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  • Bears@Ravens WK8 Preview

    Bears@Ravens WK8 Preview

    First off, thanks for the bday wishes! Had a blast. I rarely eat fancy meals, but I heard of an Italian spot run by actual Italians. At first I was a bit skeptical since it was located in a strip mall!

    However, so what if it’s not atop the Pyrenees ? As long as the food is delectable, and it was!

    You guys in Chicago might be spoiled with more quality Italian restaurants, but it’s a bit hard to find authentic Italian in L.A.

    The chef comped me a crab chowder soup: fresh crab in lobster bisque, potato, carrots and a touch of cream flavored with white Italian truffle paste; we actually chatted since he was making the rounds. He was from Naples, the host from Northern “German” Italy.

    I ordered a Tuscan Wild Boar Ragu: parpadella pasta, Tuscan wild boar and juniper flavor pancetta in a light red wine sauce.

    Magnifico!

    On to the Ravens…

    The biggest factor will be if Lamar Jackson plays, and just how healthy he is.
    He missed Mon, Tues, returned Weds, but was limited.

    The Ravens opened up as 6.5 favorites which should be a slap in the face to the Bears who after all are 4-2 riding a 4-win streak. Pan to the Ravens at 1-5 with a hobbled QB and a leaky defense.

    Ravens’ D is allowing 4.6 ypc [to RBs]
    32.3 PPG [32nd]; rank 27th in 3rd down D.

    Their pass D isn’t much better. Their secondary amazingly enough has only ONE INT thus far while allowing 108.4 passer rating [28th]and 246 passing yds [28th] with only 8 sacks and low pressure rate.

    They’re supposed to get Roq back who should be motivated. Still, is he going to remedy ALL that?

    Ravens are coming off a bye, playing at home, in must-win mode, ergo this should test the Bears.

    What I really want to see is if the Bears are physical.

    One thing about the Harbaugh Ravens is that they always come out ready to brawl.

    The Bears have actually played physically on their win streak – one of the biggest reasons we should get excited about the Ben Johnson Bears which differs bigly from his predecessors.

    Stuffing the run, forcing 3-4 TOs while stampeding for 200 will make the other team buckle-up their chinstraps.

    If the Bears can match the Ravens’ intensity that will bode well going forward.

    On O, it’s simple enough. Will Ravens respect Caleb Williams enough to go with a light-box like the Saints, and if so, will that open up the run game again?

    [D’Andre Swift is nursing a groin FWIW]

    Follow up question: if the Ravens don’t respect Caleb enough and decide to go full-Ravens and crowd the LOS, how will Caleb respond after a down Saints’ game?

    172 yds, 1 INT, 61.7 Rating

    Will he pull out of the slump?

    Something else to keep an eye on is Theo Benedet especially since rumors are swirling about trading Braxton Jones. Here’s an in-depth breakdown of his performance vs Saints.

    Speaking of trade rumors, there’s waaaay too many to track here, but luckily Harrison Graham covers some names, first and foremost DE Jermaine Johnson [Jets] and maaaybe Mad Maxx Crosby.

    On D, well, I keep waiting for the turnover ride to be over, but it keeps going, so screw it, let’s go Dennis “The Menace” Allen!

    We gotta keep an eye on if Tyrique Stevenson will play because if not the Bears will have to start Nick McCloud or Josh Blackwell, essentially CB#4/5. Not exactly ideal if Lamar is back.

    Austin Booker should return, so that’s a boost.

    At any rate, the Ravens score 24 PPG [13th] and are 13th in 3rd down conversions with Jackson, and that’s really the crux.

    Lamar’s QB rating is a mind-boggling 130 [1st] with 10TDs/1INT and naturally a bunch of back-breaking runs.

    IF Lamar plays, and is maybe like 60%, I think the Bears might be able to contain him. Montez Sweat, Dayo Odeyingbo, Booker, Tremaine Edmunds and even Dominque Robinson are relatively athletic – they just must remember to stay discipline and close in under control.

    Maybe Dennis Allen plays more zone and blitzes less [particularly if Stevenson doesn’t play] in order to minimize those big Lamar lanes.

