2013 NFC North/NFL Thread

[GGGG]

As I wrote at halftime - the defense was absolutely brutal tonight.

Reminded me of last year.  If you can't get pressure on the quarterback this is what happens.

I hope this puts to rest the "defense is better without Clay Matthews" nonsense that was suggested here last week.

[hairy worthen]

Reminded me of last year.  If you can't get pressure on the quarterback this is what happens.

I hope this puts to rest the "defense is better without Clay Matthews" nonsense that was suggested here last week.

no the defense is not better without clay Matthews. That's nuts.

I think it is time to put Tramon Williams as a nickel or dime def. back and start House instead. I know the Packers say he is playing well, but I see him getting beat a lot and when they needed a big interception he dropped it.

[Spotcheck Billy]

"Packers practice squad"

Every time has injuries. Are the Packers hit harder than other teams? Sure. But every team is playing hurt. The backups need to carry their weight when they are called upon. They aren't as deep as everyone thought they are.

Good game, good for the division. Every game from now on means more than ever.

Go Bears.

GB not only has starters out but also their backups at several positions are out, alot of undrafted free agents playing and now even some of those (Mulomba) is out but yeah, next man up is all anyone can hope for when it comes to injuries

[Lennys Tap]

Big win for the back-up Bears against the back-up Pack, but let's get one thing straight: the Bears are NOT better with Josh McCown at QB. The fact of the matter is that the Bears' offense was slightly different with McCown than it had been with Cutler, which makes it harder to prepare for. The Bears ran sets and plays that the Packers hadn't seen yet on film. You can rest assured that the Lions will be more than ready for some of those looks/plays on Sunday. There have been a lot of back-up QBs over the years who came in and had a big game in a spot-start but struggled mightily after that (Chad Hutchinson and Matt Flynn come to mind).

In the same respect, I wouldn't be surprised to see GB beat the Eagles next week running an offense that's better suited to Wallace's skillset, only to see an ugly offense in a loss to the Giants the following week.

Scouting and film work is such integral parts of gameplanning in the modern NFL that there are times when starting a capable back-up QB for a game almost seems like an advantage.

I'll agree with you in general (Cutler is a better player than McCown) but how do you explain the Bear offense looking MUCH better in the 2nd half of the Washington game than it did under Cutler in the first half? McCown did a better job (with no reps in weeks) executing the game plan tailored for Cutler than Jay did.

Physically, everything is advantage Cutler, but it's really refreshing to watch 6 quarters of Bear football with great production (over 50 points scored) and no turnovers - especially the pick 6 or fumbles returned for TDs which seem to happen far too often with Cutler.

[muarmy81]

It's being reported that Rodgers will be out 3 weeks with broken collarbone...

[muarmy81]

GB not only has starters out but also their backups at several positions are out, alot of undrafted free agents playing and now even some of those (Mulomba) is out but yeah, next man up is all anyone can hope for when it comes to injuries

Yep...the bears are playing guys from other team's practice squad on their D-Line due to Henry Melton and Nate Collin's ACL injuries.  It also hurts that they've moved Corey Wooten inside to help cover down when he does a much better job on the end.  Rookies are having to learn on the fly (Bostic, Greene, and the two rookies on the right side of the line)

Lot's of injuries out there for a lot of teams.

[Hards Alumni]

It's being reported that Rodgers will be out 3 weeks with broken collarbone...

Fractured.

[GGGG]

no the defense is not better without clay Matthews. That's nuts.

I think it is time to put Tramon Williams as a nickel or dime def. back and start House instead. I know the Packers say he is playing well, but I see him getting beat a lot and when they needed a big interception he dropped it.

Merritt's is the one who said that about Matthews.

It really is hard for me to judge DBs in a game like that because I have no idea what is being asked of them, and it is real hard to cover in today's NFL without an adequate pass rush.  I will say that Casey Hayward looked very rusty though.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Erin is probably just a lot tougher than you.

No question, though mine also came with a shoulder separation which meant a sling.

[JWags85]

I'll agree with you in general (Cutler is a better player than McCown) but how do you explain the Bear offense looking MUCH better in the 2nd half of the Washington game than it did under Cutler in the first half? McCown did a better job (with no reps in weeks) executing the game plan tailored for Cutler than Jay did.

