Posts Tagged ‘Matt Forte’

Bears can clinch tonight

Monday, December 20th, 2010

The Bears will be playing tonight in a questionable location, trying to beat their old rival for a chance to clinch the division. It would be the first playoff appearance since the Bears Super Bowl run in 2006. They will have to be spot on and play complete mistake free football on all fronts.

When I went to bed last night, Joe Webb was slated to start for the Vikings. Now it looks like the old man that never seems to go away will have a shot at starting. Brett Favre was upgraded from out to questionable today and I think it’s total malarkey. That’s putting it lightly by the way. I truly think that if a player has been ruled out, the injured reserve rules apply for that week. I guess the NFL and the Vikings don’t think that way. If Favre does start, the Bears really need to bring their ‘A’ game because the old man would like nothing more than to wreck the Bears chances of seeing the post season. For the Bears defense to win this game they will need to contain Adrian Peterson, Joe Webb/Brett Favre. There’s really no footage on Joe Webb besides last week. So that could mean some trouble for the Bears defense, but he’s still a rookie.  I hope the Bears equipment manager brought plenty of shoes in case the Bears players start to slip, especially Tillman. I don’t know what’s wrong with his cleats, it seems like he slips in every game. He definitely can’t slip up against the Vikings offense or it will burn the Bears for yards and touchdowns.

The Bears offense really needs to play mistake free football. Jay Cutler really needs to play his best tonight. He basically just needs to play smart football. If you’re being pressured and no one is open, throw the ball away. A loss of down is better than an interception in the red zone. The line needs to help out Jay Cutler’s decision making by blocking the dangerous front four of the Vikings defense. They can’t allow a sack or any kind of pressure. If Cutler were to be sacked, I’m sure one of the Vikings players would love to put him out of the game by slamming him against the concrete like turf. The wide receivers also need to help out Jay by going after the ball and being aggressive. I’m tired of seeing the receiver giving up on plays and that leads to easy picks for the defense. It just can’t happen, especially in a game like tonight. Matt Forte and Chester Taylor need to hang onto the ball and fight for the extra yard. If all things go right on the offense, I don’t see why the Bears can’t win this game. I’m not going to lie though, I haven’t been this nervous about a game since the Super Bowl.

Bears win this one and clinch the division.

Final Score
Bears 21
Vikings 13

GammaBears

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Bears win five in a row!

Monday, December 6th, 2010

Unfortunately I was not able to watch the game due to scheduling conflicts. So my prediction was completely off, but to my defense I thought the team that kicked the snot out of the Eagles would show up. After seeing replays and listening to interviews it seems that the Bears defense gave up two huge plays before the second half. They missed tackles and just didn’t do what they are capable of doing.

From what I saw, the Bears offense was pretty solid. Jay had a touchdown pass, and no interceptions. Which is a huge win for him if he plays mistake free football. Something that we have been looking for some time. Earl Bennett had a great game. He had 5 third down conversions from what I heard and he had a career day as well. He had some huge plays when he broke off tackles like a certain running back. Chester Taylor and Matt Forte had a good day running the ball. Both had touchdowns and anytime both the number one and two running backs have touchdowns, it’s a good day.

Devin Hester almost ran one back, but he was taken down by the punter. If Craig Steltz had picked up the punter with a good block he would of just strolled into the end zone. Oh, I almost forgot. Lovie Smith showed a lot of emotion during half time from what I heard. I would love to hear what he said and if he put in a few curse words. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him angry on the sidelines or in a interview but whatever he did sure helped. They held the Lions to under 50 yards in the second half I believe. Half times adjustments are always a key in winning a game. I’m just glad they were able to do it and not lose to the Detroit Lions.

GammaBears

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Bears vs Lions prediction

Saturday, December 4th, 2010

This game has trap written all over it, and I really hope the Bears just dominate all four quarters. If the Bears were to lose it would be the worst one this season I think. I know the Washing and Seattle game was pretty bad, but if they were to lose tomorrow it would be horrible.

