Bears will whup the Pats on Sunday

[scandal 951]

Bears can make statement with victory over Patriots

A triumph in their most important game of the year would serve notice to NFL

Dan McNeil

8:58 p.m. CST, December 9, 2010

I don't get sick of hearing, talking or writing about the biggest Bears game of the year on an almost weekly basis. It means something is at stake.

Hyperbole, while tedious, usually is the product of something that's important. In this case, it means the Bears matter and the teams they're playing are relevant.

This is a new exercise in recent Decembers.

It is correct to suggest Sunday's date with the Patriots could define the year. A Chicago win — whether with style points or sloppier than last weekend in Detroit — would be the most meaningful of 2010.

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A sixth straight win would be a statement of grand proportion, much larger than delivering the knockout punch to the Vikings' season or cooling off Michael Vick two weeks ago.

New England is hot. Many regard Bill Belichick's 10-2 Pats as the best in the NFL. They made a mockery out of a supposed-to-be-close divisional clash with the Jets on Monday night.

Tom Brady (27 TDs, 4 INTs) is the league's MVP and has taken his skills as a leader to unprecedented levels. Brady has barked loudly on the New England sideline and deftly directed an orchestra of new musicians on the field.

Yes, that's the same Danny Woodhead you giggled at on HBO's "Hard Knocks" in August.

Here, however, we remain denizens of Defense City. If the Bears are going to win the NFC North and stack victories in January too, it will mean a formidable defense is the club's calling card.

This is a Julius Peppers game. The Bears have to have a great pass rush Sunday.

Even in crummy weather, the Patriots will sling it. Brady is tough and can run. He's won huge games in horrible conditions before. He is unflappable.

And New England has kept Brady vertical. He's been sacked just 18 times .

Peppers time. If he treats Brady's helmet as a seat cushion, that's the type of stuff that gets you a statue in this town.

Jerry Angelo's biggest free agent signee in 10 years already has proved the rap on him as a coaster was myth. With national eyes on Peppers Sunday, he can put his name in the conversation for Defensive Player of the Year with a game-changing performance.

Peppers was among many Bears caught napping against the Lions. He lost contain several times and was completely caved in on Drew Stanton's touchdown run.

No room for such nonsense against New England. The Bears have to get in Brady's face. They have to adjust to the mismatches the Patriots work so well. They have to tackle better.

If they do those things, coupled with a now typically-balanced offensive attack employed by sane scientist Mike Martz, the Bears will be 10-3 and finally considered a viable Super Bowl team.

This a big game. We like those. They're worth all of the gum flapping.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Good point of view. We played our biggest game of the season (so far anyway} on Monday night. This game is important, but less so than the division rival Jets. The Bears need to get in Brady's face or chances are he'll pick them apart. The weather will have no effect on NE. The biggest effects are the short week and huge emotion of destroying the Jets.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Good point of view. We played our biggest game of the season (so far anyway} on Monday night. This game is important, but less so than the division rival Jets. The Bears need to get in Brady's face or chances are he'll pick them apart. The weather will have no effect on NE. The biggest effects are the short week and huge emotion of destroying the Jets.

The Bills where always good at causing Brady fits when the pass rush was working. In order for the Bears to win, they must make him go underneath and not let his receivers split the seams. Brady will kill them if the Bears secondary gets sloppy. He is vulnerable to the zone blitz, though.

[scandal 951]

I like the fact that we're the underdogs. On the one hand it takes the pressure off. On the other hand, it makes 'em hungry for the win and they try that much harder to prove themselves.

We have been underdogs all season. No one believed in the Bears this year. Frankly, during training and preseason when we went 0-4, I didn't believe in them. Even as we've been winning, it's hard to know if it's a fluke and just a question of time till Cutler self destructs again.

They're the classic cinderella story, which makes their performance oh so sweet this year.

Look, everyone expects big things from the Patriots. Just like they did from the Vikings and Cowboys. From where you are, all you can do is get disappointed when they blow up, just as the folks in Minnesota and Dallas must be feeling. From where we are, this can only go well. We either make the post-season which will be awesome, or we won't which will be ok, and we'll thank the Bears for giving us a really good year. We are guaranteed to end over .500, and I wasn't at all sure we would when this thing got started.

Edited December 10, 2010 by scandal

[spookyturtle 9,465]

The Bills where always good at causing Brady fits when the pass rush was working. In order for the Bears to win, they must make him go underneath and not let his receivers split the seams. Brady will kill them if the Bears secondary gets sloppy. He is vulnerable to the zone blitz, though.

The Patriots have beaten the Bills 13 consecutive times. I wouldn't exactly call that giving Brady fits. Maybe you meant fits of laughter?

[scandal 951]

The Patriots have beaten the Bills 13 consecutive times. I wouldn't exactly call that giving Brady fits. Maybe you meant fits of laughter?

The 14th time's a charm? :whistle:

[BishopM 114]

Add Cutler to those dissatisfied with playing surface at Soldier Field

'We probably have one of worst fields in league … we did last year as well'

It seems like every week, there is a complaint about the surface at Soldier Field. Add quarterback Jay Cutler to the list of players speaking out.

"The turf is what it is," Cutler said Wednesday. "With our speed, we would like to get something a little bit tighter, but we probably have one of the worst fields in the league at this point. We did last year as well.

