Possession by Possession Analysis of the Bears-Eagles Game

After missing the play-by-play analysis of last week’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, BlitzedoffmyPass is back to cover the Bears-Eagles game. Thoughts on the Vikings loss last week will be coming; there hasn’t been enough time in my life to recap that game.

In simple terms, Adrian Peterson ran all over the Bears defense, which had its worst effort of the season. The offense showed signs of life way too late in the game, but Devin Hester is truly amazing. Too bad he’s on a team that can’t put it together in all three phases of the game.

What can we expect from today’s game in Philadelphia? Who knows? Both teams are pretty bad, and this game could be a grind fest. It’s hard to pick a winner in this game as both teams are on the decline. A win for either the Eagles or Bears will keep modest playoff hopes alive, but both teams will be fishing after Week 17. Philadelphia takes this game 17-13 in a game rough on the eyes. Chicago’s playoff aspirations officially die this afternoon as the Bears officially become yet another Super Bowl loser to disappoint the following season.

First Quarter:

Philly is always a tough place to play on the road. So even though this version of the Eagles is nothing special, the Bears will have to earn it today. Robbie Gould to kick off to the Eagles, Correll Buckhalter back deep. Buckhalter returns to the 24-yard-line.

Eagles: Donovan McNabb has never lost to the Bears. Remember what he did to the Bears in the 2001 playoffs? Brian Westbrook rattles off nine yards on first down. Channeling Adrian Peterson. Westbrook picks up six yards on second down for an Eagles first down. Archuleta, a disappointment this year, got blocked out of that play. McNabb in gun on first and ten and his pass is off the hands of wideout Hank Baskett. McNabb fakes the pitch and hits Matt Schobel on second down for nine yards. However, a hold will negate the play and make it second and 20 from the Philadelphia 28 yard line. McNabb in gun and hits Kevin Curtis for 11 yards, setting up a third and nine. McNabb’s pass is off Kevin Curtis’ hands and nearly intercepted by Danieal Manning, who’s also stunk up the joint lately. Devin Hester waiting and the Eagles kick the ball out of bounds. Chicago will begin at 42-yard line.

Analysis: Not an Andy Reid fan but at least he’s got the common sense to not kick the ball to Hester. This game has the feel of a real snoozer.

Bears: Griese tied a career high with three touchdown passes last week. Tom Brady had six touchdowns today and five last week. Cedric Benson runs on first down for two yards. Benson runs for about three yards on second down, setting up a third and a long five. Ron Turner comes out conservative yet again…Griese in gun and dumps a two-yard pass to Desmond Clark. Yawn. Brad Maynard in to punt and and sends the ball into the end zone.

Analysis: Here’s the best way to describe the Chicago Bears offense under Ron Turner this season: vertically-challenged. Here’s the new theme for the Bears offense — Setting the game back 70 years.

Eagles: Does anyone else wish that Fox would switch to the Cowboys-Vikings game? Ten-yard penalty on punt against Philadelphia’s Reno Mahe for signaling fair catch and then blocking a Bears player. First and 10 from five-yard line. Westbrook runs for eight yards, tackle by Hunter Hillenmeyer. Brian Urlacher once again blocked out of a play. This Bears’ defense looks uninspired. Urlacher stuffs Westbrook on second down but goes for strip, allowing Philadelphia back to fall forward for first down. First and 10 from 15 — Westbrook loses a couple of yards on first down run. Bears finally get pressure. McNabb hits Jason Avant for eight yards on second and 11. McNabb hits Reggie Brown for 21 yards. Nice hit by Archuleta. It looks like that ball hit the ground, but Eagles hurry up and get play off — Westbrook run for two yards on first down. 2nd and 8 from 45 — Bears had Westbrook wrapped up in the backfield, but he avoided Tommie Harris and got seven yards. Third and one — McNabb flips it to Brian Westbrook for six yards after fake quarterback sneak. First and 10 from Bears 43 — McNabb hits Reggie Brown for seven yards. Eagles are going after rookie cornerback Trumaine McBride from Ole Miss. Second and two — Mark Anderson stops Buckhalter for a loss of one. Anderson was very ineffective last week against the Vikings. Third and three — McNabb fakes pitch and then hands to Buckhalter on a draw, who runs for 15 yards to the Bears 20. This Bears defense is looking awful. McNabb hits Kevin Curtis for 11 yards for a first and goal at the Bears nine-yard line. Westbrook is wrapped up for a loss of four yards. Nice initial pressure from Urlacher with Archuleta and a swarm of Bears finishing up on the play. 2nd and Goal from 14 — McNabb hits Avant for seven yards. Urlacher destroys Avant on the play. 3rd and Goal just outside the six — McNabb’s pass is dropped by Reggie Brown at the goal line. Should have been a touchdown there. David Akers from 24 yards is good. Philadelphia 3, Chicago 0.

