PSoTD

Of course I agree, Rex Grossman is blowing offensive opportunities for the Bears. But I also have to say, I think the offensive coordination of the team is doing a LOT more damage. In the 17-13 loss against the Patriots, the Bears shouldn't have passed more than 20 times. This was a ball control game. Instead, there were 35 pass plays by the Bears. Why? They were running the ball just fine. I know balance is desired, but sometimes you have to stick with what is working. And Sunday, that was rushing the ball. Sunday night's loss was a failure of coaching.

Secondly, there's a play the Bears need to start calling on passes. It's called the wide receiver screen, and I know they have it, because they ran it a lot last year. Berrian, and even better, Bradley, could be very effective and it'll slow down this blitz crap. They have to quit using the speed receivers just on deep routes.

Finally, the Bears probably win that game if Urlacher doesn't get faked out of his cleats by Tom Brady on a run in the 4th quarter. I'm not sure what Urlacher was thinking, but it wasn't stopping Brady from making the first down no matter what.

I'm not an Eagles fan, I'm a Chicago Bears fan. But I feel kinda sad that McNabb, the Eagles and Eagles fans are having to go through a big injury to McNabb once again.

As a Bears' fan, obviously I watched the tale of two halves last night, with the Bears pulling away from the Giants and winning the game handily at the end.

I thought a comment by Al Michaels last night to be pretty insulting to sports fans anywhere - but most particularly, fans that blog. He was talking about the Bears ups and downs the past month, and what online talk about the Bears was based on that - one week the Bears suck, one week they're the best team in the NFL, etc. He said there was a lot of blogging and blather - and that it was all blather. He said it more than once, so obviously he felt there was an important point to this, that NFL fans that blog about their team just contribute blather. In essence - not worth listening to.

We've heard the same kind of arrogance from political types in the past, and reality has re-shifted that belief into something closer to an ecosystem about politics. I do believe that the NFL should recognize that a blogging ecosystem exists for pro football as well, and make damn certain that they don't have nationally televised generalized jabs at it, because that's really not going to be beneficial to the NFL. Sports fans pay the freight for the NFL. There are varying levels of fans, but "magnet fans" - the kinds that organize fan clubs in different cities for teams, the kinds that organize season ticket sales for groups, the kinds that talk about the local team in the local coffee shop on Monday, promoting that team - are vociferous, and always have been. Yes, some of those fans blog now. That's a technology evolution and nothing else. Yes, the quality of the discussion is all over the map. But seriously, who is Al Michaels to talk about fan blather? He's worked with some champions in that department. Remember Dennis Miller? Boomer Esiason? Tim McCarver?

It's pretty clear that Michaels is familiar with blather. But if he's going to rip it as an issue for the NFL, perhaps he ought to focus on the "paid" blather, rather than what comes from the fans - the folks actually doing the paying. The best of free NFL blogging is equal to much of the paid sportswriting and announcing we've all grown accustomed to - so why rip the entire process?

Your move, Maloof Brothers.

I'm a Sacramento Kings fan. But I've had it with these sports owners that insist that local or state government finance their arena or stadium or ballpark. If the Maloofs move the Kings away because the voters of Sacramento won't buy them an arena with taxpayer or borrowed money, then I say screw the Maloofs. And, unfortunately, the Kings. We shouldn't be treating professional sports as anything different than any other business - or at least, any other entertainment business. Does a county buy the roller rink for the company that provides indoor skating? Does a city buy the movie theatre so that AMC can show movies? At some point, the issue of fairness - and the issue of developing a smart, long-term unique identity for a region not held hostage by the short-term fancies of the rich - needs to overcome the weak-kneed wannabe sportster business community, and if government can't say no directly, it's best to let the voters say no instead. So if Sacramento County tells the Maloofs no, I say congratulations to them for behaving as sensible adults.

I'm finding this movie to be getting pretty old...