Posted on 10/15/2006 8:39:26 AM PDT by mainepatsfan
2.Tonight, at least, Rex isn't. Gross, man!!!
3. Lance Briggs needs new cleats. I saw him slip at least 3 times in the game.
4. I feel horribly for Rackers and Green, but I feel MUCH better knowing the Chicago Bears are on their way to fufill their destiny as SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS!!!
I always like to see the underdog win. It's too bad for the Arizona fans. The problem is the culture there: Mr. Bidwell the elder is notoriously aloof, they don't have the patience to stick with one approach long enough to achieve results. Contrast with Paul Allen's patience with another losing franchise. That is why the Cardinals will never be great.
Yes Urlacher is a great MLB - like most in the Bears tradition.
There are a lot of people from Chicago living in Az....
False. Dennis Green (or whoever was calling the offensive plays) should just stop by the front office and pick up their final check. It should have been quite clear by no later than half-time that they weren't going to run on that defensive line. Yet, virtually every series was etched in stone:
1st down - Run - Result: Up the middle for no gain
2nd down - Run - Result: Up the middle for no gain
3rd and long - Pass
That is exactly what gets quarterbacks killed. The defense plays the run for two plays and then bring everybody on 3rd down. Everybody in the stadium and watching from home had the script down by halftime. The sad part was that when Leinart did get a chance to throw the ball, he didn't look too bad. He was hitting the short to mid-range passes consistantly and had no trouble moving the ball on the Bears corners. He sure as hell looked a lot better than Grossman. And even after all that, they get the ball back one last time and Leinart moves them right down the field with the pass and what do they do when they find themselves in a 3rd and 1 situation at the Bears 35 yard line with almost a full minute left on the clock? Why of course, Edgerrin James for -1 frickin' yard! You would have thought that the Cardinals might have learned by the previous failed 33 rushes into the line, but Nooooooooooo.... The Bears were very fortunate that they were playing a Dennis Green coached team last night. They looked like crap everywhere except the run defense.
Dang, it's a good thing I'm not a Cardinals fan or I'd have been really ticked off. ;-) The Bears didn't win that game, the Cardinals coaching staff handed Chicago the game, pure and simple.
Of course, as always, this is just my humble opinion.
I wouldn't say they mismanaged it, I'd say with that offensive line it wasn't possible for them to properly manage it. When you have the big lead you need to be able to run the ball, or at least know your QB is safe in the pocket to pick and chose passing targets, to get first downs and eat the clock. When your offensive line can only get one of the best RBs in the league 1.5 yards a carry, and your QB has to either go from shotgun or go in motion to pass safely you can't control the clock. I'd love to see the RAC stats for James, considering that at least half the time he was met in the backfield by defenders I'd bet he has at least 70 yards after contact.
But that's OK, I've hated the Cards since Bidwell petitioned the NFL to increase the blackout range and include Tucson in his lack of audience. Watching the team completely melt down made me happy.
They kept running for no gain because the offensive line sucks. When you've got a 3 score lead, an incredibly expensive RB, and a rooking QB you should be running the football. And remember the passing game wasn't that safe a bet, Leinart was running for his life most of the time, again because of lack of offensive line protection. What call can you make when your offensive line stinks. Leinart was doing well early but eventually having a guy drop back all the time is going to bite you in the ass (like the Bears' first TD of the game, protection failed, Leinart got sacked, fumbled, and the comeback is on). You've got to pound it, keep the clock running, and pray that someway some how the RB finds a couple of gaps and moves the chains.
Don't get me wrong, I'm no Green apologist, I think he's got major issues as a coach (like pulling Josh McCown over and over even though he was the only starting QB to give Dennis a win for over a season and a half). But there really aren't many ways to strategize around having an offensive line with the stopping ability of tissue paper. As I told my wife last night, the Card's o-line could block an artery if you gifted them a bunch of greasy food. They often say games are won and lost at the offensive line, and that's where this game was definitely lost. They did a good job of working around that terible line in the first half (Leinart made a lot of quick dumps from shotgun, a sad sad statement), but eventually they just couldn't sustain that luck.
who don't you fire?
Matt Leinart
But there's not much different they can do. Going through the play-play on NFL.com I count 11 2nd down pass plays by the Cards and 6 2nd down runs in the 2nd half. So apparently they really didn't run the 1st two and pass the third. Lots of those passes fell incomplete, probably not all do to lack of protection but I'm sure the inability to sit safe and secure in the pocket played a part in some of them.
I think AZ will beat Oakland. They're a bad team but the aren't Oakland bad, at least they no how to get a lead, that gives them a big leg up on Oakland.
I'm sure the scalpers will be getting top dollar for that one.
Well they ran a lot, 36 carries is a bunch for any RB (plus the other RB got 2). And they did run on almost every 1st down. What made the runs glaring of course was the incredible lack of yards those 38 runs got, and only 4 first downs to boot. They also took 9 penalties which certainly didn't help much. The Bears D definitely did an amazing job, stepped up like they had to all the time last year and showed the offense how to get points. Somehow I think Rex Grossman will not be getting any additional time off during the bye week, time for some passing drills for him, many many passing drills.
Yeah, pretty much. Leinart, #81, and the defense are worth keeping, the rest of them need to go to the CFL and get some practice.
Without running the ball Leinhart is dead. Initially there was some success but after the Bears adjusted there wasn't. But they could not stop trying or they would have been carrying Leinhard off the field.
In addition, if he had tried to pass much more the Bears would have picked off another couple interceptions. There were several near-misses as it was.
Another way of looking at this is that the Bears are so good that eventually the defense said "screw this, we have to win the game" since the offense was under the impression that it could score at will and had no need for patience or a running game. The team is good enough that it can win almost all games with little offense. That was demonstrated last year.
This game also showed that the Bears do not give up and can find many ways to win other than through Grossman's arm.
I disagree. The Bears never adjusted to the passing game. The Cardinals moved the ball with the pass right through to the end. It wasn't the Bears that adjusted, it was the Cardinals coaching staff that decided to try and run the clock down for two quarters despite knowing full well they couldn't run on the Bears. The Bears showed right from the get-go that the Cardinals were not going to run on them so to restrict yourself to two plays and out by constantly throwing away your first down is mind-boggling. Granted you have to keep the running plays in your offense to keep the Bears honest but if those runs are not producing you have to have a plan 'B' and mix it up a little. The result was that the Bears did not have to guess all night long. So they could come after Leinart on every 3rd down.
You hit a few of those quick passes on first down and suddenly your looking at consistant 3rd and shorts opening up your 3rd down options and keeping the defense guessing. The Bears did not have to guess last night. There is no excuse for what the Cardinals did to themselves last night.
The worst part is that a top-notch talented QB will suffer due to an inept organization.
"Another way of looking at this is that the Bears are so good that eventually the defense said "screw this, we have to win the game" since the offense was under the impression that it could score at will and had no need for patience or a running game. The team is good enough that it can win almost all games with little offense. That was demonstrated last year."
Oh, I get it. Your a Bears fan. Not being a Bears fan OR a Cardinals fan, but just an honest fan, the Bears were lucky to have played the Cardinals last night. Six turnovers and 3 offensive points to a 1-4 team? If I'm the Bears, I'm not terribly confident right now. JMHO.
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