Bears down

Week 9: Cardinals 41, Bears 21


There's one word for what happened at Soldier Field on Sunday: embarrassing.

Exactly how many guys were the Bears playing defense with? Seven? Five? Or was it 11 guys moving in slow motion? It was one of the two. Had to be.

The Bears were starting a three-game stretch that would determine whether their game in Minnesota (Week 12) would truly matter from an NFC North standpoint. It won't.

In fact, the Vikings may have had one of the best weeks of any team, and they didn't even play. But the two teams chasing them--the Packers and Bears--lost. One to a previously winless team, and another in humiliating fashion.

What are Bears fans supposed to look to to make themselves feel good? The running game? No, it's nonexistent.

The offensive line? They wouldn't be able to keep The Hulk from getting sacked.

The secondary? Pathetic.

The ability to rush the passer? They can barely touch QBs, let alone tackle them.

Cutler and the passing attack? Not really.

Cutler's 80.8 QB rating ranks 20th in the NFL. His +3 TD/Int differential is worse than the likes of Carson Palmer, Matt Schaub, and Kyle Orton. Cutler's a solid quarterback, and I'm glad they have him for the next few years. But you can't pretend that he's anything like Tom Brady. Or Aaron Rodgers. Even Tony Romo's numbers are significantly better than Cutler's.

And where are Bears fans supposed to look for wins? Are you confident they'll beat the Niners in San Francisco this Thursday, in prime time? Do you think they'll beat the Eagles? They do have the Rams and Lions remaining on their schedule, but brace yourself because the second half of the season might be paved with frustration and failure.

Speaking of frustration, what the hell was Tommie Harris doing on the boneheaded play that earned him an ejection? He was benched earlier in the year, and apparently he thinks that's where he serves this team best. Or maybe he knew what was about to take place and wanted no part of it.

I guess the fact that they have to turn around and play in three days could either be great or terrible. Terrible because they need three months to analyze all their problems, not three days. But great because at least they don't have to spend a full week digesting that pile of you-know-what. And fortunately, neither do we.

See you Friday, hopefully with something better to say.