Bears game 16: January 2 @ GB, 3:15 on Fox

[bukie]

How long before Lovie gets a 4-year extension based on this season?

He'll probably have to at least make the NFC championship for that to happen. Losing, say, consecutive games to Green Bay next week and in the first playoff round would not look good.

[jersey cubs fan]

How long before Lovie gets a 4-year extension based on this season?

He'll probably have to at least make the NFC championship for that to happen. Losing, say, consecutive games to Green Bay next week and in the first playoff round would not look good.

 

He's probably getting an extension regardless. He won't be going into next year as a lame duck coming off 11 wins and a division title. The playoffs may determine what that extension looks like though. I see them just adding 2 more years as of now, but if they were to get to the Super Bowl perhaps a 4 year extension with a raise.

[Banedon]

Somebody print this article out and put it in the Bears locker room.

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AspLJG3m3pUBqpj7fHdG5JBDubYF?slug=lc-suspectbears122610

[bukie]

Somebody print this article out and put it in the Bears locker room.

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AspLJG3m3pUBqpj7fHdG5JBDubYF?slug=lc-suspectbears122610

The silliest thing about that article is he only counts marquee games as the ones in which the Bears looked bad. Philly and Green Bay? Don't count. Miami on a Thursday? Nope. Minnesota on a Monday night? Wrong again.

 

The other most stupid point was in saying the Bears defense needed the other team to make mistakes to win...which is basically the entire scheme of the defense.

[bukie]

Other reasons to feel better about the Bears:

 

- Yesterday's loss by the Jets was only their second road loss all year (NE the other), and they were coming off a win in Pittsburgh the previous week. Hardly a game you'd consider "exposing" the Bears.

- The Bears win in Detroit looks better every week considering the Lions haven't lost since, and the 4-point margin was actually their second-largest of the season at home (again, NE the other).

- Looking at Sagarin's ratings, the Bears have the second-best record in the NFL against the top 10 (3-2) and top 16 (6-2) teams (do I even need to mention who was better?).

- The Bears currently sport the best road record in the NFC, tied with Miami and Pittsburgh for best in the NFL at 6-1.

[minnesotacubsfan]

so we should loose to GB to try and get as many road games as possible in the playoffs?

[Banedon]

Somebody print this article out and put it in the Bears locker room.

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AspLJG3m3pUBqpj7fHdG5JBDubYF?slug=lc-suspectbears122610

The silliest thing about that article is he only counts marquee games as the ones in which the Bears looked bad. Philly and Green Bay? Don't count. Miami on a Thursday? Nope. Minnesota on a Monday night? Wrong again.

 

The other most stupid point was in saying the Bears defense needed the other team to make mistakes to win...which is basically the entire scheme of the defense.

 

He wants the Bears to be good at "something"....apparently defense and special teams aren't something. If he's only focusing on the Jets game, then you can say offense and special teams.

 

Also he mentions that they were exposed on "Sunday night". Uh.

[javy knows my name]

I thought Cutler looked a lot more brilliant than awful yesterday. The only really bad throw he made was, of course, the pick-6. But he made some excellent throws when he had some time, and he really had good protection all game.

[bukie]

The Bears have the #1 special teams unit in the NFL, which means more than many think. Their return and coverage teams are far and away better, their kicking game is above average (yesterday aside), and that more than covers for their below average punter.

 

As for defense, prior to this week they were excellent both against the pass and the rush (actually slightly better against the pass). Both ratings will undoubtedly take a hit after this week, but they've still been very good overall defensively.

 

Offensively, they were awful for four straight games, two of which were Todd Collins-led catastrophes (NYG-Carolina), and two of which were somewhat-concussed Cutler disasters (Seattle-Washington). Aside from that, the offense has actually been above average in the passing game and average in the rushing game. Counting just since the bye, the Bears' passing game has been top 10 in the NFL (rushing average).

[ctcf]

http://deadspin.com/5719054/brett-favres-brain-is-still-cloudy-may-not-play-barring-458th-miraculous-recovery

 

That picture is awesome.

[Banedon]

Bears had an absolutely awful October. Outside of that, they've been pretty damn good.

[rawaction]

The Bears have the #1 special teams unit in the NFL, which means more than many think. Their return and coverage teams are far and away better, their kicking game is above average (yesterday aside), and that more than covers for their below average punter.

 

As for defense, prior to this week they were excellent both against the pass and the rush (actually slightly better against the pass). Both ratings will undoubtedly take a hit after this week, but they've still been very good overall defensively.

 

Offensively, they were awful for four straight games, two of which were Todd Collins-led catastrophes (NYG-Carolina), and two of which were somewhat-concussed Cutler disasters (Seattle-Washington). Aside from that, the offense has actually been above average in the passing game and average in the rushing game. Counting just since the bye, the Bears' passing game has been top 10 in the NFL (rushing average).

