"...where the streets are cold and lonely, and the cars they burn below me..."
Larry Mayer's Chalk Talk - Larry discusses who the Bears will start at safety this season, how many WRs they'll keep, and how long starters will play in Thursday night's preseason finale in Cleveland.
NFCN Preview: Packers, Bears, Lions, Vikings - SI predicts Bears to pip Lions to second place in the NFCN.
USAToday team report - Peruse or you lose.
Bonus [Audio]: Sam, photojournalist from Goshen, calls in on CJH on Friday's podcast (skip to 2:25:00 or so).
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Injury & Roster moves
Who will make the Bears’ final 53? - Bob LeGere: 22 Bears who are on the roster for Thursday night's preseason finale will not make the final 53, which must be determined by 8 p.m. the next day.
Rookie safety Brandon Hardin will miss season - Walking around the practice facility with a neck brace is never a good sign, and for rookie safety Brandon Hardin, it signaled the end of his season.
Bears begin first round of cuts, including QB Blanchard - Moon Mullin: Team waived/released nine players on Sunday. Brandon Hardin on IR.
Bears giving Knox more time to recover - Larry Mayer on Know's recovery, and Lovie's thoughts after the Giants game and on WR Joe Anderson.
Johnny Knox to miss at least first six weeks - Knox on PUP list, other roster news.
Hardin placed on IR, Knox goes on PUP - Larry Mayer: The Bears cut 10 others.
Johnny Knox vows to return to the field - Sean Jensen: Isn’t surprised that he’s starting the 2012 season on the PUP list, but he fully expects to play again in the NFL.
Hardin to IR; Knox starts on PUP - Jeff Dickerson: Also released nine players Sunday.
Lewis: Knox not close to ready - Kip Lewis says Johnny Knox's trip to the PUP list could last longer than just six weeks, as the wideout doesn't look close to returning.
Bears will be looking for help at safety - Brad Biggs: Anthony Walters has performed well and has a strong shot at the 53-man roster even if the club adds another safety.
Bears Cuts: No surprises among first wave - The first round of roster cuts left Bears with three QBs and brought an end to one veteran first-rounder's attempt to resurrect what has been a disappointing career. No, it wasn't Chris Spencer.
Until decisions are out, Bears know nobody’s really a lock - Chances are, there are players on the bubble who don’t know it..
Other Bears news: offense
Sanzenbacher's "special" play carving himself a roster spot - Moon Mullin: Dane Sanzenbacher's spot is looking safer each day thanks to his contributions on special teams.
Cutler-to-Marshall flashbacks produce points but not where they want - Moon Mullin: Duo didn't appear as balanced as they had hoped to be.
Brandon Marshall impressed with Bears' O - "The only people that can really stop us is us."
Bears must resolve communication issues - Dan Pompei: Though there was a bit of disconnect between Jay Cutler and his WRs, there were several positives to take from the exhibition victory over the Giants
Joniak: Without Martz’s handcuffs, Cutler can flourish - Listening to the thoughts of Jeff Joniak, the Bears radio play-by-play man, it appears as if Jay Cutler has been freed from shackles. Includes [Audio].
Longshot Joe Anderson catches Lovie's eye - Rookie WR Joe Anderson had two big catches against the Giants on Friday, but it may not be enough for the long shot to make the Bears' roster.
There are still plenty of concerns along the OL - Jon Greenberg: The Bears say their O-line is making strides, but are they big enough? Bonus: Never thought I'd see a reference to Der Spiegel in Chicago media. Gesundheit.
Mike Tice blames overemphasizing pass for Bears' run blocking woes - Lovie Smith always says his team gets off the bus running, but in preseason the Bears have merely been running in place.
Bears' focus shifts to ground game - Bears rank 30th in rushing offense through three exhibition games with an average of 70.7 yards per game and 3.0 yards per carry. Matt Forte managed just 39 yards on 10 carries against the Giants and was dropped for a loss on two of his first three carries.
Signs point to Webb as Bears' LT - J-Webb Nation rejoices as the worst starting LT in the NFL returns. Buy his t-shirts!
Bears staying patient with ground game - Michael C. Wright: It's going to take time for the run game to reach top form.
Two clear answers for what ails Bears run game - Moon Mullin analyzes two reasons why the Bears' run-based offense hasn't produced the way they did in 2011.
ESPN The Magazine: Matt Forte's journey - ' "Why aren't you trying to pay me as an elite back?" Forte asked. Angelo's response: "You haven't even made it to a Pro Bowl." ..Forte entered the season with a very clear parting message from management: You are not as good as you think." '
Other Bears news: defense & ... punting
Bears not as good at forcing turnovers without Urlacher - Without Urlacher on the field, the Bears know deep down their defense isn’t ready for the start of the regular season.
Bears safety Anthony Walters enjoys a great road tip - Safety made a game-saving deflection in the victory over the Giants, tipping a pass in the end zone that rookie CB Isaiah Frey intercepted with 1:06 left.
DE Cheta Ozougwu rebounds with a sack - Plus, game notes.
There's a lot to learn from Brandon Hardin's mistake - Dan Pompei: Every youth football coach in America should show his team the video from (that) play in the Bears-Redskins exhibition game.
Ryan Quigley's punting gives Bears a lift - Because we all need something to be optimistic about after the Giants debacle.
Punter Adam Podlesh pushing to be ready for opener - Was expected to be sidelined four to six weeks but has improved dramatically, could be back Sept. 9 to face the Colts. Can he play MLB, LT, LG, or S?
Ryan Quigley impresses Bears - Bears head coach Lovie Smith singled out the performance of rookie punter Ryan Quigley as one of the highlights of Friday's game.
Everything else
Playbook: Ravens' red zone play action - Matt Bowen goes mad on MS Paint, breaks down Flacco's TD pass to Boldin vs. the Jags.
Playbook: Peyton Manning in the red zone - Matt Bowen breaks down Broncos' 'Double Smash-7' vs. 49ers. Hey, we've got the receivers to try things like this now!
Two NFL franchises for Chicago? Forget about it - David Haugh: Former Mayor Daley just feeding sports talk as many other cities provide more enticing markets.
Former Bear Sam Hurd’s co-defendant pleads guilty in drug case - Ooo, it's not looking good for Hurd. Incidentally, look at this cartoon from last year (the fourth partially-visible locker is Earl Bennett's) and tell me you're not worried about Hester's well-being. Or Sanzenbacher's special friends...
Bears' uniforms named best in NFL - No need to mess with perfection.
All the swagger that the likes of Oasis only wished they could have had.