By Emory Hunt
Jay Cutler still has to make better decisions in the red zone.
Posted on November 18, 2010
The Blue & Orange Kool-Aid Report
Blue: 6 and 3.
As of this writing the Chicago Bears are 6 and 3, tied with the Green Bay Packers for first in the NFC North and crazily tied for second in the NFC overall. Drink yourself sick on the Orange Kool-Aid if you will, deriding this years’ version of the Monsters of the Midway. Use your sports talk radio show as Dan McNeil did to try to advocate that it would be better for the Bears to lose all their remaining games so that the Lovie-Angelo regime will be fired, leaving us to hope for better in the next leadership team.
Better than 6 and 3?
Posted on November 17, 2010
Fantasy Fix: The Return of Elton Brand And Other NBA Oddities
By Dan O’Shea
Fantasy basketball campaigns are entering Week 4, and most of the top-ranked players from the draft are merely lurking on the fringes of the top 25.
With the exceptions of Chris Paul, PG, New Orleans, who’s been all-around tremendous, and Pau Gasol, PF/C, LA Lakers, who’s averaging a career-best 23 PPG and 12.4 RPG, the best fantasy performers this far have been big surprises.
Here are a few early-season accolades:
Posted on November 17, 2010
Up Next: Dolphins Running Out Of QBs
By The Beachwood Scouting Affairs Desk
Tyler Thigpen likely to get the call.
Posted on November 16, 2010
SportsMonday: Play Action Proves Pivotal
By Jim Coffman
The game was a classic set-up and the pivotal play 50 minutes in the making.
In fact, the Bears had been laying the groundwork for Jay Cutler’s clinching fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Kellen Davis for months.
All season when the Bears have faced third or fourth-and-one, they have lined up in power formations and quarterback Jay Cutler has handed the ball off first to Matt Forte and then, in the last few contests, to Chester Taylor. In other words, when teams have studied the digital record of the Mike Martz Bears, they have seen nothing but short-yardage dive plays.
And all through the first three-plus quarters Sunday, the Bears ran frequently when they had a chance, i.e. when it wasn’t second or third and a ton. Martz may finally be seeking true play-calling balance but he still doesn’t call the give-up draw plays in those situations that were a Ron Turner specialty.
This time when the home team faced third-and-one from just inside the Viking 20 near the end of a key 27-13 victory (bye-bye 3-6 Vikings, hello 6-3 Bears), they finally pulled the trigger on play action.
Posted on November 15, 2010
The College Football Report: Let The Bloodletting Begin!
By Mike Luce
About this time of year, we start to hear the phrase “coaching carousel” come up to describe college football programs firing and hiring head coaches. Presumably, this process calls to mind a carnival ride spinning furiously out of control, whipping those unwary or unworthy from their seats into the bystanders. We’ve never fully understood how this image accounts for coaches who switch jobs or land promotions from the assistant ranks, but there you are. “Coaching Duck-Duck-Goose” just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?
We don’t care much for cliches here at The College Football Report. In fact, if we were to compose a list of our least favorite aspects of college football commentary, it would include – in no particular order:
Posted on November 12, 2010
TrackNotes: As The Breeders’ Cup Turned
By Thomas Chambers
The jockey had murder in his eye, the chef cooked up a winner, and pari-mutuel integrity was fully compromised. And that was just on the first day.
The 2010 Breeders’ Cup World Championships provided all manner of triumph and heartache. Blame, Zenyatta, Goldikova, Life At Ten, Uncle Mo, Bo-Rail, Pletcher, Johnny V, and Edgar. All had a hand in it.
Posted on November 12, 2010
Czar Of The Playbook Preview: Vikings at Bears
By Emory Hunt
Keys to a Bears victory: Olsen, Idonije and flooding the zones.
Posted on November 11, 2010
The Blue & Orange Kool-Aid Report
Blue: Though I am doomed to at least eight more weeks of looking for the positive Blue lining in a sea of Orange muck, I can tell you this: When prepared right, Asian carp is quite delicious.
Though the Mississippi and many other rivers in the southern Midwest are under threat of ecological disaster, many in these areas are working to make a living farming these fish, which are highly sought after in ironically, Asia.
Like this much maligned fish, the 2010 version of our Bears are highly criticized in nearly all forums, yet if you look close enough, you can find the positives.
Posted on November 10, 2010
Fantasy Fix: There Go The Lions
By Dan O’Shea
Nevermind.
Last week, I recommended about half of the Detroit offense based on the fact that QB Matthew Stafford was healthy again.
Well, his healthy period lasted about one week, as shoulder problems popped up near the end of what was a pretty good Week 9 performance – 240 yards passing, 3 TDs (one running).
If you had him in the lineup last week, you probably did well, but reports out of Detroit suggest Stafford might now be lost for the rest of the season.
Going into Week 10 is a tough time to look for a QB, but if you are looking to trade for one or scour the waiver wire, here are my picks for QBs poised to do big things the rest of the way:
Posted on November 10, 2010