Glenn Timmermann, Bears Super Fan

Well I must admit after listening and reading all about how Griese should replace Rex, I'm disappointed in quite a few Bear fans. It seems that Tony is one of the few people that think the same way that I do. Rex is a good quarterback and he's are quarterback for present and the future. Remember the saying the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, no matter what side your on. So relax me have 5 more games to get ready for the post season, Rex will learn a lot in those 5 games. I feel he will be able to take us to Superbowl, It sure would be nice if he knew "WE" were all behind him!!!! And on a side note Anybody going to the WCPF tailgate party Sunday?

Kathee Meade, Bears Super Fan



All I can say is, what a shame, what a shame, what a shame of a game!! I agree with Gail in her thinking on our poor offensive stance when the time was right. Our superior defense can only do so much. They create turnovers and hand over the business end to Grossman and the offense – only to end up with a failure to make anything out of it. It is very frustrating!

I felt bad for Robbie Gould on his second-chance (due to a penalty) field goal attempt. Especially since he had made the first one. Oh well, I guess it's true what they say -- all good things must come to an end.

Yes, I did see that pump-fake. That just proves to me that Rex can do it if he wants to. How about a little more of it? There are a lot of QB’s out there that use it (and use it good) because it is an effective way of swaying defenders to one side or the other, away from the actual play itself. Hey, maybe Rex is reading NBC5’s blogs!!! Do you think?

And now, I hear that Darren Sharper is mouthing off, saying we’ll all see how confident Grossman is on Sunday against Minnesota. The best way to fight harsh words is through performance and action, and I HOPE that Grossman can take the bull by the horns and stand up with confidence when he walks out on the field on Sunday. If not, there is going to be a heck of a lot of booing going on by those fans who feel that Rex is lacking as of late.

Kathee Meade – Bears Super Fan

Gail, Bears Superfan

Being the oldest blogger here I can say I don't have this "must win now" feeling. I never even thought of Chicago being a winning town year after year. Being an optimistic Bears' fan, every season I expect them to go to the Super Bowl (as a participant, not just a spectator). It just angers me, and not just this season, that the Defense gets a turnover and the team still doesn't score.

I'm not advocating taking Rex out for good. I would just prefer it to be like baseball...if you're not at your best that day pitching, put in a relief pitcher to try and win the game. It could be Brian or Kyle. Or why couldn't we do something to catch everyone off-guard like have Justin come in as QB much the same way Marty has done in the past?

Since Rex seems to have angered the Minnesota Defensive Line, let's hope that he has topnotch protection this week or we might have another, bigger problem to talk about after the Bears Win this Sunday.

Hey Cedric, great game last week! And please, make sure Lance gets resigned as a Bear!

GO BEARS!

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan



Tony, quite frankly, you've made my night.

Now I've been trying to wrap my mind around the whole Rex situation over the past 24 hours or so, and truthfully, I can't quite understand it. As I told Marcus earlier, this could quite possibly be the most heated in-season Chicago sport debate I've ever lived through, it even blows the White-Flag Trade right out of the water. But then that reminded me of a conversation a friend of mine and I had on the sidelines of the Ball State/Northern Illinois game...

(Which really quick, I really hope everybody in the Illinois area took time to at least watch Wolfe play once, because to put it simply the kid is dynamite. He torched Ball State for 352 yards rushing, and is probably the best MAC-player since Randy Moss. He's going to be fun to watch in the NFL.)

I had mentioned to my friend how on this blog I was defending the idea that for the Chicago Bears to win, they need to get rid of the "Monsters of the Midway" persona and identify themselves as their own team (Lovie-Ball!). That's when he pointed this out: "You know Ken, you have to realize, that before that Chicago Bears team, Chicago was known as a losing city. In fact, you have to remember, in our life-times (I'm 20 years old) we've been pretty spoiled..."

It turns out he was right:
1991: Bulls win NBA Championship
1992: Bulls win NBA Championship
1993: Bulls win NBA Championship, White Sox reach ALCS
1994: White Sox are on top during strike-season, Bulls win 55 games
1995: Jordan returns, Bears make play-offs through Wild-Card
1996: Bulls win NBA Championship
1997: Bulls win NBA Championship
1998: Bulls win NBA Championship, Cubs win Wild Card
1999: Sosa becomes first player to hit 60 home runs back to back.
2000: White Sox win Central Division
2001: Bears win NFC Central Division
2002: Chicago down year
2003: Cubs reach NLCS
2004: Bulls make play-offs for first time without Jordan
2005: Sox win World Series, Bears win NFC Central¸ Bulls make play-offs
2006: Bears on pace to win NFC Central, White Sox remain competitive

By looking at that, I can easily argue that I’ve lived through possibly the greatest 20-year period in the history of Chicago sports. And that’s not including anything the Chicago Blackhawks have done, or the MLS Championship the Fire have won. But what does this have to do with Rex you ask?

Well, it made me start thinking about the people that were age 20 or older around the year 1986. For people around my age, we’ve only known Chicago to be a winning city. In fact, we expect all of our Chicago teams to be great. Losing just isn’t something known or is expected. Thus, we probably can’t truly appreciate a winning season half as much as somebody, for example, that would be in their 40’s now. Because for all they know, a long losing dry spell could be right around the corner.

But then you have to look closer to see the ugly truth of this time period. The Bears have primarily been the worse Chicago team. In fact, ever since post-1990, the Chicago Bears have fielded only about two legitimate teams. And those two teams didn’t even make it to the conference championship!

So in a sense, maybe I understand the “must-win now” urgency that the older Bears fans are feeling. They, unlike myself, recognize that this could be there last great shot at a Super Bowl in a long time, and even if the team only has two losses now, they don’t want to take any risks letting that one chance go.

Even if it means taking out the player (Rex Grossman) that best guarantees them their Super bowl dreams, because he’s also the best player that has a chance to turn those dreams into nightmares.

Now I don’t want to make anybody on here feel old or anything, but for the older bloggers, does any truth ring to this?

Onto a few other things:

- Gail makes a great point about how no players on the Bears would probably speak out in the media about Rex, which actually ran through my mind during the interview. We need the interns to get the inside scoop over this like Sports Illustrated seemed to have been able to do over the Alex Rodriguez situation in New York with the Yankees…
- In fact, Gail makes a lot of great points, which makes me jealous that I can’t be a professional quarterback when I’m done at Ball State that can get paid lots of money for making mistakes…
- I’m pretty confident that if the Bears are down at half-time on Sunday, that Rex is going to be hearing the boo-birds. Quite frankly, this whole topic is going to get even more interesting quite fast. But one more question before I leave…
- Why isn’t anybody fighting for Sportin’ Orton? I know I’ve joked about it, but didn’t he lead us last year?

Tony Capriolo
Senior Sports Producer

I'm in a management meeting yesterday, discussing our postseason plans for the Chicago Bears when someone turns to me and asks: "So what do you think about this Grossman/Griese thing???" At the time I mentioned that I thought it was one hell of a dilemma. On one hand you have Rex Grossman whose ceiling is clearly (at least in my humble opinion) much higher than that of Brian Griese's. On the flipside, you have a Bears team that is without question capable of going to the Super Bowl this year. In fact, in this year's NFC there's no reason they SHOULDN'T get to Miami... unless Rex kills them in the postseason with another 4-turnover performance. So while I think Rex's growth should be extremely important... you wonder if this team, THIS year is better off without him.

Well, I've been thinking about that for the last 24 hours and I've decided I'm an idiot for even entertaining the thought. And I'm stunned that the Rick Morrisseys and Carol Slezaks of the world (both of whom are normally very clear-thinking, sharp columnists) are falling for this mistaken belief that anyone must be better than Hexy Rexy.

Let's look at this two different ways. First, Grossman vs Griese. There seems to be this belief that turning to Brian Griese will mean turning the team over to a smart veteran who won't turn the ball over and therefore will allow the Bears to win with their defense and field position... you know, the Kyle Orton way. Let's ignore the fact that that's scared football and a horrible message to send to the offense , in the first place. Instead, let's examine if that's even true.

In Rex Grossman's 19-game NFL Career he's thrown 20 interceptions.
In Brian Griese's 75-game NFL Career he's thrown 78 interceptions.
Oh oh, wait a minute. That can't be right. Griese has thrown 3 more interceptions than games played???? But he's the game-managing veteran, right? Certainly that must be because he struggled early in his career and then got better!

In Brian Griese's last 4 seasons (For 3 different teams mind you), he's thrown 40 interceptions in 35 games.
Wait a minute... that's even WORSE!
Listen folks, there's a reason Brian Griese's been on four teams in his NFL career. There's a reason the Broncos gave up on him to bring in (gulp) Jake Plummer. There's a reason the Dolphins, who haven't seen a quarterback since Dan Marinio left, sent him away after one year. And there's a reason the Buccaneers didn't think he could beat out the infinitely overrated Chris Simms. Heck, one of my colleagues in Denver told me during the preseason that Griese's MO is to look fantastic in training camp and preseason... make everyone a believer... and then fall apart during the season. It's what he does.
The bottom line is there's simply no reason to believe Brian Griese will either play better or manage the game better than Rex Grossman. Is he a good back-up? Absolutely. But don't be swayed into believing he'll come in here and either a) jump start the offense or b) throw less interceptions.

