Not-so-quick-reaction...

[madlithuanian]

After a day of pondering the game...

 

1. Hester is such a joy to watch! So glad he's back taking kickoffs like so many of us have been screaming for... He is a difference maker there.

 

2. Cutler had a big boy game. He made a bad mistake in the red zone, but made up for it with pretty much flawless decision making other than that. The playaction to Kellen was a thing of beauty.

 

3. The D looks good. They are oportunistic. Pretty much the pedigree that Smith was hired on. I still worry about the big gaffe by the safteies that led to a TD and a PI. I still would like a little more pressure on the QB... But overall, these guys are playing good defensive football. The LB crew is just on fire. I still fear the Tampa 2 in the long run, but right now, it's fun to watch.

 

4. The coaches did a good job yesterday. All of them. Even our normally abyssmal HC. I temper that with all the horrible games they've called this season. But, if this is a trend, it's going to be an interesting run up to the playoffs.

 

5. I wantred to hurt Favre more. I was sorry we never got a really good lick on him. But, as my freind stated after the game..."We hurt Farve. Maybe not his body, but at minimum, his feelings." I'll take anything that is a negative for Favre.

 

6. I watched the game with minimal stress. Other than the Cutler pick in the red zone, the team played well and prettymuch led the whole time. I never really felt worried that the Vikings were going to win. I was lulled into positive thinking by a decent running game and passing... Even watching some medicore OL play. Remember, mediocre is better than putrid!

 

I worry the big win will go to their heads, and after a short week, MIA could be a trap game. They were in 85 and in the 2006 run... But they are banged up bad. So, if we can call a good game, play smart, and get a little more Devin love...I think it's winnable.

 

Bottom line, this was a fun Sunday!

[BearsFan1974]

I agree Lith. I only had to scream at the TV 2 times the whole game. Both Cutler picks pissed me off. But he played a great game. He got out of the pocket but made good decisions when he did, it just wasn't happy feet or fear of getting crushed.

 

Hester definitely had his big boy pants on. I would have liked to seen better run blocking from the O-line, but the protection was good...baby steps...but progress nonetheless.

 

I am still thinking about Melton's performance...stellar.

 

The D played great, shutting down Peterson, capitalizing on Grandpa's mistakes. I would have like to see a bit more of the Soldier Field turf on his uniform, but our pressure forced bad decisions.

 

I would have liked if Jennings played a little better. His mistakes caused 2 big plays for the Queens. The Harvin TD and the Manning PI penalty.

 

Short week, 3rd string QB in MIA, Prime Time Game, BEAR VICTORY!!!!

[defiantgiant]

I would have liked if Jennings played a little better. His mistakes caused 2 big plays for the Queens. The Harvin TD and the Manning PI penalty.

 

I think the Harvin TD was at least as much on Harris. He bit on a fake from Favre and broke inside to where Shiancoe was. That took him out of position to get over the top of Harvin. I couldn't really tell if Jennings screwed up too, or if he just thought he had safety help when it wasn't there. As Jennings was trailing, you could see him shouting at Harris and pointing to the spot Harvin was headed. Could have been both their fault, I don't know.

[madlithuanian]

Yeah, if Melton is going to continue to get better, this could get really fun!

 

I agree Lith. I only had to scream at the TV 2 times the whole game. Both Cutler picks pissed me off. But he played a great game. He got out of the pocket but made good decisions when he did, it just wasn't happy feet or fear of getting crushed.

 

Hester definitely had his big boy pants on. I would have liked to seen better run blocking from the O-line, but the protection was good...baby steps...but progress nonetheless.

 

I am still thinking about Melton's performance...stellar.

 

The D played great, shutting down Peterson, capitalizing on Grandpa's mistakes. I would have like to see a bit more of the Soldier Field turf on his uniform, but our pressure forced bad decisions.

 

I would have liked if Jennings played a little better. His mistakes caused 2 big plays for the Queens. The Harvin TD and the Manning PI penalty.

 

Short week, 3rd string QB in MIA, Prime Time Game, BEAR VICTORY!!!!

