Fourth & Forever: Bear Hugs vs. Giant Smiles

Fourth & Forever: Bear Hugs vs. Giant Smiles

The New York Giants are winless after five weeks and are hoping to get back on track tonight with a win at the Chicago Bears. As crazy as it sounds, the Giants could still make the playoffs, as the NFC East is once again...terrible. As of right now, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys are tied for first, with a record of 2-3. At 0-5 the Giants are only two games out of first, and could win the division. They would have to win the division to make the playoffs. At five losses in five weeks, it would be a longshot for the Giants to make the playoffs. Teams like the Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints, Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, and the Chicago Bears, all are looking to be playoff bound. The Chicago Bears are looking to get back into the playoffs after missing it the last two seasons. After starting out 3-0, duhhh Bears, have dropped their last two. The Giants and Bears  need a win to put an end to their early season skids.

Defense

The New York Giants need to restore order as being schoolyard bullies. They need to find a mental and physical balance on the field. When I look at the Giants, I think about that fierce pass rush with players such as defensive ends Justin Tuck and Jason Pierre Paul. Between both of them, they have a total of 1.5 sacks in five games. That is unheard of between these two quarterback hunters. They were known as really getting after the quarterback in past years; but now they look like they couldn't get to the Kool-Aid pitcher, if he was standing in the pocket. Ooohh Yeeaahh! This defense is a joke. They give up 36.4 ppg. The Giants defense, really! The Bears defense on the other hand, first started the season like last year...pigskin hungry. Committing turnovers and scoring touchdowns. They must've ate before playing in the last two games; giving up 60 points and only having two sacks. Hey, has anyone seen defensive end Julius Peppers?  Through five games, he has one sack and five tackles. Sounds like a 101 roster cut could be happening at the end of this season, especially since he is due around $38 million in the last two years of his contract. Cornerback Charles Tillman is falling apart with injuries and with age. He can't run with the best of them at age 32, sooner or later he's got to switch to the safety position. Ask Charles Woodson! Whoever comes out with the defensive stops and the turnover battles, wins this game. It doesn't matter who is running the offense.

Offense

The Giants offense averages two touchdowns a game. For a super bowl winning quarterback like Eli Manning, moving the ball down the field should be cool breeze, He's got caliber receivers in Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks on the other end of his completions. So what's the problem? The problem is the Giants do not have a running game. When running back Andre Brown went down early with a broken leg, David Wilson took over and ran into quicksand. Wilson has rushed 44 times for a grand total of 146 yards, with two catches for eight yards. So with no running game, Manning is forced to throw and when defenses know that, they tend to read the play and intercept the ball. They read Manning so much they picked him off 12 times. He should be a professor on how to throw interceptions at Manning University. I even heard Houston Texans quarterback Matt Schaub was enrolled. A lot of defenders call Manning their favorite author. The Bears offense has been much improved under new head coach Marc Trestman. Having a balanced offense and adding weapons around quarterback Jay Cutler. In the beginning it was all about throwing to Brandon Marshall. It didn't matter if he was surrounded by a force field, Cutler still threw it. Now he spreads the ball to second year, second round draft pick Alshon Jeffrey and free agent addition Martellus Bennett. They have five touchdowns between each other. Marshall has three. Running back Matt Forte has been finding running lanes in Tresman's offense, averaging almost five yards a carry. The problem is when the Bears get behind, the running game gets lost and Cutler forces things. Throwing interceptions or fumbling the ball from sacks. The tempo has to be set early for both teams in tonight's matchup..

