Alaskan Grizzly

My bad. In the past when I've come to Lovie's defense (and to some degree the good that Angelo did) I usually mention that they drafted three significant players for the Bears. That third one was Forte. And then some others that you mention below... Tomayto, Tomahto. You can refute all you want. The proof is in the pudding. Lovie Smith's record was a winning one. Coincidence or no, he benefited from the team he put together as HC. If you read that long article, you'll see that many of those players you talk about do nothing but praise Lovie in his coaching. ********* You'll get no argument from me. I was never a fan of Angelo's.

Correct. This was a discussion that Jason and I went back and forth with all the time. 1st round pick Chris Williams = bust and 1st round pick Gabe Carimi = bust.

True. By the by; Briggs, Urlacher and Tillman were all drafted by Angelo. If you read the article that was first referenced (and another almost identical) Briggs was quoted as saying he was challenged to be the next Derrick Brooks by Lovie. But Lovie chose Urlacher to be that guy, who as a reminder, was a Safety in college. The point I'm making is you suggest Lovie did well because of the players he had. I'm suggesting those players were good because of who coached them. And who 'formed' this most recent team? More or less it was Emery. Who in a sense has done as bad, if not worse, than did Angelo. (By the way, outside of the Peppers and Cutler's deal, was never a fan of his). And in regard to the part bolded, the offense did better when McCown was running it. Another mistake of letting him go by Trestman, Emery or both.

You're right Bill. We've asked those same questions . I for one am just as frustrated with it. Is the answer to having Cutler more mobile to what will help the O? That remains to be seen. The fact they are JUST NOW considering it is unfortunate .

Me too. Obviously what's done is done. Many here reminded me of that especially when Trestman and Emery were new. And especially when the offense had it's success last year. I'll admit I even bought into the idea that Trestman could be a good fix. But the more you look at it he appears to be the anti-Lovie in that he's good with O but not so on D. However even now, and considering what Bill wrote in another thread, Trestman inexplicably couldn't figure out until probably too late how to properly use Cutler . That being more mobile. That is baffling and confounding to me. So my question posed at this point, and I've seen it asked elsewhere, why didn't they simply hire Trestman as Lovies O coordinator? If Emery is so smart he should've been able to see that Lovies teams were struggling on the offensive side. If not Trest then why not a young mind like Kyle Shannahan? Emery causes me to think he's a glorified scout and that's about it. Possibly even more inept than was Angelo. Here's another good synopsis of the team post-Lovie and Lovie, post-Bears. A little long but a good read: http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles/22733...n=chicago-bears

AMEN BROTHER!! Losing Lovie was probably one of the biggest mistakes the Bears have made in the recent past. Despite his 10-6 record his last year many insisted he couldn't get it done and would always get mediocre results. Yet he had an overall winning record and of all the Bears Coaches in history (dating back to 1920) he was the THIRD winningest coach in team history. Only behind Ditka and Papa Bear Halas. That is fact. Giving a tip of the hat to Lucky Luciano (using my middle finger) and in response to his earlier commentary about ownership, they made a mistake in letting Lovie go. Were they incorrectly advised? Probably. I have never hidden from my appreciation for Lovie and I still won't. He may not fit the bill as the 'fire brand' I claim to prefer but obviously he got the job done (as witnessed in this article). Yes I said I'm more a person who prefers instant results and generally you see that more in the fiery and caustic type leaders. But occasionally you can get that from a stern, quiet and respected leader as well. Since my cornerstone of leadership measurement comes from a military background take a look sometime at who Major Dick Winters was. Although not a 'firebrand' type leader, he demanded respect without demanding. And got it.

I think the quick answer is sketchy at best. That being since he's unproven in a leadership role not sure the Chicago psyche could take another year or two of plodding along IF it didn't work out. (yes I know he had a record of 2-1 as HC but what exactly does that prove?). The fact that Trestman (so far) hasn't shown great and sustained success as a relatively unknown, despite he being an HC in Canada, probably wouldn't make it a comfortable hire. I still think NFL "established" will be the better answer.