Analysis: Eagles ineptitude inside the red zone shows up again. Bears defense simply does not look too hot. Urlacher woke up a bit on that drive. Chicago kind of seems like it’s going through the motions on some plays. This is not a very confident football team. Time for Ron Turner and the boys to put us all to sleep.

Bears: Akers short kick is fielded by the Bears Adrian Peterson, who is hit immediately. TV timeout. First and 10 from 27 — Griese’s pass to Bernard Berrian is broken up by Lito Sheppard. Cedric Benson rattles off a tough, nine-yard run on second down. Was that the offensive line opening up a hole for a Bears running back? Third and 1 — Benson runs for four yards and a first down to end the first quarter.

First Quarter Analysis: Same old Bears. Only six plays on offense. How many times has that happened this season under Turner’s guidance? A depleted and ineffective defense on the field for too long. Should be down more but aren’t. This is just bad football. The Bears have lost any swagger that they once had last year.

Bears: First and 10 from 41 — Griese pitch to Benson for a yard. Holding on John Tait on the play will bring the Bears ten yards back. First and 20 from 31 — Griese strikes Greg Olsen to the Eagles 50. However, Olsen fumbles the ball, and the Eagles recover inside Bears territory.

Analysis: Lovie’s teams are about creating turnovers. The Bears have turned the ball over way too much this season while not creating enough turnovers. Complacent Bears defense (Urlacher’s words, not mine) set to take the field yet again after offense puts them in terrible position. The Bears are a dead team walking at this point.

Bears are challenging the previous play and should win it. Olsen’s knee looked down. TV timeout. Fox should have scrolled “To Be Continued…” at the bottom of the screen to at least build some sense of suspense in this bore of a football game. Here’s guessing that this game won’t make NFL Network’s NFL Replay this week. Bears get the ball back as the play is overturned. Olsen has some talent. Could you imagine if he had a quarterback, running back and offensive coordinator?

Bears: First and 10 from Philadelphia 48 — Benson run for seven yards. Benson actually looks aggressive today, running downhill instead of shaking and baking. Can he maintain it for four quarters though? Benson gains a yard on second-down pitch, setting up third and one for the Bears. Benson falls forward for two yards and a first down. Benson runs for a few yards to the Eagles 35 yard line, setting up a second and eight. Devin Hester in the game — Griese play-action pass to Hester in the end zone is knocked down by Sheldon Brown. The play was there. Griese should have thrown a bit earlier. Good call by Turner, for once. Third and eight — Griese hits Desmond Clark for eight yards and a first down at the 27. Benson runs for two yards on first down. Chicago is at least swinging the time of possession game on this drive. Second and 7 — Griese hits Clark for three yard gain. Third and four from 21 — Griese takes timeout as Eagles show blitz. The Bears had three receivers bunched to the long side of the field. An interesting look to say the least (maybe a slant play on that call). Chicago needs to punch it in on this drive, obviously beginning with a third down conversion, something that has been few and far between this year. Third and four — Griese in gun, pass to Muhsin Muhammad is tipped and nearly intercepted. Robbie Gould from 39 yards — the kick is no good. Eagles 3, Bears 0.

Analysis: Reliable Robbie with a surprise miss. Long drive results in nothing. This is quickly becoming a long season resulting in nothing for the Bears.

Eagles: First and ten from Philly 29 — End-around to Reggie Brown for 12 yards. TruMaine McBride overcommitted and had a break down of fundamentals. He could have stopped Brown but was off-balance. Westbrook run for three yards. Tackle by Anthony Adams (who’s played hard the last two weeks) and Urlacher. Second and 7 — McNabb slant pass to Westbrook for a first down at the Chicago 48. Who got burned again? Adam Archuleta, one of Lovie’s boy toys from St. Louis. Lovie is getting burned by his guys this season, Archuleta, Benson and Babich (the last couple of weeks). McNabb hits Avant for eight yards to Bears 40. Urlacher wraps up Buckhalter for a loss of a yard on second down. Third and three — McNabb in gun and hits Curtis for eight yards. Simple dump off in the middle of the field. Chicago blitz couldn’t get to McNabb, who fires a first-down slant to Curtis for 12-yards. Charles Tillman overcommitted on that play, allowing Curtis to bring the ball back outside. First and 10 from Bears 22 — Play-action fake, McNabb overthrows Schobel. That’s a bad throw by McNabb. Second and 10 — Westbrook breaks tackle attempt by Lance Briggs and rattles off eight yards. Briggs is playing today. Haven’t heard his name all game? He’s been not much of a factor the last six quarters. 3rd and 2 — McNabb is hit from behind by Adewale Ogunleye, who beat Jon Runyan. Akers from 33 yards, the kick is up and good. Eagles 6, Bears 0.

