Paul Bixby , Bears Super Fan

Crunch time baby. Crunch time.

To answer Kenneth's question: Yes, Kenneth, there is a snowy day in Chicago. In fact, there is a snow advisory, according to the National Weather Service, at varying levels from Iowa to Indiana. It's pretty funny really. I hate snow. I hate the cold weather. But, sadly, I am madly in love with Chicago, so I refuse to move. Plus, I don't want to have to purchase the NFL Sunday ticket to watch my beloved Bears. I almost feel bad for the dome-homes when they have to come to Chicago with Chicago weather. Not that our boys have been too accustomed to it this year either. This winter has just been wacky.

And, by the way, Kenneth, my darling wife, Mrs. Bixby (Not Her Real Name), is at the store as I write this, purchasing said triangular charms of lucky cheesy goodness.

My dear daughter, Thing 1, has been marching around the house all week, singing:

"Oh when the Saints,

Come marching in,

Oh when the Saints come marching in,

Oh how I want to be a Beeeear,

When the Saints come marching iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!"

I'm so proud :)
We are eagerly anticipating a Bears lockdown. I am so sick and tired of hearing about that danged "Cinderella Saints" destiny story that I will be glad to see them go back to New Orleans in defeat. I like what David Haugh wrote in the Chicago Tribune on Friday:

"One NFL personnel executive scouting last week's Saints-Eagles game attributed the Saints' intensity over 60 minutes to them "playing for the entire state," but he did not list that among the top three reasons New Orleans beat the Eagles or is capable of beating the Bears.

Drew Brees. Deuce McAllister. Will Smith. The name Katrina never came up.

No matter how profound of an effect the hurricane had on Saints players, coaches and front-office personnel, it minimizes the magnitude of New Orleans' rebirth to include it in a football discussion, as many already have done this week.

For three hours Sunday, none of that will matter and the major national story line serving as the backdrop for this game will not make the Bears any easier to block or the Saints any easier to tackle."

This is a football game. Everyone in the media (outside Chicago, at least) seems to believe that New Orleans is an obvious favorite to win simply because there was a major natural disaster in their home town. I think that minimizes both the victims of the tragedy and the effort and ability of the players on the team. It reduces the victims to mere by-standers in a sports story elevating a game above their personal loss, and reduces the effort of these men to nothing more than the divine hand of Fate delivering wins on a silver platter. It says they are lucky and not good. I would be very upset if someone were to simply write off the hours, days, months I spent in the weight room, on the practice field and in the trainer's room by saying that means nothing compared to my luck, or destiny. I respect the effort the Saints have put forth this year. In fact, their first Monday night game in week 3 (coming off of wins in their first two games), may have been the most exciting game I watched all year, with apologies to the Bears. It came out of nowhere. That game sent a message to the nation that the Saints were playing to win and were no longer satisfied to be an automatic notch in every other team's win column. And they said with authority.

That said, I just don't believe their effort is going to get them out of Soldier Field and down to Miami. Between the new soft sod and the snow, Reggie Bush and Deuce McAllister just won't be able to get their motors running. There is no turf here gentlemen. You'll need to figure out how to dig into real dirt and grass. I don't think McAllister will have as much trouble as Bush since Deuce is more of a downhill runner, but Reggie is not going to be able to cut as sharply as he is accustomed to. In fact, I'm pretty sure that the first time he tries a double-move, he will wind up making a single move onto his butt.

With the weather and wet sod, my prediction is Bears 17, New Orleans 12. I think the weather and wind will keep Drew Bree's passes short, getting the Saints into the Red Zone, but not into the End Zone. I see four field goals, tops. The Bears will run the majority of their plays, making only a few big passes (again, due to weather and wind), but they'll be huge ones. I think two touchdowns are likely with a field goal topper. We won't need Robbie "Good As" Gould much of the game, but he'll be there when we need him.

Just in case you think I'm going soft on the Saints in this post, I want you to see how Thing 1 and Thing 2 will be watching the game today:




"As for me and my house, we will follow the Bears"

- The Book of Halas 24:15, The Football Bible