 Heart

Players look at playing football as a passion, more than just a job. When that passion goes out the door, it becomes just a means to buying nice things. Hey that rhymes! You can tell as a fan, if players are playing to be paid or playing to have fun. Will the real Jadeveon Clowney please stand up! The Giants have been playing just to be playing.  There's no love for the game at all! Sometimes I think the Giants are full of excuses. Whether its injuries, contracts disputes, or lack of leadership. This team needs a voice in the locker room to pull the team together. I can't think of one person on the team, that could unite the locker room. The Bears have a few people, including linebacker Lance Briggs, Brandon Marshall and Julius Peppers. They talk, people listen. The Bears are playing with passion, but they just can't beat top teams. They don't have enough talent to go to a super bowl, but its not all about talent. Its about heart, its about the fight. The Bears look and play together as a team. They play with heart. Remember that hit, Cutler put a hit on Steelers defensive back Robert Golden...that's passion, that's heart. For a team who has dug themselves in a hole, which players are going to take it upon themselves to get them out? Which players are going to put the game and team on their back?

The Bears are favored to win by eight. Looking at how both of these two teams have reached tonight's matchup. The Bears winning by eight sounds right, however the Giants need to win badly. I wouldn't be surprised if the Bears let the Giants hang around and then eventually lose the game to them. At this point, the Giants have nothing else to lose besides pride. Even though their record is bad, they still do have a good quarterback and receivers connection. With no running game, it will be hard to keep defensive backs off of the receivers. Therefore I believe the Giants defensive line comes alive tonight and rattles Cutler until he commits turnovers, which will give the Giants good field position. The Bears pass rush is in a coma. If they give Eli time in the pocket to get passes downfield, his receivers will get separation and he will have a big night. The Bears need to make sure that Giant pass rush will stay quiet. Run the ball and let Forte keep the defense honest. Bear hugs vs. Giant smiles. Bears are looking to give hugs at the end, while the Giants are looking to walk away with a smile.

CHICAGO BEARS: Hello Marc Trestman!

Felipe M

"WE WANT GRUDEN! COWHER! REID!" Seemed to be the Bears' fans' cry of the offseason after long-time Head Coach, Lovie Smith was fired. Among the attributes and characteristics that Bears' fans were demanding from General Manager Phil Emery are as follows:

• It is IMPERATIVE that the new head coach have a strong, offensive background. 
• The coach MUST be a proven winner.
• Preference for a FIERY coach to bring a new spark to the veteran team would be ideal.

Marc Trestman is the Chicago Bears' new head coach and has all ready started to fill out his coaching staff, hiring Aaron Cromer as his Offensive Coordinator and Jim DeCamillis as the new Special Team's/Assistant Head Coach.  He has gotten high praise from the likes of Steve Young, Jimmy Johnson, and Bears' Wide Receiver, Brandon Marshall.

But does Trestman pass the Bears' fans' seal of approval?

For starters, Trestman has had plenty of success developing offenses that accumulates lots of yards and puts lots of points on the board in the NFL. He's gotten credit for helping tutor and develop NFL quarterbacks like Young, Rich Gannon, and Bernie Kosar. He's even worked with current Bears' QB, Jay Cutler--which might have been the ultimate advantage for Trestman to get the job over the dozen or so candidates that Emery interviewed. Along with a porous offensive line, another major issue this offseason is trying to fix Cutler's game and hold him more accountable. (What is wrong with Jay Cutler?  You can read my grievances, here).

So the background is there, but there's this one discrepancy that Bears' fans will probably won't overcome: his most recent gig was coaching in the Canadian Football League. Kudos to Emery for thinking outside the box and not limiting himself in this hire, but the same fans who were screaming for "GRUDEN! COWHER! REID!" are the same fans who will be asking, "Does this Testaman or Tressnan--or however the hell you say it--know the American game?  What the heck are Da Bears doing hiring a Canadian?" So far, Trestman has gotten mighty endorsements from paramount NFL minds who cite his success in the collegiate, NFL, and CFL levels.

Ok, but is he a winner?

How does a 59-31 record along with 2, CFL Grey Cups sound?

And the final hurdle he must pass: will he bring the fire and brimstone that desperate Bears' fans still seek, even long after former coach Mike Ditka roamed the sidelines?

How does this pregame speech sound to you (or fast forward to the 12:00 minute mark on the video below)?

