let's talk about da bears..........
 

can we beat em? what will it take to get brooks back to 2000 form? what is the f##king problem? why the zip on the ball? is he trying to impress bouman? hell, look up, float a steady pass and let the reciever grab it......case closed......many of these dropped/missed passes either have too much zip or are way off target......i don't wanna hear, we don't know what's wrong from the coaching staff and the players....i wanna hear, "WE ARE PRACTICING" after all, practice makes perfect.......put forth the effort and the wins will come.......this offense has my neck strained from shaking it........let's start with the bears. get your a##es on the field after many hrs of practice and come away with the win....and continue this on to the next game........ comments, anyone? smitty

let's talk about da bears..........
 

No matter what mood I\'m in, ssmitty\'s posts always bring a smile to my face. Amen, kemosabe!

let's talk about da bears..........
 

Good thoughts about Brooks\' passing. I don\'t understand why he has suddenly become so poor at \"delivering\" the ball. I\'ve heard a lot of people rag the receivers about drops (some of them SHOULD have been caught), but even the best receiver can\'t make circus catches all the time. For someone like Stallworth who is still on the upswing of a learning curve, Brooks\' poor passing has all but taken him (and his breakaway speed) out of the offensive picture. Donte should have been a weapon this year, but instead he has been more of a hindrance and a lot of it is this \"delivery\" problem. There\'s no doubt that Brooks still has plenty of zip, but it\'s almost like a broken \"governer\" on an old engine. He can\'t slow it down.

The Bears offense is looking better and better every game. They still are not a dynamo (as we used to be :( ), but they can exploit our struggling defense right now. That means that are going to score points. If we cannot manage to get the offense on track, then it will be a long day. I don\'t have any illusions that our defense can shut out the Bears.

In the early part of the week (still stinging from another loss), I would have bet money we would lose to the Bears. It seems I get more optimistic as gameday approaches and now I am hopeful we will get it together on offense. If after the first half Brooks is still not performing, I can only hope that Haz will give Bouman a chance. I don\'t know if I can stand another three hour drubbing at the hands of a team I \"knew\" we were going to beat at the beginning of the season.

let's talk about da bears..........
 

Kordell Stewart\'s running ability still scares me. If we do manage to shut down the A-train, I can just see Kordell taking off with the ball. I\'ve been hopiing to see Cie Grant and I think maybe he would be a good \"SPY\" on Kordell.

I\'ve been hoping every game that our offense would have a breakout game. I\'ll still be hoping. I\'m one of those that think our offensive problems go way beyond Brooks. I think he should have more time to throw the ball this week and I think it will make all the difference in the world. We\'ll see.

let's talk about da bears..........
 

All offseason we heard how this defense is geared towards shutting down the scrambling QB\'s. Well this is the first test of that prediction. Watching the Bears play, I agree that when Kordell runs the option, or just plain takes off up the gut on a draw....it\'s bloody effective. Anthony Thomas is alot like Stephen Davis. They will try to pound him hard as well. I would whole heartedly advocate playing 8 men near the line and making Kordell beat us with his arm. Just like teams are doing to us. Shut down the run and make us pass the ball. Having 8 near the line and mixing a variety of blitzes in a mock 46 scheme...ala Bears of old....and put the pressure on Stewart to be a quick reader and accurate passer.....his weakest traits.

let's talk about da bears..........
 

I don\'t know if we will see an 8 man front. They did it against the Panthers but only because the passing game didn\'t scare the coaches. Against every other team this year they have had the linebackers drop back in coverage so much. They seem to try to do complex things in the secodary to keep the cornerbacks from getting exposed. I think Venturi tries to be to creative with the coverage and it confuses the secondary guys and that\'s why they are out of position so much. Seems like they are doing to much thinking, instead of just reacting to the developing play.

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Frankly Kordell\'s arm doesn\'t scare me either. The Bear\'s seem to be slow starters on offense like we have been. No sense letting the guy make early completions and gain confidence in the pocket.

Let\'s get aggressive.

let's talk about da bears..........
 

b&b you made me think about grammar school with kemosobe.....
it seems the lone ranger and tonto were riding up a hill and came to the top....
looking down in the valley they saw a 1000 screaming indains headed their way....
the lone ranger turned to tonto and said, looks like we\'re in trouble my friend..
tonto replied, what do you mean \"we\" paleface?
back to the 2000 season, why can\'t we get there?
many of you have stated brooks would play better in a different offense and this is true.
but why did they change it, why fix something that was\'nt broke?
brooks needs to get back to backyard football.........
this is his kinda game where he drops back, looks em over, and shreds the defense...
don\'t tell me he\'s getting rushed now, he was more rushed in 2000, he just danced more.
throw the fu#king plan out the window and get back to watching 2000, 2001 and 2002 game film.
brooks does his best when he is brooks....for some reason, he is not brooks and i blame this on coaches. let the boy play football or for god\'s sake make a change.......
whoever concocted this make brooks a leader needs to be bit#h slapped...... smitty

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Maybe this was discussed somewhere else and I missed it but

Why the pressure on Brooks to prove he is a \'pocket quarterback\'?

I remember hearing this the past couple of years... well, since the 2000 season. I don\'t want to see him run the ball every series -- that\'s just asking for an injury. But I would like to see teams have to account for Brooks\'s running ability.

As far as the \"having fun\" comment Haslett made after the other week\'s game, I think we could apply it to Brooks on the field. Smitty\'s right, he does look stiff and uncomfortable sometimes.

Is there too much pressure on Brooks to be a pocket QB? Where does this pressure originate? Does it have anything to do with AB not wanting to be like his cousin? Didn\'t McNair have to deal with this same identity problem in his first couple of years?

Thoughts?