    My biggest worry might be a rested King Henry [5.0 YPC] and their TE Mark Andrews especially if TJ Edwards has to cover him.

    Otherwise, it’ll be the Lamar show.

    Overtime:

    Apparently, Luther Burden is starting Festivus early and airing his grievances about not getting the ball enough. Well, it’s a little hard to feed the 5th option when the QB only has only completed 15 [Saints] and 17[WASH] passes in last two games. I guess we’ll find out how Ben Johnson handles this.

    Also, what’s going to happen with the kicker situation? Is Cairo Santos returning, and if so, are they going to put Jake Moody back on the Practice Squad and risk a team, like say the Gmen, poaching him?

    Will the Bears actually carry TWO kickers on the 53? [nobody tell the Rev…]

  • The Best Defensive Player is Now the Kicker

    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:

  • Rapid Recap: Bears Beat Raiders

    Rapid Recap: Bears Beat Raiders

    Photo courtesy of AP News

    What a WILD game. I think this was the craziest game since that infamous Zona circa 2006.

    Talk about the Raiders letting Bears off the hook!

    Ashton Jeanty rushed for 128 yds, 1 TD, 6.5 per along with TWO rec TDs

    The #1 key was to stop or minimally contain Jeanty; they failed miserably.

    And before you crown his ass, a 33 yr old Raheem Mostert rushed 4 times for 62 yds at a mindboggling 15.5 per carry. They may as well have been Bo Jackson in Tecmo Bowl

    Raiders rushed for a total of 240 yds.7.7 avg yet somehow managed to still lose!

    Bears@Raiders Highlights

    I have way too many thoughts on the game to squeeze into one post but few pertinent notes.

    1. The Bears came out slow. I think they had 97 yds total in the first half despite the D spotting them great field position. Four times they started in Raider territory yet flopped.

    This was a combo of Nagyesque small-ball, Crosby scud, dropped passes, batted throws, miscues and way too many stupid penalties. Kmet especially did his best Kellen Davis impression.


    2. Raiders blitzed over 9 times, which was more in one half than Flus the entire game previously; it rattled Caleb. He looked uncomfortable, making iffy decisions [including on RPOs] and off throws. When he did scramble, his cast didn’t help him much. It was all discombobulated.

    3. The run game stunk! 69 yd total, 2.7 avg. Ben Johnson reverted to Nagy-ball of quick screens, flats and dump-offs near the LOS to essentially act as the defacto run game. Only thing missing was empty-set diamond formation. The results were predictable.

    However, all this seemed to change once Braxton was out [benched?], Benedet moved to LT, and Trapilo debuted at RT in the final drive before the half.

    After the half, the oline seemed to settle-in while BJ became more aggressive.

    It appeared BJ just gave up on the run, putting the game on Caleb’s shoulder, and he responded.

    I wrote in real time that Caleb somehow looks more comfortable in the clutch than at the start of games. It’s truly odd. The ‘scripted’ plays didn’t help much today.

    Caleb is a walking Dickenson quote, “It was the worst of halves, it was the best of halves…”

    Then came the final drive where it was all on Caleb.

    Flus’ Bears would’ve folded like knock-off jeans from a sweat-shop by the 4rth, but the Bears kept clawing back, including the D that forced the Raiders to settle for a FG late.

    The Bears’ final drive itself was bumpy as well. As Data keenly relayed:

    Bears were shooting themselves in the foot from the 1st drive. I’m shocked they had any paws to stand on by the last.

    Nonetheless, Caleb matriculated the ball downfield, and here we gotta give Swift some love as he finished when it mattered most.

    Naturally, it’s the Bears, so they [badly] screwed up the 2-point conversion making it 25-24 Bears.

    At this point, our Angelo-Emery-Pace-Poles trauma triggered as we were cynically expecting the inevitable, no Vaseline.

    Sure enough, the Raiders waltzed down field like Fred Astaire through the Red Sea, reaching the Kicker’s Promised Land which felt like anything near the 50.

    Like Pavlovian losers, I wouldn’t be shocked if thousands of Bear fans hit the parking-lot trying to beat Strip traffic or make one last all-you-can-eat buffet before leaving Vegas buzzed, broke and bitter.

