BearFan2000

As much as I like Kruetz we do at some point have to think of life beyond him. When he does hang em up (hopefully on his terms). I think the same thing about guys like Urlacher where there will be a day when they won't be on the team anymore hopefully due to retirement. There are a lot of young or fairly young guys as the core but some of our key guys are getting up there.

certainly no rush but I have little doubt that unless he falls on his face here we will see the Bears extend him. You don't go out and give up what we gave up for the guy to just come here for a short stay. At this point all we have is expectation the rest is up to him and whether or not he performs at or above those expectations. He's yet to throw a pass as a Bear give him a year to a year and a half. I don't see us talking extension till sometime next season. Even if he does well this year. With three years left on the contract let him settle in for a year and then start thinking extension. Conversely if he does prove to be the guy we all think he is and is successful he will own this town. Not extending him at that point would be a death wish for JA and Co. Many of us are excited to the point where we aren't sure what to expect that we have a competent playmaker behind center. I for one am still adjusting to the idea of expecting good things from our QB. I think he's got the correct approach to it. He knows the situation and knows what's expected and wants to prove that he was worth what we gave up. Like I said earlier in the post unless he screws up royally this town will embrace him and he will be the face of the Bears Offense for the foreseeable future. The onus is on him and he knows it and is embracing that challenge.

Thanks for the tips the more I read and hear about what to do in Chicago the more excited I get. Are Monday Night Games any different than regular games as far as being there. Other than the obvious prime time kickoff at 7:30pm Are there any special cool things going on for MNF? Some of the sites I had in mind were the Sears (always will be the Sears Tower), Field Museum, Shed Aquarium, but nearly forgot about Ditka's that would be awesome to hit that either Monday or Tues. I figure we'll have about 3 hours or so to wonder around Chicago maybe more if we get there earlier. I booked a room at the Best Western Grant Park and check in is at 3pm but that doesn't mean we can't arrive on the train earlier. Maybe get there around noon or a little after grab a bite for lunch do some sight seeing and check in, grab dinner then head to the game. Go back to the hotel and not sleep a wink after watching the bears spank the vikes on prime time. Get up get some breakfast do a little more sight seeing and maybe grab lunch and head back home. sack out the ensuing Wed and recover from all the fun of the previous two days lol. Some things I do want to do is have a real Chicago Deep Dish pizza. I've heard of Uno and Jenos, hadn't heard of Lou Manalti's. Spend some time at soldier field checking out the museum part of it. I was reading about permited and non permitted items. Binoculars/Cameras/Video Equipment Hand-held binoculars and small still-photo cameras are permitted in Soldier Field. Video and movie cameras are NOT permitted in the stadium without the user holding proper media credentials. Photos cannot be used for any commercial purpose without the express written consent of SMG or the Chicago Park District. What about my nice Nice Digital Camera.... technically it can record video though being a camera video quality kind sucks so I'd only be taking still pics anyway. Should this be an issue or should I be safe and leave it at home and instead bring my less than stellar 35 mm camera. Or is the jist of this that they don't want people bringing camcorders, dv cameras etc. And I'll be ok bringing my digi. It's a 7.2 MP with a 12x zoom. Which I took to a cubs game and could see the rivits on the score board from across the stadium lol. The zoom doesn't go out very far but is pretty powerfull. Sitting up in the upper level I figure the zoom would be quite handy to get some good action shots Another question for those who know the area. The hotel is essentially at the corner of E 11th St and South Michigan Ave. 1. What is the best walking route to Soldier field it's hard to tell from the maps though every listing of this hotel states Soldier Field is within walking distance which I take to mean it can be reached on foot. Back in 2001 when we took the train to the Roosevelt Rd station it seems like we walked down lake shore and onto E McFetrige Drive and wiend down a ramp that went below ground towards the north end of the stadium. 2. May be a silly question but is it safe to travel there by foot though logic would tell me that if we are headed that way to the game we'll likely hook up with the mob of fans at the Roosevelt Road metra station. My biggest concern is after the game walking back to the hotel around 11/12 at night I don't want to get mugged lol. Would it be easier and safer to simply take a bus or Taxi?

