Game 7 - Carolina Panthers @ BEARS - 12 PM

[Soul]

Apparently Ron Rivera had a conversation pre-game with Hester and told him he wasn't gonna let him hurt the Panthers.

 

Fine with me, since Hester hasn't returned anything for TD this year.

 

It's just too bad we couldn't take advantage of the field position.

 

On the couple of opportunities he did have, Hester did look more aggressive though. I kinda wanted to see what he could do.

 

But I know you're pretty down on him.

 

Down on him is a little much. He's 30 now (in a few days), 7th year in the league. It's natural that he will lose a little zip at this point. I think it's hurting him. He's been a fantastic player for us.

[Banedon]

Down on him is a little much. He's 30 now (in a few days), 7th year in the league. It's natural that he will lose a little zip at this point. I think it's hurting him. He's been a fantastic player for us.

 

I think it's less about zip and more about mindset. I think he's worked on running routes so much, that his ability to improvise has been affected. Also, we've lost a lot of special teams guys. Hester's never done it alone. There has to be holes for him to hit.

 

Anyway, I'm not a huge Hester the WR fan, but I think Hester still has the ability to return, as long as he quits that fair catch nonsense.

[Banedon]

Looks like Tillman went out and got himself some red contacts...was wearing them during postgame interviews.

[Soul]

I liked this quote from the chicagobears.com article:

 

After Medlock's 45-yard field goal caromed in off the right upright to put Carolina back ahead 22-20 with 2:27 to play, Cutler engineered a nine-play, 55-yard drive to set up Gould's winning kick.

 

The Bears quarterback completed 6 of 7 passes for 52 yards on the possession, including completions of 8, 7, 11 and 10 yards to Marshall, who said that Cutler's demeanor after the Panthers had retaken the lead relaxed the entire offense.

 

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Bears-rally-to-stun-Panthers-on-Gould-field-goal/0d2bda94-7967-4f0c-a41c-e95fcc262b70

[Banedon]

Marshall is in for a rough winter if he thinks that was cold yesterday. College in Florida and playing for the Dolphins will do that to you though.

[SouthSideRyan]

He did play 4 seasons in Denver.

[UMFan83]

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

What a terrible leader and teammate.

[cubbyvirus00]

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

What a terrible leader and teammate.

 

Bad body language

[Banedon]

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

What a terrible leader and teammate.

 

Bad body language

 

Well the rest of the team was busy crying in the corner because Jay was mean to them, so only Marshall saw this one.

[Banedon]

The Bears unveiled a 3-4 look in some early passing situations in which rookie Shea McClellin played defensive tackle, used a two-point stance and then dropped into coverage. …

 

Hmm...haven't seen any other articles mention this, and I sure didn't see it....

[cubbyvirus00]

The Bears unveiled a 3-4 look in some early passing situations in which rookie Shea McClellin played defensive tackle, used a two-point stance and then dropped into coverage. …

 

Hmm...haven't seen any other articles mention this, and I sure didn't see it....

 

I saw it and I wanna say it led to a positive play....

[RynoRules]

I love the 3-4 for some reason. I realize it is irrational, but it just seems so much more dangerous to me...probably because the Bears have pretty much never been able to block it.

[Soul]

I love the 3-4 for some reason. I realize it is irrational, but it just seems so much more dangerous to me...probably because the Bears have pretty much never been able to block it.

 

Eh, it's not magical. It still needs to be played well or decent offenses will blow it up.

[cubbyvirus00]

I love the 3-4 for some reason. I realize it is irrational, but it just seems so much more dangerous to me...probably because the Bears have pretty much never been able to block it.

 

I think having Shea drop back occasionally and giving the offense different looks is dangerous as a 4-3. Our defense has been outstanding, although we are quite lucky to have our older players still producing. It buys us the time that Angelo squandered away with his crappy drafts.

[UMFan83]

I didnt see this discussed anywhere:

 

The Bears started at their own 22 with 2:27 remaining, only needing a field goal. After a dump pass to Matt Forte, here's how their drive went: Slant to Brandon Marshall. Slant to Earl Bennett. Slant to Brandon Marshall. Incompletion. Slant to Brandon Marshall. Slant to Brandon Marshall. Forte run. Field goal, game.

 

Lots of people noticed the lack of variety. Jay Cutler, for one:

 

"They were playing one coverage, and we just kept hitting them and hitting them and hitting them," Cutler said. "That's pretty much it."

 

Perhaps more mutinously, a pair of Panthers commented on the unimaginative and ineffective defense, all but throwing defensive coordinator Sean McDermott (and defensive-minded head coach Ron Rivera) under the bus:

 

"They did the same play at the end, I think four or five times in a row and they got the win," [cornerback Captain] Munnerlyn said. "I just play the defense they call but you gotta switch it up. I felt like Jay Cutler, he knew what we were in. So he knew the weakness of the defense and they attacked it."

