Jon

And Booker makes up for it.

Edwards is questionable with a knee injury for the Vikings. Nice catch, Booker!

Nothing like Viking self-implosion.

You forgot that the Vikings aren't good. True, but with all the injuries we have on defense, its neutralizes the edge we have on their worst unit. I didn't say the Bears would win, but Minnesota isn't going to run away with this.

Three big gifts from the Vikings special teams. Have they watched any tape on the Bears this year? Do they know the ST unit is really thin?

You forgot that the Vikings aren't good.

That was comical. It's like he's allergic to the Bears.

That 2nd down tipped pass may be one of the biggest plays of the game.

Orton made one ballsy throw there. Not a great decision, but I'll take it. Olsen looked nice on that drive. If he hadn't adjusted to that tipped ball, that could easily have been picked off.

Nice patience by Orton. The line gave him tons of time.

Hillenmeyer is questionable with a right thumb injury. With Roach inactive, that opens up an opportunity for Williams.

6 rookies will be playing on ST this week. Hopefully they don't blow the game in the third phase.

At least McBride can go...

A nice start in Venezuela for Hill.

There wasn't a need to mail the tickets back for either the NLDS or NLCS. The refunds are automatic.

Can I go back to 2002 when I didn't know better and didn't have high expectations for the Cubs?

That's terrible. I didn't realize he pitched that well for the Cubs in '94. A 145 ERA+ in 13 starts. He may not have pitched much in '98, which was the first year that I really got into the Cubs, but I'll always remember him from Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball for the N64.

Squib kicks should NEVER be a part of a kickers arsenal, period. If the Bears were up 3 or 7, where the end product of a squibber that the Falcons tied it up is one thing, but when you a nursing the slimmest of slim leads let in the game you can't give them a workable field and they took advantage. Calling for a squib kick is "never a good idea" regardless of the situation. But there are situations in which it is serviceable, but a one point lead is NOT one them. Kick it deep, kick it far. A big return still takes a good 5 or more seconds off the clock, which makes getting into FG range and then kicking it very remote. It was a stupid decision, and it's these kind of decision is why the Bears are 3-3 and not 6-0. So you wouldn't squib it with 1 second left on the clock? The decision to squib it was all about how much time was left. Had there been a few more seconds left on the clock, then I'd kick it away. But there weren't. They had just given up a big return, they were short on special teams players with new guys in there, and a squib should result in only one play. Now, the squib wasn't great and the play clock operator let Atlanta have enough time to run two plays, but the decision came down to a hail mary vs. a possible big return. The possibility of having the clock operator give the Falcons a nice advantage probably doesn't enter into the decision.

I agree with the squib quick. With 11 seconds on the clock, the Falcons shouldn't have had enough time to get two plays off. The squib prevented the big return and should have only left them with a hail mary.

Yeah, I just rewatched the kickoff and that was at least two seconds. And the pass saved them at least a second, as well. Sigh.

If you're referring to their last timeout in the redzone, the officials put 4 seconds back on the clock. It started with :28 left on the clock, not :24, and ended at :23. I'm not sure what Harrison was doing so shallow on that last play. There's no reason to play that kind of zone when they either need a TD or a quick pass in FG range. Let them throw short and have the clock expire. Stupid play call.

I guess Steltz's tackle wasn't so great.

Eff me.

Orton earned his bottle of Jack Daniels today.

Nice, though let's wait until after this kickoff and the hail mary. Oh, and PAT.