But truly, that's not even the crux of my argument. Here's something I know I don't have to tell any Bears fan... or Bears beat writer... or anyone that's spent more than a minute a season looking at the team: They don't have a quarterback. EVER. Do you realize since Brett Favre became the starting quarterback in Green Bay, the Bears have had TEN different quarterbacks lead them in passing yards for the season??? Grossman this season will make it ELEVEN. That's insane. This organization HAS to find a quarterback. I don't mean a guy who can play for a year or two... I mean a guy that they can put in that position for 10 years and build around. They need to find someone so they can stop worrying year-in and year-out about who that guy is going to be and in the meantime watch this championship-caliber defense slowly fade away.

Speaking of Favre, more stats, because I'm a complete dork:
Rex Grossman 1st 19: 297-541 (54.9%) 3,693 Yards, 22 TD, 20 INT
Brett Favre 1st 19: 374-592 (64.1%) 3,926 Yards, 22 TD, 18 INT

Not real different, huh? Favre completed a better percentage, but Rex's yards per attempt (6.8) are better than Favre's (6.6) and Rex has thrown as many TDs and essentially the same number of interceptions (especially when you factor in Brett's 50 more attempts). In addition, the way Grossman is driving some people crazy? It is virtually identical to what happened to Favre in the early part of his career. I know, I saw it happen. (for those of you who don't know, I was the sports producer at the ABC affiliate in Green Bay in another lifetime) Favre would complete 60% of his passes, throw 2 TDs and no INTs in a win at Detroit one week... then throw 3 brutal interceptions and lose to an awful Giants team the next. Coach Holmgren didn't know what to do with his talented pupil. If you can ever catch the NFL Films special with Holmgren and his coaching tree (Gruden, Mariucci, Reid, etc...) there's a nice chunk where they talk about Favre driving them all nuts.

Now don't get me wrong, I don't in anyway, shape or form mean to imply that Rex will become Brett. I don't know how good he'll be anymore than anyone else does. But you have to find out. Rex is capable of big things... we've seen that. Yes, he's also capable of bad things... and it would be horrible to have one of those "bad things" happen at Soldier Field in January. But if I'm going down, I'm going down swinging with the guy who could be my quarterback for 10 years.

Gail, Bears Superfan

This is just an add-on to my last posting. The Bears have an excellent record only losing two games. I'm sure most fans will agree with that, but we should of/could of won the game last Sunday. The Bears were not beaten by a better team, they lost because of mistakes, particularly by the person who is supposed to be "leading" the team to the Super Bowl.

FYI my vote? Keep Rex in for now...but if there is another real struggle to win against Minnesota I change my opinion.

GO BEARS!

Gail, Bears Superfan

Mr. Bixby stated that the team believes in Rex. Kenneth mentioned that Thomas Jones even backed him up in an interview. I work for a company that was sold to another several years ago. At that time, all the employees were told by management exactly what they were supposed to say to the media in the event they were questioned. We were told word for word what to say with the promise that it would be our jobs if anyone was reported as saying something different. Now, if I had been as young as Kenneth or Mr. Bixby, I might have rebelled at being told what to say but over the course of time you find out it isn't always prudent to voice your opinion if you want to keep your job. I do not think we have any Randy Moss or Terrell Owens players on the Bears, and I can honestly picture Lovie holding a meeting reminding the team that Rex is our quarterback and we are sticking with him until Jerry Angelo or the McCaskeys say otherwise. But if you happen to be a fly on the wall, I am also quite sure that you could hear many of the Bears players state their real feelings regarding Rex to their wives or families. I am willing to bet that there is not 100% belief in him or his abilities by all the Chicago Bears. In fact, some of them might have taken part in Marcus's poll.

One of Rex's teammates from both Florida and the Bears made the comment not too long ago that this was the way Rex played at Florida...some days great, other days not. Which sounds like he isn't improving. When exactly does he stop being a "rookie"? That excuse can go on for how many games, weeks, years? If he had a job like many of us have, he would have been hired and given 60 or 90 days probation. If in that time he was still making the same mistakes and not showing any real improvement, he would more than likely be looking for another job.

As for the media, sure, they don't know everything. But my opinion of Rex is in agreement with what one member of the media said yesterday. He feels that when Rex throws an interception in the red zone, it doesn't bother him (oops, my bad...). His opinion is that Rex thinks, oh well, I'll do better next time. Then he gave the example of Tony Romo who was the same way until Bill Parcells "undressed him" on the field for throwing an interception in the red zone. Obviously, this was a little extreme and much more like Ditka instead of Lovie, but Romo said it left a lasting impression on him. Lovie will not start a player for breaking a team rule (being late for meetings), so why not for throwing interceptions again and again.

New England had turnovers, but I don't think you can put the blame on Tom Brady when our defense strips the ball from the player. If the shoe was on the other foot you wouldn't be putting the blame on Rex. And some of his passes in Sundays game...as hard as our guys tried, I don't think Michael Jordan could have jumped high enough to catch them.

Why would anyone be surprised at the response to Marcus's question asking if Rex can lead the Bears to the Super Bowl? I still stand by my statement getting to the Super Bowl will be in spite of Rex. But what do I know.

GO BEARS!

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

Paul, I have to say in this situation great minds think alike.

I was going to go on here tonight and give my reasons why Sunday's night game tore me apart inside, because deep down inside, we all know Rex is better then what's actually being shown. I mean we saw Rex move the ball down the field with ease during the first-half... he just has an absent-minded pass here and there. Once again, it's the Jon Garland factor. I'm not sure why anybody is shocked, and I understand why as fans we are frustrated. Heck, I defended Rex for the whole past week, so Rex's interception (which I heard over the radio) was a direct stab to the heart. But for goodness sakes Bears fans, CALM DOWN.

Because besides a few mistakes, Rex is a good quarterback. In fact, Rex has the potential, as shown by the first six games, to be a MVP quarterback. Thomas Jones even backed this up on Jim Rome today, stating something along the lines that "It's a good feeling to know that mistakes that can be solved are the only thing that's keeping us from winning."

So with that, maybe we could trust our own eyes and instincts, and just accept the fact that Rex Grossman led us to 2-1 on a road-trip that was suppose to destroy our season. What else could we possibly ask him more to do? The NFL doesn't use the BCS system, so style points don't matter when it comes to winning games.

Which to answer Marcus's question really quick, the AFC is probably deemed wide open still because the Colts easily could have gained losses against the Giants, Jaguars, Jets, Titans, Broncos, and Bills. I'm not saying they should have, but I think the Colts are very lucky not to have two losses also while the media would be asking a just as important question: "Can the Colts win with a awful run defense?" Personally, if it came down to it, I think if the Colts have home-field through-out, which they will, a Peyton Manning melt-down is the only thing that would stop them. The only team that could possibly give the Colts trouble is the Chargers because LT could possibly run all over them, but the Chargers can't defend anybody either, so Peyton would storm down the field too. It'd be like that crazy Colts/Chiefs shoot-out from a couple years back...

Back to the Bears now. Now of course after Rex's tough game, the media jumps in, which mind you this is the same media that stated the Bears quite possibly would be either 8-3 or 7-4 at that point. So Bears fans, how did that one turn out?

With that said, why does everybody trust the so-called media experts so much over the Grossman situation so much? To give further back-up, did any of these experts think the Steelers were going to be this horrible? How about the writer's of SI predicting Dolphins going to the Superbowl? And did anybody possibly think that Colston would be the best rookie on the Saints? Or that Reggie Bush may end up being a better choice as the number two pick? And remember the up-roar that the Randy Moss Raiders jersey was going to be the most important jersey in rap history? Let's face it, the experts can't predict the future better then I can, Marcus can, Paul can, or even the lady that makes my chicken salad sandwiches here at Ball State can.

If you don't believe me, take a look at Bill Simmons predictions so far on ESPN.Com. So far, his own wife, who supposedly has no knowledge of football, is beating him.

So for the fans that replied to Marcus's survey, please explain to me your personal opinion. What is the problem with a young quarterback having a shaky game against a really tough New England team on a three week road-trip against the Joe Montana of this era? Go ahead, let me know. It's possible for anybody that reads this to comment back to our blogs, so feel free to have at it.

Here's my opinion to it: So freaking what! I stated before we'd probably lose three games, possibly four. It's not that big of a deal. We're going to have home field advantage anyways, and an AFC loss isn't going to effect us during the playoffs on the road to the SuperBowl.

In fact, here's another one for the Bears fans out there. What possibly makes you think that Brian Griese could possibly do any better then Rex Grossman can? Here are my personal feelings of Griese, posted about a week ago...

