Day: December 10, 2010

Vikings Peaking at Wrong Time for Bears

Though the Bears have generally met teams at the right times this year, their luck may run out against the Vikings on the road in two weeks.  The Vikings played like dogs early in the season, most notably losing twice to the Green Bay Packers, who are on the Bears tail in the division race.  But since Vikings Interim head coach Leslie Frazier took over, the Vikings have played well.  They beat the Bills convincingly yesterday despite losing quarterback Brett Favre early to a shoulder injury.

This may be a piece of bad luck for a Bears team that has been particularly lucky this year.  There are no easy wins in the NFL but the indications are that the Vikings game in Minnesota will be a much tougher win than Green Bay’s was.  Here’s hoping they will be up to the challenge coming off of a game next week against a New England Patriots team which has to be considered elite.

Earl Bennett Tries to be “the Quarterback’s Friend”

Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune got this interesting quote from wide receiver Earl Bennett after Sunday’s game:

“I try to be the quarterback’s friend and he just kept throwing me the ball. I just want to make plays. The coaches kept calling great plays and I was in position to make them, whether it’s me, Devin (Hester) or Johnny (Knox).”

I don’t think that Bennett means that he’s trying to be quarterback Jay Cutler’s friend (though he undoubtedly is).  I think what he means is that he’s always trying to get into Cutler’s head to be where he’s expected to be and to make the plays he’s expected to make.

Bennett doesn’t drop balls and because of his size, he’s tough to bring down.  He is especially reliable in a group of receivers that has turned out to be generally reliable this year.  He makes it easy for Cutler to look for him when he needs a play.

Anyone can drink a beer with Cutler.  But when it comes to the field of play, this is what Cutler calls a friend.

Bears Contain Lion’s Playmakers in Win

Its hard to point to one but Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune pointed out what I thought was probably (collectively) the most important reason why the Bears beat the Lions yesterday in hisFour Downs feature:

“The Bears were resilient on defense. Charles Tillman blew outside contain on Jahvid Best’s 45-yard run in the first half but manned up on Calvin Johnson on the outside. The Lions receiver made just two receptions for 20 yards against Tillman.”

“[The Bears] held Ndamukong Suh in check, focusing on him with Kyle Vanden Bosch out. Suh, who should win defensive rookie of the year, had four tackles and one pass breakup.”

Even though Johnson did have a touchdown reception at the end of the first half, I’d say the Bears did a pretty good job of containing the Lions two best playmakers for most of the game.  If you do that, you will usually win.

Smith Motivates Bears at Halftime the Way a Good Head Coach Should

Mike Mulligan at the Chicago Sun-Times addresses head coach Lovie Smith‘s half-time motivational technique:

“Bears coach Lovie Smith isn’t one to get caught up in extremes of emotion, but that didn’t stop him from directing some well-chosen words at his defense at halftime of the team’s 24-20 victory Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

The Bears trailed 17-14 at the time, having just given up a two-play, 91-yard touchdown drive. After watching defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli lay into the troops on the sideline, Smith gave his own motivational speech at halftime.”

“‘Everybody doesn’t curse and do all that stuff,’ [D.J.] Moore said ‘You can see on someone’s face how mad they are or whatever. You can feel the words for yourself.’

Nobody seemed to remember exactly what Smith said, but he got his message across after a sloppy first half in which the Bears’ defense missed countless tackles and allowed the Lions a whopping 253 yards.”

Smith has come under constant criticism for his (apparently) calm demeanor as Bears head coach.  They think every coach should be Mike Ditka.  But consider this.  How long did Ditka last before he lost the players?  Like everyone else I loved Mike Singletary’s now famous rant after the 49ers loss to the Seahawks last year.  Singletary’s an emotional motivator.  But where are the 49ers now?  Rumor has it the players have already stopped listening.

The bottom line is that Smith, like all the rest of us, needs to pick his spots in order to be effective.  He does a good job of that.