Analysis: Bears bend but don’t break. Eagles stall again in the red zone. Chicago should be down 14-0 or 14-3 here, but Eagles own offensive problems keeping Bears alive for the time-being. It’s time for Chicago’s offense to get in the end zone. Eagles winning time-of-possession game.
Bears: Akers squib returned by Rashied Davis to Chicago 26. Eagles not letting Hester be a factor on special teams. First and 10 from 26 — Griese hits Muhammad for 44 yards. First catch by a receiver today (that’s just sad) makes it first and 10 from Philly 30. Benson runs for two yards on first down. Griese avoids pressure and hits Greg Olsen for nine yards. Nice job by Griese as Brown was blitzing and had a hand on him. First and 10 from 19 — Hester in the game and Benson runs for nothing. Two minute warning here. Can the Bears score a touchdown here and take a 7-6 lead at the break despite doing very little in the first half? Second and 10 from 19 — Griese hangs the pass to Olsen…lucky that the pass wasn’t intercepted. Another third and long likely means a Gould field goal. Griese in shotgun and a false start on Chicago’s Ruben Brown. Now Turner will surely play for a field goal. Bears look confused and Griese calls a timeout right before Fred Miller’s false start. Yikes. Third and 15 from 25 — Griese in gun and hits Muhammad for about 12 yards. Here comes Robbie Gould for a 31 yard field goal. The kick is good. Eagles 6, Bears 3.

Analysis: Chicago’s offense, like Philly, sustaining drives but unable to do anything once getting in the red zone.

Eagles: Buckhalter returns the ball from the six to the 26 with 1:39 remaining. McNabb in gun and throws low to Brian Westbrook out of the backfield. Second and 10 — McNabb in gun and scrambles for nine yards before running out of bounds. 1:26 remaining. Third and 1 from 37 — Tony Hunt stuffed at the line of scrimmage but got the first down. Eagles take a timeout. 1:20 to go. Westbrook 14-yard run to Philadelphia 50. Eagles take another timeout with 1:13 to go. McNabb hits Hank Baskett to the 25-yard line. McNabb dumps to Westbrook with the clock running after six-yard gain. McNabb pump-fake is thrown out of bounds with 30 seconds left. Third and four from Chicago 19 — McNabb overthrows Matt Schobel in the end zone. Another bad throw by McNabb. Danieal Manning lucky not to get a penalty for going to the head on that play. Akers hits a 37-yard field goal. Eagles 9, Bears 3.

Analysis: Can any of these teams score inside the opponent’s 20? Nope. Chicago will bank on being able to do so on the first drive of second half.

Bears: Akers pooch goes out of bounds. First and 10 from 40 yard line. Chicago needs to take a chance here with 22 seconds and one timeout left. Griese in gun…and is nearly picked off. Trent Cole hit Griese while throwing the ball. Griese dump pass to Rashied Davis stops the clock with 10 seconds left. A gain of a whopping two yards on the play. Third and seven — Adrian Peterson run and the Bears will go into the half. Eagles 9, Bears 3.

Halftime Analysis: Brian Baldinger hits it on the head and reveals problem with Bears philosophy. Chicago thinks it can win these 13-10 games with an offense that doesn’t take any chances down the field. If the Eagles could do anything in the Bears red zone, Chicago would be down double digits. This falls on Lovie, who continues to sit on the sidelines and let his team hang in but never goes for the win. Chicago plays not to lose rather than playing to win, and it’s a joke to watch. Chicago may still win this game as the Eagles are almost as inept as them…but in the long run, the Bears lose these types of games every time against better opponents because it is unrealistic to expect the defense to bend but not break for four quarters. These expectations are being placed on a Bears defense that is frankly not that good right now. When does the coaching staff change this philosophy. Under Lovie, never. Lovie Smith is another Dick Jauron, who is overwhelmed on the sidelines and not smart enough to notice themes with his team and how they apply in the future.

Third Quarter

Bears: Pooch to Rashied Davis, who falls forward past the Chicago 35. First and 10 from 36 — Griese play-action to Greg Olsen for ten yards and a first down. First and 10 from 47 — Benson run for a yard. Griese slant to Muhammad for six yards. Creates a third and four. Griese in gun… and is sacked by Trent Cole as defensive coordinator Jimmie Johnson brings the blitz. Defensive holding on the play gives the Bears a first down. Bad call there. William James did not hold Berrian, just got his arms into him. First and 10 from 43 — Griese’s bomb to Bradley is incomplete. Close to pass interference but refs don’t call it. A makeup for last play. Benson run for five yards as Turner just loves to put the Bears in third downs. Third and five from 39 — Griese avoids sack and hits Adrian Peterson for 18 yards to the Eagles 21. Jason McKie fullback blast for five yards on first down. Second and five — Peterson run for four yards. Third and one — playaction would be a gutsy call. False start on Roberto Garza on play. Nice job by the Bears. Third and one turns into third and six. Griese under center, this can’t be good. Griese quick drop, hits Bernard Berrian for ten yards and a first and goal from the six. Peterson run for three yards but a flag on the play. Philadelphia with 12 men on the defense. That’s pretty sad, boys. First and gaol from three yard line — Griese fade to Greg Olsen is knocked down by Sheldon Brown. That ball should have been picked. Bad throw by Griese. Second and goal– Griese play-action pass to McKie to the one-yard line. Third and goal from the one — Griese fumbles the snap. This team is just sad. Gould field goal attempt from 22-yard line is good. Eagles 9, Bears 6.