"Put in Griese? What has Griese ever done in his NFL career to make us think he's worthwhile? There's a reason he signed with us to become a back-up quarterback while he was snubbed by other teams, including his former-team the Bucs, who are now starting a rookie quarterback. The highlight of Griese's career is when he took over a very good Denver Broncos offense that is set-up so simple with the play-action that even Jake Plummer has mastered it, and then he failed to win play-off games. Sure, it's good to have him as a back-up, in fact he's probably the second-best back-up quarterback in the game behind Kurt Warner, but I wouldn't trust him with the keys to start the team."

So fans, what makes Griese the better option? Once again, write back. It's easy to hide behind a survey, but let's hear the true answers.

I honestly just think the whole situation is the easy story of the week pick and has just been blown way out of proportion.

It's sad to say, but it seems like everybody in Bears-Land is walking around with the Peyton Manning face.

Overall, just calm down though. As of right now, the only team in the NFC that can beat the Bears at home, which would only happen if the defense falls apart like last year, YES LAST YEAR'S PLAYOFF LOSS WAS THE DEFENSE'S FAULT, are the Dallas Cowboys and wonder-boy Tony Romo. But can you imagine the media circus across the country that would involve Terrell Owens in the NFC Championship game and the troubles that would cause?

By the way, Tom Brady turned the ball over too many times, I think the Patriots should now put in Matt Cassell.

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

I just can't believe those survey results from Marcus' post (although I do like the number of readers it indicates). As of this writing 2 out of 3 people responding say it's time to switch QBs (568 to 276)! And almost 80% of respondants say Rex can't get us to the Superbowl (159 to 42). I answered in the minority in both cases. If the Bears make it to the SuperBowl, it will be under the arm of Rex, Sexy or Hexy.

I can't understand how anyone can ask to change quarterbacks 11 games into the season when we actually have an actively participating quarterback. This isn't 2005 with Orton managing a team until Rex could get healthy again. This is Rex's year. I can't believe that Griese would excite and electrify his team the way that Rex can. His team believes in him, for good or ill.

QB Rating aside, I think Rex performed admirably against the league's number two defense considering he was hit 9 (NINE) times and sacked once, plus throwing with a hurt left hand after that fumbled snap. (Two things about that snap: 1. both Rex and Olin Kreutz are claiming responsibility for that snap being muffed. Olin says he didn't snap it back far enough, Rex says he muffed it. Let's split the difference and say they both screwed up. 2. Why was Rex repeatedly punching his left hand when he was on the sideline trying to get it worked out - couldn't that have hurt the hand more or caused a cramp or something? Any trainers or former QBs want to let me know?)

As I said in my last post, this was a good game between two well-matched opponents. So Rex isn't Tom Brady. Big deal. Neither are the other 30 starting quarterbacks in the league. The Offensive line did a poor job of providing Rex a pocket and the Defensive line was not getting the penetration on the quarterback we are accustomed to seeing. I had hoped for a bigger performance from the Defense as a whole after the Bear's sole touchdown to protect the score and keep New England scoreless or at most to a Field Goal try. Instead, New England marched 92 yards down the field for another touchdown.

All I'm trying to say (or in better Chicagoese - Alls I'm sayin') is that there is plenty of blame to go around. Take it easy on Rex.

Marcus Riley, Web Development Manager

C'mon guys, Rex knows what he's doing. He's the ultimate showman. The key is to suppress expectations, and just when you think Rex is down and out, he'll come back and wow everyone in the playoffs. It's a much better Hollywood ending. Besides, the NFC is so poor this year that there's no question the Bears are the class of the conference. If Rex was playing well AND the Bears were still winning, what would we have to talk about right now? Home field advantage is in the bag and Rex will get his stuff together. He did throw that last errant pass, but why on earth would they call that play anyway? Did John Elway construct his classic game-winning drives by throwing bombs with a couple of minutes left -- an eternity? I've said it before: don't lose your identity Chicago Bears.

On another, unrelated note, why was everyone talking about this game as if it were a Super Bowl preview? Why isn't a certain team from the Hoosier state getting it's just due? San Diego is getting more props these days.

Survey: Switch Quarterbacks?
Survey: Can Rex Lead Bears To Super Bowl?

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

Kathee Meade: 1
Ken Sothman: 0

I'll give my feelings more about the game tomorrow when I'm done scratching "Rex Grossman jersey" off of my Christmas list...

Gail, Bears Superfan

I know one thing, I don't want to hear the usual Sunday night interview with Rex where he says he needs to get back to basics and will watch the tapes this week and make sure he is throwing off the correct foot. I still don't believe that Rex has any lack of confidence, ever.

The Bears will get to the playoffs not because of Rex, but in spite of Rex. Unfortunately, it seems that defense must not only create turnovers, they must also score for the team.

Will someone hit Alfonso upside the head for his false start? Robbie had his perfect kicking streak in the bag. Oh, well, he just has to start it all over again.

GO BEARS!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Three interceptions to Asante Samuel. Wow. All I can say is that I am glad that the Bears played as tough as they could play. This wasn't an Arizona or Miami game where they just got outclassed for no good reason, some "any given Sunday" scenario. This was a real game that could have gone either way (especially if Samuel weren't in there). Tom Brady also gets the "I slipped a Brian Urlacher tackle" merit badge. There aren't many of those in the league lately.

It is sad to lose, but it's a more satisfying loss than some of their wins. Unfortunately, it seemed that Hexy Rexy was back in full form, always throwing to the Asante-side of his receivers.

Considering most "experts" thought it likely the Bears would come out of the East Coast Road Trip 0-3, I have to say that I am very satisfied with the way our guys performed out east, with the exception of Hexy Rexy and the receiving corps today - find your chemistry guys! There were some glimmers of Sexy Rexy, but they were more than overshadowed by the Hexy.

On the other hand, Kathee, he did get off a good pump fake.

Why isn't Moose getting the ball more? I have a vested interest in this since I have him for my fantasy league, but beyond that, the strategy of getting more deep threats like Bradley and Berrian should be paying off now and easing the pressure on Muhsin.

I do have to take some responsibility for the loss though. I was at my dad's house helping him out and I haven't watched a game with my dad in quite some time. However, I didn't stop and get any traingular, cheesy chips. That's right. The link is proven. Sorry guys. I let the team down.

Next week, we're back home where we get to show Minnesota what real football looks like in November. No domes boys. Bears 27, Vikes 12 (four field goals - I also have Ryan Longwell on my fantasy team).

Also, thanks go out to the BearsCast guys who finally gave the right URL to the SuperFan Blog! For the record, my "Who Stole The Show" is Asante Samuel, right outta Berrian's hands, and three legitimate uncalled defensive pass-interference penalties is "What's Beef."

Eileen, Bears Superfan

It is so strange to have the time to post something before a game on a Sunday. I am not used to having this kind of time on a Sunday, but this is definitely the season for late games and night games.

So, it seems I have missed some serious Rexy debate-action lately. Kathee, I too have my reservations regarding Rexy. I definitely prefer Sexy Rexy to Hexy Rexy, and I find it particularly worrisome to see Hexy Rexy remain consistently Hexy throughout the duration of a game without recovering to Sexy status (oh, and you can hear the "Rexy back" song that you mentioned below by visiting my other Bears blog here). I can understand your reservations, which I have in part shared as we work through his "rookie" season. But I was heartened to see him regain some of his poise after slow starts in games over the past few weeks. My sister is now calling him Crazy Eight, because of his volatility and inconsistencies.

With that said I will cheer on any and all of our Bears today as they take on the Pats this afternoon.

Bear down, Chicago!

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

Kathee I'm glad you fired back and made some good points. I respect the fact you've probably watched about 200 more games then I have in my lifetime, but if the it factor in players is so easy to realize, I wonder what your feelings of Anthony Thomas were a month after his rookie year.

But if Rex's offense is averaging over 28 points per game, something I've never seen in my lifetime for a Bears team, I have to imagine he's doing something right.

Hey I'll agree, he's not the best skill-wise or mechanically sound quarterback in the game. But I seem to remember two former back-up quarterbacks that aren't considered the best skill-wise in the game either, they aren't going to ever fill-up the stat-sheet in passing/rushing yards, and one was even questioned at the end of his "SportsCentury" if he deserves to be mentioned in the same class as Peyton Manning.

So go figure Tom Brady and Ben Roethlisburger own four of the past five Superbowl rings. In fact, Brad Johnson owns the fifth one, somebody again who just wins no matter what type of game he has. And at any point do you think the Steelers would trade Manning straight up for Roethlisburger?

So maybe it isn't what Rex brings to the field stat-wise, but the confidence he instills into his teammates. I mean why not? We score points with him, we believe we have a deep-ball with him, and we win large amounts of games with him. This just doesn't happen out of the thin air. And if at the end of the day the only thing we have to ask of him is to pump-fake, then heck, we really must not have too many problems at hand.

And don't forget, our offense is based off of the play-action fake.


Tomorrow Bears win 31-17 after the defense holds down the Pats running game since Dillon's losing his speed while Lo-Mo runs for 60 yards, the Pats medicore receiving bunch will have too much trouble with our coverage, and Brady gets sacked six times. And I'll own a NFC North Champions hat by the end of the week!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Kathee, I enjoyed reading your analysis. I truly think that given a couple years, Rexy can shake the Hexy and really develop into a top shelf quarterback. Not everyone is a Brady or Manning right from the get-go - not even some Mannnings ;). He may not ever be electrifying to watch, but when he has all of his confidence, he has one of the most precise long balls I can recall and he puts some real zip on the short passes. He threads the needle so well that his misses are all the more frustrating. Since the Arizona game he has been a little too scared and doesn't seem to trust his abilities anymore.

I know so many people say this - but it's still true - Rex is still essentially playing his rookie season. Almost unbelievably, he has been healthy all year for the first time in his pro career. This is the longest string of consecutive games he has played, and we are now heading into the Collegiate Endurance Challenge. By now, there are only two games left in the college football season (not counting bowls)). The last full season he has prepared for and played was an NCAA season so, as long as Rex stays healthy, he may very well be starting to hit the wall of his endurance. He still has 6 regular season games and at least one playoff game to look forward to. I'm hoping the conditioning coaches are really working with him to get him ready for actually playing 4 games in December. We saw Kyle hit the wall last year.

All I'm saying is that he could get worse before he gets better, at least until he gets over the hump.

I don't know if the gameplan for the Jets game was trying to take that into account, but the last thing I expected was to see a Shoop-style, Orton-manage-the-team gameplan. It didn't seem to me that they were calling a lot of passes, but I don't know if that's becase they gameplanned it that way or because they recognized early that Rex and the receivers were getting contained. Berrian did play didn't he?

I think they are really going to have to stretch the field against New England this week. As much as I trust our defense, I don't think Brady is going to let us off the hook with a low-scoring, all-running game. Rex needs to learn, and quickly, to throw accurately and deep while under pressure. Their front four are going to be rushing Rex all day. I hope he takes Kathee's advice and starts throwing some false reads. Otherwise, the same gameplan that Miami and Arizona used is going to continue to work and make our Playoff career very short.

All in all, though, I do trust Rex and think he can take us all the way, as long as he can shake off his own doubts. I hope Jerry Angelo's scouting is better than Kathee's, although I suspect they agree a lot on these players (Hester, Brown - both of them, Ogunleye, Muhammed, Urlacher, Hillenmeyer, should I just paster the roster?). The only place I can see where Angelo has stumbled has been the quarterback position. You think Jerry has a position open for QB General Manager? I know a blogger who'd be perfect for it!

Kathee Meade, Bears Super Fan



Kenneth:

It goes like this. . . . . . . . First, allow me to give you a bit of my background. Perhaps then, you might understand.

I was brought up with 4 brothers (no sisters). All we ever did was play sports (and if I might add, we were all pretty darn good at it). My brother’s were teaching me the correct way to catch and hold a football since I was 2 year’s old, when they weren’t showing me how to kick a soccer ball, throw/hit a baseball or dribbling a basketball. In other words, sports are not a new thing for me. Now that I have 3 sons of my own, I am once again very involved in sports. I can, once again, determine (pretty much off the get-go) who has it and who doesn’t.

Throughout my growing-up years, I’ve not only seen all different kinds of ball players in the sports I have played, but went to every game that my brothers had and watched them and their teammates as they progressed year after year. When watching someone play any sport, it’s very easy for me to determine if they are “iffy” or if they are someone that can be counted on, playing with a fire that they themselves have lit under their own behind to impress anyone taking the time to watch. This applies with all ages, be it 10 year olds, high schoolers, college-age young adults or professionals. It’s the same across the board. When you see it, you know it. (Does Urlacher or Gould ring a bell?)

Believe me, I love it when Grossman is accurate, but every time that happens, I also breathe a sigh of relief. The same happens when he throws the ball and hits a defensive player’s back or feet (or throws the ball in a hole somewhere). It’s just one big, “WHEW!!!” Then I cross my fingers and hope for the best on his next play. Confidence in Grossman comes hard and infrequent for me. I don’t see that dominance. I don’t see that fire. I don’t see him making good decisions when things start to break down. I never see him scramble when blitzed, where he might run 5-10 yards. It doesn’t happen. When under pressure, he seems to panic. When a play breaks down, make with play work for you and get something positive out of it.

A question I have is, why doesn’t Grossman ever pump-fake one way, then throw the other? Or pump-fake one way, then lateral or handoff? How about pump-fake on a slant to the left and throw long on the right? I’m a huge believer in taking advantage of the opponent and faking them out. I, myself, have had a positive experience in sports, taking this approach and I try to instill it in my children, as well. They are noticing that it proves to be a wonderful tool. If you keep the other guys guessing, you’re making yourself unpredictable. Predictability can make the difference between winning and losing. The opponent never knows what you’re going to do, when you’re going to do it or which way you’re going to go.

A prime example of a successful fake is when Devin Hester took on an acting role in the Giants game after catching a short field goal. We all saw what happened there! It was awesome! My kids came running into the room, yelling, “Hey Mom! Did you see that fake? Half of the Giants’ team was walking off of the field with their heads down, not even realizing that the play was still alive!” I replied, “See, I told you! Good things come from unpredictability.”

A good quarterback can’t look directly at who he is going to throw to while waiting for the hike, when he is backing up after the hike or when he has to move out of the pocket. He is telling too much on himself. He needs to use his peripheral vision to keep his target in sight, yet without zeroing in until right before the throw. Now, this isn’t something that is done on every play – only every once in a while. Believe me; it keeps the other guys off-guard. I believe that one of the best attributes of an athlete is found upstairs where the mental game is going on. Of course, one has to have athletic ability first and foremost before the mental game comes into play, but add the two together and you have the makings of a great player.

I would love nothing more than to see the Bears go all the way. If they do, I’ll be cheering right along. I’m just not 100% confident that our QB’s leadership and athleticism will carry the Bears to that destination. Things can change, but I’ll tell you, I’ll be keeping my fingers crossed!

Sorry this was lengthy, but since you asked my opinion, I had to go the “Full Monty”!

Kathee Meade
Bears Super Fan

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

Kathee, I don't mean to single you out, but you hate Rex too much!

I'm seriously thinking you're in cahoots with Mr. Joe "Swing and a Miss" Buck, who after Rex threw his 53-yard touchdown was quick to point out that Rex was still having a forgettable game.

First of all, before I point out anything,the Baltimore Ravens recently won a Superbowl with an offense that didn't score a touchdown for three straight games and a quarterback in Trent Dilfer. Also I remember the Chargers making the Superbowl back in the day with Stan Humphries, so I find it pretty hard to argue a team can't win without a good quarterback.

Also, since it's a fun stab, Peyton Manning, Donovan Mcnabb, Michael Vick, Drew Brees, Mark Bulger, Carson Palmer, Trent Green (not starting or helping a team doesn't count), and Jake Plummer have never won a Superbowl game.

(I edited this one because at first I had Mcnabb never playing in a Superbowl, which I forgot about the T.O. game in which Mcnabb was sick and lazily attempted to lead his team down the field...)

So Kathee please explain, why are you drinking so much Rex Grossman flavored hatorade?

Because I just can't see what Rex did wrong yesterday. Sure, his production was lack-luster for 119 yards and one touchdown, but he also threw the ball for only 22 attempts. And among those 22 attempts, there were NO, I repeat NO interceptions. Quite frankly, this was a different version of Rex rather then the Miami game. He realized he didn't have his best stuff, stuck with the short ball, and didn't try to force anything into traffic. It takes a good teammate to realize he doesn't have his best stuff and still not attempt to put the game on his own shoulders.

In fact, I'm pretty sure it was Rex who led the team to a two-game win streak on a road-trip in which this team was supposed to fall apart. What's the problem with winning games ugly if it comes down to it? Sure, I'd rather have Rex throwing for three touchdowns with 250 yards to go with it, especially since we know he's capable of it. But like I mentioned before, Grossman right now represents a ladder-day Brett Favre rather then a Tom Brady. I have no problem with, for I don't expect Rex to play to that ability game in and game out. Once again, it's the Jon Garland factor.

I'm not sure about anybody else on the blog, but seriously, what would you take: Joey Harrington and Drew Brees loss where they throw for 400+ yards but lose because they threw too many interceptions, or a Rex Grossman game where he throws for 119 yards where he wins the game?

And if the Bears winning with the run/defense paired with Rex playing the short-ball while winning is a problem, then what's your diagnosis? Put in Griese? What has Griese ever done in his NFL career to make us think he's worthwhile? There's a reason he signed with us to become a back-up quarterback while he was snubbed by other teams, including his former-team the Bucs, who are now starting a rookie quarterback. The highlight of Griese's career is when he took over a very good Denver Broncos offense that is set-up so simple with the play-action that even Jake Plummer has mastered it, and then he failed to win play-off games. Sure, it's good to have him as a back-up, in fact he's probably the second-best back-up quarterback in the game behind Kurt Warner, but I wouldn't trust him with the keys to start the team.

Then there's Kyle Orton, who's confidence is probably at such a low-point after we took him out for Rex, and then snubbed down to the #3 spot when he proved he could at least manage a good team, that it'd be too dangerous to start him.

