September 8, 2014: Buffaloed

Yeah, it happened.  The Bears blew it.  What exactly did happen?

The Bears lost the turnover battle.  2 Cutler INTs and a Marshall fumble is essentially what did us in.  Listening to Trestman talk before the game, he mentioned “protect the ball” as one of the key points going into the game.  The Bears didn’t, and it cost them.

Nobody really played that bad.  Nobody really played that good (except Forte).  It was a blah effort all the way around.  You don’t expect this from a team in Week 1 in the regular season.  You don’t expect this from a team in their home opener.  You don’t expect this from a team who is being picked as a Super Bowl sleeper this year.  They personified the other definition of sleeper.  That first march down the field may have been the worst thing that happened to the Bears all game long.

Who didn’t think the Bears were going to blow these bozos out after that first TD drive?  You know what, I think the Bears thought the same thing.  They put it in automatic the rest of the first half, before waking up in the 2nd half.  They probably thought they would win the game… that there was never a doubt.  But, this is the NFL boys, and nothing is a sure thing.  I’m not sure a team that has won NOTHING can take a game like this for granted.  Maybe that’s exactly why they did.

The Bears need to learn how to win:  the tough games and the easy games.  This one should have been an easy one, and they let it slip away.  Sometimes it’s one game that decides the playoffs or not; we know that all too well.  Now the Bears have put themselves behind the 8 ball heading into San Fran next week.  Maybe that’s exactly what they need.

OK, I know people need to blame somebody for the loss; Cutler for his 2 picks and many questionable throws or Conte for a few missed tackles and because he’s Conte.  Maybe you want to blame injuries that cost us 2 lineman and Alshon.  Maybe you want to blame the defense.  There’s plenty to go around.  Bottom line, the Bears scored the first TD and thought this game was in the bag.  You don’t think that should happen in the NFL?  It shouldn’t, but it does.  That’s my theory… that and Vegas needed a good start to the season.
Most of the order cheap cialis time, these ailments alter or develop over time. As these supplements are completely herb-based, men can low cost tadalafil use it without any hesitation. What use are they? What buy levitra without rx you’ve got to remember is: just because they are useless now doesn’t mean that you can’t suffer from problems if it’s done incorrectly. Added to this, the pills will also elevate the regencygrandenursing.com viagra online from india sex of your penis’ tip. c) Intense Orgasms Orgasms are the pinnacle of eroticism.
When the Bears are moving the ball, it seems like they do so easily.  Why can’t they do that all the time?  Forte was the man, both rushing the ball and catching the ball out of the backfield.  I’m glad to see he received so many touches… I’ll argue that he should have had MORE.  I just love the 2nd and 1 that we dropped back to pass instead of feeding the man.  On that last drive, I would have kept throwing to him.  In OT, I would have fed him.  Yeah, the weapons, the weapons… Forte IS the weapon.  With Alshon out, the Bears really showed their depth at WR.  Wilson getting hurt in the preseason didn’t help that, but the other guys were non existent.  Yeah, Bennett had a good game, but ex-bear Corey Graham had a better one.  He was everywhere.  Should we be worried about the offense?  Not necessarily, yet Jay still tries to force throws in… will he ever learn how to throw the ball away?

Defensively, we were OK… that should have been enough.  Yet, how often did we hear the big names on the defense?  Baby Back Briggs had 3 tackles.  Rodeo boy had 1 tackle… thanks Jared.  There were NO big plays.  Yeah, a few sacks… wait, ONE SACK?!?, and absolutely nothing coming from our secondary.  Peanut and Jennings, the 2 all pro corners, were very quiet.  Tillman made a bad move in not containing the one long Buffalo run, while Conte missed a big tackle on another; then Conte got tossed to the side on the Jackson run that sealed it.  Let the hate flow on Conte.  He wasn’t alone.  Are we worried about the defense?  I am… slightly.

That third phase of the game was non-existent.  I know Devin hasn’t been good for a long time, but there was absolutely no chance of anything happening on special teams without him today.  At least he put a little fear in the other team, and gave us a little hope.  That’s gone now.  Gould was good… that’s a given, but the punter didn’t seem that great.  Special teams remains an area of concern.

So as we circle the wagons, the Bears are who we thought they were.  They need to be better.  Cutler can’t continue to make the mistakes he does.  The defense HAS to contribute at least a little more.  The special teams has to just try to stay out of the way, as they will contribute little this year.

I’m sure everyone had this game marked as a W on their season guesses, including yours truly.  It was like a kick in the nuts watching the Bears blow this game.  It seemed like I’ve seen this happen all too often the past few years.  It’s like, they’re complacent out there; like they think they’re better than they are.  Well, they’re not.  The Bears are going to have to work their tail off… EVERY week.  If not, this will be a long season.  If they do, we’ll be OK.  I’m not mailing the season in yet.  It is after all just week 1.  Time to turn one of those projected L’s into a W… we got a chance next week.