Overall, despite my low expectations going into this game, I still can't help but feel even worse about this Bears team. The Bears might need to start pushing some figurative Panic Buttons after this game, to try and salvage this ever-growing catastrophe of a season. Something similar to how they had to rein Mike Martz in a year ago, only this time these Panic Button moves might need to be on a grander scale. More on that in a minute, but first lets get to the TPS Report on tonight's game:
Offense : I'm really struggling to come up with a worse Offensive Line in Bears history than this group? This unit is flirting heavily with the 2004 bunch that gave up 66 sacks. All night long, Jay Cutler was running for his life, and that was when they got the play off! The Bears committed 6 False Starts in the First Half, an NFL Season High according to Stats, Inc. That's OK though because they made up for it by not picking up blitzes while letting Detroit's Front 7 set up shop in the Bears backfield.
Say whatever you want about Jay Cutler, but he played his ass off tonight, as he constantly had to throw on the run, took a ton of hits, and did his best to make Chicken Salad out of our Chicken Shit Offense called by our Chicken Shit Offensive Coordinator. More on "The Mad Genius" Mike Martz in a moment, but most importantly Cutler maybe had time to plant his back-foot....what....9 times? Maybe 10? Not.Enough.
Again, I know everyone loves Matt Forte and thinks the Bears should give him a gagillion dollars. Even though I like Matt Forte, I'm not one of those people who feels the Bears should commit long term money to him, but he had a terrific game once again.
I also can't wait for Roy Williams to come off the injured list and be active! Oh wait, he was active wasn't he? Didn't somebody say Williams would have 80 catches this year in this dynamic offense? Wonder who that "genius" was???
Defense : Somebody said "We'll get that corrected" when addressing all the big plays of 30 or more yards his defense had given up. Don't know about you guys, but I didn't see a whole lot of things "corrected". Especially when Calvin Johnson burned the Bears deep for a 73 yard touchdown pass, and the great Jahvid Best ran right up the middle for an 88 yard TD run, on his way to 163 yards rushing on the day. Not too cool, Lovie...
Julius Peppers injured his knee, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn that he might have been hurt in the games prior to tonight's, as Peppers has been invisible all year. It's also not a coincidence that the Bears defensive line has been invisible on Passing Situations ever since the opener against Atlanta as well.
Oh before I forget, the Brandon Merriweather Experiment needs to end. He's a free-lancing headhunter, which is completely the opposite of what the Bears defensive scheme requires from it's Free Safety. Chris Harris' return to the lineup did very little to help the pass defense, as Matthew Stafford found plenty of his receivers in the open holes that the Tampa 2 allows, on his way to 219 yards and 2 TD's.
Special Teams : Robbie was Robbie, and Adam Podlesh did a wonderful job kicking the Bears into good field position. Devin Hester couldn't get off the launching pad on both the kick and punt return opportunities he got tonight.
Where Do We Go From Here : I'm not going to sing the same song every week, where I lament that Jerry Angelo has done an abysmal job in giving Jay Cutler the weapons he needs to succeed, both on the Offensive Line and the receiving corps. I'm not going to howl about the predictability and antiquity of Lovie Smith's Tampa 2, or Mike Martz's version of Air Coryell. I'm not going to continue to whine about how Jay Cutler is being wasted by continuing to take beating, after beating, after beating in every game he plays.
I believe we're beyond that point now, because of a very frightening reality that the Bears face. The reality being, that this Bears team as presently constructed, is supposed to go to the Super Bowl THIS season. Not in 2013-2020, but NOW, simply because there is ZERO talent in the pipeline. These past three drafts that have occurred on Jerry Angelo's watch have produced next to nothing, at best! Please don't make me have to mention Jarron Gilbert, Al Avalava, Marcus Freeman, Major Wright, and Steven Paea. With the absence of good draft picks, combined with the fact that outside of Cutler and Forte, the best players on this team are on the wrong side of 30 years old.
That being the reality of this season, the question must be asked if firing Mike Martz this week would be something worth considering? It's more than obvious that Martz is unwilling to make the changes he made a year ago. Would launching him and appointing Mike Tice as Offensive Coordinator be a step in the right direction?
I guess it would depend on what Tice wanted to do if he were to be OC. Personally I wouldn't care if it's Tice or Dave Toub or Shane Day or some random dude I've never heard of. All I want is a coordinator that knows the strengths and weaknesses of his personnel, and will make the necessary adjustments to give his team the best chance to win! That's not too much to ask is it?
According to Mike Martz....it is.
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