So the Chicago Bears hired a "great offensive mind," a proven winner, and Bizarro Lovie Smith--the offensive version of Smith, if you will.

Many fans were tired of Smith's lack of personality and emotion during press conferences, interviews, or simply him just standing on the sidelines not doing much of anything, but...head coaching--It drove them nuts!  They wanted to see an animated coach, who chewed out his players when they did something wrong, and who can come up with pep talks, before, during, and after the game to inspire and motivate his players to perform beyond optimal level.  They wanted the reincarnation of Ditka. Or at the very least "GRUDEN! COWHER! Or REID!"

Trestman is simply not that type of person:

• His players loved him (just like the Bears' defense loved Smith).  Definitely a players' coach based on first impression--just like Smith. 
• Young in his praise did mention that Trestman is "not gonna scream at people" (just like Smith).
• A former player of Trestman's described him as "cool, calm, and collected; characteristics that could be used to describe Smith. 

This would be the third consecutive coach that the Bears have hired that does not fit the "fire and brimstone" profile that many Bears' fans yearn and miss about Mike Ditka (Dick Jauron being the other head coach). Ownership has clearly gone out of their way to disassociate themselves from the iconic, short-tempered Ditka--not from a personal standpoint, but from a personnel standpoint.

Whether fans accept Trestman or not will depend upon wins and losses, naturally. However, this is a great move by Emery and a step in the right direction for the organization.  There's a mission in place, full of short-term and long-term goals that everybody from the top-down understand and are in full acquiescence. Emery hired the ideal coach that fit his predetermined paradigm. The head coach and GM agree on the latter's recommendations to fill out the rest of his coaching staff (something that pretty much doomed Lovie Smith in the last 2-3 seasons as head coach of the Bears: an inability to land favored candidates to fill out coaching vacancies on his staff).

There's finally organization on this team! As a Bears' fan, that is something I'm going to have to get used to.  Will see if streamlines well with the players and produces points, yards, and wins on the field, but this certainly is the start of a new era--even if the coach fits the profile of the last 2 head coaches the team has hired before him.

For more on the Chicago Bears, click here.

THE BARE OFFENSE: What happened in Chicago?

Felipe M

We have discussed Lovie Smith being fired from his position as Chicago Bears' head coach focusing that the move was made because GM Phil Emery wanted to start fresh with a new head coach and because, unlike the defense that played under Smith through much of his tenure, the offense wound up being mediocre at best under his watch. The perceived notion is that in 2012, the new GM brought in Brandon Marshall via trade, drafted Alshon Jeffery as the 2nd receiver, re-signed Matt Forte to a long-term contract, signed  Michael Bush as a legit backup to Forte, signed Jason Campbell to backup Jay Cutler to improve the offense this year.  

Unfortunately for Smith, instead of improvement, he oversaw the same unorganized trash that has plagued the team since he took over as head coach. The team finished 28th in total offense. While all the roster improvements on the skill positions were made, Emery did very little to improve a position that has been killing this team for the past 'x' amount of years: the offensive line.  

Its fairly obvious what Emery must do this offseason if he wishes to see a better offense in 2013. He can bring in whatever coach he likes, whether it's Mike McCoy from Denver, Mike Sullivan from Tampa, Tom Clements from Green Bay, or Bruce Arians from Indianapolis--all of them offensive coordinators (so much for GRUDEN! COWHER! and REID!)--none of them will be any more successful than Smith if the offensive line isn't addressed this upcoming offseason. 