Analysis: A comedy of errors. Bears get break on questionable defensive holding call and can’t even get the snap from the one yard line. Chicago’s offense is beyond embarrassing. These are professional players out there? Turner is a clod. First and goal from the three and he wants to be aggressive and pass after playing it close to the vest the entire game. Pound the ball up the gut three times and get into the damn end zone, you moron. Bears have a 13-play drive (eating up half of the quarter) end up with just a field goal. For shame.

Eagles: Buckhalter returns to Philly 30. TV timeout. Westbrook runs for five yards on first down. McNabb play-action pass to Westbrook, who simply splits two Bears defenders and falls forward for a gain of six and another first down. First and 10 from 41 — Dump off pass to Buckhalter for ten yards and a first down. McNabb dumps to Westbrook for seven yards. Briggs with first tackle in the game. This game is a flashback to the 1920s. Ugly, ugly football. Second and three — McNabb’s pass to Thomas Tupee is broken up by Urlacher. Third and three from 41 — McNabb in gun and pass to Avant is broken up. Punt on its way. Sam Rocca punt goes into the end zone and the Philly boo birds justifiably come out.
Analysis: Eagles are as conservative as the Bears on offense. Now I know why I don’t like Andy Reid. He sucks like Turner. The Bears may actually win this game because of Philly’s sissiness. However, don’t take stock in a Bears win today (if it happens). This team sucks right now and is not going to make the playoffs. Chicago may very well finish last in the NFC North.

Bears: Benson run for four yards. Griese hits Greg Olsen for seven yards and a first down. First and 10 from 32 — Griese hits Berrian for 24 yards. Now stay aggressive dammit. Nope. Turner is such a moron that he goes back to Benson for a loss of two yards, setting up a second and 12 and likely a third and long. Turner should be fired right now. The guy is a complete wimp as a coordinator. Griese hits Berrian for a whopping three yards. Is anybody else sick of this garbage offense? The opportunities are there. Take chances down the field. Hester in the game, Griese in gun, Muhammad calls a timeout as Hester didn’t know where he was supposed to be on the play. This offense is not worth getting mad about anymore; it’s so funny that this unit can be so inept and that Turner can still have a job. Third and 7 from Philly 41 — Griese in gun and the Bears throw a bubble screen pass to Hester for 11 yards and a first down. Nice block by Muhammad. That’s all Hester in open field. First and 10 from 30 — Griese hits Peterson for six yards. Nice checkoff by Griese. That’s when you checkoff, when you have to. Benson runs for a yard on second and four. Chicago has 52 yards rushing on 19 carries. That will be the end of the third quarter. Eagles 9, Bears 6.

Analysis: OK, Bears. This is the ballgame here. You are dominating but stalling on offense. Forget about the running game and start throwing the ball over the field. If Chicago plays for a field goal here, Lovie and crew should have to walk back from Philly to Chicago.

Fourth Quarter:

Bears: Griese overthrows Berrian, who stopped his route. Chicago not on the same page seven weeks into the season. Robbie Gould from 41 yards. and the Bears are confused again, taking another timeout. Chicago has one timeout left now. This team is not focused. As said earlier, this looks like a team going through the motions. To be honest, the Bears know they’re done this season. Too bad Chicago has nine games remaining after this one! Back from TV break. Gould field goal from 41 is down the pipe and good. Bears 9, Eagles 9.

Analysis: Chicago with yet another long drive resulting in just a field goal. The Bears are lucky that Andy Reid is as inept of an offensive coordinator as Turner. If Chicago was playing any team that could score, it would be done in this game.

Eagles: Return to own 26. Yet another timeout. The Bears have allowed 71 points in the fourth quarter; the most of any team in the league this season. Tommie Harris sacks McNabb on first down for a loss of eight. Westbrook run for six yards, sets up a third and 12. McNabb in gun and is sacked by Tommie Harris again. Eagles kick out of bounds again. Eagles fans are booing, but that’s a smart decision with Hester on the field.

Analysis: Welcome back Tommie Harris after doing nothing last week. In Harris’ defense, this guy should not be on the field with his injuries. Chicago with the ball at the 50. Anything less than a field goal is unacceptable. It’s time to get into the end zone here. Turner should try a bomb to Berrian on first down.

Bears: What the hell was that. Ball gets snapped past Griese. The play is ruled a false start. Oh, you Bears. Always thinking of new ways to screw up things. First and 15 from Chicago 45 — Adrian Peterson run for nine yards. Griese screen pass to Cedric Benson, who takes the ball inside the Eagles 30. First and ten from 27 — Benson runs for four yards. Second and short seven from 24 — Griese hits Greg Olsen to the 10-yard line. Pass interference on Olsen on the play. Bring the play back ten yards. Second and 17 from 34 — now Chicago needs to pick up yards for a doable Gould field goal. Griese in gun and hands off to Peterson for four yards. Hester in on third down. Third and 13 — four wideout set, Griese hits Muhammad for about three yards, setting up a Robbie Gould field goal. Gould’s field goal attempt from 45 yards hits the upright and is good. Bears 12, Eagles 9.

