Back 2 Back Sick Catches

August 31, 2007

Personally I like David Ball’s catch better even though it was out of bounce.

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Lance Go Crash

August 28, 2007

Lance Briggs Lamborghini crashed on Eden Expressway.

Briggs faces misdemeanor charge for crash

But the report I read said that it was Grossman that borrowed the car. The accident occurred when the steering wheel hit that sweaty part of his hand, and the car went completely went out of control.

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Singletary On Marriage

August 26, 2007

I found this interesting and Singletary’s words filled with wisdom.

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Link Dump

August 24, 2007

Tick Tock World Clock
Fire works off a building? Sounds like a good idea
Got 5 minutes to waste?
Need a new business card?
New Tetris game. Only the Japanese.

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The Bears A Dynasty?

August 23, 2007

Aug. 19, 2007
By Mike Freeman
CBSSports.com National Columnist

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -– The man I consider to be the most under-appreciated coach in all of football gets a good chuckle out of the question he was just asked.

Are the Chicago Bears the NFL’s next dynasty?

There’s that smile again. It says: “I will answer your question because I’m a polite gentleman from Texas. But mamma didn’t raise no fool, cupcake. If you think I’m biting, you’re dumber than you look.”

So Lovie Smith answers intelligently and thoughtfully. And carefully. Then again, he handles almost everything intelligently and thoughtfully. And carefully.

“We’re a team that works hard, with a good group of young players who are hungry,” Smith told me. “We’re not thinking about dynasty. To be a dynasty you need to win a Super Bowl first.”

Oh, yeah. That’s right. Forgot about that part.

But don’t worry, Mr. Smith. That will come soon. Maybe this season, in fact.

Indeed, if there is any franchise ready to make a New England Patriots-like dynasty run — a highly difficult feat to be sure but not entirely impossible in today’s parity-filled NFL — it is the Chicago Bears.

“I want to win the Super Bowl, and to go anywhere else, I don’t think there’s another team out there that can beat us,” defensive lineman Alex Brown told the Chicago Sun-Times, speaking about this year alone. “We’d have to stop ourselves. At every position we’ve got somebody that can totally take over a game and dominate — that’s offense, defense and special teams — so we’ve got a chance.

“There’s some things you can’t control, and that’s injuries, but we’ve been fortunate to get out of training camp without any.”

No team in the NFL (except the Patriots themselves) is better prepared to make a major and sustained Super Bowl run than the Bears. Not Seattle, Indianapolis, New Orleans, or San Diego. No franchise. Period.

The Bears have a stable front office, a roster loaded with exciting young talent and a coaching staff that ranks among the top five in football.

“I like what we’re doing here but I’m not going to make any pronouncements,” said Smith.

No problem coach. I’ll do that for you. Try not to laugh at me please.

Here are ten reasons the Bears are the NFL’s next dynasty:

10. A weak NFC: It’s the junior varsity, really. The NFL equivalent of the NBA’s Eastern Conference. Chicago demonstrated that last season by reaching the Super Bowl with a mediocre offense. The best defense in the conference belongs to the Bears and it’s not even close. Chicago’s defense will likely remain king of the NFC for some time and that will help them dominate the conference.

9. Brian Urlacher: Several years ago there were more than a few players in the NFL who strongly believed that Urlacher was intensely overrated. They don’t feel that way any longer. If he stays healthy, Urlacher will be one of the top three middle linebackers in football for the next three to five years.

8. Jerry Angelo, general manager: Totally screwed up Smith’s contract situation last year by making Smith wait unnecessarily, but Angelo is very Patriot-like in his approach to building the team. The Bears mostly build through the draft, make smart free-agent choices and respect the salary cap.

7. A horrible division: The NFC North might be the worst in football. The key to building a dynasty is dominating your division, and the North will be a stinky mess for years to come. Just look at it. Green Bay will soon be without Brett Favre, Matt Millen in Detroit is a cautionary tale with the Lions cloaked in failure, and Minnesota is still some years away from challenging Chicago. It’s easy pickings for the Bears.

6. Stability: The Bears seem to be on the verge of a long stable period, vital for establishing a dynasty. “What I like about this franchise is that, for the most part, we’re a unified franchise now,” said Smith. “I’m not sure you could have said that about us a few years ago.”

5. Speed: San Diego, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Jacksonville (on defense), Baltimore (on defense) and the Bears are among the teams in football with the greatest team speed, according to two NFL scouts. These scouts rank the Bears as perhaps No. 1.

4. Devin Hester: He could end up being one of the most devastating weapons in football in the past 10 years.

3. Depth: The Patriots and Bears are the two deepest teams in football, according to the two scouts. The Bears, for instance, were able to let a nice talent go (Thomas Jones) yet replace him from the bowels of their own roster with the equally talented Cedric Benson. The secondary is probably the deepest in football. There are many other examples. “This is the deepest team we’ve had by far,” said Smith.

2. Lovie Smith: Understated coaches almost always do not get the respect they deserve. Chest-pounders and one-line generators always get more praise even when unwarranted. Smith is the most underrated coach in football and what he did last year — handling a messy quarterback situation and not going nuclear over the shabby treatment at the hands of his front office all while going to a Super Bowl — easily earns him that title.

One more thing. Smith has quietly assembled a fairly impressive coaching staff.

1. Rex Grossman: Oh boy, I can hear the chuckles. Grossman? Are you kidding me? He’s a total turd. No, his season last year will not go down in league history. He will not be confused with Johnny Unitas. Yet Grossman’s camp performance so far has shown why Smith has stuck by him. Grossman thus far is more poised and accurate and less sloppy in his decision making. I think we will see Grossman emerge as a solid thrower this year.

If Grossman can simply be consistent, the Bears will win 10 to 11 games a year. If he can be good, they’ll dominate the NFC for years to come.

That leads to three reasons why the Bears can’t be a Patriots-like dynasty: Tom Brady, Tom Brady and Tom Brady.

I’ve watched Tom Brady. I know Tom Brady. Tom Brady is a friend of mine. Rex, you’re no Tom Brady.

But who is?

There are scouts who buy my dynasty theory but believe Chicago might end up being the 21st century version of the Buffalo Bills — they could get to multiple Super Bowls and lose them all because the AFC is so superior. I’m not buying that. Chicago’s defense gives them an edge, and should they reach the big game again they’ll definitely win one.

And maybe a lot more because that’s what dynasties do.

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