Hey, I'll be the first to admit that statistics can't begin to tell you everything about how a team or player is performing in the NFL. Take quarterback ratings, for example. Trent Green ranks 10th on the all-time list and Johnny Unitas is 49th, but which one would you rather have under center for your team? Sometimes, though, they are a pretty good judge of how well you're doing. The Bears defense, for example, ranked fifth in 2006 and 28th in 2007. Even if they weren't quite that bad, Lovie Smith should be concerned about the way they played this year, right?
"I've heard the numbers about last year, how we were ranked fifth. At the end of the year last year, we weren't playing great defense. At the end of the year this year, I feel like we are playing good defense."Just to refresh your memory, at the end of last season the Bears were in the Super Bowl so the defense must have been doing something right. This year's version did pick up its play down the stretch but Smith's comment has more to do with defending his decision to fire Ron Rivera and promote Bob Babich than any actual production.
Smith has been banging a drum about how few changes he believes are necessary for the Bears in the offseason, which seems delusional given the year that's just finished. It's fine to stand up for his defense, it was riddled with injuries after all, but the notion that it's close to last year's edition is laughable. The 2006 Bear defense scared teams but in 2007 they barely unsettled them.
During the same press conference as the above comment, Smith said he wanted all the assistants and players from this year's team back next year. Where was that loyalty after the Super Bowl trip? Rivera, Thomas Jones and Chris Harris are three guys who could have helped this year's team and all were sent packing by Smith after a good year. The Bears fiddled with things they should have never touched last year while leaving trouble spots, like quarterback, untouched. If they do the same or, worse, do nothing it could be another long year in Chicago.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-02-2008 @ 9:58PM
Rusty said...
lovie's niceness seems to just get him in trouble. he wont throw anybody under the bus, even though people are clammoring for him to.
suprisingly, some people might find that admirable.
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1-03-2008 @ 9:53AM
Mike said...
Lovie made the move to bench Archuleta, so he's not delusional about how bad the defense got. With Vasher, Harris, and Dvorcek/Anthony Adams back healthy they're already a much better D. By going out and getting a real safety and replacing M.Anderson with Alex Brown full-time, they'll be that much better. So I do believe the D is close. If you look at the numbers they gave up 354.7 yds per game to rank 28th. By shaving just 25 yds off of that (1 additional 3andout drive, or prevent 1 more big play a game) and they're the 17th ranked defense. Does this make them feared? Don't know, but it's a start and a manageable task. The offense is another story...
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1-03-2008 @ 10:53AM
Mike said...
...now the offense. Found a great website listing all the free agents. www.footballsfuture.com Has a breakdown of free agents by position. There are lots of offensive linemen hitting free agency. With the increased salary cap, Briggs departure, Darwin Walker cut, and other cuts (hopefully Muhsin Muhammed and Archuleta), the Bears should go after at least 1 and maybe 2 linemen from this list. The Cleveland Browns went from laughing stock to playoff contender, I believe, because they went out and got Joe Thomas (draft), Eric Steinbach (FA), and LeCharle Bentley (back from injury) to shore up their offensive line. A FA Wide Receiver could help and a safety. In the draft target safety, o-line, WR, and RB. The Bears have an extra 3rd round draft pick too, to help out. So in the first 4 rounds they have 5 picks. These can all be impact guys.
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