have to tackle, hit and take the ball themselves if they want it. The Patriots do not have a greatest show on turf thing going on. They are only above average in both passing yards and rushing. But they score early and often. It's going to be tough. And like many other games this year, a loss wouldn't be unexpected or necessarily devastating. But with half the NFC seemingly looking for their 9th or 10th win this weekend, Chicago could really use another win to stay ahead of the pack.

[UMFan83]

No doubt this is an important game, but in the grand scheme of things its probably the 3rd most important game left in the season, with the top 2 being @ GB and @ Min. That said, a win here would make me feel extremely secure about making the playoffs.

 

I definitely think it will be a close game, but I don't know how I would pick it.

[jersey cubs fan]

No doubt this is an important game, but in the grand scheme of things its probably the 3rd most important game left in the season, with the top 2 being @ GB and @ Min. That said, a win here would make me feel extremely secure about making the playoffs.

 

I definitely think it will be a close game, but I don't know how I would pick it.

 

Yeah, it's not a must win. But I do think they need to get to 11, and if they lose this one, the Jets game becomes a must win since it's the last home game and the two divisional matchups are road games they will likely be underdogs in.

[Banedon]

Seems like the new way for the experts to dismiss the Bears is by saying that they have a good team, but the schedule is just too hard down the stretch. Winning this game should go a long ways toward tamping that argument down.

[Sammy Sofa]

Bears win, 34-26.

 

It's in the bag.

[bukie]

If Green Bay loses this week, 11 wins will be enough for the Bears to win the NFC North...if they beat Minnesota.

[jersey cubs fan]

Jay Cutler has thrown the 15th most INTs in the league, and 13th most TDs. He's got a couple really dangerous games remaining for picks though. Green Bay is near the top in sacks and INT. New England is near the top in INT.

[Soul]

He's got 10 INTs right now. I was surprised by the number of QBs who are still in single digits in INTs, but I'll take that given he's got 17 TDs.

 

It's going to be tougher to maintain this until the end of the year because the level of competition is about to jump up. But I really like how he's toned down the mistakes.

 

As others have noted, I *love* how he's using his legs more. I don't think many teams are going to be able to account for that. He's going to be treated as a pocket passer, I think -- which means opportunities to hurt teams by running should continue to present themselves.

[JonJayCutler]

As others have noted, I *love* how he's using his legs more.

 

That's another thing that changed after the loss against Washington. Not sure if it was planned or not, but it's definitely working.

[jersey cubs fan]

As others have noted, I *love* how he's using his legs more.

 

That's another thing that changed after the loss against Washington. Not sure if it was planned or not, but it's definitely working.

 

How is that a change after the Washington loss? He's been doing it all year and really his entire career.

[JonJayCutler]

As others have noted, I *love* how he's using his legs more.

 

That's another thing that changed after the loss against Washington. Not sure if it was planned or not, but it's definitely working.

 

How is that a change after the Washington loss? He's been doing it all year and really his entire career.

 

Are you watching the same games I'm watching? His amount of moving in the pocket, running for yards, and throwing on the run has all increased since the Washington game/bye week. This is why I wonder how much the offensive line has really improved, as Cutler has avoided numerous sacks with his feet over the past 5 games. I didn't see it as much before the bye week.

 

He is currently within 5 yards of a career high in rushing yards for a season, and there are four games left.

[jersey cubs fan]

I saw him running around against Detroit the first time, as well as Dallas and Green Bay. I don't see how the Washington game supposedly changed what he did with his feet.

 

It's getting pretty ridiculous to pretend that Washington loss had to happen in order to change the team.

[JonJayCutler]

He is currently within 5 yards of a career high in rushing yards for a season, and there are four games left.

 

And that's with missing a game and a half as well.

[jersey cubs fan]

And doesn't it seem a little more likely that he's just back to doing what he was doing before after taking some time to recover from the Giants manhandling for a few weeks? The Washington game didn't change how Cutler played.

[JonJayCutler]

I saw him running around against Detroit the first time, as well as Dallas and Green Bay. I don't see how the Washington game supposedly changed what he did with his feet.