Analysis: Call it whatever you want…ugly, fugly, pug fugly, puckin fugly, but it counts. Unfortunately, for the Bears, even a win in this game won’t mean much in the long run. This team is on a road to nowhere.

Eagles: 9:21 remaining. Buckhalter return to the Eagles 26. Brendan Ayanbadejo with the tackle. Westbrook swarmed for a run of one yard on first down. Second and 10 — McNabb to Westbrook on a screen for six yards. Third and four from 32 — McNabb’s pass is caught by Kevin Curtis at the Bears 45. Nice scrambling by McNabb. McNabb checkslow and the pass is dropped by Thomas Tapeh. Second and 10 — McNabb pass to Curtis is incomplete, pass interference on Tillman. First and ten from Chicago 39 — McNabb hits Reggie Brown to the Chicago 24, with Urlacher throwing Brown hard to the ground. However, the Eagles are moving. Westbrook run for two yards. Urlacher with a touchdown-saving tackle? Urlacher has had a very nice game after a slow start. Where’s Briggs? Second and seven from Chicago 21 — McNabb hits rookie tight end Seleck for eight yards and a first down. First and ten from Chicago 14 — McNabb hits Schobel for a touchdown. Akers PAT is good. Eagles 16, Bears 12

Analysis: Eagles finally get away from conservatism and get the Bears off-balance. All you can say is “Ha Ha” to the Bears offense. When you’re defense holds a team to nine points through three quarters and you just play for field goals on offense, you deserve to lose. Chicago doesn’t deserve this game.

Bears: Eagles kick to short man. Davis return to Chicago 40. First and ten with 4:50 remaining. Griese is nearly intercepted on first down. That’s what happens Ron Turner when you don’t throw down field all game and then have to because of your conservative nature. Second and 10 — Chicago pitch to Benson for two yards. Holding on Olin Kreutz on the play. Wow. Ron Turner. You are a dog with your play calling. Second and 20 from the 30 — Griese hammers the ball to Berrian, who drops another one. Chicago needs to let this guy walk after the season. He’s been abysmal in a contract season. Third and 20 — Griese is sacked. Maynard in to punt. Mahe taken down at Philadelphia 42.

Analysis: Chicago’s hard-headed coaching staff probably still can’t see the errors of their conservative ways. This game was there for the taking. Bears refused to do so and will now lose.

Eagles: McNabb under center and hands to Westbrook for a yard. Lovie Smith looks confused on the sidelines. Oh Lovie, how you’ve blown it this year! McNabb’s pass to Reggie Brown is off the receiver’s hands. Third and eight with 3:17 remaining: McNabb in gun and runs for a first down. For all of McNabb’s alleged flaws, he still is mobile enough to make that type of play. Beautiful footwork on the sidelines. First and ten from Chicago 47 — McNabb is sacked by Archuleta at the 50. Second and 13 — Westbrook run for five yards. Bears use final timeout with 2:30 remaining. Philly seals this game with a first down. Eagles now call a timeout. Third and eight from 45 — McNabb handoff to Westbrook who breaks a tackle and gets first down. However, a hold on Philadelphia brings the play back. Third and 17 from Philly 46 with 2:24 remaining. McNabb swings it to Westbrook for a gain of a couple of yards. Two minute warning. Philly to punt. Sav Rocca punts the ball to the six yard line. Griese essentially must be John Elway here with 1:53 and no timeouts. No chance.

Analysis: This should be interesting. When do the Bears turn the ball over here? Right away or after a few plays? Give me a hell yeah if you’re smelling a Griese interception. How much money does Turner work the middle of the field?

Bears:  Make the ball on the three yard line now after a conference by the officials. Griese to Clark for eleven yards and he gets out of bounds. Griese in gun and throws to Peterson over the middle. Thankfully, he drops the pass as that would have gone for about three yards and ran off a lot of time. Griese to Peterson over the middle for a first down. Griese hits Hester in bounds to the Chicago 32. 1:08 remaining. Griese goes deep and incomplete to Muhammad. 1:01 left. Second and ten for Chicago — Griese’s pass to Peterson is incomplete. Holding on Chicago and Philadelphia. Penalties offset and second down will repeat. Second and 10 from 31 yard line — Griese hits Desmond Clark out of bounds at the 39. Got to love this short crap. Third and three with 49 seconds remaining. Griese to Berrian to the Eagles 35 with 31 seconds left. Got to get a field goal here (just joking). No need for Eagles fans to be apprehensive. Chicago can’t punch it in. Griese to Hester at the 15. Chicago needs to spike the ball and do with 15 seconds left. Griese to Muhammad for a touchdown. Wow. Nice throw by Griese. Nine seconds remaining. Gould makes the PAT. Bears 19, Eagles 16.

