jason

All that jazz and it doesn't relate to quantifiable wins necessarily. Lovie's system is meant to allow the opponent to score; it's a built in flaw of the system. Granted, it may do the "bend but don't break"-thing, but it's a weak, passive defense. The turnovers are fortunate, but they can't be relied up. I'd rather not have a defensive strategy that hopes the opponent screws up. I'd rather FORCE them to screw up. As for the DL, I think they've played average at best. The pressure is inconsistent at best, and there are nearly no sacks. List THAT stat. And I don't even want to go into the details of why every single blitz from the Bears seems to be sniffed out and stopped. And that's ignoring all the points brought up in the posts above. I understand your point of view, but I don't think the two things are mutually exclusive. I think the Bears are winning in spite of Lovie AND Angelo.

There isn't one thing in this entire post that says, "Bears need a new go-to WR." Now, it may say the Bears need a new OC, several new OLinemen, a new HC, or maybe even a therapist for Cutler, but none of that says "draft a WR in Rd. 1."

Um....you do realize the oddity in that post, don't you? That Julio Jones, WR, Alabama is a joke. The guy can't even come up and make the tackle. Pouncey is an OG who will plow the opponent. I don't care if he happens to have a secondary skill that allows him to slide over to C. But you're probably right on the last thing. Angelo will probably trade away the picks.

Fair enough. I happen to live in Alabama, have watched Alabama, and have even seen some HS Jones games. From what I have seen/heard/read, from people who are as die hard Tide fans as we are Bears fans, Julio Jones is not the guy we would want. He may be big, and he may fight for the ball, but he has average hands, is not the brightest player, and needs to polish his route running. Aside from that, the Bears have Hester, Knox, Bennett, Aromashodu, etc. to groom - all have talent and can be wildly successful if they get a chance - before another WR is considered. To address your concerns, I'll say this: Imagine you're a boxer. Your first few fights you've been hit a couple of times and done fairly well. But suddenly you're in against a guy who is swinging from all angles, you are taking a pounding, and you don't see the punches coming. That is Jay Cutler right now. He's gun shy. Period. His mechanics have gotten worse as the season has progressed; his first instinct after the initial route breaks down is to tuck the ball and think about running. This is all a result of the fact that he has been absolutely destroyed by the worst OL in the NFL, and possibly the worst line in NFL history. I simply can't fathom Omiyale for one more year as a band-aid, because he opens up enough to need stitches. There is nearly nothing positive about Omiyale, and he very well may be the worst offensive lineman in the NFL. When he's not making bonehead false start penalties, he's opening like the Red Sea or getting tossed around like a $1 hooker. He's garbage. And THAT FREAKING GUY is protecting the team's bell-cow.

For what it's worth, I'd like to see something close to this: 1. Joseph Barksdale, OT, LSU - Can play either T position. 2. Mike Pouncey, OG, Florida - Can play either G position. (I'd be happy with Cannon as well) 3. Sione Fua, DT, Stanford - Fast, nasty, strong. (I'd be happy with Marvin Austin as well) 4. Ras-I Dowling, DB, Virginia - First round talent, may fall because of injury concerns and a deep class. (Alternate, Shareece Wright, USC) 5. Ryan Winterswyk, DE, Boise State - Remember that Angelo said the following, "As we do every year, we'll look at the defensive line. We'll always be looking for pass-rushers, regardless of what our needs are." 6. Zane Taylor, C, Utah - I actually like this pick, at this spot, a lot. 7. Zoltan Mesko, P, Michigan - Brad Maynard simply is not as good as he once was. Zoltan is huge, kicks huge, and has a cool name.

UGH. PLEASE STOP WITH THIS WR IN THE FIRST ROUND NONSENSE. That would be freaking horrendous. Ignorant. I can't tell you how stupid that would be.

I'd say the same could be said of Lovie. If the Bears get in this year, it will be in spite of Lovie.

That is a direct result of a garbage system.

1. The Bears could have gotten them both a couple of years ago. I wanted it then and everyone else seemed to hate the idea. 2. The two could either be amazing or horrendous on the same team. 3. Now, however, would not be a good year to pick them up. It's better to look at the WRs that are on the Bears' roster. 4. Anyone saying we need to draft WR this year, much less use an early round draft pick, is completely insane. Please try to watch the games and absorb what is going on. I'm BAFFLED that you guys don't see the correlation between how one position affects the others. Every pick doesn't need to be OL, but the Bears do not need a WR. Say it with me, do not need a WR. Drafting a WR on this current Bears' team is like buying a new engine for your car that has four spare tires. You don't have a clue what the engine can do until you feel safe with tires.

So, in other words, you're talking about the world's tallest midget. Just because Cutler didn't get something broken or didn't end up with a concussion doesn't make it a good game. The OL protected well a few times, but for the most part Cutler was either rushed while in the pocket, or scrambling out of the pocket to save his ass. "Despite the lower points" - Code for "the offense did nearly nothing." "One of the better games of the season" - Compared to the steaming pile of cow flop. "Moved the ball well" - Less than 300 yards of total offense and they moved it well? Seriously?! "Moved the pocket" - In other words, Cutler had to run. Having said that... On one hand I wish Martz would roll Cutler out more; I think that could help. But on the other hand, the Tackles can't be trusted to hold a block long enough to save a blind QB until a head is turned. It would be nasty to see Cutler turn his head and realize there is a DE about ready to deliver the sledgehammer.

Big surprise. The team stinks and the coaching staff by comparison makes the team smell like roses...but the Bears get one great turnover to steal a win away from a team that was arguably better, arguably more disciplined, and undeniably better coached.

Pop quiz: Name five players on the Buffalo Bills. 99% of fans can't. I can't. And it's completely sad that the Bears are losing to them.

Hard to argue otherwise. Almost every flaw today has been a direct result of poor coaching and ignorant coaching philosophy.

HAHA! Were you really in doubt at any time during the past 2+ seasons? Seriously? I mean, maybe my continuous message HASN'T reached everyone. It is as undebateable as water being wet and the sun being hot.

It's sad that we have to rely upon the defense to have a nearly perfect game because the OL can't block a varsity football team from a bad high school. Cutler, yet again, running for his life. He tucked the ball and avoided one guy, but you can only dodge so many bullets. This ain't Matrix, and he sure isn't Keanu.

First half offense only has 7, which is F'ing pathetic against the Bills. The OL, despite what the ignorant announcer has said, has been atrocious. They gave Cutler a pocket only a handful of times. Others he has either run for his life or been pressured very quickly. A few times Cutler has been lucky enough to scramble around and find a spot to stop and throw. Of course, he missed the one huge play opportunity he had. The run game...what run game? The OL hasn't opened a hole yet.

That play pissed me off. Should have been 6.

Once again, Cutler is running for his life on nearly every play. Pass plays are guaranteed for him to be under pressure.

I have a problem with Jim Brown > Walter Payton. Jim Brown benefitted from the fact that he was simply a different kind (read: size and speed) of player for that generation. He was a big RB for TODAY'S game, much less in the 50s. Payton would have absolutely obliterated the league in which Brown played.

Very good reply. Your position is better understood, regardless of whether or not I agree with it. The reason being is what we think the Bears (i.e. Angelo) should do, and what they actually do, are far too often not the same thing. Of course, there is another miscommunication with the should aspect of all of this. I don't "ignore" what should have been done if the Bears had those picks from the Cutler trade - I simply am going off of past drafting history to state that it would be an anomoly if the Bears picked OL. Your post does bring up an interesting concept, however: -If Angelo and the Bears so very infrequently do what we expect they should, and I don't expect this time that they would have picked OL with those selections from the Cutler trade, then perhaps they would have done other than what I was expecting (like normal).

The Bears will win. Just like in past seasons, they'll get a few decent wins and win most of the "should win" games, thereby producing a mediocre season that A]saves the coaching staff, and B] yields an average draft pick. Bears 24 - Bills 14

That's possible...or it could be that the defensive coaching and scheme provide the complacency. How many sacks does Peppers have again?

The funny thing is, I actually think there may be a few who think that OL is NOT the biggest priority. Aside from that, I have been calling for Randy Moss and Terrell Owens for years. Each time it was met with "no way!" and "too much baggage!" Well, we could have had BOTH of them at the same time. But nooooo, this team wants boy scouts. Now, however, I just think it's too late. I think that all four of the Bears' young WRs (i.e. Bennet, Hester, Knox, Aromashodu) have a ton of potential - potential that is simply unmet because of the offensive line woes. Shore up the OL and I think that the Bears' WRs start to look a lot better.

1. I hope your capitalization was not meant to imply that the Bears NEED a WR more than they need OL help. Because that would be retarded. 2. "I say it can't hurt..." - I disagree. It could potentially hurt the growth of the Bears' young WRs by keeping them on the bench and/or learning from a guy who has a bad attitude.

Anyone who has said, "OMG! We need a #1 WR!" - Here is your chance to speak up. The Bears probably won't get him, but you can't be against the Bears signing him and NOT be a hypocrite. Moss is a #1, perhaps one of the best WRs of all time. Of course, the realistic side to this is that the Bears really don't need a WR. They need an OL. If the OL gets better, then Cutler and the WRs suddenly start looking like superstars.