 

"They threw the same pass play all the way down the field," said strong safety Charles Godfrey, who was on the backside on the throws to Marshall. "It wasn't nothing they were doing. It was what we were in, the coverage we were in. That was a great play for that coverage. And they just ran that play all the way down the field. The coverage we were in, we stayed in that coverage. That's what happened."

 

Ron Rivera's explanation—"If you jump (the route) and they double-move you, now all of a sudden it's a touchdown or the ball is in field goal range"—rings hollow, the words of a coach content to lose as long as it's not in spectacular, embarrassing fashion. With his own players noting it was the play-calling and not the execution that cost Carolina the game, I'd say Rivera failed.

[Andy]

I'm so glad Rivera is getting exposed as the chicken [expletive] he is. 1-11 in games decided by 8 points or less. Absolutely pathetic. He's gone at the end of the year and maybe before then.

[Theo]

It's why Lovie canned his ass as D Coordinator. I think everyone remembers Steve Smith running roughshod in the 05 playoff game with no adjustments made.

[PosterToBeNamedLater]

I liked this quote from the chicagobears.com article:

 

After Medlock's 45-yard field goal caromed in off the right upright to put Carolina back ahead 22-20 with 2:27 to play, Cutler engineered a nine-play, 55-yard drive to set up Gould's winning kick.

 

The Bears quarterback completed 6 of 7 passes for 52 yards on the possession, including completions of 8, 7, 11 and 10 yards to Marshall, who said that Cutler's demeanor after the Panthers had retaken the lead relaxed the entire offense.

 

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Bears-rally-to-stun-Panthers-on-Gould-field-goal/0d2bda94-7967-4f0c-a41c-e95fcc262b70

Marshall has been great for projecting a better image of Jay out there (not that it really matters). It seems like he is constantly going out of his way to make it seem like Jay is a great leader, quarterback, teammate, etc. Literally every time he is being interviewed, his answers somehow include how great Cutler is for one reason or another. Most of the time, I feel like he is going overboard, but I think he knows the crap cutler gets is overboard, and he is trying to counteract that a bit.

[rawaction]

I liked this quote from the chicagobears.com article:

 

After Medlock's 45-yard field goal caromed in off the right upright to put Carolina back ahead 22-20 with 2:27 to play, Cutler engineered a nine-play, 55-yard drive to set up Gould's winning kick.

 

The Bears quarterback completed 6 of 7 passes for 52 yards on the possession, including completions of 8, 7, 11 and 10 yards to Marshall, who said that Cutler's demeanor after the Panthers had retaken the lead relaxed the entire offense.

 

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Bears-rally-to-stun-Panthers-on-Gould-field-goal/0d2bda94-7967-4f0c-a41c-e95fcc262b70

Marshall has been great for projecting a better image of Jay out there (not that it really matters). It seems like he is constantly going out of his way to make it seem like Jay is a great leader, quarterback, teammate, etc. Literally every time he is being interviewed, his answers somehow include how great Cutler is for one reason or another. Most of the time, I feel like he is going overboard, but I think he knows the crap cutler gets is overboard, and he is trying to counteract that a bit.

 

Yeah, that's exactly what he is doing. I think he's more blatant about it when there is a potential controversy such as the fan comment too.

[cubbyvirus00]

I liked this quote from the chicagobears.com article:

 

After Medlock's 45-yard field goal caromed in off the right upright to put Carolina back ahead 22-20 with 2:27 to play, Cutler engineered a nine-play, 55-yard drive to set up Gould's winning kick.

 

The Bears quarterback completed 6 of 7 passes for 52 yards on the possession, including completions of 8, 7, 11 and 10 yards to Marshall, who said that Cutler's demeanor after the Panthers had retaken the lead relaxed the entire offense.

 

"I'm sitting here shaking," Marshall said, "a little bit [because] of the cold weather, a little bit nervous and he just starts smiling like, ‘well, here we go,' and just put me at ease right away. The guys feel that vibe and they play off of it."

 

http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1/Bears-rally-to-stun-Panthers-on-Gould-field-goal/0d2bda94-7967-4f0c-a41c-e95fcc262b70

Marshall has been great for projecting a better image of Jay out there (not that it really matters). It seems like he is constantly going out of his way to make it seem like Jay is a great leader, quarterback, teammate, etc. Literally every time he is being interviewed, his answers somehow include how great Cutler is for one reason or another. Most of the time, I feel like he is going overboard, but I think he knows the crap cutler gets is overboard, and he is trying to counteract that a bit.

 

Yeah, that's exactly what he is doing. I think he's more blatant about it when there is a potential controversy such as the fan comment too.

 

It's a bit much tbh.

[Sammy Sofa]

Nah.