I mean I know your pain, I watched the same game you did yesterday. But I have to believe Rex is going to lead us to the promise-land, even if he's going to be the most shaky-quarterback in the playoffs. Trust me, it scares me just as much as everyone else.

But then again, it scared me when Jon Garland toed the rubber in game two of the American League Championship Series, and us Sox fans know how that turned out.

Mark Bradley, Bears Super Fan

Week after week on our Monday conference calls, we talk about sports in general. My buddy / Co-Worker follows the liking of the Jets, Mets, and Knick (AKA: Chicago East Team.)

Since the Bears and Jets have not played since sometime in the late 90's we can talk about the progress and how our NFL hero's are doing. (I need my media guide to confirm)

So today's conference call went something like this:

Me: Hello Mr Co-Worker - Why do I have the tune Back in the NY Groove in my head?

Co-Worker: You had a helluva day yesterday

Co-Worker: You must be tired

Me: All in a days work! This football thing is just a part time gig.. ;-)

Co-Worker: Never heard of WR Mark Bradley

Me: Bradley's been hurt most of last season and this season

Me: Now that he's had a couple of TD's, I might be able to get a jersey with out special order

Co-Worker: Chad had a meltdown

Me: He did play good in the first half...

Me: Jets have a good running game and the Defense was good

Me: Special teams was good till the on-side kick

Co-Worker: I think Urlacher was hiding behind the umpire

Me: lol

Co-Worker: Smart play

Me: Did you see when the umpire was in the mix and got tackled?

Co-Worker: Yeah, they need helmets

Me: I agree. I like the no-huddle offense- Jets seemed to control the tempo early, gaining 137 yards on its first three possessions



So its one thing when your buddies team wins - Its another when the score is by a guy with the same name. ;-)

Kathee Meade, Bears Super Fan



Kathee Meade – Bears Super Fan

Thank goodness for the tenacity and talent of the Bears defense that brought us to yet another victory. It looks as though our “overrated” Brian Urlacher led the defense on 11 of New York‘s 17 snaps on third down. In addition, he had 11 tackles by game-end. Here’s a prediction - Urlacher might end up being the first declared overrated player that is chosen as the NFL’s Most Valuable Player! Wouldn’t that be a hoot?

Our not-so-sexy Rexy completed only 5 of 12 passes for 7 yards in the first half. He overshot open targets again and didn’t fare well in the pocket, even under moderate pressure. I have to say, this is not the makings of any Super Bowl quarterback that I’ve ever seen. Grossman is going to have to up the ante in his performance in the coming weeks, in an effort to dispel fan’s faltering faith in his ability.

As I’ve stated in the past, the rest of the Bears team is right up there with the best if the teams in the NFL; however, if a quarterback can’t come out there and scramble in traffic, make connections, make something out of nothing when a play falls apart and make all-around good decisions, it doesn’t matter how good everyone else is. Simply, because you won’t be able to see how good they can be if the play ends in the QB’s shaky hands. I believe I’m not the only Bears Fan to hold back a bit in my confidence in Grossman’s ability. Like Marcus says, he’s not a Peyton Manning or a Tom Brady.

Some good news about Grossman’s game -- Thanks to Coleman’s slip, Grossman was able to complete a TD pass to Bradley, who made a great run into the end-zone. I felt that Bradley played superb throughout the entire game and proved that he has what it takes to put points on the board. Another good thing – NO TURNOVERS!!

And I can’t NOT mention Thomas Jones, who had 121 yards on 23 carries. I just knew he would come around eventually. He is doing a fine job in increasing his yards per carry numbers. I hope he only gets better and better because we need him, pushing forward for yards in our running game.

One more thing – what was with the decision to go with an on-side kick? Was the Special Teams Coordinator really drinking water in that water bottle of his, or was it something else?

Tied with the Indianapolis Colts! Go Bears!

Kathee Meade – Bears Super Fan

Gail, Bears Superfan

Not exciting, (perhaps we're a bit spoiled), but still a very important win. Who was it that said these three road games would be a problem for the team?

Thanks, Brian. I was hoping you could have brought it in for a td, but the interception still came in time to stop the Jets from scoring. Mark Anderson didn't want Devin to be the only rookie we remember, either. Thomas had some great runs and yardage again. Great touchdown by Mark Bradley, and, of course, Robbie is still perfect.

Was I the only one getting a little tired of Troy?

You may have noticed the personal appearances are getting more players involved. Tomorrow there are eight players throughout the area, including Brad Maynard and Tank. This job of mine is killing me. I specifically told them that I wanted Tuesday off for just that reason. Guess I just need to be grateful I do have Sundays.

GO BEARS! Bring on the Patriots and another win for the Bears.

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

I didn't really expect a scoreless half. I thought one of these two teams would at some point begin to run away with the game. These two seem pretty evenly matched. I am really upset that Rex can't seem to stretch the field, especially with Bernard Berrian back and Moose in there. Almost every pass is within yards of the line of scrimmage. I want to see a second half transformation like the Arizona game. Brian had a great start by making a clutch interception. Now it's time for the general to marshall his troops and really put a stop to the run. The Jets have been able to run the ball wherever they want (except into the end zone).


Let's get it done! Bear Down!

By the way, I do have to mention that mere seconds before the snap that Brian intercepted, I bit into my first Dorito of the day. I promise I'm not getting paid by Pepsi/Frito Lay, but if they want to keep me supplied to ensure continued Bears victories, we can talk ;)

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

Wait... there's actually NFL games being played this weekend? Really? By watching the television this past week, I thought the only game being played this weekend was Ohio State and Michigan. And here I thought I had the week off... ;)

But it's nice to see all our bloggers back! See, there was nothing to worry about all along. This team is just too good to string together losses. But of course I have a biased opinion since I missed the ugly first quarter becuase I was driving back to Muncie, but what from I saw, the Bears looked pretty good.

Speaking of the first half, I for one had no worries when I saw we were down. How could we expect Chicago to just come out firing? I mean they were the visiting team, against a tough Giants team, on national television, and were in weather conditions they hadn't experienced all season. They were bound to take a long amount of time to find their groove, which we only seem to score in big chunks at a time anyways rather then spread out.

As a final note from the past week's game, I'd say I was shocked from the amazing Devin Hester field goal return, but the only thing running through my head was my #23 theory (anybody that wears #23 in Chicago turns out to be a legend, as shown by Jordan, Dye, and Sandberg). At this point, it's inevitable, Devin Hester is going down as a Chicago Bear great.

But before I get into tomorrow's game, there's one more thing I have to say: Let's go Cowboys!

Now on one end, I really think it's going to take a good quarterback performance (You can call me Captain Obvious) to beat the Bears, which lucky for us Chad Pennington has bee putting up Kordell Stewartt-like numbers since week two. His yard totals over the past seven weeks: 168, 108, 189, 175, 71, 207, and 183. We're also looking at a quarterback with only ten touchdowns and nine interceptions on the season, so unless we turn the ball over an extreme amount of times, the Jets won't score over 20 points.

With that said, the Jets are a tough team, and I really like how Eric Mangini has this team playing. I mean on paper there's almost no reason the Jets should be 5-4, and almost 6-3 if a failed fourth down conversion against those pesky Colts didn't fail. But as of right now this Bears team will be too much for them to handle, so I'm looking at a 31-17 Bears victory.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go put in another pin in my Peyton Manning voodoo doll...

Glenn Timmermann, Bears Super Fan

Now that was one exciting game, I'm aware that just about everyone was worried they way they started the game but they sure did stay the course and proved that they can win on the road. I'm really looking forward to this weeks game against the Jets, I think Lovie and Ron will have the defense working on stopping the run in practice which from what I saw is the only thing that they really need to work on, to stop the Jets. On a personal note I got tattoo autograph #41 friday night, Bobby Douglass. I was shocked to see how young he still looked, and he was a real nice guy. And Don't forget the WCPF toy-drive is still going on, for drop off locations check out www.payton34.com or www.biggestbearfan.com remember any and all help is greatly needed. Thanks for caring! and Go BEARS !!!

Kathee Meade, Bears Super Fan



Kathee Meade

Speaking of songs, 101.9 (with Eric and Kathy) plays a spoof on Justin Timberlake’s, “Sexy Back”. It first came out last Monday, after the Miami loss and the song is all about “Rexy Back, where is that top-rated quarterback. . . . . . .” It's pretty funny!

I, for one, appreciated the hard work our Bears did on Sunday. After watching the way they played most of the first half, I was sure they were going to stink their way through another loss. Luckily though, I was wrong! It seemed like the Giants spent a lot of time, watching game tapes of the Bears during the week before the game because they were giving us a taste of our own medicine. On almost every Giant’s defensive play, it wasn’t just a tackle they were going after, it was a tackle, plus a rip at the ball. And as we all know, turnovers lose games! I’m ecstatic that our boys were able to pull it out. Life is good!

Enough can’t be said about Devin Hester’s fantastic return. Absolutely awesome! On the radio this morning, I heard Brad Maynard say that the Bears go through that exact same scenario every practice. It wasn’t just something that Devin dreamed up, right then and there. It had been practiced time and time again. They were just waiting for the right opportunity to run the play.