Especially given Orton's weakness in throwing the long ball. Despite what homer comments the Denver coaching staff and management say. These two guys have speed to be deep threats but if your QB can't get the ball there what good is that speed. Denver's going to regret that trade. Now on the flip side Orton wasn't allowed many opportunities to go long because of issues with his long ball so we stuck with the shorter stuff. I'd be willing to bet that very little time in practice was devoted to improving his long ball. I do think that if Orton were to develop decent accuracy on the long ball he'd be a pretty decent QB. Perhaps now that he's not in a system where he's encouraged to play with shackles it may serve him well and he may yet flourish. I was passing the ball quite a bit early in his rookie year till the dreaded 5 INT game against the Bungles. Since that game he had shackles on and I don't think the staff ever truly removed them. But that won't happen over night. I can see a guy like Marshall being more and more of an chemistry issue the kid needs to grow up as it is. Then you take away the guy who is partly responsible for his success. The future there could be ugly. I don't know enough about Royal to guess his state of mind but I can't imagine he's totally thrilled either.

not opposed to doing a bit of walking. I figure we have some time in Chicago we might as well explore a little.

Bringing in a guy like Merinelli will prove to be one of the best offseason moves we've made. If to this point our D hasn't even been coached to use these things then that just proves how inadequate our defensive line coaching has been. Counter moves are one of the basic tools of a D-Linemen. If your pass rush is predictable it requires little effort to stop it. Mixing it up is what puts the advantage back on you by having your opponent think and react rather than expect and protect. Rod seems like just the guy to introduce some creativity into our D-Line. It would be nice to see our line getting effective penetration and being a disruption in the backfield throughout the game. I'm sure our DBs would be eternally grateful and it would help their game.

Dammit Rex....

He certainly has been worth the money and probably one the the more forgotten guys on team. I can't recall a single bad snap on a punt (though in the past we have practiced that a lot in game situations), FG or extra point. He's one of if not the best long snapper in the league. I'm glad we have him here.

Good article and I do agree the passing game requires both the QB and WR to do their part. If our WR can't get open or can't catch consistently having a QB who can get the ball there won't matter. Just as having the receivers get open but not having the QB who can read the defense and get the ball there. Both QB and WR have to do their parts correctly for it to work. Jay is a the QB who can make all the throws and will be able to get the ball there on time. The question mark is will our receivers consistently be where they should be and catch the ball. One thing that is different this year than last year is that we do have the QB who can get the job done and make all the throws. I think that will make our WR's more motivated to do their part. If I run my routes nearly flawless all game long but either never get thrown to or when I am the ball is either uncatchable or requires drastic adjustment to make the catch. I would quickly start to loose motivation. That may be on the extreme but if you don't have confidence in your QB to get the ball to you on time then you'll be less likely give it your all. With Cutler at QB he can throw it to anyone at any time so you better be ready. Imagine if we still had Berrian and he hadn't gotten greedy. You'd have Berrien, Hester, Bennet, Davis, Iglacious, Knox, and not to forget our TEs Olsen and Clarke. But that's not the case we don't have him we have what we have. Berrian was basically our speed guy that role is now Hester's. So I don't really see that as a talent void not having him here. I think that there's enough talent at the WR position that they will be effective enough for us to have a good season. I do see this unit improving over time with Cutler. I don't expect it to jump out of the gate on all four cylinders but I do expect there to be steady improvement. The OTAs, various mini camps, and this training camp will be critical for establishing that repartee between Jay and his Receivers.

LOL he does look like a homeless guy

I'll be in Chicago December 28th/29th in the Grant Park Area what are some fun things to do and see. How close would we be to the Hard Rock Cafe (gotta buy a shirt). Dad and I will be checking in early on Monday then going to the game. Tuesday we'll be checking out and at some point taking the train back to South Bend. We'll have some time to kill before the game and the next morning.

What section are you in, I assume you'll be there for the Monday Night game.

Section 432 Row 33 Monday, December 28th 7:30 PM MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL Dad and I will be chiillin and cheerin on Da Bearssss. Dome team in late December

And here I was hoping that I'd get to watch Favre throw picks in the Monday night game since I'll be there.

Congrats on turning the big 50 Happy Birthday!! What a way to celebrate it. Look forward to hearing about TC. Wish I was going sounds like it's a blast.

If I sell them to someone on this board I'd sell them at face value plus the shipping which would be around $140 or so for the pair. Even if I eat the extra markup and service fees, lesson learned. If I put them on eBay i'll let them go to the highest bidder with a likely reserve price of $136. I've never sold anything on eBay so that makes me a little nervous. Either way I'll have the tickets in hand by 7/31. Which is 21 days before the game should be enough time to sell and ship the tickets.

