Wakuan complained when he saw a picture of a bearded Bodhidharma, “Why hasn’t that fellow a beard?”
– Zen Koan
Author: ButchDeadLift
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Zen 11
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Bears NEED Jeffery Simmons
Here are the next 5 Bear opponents:
Saints
@Ravens
Burrow-less Bengals
Giants
@JJ? Vikings
Bears are 3-2, only one game behind the Puke in the NFCN.
It is entirely possible the Bears could go 4-1 in the next five games with a 7-3 record at minimum sniffing a WC.Yes, the Bears’ Dline did perform much better vs WASH, but they still allowed 4.0 ypc, and it may have been more if it hadn’t been for playing with a lead for most of the game.
Also, Ben Johnson can’t rely on +3 TOs every game going forward. As Olin Kreutz correctly assessed, ‘You’re not forcing 11 TOs in 3 games like on this streak.’ That’s not a sustainable formula for success.
A reliable formula for success? A studly Dline, or at the very least, a mediocre one.
DT Jeffery Simmons could raise all battle ships.Since Bears played Mon, I had Sunday free to peruse. I flipped to the Raider game specifically to scout Jeffery Simmons.
Holy Moly.
I admit, I didn’t even know where he was on the field since I don’t watch much Titans’ football. But it took me about 3 seconds to spot him. He’s hard to miss. He’s the type of monster you want stepping off the bus first when visiting an opponent. He looked like JJ Watt.
More importantly, he PLAYED like JJ Watt. On the very first series vs Raiders Simmons stuffed Jeanty twice, then sacked Geno despite the double team. He’s strong, fast, mean, and YUGE.
The Titans’ DC seemed to line him up at 3T when he anticipated pass, then moved him to 1T to gobble-up doubles vs run.
Honestly, it doesn’t take long to recognize greatness with the right eye. I mean, how long would you have to watch Sweetness, Butkus or Hester to determine they’re fucking awesome? It only takes one Picasso painting to gasp, “Wow.”Simmons hovers close to that tier. Much closer than Billings, Dexter, Turner, et al, at least.
The Titans’ season is lost. They just fired their HC Brian Callahan and are basically tanking. They’re really about 3 yrs away [minimum] from making a serious SB push. Simmons is 28. Do they really expect he’ll fit that window?
Trading for Simmons seems realistic for both parties. I would trade a 2nd for him given that Bears still have to take on his contract. Titans could use that 2nd to bolster their oline or weapons for Cameron Ward who should be their #1 priority.
If Titans play hard-ball, demanding a 1st, MAYBE I’d throw in DJ Moore, but I’d have to get like a 4rth back in that scenario. They may want Moore. A tough savvy vet to help their fledging rookie franchise QB while the Bears need to clear cap for Simmons anyways.
This would also mean more Luther Burden.
Braxton Jones may also be in play, albeit I’d be more weary about trading away Oline given attrition. The Chiefs are paying a swing OT $15M/y. That’s how pivotal those OTs might be now; nevertheless, let’s be real. I doubt we’re paying Braxton next year.
Feels like this trade makes too much.
I also don’t trust Ryan Poles to actually DRAFT an elite linemen, so we’re back to Jerry Angelo copium.
Football is an arm’s race. USSR launched Sputnik. U.S. blasted off to the moon. The other Evil Empire snatched Micah Parsons. Time for Bears to counter with Simmons. Imagine him destroying Love, Rodgers, Monty/Gibbs…Here’s Olin Kreutz breaking down the Bears-v-Commanders:
Cliffnotes:
1. Thinks coaches during bye simplified playbook.
2 . Blocking, specifically combo blockings, looked much crisper resulting in better running.3. On run-stopping, maybe moving Shemar Turner to DE and Gervon Dexter to 3T helped.
4. TJ Edwards back may have bolstered entire D. He may not be the fleetest of foot, but his mind is agile, and perhaps he aligned everyone correctly, making them play faster and more aggressively, especially Tremaine Edmunds.
Olin, ‘I played against those MIKEs. They’re the worst. Sometimes they call out the play we’re running, and we know we’re going to have to move them off their spot’MISC…
Finally, new Olympic sports I can get behind, literally! -
Victory Tues!
I’m a bit exhausted right now, so I’ll keep it short.
Hell motherfucking ya!Rapid fire reactions:
1. This team is finally turning the corner
I said when Matt Eberflus was hired that the team needed to learn how to win. They never did. In fact, they found new innovative ball-kicking ways to lose that would even make the Chargers proud.
This team faced a lot of adversity in this game. For starters, given the whole ‘fail mary’ last season added pressure. MNF – pressure. Away game. Pressure. Underdogs. Pressure. Not ideal conditions. Pressure. Washington Refs. Pressure. Dropped passes, questionable play-calling, busted coverages, shoddy specials’ gunning, blocked FG. Pressure, pressure, pressure.