Besides the o-line, however, 2012 also exposed this offense under a different light. Even though many fans and media members alike believe that a new head coach will whip this offense into shape, there were enough discrepancies in 2012 that showed that perhaps this team's offense needs more than just a new a coaching staff:

• Jay Cutler was quoted in saying, before Smith was fired, that he would like to have some consistency in terms of offensive coordinator. Cutler has had to work under a lot of offensive coordinators in his NFL career and the same theme is prevalent: Cutler is a stubborn, arrogant person who was drafted in the 1st round because of his cannon-like arm, but has shown poor decision-making skills and fundamentals. 
• The closest coordinator that was able to utilize Cutler's abilities and show glimpses of his full potential was Mike Martz. Though, Martz's downfall, ironically enough, was his stubbornness and arrogance in his play-calling when backup Caleb Hanie became the starter because of a season-ending thumb injury to Cutler in 2011, he did wonders with Cutler's ability and forced him to step out of his comfort zone to let the system complement his arm strength.  
• On top of that, he forced Cutler to do away with some fundamental flaws in his game and help to slightly improve his technique, footwork, and mechanics as a quarterback.
• After Martz was fired, the Bears promoted Mike Tice as offensive coordinator and promised a more conservative approach and an emphasis to move Cutler out of the pocket to take advantage of his mobility and ability to throw the ball as he scrambles. On top of that, unlike Martz's offense that emphasizes timed, passing routes, Tice succumbed to Cutler's request to throw the ball to open receivers.  
• Unfortunately, Cutler reverted back to all those flaws that Martz had tediously help break as the team's offensive coordinator.
• Cutler, visibly, showed very little respect for Tice as a play-caller (especially during nationally televised games) and reports leaked that Cutler, along with Brandon Marshall, would go out of their way to dismiss Tice and would revert back to the plays that made the duo a "success" in Denver. 
• Despite Marshall having a great year, Cutler threw 14 interceptions and only averaged 200.2 yards per game--his lowest output since 2006 when he was a rookie for the Denver Broncos. 
• Instead of Marshall helping Cutler become a better QB, Marshall, unintentionally, enabled Cutler to pick up the bad habits he has shed throughout his NFL career and continued to target the big WR numerous times while virtually avoiding the team's other receivers.

• Despite the team's defense and special teams providing great field positioning for Cutler and his offense, more often than not, in 2012 they failed to capitalize on those advantages.
• Coming into the 2012 season, it could be argued that Cutler was ranked as the 11th best QB in the NFL, looking to move up the ladder and cement his place among the game's elite passers.  Instead, the Bears ended up getting a player who posted stats that closely resembles a "game-manager"-style QB (think Kyle Orton) and continued to make ill-advised throws because he continues to rely heavily on his talents, abilities, and physical traits.
• Mike Tice will more than likely not return to the Bears next season, giving Cutler yet another offensive coordinator to work with.  What can a new coordinator do for an NFL quarterback who has a history of dismissing authority, comes with a pompous, apathetic attitude, and refuses to improve his game?  According to many Bears' fans, Cutler will somehow, miraculously, convert into the elite QB his untapped potential projects him to be. 
• In reality, while Bears' fans and local media alike dream on, Cutler will undoubtedly continue to drop in the QB rankings as the rookie QB class of 2012 will make a run to leap-frog Cutler in the individual rankings and help their individual teams move up in terms of the standings. 
• The offensive line was a big problem this year giving up 38 sacks when Cutler was the QB. But when he did have protection, Cutler still made terrible throws that were intercepted.  The game against the Minnesota Vikings is a perfect example of Cutler not facing much pressure, but still making dumb mistakes that cost the team a chance to win games.

So after dissecting the Bears' offense in 2012, it's safe to say that if the team is expecting to see improvements in 2013 it's going to need more than a new coaching staff, more talent, or even more help on the offensive line. Lovie Smith was fired because Emery believes that the next coach he hires will finally set up an offense that will bring this team back into Super Bowl contention. However, any Super Bowl aspirations begin with Jay Cutler. 

In Denver, Jay Cutler was drafted to be the next John Elway. The Bears traded for Cutler as the missing piece to bring this team back into the Super Bowl. Instead, Cutler has been playing and acting like a former 1st round bust who also played quarterback in the NFL: his name was Jeff George. If Cutler stops progressing and continues to regress as an NFL quarterback, he will be nothing more than a Jeff George clone--a player with all the physical traits to be a successful QB in the NFL, but can never lead his team to the ultimate goal: a bust.