Physically, everything is advantage Cutler, but it's really refreshing to watch 6 quarters of Bear football with great production (over 50 points scored) and no turnovers - especially the pick 6 or fumbles returned for TDs which seem to happen far too often with Cutler.

Come on, lets not get out of pocket.  6 quarters against a bad Redskins D and a Packer's D who was really banged up.  The Bears offensive line was awesome last night.  We've seen Cutler play really well when he's had time this year.  His horrible half against the Lions?  The OL was bumrushed and he couldn't go through progressions, much less keep himself upright.

We had this same refrain when Hanie played well.  Stop selectively remembering Cutler's bad games and projecting it against a steady performance from McCown.  With the time McCown had, Cutler would have picked the Packer's defense apart too.  All that considered, McCown still was only 22/41.  More than half of which were to Marshall or dump offs to Forte or Bush.  He wasn't Tom Brady out there dissecting the defense with ruthless efficiency.

Why can't Bears fans enjoy an awesome and unexpected win without somehow finding a way to throw shade at Cutler in the midst of his best season as a Bear prior to injury.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Big Cutler supporter. Always has been and there should be no dispute at all that Cutler is the Bears starting QB. Great win for the Bears and its gonna be a dogfight for the last half of the season in the NFC north.

[DegenerateDish]

I think a lot of people are missing the greater point here with McCown. What you saw last night was the value of Trestman and the playbook of Kromer. No one will argue that Cutler is the better QB, but what's being undervalued is McCown knows that offense inside/out. Last night was the first game all season where the Bears offense was what I was looking forward to seeing all season. It was fluid, they ran sets they haven't run all year, took chances deeps, got creative with the run game. What that says about Cutler, I honestly do not know. Do I think McCown is leading them deep in the playoffs? No. Do I believe last night was a fluke? No.

What you want out of a back up QB is either a vet who will completely buy in and put in the time to understand the offense, or a young/athletic kid who more or less plays on instinct and uses his athletic ability more than the playbook. Take Wallace as an example, he's a journeyman, hasn't had the time to get reps, isn't young and certainly not as athletic as he used to be, and it showed. Flynn was successful in GB for a reason. McCown was successful last night for a reason.

[Lennys Tap]

Come on, lets not get out of pocket.  6 quarters against a bad Redskins D and a Packer's D who was really banged up.  The Bears offensive line was awesome last night.  We've seen Cutler play really well when he's had time this year.  His horrible half against the Lions?  The OL was bumrushed and he couldn't go through progressions, much less keep himself upright.

We had this same refrain when Hanie played well.  Stop selectively remembering Cutler's bad games and projecting it against a steady performance from McCown.  With the time McCown had, Cutler would have picked the Packer's defense apart too.  All that considered, McCown still was only 22/41.  More than half of which were to Marshall or dump offs to Forte or Bush.  He wasn't Tom Brady out there dissecting the defense with ruthless efficiency.

Why can't Bears fans enjoy an awesome and unexpected win without somehow finding a way to throw shade at Cutler in the midst of his best season as a Bear prior to injury.

What does "get out of pocket" mean? Cutler and McCown both played one half against the bad Redskins' defense you reference. Cutler was 3-8 for 28 yards and a pick six. His quarterback rating was 8.3. McCown was 14-20, 204 yards, 1 TD 0 int. His quarterback rating was 119.6. He has led the offense to 51 points in 6 quarters and has a QB rating over 100. I never said he was Tom Brady. Neither is Jay Cutler. Cutler is a mid level NFL QB (84 career rating). McCown has a career 74 rating, mostly with a bad Arizona team. He doesn't have Jay's big play capability, but he doesn't make as many big mistakes. As I said before, he's not as good as Cutler, but he's waaaaay better than Caleb Hanie. Comparing the two (Hanie's career rating? 41.6) is idiotic.

[GGGG]

Well, it is three weeks for Rodgers.  If they can manage to go 2-1 over these three weeks, which IMO is completely doable (Philly, @NYG, Minny) then they will still control their destiny (for the most part) before the Thanksgiving game at Detroit.

It could be worse.