Analysis: See what happens when you throw the ball downfield, Ron Turner (who’s still a bum). Stop being so conservative from now on. Your season has been saved for a week.

Eagles: Return to the 35-yard line with four seconds left. McNabb in gun, watch hook and ladders. McNabb’s pass to Brown is underthrown. Game over. Bears 19, Eagles 16.

Final Analysis: Bears are lucky and not good. This team survives for another week but are being put behind the eight ball by overall conservatism of Smith and Turner. Against a good team today, the Bears lose by double digits.

Griese with a nice job on that last drive. Turner needs to open up the offense and forget the running game. Benson can’t do anything and the line is really in shambles. A nice win for the moment, but the Bears are in trouble unless Turner and Smith let the offense play rather than handcuffing them all game.

Detroit Lions 37, Chicago Bears 27

Lions Score a NFL-Record 34 Points in the Fourth Quarter

Entering the fourth quarter of yesterday’s game at Ford Field in Pontiac, Michigan, the Chicago Bears were up 13-3. Come again?

Yes sir. The Bears were up 10 points going into the fourth quarter. And while the Lions were on the verge of scoring at the end of the third quarter and actually did so on the first play of the fourth when quarterback Jon Kitna connected with wide receiver Shaun McDonald on a quick-hitting out pass, the question remains what went the hell went wrong in the final 15 minutes.

Well to begin with, the Bears offense was a big culprit once again. In simple terms, Chicago’s defensive front four carried a depleted unit and dominated the Lions for three quarters, and Chicago failed to take advantage and put the game away.

After Brian Griese hit Mushin Muhammad for a touchdown pass in the second quarter to give the Bears a 6-3 lead, Chicago seemed to have seized the momentum. Griese and the Bears were on the doorstep of another touchdown late in the first half when the newly-anointed quarterback made a play seen way too often by his predecessor, the recently-benched Rex Grossman.

Lacking the arm strength of Grossman, Griese tried to roll out and throw a pass off his back feet to Bernard Berrian in the end zone. The pass was naturally picked off by Detroit’s Fernando Bryant and a potential 13-3 lead (assuming the PAT; a big assumption thus far this season in the NFL) at that point, ceased to be.

After Mark Anderson sacked Kitna and forced a fumble at the Detroit 12-yard line early in the third quarter, the Bears proceeded to immediately turn the ball over. Griese threw a pass behind Berrian that bounced off his shoulder pads and was picked off by Ernie Sims. Oh, what could have been a 20-3 lead or even a 13-3 lead or even a 10-3 lead remained a 7-3 lead.

Up until the final minutes of the third quarter, Chicago’s defensive line held the Lions from doing anything. Offensively, the Bears had two more drives in Detroit territory and had to settle for field goals. If Chicago was able to get at least one touchdown on one of those drives in combination with a Robbie Gould field goal, the Bears would have been up anywhere from 30-3 to 23-3 to 20-3 rather than a 13-3 lead.

Like every game this season (refer back to the first quarter of the Cowboys game and first halves of the Chargers and Chiefs games), the Bears didn’t take advantage offensively when the defense was dominating.

And naturally, after the defense finally gave up a touchdown at the start of the fourth quarter, the offense gave one right back to the Lions. After the McDonald touchdown, Griese made another Grossman-like play, throwing a ball directly to Detroit defensive back Kevin Smith for a 65-yard touchdown return and a 17-13 deficit.

Devin Hester then once again tried to save the Bears, returning a kickoff 97 yards for a 20-17 lead. However, the Bears defense, decimated by injuries, was worn out at this point of the game. Kitna marched the Lions down the field, hitting Troy Walters on a beautiful pass and catch for the touchdown and a 24-20 lead.

Chicago’s offense responded like it’s done all season long, by either turning the ball over or going three-and-out. Quick. Pick a hand, any hand. If you picked the right hand, you would be correct. Trailing by four, the Bears put together yet another “impressive” three-and-out drive on offense.

The Lions would score on its next possession, with the Detroit running game and a terrible offensive line starting to take advantage of an exhausted Chicago defense line. Lions Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz finally attacked the Bears second-string defensive secondary, with Kitna hitting Mike Furrey on a big slant in the middle of the field deep down into Chicago territory. On a play eerily similar to LaDainian Tomlinson’s fourth quarter touchdown in Week One, Kevin Jones ran off the right tackle, over and past the Bears defense for a touchdown and a 30-20 lead.

Chicago then amazingly dinked and dunked over the middle of the field, rather than using the sidelines, with the game in its final minutes. The Bears would catch a break on a strange fumble recovered by offensive lineman Roberto Garza, who then fumbled the ball right back to Detroit. However, the call was finally overturned by a beleaguered officiating crew since Garza can not advance the ball as an offensive lineman.

After this break, the Bears almost still didn’t score a touchdown but were aided and abetted when Shaun Rogers jumped offsides on a Gould field goal attempt. On fourth and goal from the one yard, Griese would hit Desmond Clark for a touchdown with slightly over a minute left.