Yet, Bears never cracked. They kept slugging it out, REFUSING to quit. They kept tugging, punching, clawing…returning all that pressure right back to WASH ’til they cracked on a hand-off. A Flusian critical mistake.Then Bears did what they rarely did under Flus.
FINISH.
The game boiled down to what I wanted – the ball in BJ/Caleb’s court to win or lose; they proceeded to march down field sans mistakes, executing, making WASH use TOs, RUNNING it [successfully] ’til they basically made the final FG a PAT attempt.
Fade to black…2. Ben Johnson countered the blitz.
I shared in the game-day thread that WASH uses a lot of zone [3rd most], but they zigged on Monday. They blitzed more than usual, no doubt trying to throw off the plan.
However, Ben Johnson was ready. He used draws, screens and bombs to make WASH think twice. Here’s a creative screen which neither Trub or Fields could consistently pull off.Despite that awesome throw to Rome being called back on an absolute BS call, the rationale was right. Attack the blitz. If they’re going to single your best weapon, go balls-deep. Make them pay.
It’s smart and aggressive – like Ben Johnson.3. Tip-o-hat to run O/D.
My #1 MUST was to stop the run. They did – sorta. Or at least, they didn’t get completely run over, even forcing a Merritt fumble.
On paper, doesn’t seem like that much of a differential.
Bears total rushing yds: 145
Comm total rushing yds: 124
However, how they got there differed. D’Andre Swift was mostly responsible for the Bears, especially late to seal the deal.
While Jayden Daniels had to pull some Houdini escapes, getting crunched along the way.
Besides, let’s face it – we were all expecting WASH to steam-roll Bears’ D, so Bears limiting the #1 running attack to 4.0 ypc shocked me TBH, as did Swift averaging 7.7 per.Holy shit, who had that on their bingo card?
Misc:
Can’t discuss the game without mentioning the total dogshit officiating. Dr. Rev Huge Bears’ Penis warned us this crew threw a lot of flags, but Moses Krishna Christ, at least PRETEND to do it fairly. Refs tried everything possible to give the game to the Commies, yet the Bears still prevailed.Apparently, DJ Moore was hospitalized after the game. Let’s hope it’s merely precautionary.
Troy Aikman also seemed to be hating on Caleb Williams. People noticed, Troy. Was it the UCLA-USC rivalry or have his concussions finally creeped in?
Despite all that, it was a FANTASTIC Bears’ victory. It felt more emotionally draining than usual for some reason. Maybe it was just me, but the whole game felt tense with all the ups-n-downs and refs making Bears play with one arm tied behind their backs.
Making the win that much sweeter.
“Whatever does not kill us, only makes us stronger.” – NietzscheGood Better Best!
Never let it rest!
Until your good gets better!
And your better gets best!
Bear Down. -
Revenge: CHI@WASH MNF WK6
We all know the narrative. Bears blow a victory vs WASH last year in catastrophic fashion thxs to Matt Eberflus dumbfuckery and Tyrique Stevenson yapping with the crowd.
Bears enter death spiral that results in the first Bears’ HC to ever be fired midseason making Caleb Williams shuffle through 3 OCs in his rookie season.
Meanwhile Jayden Daniels catapults to OROY, carrying his team to the playoffs amid media hype.
Many pundits preseason were predicting the Bears to be a ‘surprise playoff team’, but Washington stole their Cinderella slippers that day.
On the bright side, it was such a colossal disaster that it was enough for even the milk toast McCaskeys to show some balls and fire Eberflus.
Although in typical timid Halas fashion, it still somehow wasn’t enough to terminate the GM who hired that HC [and vouched for him]because…Bears.
So we know what’s at stake. This isn’t just another game. It’s nearly symbolic and a true measure of how far the Bears have really progressed since that fateful Hail Mary.What needs to happen:
Well, once more, this isn’t rocket, or even rock ’em-sock’ em robot science.
The Commies are the best running team.
As I wrote on Tues.Bears’ avg 102.3 YPG [24rth]; however, when one slices out the Caleb scrambles it leaves RBs: 3.4 YPC, 2 TDs.
Meanwhile, the Commanders: 156.4 YPG [1st].
On D, the Bears are giving up a whopping 164.5 YPG [31st].
Ergo. STOP THE RUN.
Or at the very least slow it down! This won’t be easy. Jayden Daniels can freeze the LBs opening up lanes for Bill Croskey-Merritt who is having a heck of a rookie campaign. I caught some of him, and he resembles Ashton Jeanty in that he’s shifty with zip.
Friendly reminder, Poles drafted Kyle Monangai [233rd] while Croskey-Merritt was selected 12 spots after. Fans dreaming about trading for Breece Hall or De’Von Achane when Poles could’ve just drafted Merritt straight up. Thanks, Poles.
Luckily for the Bears, T.J. Edwards and Kyler “Spider-Man” Gordon are projected back. Maybe they help. It’s important to remember that nickel in today’s NFL is basically the new SAM, as such, expected to make tough tackles in space. For the Bears’ sake, Gordon [and Austin Booker] return hungry.As a Bears’ fan, my first instinct is to establish the run and keep ramming it down their throats. That simply isn’t feasible with this Poles’ roster. More realistically, Ben Johnson will have to pass to open up some lanes for the run as WASH struggles to defend the pass and employs a ton of zone.
Caleb Williams seems to excel vs zone, so chunk plays must be made. First downs can’t be missed; they will act as the defacto run game to keep WASH off the field and hopefully playing from behind. It’s not ideal. Much more can go wrong, from pre-snap penalties, drop passes, wrong routes, to sailing balls, blown up screens, jumped passes and strip sacks, but that’s what happens when a team can’t run.
Outside a slew of Bear-forced TOs, Commanders self-sabotaging, or crazy plays like blocked FGs, muffed returns, etc… this is likely the best path for the Bears to serve the chilly dish of revenge and finally bury that infamous debacle.
King Benny didn’t take it lying down and neither should the BJ Bears. Bang! Bang! -
![Another Bearless Sunday Unless You’re in Weho [NTTAWWT]](https://dabearsblogdos.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/1DBBmiaHoney32.jpg)
Another Bearless Sunday Unless You’re in Weho [NTTAWWT]
None of the early games are interesting. NFL assumed Rams-v-Ravens would be good, but didn’t plan on Lamar going down. Maybe they calculated Chargers-v-Fins would be watchable, but both teams are disappointing.
The later slate is not much better. No doubt the schedule makers were proud about Bengals-v-Puke, but with Burrow out the result is all but certain.
Only real interesting matchup is Lions-v-Chiefs. This could very well be a SB preview, but here’s the difference.
Lions usually steamroll through the regular season then sputter in the playoffs.
Chiefs stagger through the regular season like a drunken sailor, then when the playoffs arrive, they sober up, and blast their [AFC] foes with anti-aircraft cannons.
They’re the reason neither Lamar nor Josh Allen own SB rings.
So despite me hoping the Lions will lose, I think they’ll eke out a victory at KC although part of me still expects Goff to wilt in prime-time. -
Zen 10
After taking the high seat to preach to the assembly, Fa-yen raised his hand and pointed to the bamboo blinds. Two monks went over and rolled them up in the same way.
Fa-yen said, “One gains, one loses.”
– Zen Koan -
Twitter Tues. WK6
So TJ Edwards, Kyler Gordon and Austin Booker are on track to return. Will that make a difference – who knows?
Sack rate acceptable. It has as much to do with Ben Johnson’s vision and Caleb’s maturity as it does with the big fellas. Either way, reassuring.
Run game another matter. Bears’ avg 102.3 YPG [24rth].However, when one slices out the Caleb scrambles leaving only RBs: 3.4 YPC, 2 TDs. Meanwhile, the Commanders: 156.4 YPG [1st].
On D, the Bears are giving up a whopping 164.5 YPG [31st]. I blame this mostly on the DTs, but plenty of criticism to go around.OTOH the Commanders are in the middle of the pack in defending run at 117 YPG [17th], but do we really expect Swift or Monangai to take advantage?
These QBs will forever be linked despite Fields not being in his 2nd but 5th yr.
Apparently Saints are hosting a fire-sale. Unfortunately, none of their vets are appetizing.
Jets may be another team selling away assets, and HB Breece Hall is at the top of that list.Some rumors about Titans’ DT Jefferey Simmons as well.
In an ideal world, both Hall and Simmons are Bears while Booker finally lives up to hype, but to paraphrase Shawshank, “Halas is no fairytale…”Thank Jebus Halas extended Ryan Poles!
I would love to make fun of Mark Sanchez, but I have done too many dipshit antics whilst drunk to throw any stones. So, I’ll let others do it for me! -
The Best Defensive Player is Now the Kicker
Is Cairo Santos a liability?
He’s much like Robbie Gould circa 2006. A reliable, somewhat clutch, kicker with limited leg.
Can win a lot of games with that type of kicker IF it’s paired with the 2006 Bears’ D.
Problem is 2025 Bears’ is leakier than the Iraqi navy AND, well – see this great Brett Kollman vid: -
WK5 Bear Bye
Not using the Cowgirls for this week. Reserving their big hair, big boots, big…pom-poms for when Bears play!
Teams on bye: Bears, Falcons, Packers, Steelers.
Normally, I’d argue a WK5 bye is way too early, but this year it feels right. Some players badly need it to heal up. Bears go into it after a 2-win streak, including an incredibly dramatic Raider finale. Plus, Ben Johnson is still a rookie HC, so a brief intermission to ‘re-center’ and do some meta to steer the car in the right direction before going off a ditch – not the worst possibility.
The next 5 games aren’t exactly daunting. @Wash, v-NO, @Balt, @Cincy, v-NYG
Bears can realistically go 4-1 in that stretch [esp if the rumors about Poles trading for a Dlinemen are true], then playoffs are well in the mix. -
Zen 9
The tao which can be told is not the eternal Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal Name.
– Tao Te Ching