Mark Bradley gets a thumbs-up for his fine performance also. He stepped in with true authority and did what the team needed him to do. Way to go, Mark! As always, Robbie was right on queue.

Back to The Meadowlands this weekend. Seeing that the Jets beat the Patriots on Sunday, I would think the next couple of games will be exciting showdowns! If we can pull out wins these next two games, all you’ll be hearing about on TV and radio will be Bears, Bears and more Bears!!!

Gail, Bears Superfan

I don't know how long it's been out, but V103 FM just played "Monsters of the Midway" Let's slide with the Bears 2006 by Casper/J Dub. It was very good.

GO BEARS!!

Sue Rhein, Bears Super Fan.


How about them Bears??

I was excited when they went 7-0 and blew out San Francisco in the first half of the game, but last week against Miami was not as pretty especially when I had my 21 year old nephew with me rooting for Miami. Someone asked me how is it that he's a Miami fan and not a Bears fan, I replied he was raised by his father. So yes I had to hear the whole 1985 scenario on the train ride back home to Midlothian.

However, yesterday was a bitter sweet win. I was nervous watching the first half of the game, but then when they came out and dominated in the second half I knew our Bears were back and they weren't going down without a fight.

Congrats to the Chicago Bears for the ultimate winning record of 8-1.

GO BEARS

Lisa Schmidt, Bears Super Fan

Ah, here is is. The Bears we have come to know and love. What a fabulous win. I was so sick of hearing the media talk about how the only reason the Bears are winning is because they have an easy schedule, blah, blah blah. And I was so excited to hear John Madden give the Bears credit. They have played their schedule. They have played it well. No team really has a "difficult" schedule. The Colts only have to play two teams with winning records for the rest of the year. And they are barely squeaking by teams like Buffalo. But the Bears looked hungry last night. and they were satisified.

I can't get over Hester's nonchalant couple of steps before he took off running. It was beautiful. I just laugh and laugh every time I see it, and then see Lovie running with him (well, as much as he could) down the sideline. That's what football is all about. That's why I watch, that's why I love this game.

Urlacher cracks me up as well. His reaction when he tackles someone is priceless. Toe? What toe?

I love football. I love it. I love watching the Bears have fun, win football games, have their magic number be four in the middle of November, and watch them walk the path to the Super Bowl.

Till next time.

Mark Bradley, Bears Super Fan

What a great game!

Heading into the office today was great! High fives all the way around as I accept accolades from my co-works on behalf of second-year receiver Mark Bradley's (4-79-1) performance, and TD last night, in the absence of injured starter Bernard Berrian.



Like many Chicago Bears Fans - I was concerned that the bad vibe / rust of the Dolphins game had carried over into the first half of the Giants game. Then with Thomas Jones breaking away and making things happen to provide the needed spark for the Bears offence.

In the pursuing play - Mark Bradley, out runs man to man coverage for a wide open 29 yard reception into the end zone! Cutting the deficit to 13-10 with :35 left in the first half.

That's what I've been waiting for since they drafted him in the second round last season. Looks like Bradley has finally recovered from knee, hip and ankle injuries. His raw speed is dangerous when he's healthy. I'm looking forward to Bradley being one of the team's deep threats going forward.

Tid Bits:
The Bears walloped the Giants 38-20 on Sunday night -- the second-most points that the Bears have ever scored against the Giants, in a rivalry that dates back to 1925. On Nov. 14, 1943, the Bears drubbed the Giants, 56-7, at the Polo Grounds, in a game in which Sid Luckman set an NFL record (since tied, never surpassed) with seven touchdown passes. (Bears Media Guide)

- Sunday Night football on NBC is by far the game of the week! NBC has a better game experience and less people have ESPN or ESPN HD.

- Did anyone notice early in the 4th QTR, when the Giants got the first down and the fact that the yellow tv line was about a foot off from where they marked the ball?

- What happen to Cedric Benson last night?

- Good to see Todd Johnson was benched for Chris Harris.

- How's the toe injury Mr. Urlacher?

- Rex & Ron's introduction to the shotgun.

- How do you feel about the corners now Plexiglass? Tillman did a great job!

- Any comments Shockey?

- Devin Hester's 108-yard play -- Nice team blocking!

- Please define horse collar?

- Nice to see Mark Bradley healthy and making plays again.

Gail, Bears Superfan

I believe Devin took the lead over Mark Anderson. What a run. Congratulations. It was fun hearing that Lovie was on the sidelines yelling, "No, No, No" which changed to "Go, Go, GO".

As Al Michaels and Paul pointed out, it was an excrutiating first 20 some minutes. What a turn-around. I love seeing Plaxico's dark, scowling, Randy Moss-like looks. In fact, looking at the faces of all the Giants, they gave up with 8 minutes to go.

Just a short list of thank-yous to Defense, Offense, and Special Teams. Thanks, again, fellows for an exciting come-back and win.

GO BEARS!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

How does 8 and 1 sound?

What a game! Al Michaels had me pegged as a Bear Fan. The first 25 minutes of gametime I kept asking myself why I had to watch a top-flight football team implode over the back half of the season? All of a sudden, it went from the Miami game to the San Francisco game.

We looked it up, by the way. Nate Vasher ran his return on November 13, 2005 - almost exactly one year ago (technically, it's exactly 365 days ago). Congrats Dev!

It's nice to see Hexy Rexy realize, after 5 quarters of awful football, that he can regain his composure, confidence and ability in the middle of a game without having to wait to start a new game to turn back into Sexy Rexy.

I really thought this game was going to send me to bed in a foul mood to dream of Hexy turnovers and stuffed Thomas Jones. Instead, vision of sugar plums shall dance in my head - and by sugar plums, I mean 108.4 yard Field Goal Returns for Touchdowns!

Da Bears!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

What a great return by Hester! Personally, I was yelling at him to run immediately because I knew it was a live ball, and I thought maybe he didn't. I remembered Vasher's return last year (even if Al Michaels didn't). My darling wife, Mrs. Bixby (Not Her Real Name), and I were yelling "Go! Go! Go!" despite the danger of waking up Thing 1 and Thing 2 (they slept through it, thankfully). Mrs. Bixby (Not Her Real Name) thought, as Michaels did, that Devin was just checking the layout of the field. I thought he didn't know the ball was still live. Of course, the end zone is not a standard position for a Field Goal Unit, so someone had to have told him to stand there, so I came around to her way of thinking - as I tend to do.

I'm concerned that Moose went to the locker room with more than 8 minutes left in the game.

My concern at this point in the game is that an 18 point deficit is not insurmountable for the NY Giants.

The sideline reporter just confirmed that Dev hesitated on purpose. Mrs. Bixby (Not Her Real Name) is smugly vindicated. She is upwardly revising her prior prediction of 31 - 23 to 41 - 23. (The score is currently 38 - 20).

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

For the record, I'd like to point out that I called the score as 24-20. At this point (beginning of the 4tth qtr) I am dead on. If the score changes, I'd like to amend my statement to read "Bears 24, NY Giants 20 - AT THE END OF THE THIRD QUARTER." It has been a very exciting game thus far. You can almost see the momentum shift back and forth from sideline to sideline.

Gail, Bears Superfan

Did we lose last week? That's so long ago now. So, did anyone else go to NFL 101? It was lots of fun. Ian, Chris, Rashied, Danieal and Robbie were there. All five of them were very entertaining. Robbie was definately the crowd favorite. One of the women asked Robbie what he does all day while the other players are practicing. Rashied said they would all like to know. Jeff Joniak went on to describe Robbie's day of playing video games in one office, moving on to another office to drink some coffee, watching some tv. Robbie said that's about it.

Someone asked if the players are recognized when they are off the field. Rashied said that Chris tries to be recognized. Ian then told a story about Robbie's second week with the Bears. Every Thursday night the defensive line goes out to dinner. When Robbie first got to Chicago, Michael Haynes took him under his wing (both went to Penn). He brought Robbie to the dinner. All of a sudden a little boy started yelling, "Oh no, I don't believe it. My favorite player is here. Robbie!!" The defensive line couldn't believe it, either.

The reports earlier today were that Mark Bradley would be playing, and Bernard would be there sitting on the bench. If he wasn't going to play would they still take him to the Meadowlands?

This is an important game today for home field advantage, but I'm not worried. I think the defense will be back on target generating some sacks and turnovers. Special teams and Devin will also do well, as will Rex and the offense. Robbie will be perfect, too. I originally predicted a 13-3 season. BEARS WIN 30-17.

GO BEARS!!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

I hear you Eileen. Like I wrote Monday, it was indeed a long week. As a spectator, I was a two-time loser this week. First the mighty Bears fell on Sunday and then Tuesday ... well, let's just say Tuesday didn't work out as I had hoped. It's going to be a long two years.

As proud as I am that NBC chose our Bears to be the feature game this week, I still hate waiting all day to watch our Bears battle. It just doesn't seem fair that everyone else gets to watch football and I have to wait. :( It's gonna be a late night though. I don't see the Bears putting New York and Eli away early. It ought to be a struggle for both teams. The Bears though, have something to prove. NY is just trying to extend a 5-game win streak to 6 games.

