Fire Ryan Pace – Fire John Fox

Before I get to the recap, did anyone else hear Cris Collinsworth mention a “three-some” with Jay Cutler, Greg Olsen and his wife before halftime? He mentioned it while talking about Cutler becoming good friends with Olsen and how he went out with him and his wife and he said something along the lines “They have became a three-some”. I found it fucking hilarious so if I find a video of it, I will post it here.

Now on to the game…

Jay Cutler getting booed was flat out stupid. I understand that he said that the Bears fans are more “passionate” than Broncos fans a few weeks back but Denver was pissed before that. If you feel like you are doing a great job at work and this new boss comes in, knowing fully how well you have done, but still wants to get rid of you? I think we all would be pissed off because that is what happened in this situation.

It is hard to get excited about this team right now, but I really like what I see. This team is much improved on both sides and players seem comfortable with their roles. Sunday night, the Bears played great on both sides and a few players have been getting noticed.

Offense: Cutler kicking ass. And a good sign is that he is getting everyone on offense involved. He found at least five different receivers in the half he played and each had at least two catches. These receivers aren’t the greatest but he is getting the best out of each one. 15/21, 144 yards, 1 TD.

Matt Forte is showing to be an important part to this offense. He scored two touchdowns (One running, one receiving). Not only that, he is a good blocker too. If you need him as a back, he can do it. If you need him to line up in a slot, he can do that too. He is a very good all-around offensive player. Good thing now that the Bears actually have a quarterback, he won’t be worked as much as he was last year when he lead the team in both rushing and receiving.

The receivers and tight ends are doing well. Greg Olsen may be the starting tight end but Desmond Clark is still needed. They both seem to be getting a fair share of passes thrown to. Earl Bennett is showing that he is comfortable in his role and he says he knows the playbook.

On defense: Kevin Payne in my opinion is the most surprising player on defense this preseason. He has played well in the last two games. Sunday night, he had five tackles and kept Denver from making big plays in the secondary. It would be nice if he keeps this up because the Bears cannot afford to have Craig Stetlz or Danieal Manning playing more. Brian Urlacher is showing that he is healthy and ready to go and Lance Briggs has a good game with four tackles and an assist.

The Bears have one more preseason game against the Browns this Thursday night. The starters are only expected to play a series or two. I am still looking forward to the game because I want to see how well some of the 2nd/3rd string and to also think about what this team has in case of an injury down the road.

Til next time.

– MM

There was a video on the news last night showing Brandon Marshall completely being lazy at Broncos practice. So obviously, he isn’t happy where he is at. He has asked to be traded during the off season. Maybe a change of scenery will also mean a change in attitude with this guy. So here is to me telling Jerry Angelo the same thing before the Cutler trade: Get on the phone with the Broncos and ask them what they want for this guy.

What do you guys think? Should Angelo take a chance? This team needs a #1 receiver. Hell, they need any receiver.

Also, for you readers who are wrestling fans: If you have $20 to spend, get “The Rise & Fall of WCW” DVD. It’s worth it.

Before I get to my recap of Saturday’s preseason game, I wanted to share with you on how lame of a person I am. My highlight this past weekend was spotting Jerry Angelo downtown Saturday afternoon standing in front of the Walgreen’s on Michigan Ave. Moving on though…

The Bears offense in the first half was the story Saturday night. Last week, it seemed like there was a lot of rust that needed to be shaken off. This past Saturday night, the offense came to life. Jay Cutler threw some bullets and the young receivers stepped up and impressed. During the quarter and a half or so he played, I was thinking “So this is what a quarterback on our team looks like.” Earl Bennett and Brandon Rideau each had a couple nice catches. Devin Aromoshadu and my new favorite receiver, Juaquin Iglesias each had a nice catch.

Matt Forte is a bad ass. 9 rushes for 58 yards which is an average of 6.4 yards a carry. The big play was his 32-yard touchdown run.

On defense, Kevin Payne stepped up with three tackles and he broke up a couple potential big plays for the Giants. Alex Brown had a nice game pressuring Eli Manning and forcing a fumble in the process.

