Has Jerry Angelo Done a Good Job After All? And Other News

Bears

‘‘”The great thing about the Green Bay game was that we don’t have to give anybody a speech about the playoffs because we were in one.  If anybody wondered what defenses do to you in the playoffs, (Packers defensive coordinator) Dom Capers showed us. They’re fighting for their playoffs lives, so you’re going to see everything they have in their playbook.’’

The difference in this kind of experience may be one reason why the defense preformed so much better.

  • I thought Johnny Knox, in particular, wilted under the pressure and the relentless physical nature of the game Sunday.  Here’s hoping he responds better in the playoffs.  However, the game may have been an indication that the Bear wide receivers aren’t as good as many people thought.  offensive coordinator Mike Martz may be having similar thoughts (via McClure, again):

“We had eight opportunities in the passing game to make really big plays, and we didn’t make one of them, which is not like us. Very disappointed.”

  • McClure also points out that the Bears had to offer Levi Horn more money to keep him from leaving the Bear practice squad to join the Dolphins 53 man roster.  The Bears lost Juaquin Iglesias to the Vikings last week.  An glass half full kind of person might condor other teams trying to raid the Bears practice squad as a good sign.
  • Sean Jensen, also at the Sun-Times, writes a nice article which provides some insight into the duties of the running back as a pass protector in Martz’s offense:

“Under former Bears coordinator Ron Turner, running backs might have been responsible for a part of the field. Under Martz, they have to ‘scan’ the entire field to identify a blitzer. If none comes, the running back may have to quickly find space to provide an option for the quarterback and become the ‘hot read.'”

  • Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune gets an interesting nugget from kicker Robbie Gould on the new overtime rules that kick in for the playoffs:

“You might see a couple of extra onside kicks.”

  • When the Bears played the eagles in week 12, the Eagles didn’t have Asante Samuel.  Jeff Dickerson at ESPNChicago thinks his presence could make a difference in the Bears see them in the playoffs.

One Final Thought

Jensen again, quoting former Ram running back Marshall Faulk on Matt Forte in Martz’s scheme:

‘‘Once he gets that confidence in this system, you’ll see him stop thinking.  There are times he’s thinking and not playing. I’ve watched him grow into this offense.’’

Can Jay Cutler lead the Bears to Playoff Victory?

The issue of the day at ESPN was apparently whether quarterback Jay Cutler can lead the Bears in to playoff success.

Former Bear Tom Waddle answers the question essentially as “Yes.  As long as they don’t have to ask him to actually do anything”:

Jeff Dickerson at ESPNChicago essentially agrees:

and finally Michael Wilbon at the mothership gets closer to the real point:

and what is the real point?

If Cutler tries to do too much, as he is definitely apt to do, the Bears are in trouble.  He’ll hold the ball forever and try to make plays that aren’t there.  If, however, Cutler plays within himself and lets the offense work, he’ll be fine and things will go well.

It seems clear that everyone agrees that if the Bears fall behind and they have to pass, there’s probably a playoff loss on the horizon.  Therefore the defense will have to play at least as well as they did Sunday against the Packers and the special teams will have to play considerably better than they did.