Bears 24, NY Giants 20. I think Chicago will force New York to need a touchdown to win, and keep the score outside of field goal range. The lead will likely bounce back and forth all game long.

Eileen, Bears Superfan

I hope I don't presume by speaking for my fellow bloggers (and all of the other superfans out there) when I say that we can remain silent and still remain superfans... but we can still maybe need a little time to lick our wounds after last Sunday's "game", which I still am not equal to thinking about with a level head.

With that said I, for one, am ready to meet the Giants in NYC.

Bear down, Chicago. Chicago Bears, bear down.

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

It's like a ghost town on this board... I feel as if we're all either really scared right now, or that people have already abandoned ship.

I mean with that said, I did have a blog that I wanted to submit on Tuesday, but towards the end I could sense that I was feeling way too emotional to actually publish what I had said. And it's not that I said anything bad, it was still PG-rated and I didn't attack anybody, but I think my emotions led me more to a biased opinion of what I truly think then what should really be published. And after having met all of you, I can sorta sense that everyone else is probably having the same feelings I was.

So to take care of that, everybody with me now. Breathe in... breathe out. Breathe in... breathe out. Now onto some Bears stuff, which I may repeat myself from my last blog, but I'm ok with that, for whatever it takes to get this mope-streak over with I'm completely alright with.

- Standings-wise, it truly is nothing to freak out about. Honestly. The NFC North is really turning out to be the crapshoot we all thought it would be, and even with a loss, we're three games ahead of the Vikings, four ahead of the Packers, and five ahead of the Lions. I don't know about anyone else, but I truly don't sense any form of mid-season revival coming from any of those teams that we should be worried about. And even though we all like to think it would've been possible to go undefeated, trust me, we were bound to lose one. In fact, we'll probably lose three games. Sorry to break the news.

- Momentum-wise, yeah, this was a tough one to lose. In fact, there's absolutely no reason at all we should lose to the Miami Dolphins in a home game right before an extremely rough road trip. There's no excuse, I don't care how good the Dolphins played. I hate to say it, but this was probably our first form of "must-win" game of the season. And we blew it.

I'm not going to freak out though and say at the end of the road trip the Bears are going to be 7-4. The team is too good overall to lose three straight games, so we'll either come out of this trip 8-3, 9-2, or 10-1. Remember, you read it here first.

- Before I get on Rex, I'm going to point out the fact that the Bears offense gave up 24-points to a Joey Harrington led offense. There's a reason I called the Joey Harrington Era a nightmare, and it's not because he's keeping other defenses up late at night. Yet still he managed to throw three touchdowns, which is a bit ridiculous. And to make things even worse, Ronnie Brown ran for 157 yards. Where was the pride from the defense?

- Now onto Rex. Like Gail said, when Rex is bad, he's bad. But also remember, when Rex is good, he's GREAT. This inconsistency though does make him look like the ladder-day Brett Favre rather then a Tom Brady, but I guess that's the difference between a quarterback and a great quarterback. With this said, here's two topics I want to argue:

1. Taking Rex out to put in Griese in a meaningless game to the standings would've been the worst idea Lovie could've had. Really, what would've been the point to it? Maybe Griese makes the game interesting, and then the media sparks up a pointless controversey out of nowhere. How could it be good for the team in the long run? We have to realize that Rex's style of play is mostly confidence, so what's the point of rattling him up all over again before he completely breaks down? Especially when Griese isn't half the quarterback Rex is when they both have good days?

Also realize Rex just isn't the quarterback this year, but he's going to be the QB the year after, and the year after that, and the year after that. So even if we don't win the SuperBowl this year, I'd rather have one quarterback that I put all of my confidence who I know I can trust and can lead my team in the future after he improves with experience then shake it up over one measly game.

2. The idea that the Bears should have an identity change and return to the boring run the ball/win on defense is fine and all, but it's fine if you enjoy losing in the second round of the playoffs every year. If it hasn't worked in the past, then what makes us think it would all of a sudden work now? Do we realize who our back-field contains? I mean sure, I love having Jones and Benson, but if the Bears are coming to town and I'm an opposing fan I don't think to myself "Oh wow! Jones is coming to town, I gotta get tickets!" I hate to say it, but compared to teams like the Chargers, Patriots, Chiefs, and Giants, our running game isn't really that amazing, and it's definitely not good enough to carry a team to a championship.

So basically, I'm ready for the Bears to live and win by the long ball, but I'm also ready for them to lose and die by the long ball too. At least this way we'll score points.

- Also, would any of you ever argue that Tom Brady should've been taken out of the Patriots/Colts game after he was having troubles? Didn't think so...

- I'll have more about this weekend as it comes, but I wanted to go over the past weeks game so maybe we can all just move on from it. It's just one loss... it'll be ok. Now let's make Plexico Burress stop running his mouth and win a game!

Kathee Meade, Bears Super Fan



Yes, I agree with Lovie that it is good for a player to make mistakes and work through them; however, when it's a killer game and that quarterback is stinking to high heaven, it's time to give the second-string QB a chance at recovery. If it had been me, I would have given a shot to Griese, heading into the fourth quarter (it couldn't have hurt), to see if he could offer some sort of resemblence to a Bears game. The time for Grossman to "work through his mistakes", as far as I'm concerned, would be while he stood on the sidelines, watching Griese play in his spot. That's when it really hurts! But if one knows that they can "work through their mistakes" while they are allowed to continue making them, slowly sinking in quicksand with each passing moment, there's no price to pay for a poor showing. It's absolutely painless. I don't get it!

According to the news last night, Urlacher will be able to play in Sunday's game. That definitely makes my day! If he couldn't play, his non-presence would be felt BIG TIME! He is such a huge part of our team.

I, too, have heard a few folks say that by the end of November, The Bears will be 7 - 4. These upcoming 3 games on the road are going to require more than just long pass completions by Grossman. Our running game has to be productive and our defense has to be over the top (all are things that didn't happen this past weekend). If this doesn't happen, then I think The Bears will either be 7 - 4 or 8 - 3 by the end of November.

Kathee Meade - Bears Super Fan

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Oh the doom and gloom!

My friend mediaburn says:

... I hope this loss doesn't fire up a quarterback controversy (I say this, even though I've already heard it mentioned at work today). Let Grossman learn from his mistakes. I love that he's agressive, but he's got a lot to learn, like you can lob a pass over a 10'4" Jason Taylor.

I haven't yet heard calls for Brian Griese to replace Rex. I've heard a lot of wondering about why Rex wasn't pulled from the game when it was clear he was too shaken to recover the game. I don't agree. I think you need to give a young quarterback every opportunity to rescue a losing game. I'm sure Lovie hoped that Rex had learned some lessons and patience from the Arizona game. Obviously he hadn't (maybe he has now). Besides, as we learned last year, with a defense as good as ours, you can't write off any game. Granted, the field position the offense (and sadly, often Rex) gave up to Miami requested truly superhuman skill to reverse, especialy considering the serious case of missedicus blockitus going around the defense.

I have also seen predictions of 7-4 by the end of the East Coast Road Trip. I'm not so pessimistic. Rex has been Sexy Rexy for 6 games this year and Hexy Rexy for only two. They have won difficult games this year, I think they can take care of Eli and crew next week.

It's gut-check time boys! Go Bears.

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

I'll admit, I've been avoiding blogging today due to one reason, so I'm going to get it out at the very beginning. The Indianapolis Colts are the best team in the NFL at this point right now. I'm not saying that it's going to be that way at the end of the season, but the Colts and Peyton Manning despite an awful run-defense are on top of the mountain right now.

Trust me, it hurts alot more to say that then anybody reading this really knows.

As far as the Chicago Bears go, they can deal with a loss. In fact we have to look at it realistically: they were going to lose eventually. With a lack of a consistent quarterback, they truly are bound to lose three or four games at the least.

I said it once and I'll say it again, the Chicago Bears may live by the long ball, but there's a good chance they'll die by the long ball too.

At this point though, there's no turning back with Rex and his Jon Garland factor. No matter how good or bad Rex does from this point on, us fans have to deal with the fact he is indeed going to be our starting quarterback from here on out. Which means for every two or three really good games he has, there's going to be a bad game like this. At this point, that's truly the difference between Rex having a good season and a great season.

Marcus makes a good point maybe the Bears need an identity change, but truthfully, the Bears can't win a Superbowl without Rex throwing the long ball. It's a gamble we truly have to take.

To tell the truth, I can't be as nice as Gail is, besides Robbie Gould staying perfect I saw no positives in yesterday's game. A loss to the Miami Dolphins and a Joey Harrington led offense at home before a long road trip is alomst inexcusable. It can be argued that the turn-overs were what killed us, but from the game I watched I also saw a Miami Dolphins offense score 24 points while Ronnie Brown ran for over 150 yards.

And it maybe early, but I think yesterday truly was the Bears first must-win game of the season before this dreaded road-trip takes place. And they blew it.

But yesterday is done, we can set it aside, and only look to the future. I hope this future includes Brian Urlacher and Bernard Berrian, but if it doesn't we'll have to stride forward anyways.

