AZ54

I still think this decision is at least another year away unless we completely fall apart the rest of the way. What I saw in the Vikings game says that isn't going to happen. At this point in his career choosing Bowles would be a risky decision and I think it's likely teams will want to see another season from his defense before feeling comfortable with his track record. I believe he'll get invited to some interviews though. Harbaugh's decision point is this offseason so he won't be available next year. Chip Kelly's success means teams will be more willing to look at other college coaches who run similar schemes.

Absolutely NO to McDaniels. We can find plenty of offensive geniuses who can succeed with Tom Brady or Peyton Manning, neither of those guys plays for Chicago. Trestman has a far better record of success coaching QBs than McDaniels. We don't need an arrogant McDaniel's playing his mind games in the locker room. Harbaugh I'd love to have. He was successful with Smith, Kap, and whoever else is on the field. He's creative and knows how to utilize a player's strengths and stay away from their weaknesses. He does the same when game planning his opponent. Todd Bowles is worth keeping an eye on but I think we need to see more (another season) before considering him. That is the likely path for a decision on Trestman anyway.

I was very surprised by the run defense. We had one. Pass coverage was ok and a better QB would have done more damage but on the other hand they were where they needed to be. The biggest take away on the defense was that guys came to play and I liked the energy I saw, even after Cutler's 2nd INT. Offense: Oline did well and considering this is our 14th, 15th, or 16th combination on the front line they held their own. Forte was his usual steady good but that run late in the game was beautiful to watch. Loved the effort. Cutler was good except for the obvious INTs. Before halftime I have no idea why or what he was doing under-throwing the ball that much. I blame Coach T for that because he seemed to accept we'd go into halftime without trying to score then after two time-killing runs decides to go up top and get in FG range. I was ok if we just ran out the clock. Build on the positive first half and then come out with the ball first in the 3rd quarter. I was ok if we decided to get upfield for a FG too. Make a decision early and don't go both ways and then have Cutler in a spot where we're trying to pick up 30 yards on one play? The 2nd INT drives me nuts. We had the exact same thing happen in one of the first few games: Defense blitzes, coverage drops back 10 yds, Bennett runs right through and past the coverage while Cutler throws what looks to be the hot read underneath the coverage. I believe it is Bennett who is blowing the hot route reads. On the pick you see Cutler starts to throw immediately to Bennett but he's not looking. Cutler pulls back and then releases the ball toward Bennett who now is further upfield but is still not looking. I suppose we can go back and forth that Cutler should not release the throw but then there are those who say he has to trust the routes and release on time instead of waiting to see guys open. I believe he should trust his WRs/TEs to do their job. Every NFL team has hot reads and both WR and QB need to know their job. Coaching. On top of the late 2nd quarter clock mis-management I did not like Trestman going for it on 4th down at the goal line. He has to know his team psyche is fragile after the recent losses. At that point in the game we're up 14-10. Take the FG, build positive momentum and come back on the next drive and do it again. Plus our D, though playing well early, is not exactly the one to rely on a 4pt lead. I say you go up by 7 points and continue to build the positive momentum. Instead we get stopped short and give momentum back to the Vikings. That FG we gave up would have made the 4th quarter much more comfortable in protecting the win instead we allowed them the to stay within striking distance of putting the game into overtime. To his credit, he stayed with that mentality and went for it on 4th downs later in the game that were successful so the team responded and performed. I can't be the only one who was happy to see us run on 4th and 1 and make it. The Vikings do not have a bad defense, they're not great either but we did what we should be able to do. I bet coming into the game they felt they'd be the team that ran all over the field against the worst defense in the NFL. I'm not ready to give up on Tucker or Trestman. I believe in seeing the body of work. I wanted to see improvements on both sides of the ball and we saw that. Everyone is dismissing this because it was the Vikings but aside from the TD given up after the punt fake, what more should we have seen from the D? Special teams. I don't think he'll survive after this season. I see no spark, no assignment discipline, no nothing with the players he's coaching. Our kick returns are bad in large part because nobody actually blocks. They act scared. This is one area Lovie was good. He always had 1 guy to lead his special teams: Ayanbendejo, Costanzo, etc. If we lost that guy he made it a priority to go out in FA and get the best available replacement. Who is our leader on special teams?

Trading Cutler doesn't bother me except for the fact who is going to replace him? It's not going to be a FA QB that comes in and saves the day because those guys just aren't available in FA. In theory we can trade Cutler away and then move up in the draft to grab someone. Who are folks asking for? The other possible option would be trading for some teams young backup QB. This is how GB got Favre, SF found Steve Young, Seattle found Hasselback. Then again those deals can turn into a Charlie Whitehurst deal like Seattle did years ago. I can understand the notion this guy isn't as good as what we need but the idea is to make a deal so the team gets better, not just making a deal so we can say good riddance. Don't make some deal and then have me stuck watching the next Henry Burris at QB. I'll take Jay and his 1-2 INTs per game over that any day.

