NFL Week 14: Jim Harbaugh's first number

That doesn't explain their collapse last week against a Seahawks team that is pretty good but had been bad on the road all season. All those players already had been hurt when they fell apart leading 14-10 late at home. And a few injuries shouldn't have prevented them from beating a Vikings team that has been dealing with injuries of its own. I suppose Lovie would agree that injuries are much more devastating to the Bears than any other team, but that doesn't seem to compute, be boop.

This is just another instance of the Bears playing their worst under pressure. They were not ready to close out the game last week and they were not ready to start the game this week. Plenty of blame to go around, but ultimately, that's the one important job a head coach has — to make sure the team is ready to play.

And if this was a new phenomena, I could understand — to an extent — but this type of thing has followed Lovie for years. I'm sure he'll fire a couple coaches in the offseason, though, and the people responsible won't return.

 

But they have won two and lost one since I have been posting here listening you the sky is falling.

 

The Vegas line on that guy getting a Leap?

 

An old and banged up defense doesn't explain why they'd have trouble holding a late lead?

 

Those '86 Jets helped make Paul Maguire's name, such as it was. He used to be on NBC's pregame show and when the Jets got to 10-1, he said they wouldn't win another game that year. They got smoked that week 45-3 and he kept saying it on the air every week to the point that it became a running joke. And indeed, the Jets lost their last five games and finished 10-6.

Even so, the Jets won a playoff game and had Cleveland down 20-10 with four minutes left in the divisional round until Mark Gastineau (Brittny's dad, for the younger set) was called for a roughing the passer on Bernie Kosar to help ignite a rally. The Brownies won in double-OT but would lose the following week to the Broncos on "The Drive."

And Batman, I was watching the Giants-Saints game as well and it's also the first time I've seen offsetting pass-interference calls (on both the receiver and the defender) in my football viewing lifetime. I wonder if that's going to be a new thing.

 

Was the defense young and healthy for the first 55 minutes? Because the unit played pretty well for 90 percent of the game — until it had to.

 

It always has to. It's an NFL game.

Yes, being old and banged up has something to do with stamina at the end of the game.

 

Well, if you've watched the Bears in Lovie's tenure, you'd understand that the defense struggling at the end of halves has been all too common. For years. Long before you and the rest of the enablers could blame age, injuries, George W. Bush, etc. The Bears fattened up on a bunch of crappy teams early and won games when there was little to no pressure, but now they are wilting when faced with legitimate competition — something that also has been common for years now. That's a reflection of someone. Whom it could it be?

 

Disagreeing with your conclusion does not mean I have not watch the Bears during the Lovie Smith era.

It's just another iteration of the old "Something happened, so the only possible cause is a fundamental attribute of some individual's character that forced it to happen" argument.

I'm perfectly sympathetic to the argument that the Lovie Smith system is designed to beat up on weak teams and doesn't work as well against good ones. But since neither the Seahawks nor the Vikings are good teams, that's not really relevant to why they lost the last two weeks.

 

So losing to bad teams proves your point?

Anyway, the Seahawks are not nearly as good on the road, but they likely are to going to make the playoffs. They're pretty good. The Bears had them on the ropes. And they let 'em off the hook!

Between Lovie and Cutler, this team is built to drive its fans crazy.

 

How many times do the Steelers have to stink up the place like they did today before you realize they might not be as good as you think?

 

Just getting back from fainting this afternoon. Still would like to know where the Panthers were held against their will while the Falcons were getting beat in Charlotte ...