Bears Avoid Being Rammed
Random thoughts while wondering what ever happened to Virgil Livers:
The Bears victory over the Rams Monday night wasn't unexpected, but may not have been game planned the way that it turned out.
The good news was that Rex Grossman seemed to get on track with a couple of touchdown passes and no turnovers. Devin Hester had two electrifying kick returns, setting a new NFL record with six returns for touchdowns in a single season.
The bad news is the Bears defense continued to get ran on and passed on. Considering the injuries to Tommie Harris, Nathan Vashor and Todd Johnson, they held serve, but the lack of pressure on Mark Bulger and the running of Steven Jackson made you worry a little bit. They definitely need to tighten things up before the playoffs.
The best news for the Bears is their next three games are all winnable against Tampa, Detroit and Green Bay. With the Saints at 9-4, a Bears win and a Saints loss gives the Bears home field throughout the playoffs. The Saints remaining schedule is Washington, the Giants and Carolina, so the Bears are at a decided advantage.
The worst thing about the Monday night game is having to listen to the non-sensical stylings of Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser and Joe Theisman. Kornheiser ads nothing to the broadcast except bombastic statements like "the Packers can't beat anyone." Tell that to the 49er's, Tony. Joe is Joe and was much better in the past when Paul McGuire was around to call his bluffs.
Tirico was the biggest disappointment. It's obvious that he has little control over his boothmates and that the broadcast comes off like a Chinese fire drill. Then, there are the wholly inaccurate statements that flew out of Tirico's mouth all night long. In the first half, after Ram punter Matt Turk hit a high, booming punt for a hang time of over five seconds, an impressed Tirico said "that's really impressive on turf." Huh? The punt is in the air Mike, in a dome with no wind. Indoor kicks are always more impressive. And, Mike, the punt hangs in the AIR, not on the turf.
In the second half, Tirico tried being topical after a Lance Briggs tackle declaring "It's great to have Dennis Erickson back in college football". Erickson has just been signed to coach Briggs' alma mater Arizona State.. Um, Mike, Dennis Erickson was the coach at Idaho this past season, so he has already returned to college football after his stint with the 49ers.
Discussing a contract extension for Bears Coach Lovie Smith, Tirico explained that "Bears General Manager Jerry Angelo inherited Lovie Smith." Wrong again, Mike. Jerry Angelo HIRED Lovie Smith. Angelo inherited Dick Juron who was dispatched after the 2003 season.
The camera work was even worse. Late in the game, the Bears got flagged for having five men in the backfield. I kept waiting for ESPN to show me a replay and Theisman, as the only real football guy, to point out to me how almost half of the Bears were in the backfield. Yet, the play was totally ignored for witty repartee. I got so frustrated, I ran it back on the Tivo, but I couldn't figure out who was in the backfield and who wasn't. This goes to ESPN being all about entertainment and not a whole lot about sports.
The tough part for a Bears fan is with the HD signal being eight seconds behind the radio broadcast, it's impossible to sync the action on the radio to the picture on the TV. So, you are stuck with whatever network announcers you get (thank goodness the Bears have risen above the Ron Pitts/Gus Johnson level.) Honestly, there are very few pairings I like. The ones that I can tolerate include Dick Stockton/Moose Johnston/Tony Saragusa and Al Michaels and John Madden. Most of the analysts are awful. Phil Simms and Troy Aikman put me to sleep and I'd rather have root canal than listen to Dan Dierdorf. And when you get down to the Brian Baldingers and Steve Taskers, it's even more painful. I hate to say it, but it seems like the best, most entertaining crews are doing college football these days.
I don't know about you, but every time I saw Rams head coach Scott Linehan on TV last night, my brain screamed "Frank Burns!"
The Barach Obama bit in the opening would have been much better if Nicolette Sheridan would have shown up in her towel.
