So, Bears fans, here we are. Four hours from tee time with the frozen tundra cheeseheads, this time down in an icy Soldier Field. Damn anyone else thinking of the loss to the Pack in week 15 last season, and then how the green and gold went on and clinched the conference and knocked the Bears out of the playoffs? Ugly stuff there. Well not as bad as last week's loss to the Eagles or anything, but nonetheless it's not pretty to think about.
ESPN NFL Countdown guys all went Packers but Ditka. Thanks Iron Mike. Oh and Boomer. And it seems 58% of the fans they polled think GB too. Not sure if it'll be that close myself. Although the Bears did take 'em in Week 9 (when they knocked out Rodgers to start the game).
Situation is, the Bears can't stop the run. 32 out of 32 teams vs the run. Yep, that's last in the League. And it's not close. Chicago gives up 161.5 yds per game on the ground. The next worst are the Dirty Birds with 135.9. Over 15 games, that's quite the impressive (and depressing) difference. The Packers are going to run early and run often and take this game with a two score margin. Sorry Chi-Town, it just doesn't bode well for our boys this afternoon. And they have Aaron back in the fold today when they do need to air it out.
Sure, folks are going to unfairly bash on Jay when it's over. I want to say right now it won't be Cutler's fault. He's not the one who swapped two first rounders, a third, and the guy who's the starting QB for the Cowboys tonight with their season on the line, to get a good arm with a shaky head attached. He's better than most QB's who've been a Bear in the last 20 years (sad as that is). Is he good enough to justify that trade? Hell no. But no one not named Manning (Peyton, that is), Brady or Brees is. Did he go 12 of 21 in that last season's game with Green Bay with only 135 yds, a TD and a pick? OK yeah, he did. And that pick set up an 8yd TD pass for the Pack and he got sacked four times in the process. But the trade was the fault of the Front Office, not Jay.
However the defense is the actual problem in Chicago. Facts are facts. Until they fix that, there are going to be a lot more mediocre seasons in the Second City. Will Lacy and Starks both get 100 today? Damn, I sure hope not, but I wouldn't be all that surprised. All this being said, regardless of what the facts may be, I'm still rootin for the good guys. Go Bears! (I'm just not betting on it :P)