With TC coming up soon we will finally have some new Bears news and footage to dissect, and analyze and after that analysis has been and analysised we'll have preseason and the then the roster cut downs before we know it we'll be glued to our sets or our seats if we're at the game to watch the Bears open on prime time at GB. I know that I will be there cheering my Bears on in the final stretch of the season for the December 28th Monday Night game against the queens. Vinkings may have Favre but at that point in the season he'll be in the I'm going to retire since my seasons gone to crap mode. I may even see if I might be able to work it out to go to the 8/22 preseason game against the Giants and not sell those tickets. How cool would it be to see Cutler's first action as a Bears QB and his first completion as a Bear hopefully his first TD pass as a Bear.

Hard to believe just how frequently he was scoring on returns.. Matched Sayers return TDs in 22 games and under 100 return opportunities. Him not having any TD returns last season made me forget just how unreal that stretch of time was. Prior to Hester we had may a few TD returns in the previous decade or so and in 2 years he sets records. Special teams was no longer a formality it became part of the main event. Last year I think Deven tried to make every one a home run and over thought it a lot. What made him successful at returns was speed and instinct and a well schemed and coached special teams unit. But with his transition to WR his return duties diminishing. With Cutler at QB here's to him once again thrilling us in Bear country. Go long Deven we now have a guy who can get you the ball. I wander how much of Orton's inability to throw long accurately caused Turner to not send Hester long as much but rather trying to get him open in a range that Kyle was more accurate at. In contrast Jay can make all the throws short to long. Let's get it on!!! I want me some Bears Football!!!

Yeah, live and learn I guess. The whole ticket system has me jaded a bit. Brokers have no issue getting gobs of tickets then turning around and selling at or more than double face value. While us true fans who are buying ticket because we want to go to the game have a tough go at it. All the fees are crappy too, surprised they don't have a fee fore the air you breathe while there. I did make a goof though. I went back to exchange and somehow clicked on the giants preseason game and saw two tickets at 91 ea and immediately checked my brain at the door and bought them thinking I'd sell the others I bought on ebay. When I came to my senses I was at the "Thank you for your order" and to the right it said Bears vs Giants 8/22/09...... That game I can't go to..... so if anyone's interested in a couple tickets to that game they are 2 tickets in section 441 row 21. I may list these on Ebay but if anyone here's interested let me know. Wouldn't mind going it would be the first time to see Cutler in a Bears uniform.

Well, I blew it I managed to get to the waiting list screen and decided to open another browser and and double my chances..... sadly that kicked me out of line and I had to scramble then I got back in line and thought well, what if I Just get to the screen where I"m entering text and it got kicked out of line again. I did eventually get a couple shots at some seats but they were 305 ea and 245 ea club seats. I simply can't afford that. Sucks too because they were great seats. near the 50. I did however pick up a couple tickets in section 432, Row 33 at $145 each. Should be a decent view of the field. A little more than I'd like to pay but that was the best seats for the price. I wanted to stay out of the corners of the dish. I was tempted to buy 4 and sell two on ebay to recoup some of the over cost but didn't want to mess with that. The prices thru ticket exchange are much better than Ebay or Stub Hub. I'm going to book a hotel room likely at the Best Western and we'll take the early train so we'll have time to check in and hang out in Chicago. Till it gets closer to game time. I hate rushing around. After the game we'll walk back to the hotel and then check out Tuesday morning and take the train back home. I'm so jazzed about going

I think your right there, and being a Monday night game I would think we'd definitely want a good showing and our starters will be playing I know it's kind of obvious to say that it's possible either the Vikings or the Packers could be fighting us for the division because it obviously couldn't be the Lions. Just don't want to get out there and watch Jay Cutler stye ball cap on the sidelines lol. I figure by that time the Bears should be at the top of their game this year and the offense will be running as fluidly as it can. The vikings are literally a QB away from making some serious noise. The Packers are hard to figure. While I think there's enough talent there to be a good team. I think the season is more entertaining when there is competition in our division. IIRC back in 2001 we were fighting both the Pack and the vikings most of the season and still ended up with the #2 seed. I cannot wait for Aug 15, I'm itching for some Bears Football and the wait is driving me crazy. To see the first pass from Cutler, his first TD pass as a Bear. The crowd is going to explode when he steps on the field and will explode again when he completes his first pass, and erupt when he throws his first TD Pass. Gent's this is going to be a season to remember and hopefully the first of many ) I wonder if I should just use the best available anywhere option. Only looking for 2 seats. Only prob is I can't afford the club seats that are 245 - 350. Lower level seems to be spread out between sidline and end zone, upper has more sideline than end zone, 200 level has more end zone than sideline. The vast majority of seats falls into the upper level. All three areas are in my price range and I should just be happy to get tickets lol. decisions decisions decisions.