Haley scares me. He was very nearly canned from Pittsburgh last year (?) because he was being such a dbag. I don't know if Tomlin had a 'come to Jesus' meeting with him or Roethlisberger is just having a resurgence or both but Haley himself I do not think is the sole reason for offensive success. And if you reca when he was in KC as HC there was nothing but ugliness all around due to his knack for dbagedness . And he has an overall 19-26 record as HC.. No thanks.

About "any given Sunday"; couldn't agree more. The Rams proved that yesterday. The Bears even did that early on against a heavily favored 49er team at their new stadium. Yesterday was not one of those days for the Bears. The Bears were at home. Bridgewater is a rookie. AP was nowhere to be found. And although the Vikings D is allegedly rated high in many stats, Cutler did just enough not to lose. Robinson was picked on time and again and despite his throwing for a few TDs Cutler still managed to throw some sloppy INTs. A better team would've won this game. The fact that Minnesota was in it until the end should tell you something.

Not interested.

I think something needs to be said for Fortes play too. He actually saved the team early on when they were being penalized in what seems like every other play. And for what it's worth and knowing how horrible the D has been playing, I personally hope that Allen comes back next year . He's had a rough start probably mostly due to illness. But given his veteran status and how he seems a pretty optimistic guy I think his leadership will prove invaluable for the D. Especially when you compare him to the likes of Briggs.

How very eloquent of you Terra.

Apologist: : a person who defends or supports something that is being criticized or attacked by other people (Miriam Webster Dictionary)

An apologist to the end...

Yep that was clearly Bennetts fault.

Really? That Rugby playin is having an effect on your cognitive reasoning. Like Uncle Buck says, this is game Chicago SHOULD be winning and is doing so...barely.

Or TB? http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/footb...1112-story.html

Anyone say 'Raiders'? Or even Rams?

As sad as it is and painful for me to admit; I almost don't care. Not even sure I'm watching the game.

http://m.espn.go.com/general/story?storyId...le.com%2F%22%7D

I used to hold credence to veteran leadership even if that players skill level wasn't what it once was. Urlacher to me was the epitome of that type player. Most here may not have liked him as a player or person but behind closed doors and on the field something tells me that he led as he should have. The fact that Briggs not only played with the guy and witnessed it first hand but then when thrust into the role to do the same and fell on his face? Disgraceful. You know as I read this one person I'm kinda feeling bad for is Peanut. Peanut and Briggs were drafted at the same time yet due to health issues Tillman hasn't been able to get on the field as much as he had. The guy was in tears when he learned yet again he'd probably be off the field due to injury. Yet there he has been every game since. Not only cheering for the sidelines but coaching his eventual replacement. That Mr Briggs is class and that is how you do it. I hope that if Tillman can do it he can return for one more year and put this year and the example Briggs has shown behind him. He deserves one last shot at a good season.

Oops. Just posted the same article. Admins please delete. The question still remains whether Terra knows anything about this?

I suppose we deserve that but that just makes him more a dbag.

Well I guess its nice and all that he admitted to it but how do you explain the other 48 pts scored? And the fact that Tucker chimed into Lance's self evaluation the way he did shows his lack of character. Befits his lack of leadership. And how do you explain Eddie Lacy running roughshod for 60-70 yards without hardly anyone touching him? And so on and so on.....

I don't think "catering" to Jay is the point here. The point is that Emery (based on the recommendation of Trestman - presumably) made a big mistake of signing Jay long term (c'mon two more years of Jay is considered long term) and to big money. Instead of taking the financial hit see what someone like Shannahan can do with him. We just discussed last week how we mostly liked the idea of zone blocking and Jay having a moving platform from which to throw. Why not give the coach who had the most success with Jay give it a shot? (by the way, did they actually do any of the moving pocket they said they'd try during the GB game?). And if that doesn't work, sit Cutler and look to trade him later. Either at the end of year two or before. Depending on what you can get. Which at this point might be a 7th round pick and a back up punter . But then we also need a new punter too so there is that. The other option is can Cutler (trade or whatever) and pay a veteran at a lower cost (hello McCown?) while drafting for a newer QB.