As important as tonight's victory was, the way it was obtained was a lot of fun. Amid all the kerfuffle regarding the field conditions and Brett Favre making a mockery of the Injury Report, the Bears not only beat the Vikings, but beat them up too (2 Viking Concussions that I'm aware of) in record setting fashion. They may have FINALLY done what I've been hoping to see for years if not decades, and that's put an end to Brett Favre's Career. They also witnessed Devin Hester break the all-time kick return record with his 14th career TD coming in the third quarter. Ridiculous indeed. Here's what I enjoyed:
Offense: In a word, "Great". In another word "Dominant". The Bears ran and threw the ball seemingly at will, despite the slippery and snowy conditions at TCF Bank Stadium. Matt Forte led the way on the ground with 92 rushing yards, while Cutler threw the ball with accuracy and velocity en route to three touchdown passes, the first of which was a 67 yard rope to Johnny Knox on a 1st and 30 that put the Bears up for good. Cutler spread the wealth, hitting 7 different receivers, and might have had 4 Touchdown Passes were it not for a badly timed penalty. The offensive line put together an impressive performance against the Williams Wall of the Vikings, allowing only 1 sack while opening up gaping holes for the ground game. Keep it up O-Line!
In each of the last 6 wins, the Bears offense looks more and more cohesive. That can only help in the playoffs. Don't tell Cutler that though : "By no means are we completely satisfied," Cutler said. "We know we can be so much better offensively." Good Answer....good answer...
Defense : A tremendous performance by this unit tonight. For the fifth time in six games, the Bears allowed the opponent to get ahead early in the game, and then opened the floodgates. The defensive line was so active and disruptive tonight, particularly Julius Peppers who once again drew constant double teams yet walked away with an interception. Henry Melton tipped the pass to Peppers, Israel Idonije, and Matt Toeaina each walked away with a sack, but the best sack of the night belonged to rookie (and now my favorite Bear) Corey Wootton, as he slammed Brett Favre head-first into the rock hard field turf, and apparently may have given the All-Time Interceptions leader a concussion! Hate to wish injury on anyone, but if anyone deserves it, that would be Favre.
Linebackers and secondary also played at a dominant level. Brian Urlacher led the way with 8 tackles, Lance Briggs had a sack, and Charles Tillman and Chris Harris each had an interception. All told, the 14 points the Bears allowed is actually misleading. The Vikings had no chance offensively once Favre was out in addition to no Adrian Peterson. The way this unit played tonight though, I don't believe it would have mattered.
Special Teams : An All-Star night for Dave Toub and his crew. Obviously Devin Hester gets the much deserved attention for breaking the all-time record, but for his other two returns that once again gave the Bears outstanding field position. An equally impressive display was made by Patrick Mannelly, Brad Maynard, and Robbie Gould for making field goals and extra points look like they were being kicked in a dome. Maynard also had the lead foot as well averaging 41 yards per punt. Outstanding!
Where Do We Go From Here : Playoffs? PLAYOFFS! For as much as the celebration is underway in many respects, there is still work to be done this regular season. The Bears have the chance to lock up a first round bye next week, but will need some help to do so. As it stands now, the Bears need to beat the Jets at home, the Eagles and Giants both need to lose for the Bears to clinch a first round bye.
So the Bears still have plenty to play for these next two games, and should prepare accordingly, specifically against the blitz-heavy New York Jets. Cutler may have been sacked only once, but he did take a shot to the chin courtesy of an Antoine Winfield blitz and helmet. That cannot happen.
Are they really lucky? Absolutely. Is Luck enough to win Super Bowls? Not even close. As we know, it's not enough that you receive the benefit of luck during an NFL season, but you also need to take advantage of it. The Chicago Bears of 2010 will forever be known as Advantage Takers now.
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