Category: Seattle Seahawks

Mike Williams Is a Bad Matchup for the Bears

Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune quotes cornerback Tim Jennings on the problems that the Bears defense face with Seattle wide receiver Mike Williams, who ripped them for 10 catches for 123 yards last time they played:

“For me it’s real tough, a guy like that.  But that’s one thing about this defense. If it was just a lot of man-to-man and no help over the top, it would be a problem. But for us as a defense, we play a lot of Cover-2 and Cover-3, we’ve got guys running to the football.”

This is the obvious problem with Jennings and why the Bears need to be worried about their cornerbacks going forward.  Jennings is good in the Bears base defense but his height puts him at a disadvantage whenever he has to handle anyone one-on-one.  He’s 5’8″.  Williams is 6’5″.

Look for the Bears to have taller cornerback Charles Tillman following Williams around the field and look for the Seahawks to be doing everything they can to get Williams into a mismatch whenever the Bears are in a zone defense.  I’d be surprised if he didn’t spend a lot of time in the slot.  It should be interesting.

Why the Bears Missed Briggs Against Seattle and Other Points of View

Bears

  • The Chicago Tribune‘s Brad Biggs gives insight into some offensive line technique via coach Mike Tice:

“Really, just looking at the footwork of Chris [Williams], there were a couple of times (against the Seahawks) where he spread his feet and never stepped or anything.

“I think it’s that technique ‘A guy is on me real quick,’ instead of him stepping. That takes time and repetition. We’ve had weeks to repeat the technique and do it over and over to where now he’s better. He still has a moment or two, but he’s really improved.”

  • Pisa Tinoisamoa comments on the absence of Lance Briggs from the game the last time the Bears played Seattle.  Replacement Brian Iwuh had a good game with 10 tackles.  Via Sean Jensen at the Chicago Sun-Times:

“You can’t even really say [the Bears lost] because he didn’t play.  But you know if he would have, it would have been a different outcome, at least defensively, because you can count on Lance Briggs for a couple of game-changing plays.

“That’s what we missed.”

  • Trent Dilfer at ESPN says about what the Bears need to do to beat the Seahawks:

Elsewhere

  • The Seahawks might be missing concussed linebacker Lofa Tatupu, who was concussed in Sunday’s game.  Coach Pete Carroll says he’s encouraged by Tatupu’s progress but given the delicacy with which concussions are being handled by the league, I’m going to be mildly surprised if he returns quickly.  If he doesn’t pass the necessary tests, it will be a double whammy as the Seahawks will move David Hawthorn to middle linebacker from the weak side to replace him.  Via Danny O’Neil at the Seattle Times.
  • Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb wants to start or be traded.  Adam Schefter at ESPN doesn’t sound optimistic either will happen:

  • Mike Florio at profootballtalk.com gives us even more reasons to be grateful that the Bears are owned by Virginai McCaskey rather than Dolphins owner Stephen Ross.  What a mess.
  • Dilfer says that the Falcons need to make the Packers pay for being overly aggressive:

One Final Thought

The Raiders are hiring.  I’ve got this funny feeling that the Raiders are going to be talking to Jon Gruden about returning to the Bay area.  I can hear your laughter.  But it’s still not going away…

A Different Seattle Team Is Coming to Town This Time Around

Mike Mulligan at the Chicago Sun-Times comments on the Seahawk victory over the Saints:

“[Matt] Hasselbeck used veteran guile, sleight of hand and 6-5 wide receiver Mike Williams (10 receptions, 123 yards) to terrorize the Bears. His description of the victory against the Saints could have applied to the earlier Bears game.

‘‘’We got a rhythm going, with pass protection, and I was using my cadence pretty good, and quick counts and sort of quick counts, normal count, hard count, double count,’ Hasselbeck said. ‘Using all those things in our toolbox.’’’

The difference is, of course, that Seattle is now bringing a running game to town in the form of Marshawn Lynch.  The Seahawks have the look of a much more balanced team this time around – the type of offense that often gives the Bears trouble.  The Bears are going to have to adjust if they want to win in the playoffs as pointed out by defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli via Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune:

“The pace and tempo are going to pick up now.  That’s a fun part of this thing. They understand it. They know the importance of details and execution. We’ve got some elite players who play as a team.”

