Wow. How has it been nearly two months since I last wrote about what some people still define as a team on the lake front? I apologize for my extended absence, I have been doing fall tillage work for a farmer and that took up the majority of my time since the last time I wrote. Other family issues also kept me away. But enough about me… How ’bout those Bears?
Since I last wrote they managed to go 2-6 and completely fall apart from the bottom to the top. I was ready after the embarrassment against the Cardinals on November 8th to call for Lovie’s head. This was supposed to be the year of Cutler, and all Lovie and his coaches have managed to do is guarantee a losing season. So lets take a moment before the players pack up their lockers, dust off their golf clubs and head somewhere warm to recuperate.
This team has issues. I would love to just leave it at that. However I feel like I owe something more to the one or two people who will read this. The issues begin at the top of the organization and go all the way to the players on the field. The general manager has pigeon-holed this team into a situation where as fans we have nothing to look forward to from this abysmal season. Most teams after a season like this look forward to the draft, and then there are the Bears. Yay, our awesome early first round pick is…. going to the Broncos. Okay no problem, we will just get someone good in the second round… nope, wait, that goes to the Bucs. So where does this leave us? Well, really it leaves us looking forward to nothing much next season. Sure we’ve had some great luck with late round picks, but you aren’t always going to be finding swans from those ugly ducklings. So what can be done? We have no real talent that we can trade off for picks without totally decimating the team. And if anyone thinks that there are potential GM’s out there that are just hoping and praying that they can have this job in the off-season, well I’d beg to differ. There are about a dozen deep holes to fill on the team, and all a new GM would have to fill those holes would be a tiny garden spade.
Next up is the offensive coaching staff. Well what is there to say about them? When your franchise quarterback can’t work with your coaches they have to go. I’m sorry, but Ron Turner’s system, if you can call it that, is failing. I have no problem with wide reciever screens, I just have a problem when they get called more than once in a drive, every drive. I have no problem with asking Jay Cutler to throw from the pocket, just asking him to do nothing but throw from the pocket. I have no problem with trying to run off tackle, just trying to run off tackle when your offensive line isn’t opening the gaps. You can see where this is going. There really isn’t much to be said that was positive this year from the offensive side of the football. The Bear’s desire for a number one receiver has turned Devin Hester from an elite kick returner to a complete waste of roster space. He no longer is a threat on special teams and isn’t much of a threat on offense. Sure he can break something once in a while, but lately his best friend has been the chalk on the sidelines and he can’t wait to see him whenever he gets the ball in his hands. So once again house cleaning time here too.
And now Rod Marinelli gets in the cross hairs. We brought in the 0-16 coach as our assistant head coach and defensive line coach. He was supposed to be able to bring the fire back to our line. He was supposed to bring the pressure back. So here we are after yet another year of quarterbacks having their way with us when it matters. And yet again we are asking what happened. I’m still not sure how a coach that managed to lose every single game just one season ago was supposed to inspire the players here, but hey thats why I’m not a GM… right?
And now we have made it. Lovie. What can be said? I suppose we are supposed to be looking ahead to Detroit at this time, not looking at Lovie’s job security. So how is it that Lovie might actually be coaching our beloved Bears next season? Money is supposed to be out of the picture, and if that is the case he’s got to be packing up his office right now. If money is no obstacle then Lovie has to go! Sure “he” took us to the Superbowl just 4 short seasons ago. But, and it is a big record but, for the 3rd year since he has failed to bring them back even to the playoffs. How is this even possible? Everything was still basically in place the first season, sure they had no quarterback, but thats how they got there in the first place. Defense has been Lovie’s thing since he got here, thats why Ron Rivera had to go. It was Lovie’s way or the highway. Gee I wish it was Lovie on the highway and not Rivera. I’m really struggling to even find the words to describe how annoying it has been, how frustrating, how aggravating! I refuse to even listen to Lovie Smith press conferences, aka question dodging sessions. When your whole mindset is “bend don’t break” you get to the point where you are bent beyond repair, and that is the situation that the Bears are in now. It is time to part ways with Lovie and bring in new blood. The crop of winning coaching options will never be better. There are options all across the spectrum of what the Bears could possibly want. All sorts of schemes, costs and personalities. Now is the time.
I will say this about how this season has gone for a positive. There have been flashes, brief as they may be, but they are there. We have seen the potential that is there for the future of the team with good coaching, managing and mentoring.
Well thanks for reading my wall-o-text. Happy New Year folks.