Marcus Riley, Web Development Manager

Why all the gloom and doom on the blog? Ah, yes, yesterday's debacle at Soldier Field. I will choose my words carefully here, as the last thing thing I need is a full mutiny on my hands -- and it's 11 versus 1. Not a fair fight.

I suppose if there's such a thing as a positive loss, this could be it. But above all else, it seems to make sense that the Bears should seek to get their identity back. They are not a gunslinging offensive juggernaut built to blow teams out. They are a grind-em-out defensive squad that wins in the trenches, along with a solid running game. Several wins against inferior teams seems to have created a false sense of offensive security with this team -- and their fans. Everyone together now -- the Bears will not win the Super Bowl behind Rex Grossman's arm. Hexy Rexy (good call Paul) -- take care of the ball, play it safe and IF and only IF there's an opportunity to air it out, then go for it. There's still a lot of football to be played, and these are lessons learned best in November, as opposed to January.

One more thing before I go... how 'bout them Colts, eh?

Gail, Bears Superfan

Not a good day. We lose and the Colts win. The Patriots could have used Robbie yesterday. Pregame warmups were great. The first person we saw was Marty, so we got to visit with him and get lots of autographs. Tank, Chris, and one of the coaches came over to greet us. I took 705 pictures. Now it will take the entire month or more to try and work on which ones to print up.

There were some good plays: Rashied, Robbie, Alex, Nathan. I apologize if I forget to name anyone. I particularly liked when Robbie came out and got those two yards for us. Did anyone at the game see Robbie during pregame? He stood at the northwest sideline and kicked the ball so it would hit the side of the goal post, then it would land over by the northeast sideline. Very impressive. He did three or four in a row.

I won't say much about Rex. When he's bad, he's bad. Joey throws interceptions? You couldn't prove it yesterday.

Not only did the Bears lose Bernard and Brian yesterday, they lost the fans, too. There was no crowd noise after the second quarter. Hope it's not serious for either one and that they'll be back for the Giants.

Lovie said that they don't believe in pulling a player when he's not doing well. They want him to work through it, plus they also felt they still had a chance to win near the end of the 4th quarter. My question to Lovie, then why did you pull Devin and replace him with Adrian for the next few plays? Let Devin "work through it". He's a rookie, just like Rex(?).

Looks like they'll be practicing today! GO BEARS!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

What a disappointing game. Was that 31 points off of turnovers? Rex, Rex, Rex! As Greg Gumbel said, you only get one win with six turnovers on your side. I think I'm going to start calling him Hexy Rexy. He sure seems to be having some bad luck lately.

I REALLY didn't want it to be Miami that ended the Bears undefeated streak. I'm really fine with the Bears not going undefeated, but I just hate that it was *again* Miami ending the Bears' hopes. Just gives Miami fans a feather in their hat that I don't think they deserve. Not to take anything away from Miami's playing today, but it hurts to be taken out by a 1-6 team. I would have respected a loss to New England or even the NY Giants. That would feel like a worthy loss to a worthy opponent. This just feels like the Bears laid down or forgot to show up.

I sure hope Brian is ok. The leg extension didn't look that severe at the time, but you never know with joint injuries. They can be quite severe.

What a painful experience. I hope these guys can get their heads together for this very difficult road trip.

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Vasher feels the power of the triangular cheesy nachos!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

3:43 left in the third quarter. Miami 21, Bears 10. This is ridiculous. This should not be an Arizona-style game, especially at home.

Time to bring out the Doritos. I only hope it isn't too late. Oooh. Punt away on 4th and inches... DEFENSE!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Well, that's getting their act together! Now the Offenses needs to make something of it. Let's go, Big O!

Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Well Kenneth, if the Bears are going to beat Miami 35-14, at this point ( 7 minutest left in the second quarter, Miami just caused and recovered a Rex fumble) they need to get their act together.

Looks like this week's second half won't be putting us to sleep. I think I'd rather be bored!

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan

I got to throw passes on the Big House's field, catch balls in the end zone, and even attempted a field goal. I got to eat tons of great free press food, including some great hot dogs and apple cider. Once the game started, I was able to shoot a whole games worth of footage on 96 minutes, which was amazing since the teleplex here at Ball State gave us bad batteries. And the footage I shot included tons of great plays that I got tons of great footage. And if you watch the shows, there's a clip on either Gameday or Sportscenter where Miner runs into me on a 40 yard touchdown run.

So why does it hurt so bad? It all followed up to a #2 ranked in the nation Michigan win over Ball State, from a score of 34-26. And we had eight attempts at getting the ball within the ten yard-line to tie it up, four of them being from the 2-yard line.

I hope the Bears can heal this wounded sports fan's heart.

Bears beat Miami 35-14, Grossman has a solid game while Harrington throws for more interceptions then touchdowns.

Glenn Timmermann Bears Super fan

First thing, Thanks Kenneth for taking the time to check out the pictures of my basement. Yes I'm the one with 2-rally hats, I don't wear them to the games they are just part of my collection although my kids did go trick or treating in them. With the Bears being 7-0 they are sure drawing in big crowds at all the autograph signings that they have been attending, and the amount of appearences sure has grown. They are the talk of the town right now, with a couple more wins they will be in demand the way the 85 Bears were. Which if I'm right has been keeping Gail busy trying to get to as many signings as she can, I hope to see her at the Bobby Douglas signing coming up. I need him to sign me to make #41 . Just a reminder to those going to the game this Sunday, Bring a new unwrapped toy for the WCPF Thanks

Danielle Barrera, Web Intern


Hello Bears Fans,
Although absent for a week, Bears Business is back and ready for comments. My focus with the show is to practice being in front of a camera. So please look at my anchor presence and let me know what I can do to improve. I am slowly learning about the Bears, so unlike most fans, my Bear I.Q is not as strong. The more knowledge you know about a subject, the better the conversation. So, please share some fun Bear facts with me! Enjoy the show!

Kenneth Sothman, Bears Superfan


Football! Football! Football!

That's what is on my mind this whole week, for not only do I have the Bears/Dolphins to look forward too (Since Colts are at night I'll be able to watch it!)plus the exciting Colts/Pats which definitely will be fun to watch, but I also have an extra added treat for I'll be on the sidelines for the Ball State/Michigan game at the Big House! Sure, the game could be an exact replica of the Bears game this past Sunday, but I can always believe in miracles. So onto some Bears stuff...

- Three hurrahs for our man Robbie, but let's not forget about our NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month Mark Anderson! Which brings me back to my argument, which unfortunately it seems the majority of you avoided, who's our most valuable rookie?

- And even though I believe the Bears are going to have their way with the Dolphins, which I'll get to tomorrow, it's good that the team is keeping their head focused in on this weekend, which the media seems to be having trouble with at the moment. I'm sure by now you guys heard how head coach Tom Coughlin of the New York Giants was getting rather upset about already hearing questions about the Bears when they're playing the Texans this weekend. But then again if I was Tom, I'd be too scared to even think about playing the Bears also.

- And of course the biggest reason Tom should be scared: points for, 221. Points against, 69. Have I mentioned that this Bears team is scary good yet?

- But even though I love how humble our Bears are, which I guess us bloggers get the job done bragging for them, I can't help but wish that eventually the cockiness of our team leads to Bernard Berrian naming himself "The Ochenta", or Rex becoming such a prima donna he wears a king's robe on the sidelines. I guess I can only hope...

- I'm very happy to see the Bears invested in the offensive line by keeping our big boy Olin Kreutz. I personally think the offensive line is just as if not more important to the offense then a good quarterback, for a quarterback can't pass if he's on his back. With the way things have worked out so far this year, I hope we can keep all of our big guys for awhile.

- It's really been bugging me inside that I haven't mentioned it yet, but after seeing a few of them on Sunday's game, I think it's time to point out the Chicago Bears "Rally Cap" is the ugliest piece of merchandise I've possibly ever seen. In fact, I declare it tops the Dallas Mavericks football jerseys as the worse looking fan item ever. For those who don't know, it's a mask that is being sold for 25 dollars with a screaming blue and orange face that's wearing a hat backwards, and saying it's hideous is just being nice.

- And of course, with my luck I'm guessing one of the bloggers on here owns two. I apologize to whomever that person is... but honestly, if you're gonna spend 25 dollars on something bad, at least put it into the Walter and Connie Payton Foundation. Trust me, you'll thank yourself later for it.

- I'm a little dissapointed at this point that on ESPN.com Lovie only has a 96% approval rating. Sure this is high, and leads the NFL, but for what possible reason would you disapprove him at this point?

- On a final note, I have to say Marcus would be very saddened if he was walking around Muncie to see the attitudes Colts fans carry around here at Ball State. The collective attitudes from the ones I've talked to, which don't get me wrong maybe I just talk to negative Colts fans and am missing the positive ones, give the same "We just don't have it this year", which is shocking since they're undefeated. But then again, they go through this every year, realizing they're one bad game from their starting QB away in the playoffs from falling apart. But then again I'm not a Colts fan, so I wouldn't know.