Is there any way around the word code thing when ordering tickets on ticketmaster? Since they've added this feature I've lost out on many events due to getting some of the most illegible crap. Meanwhile knowing that every second I waste trying convince the system I'm real is a second that is lost while others are snagging tickets. If I try by phone won't I be put on hold indefinitely? How exactly does Ticketmaster determine best available does it start at the highest dollar tickets and from there closest to the 50 yard line? Haven't been to a Bears game since 2001. I do know that my best strategy online is to pick one game and focus on that. Also to know which price level I want to be in and pick that out so if/when tickets available are well outside my budget I don't have to go back and try again. So I should select the highest price I'm willing to pay from the outset. I'm shooting for the Monday Night game vs the Vikes. Kinda odd though to have a Monday night game that late in the season. In a way I hope that we have something to play for and will play our starters. The vikings at that point may be either out of it or desparately fighting for the last wild card spot. If I get tickets I'm hoping that it's an entertaining game, but no because we are resting starters and they are playing theirs. A blowout in our favor wouldn't bother me either. Can't believe I'm even talking about #1 or #2 seed. Also due to the fact that neither me or my dad are at all interested in driving to the game we are planning on taking the southshore. Being that the last train that day that would go back to south bend leaves 20 min before kickoff we'd be spending the night in a hotel. Seems like the best option is the best western that's approx a quarter mile walk to and from the stadium. Question is is it in an area that we want to be walking at around 11 PM at night after the game? May be a silly question but I don't know this area of Chicago that well. Last game I went to we took the train and it was a noon kickoff and the train stops close to soldier field.

couldn't agree more. A mediocre to average QB would have flourished in that offense. They have weapons coming out their arse. If anyone's a product of a system it's was Cassell benefiting from the talent around him. Put him on a bad team and I'd be willing to bet he won't fare well. I'd even be willing to bet that Brady wouldn't be so great on a crappy team.

You are right on Weiss. I live near South Bend, so whether your an Irish Fan or not during the season that about all you hear about. All home games are televised 2 to 3 times... once live and two times shortened broadcasts. As an Irish fan Weiss' arrogance, self importance, and know it all attitude has run it's course and I've grown tired of it especially given the less than stellar results on the field and the excuses. This year is likely his put up or shut up year. If Notre Dame has another bad season he will be gone. As clueless as ND"s AD is they are smart enough to realize that they will be lynched if they retain him after yet another disappointing season. Just because they studied under a successful Coach does not make them capable of leading a team as a head coach. Rod Marinelli was and is a hell of a defensive position coach he sucked as a head coach. While it doesn't hurt their chances it doesn't grantee they will be good on their own. McDaniels could very well ruin that team for the forceable future the longer he's there. Once you loose your team, look out.. everyone starts heading for the life boats and the ss titanic is left to sink. Whether he realizes it or not Josh has knocked over the first few dominos and the longer he keeps it up the more damage he'll do. Too bad it is an AFC team that we rarely face and not a bitter NFC rival. That could make it far more entertaining. Though we do have Detroit which is perennially melting down and will have to do for cheep entertainment.

Always had a respect for Lynch the guy let his play on the field do his talking and it spoke volumes. He was one of those players who gave you everything they had and he was a class act. A lot of young guys could learn something from him. I think he's spot on with the Marshall and Cutler comments. Marshall has some growing up to but should he grow out of his off the field behavior he will make some team a very solid player that they can count on. Bringing someone in here with his level of maturity issues to a group of young inexperienced WR's is a bad mix. If we bring someone in I'd rather see someone more mature who actually can rub off on the young guys in a good way. I also think he's right about Cutler that he does have some growing up do do but the difference is he knows it and is working on becoming a better pro and he want to show the Bears, their fans and the NFL that Jerry made a wise move in bringing him here.