Trouble, baby.
I'm glad I waited a while before posting this, as I think I have some decent perspective now.
The Bears played like crap for nearly 4 quarters. They turned the ball over 4 times - unacceptable for a veteran team coached by a guy who preaches turnovers and ball control. They were utterly gashed by the Vikes on the ground - again, unacceptable for a team that played in the Super Bowl last year (guess who watched tape of the first Green Bay drive from the week before?). Dear Bears: Fix the turnover problem. Fix the run defense.
But, there was some good. Devin Hester, you are out of your mind. On the Fox postgame show Jimmy nailed it right, on, the, head. He said that the most valuable guy on a football team is the talent evaluator. Talent wins football games. There's no coaching that can turn Bobby Wade into Devin Hester. There's no coaching that can turn - sorry Bears fans - Cedric Benson into Adrian Peterson (the Vikes, not ours).
But he can be good, if not great. The problems can be fixed. Another free bit of advice for the Bears? Tell Benson that he's got two, maybe three games. He's going to get all the carries, every down, every series. He either stands up like a man and lives up to his "special" tag or he's gone. Enough of this third down BS and enough coddling what should be a professional doing his J-O-B.
P.S. Hey, Turner? Run that go route to Hester, like, five times a game.
Showing posts with label Turnovers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Turnovers. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Bears/Chiefs - Game 2
So KC rolled into town this past weekend, and the Bears sent them home still winless. Final: Bears 20-10.
Highs and Lows:
Highs: From the get-go, Lance Briggs was playing out of his head. He was in on seemingly every play. The defense as a whole played strong, with the exception of a Chiefs drive right before the half that resulted in points. There was a lot of crisp hitting; again, these guys already look like they're in mid-season form. Walker and Manning stepped up in starting roles, with no noticeable drop off from the injuries of Week 1. The offense started out OK. The first half wasn't spectacular, but it also wasn't plagued by poor quarterback play (more on that in a minute). Benson ran the ball with some authority and finished with a 100-yard game. And Devin Hester, let's not forget him. What can you say about this guy? He's probably the most electrifying player in the league. And lastly, we got in the "win" column.
Lows: Well, I mentioned that drive before the half. Not pretty. Turnovers continue to be a problem. The only offensive points scored so far this year are to a reserve offensive lineman. Not good. And Grossman? When he's bad, he's horrid. Those two picks were just beyond awful. And the timing of his implosion - hanging on to a lead late in a game, when you should be trying to grind out the clock as much as possible - couldn't have come at a worse time (well, unless you consider that pick against Indy when they were only down by 5 points in a game they should have been getting blown out of because of how crappy the offense was playing. Not that I'm bitter.). What else? Oh, yeah, hopefully we get Maynard back from injury this week - watching Gould punt made me a little nervous. That's our second most valuable offensive player.
Most Valuable Bears? I'd say Hester, Briggs, and Benson. Most Likely To Get Run Out Of Town If He Keeps Turning The Ball Over? Tough call.
Highs and Lows:
Highs: From the get-go, Lance Briggs was playing out of his head. He was in on seemingly every play. The defense as a whole played strong, with the exception of a Chiefs drive right before the half that resulted in points. There was a lot of crisp hitting; again, these guys already look like they're in mid-season form. Walker and Manning stepped up in starting roles, with no noticeable drop off from the injuries of Week 1. The offense started out OK. The first half wasn't spectacular, but it also wasn't plagued by poor quarterback play (more on that in a minute). Benson ran the ball with some authority and finished with a 100-yard game. And Devin Hester, let's not forget him. What can you say about this guy? He's probably the most electrifying player in the league. And lastly, we got in the "win" column.
Lows: Well, I mentioned that drive before the half. Not pretty. Turnovers continue to be a problem. The only offensive points scored so far this year are to a reserve offensive lineman. Not good. And Grossman? When he's bad, he's horrid. Those two picks were just beyond awful. And the timing of his implosion - hanging on to a lead late in a game, when you should be trying to grind out the clock as much as possible - couldn't have come at a worse time (well, unless you consider that pick against Indy when they were only down by 5 points in a game they should have been getting blown out of because of how crappy the offense was playing. Not that I'm bitter.). What else? Oh, yeah, hopefully we get Maynard back from injury this week - watching Gould punt made me a little nervous. That's our second most valuable offensive player.
Most Valuable Bears? I'd say Hester, Briggs, and Benson. Most Likely To Get Run Out Of Town If He Keeps Turning The Ball Over? Tough call.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
Bears/Bolts - Game 1
So the Bears travelled to San Diego for the season opener and dropped the ball a few times. Final score: Bolts 14, Bears 3.
This felt suspiciously like the Bears last meaningful game, when they lost to the Colts in the Super Bowl. Namely: if they could just NOT turn the ball over, they could beat anybody. Heck, they turn the ball over and the beat a heck of a lot of teams, but they can't afford to do that against teams like the Chargers or the Colts.
Pros: the defense looked mid-season good. They held all-universe stud RB LT to 25 yards on the ground. The only Charger scores came on turnovers - the defense blanked them the rest of the game. Rex hooked up with Berrian for some pretty passes. Tommie Harris is back in a big way.
Cons: well, they lost for one. The running game was non-existent, and notable only for turning the ball over. McGowan was involved in a couple of boneheaded plays. Looked like Mike Brown sprained a knee on an uncalled hold/takedown.
Overall, I was pleased with how the defense played, but Lovie's got to get these guys to hold on to the ball.
This felt suspiciously like the Bears last meaningful game, when they lost to the Colts in the Super Bowl. Namely: if they could just NOT turn the ball over, they could beat anybody. Heck, they turn the ball over and the beat a heck of a lot of teams, but they can't afford to do that against teams like the Chargers or the Colts.
Pros: the defense looked mid-season good. They held all-universe stud RB LT to 25 yards on the ground. The only Charger scores came on turnovers - the defense blanked them the rest of the game. Rex hooked up with Berrian for some pretty passes. Tommie Harris is back in a big way.
Cons: well, they lost for one. The running game was non-existent, and notable only for turning the ball over. McGowan was involved in a couple of boneheaded plays. Looked like Mike Brown sprained a knee on an uncalled hold/takedown.
Overall, I was pleased with how the defense played, but Lovie's got to get these guys to hold on to the ball.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)