For the Bears to win this game, the defense will have to completely dominate. I mean get into Drew Stanton’s face every time he drops back to pass the ball. If you haven’t heard, he’s replacing Shaun Hill, who is out with a broken finger. So that means the Bears will be facing a third string quarterback and this wouldn’t of happened if Julius Peppers didn’t destroy Stafford in the first game of the year. I’m sure they are still angry about it too. If they are able to keep Stanton and the running game in check they will most likely win this game.

Jay Cutler needs to be spot on as well,but for that to happen the Bears need to establish the run game early like they did against the Eagles last week. Forte usually has pretty big days against Detroit and if that trend continues it will be a good day for the Bears offense. The only thing that worries me is that they will feel too over confident and end up blowing the game by stupid decisions. Jay just needs to remember to throw the ball away and don’t force anything.

Final Score
Bears 31
Lions 13

GammaBears

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Bears clip the Eagles

Monday, November 29th, 2010

This was probably the best game I’ve seen all year from the Bears. They were dominant in all phases of the game, except for Eagles last touchdown. How lucky can they get, plus it was just the prevent defense doing their thing. The offense played extremely well, minus Frank Omiyale and J’Marcus Webb for missing blocks. Omiyale has some serious explaining to do. He has been called for a penalty each week since Week 3 I believe. They did pick up their blocks later in the game, but they need to minimize their mistakes.

Jay Cutler looked amazing playing against a high ranked defense. He threw four touchdowns, and didn’t throw one single interception. He also had a sky high QB rating of 146.2! Cutler showed a lot of emotion on his sleeve last night, especially when he went to the referee and a Dick Butkus demonstration and received a personal foul penalty as a result. He had a reason to be angry, Forte was mugged and the refs decided not to throw a flag. They didn’t give the Bears much love throughout the game either so it didn’t surprise me that they didn’t call it. Plus it was a key third down that the refs fudged up on. So yeah, I’m okay for Jay Cutler being angry.

Cutler wasn’t the only one on offense who had a great game, all of the Bears wide receivers and tight ends had a great game. Earl Bennett had an outstanding game. He led the Bears with receptions and touchdowns and it was easily his best game I’ve seen him from all year. Matt Forte had a great day running the ball as well, especially that 61 yard run. It was amazing to see him find the hole, cut, and run for 61 yards. If he had gotten touchdown on that run it would of made it all the better. He ended up having 117 on the ground yesterday. Forte definitely helped out the passing game with his ability to grind the ball and get yards.

The defense played extremely well. They did great on all fronts, they made plays in the backfield and were able to contain Vick the whole game. Forcing him to pass the ball. He was extremely lucky on the touchdown pass to Celek at the end of the game. Other than that, the Bears defense played lights out. Here’s an awesome stat you don’t see often. All starting four defensive lineman had a sack. When was the last time that happened? I’m guessing around the time the Bears won the Super Bowl in ‘85. Tommie Harris finally showed up to a game, deflected a pass in the redzone which led to Chris ‘Hitman’ Harris intercepting the ball. This was the first time Vick has been intercepted all season and I swore there was a stat that said it was the first since 2006. Brian Urlacher had an outstanding game with 10 tackles and kept Vick in check throughout the whole game. If he was going to run straight up the middle he would of met a Bear that would of body slammed him into the ground. Another player that had an outstanding game was Julius Peppers. He had 4 tackles and a sack and made one helluva play when he ran down Vick to stop him from gaining at least 10 yards. I’m pretty sure he shut his critics up with that play. He also had a forced fumble in that game as well. Izzy had a great game as well, seemed like he was around the ball each time the Eagles ran it. So many players had a great game yesterday. It was a beautiful day in Bears football for sure. If there was anyone I missed please let me know.

Oh also, the Bears are now in first place after the Packers lost to the Atlanta Falcons. The Bears remaining schedule includes the Lions, Patriots, Jets, Vikings and Packers. They will all be challenging games, but I think they can pull out some more wins.

Bear Down!