    Then, the unimaginable manifested.
    Daniel Carslon lined up for a seemingly chip-shot 54 yd FG…

    Boom-shaka-laka!

    It only took 4 TOs, a slew of Raider mistakes, 4 Cairo FGs [including two beyond 51], a Tori coffin corner inside the 1 plus a blocked FG for a Bears’ victory!

    Crown em!

  • Gruden Grinding NFCN

    Gruden Grinding NFCN

    Chucky breaking down NFCN, starts off with Bears.

    Some interesting tidbits:

    Bears haven’t had a winning season since ’18 [12-4].

    Bears have finished LAST in past 7 of 11 seasons.

    Bears have only had a Top 10 Offense three times in past 30 years.

    Bears only team to never have a 4K passer or 30 TD QB.

    ‘It’s time for all the players Poles got [in CAR trade]- Caleb, Wright, DJ, Stevenson and Burden – to step up’

    Lions went for it on 4rth down 110x in last three [BJ] years.

    ’24 Bears O were 32nd in yards [4,820],31st in passing yards [3,552], 25th in rushing [1,734] while giving up a whopping 68 sacks [3rd most EVER].

    “That’s like getting kicked in the groin 68 times.”

    Detroit in ’24 ran the most plays under center [56%]. The Bears with Williams only 84 snaps out of 575 attempts. [Approx 14%].

    ’24 Detroit lead the league in PA 37%; Bears only PAed 18% [30th].

    PA should help the RBs accelerate and find lanes.

    Should be way more PS motion. “RCE – Recognize, communicate, execute”

    Caleb was off target 21% of passes [PFF]
    Esp deep. Completed 14/68 passes over 20 yds 23% [sic] My math computes 20.5%

    Of the 68 sacks, 28 of them Caleb held ball for over 5 secs.

    Dennis Allen will use a lot of exotic looks. Cover 1/2/3, pre/post coverages, CBs pressing, man, zero blitzes.

    Bears allowed 17.2 points in first seven games.

    Last ten games allowed 25.1 ppg.

    2,317 yds allowed [28th]. 4.8 rush avg allowed [29th].

    Edmunds youngest player [27] in NFL history to start 100 games. 100+ tackles in first seven seasons.

    “I think the Bears’ D fell off because Brisker was out. Reminds me of old Bears’ safety, Fencik, Plank…”

    [I suspect the running D went to shite after Big Billings went down].

    Tory Taylor broke Bears’ net-punting record – 41.6



  • PS Game #1 Plays

    PS Game #1 Plays

    In case some of you guys missed the game, this dude Mattydubs puts in the grind for us and shows us some highlights from our rooks.

    And if you missed the Austin Booker bonanza.

    Twit of Tues

  • Relentless

    Relentless

    Johnny Manziel interviews Brian Urlacher.

    You may not like either of these guys on a personal level, but at least they squeeze out some interesting sport’s talk.

    Some Spark-Notes from Lach

    ‘I loved playing against Michael Vick, Culpepper, or any QB who can move really, to show off my stuff’

    I still recall Lach chasing down a prime-Vick. It was a sight to behold. Lovie Smith’s Cover-2 was almost custom made to stop running QBs. Everyone attacked their gaps. ‘DE just had to get a hand to slow down QB’. All 11 eyes were in the backfield, so the second a QB split, all 11 rallied to the ball, and under Lovie, they closed with good angles and tackle discipline. On top of that, any runner had to worry about getting Peanut-punched by every defender amped to create a turnover.

    This might be why the Cover-2 is back in fashion with so many running QBs though they’re a bit more exotic than the Lovie-2

    ‘Favre would give us 2-3 chances [for INTs], but he threw it so damn hard, hard to pick-off sometimes’

    ‘Rodgers knew our checks. You play any team enough, they’re gonna know. So we had to change our pirate checks [that started with “P”]…so one play Lance [Briggs] starts yelling, “Big Pussy! Big Pussy!” and Aaron just started laughing before the snap.”