 

It's getting pretty ridiculous to pretend that Washington loss had to happen in order to change the team.

 

I'm not acting like he never ran before. He's simply running more now. The stats don't lie.

 

And I have a theory about the Washington game, as I think the butterfly effect applies in sports. You can't just go back and say we should have won that game and without considering the implications it may have had on the following games. Whether it would have been a different mindset or whatever, we'll never know. Thus we cannot assume the same outcomes.

[jersey cubs fan]

I saw him running around against Detroit the first time, as well as Dallas and Green Bay. I don't see how the Washington game supposedly changed what he did with his feet.

 

It's getting pretty ridiculous to pretend that Washington loss had to happen in order to change the team.

 

I'm not acting like he never ran before. He's simply running more now. The stats don't lie.

 

And I have a theory about the Washington game, as I think the butterfly effect applies in sports. You can't just go back and say we should have won that game and without considering the implications it may have had on the following games. Whether it would have been a different mindset or whatever, we'll never know. Thus we cannot assume the same outcomes.

 

It is a ridiculous theory. We can assume they would have won if Lovie challenged the play. There is no reason not to. It's ridiculous to try and excuse a horrible coaching decision by pretending the butterfly excuse made it happen. Cutler ran 5 times twice in the three games before the Giants molested his skull. He's run 5 times three times in the seven games since the incident. He's always been a moderate scrambler. This year he's operating with probably the worst line he's ever had and if he has been running more, it is because of that, and not because of a butterfly in the Redskins game.

[JonJayCutler]

Will you at least concede that the offense in general has changed since the bye week? The fact that since then the offense has been more balanced is undeniable. Chances are Cutler moving around more is part of those changes or at least a result of those changes as opposed to a coincidence.

[JonJayCutler]

I saw him running around against Detroit the first time, as well as Dallas and Green Bay. I don't see how the Washington game supposedly changed what he did with his feet.

 

It's getting pretty ridiculous to pretend that Washington loss had to happen in order to change the team.

 

I'm not acting like he never ran before. He's simply running more now. The stats don't lie.

 

And I have a theory about the Washington game, as I think the butterfly effect applies in sports. You can't just go back and say we should have won that game and without considering the implications it may have had on the following games. Whether it would have been a different mindset or whatever, we'll never know. Thus we cannot assume the same outcomes.

 

It is a ridiculous theory. We can assume they would have won if Lovie challenged the play. There is no reason not to. It's ridiculous to try and excuse a horrible coaching decision by pretending the butterfly excuse made it happen. Cutler ran 5 times twice in the three games before the Giants molested his skull. He's run 5 times three times in the seven games since the incident. He's always been a moderate scrambler. This year he's operating with probably the worst line he's ever had and if he has been running more, it is because of that, and not because of a butterfly in the Redskins game.

 

You're missing my point entirely. It's obvious that changes were made offensively after the Washington game, and if we don't lose that game in such a ridiculous fashion, it's debatable whether or not those changes get made when they do. My argument is perfectly valid.

[jersey cubs fan]

Will you at least concede that the offense in general has changed since the bye week? The fact that since then the offense has been more balanced is undeniable. Chances are Cutler moving around more is part of those changes or at least a result of those changes as opposed to a coincidence.

 

Cutler moved around a fair amount before, so I'm not sure how. I think two things have happened, the line stabilized a little bit and Cutler regained his faculties. I think Martz has been a solid coordinator all year. They did some things yesterday that they did in the Dallas game. They've gotten better the longer in the system, as you would expect.

 

The Washington game didn't change them. Lovie royally F'd up that game and Cutler was forced into trying to do too much late to make up for his head coach's incompetency. If any game had a lingering effect on the season it's the Giants game, since that may have cost them both Seattle and Washington as Cutler recovered from a hangover.

[JonJayCutler]

Will you at least concede that the offense in general has changed since the bye week? The fact that since then the offense has been more balanced is undeniable. Chances are Cutler moving around more is part of those changes or at least a result of those changes as opposed to a coincidence.

 

Cutler moved around a fair amount before, so I'm not sure how. I think two things have happened, the line stabilized a little bit and Cutler regained his faculties. I think Martz has been a solid coordinator all year. They did some things yesterday that they did in the Dallas game. They've gotten better the longer in the system, as you would expect.

