Tag: Chicago Bears (Page 17 of 49)

      Jay Cutler’s latest concussion his fifth since college

      October 14, 2010 /
      Chicago Bears Quarterback Jay Cutler remains on the turf after being sacked in the second quarter against the New York Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium in week 4 of the NFL in East Rutherford, New Jersey on October 3, 2010. UPI /John Angelillo Photo via Newscom

      According to a report by the Chicago Tribune, the concussion that Bears’ quarterback Jay Cutler suffered in Week 4 against the Giants was actually his fifth since college.

      A November 13, 2004 article in the Tennessean reported that Culter had suffered three concussions while at Vanderbilt and a fourth occurred on the final game of the ’06 season when he was with the Broncos. If that’s the case, this is certainly something that the Bears will keep a close eye on going forward.

      The NFL did a great service to its players by making it tougher to return to games or play the next week if they suffer a head injury. They now have to pass a series of concussion-related tests and if the player is still showing even the slightest signs that the injury is still prevalent, then he can’t play under any circumstance.

      Of course, if the league is so stringent about head injuries now, it makes you wonder how many players have played with concussions before. It’s almost sad that it has taken this long for the NFL to recognize that it needs to be stricter when it comes to players’ noggins.

      But at least they did figure it out and players like Cutler (who is expected to return to action this week after missing Chicago’s win over the Panthers last Sunday) aren’t putting themselves even further in danger than they already are. After all, football is a contact sport – injuries happen. But if they can be avoided, then the league needs to take the steps necessary in order for that to happen.

      External Sports, NFL

      That win is on you, Mike Martz

      October 10, 2010 /
      Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte warms up before before a preseason game against the Oakland Raiders at Soldier Field in Chicago on August 21, 2010. UPI/Brian Kersey Photo via Newscom

      With Jay Cutler out and the I-can’t-believe-dude-is-this-bad Todd Collins in, Mike Martz knew he had to change his offensive philosophy for Sunday’s game against the Panthers.

      So for the first time ever in his career, Martz ran the football. And he ran the football. And he ran, and ran, and continued to run until the Bears managed to scoop up a dominating 23-6 win. And thanks to Martz’s dedication to the run game, Matt Forte had an opportunity to be the hero and that’s exactly what he was.

      Forte rushed 22 times for a career-high 166 yards and two touchdowns, which included a score on the first drive of the game on an 18-yard scamper. He also added a 68-yard score later in the first quarter to give Chicago a 14-3 lead.

      It was rather impressive that the Panthers knew the Bears had to run to win and they still couldn’t stop Forte. Collins was just as bad as everyone feared (he completed only 6-of-16 passes and threw four interceptions), but it didn’t matter because Chicago grabbed an early lead and never looked back. Collins kept Carolina in the game, but thanks to Forte and Jimmy Clausen, the Bears never trailed.

      At 4-1, the Bears now have sole possession of the NFC North.

      External Sports, NFL

      Ah, so that’s why Jimmy Clausen fell into the second round

      October 10, 2010 /
      CHARLOTTE, NC - SEPTEMBER 19: Jimmy Clausen of the Carolina Panthers warms up before their game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Bank of America Stadium on September 19, 2010 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)

      Back in April, some pundits felt as though Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen had first round talent. But good luck trying to find anyone who will admit that now.

      Rookie quarterbacks struggle in the NFL – it’s just the way it is. But so far, Clausen has played in all five of the Panthers’ games and has completed just 34 of his 69 pass attempts for 393 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Worse than his numbers is the fact that he’s shown zero ability to move Carolina’s offense whatsoever.

      The Bears (Carolina’s opponent on Sunday) have a solid defense and they’re liable to make any quarterback look bad. And hey, if I started against Chicago today, I’d probably crap down my pants, too. But with the way Clausen played in his team’s 23-6 loss on Sunday, it makes you wonder what John Fox and Co. saw in him to make him a second round pick in April.

      Clausen completed just 9-of-22 passes for 61 yards and an interception before finally being benched in the fourth quarter. He showed zero accuracy, displayed no rhythm and was rarely on the same page with his receivers. I get that he’s only a rookie, but he hasn’t shown anything that would indicate that he actually belongs in a starting role.