    ‘2006 was unbelievable…but I think we had a better team in 2010’ [the year Jay Cutler messed up his MCL vs GB in the NFC Championship and Caleb Hanie came off the bench]

    Who did the media get wrong? Jay, Bmarsh?

    ‘Julius Peppers. The media [in 2010] put out a narrative that he didn’t practice hard or took plays off. That dude showed up to work every day and busted his ass off in practice’

    ‘Bmarsh said some crazy things, but a lot of people do. He was out there on the jugs machine 45 minutes before the game. Jay simply didn’t care, so it doesn’t matter if the media got him wrong’

    Dooooon’t Caaarrrrrre…

    Lach talks about hating players kneeling during national anthem, and how he tuned out of the NFL during that time.

    ‘2005 we had four players who got Defensive Player of Year votes. Me [Lach], Briggs, Alex Brown and Nathan Vasher”

    “There’s pre-season, regular season, and post-season speed”

    ‘SB, opening kickoff, Devin Hester takes it to the house. Then, Chris Harris picks off Peyton Manning on their opening drive. Then, we just shit the bed’

    ‘Some fans accuse Rex Grossman of playing badly, but he didn’t play that bad. We gave up 250 yds passing, and 190 yds rushing. That’s not good, not when all season long we were giving up like 300 total.”

    I’m a little surprised by this, but perhaps I shouldn’t be. For starters, Lach is a leader, and not about to throw anyone under the bus. But, c’mon, Lach, there’s a reason Sex Cannon washed out of the league.
    Too bad Manziel didn’t mention Lovie’s baffling decision to stop running Thomas Jones and instead insert Cedric Benson who proceeded almost immediately to fumble it away…

    “I had 21 different QBs in my 13 seasons”

    ‘Lovie was like your dad, a guy you wouldn’t want to disappoint. In one game when we were down to the Lions with a backup QB, at halftime, Lovie said ‘crap, darn and dang’ in the same sentence, and we knew it was go-time. We beat the crap out of them in the 2nd half.’

    “They should’ve never fired Lovie”

    ‘I didn’t like the way they [Halas] handled the offer they made me though I’m glad I didn’t return [to endure the Marc Trestman era].’

    “I had TOO much fun spending $ in college” – Johnny Manziel
    “I was happy when my mom gave me quarters for laundry. Now kids are getting $100K a month”

    Same here, Lach. I always hoped an extra quarter or two slipped in so I can play Shinobi or Double Dragon! 100K? I could buy the whole damn laundromat with that.

    “What are dos and don’t of training camp?” Manziel
    Lach, ‘You learn what to take up there, what to do in your off-time, what you shouldn’t be doing. We first went to Platteville about 4 hours away. Then Bourbonnais. I liked going away.’

    ‘I knew I wasn’t going to be a 6’4, 250 lb safety. They first tried me at SAM, but I was terrible. Rosi [Roosevelt Colvin I’m guessing] beat me out in 2 weeks. They had me line up directly over the TE and jam, but I didn’t know how to use my hands. I’m now a draft bust. Barry Minter gets hurt in week 2. Greg Blache [Then current Bears’ DC] says, ‘Go in and play MIKE’, I told him, “I never played MIKE’
    Blache, ‘just run to the ball and we’ll figure it out’
    Lach, “and I started every game after that at MIKE’

    Reminds me of the saying, “don’t judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree”. To the outside world, SAM and MIKE seem nearly identical, but those few yards were the difference between a draft bust and a HOFer. In college, Lach’s coach played him at Rover, which allowed Lach to show off his athleticism and versatility.
    Something to think about with Bears’ new coaching staff and life in general

    ‘I wasn’t even going to run the 40, but Greg Blache challenged me, and I ran a 4.56 at 258 which opened a lot of NFL eyes at the combine.’

    ‘I love Caleb. If you put him in a different situation like Jayden with Klingsbury or Bo with Sean Payton, I think Caleb could’ve been ROY’

    ‘Ben Johnson’s the man’

    ‘Before Lovie got there, we played fast, but once he was HC, we played hard and fast. He kept track of loafs. You know how embarrassing it is to get in front of the whole team and be called out for loafing?’

    Manziel, “One word to sum up your prime”

    Lach, “Relentless.”