Alaskan Grizzly

First: I think it safe to say that those that jumped to the conclusion that Cutler was "pussing out" have now realized that they were wrong. If not openly, with themselves. Even watching replays, and paired with the comments Kreutz made, you could see that Cutler's leg was bothering him. Take his weird looking attempt at riding the stationary bike as an example, he could barely rotate the pedals without difficulty. Anyhow.... Secondly: The more I think about it, as much as I would like to have someone like Fitz with the Bears, I just don't see it happening. I agree that the Cards are going to simply want too much. Besides, looking back at the NFC Championship game, what was the one thing that broke down and caused the game to be lost? The "D" stepped up after floundering for a quarter or two. And that was against Rodgers and his heralded passing attack. So...me thinks the "D" is pretty sound at the moment. Was it Cutler??? Nope....see above for why. Pretty clear that it was the o-line which led to Cutler getting hurt. Although the line did improve greatly since the bye adding one or even two key players could make a world of difference. I have heard the O-lineman name out of Atlanta that was mentioned earlier as a good possiblility and recently read that Baltimore Tackle Jared Gaither was another strong contender that could be had for considerably less. Problem being that he is Tackle and I think the Bears need a Guard more than anything at the moment. Like Fitz, Mankins is gonna cost too much and he's too old. K. Williams needs to relocate back to his LT position as he is out of position at LG. Maybe after the last few years he's got a better handle.

To Lovie and family: Our hearts and thoughts are with you. God be with you in this time of sorrow. A family in Alaska

Born in Great Lakes. Have family in Woodstock, Waukegan and Mt Vernon. Occasionally get through Chicago to visit parents in Indiana. Been living in Alaska for over 30 years now. Not sure I'll ever get out. Bears football for a loonnnnggg time. Have to say that I did like the Vikings for a very short time because they were purple, but that was when I was about 6 or 7 so I obviously wasn't in the right mind. Bulls basketball. Remember once my Grandfather wanting to go see this "new kid named Jordan who was supposed to be good". Man was he right. White Sox baseball. Not really big on the Cubs although I did like watching Sosa. But have been drawn to the Sox for years. Especially when Frank Thomas was there. And I like Guillen as manger. Blackhawks hockey. I have to admit I don't catch much of the Bulls, Sox or Hawks unless they're in the playoffs. Bears are my only real sports vice. Live and breathe it.

Fellas, gave this a try. Was craving some "Chicago style pizza" and man was it good. The crust was fantastic. Not sure if it was the cornmeal or??? But it was allright!!! Caution as the recipie says bake at 475 for 30-35(?) minutes. May want to bring the temp down a bit. The heat was pretty intense and as my wife said it was like broiling. I kept a close eye and avoided burning it although a little did. Mine had a Marinara I found local the seasoned burger, turkey pepperoni, dry salami, tomatoes, Parmesan, mozzarella, and Colby jack on the base. Couple onions and green peppers to get that "vegetable" factor in there. Made two 9"ers and another Vegeterian for the wife. Yeah I know...she knows how to ruin a perfectly good heart attack. But like I said, the crust is what made it for sure. Thanks for the link.

"Do what ever you gonna' do, I'm getting ready to eat this fool." And then Julius Peppers "ate the fool". There is no question that Forte had improved this year, after he seems to have about half of the highlights. And ANYONE who thinks Jay Cutler is some sort of wimp apparently hasn't had to try and tackle him. There seems to be other footage of him out there where he has gone headfirst many a times rather than slide or scamper out of bounds. Good on ya' Jay. Rest up. You deserve it. And I like the segue piece with Wootton and his sack of Favre...especially in slo-mo. Is there some sort of way to loop that to make a screensaver???? Nice work.

I just deleted the ones I thought should go, except for Collins, which I would assume would go without saying. And commented on the rest.