Nevertheless they lack playoff experience on the offensive side of the ball.   While we sit and sounder whether the Bears can adjust, we already know that they Seahawks can.  They dialed it up and played noticeably faster Saturday.

The Seahawks still don’t exactly execute like the Patriots.  And the Bears will be a lot different offensively compared to the last time they played them, as well.  But nevertheless the Seahawks are a dangerous team.

I’m not saying the underdog Seahawks will win.  But I’d take the points.

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Thoughts of Bears Game Drives Jets Sanchez to Win Over Colts and Other News

Bears

“Kansas City and Chicago are extremely strong with their coordinators, but the Chiefs’ Todd Haley is unproven as a head guy and the Bears’ Lovie Smith has some game-day inconsistencies. Smith has guided his team to the Super Bowl, though.”

He rates the Bears coaching staff a disappointing 9th of the 12 playoff teams.

  • Milwaukee Journal Sentinel beat writer Bob McGinn gives Bears GM Jerry Angelo some love probably though gritted teeth.  (I had to link to this story through commentary by Tom Kowalski at mlive.com rather than directly to the Journal Sentinel because I didn’t want to become a “Packer Insider”.  It didn’t sound too masculine to me…

Elsewhere

“Sanchez credited his poise and the team’s overall coolness under pressure to the lessons learned in a regular-season loss to the Bears.

“‘The most important thing to me was remembering the Chicago game,’ he said. ‘A field goal … just give us a chance, give us the fourth down, and not turn the ball over like the Chicago game.”’

  • ESPN‘s Merril Hoge makes some interesting comments about what the Jets did to beat Peyton Manning:

  • Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck tells ESPN that the Seahawks took advantage of the Saints defense making “educated guesses”:

Saints defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams, is going to take some heat this week.

  • Ben Maller at FOX Sports Radio reports that the bettors took a bath yesterday.  Seventy-five percent of the action was on Indianapolis.  Sixty-eight percent was on the Saints.  Like Maller, I can’t say I’m surprised.  Bookies aren’t in the business to lose money and when the split isn’t close to 50-50, you can figure that the result is more likely to end up in Vegas’ favor.
  • Williamson rates the top ten NFL rookies this year.  The Super Bowl favorite Patriots have two.  The Bears have zero.
  • Williamson also had this provocative comment:

“If you were not aware, there is an offensive line shortage in the NFL. There are fewer elite lines than in my recent memory. And even some of the best teams in the league are fielding very ordinary units up front.”

I would say that every breathing Bear fan is definitely aware.

  • Dave Hyde and Mike Berardino at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel point out that the Dolphins aren’t the only ones who made mistakes in botching the attempt to hire Jim Harbaugh.  The press had a bad week as well:

  • Darrelle Revis talks to the New York Post about the Jets matchup with the Patriots next week:

The key question is whether the Jets can recover form the butt kicking they took from the Patriots late in the season to play with the needed confidence to win.

One Final Thought

Seattle coach Pete Carroll on their upset win over the Saints (via the Chicago Tribune):

“It didn’t matter what I said to them, or what was said outside, and all of the story lines and all that, they just did not buy it.  Where that came from? If I knew that, we’d have something special here. It came out of an attitude and it came out of a faith in one another.”

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Fans Should Be Careful What They Wish For

Mike Mulligan leads his article for the Chicago Sun-Times today with this:

“Welcome to the upside-down world of the NFL playoffs, where even the most ardent of Bears fans will be cheering for the Green Bay Packers today.

“If the Packers pull off an upset in Philadelphia, then the Bears will be hosting the worst playoff team in NFL history a week from today.”

Most Bear fans agree.  But be careful what you wish for.  Though Seattle is very beatable seeing Green Bay go should probably be the number one priority.

The Packers are very inconsistent.  They didn’t play well in either of the games against the Bears with 18 penalties in game 1 at Soldier Field and with quarterback Aaron Rogers not throwing with his usual accuracy in game 2, not to mention the wide receivers dropping balls all over the field.

But if the Packers somehow put together four good games in a row, they are the most dangerous team in the NFC playoffs.  And their tenacious man-to-man defense along with their patience on offense with screens and the underneath passing game make them far and away the worst match up for the Bears in the NFC playoffs.