I'm not saying he's a bad coach but I am less sold on Bruce Arians' greatness than others are. I've seen many games where his offense struggles just like ours does. It has been the defense keeping the Cardinals in games and winning them most of the time. They did just that today against Detroit giving up just 6pts despite an Cards INT that gave Detroit the football inside the redzone. On that side of the ball the guy to keep an eye on for future head coaching jobs is Todd Bowles. He has the D playing outstanding despite losing two key starters: Washington and Dockett.

Thank you for that outstanding assessment. If you are a young player watching and listening to Briggs what exactly are you thinking about? Why in the hell is this guy the leader of this defense? He takes a day off to open a restaurant before our first game? He admits to doing nothing in our meetings? Why won't my coach take him off the field, I mean, how many times do they have to see him making these mistakes before they give me a chance? Alaska…when you saw Lacy's long TD run on that screen pass it was Lance Brigg's 10 yards downfield who completely blew that read. Plus, once it was obvious what was coming his way he just stood there and made no effort to get around a blocker and make the play. Get Briggs off the field. It's not just about Brigg's performance being better than Bostic, SMC, Jones, Greene, etc. its about Briggs bringing down the rest of the players. I asked this question all the way back in training camp: What will it take for these coaches to bench Briggs? What we may have are coaches who are good teachers, they know the X's and O's, but they don't seem to understand the dynamics of what is happening in their locker room. Anybody who works has likely been in a situation where one or two bad apples ruined their entire work experience among a group. When that happens it isn't long before people hate going to work. It's one thing if that bad apple is just a part of the team but if they are in a leadership position it's even worse. That will drive people into small cliques that don't communicate or trust other cliques. We don't have a leader to replace Briggs right now but putting everyone on an equal footing among the defense (by removing the bad leader) will allow others to start exerting influence in a positive way. Build for the future!

Frustration runneth over here in AZ too. I say good riddance to Santonio, he couldn't even beat out Josh Morgan despite being far more athletic. I've posted several times wondering where he is on the field. We need more changes and I would bench the guy who admits he doesn't pay attention in team meeting...Briggs. I don't care about his history with the franchise. If that's the best our defense can be with him on the field we might as well go with the young guys across the board. If nothing else those guys are all playing for a job next year regardless of what happens with the coaching staff. I'd have D.J. Williams sitting too. I don't know where to go with the Dline as we have no pass rushers. I don't think Clausen is ready to take the job from Cutler, as bad as that is.

I don't get the reference. Napolean was a great general. It took a concerted effort of 4 nations, including the world's largest superpower Britain, to bring him down. I wish it would take that much to stop Cutler from succeeding.

Can we go a little easier on the Cyclones?

Do you really think abandoning fundamentals will enable him to excel? Nobody ever says this but lemonade is horrible if there is no sugar in it.

I can't read that article but I have read Brigg's quotes about this being his last year with Chicago and how much better Lovie was as a leader. Exactly because Lovie would not have given Lance the day off from practice to open his new restaurant. This is what happens when a man lives in his past. The only time we should do that is when we are retired. I can go on and on about Brigg's but he's not worth it. That doesn't mean I don't appreciate all the good things he's done as a Bear. I do. I also don't forget all he's done as a Bear. He's a starter now solely because of his experience. He's a backup next year and with nearly zero leadership ability and constant backtalk about the current coaches why would anyone keep him around? I'll go with what Bruce Arians said when he took over here in AZ. Everyone is gone. Don't even care if they are good coaches. I'm the new sheriff here and if you don't like what's going on walk into my office, all of your old friends are gone. He was talking about coaches and while I don't necessarily agree with that stance (consider Dick LeBeau) I understand his intentions. I think his point is still valid with regards to some veteran players who are hung up on what used to be 3, 4, or 5 years ago. Rebuilding a team is 3-5 year process. At the beginning Briggs knew he wasn't part of that vision.

I'll disagree because fixing Cutler's fundamentals was critical to him being a better QB I see no reason to make him throw on the move more often as a key to fixing that aspect. Plus at the same time we were completely overhauling our Oline. Having a floating pocket doesn't make life easier for Kyle Long remembering where the QB is on each play. Cutler is not that fast, he's mobile but not fast or quick. I'd have told Cutler get your ass in here (the pocket) and learn how to play the position. When that's good then we'll add some wrinkles to it.

It's a team game. Period. All the focus goes to Rodgers or Cutler and while they are key components they are not everything. Rodgers and home field give them a significant advantage. Two backup OGs for GB versus our backup OG could really be the deciding factor.

I'll disagree on the firebrand approach in one aspect. Firebrands do work but they often just bring short term results, at least if that is the main approach. As others have said, I don't think it's essential in the head coach. What is important to me is that the HC builds a staff with diversity. Not the usual stuff you're thinking. Rather diversity in terms of coaching style. We know Trestman wants all of his coaches to focus on sound fundamentals. Fair enough but I don't want a coaching staff of 10 Trestman's because it's guaranteed to fail. Nor do I want to see a staff of 10 Ditka's or Belichiks. You need a mix and styles and personalities even if they all have fundamentals as their main approach to learning the game. Trestman knows he's not a firebrand. I think hiring guys like Pasqualoni, Herring shows that he realizes he needs guys who are. Kromer is not a quiet guy when he's coaching, he has a definite edge to him. Lovie managed this in a similar manner where Marinelli had the edge and Lovie could sit back and be the sounding board to listen to players issues. If it's the HC whose pushing buttons then it'll be the position coach who is the sounding board. I think we have a good mix of styles on board so I don't think style in itself is an issue. Competency…that's a valid question at this point.

