Sunday Recap

After watching the full Bears game for only the second time this year, I feel like its time to break down how the team arrived at 7-3. This Bears team seemed poised for a seven win year... total. Now, with six games left, they are already at seven. They are indisputably better than the lions right now, and they seem to have a schedule which makes 11-5 likely and 12-4 possible.

Still, one had to wonder what that means. Having watched this team closely today, I would give the following grades to their various units:

- quarter back - Jay Cutler has proven that he is tough, and capable of making any throw. In the last few games the offense has done better letting Cutler move the pocket, which has benefited the units ability to move the ball. If Cutler can stay upright he's slowly proving the sky is the limit.

- running back - Matt forte is among the top five backs in the league right now, but the team will need to get Marion barber worked in to the offense in order to avoid wearing forte down.

- wide receivers - Roy Williams is an enigma on a unit full of them. Having Earl Bennett back has been a huge help, and Johnny Knox continues to stretch the field. If Williams can stop dropping balls each game this unit might be sufficient.

- tight end and offensive line - I group these together because the team rarely throws downfield to the tight ends. The line is an are of major concern (more so now with the season ending injuries to Williams and Carimi ) but they are doing better with the move the pocket gameplans of late.

- d line - when peppers is on they get the requisite pressure to run lovie's defense. If he were to get hurt?....

-linebackers - urlacher and Briggs continue to be the best lb pair in the NFL. Roach is pretty decent himself.

- defensive backs - Tillman isn't great in coverage but he is physical, can tackle,  and he forces turnovers. The safety issues leave an otherwise good defense vulnerable. 

- special teams - good as Gould continues to be the Gould standard of NFL kickers under 50 yards. The punting game has improved this year, and the return game is still the best in the game.

In the whole,  the team feels like they have the ability, if they stay healthy, to position themselves for a run at the NFC again. They play Green Bay tougher than anyone, and on a cold day in Wisconsin this January anything could happen.... if only we can get there. 

Week Nine Picks - Quick Hits Edition

After a seventeen hour work day (no typo there) I'll bust out quick hit picks for this week. I'll tally last week's record next week (hopefully) but I'm pretty sure it was disastrous. The Picks:

DAY GAMES

Buffalo (-2) over NY Jets - before this year I would have laughed at this line. But the Bills are tough...

Seattle (+12) over Dallas - I know Dallas should be in rebound mode, but I don't know what to make of them anymore. I'll just take the insane points.

Atlanta (-8) over Indy - Miami still seems to be trying. Indy? Not so much....

Kansas City (-5) over Miami - The Chiefs may be sneaky good, and we might have all been thrown off their scent due to the two stink bombs they laid in weeks one and two.

New Orleans (-9) over Tampa Bay - The Saints at home? 3-0. On the road? 2-3. This game is at home.

San Francisco (-4) over Washington - This line seems too low ... shouldn't it be San Fran by at least 5.5?

Houston (-11) over Cleveland - how does Cleveland consistently field the worst offense in the NFL, or at least the least pleasing to watch?

LATE GAMES

Cincinnati (+3) over Tennessee - this never would have happened if Chris Johnson were still alive... we haven't seen someone deteriorate into "player x's corpse" status this fast. I'm starting to wonder if Johnson is going to set the new record.

Oakland (-9) over Denver - I saw "Oakland -9" and immediately wanted to take the dog and the points. Then I saw that the dog was Tebowtime ... and I talked myself into the team that was last seen having 0 TD passes and 6 Ints across two quarterbacks.

New England (-9) over NY Giants - I'm just going to say it here, because it fits as well as anywhere: I hate fantasy football.

Rams (+2) over Arizona - St. Louis might have found a pulse last week; if so, they should be able to handle a really bad Cardinals team.

Packers (-6) over San Diego - Hail Rodgers, full of TDs, my fantasy team is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst cheese heads, and also screw you for winning the super bowl last year.

SUNDAY NIGHT

Pittsburgh (-4) over Baltimore - So here we are, in week nine, eight weeks after the Ravens annihilated the Steelers to start the year. And Pittsburgh is at home, but it is also favored by four. Which means that Vegas genuinely thinks they are the better team. Week one, the line in Baltimore was the Ravens -2 ... which means that the game meant nothing, and Vegas has the Steelers as one point better no matter where they play, and no matter the blow out. My mind is tired, and blown.

MONDAY NIGHT

Bears (+8) over Philadelphia - the Eagles seem to have found their stride, which is scary. But the Bears also seem to have found their stride, and might be in position for a sneaky run like last year. This game will tell us a great deal about both teams, but that line seems to be way too high. Urlacher has always been the best at neutralizing Vick; nobody in the game does it better. This seems like the kind of game that ends with a "are the Eagles done?" and "Look out for the Bears" dual headline.