OK, I'll bite. And no, I don't "hate" it. I am glad things went better this year, as we have discussed many times. Yes we know that you are not a fan of Lovie's. But, as you pointed out, those that are ACTUALLY "working" for him do in fact appreciate working for him. Especially someone like Urlacher. Which brings me to an idea I saw floated here recently. I like the idea of extending Lovie for as long as Urlacher has left. The Cover 2 (that Lovie loves so much) is really only as effective as the MLB. In this case Urlacher. If they are able to find that next player to eventually fill that role, then maybe Lovie could be extended further. I realize that the Cover 2 has it's flaws but I also think that the staff, Marinelli in this instance, will be able to realize that some re-tooling is in order. Speaking of staff members and in particular Martz. As far as the Assistant Coaches I am almost certain that Lovie was in support of having Martz, Marinelli and TIce all join his staff as opposed to against it. In fact he had been accused many times of being overly loyal to Martz and Marinelli from their days together with the Rams and Bucs. That being said, Martz showed an ability to adapt his offensive scheme to more what was "Bear-like". That went against conventional wisdom that Martz was inflexible. I think that there is no question that another year...maybe two with Martz and Cutler things could only improve. The one big flaw that I am pretty sure Martz would have to agree in is that Collins IS NOT the answer at #2. If Collins continues on with the Bears, then I would have to really be suspect. I'm not always sure that Lovie is 100% knowing what is going on either but I do think he has surrounded himself with some pretty good people. And that in many ways is the definition of a good leader. Realizing that you don't know everything and having those around you willing to fill those gaps. The balance for now is good so I think it should be continued for the foreseeable future.

Yeah i would have to totally agree on your analysis. Too bad Urlacher couldn't keep his feet cause nothing but open air ahead and two "escorts" behind him. Watching him reminded me though that he is aging and the Bears need to start thinking about who will take his place whenthe time comes. Additionally and in regard, the Bears need to start working on variants of the "Cover 2" or other formations. Peppers hit equals total awesomeness. Sorry Aaron that your bell got rung but after that pressure, their "O" production was not the same. Rodgers became skittish and threw off target pretty much the rest of the game. Especially when the pressure continued... Both from the D and the game itself. And on that Raji interception, " if only" Hanie had seen Hester in the right flat. Hester had NOONE near him for about 10 yards. And we all know what he can do with a one or two step advantage. Who knows what we would be talking about today? Except possibly what your superstition and routine are for Super Bowl Sunday

Very well put Mad Lith. I am glad to see someone has finally come to their senses and realized that Jay is who he is. Most importantly he is the Chicago Bears QB and hopefully will be for many years to come. People have to realize that the Bears probably would not have gotten to where they were had they not had Cutler. As Cowherd and even Dilhole pointed out earlier on "The Herd", the kid was sacked almost 60 times and still posted a winning season. He, like many others in the NFL, accumulated a lot of "dings" over the season, has Type 1 diabetes and has only missed one game in his career. If he couldn't play, he couldn't play. The kid is tough there is absolutely no doubt. He is passionate about playing for his team that is also absolute. What he may not like doing is talking to people about the game or who he is dating. He won't look you in the eye when he talks. So friggin what? As Urlacher so "eloquently" pointed out, Cutler is our QB and that is good enough for me. As Mad Lith pointed out, go get better and enjoy some well earned time off. When camp starts, be ready to get started on another run. We'll be waiting. And as far as a few other things I am glad about; I am glad that Hanie is the #2 QB should we need him (they surely won't keep Collins right?). And that Lovie is our coach. Right Mad Lith? Here's to going to one step further in 2011.

I was actually addressing "4ever" (with the Cutler TD run pic and spining in the air against Detroit) in his footnote but if you are offended, oh well. If you WERE the biggest supporter of Cutler but because he is hurt and can't play and you change your mind, well then I can't say much else. Sounds to me that you are easily offended and for that I can offer no retort.

"My friend" maybe you shoud become a Green Bay or Pittsburgh fan then. Because Cutler is our QB. And I am good with that. For now that Hanie is in I have renewed hope. As should you.

This whole thiing about Cutler being a "loser" and how he will not be respected any longer shows how clueless some here are. How do you explain how the team has managed to get as far as it has? Maybe you should preserve some of your own self respect and change your signature line to something in pink.

What the hell? After making the NFC Championship? Good idea changing coaches after having some success. GREAT PLAN!! The Bears need to rebuild after making it one game shy of the Super Bowl. GIMME A FRIGGIN BREAK already!!!!! This is really getting old!!

Yeah, as I pointed out he would seem a better option than Manu. Manu can't seem to block and has what.. One catch to date? Clark is a pretty reliable "utility" player. Will catch most of what is thrown at him but not going to win any foot races or even blocking awards. Perhaps Martz has something up his sleeve?? Anyhow, at this point I'm glad to see he will be active to maybe get a shot. And if if I were a betting man me thinks Olsen and K. Davis are the future at TE.

...And if I may add I believe Lovie was rated earlier this season (I believe it was this year) as the third most successful Bears Head Coach. That is saying something considering how long the team has been around and the number of championships they won in the earlier years.