GammaBears

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Bears vs Eagles prediction

Wednesday, November 24th, 2010

This is probably be one of the toughest games the Bears will be playing this season. With a rejuvenated Micheal Vick at the helm for the Eagles, no team has been able to stop him as of late. I do think the Bears will be the first team to do that efficiently. Da Bears have one of the best defenses in the NFL right now and they are coming off a big game against the Dolphins. I know it was their third string quarterback, but to keep shut them out took a lot of skill. Another threat that will have the Bears neutralize is DeSean Jackson. He is a beast and the Bears need their best man covering him all game.

The Bears offense will struggle at times against the Eagles defense. They are no slouches on ‘D’ and they will bring their ‘A’ game.  The thing that worries me the most on offense right now is still the line. I don’t know if they will be able to keep the cornerbacks from blitzing and just demolishing Jay Cutler. Not to get off topic here, but at point during the season my dad said to me “If the Bears don’t get an offensive line for Jay Cutler, he would be found on Lower Wacker Drive.” I laughed and I laughed, but at the same time I knew it was true. That’s why I am really nervous about coming into this game. Another reason why I’m nervous is Jay Cutler throwing multiple interceptions. When he’s nervous, it’s like he loses all football smarts and doesn’t want to throw the ball away. Which is something he needs to work on every week until it’s natural for him.

Matt Forte and Chester Taylor will have to have a huge game on Sunday. The only way Jay Cutler will be able to throw the ball efficiently and hopefully mistake free is if they run the ball. Similar to the way the Bears were able to beat the Dolphins, they needed to run the ball to open up the passing game. If they are able to do that, then they will be able to tear up the Eagles defense and score points on long time consuming drives.

Keys to winning the game…
1. Defense needs to stop Vick, keep him in the pocket.
2. Neutralize DeSean Jackson.
3. Run the ball efficiently, open up the passing game.
4. Jay Cutler needs to play mistake free football.
5. Finally, the Bears offensive line needs to block.

If they are able to do all of that, the Bears should win this game…

Final Score
Bears 28
Eagles 24

GammaBears

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Bears earn 700th win and first shutout since 2006

Friday, November 19th, 2010

I wasn’t able to watch the game last night, but I’ll try my best to review the game from the highlights and from what I’ve read. The Bears earned their 700th regular season win last night, the first team to do that in NFL history. The Bears are also in first place, and hope to keep that lead when the Vikings take on the Packers this Sunday.

Jay Cutler had an okay game, didn’t throw any touchdowns and threw one interception. Sorry fantasy football owners. He didn’t make any mistakes besides that interception though. The last Thursday night game I personally witnessed was one of Jay Cutlers worst outings so I was pretty worried that it would be a repeat.

Matt Forte had a lot of yards on the ground last night and rushed for a touchdown. Was glad to hear that, he needed a rushing touchdown. Taylor also had a pretty solid game. I just wish the line was able to hold and create lanes more often for a one-two punch from Forte and Taylor. Speaking of the offensive line, they gave up three sacks last night. I also heard that J’Marcus Webb had a horrid outing last night and some folks wanted the Bears to bench him. He was called for three holding penalties and gave up a sack. To be fair, he was going up against one of AFC’s best pass rushers, Cameron Wake.

The receiving game was pretty solid, was really hoping Jay Cutler would of thrown a few touchdowns. Knox, Hester and Olsen led the Bears with receiving. The Bears offense went 10-18 on third downs, and I’m pretty sure the Bears receiving game was partly responsible for converting those third downs. I am very happy they are converting third downs. Four weeks ago they were pretty much the worse team converting third downs. They are improving that makes these wins all the better.