This next one is probably the only thing that annoyed me during the game: Erik Kramer’s man-crush for Caleb Hanie. In year’s past, the most beloved player might have been the backup quarterback. Hanie has played well enough to secure the backup job. God love Caleb Hanie and his great play the last two preseasons, but let’s pray that Jay doesn’t get hurt. I don’t want to come back here to write the “Oh no. We suck again.” article.

As I said before, this is only the preseason but it is a good sign that this team may be coming together. Rod Marinelli is working the defensive lineman in practices so they might be better this year. Nothing is for sure yet. I still think Minnesota is the team to beat in the division with Green Bay following closely.

With the Vikings picking up the hall-of-fame diva, they will either take a step forward but more likely take a step back due to his arm injury and his history in the Metrodome. With the Packers, Aaron Rodgers could have a break out year if healthy and their defense is much better this season. I honestly think it will take 11 or 12 wins to claim the division crown.

That’s it for now. Til next time.

– MM

* I’m tired of watching this bunch of losers with no sense of pride or direction.

* I’m tired of Piniella for making far too many Dustyesque moves and not leading these losers in the right direction.

* I’m tired of Hendry’s lack of vision to properly assemble a group of players that can play consistant winning baseball through the season and playoffs. When he became GM, he should have come up with a plan and stayed with it to fruition instead of changing the plan from one year to the next. Throwing millions of dollars at several players that don’t fit the needs of the team is a recipe for disaster. Hendry is a piss-poor judge of talent.

* I.m tired of these players that once they get their huge payday, become lazy and complacient. Isn’t there any sense of pride in these assholes.

* I’m tired of Sam Zell for dragging out the sale of this team for what will be damned near three years by the time it’s finally sold. The new owner will have many fences to mend. I just hope he will be able fix this fucked up mess in my lifetime.

With the Bears first team looking like crap Saturday night, there shouldn’t be a concern until the regular season starts. I had the chance last night to watch the game for the first time on my DVR so here is what I liked and didn’t like.

Kevin Jones looks in great shape and fully recovered from the knee injury he sustained a couple years back. I think he will get a plenty of playing time this year to help out Matt Forte. I would like to see Forte get about 20-25 carries a game with Jones getting anywhere from 5-15.

Cutler: 5/10, 64 yards, 1 INT and almost a second one. (This is now the time where Irish Yeti will throw some stats at you.) Those stats in my opinion don’t tell the whole story. He might have been a little nervous taking the field or Ron Turner gave him some shitty play calling. Who knows. The thing I do know is that he threw a nice pass to Desmond Clark and he did throw a couple other nice ones down the field. Unfortunately, someone forgot to run the right route…

I sound like a broken record and yes, it is the preseason but Devin Hester cannot run a route properly. I believe Cutler threw the ball to him twice and it seemed like he ran the wrong route. I am not sure if it is the fact that he just can’t learn it or if Ron Turner is calling a dumbass play. (Cue Irish Yeti for Ron Turner’s stats.) As soon as Cutler took the field, the first three plays were all passing. Go figure. Then you see why he got pissed off a couple years back when Brian Griese told the media his radio went out during the game winning drive against the Eagles. The very next day, Griese addresses the media to say that Turner sent signals to him from the sideline.

Another thing I liked was the play of rookie safety Al Afalava. He made a few nice plays with the first team. It would be really nice if he could keep this up throughout the preseason so he could get a chance to start on strong safety rather than Kevin Payne. The free safety side is a concern because I still don’t trust Danieal Manning or Craig Steltz.

I really am liking the offensive line depth this year. Last year, the line played much better than I thought they would have. The signing of Orlando Pace solidifes the left tackle position. At left guard, it should be a good competition between 3rd year guy Josh Beekman and Frank Omiyale. Olin Kruetz are Roberto Garza are the guys at center and right guard respectively. The jury is still out on right tackle Chris Williams. If he cannot show that he is ready, Kevin Shaffer who the Bears picked up from the Browns can fill in just fine.

The Bears have three more games left in the preseason. As I mentioned, I refuse to be concerned until the regular season starts. I have a few other things to talk about sometime in the next couple weeks so let’s just take it easy until then.

