It's judgment day today at Halas Hall.  Bears coach Lovie Smith will participate in meetings all day with General Manager Jerry Angelo which are designed to find out how Smith and Angelo can save their jobs by sacrificing others under their command.

The three most likely victims are OC Ron Turner, QB coach Pep Hamilton and OL coach Harry Hiestand. Hiestand, by the way, is a Turner guy, having coached the offensive line under Turner at Illinois.  Chances are if Turner gets rolled under the Greyhound, Hierstand will be right there with him.  Hamilton may or not be safe,  He's not a Turner guy, but it's obvious he has little or no influence on Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

By gutting his offensive staff and agreeing to hire an offensive coordinator, Lovie Smith has probably archived double secret probation, which is make the playoffs in 2010 or be gone.  Of course, there are no guarantees.  A new offensive coordinator means the third system in three years for Cutler and the second system in two years for the Bears young, confused wide receivers.  Poor Devin Hester will probably be even more lost than he was under Turner next season under Mike Martz or one of the many names being bandied about by the newspapers and blogs.

For those of you feeling good about Lovie because the last two games were wins, items like the four blowouts foisted on this team (Cincinnati, Arizona, Minnesota, Baltimore) and the double time out against the Packers should be factored into the equation.  In many instances, this team appeared to be under prepared and poorly coached.  Even yesterday, against Detroit, the Bears were tied at 20 midway through the third quarter before they took the game into control.  While Lovie will lives to fight another day, his offensive lieutenants most likely will not.  Which is only removing part of the problem.

Here's something else to think about.  The Tennessee Titans started out 0-6 and finished 8-8.  The Bears started out 3-1 and finished 7-9. 

If it were my call, Lovie would be under the bus with Ron Turner.  I would base my decision on the fact that the Bears have not achieved expectations and those expectations include the playoffs.  Three years of being out of the playoffs wasn't tolerated with Stuttering Dave or Dick Jauron and won't be tolerated here. 

I would send a message to the players, the fans and the league, that the Bears expect to be in the playoffs and when they aren't, the Bears aren't afraid to make changes. Since the fish rots from the head, we're chopping the head off. Kapeesh?

There are conflicting reports about who and what coaches would be interested in coming to Chicago assuming Lovie stays.  Some say that a talented offensive coordinator would come because Lovie gives them a lot of space and because the opportunity to work with a quarterback the caliber of Jay Cutler is too good to pass up.  Others say that with the clock ticking on Lovie, coming to Chicago could be just a one year gig, not worth it for an established coach. 

In any case, get ready for year seven of Lovie, coming soon to a non-playoff appearance near you.