The defense was outstanding, stopping the Fins on third down. Holding them to 1-11 on third down was key to that win. They also broke their slump in sacking the quarterback. They sacked Tyler Thigpen six times and Julius Peppers caused half of that sack total. Israel Idonije, Brian Urlacher and Henry Melton was responsible for the other half. Let me tell you, Israel Idonije and Henry Melton are having career years and I’m very excited for both of them. Especially Israel, he has been a back up for pretty much his whole career till this year and he’s proving why he should of been starting. Israel has put up six sacks and two forced fumbles this year. He’s doing great and I hope he gets double digits in sacks. Henry Melton is also having a good year. So far he’s had two sacks and a forced fumble in the last two games. He hasn’t even started a game yet. The Bears have great depth on the defensive line this year.

The Bears also held Ronnie Brown and company to just 39 yards and Tyler Thigpen to just 187 yards passing. They have been on fire as of late and they need that when they go against Vick next week. I’m hoping the Bears can force a lot of key turnovers in the Eagles game. Speaking of turnovers, Charles Tillman registered his 25th career interception last night. Grats Peanut! Also congrats on shutting out the Fins in Miami, the firs time they were able to shut out an opponent since 2006.

GammaBears

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Bears vs Dolphins prediction

Thursday, November 18th, 2010

This game will not easily be won, both teams are very good. Miami has a great running game and when their quarterbacks are healthy they are solid passing the ball. They also have a great defense that creates lots of turnovers and sacks. It will be a game of inches, but in the end the Bears will win.

After last weeks game against the Vikings, I am very confident the Bears offense will able to survive the Dolphins pass rush. The line was able to hold the Vikings dreaded front four to just one sack and created lots of time for Jay Cutler to throw the ball. If they are able to do that again they should be able to just drive down the field like it was practice.

The Bears need to establish a run game first though like they were able to do against the Vikings. Miami is ranked 16th in run defense, giving up 110 yards per game. If Forte and Taylor constantly gain yards this game should be in the bag in my opinion.

The Bears defense is one of the best in the NFL without question. They will most likely be facing a third string quarterback with legit wide receivers. Brandon Marshall and Davone Bess are beasts when they have a healthy quarterback. I would still watch out for those two though. Tackle Jake Long is questionable for today’s game and if he does sit out, the Bears will most likely have a field day with pressure and stuffing the run.

Speaking of the run, they need to watch out for Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. Both are very good running backs and capable of dominating in the wildcat. I’m not sure the Bears have faced the wildcat as of late. They do practice it in practice, so that’s probably their only experience facing it. I am very confident they will be to stop the wildcat and force Miami to use their quarterback.

So here’s my prediction…

Final Score
Bears 28
Dolphins 17

GammaBears

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Impressive win puts Bears on top with Green Bay

Monday, November 15th, 2010

The Bears took down the old man and the Vikings and it was beautiful.It was pretty much Favre’s last game at Soldier Field and it will be remembered for years to come. Three interceptions and a forced fumble is a nice way to go for Favre =).

As I said above, the Bears intercepted the old man three times and made him cough up the ball. The defense were on fire, they held the Vikings to 1-9 on third down. Would have to say that’s one of the best games the defense has had all year. They weren’t able to sack Favre a lot, but they were able to get enough pressure in the backfield to stop a few runs and cause bad passes. I might as well throw a shout out to special teams. Devin Hester looked amazing out there. I don’t think I’ve seen him break so many tackles in one game. I was hoping he would run one back to throw that in the Vikings’ face. The only problem I had with special teams was Brad Maynard. He had maybe one or two good punts but the wrest were just horrid. I don’t know what’s wrong with him. Whether it’s an injury or he’s just getting old, he’s lost a quite a few yards.

The offense looked pretty solid throughout the whole game. Converting third downs is always fun to watch. Johnny Knox played extremely well and didn’t give up on throws. He was constantly going after the ball and that is a major plus in the passing game. Earl Bennett also had an outstanding game as well. He caught a lot of key passes to keep the drives alive. The same goes for Devin Hester. The catch and run for the touchdown was probably the best I’ve seen from him since he started to play wide out for the Bears. The offensive line played extremely well. They only gave up one sack and gave Cutler plenty of time to throw in the pocket. Matt Forte and Chester Taylor ran the ball well. Of course they could of done better, but the line still has it’s faults.