 

[Wesson44]

I think the Harvin TD was at least as much on Harris. He bit on a fake from Favre and broke inside to where Shiancoe was. That took him out of position to get over the top of Harvin. I couldn't really tell if Jennings screwed up too, or if he just thought he had safety help when it wasn't there. As Jennings was trailing, you could see him shouting at Harris and pointing to the spot Harvin was headed. Could have been both their fault, I don't know.

 

Since I played both positions in my younger days saftey and cornerback.......I will say that it was Harris that blew the coverage not Jennings. You are taught as a saftey to get deeper than the deepest WR. There was no reason he should in the cover two bite on the TE in the middle. Game planning would tell you that Harvin was the fastest (maybe the only) WR the Vikings had that could really hurt the Bears, so he should have been cheating to that side to help Jennings in the first place. Then if Harvin didn't go deep shift to cover Shiancoe or move to the middle. Which brings me to my next point. Other than D. Manning we have a SLOW secondary that will always get beat. We need to draft players with some speed to make the cover two really work as planned.

[jason]

Since I played both positions in my younger days saftey and cornerback.......I will say that it was Harris that blew the coverage not Jennings. You are taught as a saftey to get deeper than the deepest WR. There was no reason he should in the cover two bite on the TE in the middle. Game planning would tell you that Harvin was the fastest (maybe the only) WR the Vikings had that could really hurt the Bears, so he should have been cheating to that side to help Jennings in the first place. Then if Harvin didn't go deep shift to cover Shiancoe or move to the middle. Which brings me to my next point. Other than D. Manning we have a SLOW secondary that will always get beat. We need to draft players with some speed to make the cover two really work as planned.

 

I honestly think DJ Moore needs to see more playing time. The kid has the "it" factor. And he's pretty fast.

[Connorbear]

Since I played both positions in my younger days saftey and cornerback.......I will say that it was Harris that blew the coverage not Jennings. You are taught as a saftey to get deeper than the deepest WR. There was no reason he should in the cover two bite on the TE in the middle. Game planning would tell you that Harvin was the fastest (maybe the only) WR the Vikings had that could really hurt the Bears, so he should have been cheating to that side to help Jennings in the first place. Then if Harvin didn't go deep shift to cover Shiancoe or move to the middle. Which brings me to my next point. Other than D. Manning we have a SLOW secondary that will always get beat. We need to draft players with some speed to make the cover two really work as planned.

Mike Brown was considered slow but had a great ability to read and react. Let's get us another one of those.

 

Peace

[BearsFan1974]

Mike Brown was considered slow but had a great ability to read and react. Let's get us another one of those.

 

Peace

 

Connor I totally agree. You can be slow, just be the first to that spot. Speed kills but outsmarting the fast ones does as much damage.

[defiantgiant]

Since I played both positions in my younger days saftey and cornerback.......I will say that it was Harris that blew the coverage not Jennings. You are taught as a saftey to get deeper than the deepest WR. There was no reason he should in the cover two bite on the TE in the middle. Game planning would tell you that Harvin was the fastest (maybe the only) WR the Vikings had that could really hurt the Bears, so he should have been cheating to that side to help Jennings in the first place. Then if Harvin didn't go deep shift to cover Shiancoe or move to the middle. Which brings me to my next point. Other than D. Manning we have a SLOW secondary that will always get beat. We need to draft players with some speed to make the cover two really work as planned.

 

I think sometimes teams can get away with being slow in the secondary, but you can't get away with being slow if you take bad angles or read the play wrong. It's like what you said about Harris - he should have been cheating the other way to begin with. Maybe if you have an absurdly quick safety like Earl Thomas you can live with those bad reads, but Harris doesn't have the speed to cover for his mistake. If he takes himself out of position, he's not going to get to his spot in time, like we saw on that TD from Harvin.

 

I think Major Wright might be able to help in that respect, if he can break into the starting lineup. He's definitely got more speed and range than Harris does. Wright at FS and Manning at SS would give us a decent amount of recovery speed on the back end, even if we'd still be slow at corner.

 

It's a shame that the Bears have so many bigger needs in this draft, because it looks like it's going to be a great year to get a corner. Patrick Peterson, Amukamara, that kid Harris out of Miami, Texas' two starting corners, Dowling from Virginia...there could be a lot of really talented CBs in the draft this year. But unless one of the blue-chip guys falls really, really far, I just can't see them drafting a CB in April.