Out of curiosity, does anyone know how many snaps Houston played at DT versus DE? I know he did spent some time filling in for Ratliff. I'd also be curious what his productivity is between the two positions.

I agree with you. It's been frustrating to watch our offense. We've had more injuries to fight through than last year yet despite those we were managing to win those games. Now with guys healthy the offense is stagnant. Hard to explain, and yes, no excuses. The defense was always going to be a work in progress with a new LB corps that has had a lot of injuries down to, at one point, relying on a guy who was on the roster for just 3 weeks. We lost Tillman, and FS has been nothing but a merry-go-round. Of course I expected to see a better effort than what we saw against NE but the D has kept us in most games this year. While last week wasn't enjoyable I can live with letting the young guys learn and grow from that knowing there are going to be some big bumps in the road. Our D was never going to advance to the next level with Tillman, Briggs, and DJ Williams. At best those guys can help us bridge the gap but at the end of the day the young guys, SMC, Bostic, Jones, Sutton, Ferguson, Fuller, and Vereen need game experience.

If I had skills, for this act of luck I'd post a photo of Keanu Reeves dodging bullets in The Matrix. We've taken enough hits with bad luck and bad decisions.

I don't think Houston was a bust but I'm accustomed to most FA not being that good in their first year. Peppers had 8 sacks is first year, 11 in each of the next two with us. It's just a big transition moving to a new home, family issues, getting into a new scheme etc. He was never a pass rushing DE and he was brought in to fix our run D and provide some versatility and he's helped with that. We're only paying the guy $6-7mil/yr and he's roughly the 15th highest paid DE in the league and Jared Allen is getting a lot more money for not much more performance. It's not like we broke the bank for him and in the next couple years his salary will fall further down the ladder. Houston's celebration was a bust and stupid at that point in the game but now he has plenty of time to come up with something new ….like a fishing demonstration. We can watch any game and find all sorts of players jumping, chest bumps, etc. that risk injury and nobody says anything until someone is injured. I would think that after seeing Tulloch go out doing the exact same celebration he'd have learned something about those moves. It's early but I still say a fast pass rushing DE is one of our top 2 needs going into the draft/FA next year. We need some speed on the edge and none of the guys we brought in have that.

I like Carey but he's not ever going to replace Forte, nor do I think he was drafted with the intention of being Forte's heir apparent. He is a good football player and I think he'll be a good, versatile, #2 RB. At this point he's right inline with what Carlos Hyde has done except his ypc is 4.6 vs. 3.4.

I've been through a lot of bad years and a lot of good years. A few great years mixed in between. I'm not changing.

Chandler Jones won't be playing. Neither will Jordan Mills but I think we gain a slight advantage among the two since Ola has been solid so far in his play. Ola is actually more mobile than Mills IMO but we'll see how he handles speed on the edge.

As long as we have Bostic and SMC (and Fuller) out there to cover the TEs I think the D can do enough to keep the scoring within range of what our offense should do. And what our offense should do is run the football. This is not to say we should be favored…far from it but I still don't think this game is as big of slam dunk for the Patriots as what some might believe. Let's see they have lost to the Dolphins, beat the Vikings, Raiders, then lost to the Chiefs, and of late have beaten the Bengals (who were missing some key players), Bills and just barely beat the Jets after giving up 25pts to Geno Smith. We could lose big but we could just as likely be in this to the end. BEAR DOWN!

Those would be the backup LBs everyone wanted to see more of…at least two of them were. I personally didn't mind seeing the young guys play as I view this is a necessary sacrifice to getting where we want to be on defense next year. I just don't think most are willing to accept the growing pains that come with it. I watched Greene quite a bit as I sat next a former NFL player at the bar. It was obvious the read-option was killing his reaction to the plays as he just stood there while offensive players took two or three steps before he decided which way to go.

I saw him when the Rams played a couple weeks ago and tried to key on him since I was thinking the Bears might draft him. I didn't see him do much the entire game but he did draw quite a few double teams. For me it's the trade off of Fuller/Sutton (drafted to fit the pass rusher role) versus Donald and 3rd Rd CB. Sutton has done well for us, 13 tackles but I'd say Donald is clearly playing better although neither player is a starter. Need to see which 3rd RD CBs were available to match up the performance of two players since that is what the draft option might have been if . As noted above, Ferguson has 9 tackles and 2 sacks, and a few tipped passes, if you prefer to match up 1st/2nd Rd picks.

I'm not ready for Clausen. I don't think Clausen is ready for Clausen.