Bears game 5: Monday, Oct. 10 at DET, MNF on ESPN

[jersey cubs fan]

Bears go from 6.5 point favorites to 6.5 point dogs as they travel to Detroit. The Lions are probably going to rape the Bears through the air. The only way to stop them is for Glass Joe to get injured back there, otherwise it is going to be a shootout and the Bears don't do shoot outs.

 

I still think this is a huge game, even if many chalked it up to a loss going into the season. 2-3 virtually eliminates them from the division, since they would have losses to both undefeated leaders. And while it remains possible the NFC North could sneak in 2 wild card teams, the odds would be against it. Plus, that would be three NFC losses already, killing them in tie breakers. 3-2 keeps the division in play and keeps them in the heart of the wild card chase.

[minnesotacubsfan]

Detroit looks legit, as any organization should after the better part of a decade of sucking off the revenue sharing tit and drafting in the top 10 repeatedly. Soon or later, you're bound to make the playoffs, right?

 

The Bears are struggling, but if they can get a pass rush, they could force some turnovers. Running on this monster D-line wont be easy, but may be necessary to keep the Lion's offense off the field. But I don't feel great about this one unless Stafford goes down.

 

Lions 38

Chicago 17

[sneakypower]

our run defense isn't as good as you'd think, especially from the DL; they're coached to penetrate into the backfield and harry the QB without much regard for gap assignment and hope that the awesome Steven Tulloch can shed his blockers and still make stops. KC and MIN put 151 and 132 yards on us, respectively- both also used end-arounds to great success

 

i'm really psyched for what should be Fairley's pro debut

[Banedon]

I'm curious to see if the "suck in the first half" trend continues for Detroit.

[UMFan83]

If they put "Tiny Tim" Jennings on Megatron, I will probably stop watching the game for my own well being. Not like we'll stop him anyways, but at least it will look less embarassing.

 

Anyone watched the last 2 Detroit games? I want to know what caused them to trail by 20+ points in both games. Lets be honest, Detroit pulled that one out of their asses yesterday and shouldnt have won. They also could/should have lost to hapless Minnesota who lost to the equally hapless Chiefs yesterday. Before that they looked really good in their domination of the Chiefs and their only slightly less dominating win over the Bucs.

 

I think the team can be beaten, but on their home field during a prime time game that they are trying to use as their coming out party is the not the ideal situation to play them.

 

To win they need Chris Harris back, they need to limit Major Wright's time on the field, Tilman needs to keep Calvin from having a Steve Smith like day. The Dline absolutely has to get a ton more pressure than they've been getting. On offense, the game plan has likely got to limit Cutler's deep dropbacks and the Bears need to get early success on the ground, as the more the Bears are forced to pass, the quicker their Dline will wear our guys down. It would also help if Earl Bennett is back as the offense hasn't looked the same without him.

 

So while we could do all those things, and in the back of my head I feel like we are not as bad as we've played and are due for a surprising performance, I am gonna have to pick the Lions here.

 

Lions 27

Bears 16

 

We CAN win this though. And not just in the "any team can beat any team on any given sunday" way.

[Magnetic Curses]

we're going to have to roll clutts out there a lot and tell him to just try to get in donkeykong's way for a second or two.

 

harris is going to have to play, and tillman is going to have to follow the chocobot all over the field with harris as the hat. play him physical, knee him in the nuts when you can, hope he drops more passes in the end zone.

 

my main fear is that billy good, barry better, jahvid best is going to smoke us and consistently get into our secondary, which opens up chocobot deep as harris will have to support the run. i love leshoure, but i'm glad we don't have to tackle him on monday night, that would be even more frightening.

 

i don't think we have a chance to win and we probably lose by 2 TDs.

