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| Kyle Trompeter. 4th September, 2005 - 4:44 pm
 The Chicago Bears don?t get any respect. I know that is a bland and obvious statement to make, but it speaks the truth. Television personalities and sports publications across the nation are saying the Bears are going to struggle this year.
One publication even said the Bears are going to finish the season 3-13 and be the worst team in the NFL.
Everybody?s a critic, right?
This widespread skepticism is similar to the general consensus about the team before the 2001 season. Even the local papers were saying the Bears would maybe win three games that season.
That team won 13 games and a division title.
You have to wonder what is going through some of the minds of the people who are serious when they say that this Chicago team will finish with a worse record than the dismal 2004 squad that was still able to scratch away 5 wins.
Is it all because of Rex Grossman?s injury? If that is the one reason this team will crumble into the equivalent of NFL nothingness, then each team might as well mail in their season every time they lose a player, especially one that has yet to prove himself in the league.
If it?s not that, then is it because they lost some key players in the offseason? Well, if you count David Terrell, Anthony Thomas, Rex Tucker, Paul Edinger, and R.W. McQuarters as vital parts of a winning system, then Rocky 4 and 5 were necessary, because without them, the first three Rocky movies are terrible.
The reality is the Bears have upgraded or gotten healthy at most positions. Additions like Muhsin Muhammad, Cedric Benson, and Kyle Orton will play big roles this season. Compare those three guys, for example, with the three guys in those spots last year: Terrell, Thomas Jones and Thomas, and a combination of Jonathan Quinn, Craig Krenzel, and Chad Hutchinson.
If I were the Bears, I would be very content with the new players this year.
Is the reason the Bears are so disliked because they still employ those ?Trainee? offensive coordinators like John Shoop and Terry Shea? Can?t be, both are gone. GM Jerry Angelo made a great move in bringing former Illini head coach Ron Turner back to Chicago to run the offense that he once directed before.
Also, last time Turner was calling the shots about ten years ago, the Bears set multiple offensive team records.
Just a little food for thought.
Is it just because there will be a rookie quarterback in the starting lineup? Or is it because Orton is the first Bears rookie to start opening day since 1965?
The fact is that out of all the quarterbacks that have seen time this preseason ? including Grossman ? Orton has looked twice as good as anyone else. Sure, he?ll throw a few picks here and there this season, most rookies do. But his arm strength is the best the Bears have had at that position in a long time, and with Muhammad on board and a talented defense to boot, the pressure to perform is not that high.
I think it would be na?ve to say this team is on its way to the top immediately this season. You simply can?t predict a worst to first turnaround about a team that lost 11 games last year. However, improvement is a must, and most likely a probability.
To expect three wins from this team, barring injury, is asinine. But, expecting the Bears to jump up to 13 wins is also foolish.
Nine or ten wins? That?s doable.
Bring on the Redskins! |