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True, unfortunately, Darren Howard, Sedrick Hodge, Tebuckey Jones, and Mel Mitchell were key ingredients in that plan. We still may be better than last year, but not as good as we\'d planned due to those injuries.

Sullivan was key also. Is he playing this week?

let's talk about da bears..........
 

Yes, Sullivan is playing this week. Kenny Smith should also be available this week to rotate with the starting D-linemen.

Tweeky, you are right about some of the key players being out on defense this year with injuries. However, out of all the players you named, only one of them has ever proved himsef, and that is Darren Howard. Tebucky has more playing experience than the others but he still has to prove himself as a starter. I think Tebucky is suppose to be back this week also.

I believe that Ruff is an upgrade over Hodge and I don\'t beleive that these other players being out will dramitically hurt our defense. I think the BIG problem with this defense is that Rick Venturi puts them in predictable situations. He needs to be more aggresive. I\'m not saying that we have the talent on defense to be the Bucs, but we have enough talent on defense to be better than what we are, if Rick would be more aggressive.

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I guess we could sum it up by saying..

Venturi needs to stop being Venturi, McCarthy needs to stop being McCarthy, and Brooks needs to start being Brooks.

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Yeah, LummOx. That pretty much sums it up. I haven\'t commented on Brooks, because I know where it will lead, but Brooks needs to step his game up. But, it won\'t do any good for Brooks to step his game up, unless EVERYONE else on the offense steps their game up. Brooks needs to make better decisions than what he makes sometimes and needs to do whatever it takes to keep the chains moving. I don\'t want to see him trying to force things or trying to win the game by himself though. That\'s usally when mistakes happen. Regardless of what plays McCarthy calls, I would like to see Brooks make the decision to run when things break down.

[Edited on 11/10/2003 by BillyCarpenter1]

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WEEK SIX: Chicago Bears

The Bears have gotten their running game cranked up the past two weeks as Anthony “A-train� Thomas has gone over the century mark in both games. The Bears also got their first win of the season last week against the Oakland Raiders. Kordell Stewart returns to the Big Easy as a starting quarterback for the first time in his career. Marty Booker, a Louisiana-Monroe graduate, also returns to Louisiana to play in an NFL game for the first time.

The Bears defense is led by All Pro Linebacker Brian Urlacher. Chicago’s run defense has given up an alarming 168.5 yards per game. If the Saints are going to have success, it will be on the ground.

WHAT ABOUT THE SAINTS

When you have a defense that can’t get off the field on third downs, and the offense can’t stay on the field for more than three downs, the football team will lose. The offense has been flat all season long, which has put too much pressure on the injury-plagued defense. Even if the defense was healthy, due to the off-season moves, or lack thereof, this team came into the season as basically the same team last season. Their success last season was an explosive offense and solid special teams, which allowed them to win shootouts by outscoring their opponents. When they lost, it was due to turnovers, costly penalties, and too many three-and-outs. Not surprisingly, those same reasons that caused them to lose last year are causing them to lose this year and the biggest difference is that they have committed these errors the entire season with the exception of the second half against the Texans.

KEY MATCHUPS

RB Deuce McAllister vs. LB Brian Urlacher-Urlacher is the only playmaker on the Bears defense this season, and he will have to be a one-man wrecking crew against the run if the Bears are going to have any success against Deuce McAllister. Deuce could finally break out for over 150 yards and several touchdowns.

LB Orlando Ruff vs. RB Anthony Thomas-Ruff was brought in to stop the run, and the main weapon the Bears have is Thomas. Thomas will run for his third consecutive 100-yard game if Ruff has a bad game. If Thomas can control the Saints’ defense, they will be in the game until the end.

QB Aaron Brooks vs. QB Kordell Stewart-these two underachievers will both have to have error-free games in order to win the game for their perspective teams. Whatever quarterback loses could be on their way out as the starter for their team.

let's talk about da bears..........
 

The Bears have finally started to get their running game rolling like it was supposed to be, and yes, they look a lot like Carolina on O, except of course they have a QB who can hurt you with his feet and at least one big-time receiver in Marty Booker.

On D, they are the same old Bears. Physical up front, with an oportunistic secondary that can have 2 picks or can get beat for 3 or 4 scores. Expect them to stack it up and play to stop Deuce and the short passing game.

Our D will give the Bears 17 points off of one long drive behind A-Train, one big play from a receiver, and a good punt return followed by some Kordell scrambling. In order for us to win, the Saints STILL NEED TO OPEN UP THE OFFENSE (they did a little bit last week), and use the pass to open up the run. Throw on 1st down. If it\'s second and ten, don\'t run Deuce on a dive or trap. Stay out of third and long, and put the ball 15 to 20 yards down the field on outs and crosses. That\'s my opinion.

One other note on Brooks. I think the idea that Brooks is a scrambler is pretty off-base. He did run around a lot in 2000, but name a time since then that he\'s used his feet to make plays. He has long rubbery legs, his feet are not particularly quick, and he\'s slow. He\'s is not a running quarterback. He\'s an ELUSIVE quarterback. He should use his escapability to create time to throw the ball, or McCarthy should move the pocket or roll him out and give him the option to run or pass and put LBs and CBs in a bad position where they have to make a decision. Brooks isn\'t a true pocket passer, but he IS becoming that kind of QB. He just needs to be patient, deliver the ball on target, and continue to learn how to better read defenses and find ways to exploit his opponents. If the first read is a 6 yards quick slant to Horn, but you see Stallworth on a nickel corner or Deuce or Conwell split out against a LB, your first read NEEDS to change to that route. I don\'t think Brooks sees that, or maybe McCarthy doesn\'t let him make that change. Who knows, but something needs to change. I think we all agree on that.

[Edited on 12/10/2003 by WhoDat]