 

The Bears offense is interesting. They don't have astronomical numbers, but they've been able to score as well as could have been expected. They are 30th in total yards, but they are 5 points away from being in the top half of the league in scoring. They are 24th in rushing, but would be a lot better if Chester Taylor didn't have almost 1/2 of the carries that Forte has at a 2.3 ypc clip. Forte is 7th in ypc for RBs with over 200 carries (13th if you take it to 150). Cutler is 5th in yards per passing attempt.

 

Plus, there have been several games where the Bears have sat on a lead and tried to run the clock out. Dallas, Philly, Detroit, Minnesota x 2 and yesterday come to mind of games that the Bears could have kept racking up yards if they had the NE Patriots philosophy of running up scores.

[SouthSideRyan]

Well they're not going to have as many offensive yards when they have the best return game in the NFL giving them less yards to gain be it through long returns or short punts to avoid said returns

[mul21]

 

The Bears offense is interesting. They don't have astronomical numbers, but they've been able to score as well as could have been expected. They are 30th in total yards, but they are 5 points away from being in the top half of the league in scoring. They are 24th in rushing, but would be a lot better if Chester Taylor didn't have almost 1/2 of the carries that Forte has at a 2.3 ypc clip. Forte is 7th in ypc for RBs with over 200 carries (13th if you take it to 150). Cutler is 5th in yards per passing attempt.

 

Plus, there have been several games where the Bears have sat on a lead and tried to run the clock out. Dallas, Philly, Detroit, Minnesota x 2 and yesterday come to mind of games that the Bears could have kept racking up yards if they had the NE Patriots philosophy of running up scores.

 

This is probably a terribly misleading statistic for the Bears in particular, just because their return game is so good and they routinely have a much shorter field to deal with. I wouldn't really expect most media types to think of that though, even with all the hype Devin has been getting. I know Joniak mentioned a couple times on the radio that the Bears lead the league in starting field position off kick offs.

[chuckywang]

beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we''re in

 

 

LET'S DO THIS!!

[bukie]

beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we're in beat the bears and we''re in

 

 

LET'S DO THIS!!

Lose to the Bears and you still have a chance if NO and WAS win.

[minnesotacubsfan]

lose to the Bears now, or lose to them 2 weeks from now.

[Wilson A2000]

lose to the Bears now, or lose to them 2 weeks from now.

 

I don't know how many times we have to go over this, but the Bears beat the Packers when they were more healthy than they are now. The Chicago defense isn't as good, but their offense is certainly better. Anyone who thinks this is a slam dunk for the Pack is blind.

[bukie]

lose to the Bears now, or lose to them 2 weeks from now.

 

I don't know how many times we have to go over this, but the Bears beat the Packers when they were more healthy than they are now. The Chicago defense isn't as good, but their offense is certainly better. Anyone who thinks this is a slam dunk for the Pack is blind.

The defense is much improved since week 3, last week aside. Line especially.

[Banedon]

Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina was rewarded with a three-year extension through 2013. The deal reportedly includes $2 million guaranteed. The total deal is worth $6 million

 

The team also signed long-time long snapper Patrick Mannelly to a two-year extension through 2012.

[cubbyvirus00]

Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina was rewarded with a three-year extension through 2013. The deal reportedly includes $2 million guaranteed. The total deal is worth $6 million

 

The team also signed long-time long snapper Patrick Mannelly to a two-year extension through 2012.

 

 

I like this. Toe has been solid.

[Banedon]

Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina was rewarded with a three-year extension through 2013. The deal reportedly includes $2 million guaranteed. The total deal is worth $6 million

 

The team also signed long-time long snapper Patrick Mannelly to a two-year extension through 2012.

 

 

I like this. Toe has been solid.

 

Yeah. And depending on what happens with Tommie, this could be a nice deal for a D-line guy that could see significant playing time.

[cubbyvirus00]

Defensive tackle Matt Toeaina was rewarded with a three-year extension through 2013. The deal reportedly includes $2 million guaranteed. The total deal is worth $6 million

 

The team also signed long-time long snapper Patrick Mannelly to a two-year extension through 2012.

 

 

I like this. Toe has been solid.

 

Yeah. And depending on what happens with Tommie, this could be a nice deal for a D-line guy that could see significant playing time.

 

Definitely. Harris will be out imo. I think within the first 3 picks, the Bears go defense with either a DT or a CB.

[jersey cubs fan]

Somebody print this article out and put it in the Bears locker room.

 

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AspLJG3m3pUBqpj7fHdG5JBDubYF?slug=lc-suspectbears122610

The silliest thing about that article is he only counts marquee games as the ones in which the Bears looked bad. Philly and Green Bay? Don't count. Miami on a Thursday? Nope. Minnesota on a Monday night? Wrong again.

 

The other most stupid point was in saying the Bears defense needed the other team to make mistakes to win...which is basically the entire scheme of the defense.

And somehow the jets game wasn't marquee, or a real win.

Lots of media has been looking for excuses to dismiss the bears since free agent spending and coaches on the hot seat cannot succeed.

[Soul]

Read a couple lines of it, and then the crushing force of the stupidity became too much and I needed to close it off.

 

They let anyone post articles on football these days.