"We have to deal with it, and our guys know it. They are aware of how to cut and how to move on it."

Cutler said he hears "a lot of stuff (from opposing players) after the game and during pre-game about what cleats to wear … exactly how torn up (Soldier Field) is. There's usually a (high school) game the day before. It's a shame."

Patriots receiver Wes Welker offered his take on Soldier Field. As the Tribune reported, the field was re-sodded after the Nov. 28 game against the Eagles.

"Yeah, it's supposed to be a slower track out there and I've heard it's not in that great of shape and they've re-sodded it and everything like that,'' Welker said. "You just have to make sure you are ready for the field conditions whatever condition it is in.''

The field will be frozen tundra by game time so it might not be as bad as in recent weeks...

[spookyturtle 9,465]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AogAa0Iltsw

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

The Patriots have beaten the Bills 13 consecutive times. I wouldn't exactly call that giving Brady fits. Maybe you meant fits of laughter?

Don't think so. The last three games have been decided by 8 points or less. Considering the state of the Bills, that's pretty scary. Brady has frequently been lucky against the Bills, for reasons no one can understand. The fact that the Bills find new and unique ways to lose is troubling, other teams in the league won't make the same mistakes.

The field will be frozen tundra by game time so it might not be as bad as in recent weeks...

No, that's Lambeau Field.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

Don't think so. The last three games have been decided by 8 points or less. Considering the state of the Bills, that's pretty scary. Brady has frequently been lucky against the Bills, for reasons no one can understand. The fact that the Bills find new and unique ways to lose is troubling, other teams in the league won't make the same mistakes.

No, that's Lambeau Field.

Not scary at all. 13 straight is 13 straight. Some were close, some were blowouts. All were wins. Who knows what will happen on the 26th, hopefully they'll have two more wins under their belt by then. Sometimes the weaker teams give the most trouble. In one of the Super Bowl years when they went 14-2 Miami beat them and Miami only won 4 or 5 games that year. You know what they say, on any given Sunday....

The Patriots are playing outstanding ball right now and appear to be peaking at the right time. We'll see, there are a few tough games left. Like Brady said in the video above, the Bears are a good team.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

Not scary at all. 13 straight is 13 straight. Some were close, some were blowouts. All were wins. Who knows what will happen on the 26th, hopefully they'll have two more wins under their belt by then. Sometimes the weaker teams give the most trouble. In one of the Super Bowl years when they went 14-2 Miami beat them and Miami only won 4 or 5 games that year. You know what they say, on any given Sunday....

The Patriots are playing outstanding ball right now and appear to be peaking at the right time. We'll see, there are a few tough games left. Like Brady said in the video above, the Bears are a good team.

Divisional games are always fun but the Pats are the class (????) of the AFC right now. If the Pats lose to the Bills this year, Brady better be worried as losing to a sub .500 team that late in the year is a very bad omen. The Pats take the Bills very seriously, not only because they are divisional rivals. The Bills always play the Pats tough, I remember Brady saying that once. The Bills need a pass rush, very badly. The run defence isn't too bad but they have no pass rush. The Bills should have won at least another 5 or 6 games but they have only two wins right now. I do think that the Bears will win but it won't be a blow out.

[spookyturtle 9,465]

In 2004 the Pats lost to Miami in the 14th game of the season. It was their second loss of the year and they went on to win the Super Bowl. It was Miami's 3rd win of the season; they ended up with 4. I would like to see them win the division and get a first round by with home field advantage for the playoffs. At the moment it is well within reach.

[Pooky 3,781]

I work with a fervent Pats fan, who was perturbed when they traded Randy Moss and a tad dismayed when they re-signed Deion Branch. Since the season started, he had been a little unnerved by the state of the Pats defence (weren't they still rated the worst in the NFL before the Jets game?).

What struck me is that, apart from the QB and Wes Welker, there were no stand-out players in the rest of the team (to a less-than-avid Pats fan). But there is a team. Last week, Brady went to 5 different guys for TD's. Try covering that (instead of looking for the tall one out on the byline).

Still, Pats 38:18 Bears.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

In 2004 the Pats lost to Miami in the 14th game of the season. It was their second loss of the year and they went on to win the Super Bowl. It was Miami's 3rd win of the season; they ended up with 4. I would like to see them win the division and get a first round by with home field advantage for the playoffs. At the moment it is well within reach.

That's the Fins and the BIlls are a whole another animal (pun intended!) Bills have no offense, defense is average. We'll see what happens with the Bears.

[IR5FORMUMSIE 850]

I work with a fervent Pats fan, who was perturbed when they traded Randy Moss and a tad dismayed when they re-signed Deion Branch. Since the season started, he had been a little unnerved by the state of the Pats defence (weren't they still rated the worst in the NFL before the Jets game?).

What struck me is that, apart from the QB and Wes Welker, there were no stand-out players in the rest of the team (to a less-than-avid Pats fan). But there is a team. Last week, Brady went to 5 different guys for TD's. Try covering that (instead of looking for the tall one out on the byline).

Still, Pats 38:18 Bears.

Brady ALWAYS spreads the love (that's how Bridget Moynahan became pregnant ) He has always done that. The Bears have no glaring issues in the secondary, which should give Brady problems. If the Pass Rush starts cooking then Brady will have problems dumping off to the TEs. Going to be mighty interesting. BEARS 24 PATSIES 10.