[sneakypower]

Anyone watched the last 2 Detroit games? I want to know what caused them to trail by 20+ points in both games. Lets be honest, Detroit pulled that one out of their asses yesterday and shouldnt have won. They also could/should have lost to hapless Minnesota who lost to the equally hapless Chiefs yesterday. Before that they looked really good in their domination of the Chiefs and their only slightly less dominating win over the Bucs.

the Dallas game:

it was Stafford's "homecoming" (he had 25 members of friend & family at the game) and he started really jittery and atypically inaccurate. Dallas repeatedly ran the same WR routes to great success and in the 2nd half we finally started jumping them for INTs

 

the Vikings game:

MIN got away from Peterson and we made adjustments on offense to Allen & Robison's terrorizing of our tackles by running quick passes to Pettigrew and screen passes

[Banedon]

the Dallas game:

it was Stafford's "homecoming" (he had 25 members of friend & family at the game) and he started really jittery and atypically inaccurate. Dallas repeatedly ran the same WR routes to great success and in the 2nd half we finally started jumping them for INTs

 

the Vikings game:

MIN got away from Peterson and we made adjustments on offense to Allen & Robison's terrorizing of our tackles by running quick passes to Pettigrew and screen passes

 

Mimicking the Vikings first half would seem to be our best path to success. I have zero faith in our passing attack at this point, but if we can Forte going with both the run and screen passes, I think that's something we can maintain. The pass rush will have to be really fired up, and hopefully having Harris back there can help out with the secondary.

[Magnetic Curses]

i have to imagine playing the bears is like fighting an average left-handed boxer. it's just a mess out there, but they have big play ability and can hurt you. they're just so helter skelter that they're probably just as likely to knock themselves out as knock you out, though. but anyway, the ability is there, jay has a big arm and the receivers can run.

[UMFan83]

I don't know why I just thought of this, but Roy Williams better keep his [expletive] mouth shut this week.

 

BTW, our big FA acquisition with a huge 1 catch for 15 yard performance yesterday, giving him 5 catches for 70 yards and 0 TDs on the year. And to think, I thought that there were so many decent FA WRs out there, that there was no way Angelo would screw it up.

[Butterscup1679666578]

He already has opened his mouth. But he's not trash talking.

 

6. There are big NFC North implications with the Bears’ trip to Detroit. The Lions are already two games ahead of them so it’s clear what the game means in the standings. Even after a comeback victory in Dallas, this is a major stepping-stone for the Lions, who get the opportunity in prime time. It’s the first “Monday Night Football” appearance for the Lions since 2001 when they called the Pontiac Silverdome home. Since, the Bears have appeared on “MNF” 11 times. The buildup will be intense and Ford Field will be alive.

 

“It’s gonna be rocking,” said wide receiver Roy Williams, who was drafted in the first round by the Lions in 2004.

 

If Williams is happy for anyone, it’s long-suffering Lions fans.

 

“They have a team to cheer for this year,” he said. “It’s been building. Everybody wants to get on Matt Millen. I think Matt Millen built a great team. Somehow, someway, it just didn’t work with the players. They’ve got a team that’s opening people’s eyes.

 

“I’m happy for those fans. Now, they have something to cheer for. Those are the most devoted fans -- I’m not taking anything away from Chicago or Dallas or anywhere else -- those are the most devoted fans to go through what we went through and they still showed up.”

 

Williams was on board for the first five games of the 0-16 season before he was traded to the Cowboys. He knows what the faithful have been through.

 

“And they kept supporting team,” he said. “Now that they’re 4-0, being undefeated, I don’t know when the last time that happened (1980, when Billy Sims was a rookie).

 

“Oh yeah. It’s gonna be loud. It’s gonna be rocking. Division rival. Here we go.”

[minnesotacubsfan]

........ donkeykong's..... billy good, barry better, jahvid best .............chocobot ....

 

its as if we have our very own NSBB version of Chris Berman

[Magnetic Curses]

i personally like the chocobot

[sneakypower]

Pettigrew = Droptimus Prime

[Magnetic Curses]

Pettigrew = Droptimus Prime

 

nope, that's sanzenbacher

[SpongeWorthy]

It's too bad for Harris that tweeting doesn't cure hamstrings

[JonJayCutler]

I don't know why I just thought of this, but Roy Williams better keep his [expletive] mouth shut this week.

