Could These Bears Shuffle Again?
by Vegas Sports Informer - 09/28/2006
As the 1985 Chicago Bears Super Bowl Shuffle song goes, "We are the Bears Shufflin' Crew Shufflin' on down, doin' it for you. We're so bad we know we're good. Blowin' your mind like we knew we would. You know we're just struttin' for fun Struttin' our stuff for everyone. We're not here to start no trouble. We're just here to do the Super Bowl Shuffle." But the question here is, could these Bears repeat or rewrite the song?
The Monsters of the Midway are now 3-0 in this young football season. This Sunday night the Bears are playing the reigning champs of the NFC. With a win against the Seattle Seahawks, Chicago could become the unofficial kings of the NFC. With a shorthanded backfield for Seattle (reigning MVP Shaun Alexander out with a foot injury) a win here for the Bears could provide a giant leap and make them one of the best teams in the NFL.
It's not the Chicago Bears' fault that they have one of the easiest schedules in the NFL and are in one of the weakest divisions. You can almost pencil in two more victories because the Bears get to play at home against Green Bay and San Francisco. They have three straight tough road games in November against the NY Giants, NY Jets, and New England Patriots. These Bears are capable of winning two out three of those road games.
If the Bears are legitimate Super Bowl contenders they will have to continue to play Chicago Bears ball. Here's a look at how I think the Bears can make a trip to Miami in February:
Defense! Defense! Defense!
Last year we heard the media comparing the current defense to the 1985 Bears defense. This year's defense, in my opinion, is even better then last year's. The Carolina Panthers last year exposed a weakness in the "D" in the playoffs as the secondary got lit up. So how did the Bears fix it? By getting a former Carolina Panther with Super Bowl experience in cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. In the last three games the Bears "D" has allowed 7.6 points per game. Pro Bowler Brian Urlacher and the boys could be a new version of the "Monsters of the Midway."
Grossman Factor
I can't even count that high to find out how many starting QBs the Chicago Bears have used since the Punky QB Jim McMahon left Chicago. Throw away the status of Rex Grossman as a work-in-progress; he is now the leader of an NFC championship contender. Still, the main question in Chicago is: Can Rex Grossman stay healthy? Because a healthy Rex Grossman seems to work for this offense.
Continue to Run the Ball
Since the Gayle Sayers days, the Bears offense has been about the run game. Granted, for the last three games the Bears run game has been a big question mark. Both RBs have struggled; and don't forget that Thomas Jones and Cedric Benson were both injured during the preseason and probably haven't been 100 percent.
In three games the Bears have rushed for a total of 249 yards with an average of 2.7 yards per carry, 83 yards per game and no rushing touchdowns. The Bears will not win a playoff game if they can't run the ball. Rex Grossman has had success throwing the ball in three games. If the Bears can establish the run they will be contenders in this league.
Protect the football
Everybody that follows football knows that turnovers lose football games. Sunday at Minnesota, the Vikings scored 10 of their 16 points off turnovers against the Bears. Protect the ball is the key of this Bears team. Rex Grossman needs to not force the ball in double and triple coverage. If nothing is open, throw it away. An interception could make or break the season. On third-and-long, if you need to throw it away, then do it! Rely on the play of your defense to get you the ball back.
Week four is a couple days away and the Bears have Seattle coming to the Windy City for a night game. With an injury to Seattle running back Shaun Alexander this could be another home "W" for the Bears. As I said before, this schedule is pretty soft. I predict that this team will win the division and make the playoffs. Their record will be between 12-4 or 11-5. This game on Sunday night will determine if the Bears are ready to take the next step in the NFC. Click this link for the entire Chicago Bears schedule: