Good for the NFC

[bradjock]

I'm sick and damn tired about hearing how damn great the NFC is. What REALLY pisses me off is for the last year, there's been the notion the Bear's didn't have a snow-ball's chance in hell to win the big game. It was 29 to 17!!! Christ almighty, the way people talk you'd think the Bears lost 41 to 3.

 

I hate NY teams, but the Pat's were even more obnoxious. Congrats Giants.

 

On a side note, in any sport has their ever been a pair of brothers to do what Peyton & Eli have done?

[Connorbear]

I'm sick and damn tired about hearing how damn great the NFC is. What REALLY pisses me off is for the last year, there's been the notion the Bear's didn't have a snow-ball's chance in hell to win the big game. It was 29 to 17!!! Christ almighty, the way people talk you'd think the Bears lost 41 to 3.

 

I hate NY teams, but the Pat's were even more obnoxious. Congrats Giants.

 

On a side note, in any sport has their ever been a pair of brothers to do what Peyton & Eli have done?

Congrats to the Giants. They played a great game. My only regret now is we have to deal with the 72 Dolphins still.

 

Peace

[ParkerBear7]

Congrats to NY. What this Superbowl has shown us is that Defense still wins championships. NE deserved to lose from the monement that they decided to go for it on 4th down early in the game and ended up giving it back on downs.

 

I would also like to point out that if the BEARS do the right things this off season we have a realistic chance of making it back to the SB next year. The Giants are not much differently constructed from a fundamental standpoint than the Bears.

 

Obviously the strength of the Giants is there DEF and their OL gave Eli a chance to make some plays while not making any critical mistakes.

 

I still think REX is the better QB than ELI with all things being equal. I hope we are able to resign him becasue he sure is much better than those other FA QB's listed by Bradjock.

 

Note to JA - fix the OL, add a running back with HR potential and bring in another playmaker at WR and with a little health this team could go along way sooner than most expect.

 

GO BEARS!

[Pixote]

Congrats to the Giants. They played a great game. My only regret now is we have to deal with the 72 Dolphins still.

 

Peace

 

Yep, I have mixed emotions. I am a Bear fan first, and NFC fan 2nd, so I am thrilled that the NFC won the Super Bowl when everyone is saying how much better the AFC is than the NFC. However, like you, I would have loved to see the Dolphins old timers shut up for good. Guess this leaves it up to the Bears to go 19-0 in 2008

[ParkerBear7]

Congrats to the Giants. They played a great game. My only regret now is we have to deal with the 72 Dolphins still.

 

Peace

 

 

I don't care what the '72 Chicken of the Sea say about their era but we all know the 1985 Bears are the Greatest and most Dominating Team of all time!

[adam]

Congrats to the Giants. They played a great game. My only regret now is we have to deal with the 72 Dolphins still.

 

Peace

72 Dolphins or current obnoxious Boston fans, which would you rather have? I'll take the old Phins.

[AZ54]

Patriots completely knocked out of all discussions about greatest team of all time. 85 Bears still leading the discussion. Bill Belicik forced to give an interview after leaving the field early. It's all priceless.

[DrunkBomber]

Im very happy for Eli. Parity is back.

[Bears4Ever_34]

It was good for Eli, I'm glad for him; proving all the doubters wrong! The Giants played like the better team and deserved to win.

[madlithuanian]

Exactly! The last thing we need to to transfer perfection from one group of poor sports to another. We've dealt with the Fins for 35 years...a few more while we wait for the Bears to do it isn't that big a deal!

 

 

 

Yep, I have mixed emotions. I am a Bear fan first, and NFC fan 2nd, so I am thrilled that the NFC won the Super Bowl when everyone is saying how much better the AFC is than the NFC. However, like you, I would have loved to see the Dolphins old timers shut up for good. Guess this leaves it up to the Bears to go 19-0 in 2008

[madlithuanian]

AMEN!

 

 

72 Dolphins or current obnoxious Boston fans, which would you rather have? I'll take the old Phins.

[madlithuanian]

Good points, but the D didn't go 85 yards with 2 1/2 minutes to go...Eli and the offense did. The D got them in position to win, but it required great O to do it.

 

THinking Rex is better than Eli just doesn't sound right. I think you are wrong. Rex crumbled under pressure, Eli didn't. Your comparison is unfair to Manning, and I think is just plain wrong.

 

Bottom line, you still need a top notch QB to win...I don't think we have one on staff at the moment. But I could be wrong about Orton if he's given the chance.

 

Congrats to NY. What this Superbowl has shown us is that Defense still wins championships. NE deserved to lose from the monement that they decided to go for it on 4th down early in the game and ended up giving it back on downs.

 

I would also like to point out that if the BEARS do the right things this off season we have a realistic chance of making it back to the SB next year. The Giants are not much differently constructed from a fundamental standpoint than the Bears.

 

Obviously the strength of the Giants is there DEF and their OL gave Eli a chance to make some plays while not making any critical mistakes.

 

I still think REX is the better QB than ELI with all things being equal. I hope we are able to resign him becasue he sure is much better than those other FA QB's listed by Bradjock.

 

Note to JA - fix the OL, add a running back with HR potential and bring in another playmaker at WR and with a little health this team could go along way sooner than most expect.

 

GO BEARS!

[Lucky Luciano]

Yep, I have mixed emotions. I am a Bear fan first, and NFC fan 2nd, so I am thrilled that the NFC won the Super Bowl when everyone is saying how much better the AFC is than the NFC. However, like you, I would have loved to see the Dolphins old timers shut up for good. Guess this leaves it up to the Bears to go 19-0 in 2008

 

i guess i don't see where the fins are up on the bears

 

if you want bragging rights the bears have had TWO undefeated seasons...

 

1934 13-0

1942 11-0

 

where do these fin bums get off like this is the first time in history?

 

do it TWICE, miami, then come back and talk to us.

[Lucky Luciano]

i forgot to add.... we lost both championship games those seasons too but did have a perfect season.

[butkusrules]

I'm sick and damn tired about hearing how damn great the NFC is. What REALLY pisses me off is for the last year, there's been the notion the Bear's didn't have a snow-ball's chance in hell to win the big game. It was 29 to 17!!! Christ almighty, the way people talk you'd think the Bears lost 41 to 3.

 

I hate NY teams, but the Pat's were even more obnoxious. Congrats Giants.

 

On a side note, in any sport has their ever been a pair of brothers to do what Peyton & Eli have done?

 

 

i feel same way you do. when eve sean salisbury opens his trap thats all he can muster. how bad nfc is.

[nfoligno]

I would actually argue the Giants and Bears are very different.

 

While I agree that both the Giants and Bears are strong up front, I would point out how aggressive the Giants were on defense. The Giants have the blitz happy scheme brought over from Johnson in Phily. They are a dominating DL, but also blitz the hell out of their LBs and safeties. Not only do they blitz, but they do it from all over. I would also point out they are good at it. Most often, when we blitzed, we were easily picked up as it appeared obvious. When NY blitzed, often you saw the blitzer w/ a free path to the QB. How often did you see that from us.

 

So while we may have the talent to be similar, I would argue are scheme is VERY different.

 

Also, their DBs were on or near the LOS, and played very physical. I do not care what the scheme or our coaches say, most downs I saw our DBs (even when healthy) playing 8+ yards off the LOS.

 

So again, while we may have the talent to be similar, our playcalling is not anywhere close to as aggressive as NY's.

 

Final point, and prime example, can be seen at the end of the game. W/ 29 seconds left, and 3 timeouts, Brady took the field. NY sent the house after him and attacked. What do you want to be we would be in some form of a prevent in that situation.

[Ed Hochuli 3:16]

Am I the only one who sort of likes Eli now? I used to hate the man, but I sort of like him. He went threw media hell for 3 years and 364 days, and he is on pace in his career to have 2 rings through 9 years, while his big brother had 1 through 9 years. Not to jump bandwagons, but I grant the guy a s***load of respect. As I said earlier, he is now a top 5 NFL QB.

[madlithuanian]

Count me in with you Hester... I like him now. He showed moxie. And he beat a team I hated!

 

Am I the only one who sort of likes Eli now? I used to hate the man, but I sort of like him. He went threw media hell for 3 years and 364 days, and he is on pace in his career to have 2 rings through 9 years, while his big brother had 1 through 9 years. Not to jump bandwagons, but I grant the guy a s***load of respect. As I said earlier, he is now a top 5 NFL QB.

[ParkerBear7]

Good points, but the D didn't go 85 yards with 2 1/2 minutes to go...Eli and the offense did. The D got them in position to win, but it required great O to do it.

 

THinking Rex is better than Eli just doesn't sound right. I think you are wrong. Rex crumbled under pressure, Eli didn't. Your comparison is unfair to Manning, and I think is just plain wrong.

 

Bottom line, you still need a top notch QB to win...I don't think we have one on staff at the moment. But I could be wrong about Orton if he's given the chance.

 

 

Eli deserves the credit becasue he did lead his team back for the win. He also overcame several drops by his WR throughout the game. However, Eli easily could have been the goat like Rex was in last year SB. We are talking inches from throwing a game ending pick to Samuel late in the 4th. Also note the amazing grab by David Tyree to keep the drive going after Eli threw it up for grabs as he desperatly escaped a sack (without that super human effort the game would have ended there as well).

 

As a pure passer I think Rex has a better release and deep ball. We know the problems with Rex is his lack of consistency but when he came into the league before all the injuries Rex showed very good decision making, pocket awareness and some decent mobility. Say what you want about Rex but I personally believe he has more upside than Eli if he can ever over come the mental mistakes that has defied him over the past season and a half.

 

I admit that I get as mad as anyone when Rex drops back 15 yards and takes a dumb sack when he could have stepped up and avoided the pressure and at least thrown it away. Simply unexcuseable especialy when he did not start out his career doing things like that. Maybe he needs a sport psychologist to get him back on track. I would like to see him suceed in a Bears uniform. I also hope we Draft no sooner than the 2nd a QB of the future.

[ParkerBear7]

Actually, David Haugh explains it very well here:

 

 

 

/sports/football/bears/cs-080204-haugh-eli-manning-rex-grossman,1,4411635.column

 

Is there still hope for Rex? You bet

Manning's rise shows that Bears QB still can succeed

David Haugh

On the Bears

 

February 5, 2008

 

Revisiting any similarities between Eli Manning and Rex Grossman seems a tad silly the day after the New York Giants' newest legend elicited comparisons to Joe Montana, the only other quarterback to throw two fourth-quarter TD passes in a Super Bowl.

 

But seeing Manning mature and ascend to the level he reached Sunday night in the Giants' 17-14 stunner over the Patriots left many people in Chicago wondering about their guy and their team. It's natural. Unless your team is in the Super Bowl, fans want to know how to be more like the teams that are.

 

Manning's arrival as a franchise quarterback gives every struggling peer such as Grossman hope that, surrounded by the right people, they too can win a Super Bowl.

 

So is that possible for Grossman with the Bears?

 

It's not really a fair question. But if framed solely as yes-no, then the answer is yes, with the understanding that all that conspired to produce a Super Bowl title for Manning the last month happens once in a career to a NFL quarterback if he is lucky.

 

Manning earned whatever praise, celebrity or riches that come his way with an 83-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes that contained the stuff of Super Bowl legends.

 

He is forever stamped as a winner, a money player who justified the patience the Giants organization displayed. Manning's uncommon poise against the Patriots and throughout a playoff run in which he threw just one interception proved those of us wrong who doubted his ability to do what he did Sunday.

 

Still, the Giants did score only 17 points, the same total Grossman and the Bears scored a year earlier in a losing Super Bowl effort against a pretty good Colts team.

 

It was enough for the Giants mostly because they sacked Tom Brady five times and hurried him nine others—at least 14 plays when the Giants' pass rush got the best of the Patriots. It was enough because the Giants apparently forced New England to abandon a running game and hand off only 16 times for 45 yards in 69 offensive plays. That's defensive dominance.

 

It was enough because Tom Coughlin and his staff simply outcoached the football robot in the red hoodie.

 

The Giants also ran the ball well enough, especially early in a record-setting opening drive, to reduce the game to a 50-minute affair. The 91 rushing yards on 26 attempts—and a 60-40 pass-run distribution—provided just enough of an impact to keep the clock and chains moving as well as made the Patriots respect the play fakes.

 

But are we having this conversation about the Eli Effect if the Patriots intercepted either of his two floaters on the final drive that could have been picked off?

 

True, the Giants don't win without Manning making plays great quarterbacks have to make before they earn the adjective. He played like the No. 1 overall pick of a draft should play.

 

But the help Manning received in becoming a Super Bowl-winning quarterback cannot go unnoticed when examining whether the Bears possibly could make the same step with Grossman.

 

Fix an offensive line, find a quarterback.

 

Devise a pass rush nobody can figure out, let alone block, and find a quarterback.

 

Hire or draft wide receivers able to make did-you-see-that catches, find a quarterback.

 

The Bears won't be able to find their quarterback, whether it's Grossman or someone else, until they address those other issues as well as the Giants did.

 

Quarterback is the most important position on the field but doesn't always have the most impact on the outcome.

 

The difference in talent between Manning and Grossman is exaggerated. The difference in their respective rosters and the level of commitment their organizations showed in them is real.

 

The Giants started 1-2 just like the Bears. Their defense got better. Not surprisingly, eventually so did their quarterback. ...

 

Elsewhere ...

 

Just asking, but if that's a regular-season game, would the referees have blown the play dead during Manning's great escape, ruling he was in the grasp of a defender? ...

 

Teams that start 18-0 don't have to worry about the blame game popping up on the schedule. The biggest reason Randy Moss steered clear of controversy probably had more to do with the Patriots' record than Moss. That was the lasting impression late Sunday night hearing Moss indict the New England coaching staff, intended or not, minutes after the loss.

 

"The Giants just had a better game plan," Moss said. "They played heads-up football."

 

He wasn't alone in making comments that could be construed as finger-pointing. Cornerback Ellis Hobbs, burned by Plaxico Burress on the game-winning 13-yard TD pass, wished his pass rush could have been in a bigger hurry.

 

"If our blitz doesn't get there, all [burress] has to do is shake off of me and it's a route," Hobbs said. ...

 

If Archie and Olivia Manning had spawned daughters, the Patriots might have two Super Bowl wins in a row. ... Draftniks, the Giants' go-ahead TD drive capped by David Tyree's 5-yard scoring catch at the start of the fourth quarter was for you. Of the Giants' six plays, five involved rookies touching the football: tight end Kevin Boss had a 45-yard catch, Ahmad Bradshaw carried three times for 13 yards and Steve Smith caught a key 17-yard pass on third down. ...

 

This is what people who love the NFL hate about this whole spying mess. Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who stamped himself as a young genius Sunday, cannot make a comment about Brady reading his blitzes without it raising questions about how he was able to do so.

 

Spagnuolo surely didn't mean to imply Brady or the Patriots were privy to anything they shouldn't be. But as long as reports continue to trickle in about cheating in the Patriots past, suspicion seems appropriate.

 

"I don't know if we got to all the blitzes we had in our game plan, [but] I do know this," Spagnuolo said. "There was a time there where I thought Tom Brady was finding out where we were bringing it and he was changing the protection and we had to get out of some of the things."

 

Was that due to good quarterbacking, good coaching or covert game-planning? Sorry, but the Patriots invited that cynicism.