 

BTW, our big FA acquisition with a huge 1 catch for 15 yard performance yesterday, giving him 5 catches for 70 yards and 0 TDs on the year. And to think, I thought that there were so many decent FA WRs out there, that there was no way Angelo would screw it up.

 

None of the other free agent WR options are currently playing well either. Look it up.

[UMFan83]

I don't know why I just thought of this, but Roy Williams better keep his [expletive] mouth shut this week.

 

BTW, our big FA acquisition with a huge 1 catch for 15 yard performance yesterday, giving him 5 catches for 70 yards and 0 TDs on the year. And to think, I thought that there were so many decent FA WRs out there, that there was no way Angelo would screw it up.

 

None of the other free agent WR options are currently playing well either. Look it up.

 

Roy Williams - 5 catches for 70 yards, 0 TDs (in 3 games)

 

Sidney Rice was injured the first 2 games and since coming back has caught 11 passes for 188 yards and a TD.

Santonio Holmes 13 for 164 and a TD

Braylon Edwards has played 1.5 games this year and has 4 for 48

Malcolm Floyd has 9 catches for 158 yards as SD's number 2 WR.

Plaxico Burress has 10 catches for 160 yards and 2 TDs as the Jets number 2 WR

James Jones has 9 catches for 88 yards and a TD as the Packers number 4 WR

Mike Sims-Walker has 11 catches for 139 yards

 

Cant remember if there was anyone else we mentioned back then. No, none of them are dominating, as they all have less receiving yards than Knox (although Rice would if he was healthy for 4 games) but they all have better numbers than Williams (besides Edwards) despite some of them being the team's #2+ WR (Floyd, Burress, Jones) or having an extremely ineffective QB (Rice, Sims-Walker, Edwards).

Edited October 4, 2011 by UMFan83

[Soul]

Let's just try to focus on the first half of the Dallas game, and chalk up the 2nd half to Romo & crew's deadly curse of blowing games.

 

Dallas handled the Lions quite well until all that started happening. They can be taken care of. We need to do the Dallas first half, and not the 2nd half.

 

I know it's not much, but hey -- it might be all we've got. I have no idea how anyone stops CJ anymore, and I suspect that no one really does.

[UMFan83]

I still have no idea what Total Quarterback Rating is, but they have Cutler at 27th of the 32 currently starting QBs and there is a huge drop off between Cassell at 26 and Cutler at 27.

 

Some of the names ahead of him: Kolb, TJax, McNabb, Alex Smith, Grossman, Henne, Campbell.

[JonJayCutler]

I don't know why I just thought of this, but Roy Williams better keep his [expletive] mouth shut this week.

 

BTW, our big FA acquisition with a huge 1 catch for 15 yard performance yesterday, giving him 5 catches for 70 yards and 0 TDs on the year. And to think, I thought that there were so many decent FA WRs out there, that there was no way Angelo would screw it up.

 

None of the other free agent WR options are currently playing well either. Look it up.

 

Roy Williams - 5 catches for 70 yards, 0 TDs (in 3 games)

 

Sidney Rice was injured the first 2 games and since coming back has caught 11 passes for 188 yards and a TD.

Santonio Holmes 13 for 164 and a TD

Braylon Edwards has played 1.5 games this year and has 4 for 48

Malcolm Floyd has 9 catches for 158 yards as SD's number 2 WR.

Plaxico Burress has 10 catches for 160 yards and 2 TDs as the Jets number 2 WR

James Jones has 9 catches for 88 yards and a TD as the Packers number 4 WR

Mike Sims-Walker has 11 catches for 139 yards

 

Cant remember if there was anyone else we mentioned back then. No, none of them are dominating, as they all have less receiving yards than Knox (although Rice would if he was healthy for 4 games) but they all have better numbers than Williams (besides Edwards) despite some of them being the team's #2+ WR (Floyd, Burress, Jones) or having an extremely ineffective QB (Rice, Sims-Walker, Edwards).