There’s two players who seem to get flagged for every game now. Frank Omiyale and future Hall of Famer in my book, Olin Kreutz. I think this is his second consecutive game he’s been flagged, but this is like Frank’s fifth game. It’s highly unproductive and it kills drives. Other than Cutler’s interceptions, penalties, the Bears offense played extremely well.

Grades:

Offense: A

Defense: A+

Special Teams: A

GammaBears

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Bears vs Vikings Prediction

Saturday, November 13th, 2010

Brett Favre comes back to Soldier field for another beat down, courtesy of the Chicago Bears defense. I’m really hoping the defense will just clobber Favre and the rest of the Vikings offense. I think this will be a well fought game and it will come down to whoever has the ball last.

Even though the Vikings are a struggling team at 3-5, they are still a legitimate threat and a division rival team. So this is a very big must win for the Bears. I don’t need to tell you how important it is to beat the Vikigns and Favre. It’s more than just a W, it’s bragging rights, and it’s most likely the last time he will be playing at Soldier Field.

The defense will have a challenge this week against Favre’s arm and Peterson’s legs. They really need to stop the run so they can focus on Favre, but they really need to watch out for the play action pass that he relies on most of the game to fool the defense. The defense needs to create a lot of pressure as well, so we can see some vintage Favre interceptions.

The Bears offense really click on Sunday to win this game. Especially the receivers and offensive line. Jay Cutler might end up running for his life if the blockers can’t get the job done. The same goes for the wide receivers, they need to run their routes correctly and jump for the ball when it’s thrown to them. They can’t give up on bad passes. Saw that in the ‘Skins game and it resulted in one interception. The Bears running backs need to a good job of running and holding onto the ball. Fumbles has been a costly mistake for Matt Forte and he really needs to bring his ‘A’ game.

Final Score
Bears 21
Vikings 17

GammaBears

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Bears win in Toronto

Monday, November 8th, 2010

The Bears ended the two game losing streak against a very good win-less Bills team. For the past few weeks the Bills have barely lost games, two of those came in overtime.

The Bears offense struggled at times throughout the game and it really surprised me. Especially when running the ball against the worst run defense in the league. But hey, at least the Bears won. That’s all that matters right now. A win is a win.

The passing game just seemed a little off throughout the game, but Jay Cutler did not throw an interception. It wasn’t his greatest performance but he got the job done. I think the Mike Martz offense is a bit more complicated than people think. Jay Cutler is a pretty smart guy and he’s still struggling with it. Earl Bennett had a good game yesterday. He caught his first touchdown of the season. Greg Olsen also reeled in a touchdown as well.

The running game wasn’t real pretty. The Bears ran the balls the four times in their first two possessions. Matt Forte rushed for 49 yards on 14 carries. He didn’t really play an excellent game but he did have a key play when scored the two point conversion late in the fourth quarter. Chester Taylor scored his first touchdown of the year and the line actually blocked for him It was the first time all year I think the Bears have scored from the goal line.

The defense struggled some, but as usual they came up big when they were able to create turnovers. Israel Idonije played extremely well throughout the game. He blocked an extra point and registered half a sack. The blocked extra point was key in the game and it was the kickers first blocked extra point in his career. Leave it to a Bear to create a stat like that. If you have ever noticed, Israel actually resembles a Bear. He his tall, full of muscles and has a pretty cool beard. Tim Jennings came up big in the game by intercepting Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Bears would score a touchdown from that turnover. Chris Harris also caused a key turnover by sealing the game with an interception. Seeing Chris intercept Fitzpatrick reminded me of his days in 2005-2006.

Overall the Bears defense played a good game besides getting burned a few times. Can’t help but wonder why Lovie kept calling plays on defense where the CB’s were lined up about 5-10 yards from the line of scrimmage instead of having them bump the receivers. I personally don’t like seeing that type of coverage because the QB can easily pick the defense apart with short slant routes that go for 5-7 yards.

Grades:
Offense: B+
Defense: A
Special Teams: B

GammaBears

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