What do you expect from a team called the Packers, as in the Fudge kind? Maybe thats why Favre thought it appropriate to send that pic?

"people are FELLATING the GB defense..." Now that's funny!

Lovie had his hat and headphones off... And he's bald. I'm just sayin'. And I have to agree that when the singer sang "...and our flag was still there..." then pointed towards the flag was an awesome gesture.

I like the idea he came up with in 'disappearing'. And that's it... Great vid.

Until this incident, I had better respect for Rodgers as a person. Knowing that Matthews not only knew ahead of time about this lady but stopped to talk to her allows me to add Rodgers as one of the least liked Packers. Not quite as low as Favre but heading that way. Maybe Rodgers is different in that he will fix what has become a bad public snub. We'll see. Either way, the Bears WILL beat you and your fellow fudgepackers on Sunday Aaron. See you then.

After seeing amazing games played by Seattle, the New York Jets and Pittsburgh since the beginning of this playoff season, I believe that anything can and will happen during the playoff season. With New England, who many "ASSUMED" would walk away with another Super Bowl, out of contention it only proves that point. Chicago is VERY capable of winning a Super Bowl this year. All they need to do is get past the next challenge in Green Bay. All the teams currently left in the playoffs have lost to the Bears in the last two years. And although Chicago lost the last meeting with Green Bay, I don't think it wasn't because they weren't capable. In no stretch of the imagination. I saw what Tom Shannon wrote earlier and found it interesting that he noticed the Bears played "loose". I was thinking the same thing when they were up 21 in the first half. The team looked like it was having fun. And that is simply awesome to see. Chicago has in place what it needs to make that run. Some call it luck, I'll go with planned strategy and awesome play and coaching.

I think it safe to say that getting Cutler, regardless of the cost, was a success. Especially for the Bears. You can throw in that Johnny Knox was gotten with the draft pick that the Bears gained in the trade then I really think that if it's not an overall success it's definitely a bargain success. The key for Cutler's continued growth is getting comfortable with the offense he is running. I think he may have found the match he needs with Martz, especially with Martz being smart enough to make concessions of his own (running more) to help Cutler. Think about it, Cutler has essentially gone through three different Offensive schemes in the last four years. another year or two with this scheme, with the addition of some stud OL play, watch out. As far as Denver goes, I'm sorry if I'm greedy but "oh well". They got a pretty decent QB in Orton and they chose McDaniels to screw things up there. Nothing I can do about it, nor Cutler for that matter. We benefited where the Broncos did not. As was pointed out in earlier discussions and what it is about Cutler that people don't get; whether he's a whiner or aloof. All I know is our team is on the precipice of going to the Super Bowl and Cutler is our QB. Yep..sounds pretty successful to me.

I think you're right. Wasn't sure if it was the proverbial "dog house" syndrome (that Aromashadu has found himself in) or what... He was pretty good and reliable. I hope the team can deliver him a ring before he has to hang it up.

Watching the game today and saw Clark sitting on the sideline. Noticed him sitting there before and wonder if anyone knows what has happened to him? I'm a fan as he used to be the "go-to" guy for a couple years and suddenly nothing. With listening to some here express their dissatisfaction with the acquisition of Manumanuluena surely Clark would seem to be better option. But I dunno...

So how about predictions in the meantime? Most everyone has the Bears winning. And Kiper (who I am not a fan of) even has gone as far to predict the Bears will win by as much as 24-30 pts. I get a bit anxious when that many people jump on the bandwagon especially after naysaying for the better part of the year but ne'er theless.... I agree that the Bears are the better team. They are DEFINITELY a different team than they were when they met the Seahawks last on week 6 of this year. The line is upgraded, as a result and because he is who he is, Forte is doing better. That translates to a more "balanced attack" where Jay is not forced into gunslinger mode and can play more to his strengths as opposed to against them. The "good Jay" will arrive, which hopefully means the "bad one" doesn't mysteriously appear the following week. The Defense will be "Da Defense" and will hold their own. I predict this meeting will be more along the lines of the last playoff meeting between the two teams in 2006. The score will be similar to then somewhere in the range of 27-24 or 27-20. Bill Swerski and his buds called in and said they think that if the Seahawks were to put all their "All-Pro" team members, mix them with some from the Packers and even some from the recently disposed of Eagles and Falcons Da Bearz would still win 120 - 2. And that's with Cutler playing with a blindfold on and one hand tied behind his back. So there you have it, a well rounded prediction from a few facets.