Here is the open thread for the next couple days while I am out of town.

Also, if you any of you are into playing Madden, I got it last night for PS2. I have the demo for PS3 and was hesitating which one to buy but decided to go with the PS2 because the controls are a little bit better to get use to. Some of the new featuers that are in the game will take a while to figure out but overall, it is pretty solid.

FINALLY. Football is finally back. It’s been too long.

Even with Jay Cutler coming to the Bears in April, there are still many questions that still need to be answered. On the defensive side, the secondary is a mess. The Bears don’t seem to have a stable pair that can stay healthy and play well. Also on defense, the health of Brian Urlacher and Tommie Harris is being discussed at training camp. Both say they are ready to go.

With the secondary, there are options some options, but no one really knows if they are good options. Last year, Zach Bowman, who played one game and had two interceptions in that one, broke his arm and was finished for the season. Craig Steltz and Kevin Payne both played but were sucked at times and were injured as well. Danieal Manning is another option although everytime he is on the field, you are just asking for the offense to throw deep. I won’t go into the details but most of you have the Super Bowl and last year’s game against Minnesota for proof why he shouldn’t be on defense. The secondary is a concern. Maybe somebody who we don’t know about yet is in camp and could provide some help for this part of the defense.

Corner backs: Charles Tillman…Sucks. Nathan Vasher says he is healthy and ready to go after an injury-plagued last couple of years. Moving on.

On offense, Matt Forte is pretty damn good. Kevin Jones was resigned to back him up and he is in better shape this camp than last year. He is fully recovered from his knee injury and has lost quite a bit of weight so he is a bit faster.

The wide receivers is still a concern. I read a report in the Tribune that the core is still dropping the ball a bunch of times in camp. And yes, I know it is just camp but if you are dropping the ball wide open with no pressure, that isn’t a  very good sign. I do like the drafting of Juaquin “Enrique” Iglesias and I want Earl Bennet to get every oppurtunity to play and even start. Iglesias was Sam Bradford’s number one option at Oklahoma so that is a good sign.

Anybody to start on wide receiver except Devin Hester is fine with me. Hester should just be a return specialist. I don’t know how many times I’ve said last year that he is not an offensive guy. My stance is still the same that Lovie Smith and Jerry Angelo ruined this guy’s future. The greatest kick returner of all time was turned into a number four wide out. How shitty is that? Now, if Lovie puts him on offense for a few plays every game, I would be fine with that.

We know this team will be better this year. Even last year with all this team’s problems still managed to go 9-7. And remember, that they should have had three more wins on top of that. This year will be tougher with everybody else in the division getting better. That includes the Lions. The Vikings have Sage Rosenfels as their quarterback and he isn’t too bad. They drafted Percy Harvin and he is very quick and will be on the side opposite of Bernard Berrian. Then of course, you throw in one of the best running backs in football in Adrian Peterson. That offense is scary.

With the Packers, Aaron Rodgers is probably going to have a big year. He is healthy and ready to go. Their defense is better with the drafting of B.J. Raji and A.J. Hawk is still there. With their defense changing forms from a 4-3 to a 3-4 may make things more difficult however. The Lions will be better with Matthew Stafford and a new coach so they shouldn’t be overlooked either.

The Bears play their first preseason game this Saturday against the Bills. I will be taping the game since I am going to be out of town for a wedding so if I do a recap, it won’t be until Monday.

One last thing, for the best Bears coverage, check out the Carl and Dan over at Fire Ron Turner.

You guys take it easy.

– MM

After the four game debacle in Colorado which dropped the Cubs three games behind the Cardinals, not even a trip to the land of Oz will help this team. The three things that are missing have already been taken by the scarecrow (brain), cowardly lion (courage), and the tin man (heart). Not even the ruby red slippers were available. The only thing left were rose colored glasses for the sheeple.

The six game homestand gets off to a rough start with three against the Phillies. They have been slipping lately losing 8 of 11. But they can heat back up at any time. Taking 2 of 3 would be good, but I don’t expect it. At least they will have the Pirates to kick around over the weekend. If they don’t get their shit together soon, they’ll be out of it by September.

Nice going prick.