The Bears would then screw up an onside kick that was returned for a touchdown by Detroit for a touchdown to seal the game. After a Jason Hanson PAT, the Lions had scored a record 34 points in the fourth quarter, and the Bears were left licking its wounds.

In all seriousness, the Bears could have had 41 points in this game (making a huge assumption that Griese doesn’t throw the two interceptions inside the Lions 10 yard line and that the Bears actually got two touchdowns on that drive). But to make such an assumption, one would have to assume that the Bears had an offense.

Grading Sunday’s Performances in No Particular Order

Chicago Offensive Line F: This unit was supposed to be a strength coming into the season; it has been the foundation of all the Chicago’s problems on offense. Chicago tackles Fred Miller and John Tait have been burned off the corners all season long, and the Bears can not pick up a blitz, give Griese or Grossman any time to throw the ball or really open up a hole for the awful Cedric Benson. Chicago’s line looks old, and it’s time for the Bears to retool this unit after the season.

Brian Griese F: Granted that the line didn’t do much for him in terms of protection (Griese was sacked six times Sunday), the new Chicago quarterback had three bonehead interceptions. While rusty, Griese had a worse game on Sunday than any of Grossman’s first three performances in 2007. Griese is a decent backup and a quality teammate; however, he’s a game manager. The Bears are no better with Griese than they were with Grossman, especially when the offensive line is full of matadors.

Cedric Benson F: This kid needs to go. In Benson’s defense, Chicago’s offensive line has not consistently opened up many holes. With that said, Benson was drafted to run over people. Have you ever seen a bigger guy go down on initial contact? A prime example. Benson broke out for a 16-yard run into the Lions secondary early in the third quarter only to have a Detroit safety put his shoulder down and knock the Bears back straight to the ground. Benson also fumbled after getting drilled by Ernie Sims in the second quarter and disappeared yet again from the game immediately afterwards.

Ron Turner F: As the Offensive Coordinator, Turner gets the blame for his unit’s pathetic showing in the first quarter of the season. People complained that the Bears threw the ball 51 times yesterday. This is not Turner’s fault as the team doesn’t have a running back. However, the fact that Chicago only threw one pass out of 51 passes for more than 20 yards is a disturbing revelation of a coordinator who’s dinking and dunking the Bears into the cellar of the NFC North.

Lovie Smith F: This guy just sits back and watches these similar types of losses unfold each and every time. And the Bears are starting to look like a very undisciplined team, with four personal foul penalties on Sunday. Discipline falls on the shoulders of the Head Coach, and the Bears are falling apart under Smith’s watchful eye.

Chicago Front Four A-: Chicago’s front four (primarily Mark Anderson, Tommie Harris and Adewale Ogunleye) dominated this game for nearly three quarters. Anderson had two sackes, Harris was very strong despite an injury himself, and Ogunleye had his best game as a Bear. The front four kept Chicago in the game for as long as they could, but the offense failed to convert, and these guys began to get tired physically and mentally.

Chicago Defense as a Whole B-: Former Bear Jerry Azumah made a very dumb comment last night when analyzing the game. He blamed the Bears defense for giving up 37 points. In reality, the Bears defense gave up 23 points, not bad considering how decimated the unit was coming into the game and taking into account that the Lions do have a good offensive system (despite Martz’s conservatism through three quarters). Don’t hang this game on the defense, which gave the Bears a chance yet again. The offense, once again, failed to seize the day.

Devin Hester A+: Even though he had two fumbles which weren’t lost, Bears fans will live with that with Hester, considering that he basically has to score every time he touches the ball. Hester’s fourth quarter kickoff return was flat-out amazing, and Hester nearly missed two other returns for scores. Hester basically won the Chiefs game and tried his best to do so yesterday. It’s unfortunate that a Hester is wasting away on this Bears team.

Officiating F: That was as bad as a game that’s ever been called. Those refs were clueless and confused from the onset of the game, from a Kitna fumble in the first quarter that wasn’t allowed to be challenged to leaving their microphones on during a meeting with Lions Head Coach Rod Marinelli to taking forever to make a decision on the Garza play to calling a penalty with two seconds left in a fourth quarter that was more than an hour long. Guess you don’t have to be the Chicago Bears Offensive Coordinator to be a knucklehead.

NFL Week Three: Dallas Cowboys-Chicago Bears Analysis

PREVIEW OF COWBOYS-BEARS TILT ON SUNDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL

Nearly a year ago, the Chicago Bears destroyed the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field in front of a national audience on Sunday Night Football, establishing themselves as the elite team in the National Football Conference. The Bears did so in that game by opening up the playbook and letting quarterback Rex Grossman play. Grossman responded with one of his best efforts last season, earning player of the game honors and being unfortunately compared to Brett Favre by John Madden at one point. Of course, Grossman would throw up a stinker in Arizona a few weeks later on Monday Night Football and become the much-aligned question mark during the Bears run to Super Bowl XLI.