The White Sox are going to make an offer to Joe Crede. I have a feeling they will trade him because of Jerry Reinsdorf's disdain for Crede's agent Scott Boras. With the Tigers healed and the Twins always a threat, it's hard to believe that a team that was the toast of baseball in 2005 may only be the third best team in their division (again) in 2007. And that's if the Indians don't improve which they most likely will. The Blue Jays are better in the East, the Angels are working some deals, the A's are always in the mix and the Red Sox and Yankees will also improve. If the Sox can't win the Central outright, they may not be able to make it as a wild card. But, now that Jerry has his ring and his crowds, the motivation and urgency that drove this train just a few years ago seems to be lacking.
Jim Hendry, you are my hero. Anybody who can conduct business from a hospital room immediately prior to an angioplasty should receive a medal. I'm surprised Hendry wasn't taking calls during surgery.
Jerry Sloan won his th game tonight as an NBA coach. I mention that because he's my all-time favorite NBA player. No one could take a charge like Jerry Sloan.
In soccer, Freddie Adu was traded from DC United to Real Salt Lake (insert pause for yawn here).
Paul Johnson will be the next head football Coach at Alabama IF Mal Moore can't wait for Nick Sabin. And, given Sabin's rep for switching jobs every couple of years, is it worth having him come or is it worth getting a steady guy like Johnson. The truth is, all of the big time guys have jobs and they are okay where they are. And kudos to Rich Rodriguez for staring down Alabama and using it, as Steve Spurrier did to sweeten his own pot. Mal, Sabin's doing the same thing. Is it just me, or does Mal Moore look like Peter Sellers in a Pink Panther movie?
The city owns the parkway in front of our house. They decided to plant a tree there. They sent us a bill for $120 payable in 30 days or it becomes part of my tax bill and has a 12% interest rate attached to it. I've decided the next house we build is going to be a cabin in the woods where I don't have to deal with idiocy like this. No one asked me if I wanted a tree and if they had I would have said no. But I had no choice in this matter. Yet another reason to vote Libertarian.
Finally, in Texas, there is now legislation in the works that will allow legally blind hunters to hunt using lasers. This clears the way for Vice-President Chaney to resume quail hunting in Texas.
The Bears victory over the Rams Monday night wasn't unexpected, but may not have been game planned the way that it turned out.
The good news was that Rex Grossman seemed to get on track with a couple of touchdown passes and no turnovers. Devin Hester had two electrifying kick returns, setting a new NFL record with six returns for touchdowns in a single season.
The bad news is the Bears defense continued to get ran on and passed on. Considering the injuries to Tommie Harris, Nathan Vashor and Todd Johnson, they held serve, but the lack of pressure on Mark Bulger and the running of Steven Jackson made you worry a little bit. They definitely need to tighten things up before the playoffs.
The best news for the Bears is their next three games are all winnable against Tampa, Detroit and Green Bay. With the Saints at 9-4, a Bears win and a Saints loss gives the Bears home field throughout the playoffs. The Saints remaining schedule is Washington, the Giants and Carolina, so the Bears are at a decided advantage.
The worst thing about the Monday night game is having to listen to the non-sensical stylings of Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser and Joe Theisman. Kornheiser ads nothing to the broadcast except bombastic statements like "the Packers can't beat anyone." Tell that to the 49er's, Tony. Joe is Joe and was much better in the past when Paul McGuire was around to call his bluffs.
Tirico was the biggest disappointment. It's obvious that he has little control over his boothmates and that the broadcast comes off like a Chinese fire drill. Then, there are the wholly inaccurate statements that flew out of Tirico's mouth all night long. In the first half, after Ram punter Matt Turk hit a high, booming punt for a hang time of over five seconds, an impressed Tirico said "that's really impressive on turf." Huh? The punt is in the air Mike, in a dome with no wind. Indoor kicks are always more impressive. And, Mike, the punt hangs in the AIR, not on the turf.
In the second half, Tirico tried being topical after a Lance Briggs tackle declaring "It's great to have Dennis Erickson back in college football". Erickson has just been signed to coach Briggs' alma mater Arizona State.. Um, Mike, Dennis Erickson was the coach at Idaho this past season, so he has already returned to college football after his stint with the 49ers.