 

The Washington game didn't change them. Lovie royally F'd up that game and Cutler was forced into trying to do too much late to make up for his head coach's incompetency. If any game had a lingering effect on the season it's the Giants game, since that may have cost them both Seattle and Washington as Cutler recovered from a hangover.

 

Agree to disagree I guess.

[jersey cubs fan]

You're missing my point entirely. It's obvious that changes were made offensively after the Washington game, and if we don't lose that game in such a ridiculous fashion, it's debatable whether or not those changes get made when they do. My argument is perfectly valid.

 

I don't think it is. Martz has been adjusting all season long. They didn't run before because they couldn't. They've gotten a little better, to the point where guys are actually breaking long ones on occasion. They ran a lot in Carolina because they had to, and because they could. It's not like they came out against Buffalo and ran all day long. Cutler had more passing attempts against the Bills and Vikings than he did against Dallas and the Packers. Forte ran just 13 and 14 times the last two games. Taylor is just 6 and 9.

 

I just don't see any reason to point to a stupid loss against the Redskins as the reason for more success now. It just doesn't hold up at all.

[rawaction]

FWIW, teams are 10-13 after playing on Monday night the week before. Teams that play Monday and then have to go on the road are 4-7. Of those 4 wins, 1 was SD winning at Indy and getting a Sunday night game, so a few extra hours of rest. Two of the other wins are the Jets over Denver and KC over Cleveland. Both those teams got off to really slow starts and needed late scores to win those games (by 4 and 2 respectively). The other win was Washington winning at Tennessee in OT after the fiasco vs. Philly.

 

This doesn't say a whole lot, except that maybe the Pats come out relatively slowly. The last time they played on Monday night, they had a bye week after.

[Banedon]

Cutler's best yards per carry average was in 2007, his first full year of starting, and he had 44 carries for 205 yards, for a 4.7 average.

 

He had 40 for 173 last year in his first year with the Bears for a 4.3 average.

 

He has 41 for 200 so far this year, for a 4.9 average...so he's having his best average per carry this year, but it's not by leaps and bounds or anything.

[JonJayCutler]

You're missing my point entirely. It's obvious that changes were made offensively after the Washington game, and if we don't lose that game in such a ridiculous fashion, it's debatable whether or not those changes get made when they do. My argument is perfectly valid.

 

I don't think it is. Martz has been adjusting all season long. They didn't run before because they couldn't. They've gotten a little better, to the point where guys are actually breaking long ones on occasion. They ran a lot in Carolina because they had to, and because they could. It's not like they came out against Buffalo and ran all day long. Cutler had more passing attempts against the Bills and Vikings than he did against Dallas and the Packers. Forte ran just 13 and 14 times the last two games. Taylor is just 6 and 9.

 

I just don't see any reason to point to a stupid loss against the Redskins as the reason for more success now. It just doesn't hold up at all.

 

Again, agree to disagree. None of what we're arguing can be proven, thus it's merely a matter of opinion.

[jersey cubs fan]

You're missing my point entirely. It's obvious that changes were made offensively after the Washington game, and if we don't lose that game in such a ridiculous fashion, it's debatable whether or not those changes get made when they do. My argument is perfectly valid.

 

I don't think it is. Martz has been adjusting all season long. They didn't run before because they couldn't. They've gotten a little better, to the point where guys are actually breaking long ones on occasion. They ran a lot in Carolina because they had to, and because they could. It's not like they came out against Buffalo and ran all day long. Cutler had more passing attempts against the Bills and Vikings than he did against Dallas and the Packers. Forte ran just 13 and 14 times the last two games. Taylor is just 6 and 9.

 

I just don't see any reason to point to a stupid loss against the Redskins as the reason for more success now. It just doesn't hold up at all.

 

Again, agree to disagree. None of what we're arguing can be proven, thus it's merely a matter of opinion.

 

You are the one attempting to prove the butterfly effect happened and that Lovie Smith screwing up the Redskins game was a godsend. It's on you to prove your myth, not me.