As the Bears prepare to take on the undefeated Dallas Cowboys tonight on SNF, the local media has been describing this game as Grossman’s last stand: either Grossman plays well, gets the offense going and helps lead the Bears to a big victory or he stinks up the joint and basically secures the ascension of Brian Griese to the number-one quarterback spot. Whether the Bears as an organization feels this way remains to be seen, but all the blame should not be placed on Rex.

Through two games, Grossman has been made a game manager by Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner, who has not shown the ability to consistently game plan around this kid since midway through last season. Barring two bad and inexcusable interceptions during an ugly second half last week in a 20-10 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs, Grossman was decent, given what he was given by Turner. Unfortunately, Turner has not let Grossman get into a rhythm yet this season. With the exception of Sun-Times Columnist Carol Slezak, few others in the media have pitted the blame on the Bears weak offensive start to Turner’s conservative playcalling. Rather, once again, all the negative press has gone to Grossman, the media whipping boy.

With that said, it’s time for Ron Turner to step up tonight (much easier said than done) and let Grossman play against a very suspect Cowboys defense in which points can be had. Let Grossman go deep and challenge the Cowboys. Get Grossman into an early rhythm by hitting tight end Desmond Clark and rookie Greg Olsen, who will be making his NFL debut. Utilize Bernard Berrian as a deep threat and get the ball to possession receiver Muhsin Mohammed. Take the good with the bad with Rex, and give the kid a fighting chance to do something.

While everyone is putting this game on Rex, it really should be on Turner, who has been as bad as John Shoop at the start of this season.

Keys to the Game

Turner’s Playcalling: Conservative or Aggressive? Turner needs to come out with the idea of Grossman getting into a nice passing rhythm rather than focusing on letting unproven and unimpressive running back Cedric Benson pounding it out to open up the pass. Turner can do so by utilizing the most underrated player on the offense, Clark. Turner needs to show some variety in his playcalling and stop going to the well too many times with the same play (i.e. the halfback dump-off pass, which was used too many times last week against the Chiefs). Turner should let Grossman go for a homerun ball early in the game and see if he can get his quarterback off to a confident start. In summary, be aggressive rather than conversative. Call plays to win the game rather to not lose it. Get the passing game on track and use it to set up the running game.

Turnovers: Chicago’s offense has six turnovers in the first two games this season and has been unable to keep the defense off the field for the most part. Benson (one fumble thus far) and Adrian Peterson (two fumbles, one lost) need to secure the football much closer to their bodies. Chicago can obviously not afford dumb interceptions from Grossman and thus put the Bears defense with its back against its own end zone, which has been an alarming scene thus far in 2007.

Pressure Tony Romo: Unlike Grossman, Romo is a media darling. Why? Because he did a nice job last year, is accessible and says all the right things to them! While off to a good start this season, Romo has not faced a defense like the Bears. Like Turner, Defensive Coordinator Bob Babich has to have his most aggressive game plan of the season. Chicago needs to bring the heat to Romo early and often and rattle the young quarterback with a blitzing scheme featuring Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs or maybe even a defensive back like Ricky Manning Jr. Romo has been anointed by the media as the greatest thing since sliced bread during his short career as a starter, and it’s time for the Bears to show tonight that this kid has a long way to go. Put this dorky white guy to the turf all night and knock him out of the game.

Get Physical with Terrell Owens: For as much of a self-promoter and alleged stud Owens is, the Bears can get his head by being physical. One of the most overrated players in the history of the game, Owens does not like to run over the middle and will put the ball on the ground when hit. Peanut Tillman figures to get much of the duty against Owens, but the Bears should use new addition Adam Archuleta to shadow Owens as well.

Overall: The Bears offense is going to have to do something tonight, beginning with Turner and Grossman, and limit turnovers. Luckily, they’re going up against a Dallas defense that is nothing special. If aggressive, the Bears can put up some points tonight. But will Turner let Grossman and his offensive mates do so?

The Bears defense can hold down the Cowboys offense; however, if it has to be on the field all game and play with a short field because of offensive turnovers, the Cowboys will get their points. Both sides of the ball need to be really physical tonight and make plays, as Dallas will avoid Devin Hester at all costs. Expect the Bears defense to be really physical and go after Romo and Owens, both overrated, ESPN darlings whom can be taken out of the game.

Prediction: It’s time for Chicago to reestablish itself this week as the class of a very weak NFC (Green Bay is 3-0 for God’s sake). If Turner comes out aggressive and lets Grossman play, the Bears will win this game 27-10. If he comes out like the last two weeks and banks the game on the defense or special teams, the Bears will lose a similar game to the opening week loss in San Diego by the score of 19-10.

After two less-than-stellar, offensive efforts to open the season, the Bears offense will come out tonight looking to be aggressors rather than participants in the game. Chicago gets the win by double figures as a hungry defense dominates (eating up Romo and Owens) and the Bears offense gets healthy for at least one game.