      You hate to pin a loss on one player, but because Clausen was so ineffective, DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart had nowhere to run and even though the defense picked off Todd Collins (who may have played even worse than Clausen if that’s possible) four times, the Panthers still only managed six points. It’s almost like Clausen’s putrid play had a domino affect on the rest of the team and it doesn’t say a lot about Matt Moore’s game that the Panthers would rather go with the rookie than with him.

      Of course, it’s not like Clausen has much to work with in the receiving game. Steve Smith was out with an injury, although one would have thought that Clausen would apperciate that seeing as how Smith has torn him a new one at least once a day since the rookie arrived to Carolina. The Panthers’ wideouts are young and inexperienced, although again, Clausen has shown almost zero intangibles to this point. Most of the time you can say, “That rookie QB makes a lot of mistakes, but you can see the zip on his passes,” or “He just needs a little time to mature, but you can see that he’s accurate and has control of the huddle.”

      We’ve got crickets on Clausen.

      Today was a new low for the Panthers and it may be a while before they pick up their first win.

      External Sports, NFL

      NFL Week 4 MVP, COY and ROY power rankings

      October 10, 2010 /

      We are a quarter of the way through the NFL season, and there are lots of wacky things happening. The Chiefs are 3-0 and the only undefeated team. That’s a far cry from last year, when the Colts and Saints were unbeaten almost all the way to the end of the 2009 campaign. There are also some interesting candidates emerging for MVP consideration, as well as for Coach of the Year and Rookie of the Year. And like last year, we’ll start to analyze them in power rankings fashion. For this week and maybe the next few, we’ll put this in one post and give three names for each category. Around the halfway point of the season, more candidates will emerge so we will separate things out. Sound good? Right. Let’s go……..

      MVP Power Rankings

      1. Michael Vick, Philadelphia Eagles—Do we even have to spell this out? He steps in for Kevin Kolb in Week 1 and almost leads the Eagles to victory against the Packers. Then he wins against Detroit and Jacksonville before having his ribs crushed on a meaningless play vs. Washington last Sunday, knocking him out of the game early. Kolb comes back in, and the Eagles lose. Vick is averaging 200 yards passing per game, has 6 TDs and no interceptions, and is also averaging 7.2 yards per rush on 26 carries and one TD on the ground. He has a QB rating of 108.8 while Kolb’s is 71.1. Simply put, this team is dangerous with Vick, and not scaring anyone without him. That’s the very definition of MVP.

      Continue reading »

      External Sports, NFL

      Jay Cutler out for Sunday – will Mike Martz be forced to rely on the run?

      October 7, 2010 /
      Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz stands on the field during warmups before a preseason game against the Oakland Raiders at Soldier Field in Chicago on August 21, 2010. UPI/Brian Kersey Photo via Newscom

      Mike Martz has long established that he would rather sit next to a crying baby on an airplane than run the football any more than he has to on Sundays. In fact, if it were truly up to him, he may scratch the run entirely and throw the ball on every down.

      But he has a problem this week. The Bears are in Carolina to take on a winless Panthers team and Jay Cutler is still feeling the affects of the concussion he suffered last Sunday night in New York. That means Todd Collins will have to start, which doesn’t bode well for Martz’s pass-happy offense.

      Collins was beyond putrid last weekend and it would behoove the Bears to keep the ball on the ground and allow their defense to win the game. Chicago has two capable running backs in Matt Forte and Chester Taylor, but thanks to Martz’s pass first and ask questions later approach, Da Bears are gaining only 68.8 yards per game on the ground this year.

      If Martz can’t adjust, the Bears are in trouble. The Panthers may not be in the win column yet and they certainly don’t have the pass rush that the Giants (Chicago’s opponent last weekend) have, but they hung with the Saints last Sunday and have two running backs in DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart that can wear down a tired defense late in games. If Chicago’s defense is on the field for long periods of time thanks to the ineptitude of Collins, then Carolina can take the game out of rookie quarterback Jimmy Claussen’s hand and lean on their ground attack.

      I don’t know what’s least likely to happen, Collins actually throwing the ball for more than 2.5 yards per pass or Martz changing his offense to a run first approach.

      Or Carolina winning a game.

      External Sports, NFL

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