Dallas Cowboys 34, Chicago Bears 10

Bears Beaten in All Facets of the Game by the Cowboys on Sunday Night!

On October 1st, 2006, the Chicago Bears hosted the defending NFC Champion Seattle Seahawks in a showdown on Sunday Night Football. In simple terms, the Bears dominated Seattle that night and laid claim to being the supreme team in the NFC. Rex Grossman flung the ball all over the field during his hot start to 2006, Tommie Harris picked up from a Minnesota game in which he forced a game-changing fumble by absolutely dominating Seattle, and cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. had two big interceptions as the Bears went on to rout the Seahawks and go 4-0 on the season.

Last night, a similar scene played out at Soldier Field. A dominant performance occurred, and a new team laid claim to NFC supremacy. In simple terms, the Dallas Cowboys came into Chicago and beat up the Bears. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo proved that he’s legit by making the Bears defense (one of the best in the game) look like putty in his hands. Controversial wideout Terrell Owens and solid tight end Jason Whitten controlled the middle of the field against the Bears while Offensive Coordinator Jason Garrett picked apart the gap between the linebackers and the defensive backs in the Chicago zone.

On the other side of the ball, the Cowboys defense rebounded from a slow start and blitzed the hell out of Grossman. Combo defensive end/linebacker DeMarcus Ware proved to be the best defensive player on the field, blowing by John Tait several times and sacking Grossman, who had three interceptions on the night but was not to blame for the loss. Chicago’s wide receivers, primarily Bernard Berrian, dropped several big passes while running back Cedric Benson ran for a pathetic 46 yards on 16 carries. Chicago had opportunities early in the game to take a big lead, but failed to convert.

Special teams were no different than the respective offenses and defenses of the Cowboys and Bears. Dallas was excellent in covering Chicago superstar Devin Hester, who muffed a punt and kickoff return, and essentially threw the Bears around the field. Chicago also tried an ill-conceived fake field goal late in the first half that had no chance to develop and ultimately symbolized a lack of faith in the offense’s ability to make big plays. With the exception of another field goal block by underrated, backup defensive tackle Israel Idonije, the Bears were dominated in this phase of the game.

As for the old ball coaches, Cowboys Head Coach Wade Phillips was animated on the sideline all night long while Lovie Smith looked dazed and confused as a 17-10 game at the end of three quarters exploded into a 34-10 deficit within the early minutes of the fourth quarter. In short terms, the Cowboys looked like NFC contenders while the Bears looked like pretenders during an old-fashioned butt whipping.

Grading Sunday Night’s Performances

Tony Romo A+: Romo came into a hostile environment against the best defense in the NFC and absolutely controlled the game from the second quarter on. Chicago kept blitzing, and Romo kept moving out of the pocket, firing strikes to Whitten and Owens as the Bears cornerbacks could not lock them down for more than a couple of seconds. Romo played an absolute brilliant game, making all of the hype surrounding him somewhat justified. Romo looked like the real deal, remaining poised, in control and confident after struggling to get his rhythm down in the first quarter. Very few quarterbacks have been able to play around with the aggressive Bears defense in the past couple of years like Romo did on Sunday night.

Rex Grossman C-: Idiot Bears fans and writers in the media with big-time agendas are naturally focusing on Grossman’s errors in this game ahead of the fact that the Bears flat out stunk all-around last night. Rex had a nice first half, and Ron Turner did a decent job early of getting him into a rhythm. However, the Bears did not let Grossman take a chance early in the game and go for a bomb which could of been big for his confidence. Frankly, Grossman’s receivers failed him last night. Moose Muhammad broke off a route, leading to an interception deep in Dallas territory, and Bernard Berrian dropped what would have been a likely touchdown in addition to muffing several other passes.

Grossman kept the Bears in the game in the third quarter after Dallas took a 10-3 lead early in the third. Grossman’s scramble on a third and long, and subsequent gutsy dive for a first down re-energized the Bears and the crowd. Grossman then responded with strikes to Desmond Clark and Greg Olsen before Benson pounded it in for a touchdown. Give credit to Grossman on that drive for leading the Bears down field and put the blame on the Bears defense for not being able to seize the momentum on the following drive and Benson for fumbling on the next Chicago offensive touchdown.

Grossman, of course, fell apart at the worst time of the game in the fourth quarter as Dallas began to pull away; thus making him the scapegoat yet again. His two fourth-quarter interceptions were breakdowns in fundamentals; something that Rex does way too much. Grossman threw off his back feet into triple coverage after the Cowboys took a 20-10 lead, and Anthony Henry (or is that Kelvin Hayden) returned it for a touchdown. Grossman then locked on a receiver late in the fourth quarter, and Roy Williams read his eyes from the get-go and made the pick.

Grossman’s two interceptions in the fourth quarter further reveal several things. Grossman is not the guy for the Bears, who have mismanaged him during the last half of last season and thus far this year. Grossman continues to let one mental gaffe or physical mistake snowball into others.

With that said, Grossman has not been put in a good position by Turner since his struggles in Arizona last year. Turner has tied Grossman’s arms behind his back and taken away the deep ball for him, especially this season. Rather, he wants Rex to be a game manager. And when the Bears can’t convert early opportunities (whether it’s in the Super Bowl, the season opener against San Diego, or Sunday against Dallas) and then let teams hang around and take leads, requiring the Bears offense to step up, the onus unfairly falls on Grossman. When handcuffed all game and then  expected to be gunslinger after developing no rhythm, Grossman obviously presses in those situations.

