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The Bears Den: September 13, 2013 - Week 2 news and notes

By Spongie

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Jonathan Daniel

'Clutch' Cutler? - Moon Mullin: Martellus Bennett played last season with Eli Manning, whose fourth-quarter play is regularly among the NFL’s best, and was impressed by what he saw last Sunday with Cutler performing with the game on the line. Rich Campbell: Cutler's cool at tough time impresses Trestman.

Trestman went to Montreal to overcome perceptions, find his coaching soul - Les Carpenter with a fascinating insight into the man Phil Emery picked to lead the Beloved.

Team Report - The Bears prepare to face the Vikings on Sunday.

Follow WCG on Twitter; like us on Facebook (& click on 'Subscribed to'). Blame ThorCo. Click for Chicago Bears Tickets. Check out David "OSS" Taylor's CheekyMonkeyArt prints and t-shirts.

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Bears-Vikings

Game preview - Jeff Mezydlo: Vikings need to take care of the football against an opportunistic Bears defense that seems to have picked up where it left off last season. James Neveau: Bears to wear 1940's throwback jerseys Sunday.

Game preview - James Neveau: When the Bears and Vikings tangle at Soldier Field on Sunday, one question will determine the outcome: can the Bears stop Adrian Peterson? How AP has fared vs Bears.

Tackling must improve against Peterson - Michael C. Wright: The last time the teams met, AP shredded the Bears for 104 yards in the first quarter and a pair of TDs.

Cutler has no complaints about O-line - Bob LeGere: As long as Cutler stays clean, the offense could go a long way — no pun intended.

O-line ready for next test vs. Vikings - Doug Padilla: Add O-line play to the reasons the Bears might be willing to open up the playbook even further this week.

Lions provide a blueprint for Bears to beat Vikings - Dan Wiederer: If Vikings shut down big-play receiver, versatile RB can do damage in middle of field.

Matt Bowen: Scouting the Bears - Cutler can spread the field with receivers to find a deep seam in Vikings' Cover-2 for Alshon Jeffery to exploit.

[Video] View from the Moon - Moon on Bears, Vikings. Could Ponder hurt the Bears on Sunday?

Bears gear up for Christian Ponder - Adam L. Jahns: For all of Cutler’s critics out there, Ponder’s place in Minnesota should be reminder that things could always be worse.

Game preview - Ben Goessling and Michael C. Wright discuss Bears-Vikings and make their predictions.

[Video] ESPN - The NFL Live crew make their picks for Minnesota at Chicago.

Injury news - Michael C. Wright: Tillman (knee) and Peppers missed practice on Thursday, but it shouldn't affect their availability for Sunday’s game. Moon Mullin: Peppers sent home with fever.

Know thy enemy - Ben Goessling: Adrian Peterson looks to rebound from a disappointing week, in whatever universe a 93-yard day qualifies as a disappointment.

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Bearsss

Trust between Cutler, Bennett yields results - Adam Hoge: Jay Cutler and Martellus Bennett have the freedom to freelance in the red zone. Of course, that’s what all well-oiled offenses do when the QB and receivers are on the same page. How QB has fared under each OC.

DeCamillis: Gould 'really wants to be the best' - Larry Mayer: The way Joe DeCamillis sees it, Robbie Gould's success can be attributed to the kicker's competitiveness and knowledge of the game. Jeff Dickerson: Nails 10 straight from long range.

Dan Pompei's Brad Biggs's Bears mailbag - Reader Q&A on all things Bears (incidentally, I was wondering why other writers have been taking on Dan Pompei's roles: he quit the Tribune over a ban on freelancing).

Joniak's Journal - Stephen Paea injury-free for new season; rookie O-linemen impress with maturity; 50-year anniversary of '63 Championship Bears; Paea on tackling AP.

Four Downs - Jeff Dickerson & Jon Greenberg weigh in on whether or not the Bears' identity has shifted from a defensive team to an offensive one, and more.

Team notes - Adam Hoge: Long self-critical after NFL debut; Cutler taking on larger leadership role, as well as blame for INT; offensive tempo wore down Bengals D; injury news.

Team notes - Larry Mayer: Tucker happy with Williams' performance in opener; coaches not worried about D-line's production; Tucker most impressed with D's turnovers.

Bears need the old Peppers not an old one - Brad Biggs: DE must dispel age factor against Vikings after young Bengals tackle Anthony Collins appeared to get the better of the All-Pro in the opener.

Rookie watch - Michael C. Wright: Jordan Mills checked in at No. 8 on Mel Kiper Jr.’s NFL Rookie Rankings where he lists the 2013 draft class based on how they performed in Week 1.

Top 10 best players who are 32 or older - Josh Katzowitz: If you're expecting Tillman to fall off as he draws closer to his mid-30s, last Sunday should change your mind.

Smokin' Jay Cutler wears a Mike Ditka T-shirt - Josh Katzowitz: No matter what Cutler does for the rest of his career or how many other OCs he ignores, we'll always have a respect for Cutler's choice of fashion and his meme-ness.

Urlacher says Cutler never called - Jeff Dickerson: QB was only ex-teammate who failed to reach out to him since he retired, even though Urlacher described himself as one of Cutler’s most vocal supporters over the last several years. [Video] Michael C. Wright: Still could've been with Bears.

Cutler’s call to Urlacher can wait - Rick Telander: Cutler has other things on his mind. Like the Vikings this Sunday.

Urlacher's sour grapes unbecoming - Dan McNeil: Urlacher can't win in a hissing match with Cutler; transformation into a tell-all broadcaster could drain equity he gained for being a great player.

Check WCGer Sackman's selection of Bears-themed tops here, or some t-shirt designs here.

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Polish sausage

A primer on signing free agents once season starts - Joel Corry: Why do players get released prior to Week 1? What is an 'emergency list?' The nuances of the early part of the NFL personnel season.

NFP Agent's Journal - Jack Bechta: The good and bad of the evolving NFL: evolving rosters, concussion protocol, and a speedier game.

Know thy enemy: Lions - Josh Weinfuss and Michael Rothstein break down the Lions' visit to the Cardinals. Michael Rothstein: Reggie Bush and new O-line fit well.

Suh plays dirty, and NFL doesn't care - Steve Rosenbloom: Ndamukong Suh delivered yet another dirty hit. The NFL refused to suspend him. The league has fined Suh five times in four seasons for dirty, stupid and/or despicable acts. It doesn’t seem to be working. Connect the dots, Roger Goodell.

Know thy enemy: Lions - Kevin Seifert: The NFL's escalating fine policy clearly hasn't had an impact on a player who has earned more than $50 million over the past three seasons. That, unfortunately, leaves NFL players to police one of their own.

More from Windy City Gridiron:

David Taylor's guest video week: How it feels to be a Vikings fan.

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