 

You conveniently fail to mention that Williams missed the end of the first game, all of the second game, probably wasn't 100% against GB, and was victimized yesterday by a run-heavy gameplan. You can also argue that he has suffered from ineffective QB play as well. Besides, my argument wasn't that he has outperformed the other options, but that the other options aren't setting the world on fire either, and they aren't.

[UMFan83]

I don't know why I just thought of this, but Roy Williams better keep his [expletive] mouth shut this week.

 

BTW, our big FA acquisition with a huge 1 catch for 15 yard performance yesterday, giving him 5 catches for 70 yards and 0 TDs on the year. And to think, I thought that there were so many decent FA WRs out there, that there was no way Angelo would screw it up.

 

None of the other free agent WR options are currently playing well either. Look it up.

 

Roy Williams - 5 catches for 70 yards, 0 TDs (in 3 games)

 

Sidney Rice was injured the first 2 games and since coming back has caught 11 passes for 188 yards and a TD.

Santonio Holmes 13 for 164 and a TD

Braylon Edwards has played 1.5 games this year and has 4 for 48

Malcolm Floyd has 9 catches for 158 yards as SD's number 2 WR.

Plaxico Burress has 10 catches for 160 yards and 2 TDs as the Jets number 2 WR

James Jones has 9 catches for 88 yards and a TD as the Packers number 4 WR

Mike Sims-Walker has 11 catches for 139 yards

 

Cant remember if there was anyone else we mentioned back then. No, none of them are dominating, as they all have less receiving yards than Knox (although Rice would if he was healthy for 4 games) but they all have better numbers than Williams (besides Edwards) despite some of them being the team's #2+ WR (Floyd, Burress, Jones) or having an extremely ineffective QB (Rice, Sims-Walker, Edwards).

 

You conveniently fail to mention that Williams missed the end of the first game, all of the second game, probably wasn't 100% against GB, and was victimized yesterday by a run-heavy gameplan. You can also argue that he has suffered from ineffective QB play as well. Besides, my argument wasn't that he has outperformed the other options, but that the other options aren't setting the world on fire either, and they aren't.

 

I mentioned he played in 3 games. I think he played 3 quarters the first game, his most effective game. He missed the 2nd one. You conveniently slide in a comment about him probably not being 100%, but why because he was injured the week before? He played and was ineffective, caught 0 passes, dropped a TD and another pass and was held off the field whenever the Bears were in the red zone in the 2nd half. Sidney Rice was probably less than 100% when he came back from his injury, and yet Tavaris Jackson of all people found him 8 times for 109 yards in that game.

 

And that's fine that none of them are tearing it up. Like I said, 3 of them aren't their team's number 1 receivers, like they would be if they were on the Bears, and 3 of them have mediocre to bad QBs. You could argue that James Jones would have much better numbers if he wasn't his team's 4th option. Or that Mike Sims-Walker would have better numbers if Bradford didn't completely blow this year. And despite this, they all have better numbers than Williams.

 

I can tell this is going to be an agree to disagree argument.

[SpongeWorthy]

Cutler is in the audience of Dancing With the Stars :|

[UMFan83]

Cutler is in the audience of Dancing With the Stars :|

 

Not that I truely care that much but I wonder what caused them to break up? They still seem to be chummy with each other. Maybe Cutler just wanted to [expletive] other girls.

[SpongeWorthy]

Cutler is in the audience of Dancing With the Stars :|

 

Not that I truely care that much but I wonder what caused them to break up? They still seem to be chummy with each other. Maybe Cutler just wanted to [expletive] other girls.

 

I heard Heidi and Spencer were hanging at Le Deux one night and Kristin walked by and overheard Speidi talking about Cutler cheating on her with LC so she freaked out and called off the engagement