Grossman is not the guy for the Bears because he isn’t currently mentally tough enough to lead the team. His confidence is broken by the scrutiny and lack of responsibility behind center. Yet when Grossman came to Chicago, he was a very confident player. He has lost that swagger in the last year because his Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator continue to say that he’s the guy and yet don’t let him do much on the field. Grossman doesn’t deserve all the scrutiny that he gets. The Bears have sold him down the river and made him the scapegoat for the team’s problems, which include a very overrated Head Coach in Smith and a recycled Offensive Coordinator in Turner who is as inconsistent as they come.

With that said, Bears fans and the media should be ashamed of how Grossman has been treated. It’s gone way over the line. This guy is blamed for everything while a piece of garbage like Benson gets away with disappearing in games. At least, Grossman has had flashes of dominance and earned his spot. Benson hasn’t. Here’s hoping that Grossman can find a new team next year that will let him play and that Rex comes back to Chicago one day and buries the Bears and the city. It would only be fair, as Grossman is a whipping boy.

Sure Grossman has tons of faults, but so do a lot of players and coaches on the Bears. It is time to put Grossman on the bench and let him leave after the season, simply because his teammates are losing faith and could let that affect their play all season. With that said, Brian Griese may not have as much success with Turner (who needs to go) calling plays.

Sure, it’s easy to get down on Rex Grossman and jump on the bandwagon against him, but this kid isn’t the reason the Bears are 1-2. It’s a dumb coaching staff that puts all the pressure on the defense to be perfect and focuses on the offense not losing the game rather than it winning the game.

Marion Barber A: Barber was a shit-kicker in the second half, running over any Bear that got in his way, from Adam Archuleta to Brian Urlacher. While Romo had the Bears chasing him all around the field throughout the second half, Barber was a perfect compliment as the Cowboys established their dominance.

Cedric Benson F: Benson showed flashes early, running for 18 yards on his first two carries. With that said, he reverted to the Cedric Benson that everyone hates, getting hit and falling down. At one point, he had 13 carries for 38 yards. That’s 11 carries for 20 yards after his first two runs of the game. Benson’s fumble in the third quarter was the turning point of the game. Naturally, Benson did not play another down the rest of the game.

While the focus is all on Rex, why isn’t Benson getting scrutinized? This guy has no heart and has inexplicably disappeared from two of the Bears’ last three big games (the Super Bowl and last night). Benson should be thanking Grossman each week. With all the scrutiny on Grossman, Benson continues to get away with being a dog and a pouting prick. Jerry Angelo’s decision to trade Thomas Jones (the rock who stabilized Grossman) and hand the reins to the spoiled brat Benson is the real reason why the Bears are no longer Super Bowl contenders and the way it looks, no longer playoff contenders.

Terrell Owens A-: As much of a jerk this guy is, Owens had a huge second half. Owens’ four catches for 70 yards on the first drive of the second half was also a big statement for the Cowboys coming out of halftime.

Bernard Berrian F: Had a lot of catches, but three big drops failed Grossman and stalled promising Chicago drives.

Dallas Offensive Line A-: Penalties on Flozell Adams are the only thing holding the Cowboys back from a better grade. Great blitz pickups and control of the Chicago front four. Could teach the Bears offensive line a few things about picking up a blitz.

Chicago Offensive Line F: Considered a strength at the start of the season, the offensive line has been brutal this year and yet hasn’t gotten enough blame, which unfortunately all falls to Rex anyways. Tait was abused by Ware, and the line has been missing blitzes since Shaun Phillips destroyed Grossman in Week One. Olin Kreutz continued to show that he’s an insufferable jerk when things are going bad when he got a 15-yard personal foul late in the game.

Tight Ends A+: Whitten was phenomenal and shows the value of throwing to the tight end. Clark and Olsen looked like a nice tandem on Chicago’s second-half scoring drive, yet the question remains: why isn’t Turner getting the ball to these guys more?

Chicago Defense D: Chicago had a nice start in the first quarter but was dominated from the second quarter through the rest of the game. The Bears broke down in the fundamentals in the second half, with Adam Archuleta and Brian Urlacher both trying to run guys over and knock them out rather than wrapping up. Chicago’s defense was due for such an effort, as its been on the field way too long this season. Romo played with them throughout the second half.

Chicago’s defense looks tired and is decimated by injuries. And it’s only been three weaks! This strength of the Bears could become very ordinary soon with all the injuries and pressure being put on them to not only force turnovers but to also score touchdowns.

Chicago Coaching F: Lovie Smith doesn’t do anything on the sidelines and is not a very good coach. He continues to think that the Bears can win by having a very conservative offense and praying that the defense or special teams will get a score each week. Lovie got rid of Ron Rivera after last year; can he do the same to Turner now?

It’s time for Lovie Smith to do something. It’s time to go to Griese (just because he’s losing his team with the internal and external doubts about Grossman). In reality, Grossman hasn’t been the problem this year. It’s been the coaching, beginning with Turner and ending with Smith, who is too laid back and selling Grossman down the river. The “great” Lovie Smith could very well be coaching a 4-12 team this season because he refuses to ever change things.