Last week, the Bears suffered their first loss in the Marc Trestman Era. This week, it doesn't get any easier as the undefeated New Orleans Saints come to town.
You know the Saints' weapons by now - Jimmy Graham, Darren Sproles, Marques Colston, some guy that goes by Drew Brees, I'm hazy on the details. But while the defense hasn't faced many legitimate NFL offenses (and going by the rankings, the Bears can be included in this group yet...), they've capitalized on their opportunities, and gotten after the quarterback.
And with the Bears having been recently gashed by a very similar back to Sproles in Reggie Bush, that leaves this writer/gamer/resident-site-idiot with a tremendous tremor of trepidation regarding this tussle. If the Bears are to knock off the undefeated Saints (and as much as I'd like to tell the 1972 Dolphins to shove it and go away, I'd rather the Bears win), it has to start with tackling better than last week and protecting the ball better. Unlike the Lions, whose second quarter scoring spree was fueled by turnovers, the Saints don't need as much help to put points on the board in a hurry.
Game day, folks.
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From the Lester A. Wiltfong Jr School of Self-Promotion (And Want To Do Other Things Gooder Too):
I offered six keys to the Bears taking down the Saints. And I also put up some late-night thoughts on how a win today can make an easier road for the Bears to make plays in the NFC North.
Kev has your viewing options for the game right here.
Looking for the injury report? That's right here as well.
Sam Householder has words about Matt Forte, who should see heavy use in today's game. Meanwhile, Kev warns you about the Saints' main pass-catcher out of the backfield.
And if you want to read my PTMY on the Saints one more time, here it is.
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Remember when the defense and special teams were formidable units? Adam Jahns wants to remind you they were bad against the Lions (and so far this year).
Here's ESPN Chicago's What to Watch For on the game, with the overall advantage to the Saints.
... I guess they have two things titled "What to Watch For"? Here's five things Michael Wright's looking for. Six > Five
If you want to read people unnecessarily angry about things and being unreasonably testy, there's some fun stuff here.
Here's the Chi-Trib's game preview.
Stephen Paea says he's in and damn the injury report's designation. It's more like a guideline anyway! (Yes, I work in that Pirates reference any chance I get, deal with it. Dot gif.)
Lance Moore's out, though.
Traitor Israel Idonije gave away trade secrets, gasp golly gee-whiz. Marc Trestman and Lance Briggs call folly.
Matt Bowen's breakdown has the Saints picking apart matchup issues.
Jon Bostic didn't get fined for hitting Kris Durham last week. Jim Schwartz cries hypocrisy.
Pete Prisco has the Bears over the Saints because of the field. That doesn't make me feel any better.
Henry Melton believes he'll come back (harder, better, faster,) stronger. Doesn't help the Bears this year while they're paying him over eight million, though.
And if Spongie's absence indicates anything, Spongie > Orange Shy Guy. But I do better Madden Previews than the Chi-Trib, I'd say. Certainly more humor and less skill than an A.I.
The procedure today goes the same as last week - we'll have the first-quarter thread hitting at around noon (you know, when the game starts), with subsequent quarter threads appearing as the game advances. After the game, we'll have our recap up immediately followed by the threads for the late games, with Notes to follow in the morning.
Now with all the propers out of the way, Bear Down my friends.
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And as usual, we'll have our pre-game stream that'll come up at about 9:30 AM. Spongie's on vacation this weekend, so he won't be around - it'll be pretty much myself to start with an appearance from Sam later on. So expect some football, some comments, and possibly a lot of randomness. As always, leave your comments and questions here in this thread, we'll see them, we'll read them, we'll react to them, and I'll play some horrible Madden in the process! (And maybe a bonus appearance from my Pandora account for a moment.)