Discussing a contract extension for Bears Coach Lovie Smith, Tirico explained that "Bears General Manager Jerry Angelo inherited Lovie Smith." Wrong again, Mike. Jerry Angelo HIRED Lovie Smith. Angelo inherited Dick Juron who was dispatched after the 2003 season.
The camera work was even worse. Late in the game, the Bears got flagged for having five men in the backfield. I kept waiting for ESPN to show me a replay and Theisman, as the only real football guy, to point out to me how almost half of the Bears were in the backfield. Yet, the play was totally ignored for witty repartee. I got so frustrated, I ran it back on the Tivo, but I couldn't figure out who was in the backfield and who wasn't. This goes to ESPN being all about entertainment and not a whole lot about sports.
The tough part for a Bears fan is with the HD signal being eight seconds behind the radio broadcast, it's impossible to sync the action on the radio to the picture on the TV. So, you are stuck with whatever network announcers you get (thank goodness the Bears have risen above the Ron Pitts/Gus Johnson level.) Honestly, there are very few pairings I like. The ones that I can tolerate include Dick Stockton/Moose Johnston/Tony Saragusa and Al Michaels and John Madden. Most of the analysts are awful. Phil Simms and Troy Aikman put me to sleep and I'd rather have root canal than listen to Dan Dierdorf. And when you get down to the Brian Baldingers and Steve Taskers, it's even more painful. I hate to say it, but it seems like the best, most entertaining crews are doing college football these days.
I don't know about you, but every time I saw Rams head coach Scott Linehan on TV last night, my brain screamed "Frank Burns!"
The Barach Obama bit in the opening would have been much better if Nicolette Sheridan would have shown up in her towel.
The White Sox are going to make an offer to Joe Crede. I have a feeling they will trade him because of Jerry Reinsdorf's disdain for Crede's agent Scott Boras. With the Tigers healed and the Twins always a threat, it's hard to believe that a team that was the toast of baseball in 2005 may only be the third best team in their division (again) in 2007. And that's if the Indians don't improve which they most likely will. The Blue Jays are better in the East, the Angels are working some deals, the A's are always in the mix and the Red Sox and Yankees will also improve. If the Sox can't win the Central outright, they may not be able to make it as a wild card. But, now that Jerry has his ring and his crowds, the motivation and urgency that drove this train just a few years ago seems to be lacking.
Jim Hendry, you are my hero. Anybody who can conduct business from a hospital room immediately prior to an angioplasty should receive a medal. I'm surprised Hendry wasn't taking calls during surgery.
Jerry Sloan won his th game tonight as an NBA coach. I mention that because he's my all-time favorite NBA player. No one could take a charge like Jerry Sloan.
In soccer, Freddie Adu was traded from DC United to Real Salt Lake (insert pause for yawn here).
Paul Johnson will be the next head football Coach at Alabama IF Mal Moore can't wait for Nick Sabin. And, given Sabin's rep for switching jobs every couple of years, is it worth having him come or is it worth getting a steady guy like Johnson. The truth is, all of the big time guys have jobs and they are okay where they are. And kudos to Rich Rodriguez for staring down Alabama and using it, as Steve Spurrier did to sweeten his own pot. Mal, Sabin's doing the same thing. Is it just me, or does Mal Moore look like Peter Sellers in a Pink Panther movie?
The city owns the parkway in front of our house. They decided to plant a tree there. They sent us a bill for $120 payable in 30 days or it becomes part of my tax bill and has a 12% interest rate attached to it. I've decided the next house we build is going to be a cabin in the woods where I don't have to deal with idiocy like this. No one asked me if I wanted a tree and if they had I would have said no. But I had no choice in this matter. Yet another reason to vote Libertarian.
Finally, in Texas, there is now legislation in the works that will allow legally blind hunters to hunt using lasers. This clears the way for Vice-President Chaney to resume quail hunting in Texas.
Comments