[MerrittsMustache]

What does "get out of pocket" mean? Cutler and McCown both played one half against the bad Redskins' defense you reference. Cutler was 3-8 for 28 yards and a pick six. His quarterback rating was 8.3. McCown was 14-20, 204 yards, 1 TD 0 int. His quarter back rating was 119.6. He has led the offense to 51 points in 6 quarters and has a QB rating over 100. I never said he was Tom Brady. Neither is Jay Cutler. Cutler is a mid level NFL QB (84 rating). McCown has a career 74 rating, mostly with a bad Arizona team. He doesn't have Jay's big play capability, but he doesn't make as many big mistakes. As I said before, he's not as good as Cutler, but he's waaaaay better than Caleb Hanie. Comparing the two (Hanie's career rating? 41.6) is idiotic.

Against Washington, Cutler went down 5 minutes into the 2nd quarter after running all of 14 plays (and scoring 10 points). The pick six that he threw bounced out of Jeffery's hands. That's hardly on the QB. After Cutler's injury, Hester returned a punt for a TD and Forte had a 50-yard TD run two plays after Jeffery broke a screen pass for 20+ yards. That's 14 of the Bears' 31 points with McCown under center.

Added: The Bears did score 10 points with Cutler in the game, but admittedly, the TD drive was only 10 yards following an INT.

Don't get me wrong, McCown has played very well in just under 7 quarters, but that doesn't mean that the Bears are a better team with him than with than Jay Cutler. McCown is the type of QB who won't lose you a game (which is why he's a career back-up) but he's not the type of QB who's going to go out and win you a game.

[MerrittsMustache]

Well, it is three weeks for Rodgers.  If they can manage to go 2-1 over these three weeks, which IMO is completely doable (Philly, @NYG, Minny) then they will still control their destiny (for the most part) before the Thanksgiving game at Detroit.

It could be worse.

Three weeks for a non-throwing shoulder injury? What a pansy! Why can't he play with a bad left shoulder? Oh, that's right: he's a quitter. He should have been back in the game last night instead of bailing on his team in an important divisional game!

[hairy worthen]

Well, it is three weeks for Rodgers.  If they can manage to go 2-1 over these three weeks, which IMO is completely doable (Philly, @NYG, Minny) then they will still control their destiny (for the most part) before the Thanksgiving game at Detroit.

It could be worse.

Could be worse, except he would probably miss 4 games because the 4th game is a thursday

[GGGG]

Could be worse, except he would probably miss 4 games because the 4th game is a thursday

Well, three weeks from today is the Tuesday before that Thursday game...but we will see.

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

Three weeks for a non-throwing shoulder injury? What a pansy! Why can't he play with a bad left shoulder? Oh, that's right: he's a quitter. He should have been back in the game last night instead of bailing on his team in an important divisional game!

Ha, too funny. That is one of the many reasons I hate Packer fans and the mass media.

[Lennys Tap]

Don't get me wrong, McCown has played very well in just under 7 quarters, but that doesn't mean that the Bears are a better team with him than with than Jay Cutler. McCown is the type of QB who won't lose you a game (which is why he's a career back-up) but he's not the type of QB who's going to go out and win you a game.

Again, I don't dispute that Cutler is better. The point remain that in just under 7 quarters McCown has played like "good Jay". He's an outstanding backup, not the reincarnation of Caleb Hanie.

[GGGG]

Ha, too funny. That is one of the many reasons I hate Packer fans and the mass media.

You do realize that he is making fun of Bears' fans and their reaction to Cutler sitting out most of the NFC Championship Game right?

[ChitownSpaceForRent]

You do realize that he is making fun of Bears' fans and their reaction to Cutler sitting out most of the NFC Championship Game right?

I took it as Packer fans making fun of Jay Cutler sitting out of the NFC championship game even though he was actually hurt. That and all the groin jokes ive had to endure before yesterdays game. That and how the media always disses Cutler but sees Rodgers as their goldenboy.

[MerrittsMustache]

You do realize that he is making fun of Bears' fans and their reaction to Cutler sitting out most of the NFC Championship Game right?

I took it as Packer fans making fun of Jay Cutler sitting out of the NFC championship game even though he was actually hurt. That and all the groin jokes ive had to endure before yesterdays game. That and how the media always disses Cutler but sees Rodgers as their goldenboy.

esard2011 wins this one!

[GGGG]

esard2011 wins this one!

Touche.

[MU B2002]

I love it.

http://gif.mocksession.com/2013/11/rodgers-fu/