 

dhaugh@tribune.com

Copyright © 2008, The Chicago Tribune

[madlithuanian]

I hear ya.

 

I still disagree on Rex. Eli looks to have gotten smarter on the field, whereas Rex appears to be getting dumber. I can question his height, small hands, and lack of pocket presence...but that's it for his physical skills. But Rex's biggest weaknees is his noggin. I just don't see him getting smarter overnight. You have to admit, Eli came in far more ready (he was the #1 overall pick, no?).

 

I just don't see it happening with Rex...but I can see something happening with Kyle. He plays far smarter. I think he can grow into his physical skills...kind of like what Brady did.

 

Eli deserves the credit becasue he did lead his team back for the win. He also overcame several drops by his WR throughout the game. However, Eli easily could have been the goat like Rex was in last year SB. We are talking inches from throwing a game ending pick to Samuel late in the 4th. Also note the amazing grab by David Tyree to keep the drive going after Eli threw it up for grabs as he desperatly escaped a sack (without that super human effort the game would have ended there as well).

 

As a pure passer I think Rex has a better release and deep ball. We know the problems with Rex is his lack of consistency but when he came into the league before all the injuries Rex showed very good decision making, pocket awareness and some decent mobility. Say what you want about Rex but I personally believe he has more upside than Eli if he can ever over come the mental mistakes that has defied him over the past season and a half.

 

I admit that I get as mad as anyone when Rex drops back 15 yards and takes a dumb sack when he could have stepped up and avoided the pressure and at least thrown it away. Simply unexcuseable especialy when he did not start out his career doing things like that. Maybe he needs a sport psychologist to get him back on track. I would like to see him suceed in a Bears uniform. I also hope we Draft no sooner than the 2nd a QB of the future.

[madlithuanian]

I read that today as well. I just disagree with Haugh. I think he's grasping at straws.

 

Let's be honest, that O -line, running game etc was pretty dang good when we were in the SB. Granted, the D was hurting, but we were in position to win. Rex had time, and threw a miserable pass to the defense. Eli didn't. Yeah, it's only one play. But, it's one hell of an important one.

 

Actually, David Haugh explains it very well here:

 

 

 

/sports/football/bears/cs-080204-haugh-eli-manning-rex-grossman,1,4411635.column

 

Is there still hope for Rex? You bet

Manning's rise shows that Bears QB still can succeed

David Haugh

On the Bears

 

February 5, 2008

 

Revisiting any similarities between Eli Manning and Rex Grossman seems a tad silly the day after the New York Giants' newest legend elicited comparisons to Joe Montana, the only other quarterback to throw two fourth-quarter TD passes in a Super Bowl.

 

But seeing Manning mature and ascend to the level he reached Sunday night in the Giants' 17-14 stunner over the Patriots left many people in Chicago wondering about their guy and their team. It's natural. Unless your team is in the Super Bowl, fans want to know how to be more like the teams that are.

 

Manning's arrival as a franchise quarterback gives every struggling peer such as Grossman hope that, surrounded by the right people, they too can win a Super Bowl.

 

So is that possible for Grossman with the Bears?

 

It's not really a fair question. But if framed solely as yes-no, then the answer is yes, with the understanding that all that conspired to produce a Super Bowl title for Manning the last month happens once in a career to a NFL quarterback if he is lucky.

 

Manning earned whatever praise, celebrity or riches that come his way with an 83-yard scoring drive in the final two minutes that contained the stuff of Super Bowl legends.

 

He is forever stamped as a winner, a money player who justified the patience the Giants organization displayed. Manning's uncommon poise against the Patriots and throughout a playoff run in which he threw just one interception proved those of us wrong who doubted his ability to do what he did Sunday.

 

Still, the Giants did score only 17 points, the same total Grossman and the Bears scored a year earlier in a losing Super Bowl effort against a pretty good Colts team.

 

It was enough for the Giants mostly because they sacked Tom Brady five times and hurried him nine others—at least 14 plays when the Giants' pass rush got the best of the Patriots. It was enough because the Giants apparently forced New England to abandon a running game and hand off only 16 times for 45 yards in 69 offensive plays. That's defensive dominance.

 

It was enough because Tom Coughlin and his staff simply outcoached the football robot in the red hoodie.

 

The Giants also ran the ball well enough, especially early in a record-setting opening drive, to reduce the game to a 50-minute affair. The 91 rushing yards on 26 attempts—and a 60-40 pass-run distribution—provided just enough of an impact to keep the clock and chains moving as well as made the Patriots respect the play fakes.

 

But are we having this conversation about the Eli Effect if the Patriots intercepted either of his two floaters on the final drive that could have been picked off?

 

True, the Giants don't win without Manning making plays great quarterbacks have to make before they earn the adjective. He played like the No. 1 overall pick of a draft should play.

 

But the help Manning received in becoming a Super Bowl-winning quarterback cannot go unnoticed when examining whether the Bears possibly could make the same step with Grossman.

 

Fix an offensive line, find a quarterback.

 

Devise a pass rush nobody can figure out, let alone block, and find a quarterback.

 

Hire or draft wide receivers able to make did-you-see-that catches, find a quarterback.

 

The Bears won't be able to find their quarterback, whether it's Grossman or someone else, until they address those other issues as well as the Giants did.

 

Quarterback is the most important position on the field but doesn't always have the most impact on the outcome.

 

The difference in talent between Manning and Grossman is exaggerated. The difference in their respective rosters and the level of commitment their organizations showed in them is real.

 

The Giants started 1-2 just like the Bears. Their defense got better. Not surprisingly, eventually so did their quarterback. ...

 

Elsewhere ...

 

Just asking, but if that's a regular-season game, would the referees have blown the play dead during Manning's great escape, ruling he was in the grasp of a defender? ...

 

Teams that start 18-0 don't have to worry about the blame game popping up on the schedule. The biggest reason Randy Moss steered clear of controversy probably had more to do with the Patriots' record than Moss. That was the lasting impression late Sunday night hearing Moss indict the New England coaching staff, intended or not, minutes after the loss.

 

"The Giants just had a better game plan," Moss said. "They played heads-up football."

 

He wasn't alone in making comments that could be construed as finger-pointing. Cornerback Ellis Hobbs, burned by Plaxico Burress on the game-winning 13-yard TD pass, wished his pass rush could have been in a bigger hurry.

 

"If our blitz doesn't get there, all [burress] has to do is shake off of me and it's a route," Hobbs said. ...

 

If Archie and Olivia Manning had spawned daughters, the Patriots might have two Super Bowl wins in a row. ... Draftniks, the Giants' go-ahead TD drive capped by David Tyree's 5-yard scoring catch at the start of the fourth quarter was for you. Of the Giants' six plays, five involved rookies touching the football: tight end Kevin Boss had a 45-yard catch, Ahmad Bradshaw carried three times for 13 yards and Steve Smith caught a key 17-yard pass on third down. ...

 

This is what people who love the NFL hate about this whole spying mess. Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, who stamped himself as a young genius Sunday, cannot make a comment about Brady reading his blitzes without it raising questions about how he was able to do so.

 

Spagnuolo surely didn't mean to imply Brady or the Patriots were privy to anything they shouldn't be. But as long as reports continue to trickle in about cheating in the Patriots past, suspicion seems appropriate.

 

"I don't know if we got to all the blitzes we had in our game plan, [but] I do know this," Spagnuolo said. "There was a time there where I thought Tom Brady was finding out where we were bringing it and he was changing the protection and we had to get out of some of the things."

 

Was that due to good quarterbacking, good coaching or covert game-planning? Sorry, but the Patriots invited that cynicism.

 

dhaugh@tribune.com

Copyright © 2008, The Chicago Tribune

[selection7]

I was one of the few that still liked Eli even after he refused to play for the Chargers. It seemed like a silly decision after the Chargers got so good but I guess Eli got the last laugh.