Official 2011-2012 NFL Thread

[LittleHurt05]

Aren't the Bears 6-3? You guys should be more happy about the Bears right now.

 

Sure they aren't as good as the Packers, but 6-3 is nice.

 

From what I can tell, I think everyone is pretty excited about them, they are the frontrunners for a wild card spot after the 2-3 start. It's just one person that insists on giving Lovie Smith zero credit for anything that has happened the last eight years that is getting everyone worked up.

[Jenksismyhero]

From what I can tell, I think everyone is pretty excited about them, they are the frontrunners for a wild card spot after the 2-3 start. It's just one person that insists on giving Lovie Smith zero credit for anything that has happened the last eight years that is getting everyone worked up.

 

4 weeks ago this board was in meltdown and everyone was in agreement with me. This is exactly what Angelo/Lovie do to remain in their jobs. Be s***ty, but make a run at the most convenient time to make everyone forget it. A good coach would have reigned in Martz last year. Might have saved us a loss at NO and Det this year.

[Balta1701]

4 weeks ago this board was in meltdown and everyone was in agreement with me. This is exactly what Angelo/Lovie do to remain in their jobs. Be s***ty, but make a run at the most convenient time to make everyone forget it. A good coach would have reigned in Martz last year. Might have saved us a loss at NO and Det this year.

Yup. This is exactly what Angelo/Lovie do to remain in their jobs. Win football games and get to the playoffs.

[Kyyle23]

Aren't the Bears 6-3? You guys should be more happy about the Bears right now.

 

Sure they aren't as good as the Packers, but 6-3 is nice.

 

like i said earlier, the bears could win the superbowl and people like jenks will call it a fluke no matter what happens. its just the way it is

[southsider2k5]

like i said earlier, the bears could win the superbowl and people like jenks will call it a fluke no matter what happens. its just the way it is

 

You know who is a fluke? The Packers. If you take away Rodgers, Mathews, and company, they would be so average.

[GoSox05]

You know who is a fluke? The Packers. If you take away Rodgers, Mathews, and company, they would be so average.

 

Rodgers is really just an average player at this point.

[StrangeSox]

4 weeks ago this board was in meltdown and everyone was in agreement with me.

 

I don't think so. 4 weeks ago everyone was pissed at Martz and Angelo, not Lovie

 

 

 

[Controlled Chaos]

My Lovie take...some of this is from the beginning of the year, but still holds true.

 

He's had some success recently because he is surrounded by good assistants. Martz, Tice, Marinelli. These guys have changed the identity of the "Lovie Smith" team. A good head coach creates a tree of assistants that go on to other jobs and take the identity or mental approach they learned, with them. The head coach passes on his wisdom to the subordinates, who then copy them and go on to success themselves. In the Bears case, the new coaches came in and implemented their strategy, wisdom and identity to the piss poor one that Lovie had out there. Rivera tried pushing some of his own strategy and identity and even though it worked, he was run out of town. Lovie wanted this team, especially on the defensive side of the ball, to be about him. Well he certainly got it…he put his puppet in charge(Babich) of the defense and watched him fail as he pulled the strings. He then came out from behind the curtain and pulled the strings himself. What we saw wasn't pretty. A stubborn coach who showed no passion or aggressiveness in his calls. A coach who lacked the creativity or the ability to adjust a scheme, not only on the fly, but also from week to week. A coach who had the balls to say 'trust me' yet didn't have the balls to hold lazy, senseless penalty taking and unproductive players acccountable.

 

The positive is I think Lovie learned something and now realizes his lack of tenacity, lack of accountability and lack of overall leadership with the players is not the way to go. What Lovie can do and to his credit, what he is doing, is allowing his assistants to grab the reigns and lead a little. The players are taking on the assistants identity instead of Lovie's. Those 4th down calls last year….that's all Martz. Lovie has the power to overrule, but the call to go for 6 instead of 3 is coming from the OC who brings the mentality of "you can't stop us" That mentality is not Lovie's…never has been and never will be. The cutting of players...benchings of starters, not in Lovie's character at all. We have seen that over the past 7 years. Only when Marinelli took the reigns of the Defense and Tice/Martz of the offense did we start to see any semblance of accountability. The problem is, there's supposed to be a happy median between letting your Assistants run rampant(Martz) and meddling so much as to undermine their authority(Rivera). Lovie needs to know when to put the brakes on his OC and make the smart play. It seems pretty clear he won't do that unless forced. It took the whole city screaming before Martz changed his ways last year. We can assume Lovie was the one who finally talked to him about this, but when push came to shove Martz would do what he wanted. Martz started off the same way this year, did he change because of Lovie or Tice or just because it was the right thing to do?? Who knows? I honestly think Lovie has zero input right now with regard to the Offense and very little with regard to the Defense. This defense is different than it was when it was all Babich and Lovie. They are doing different things. Different looks. Some press coverage. Rivera wanted to implement some of that stuff and was run out of town. Lovie is simply the face of the team… the guy in front of the mic on interview day, the guy in charge of the red flag on game day, the guy in charge of clock management and the guy to give the speech after the game. That's it. I'm not sure how he is at after the game speeches...but the players love him, so let's give him an A+, so we can average off the D's he's getting on his other responsibilities. Not sure that's worth the 5.5 he's getting paid. I don't think any of these guys are HC material, but they might be able to succeed like this, cause I think they all see each other as equal, regardless of title. That's why they wouldn't let Tice interview with Titans last year. So, if it can work collectively with this 4 headed monster, than let's roll with it. They all should have the same amount of time on their contracts and when it fails...they're all gone!

 

But let's not put Lovie in the coaching hall of fame. In his tenure here we've had 3 OC's, 4 DC's, and countless position coaches. This is the Chicago Bears and the fans deserve more than on the job training. In 7 full seasons he has a whopping total of 3 playoff wins. I'm hoping they get it done collectively and if they do, it should be acknowledged as that.

Edited November 16, 2011 by Controlled Chaos

[Rowand44]

4 weeks ago this board was in meltdown and everyone was in agreement with me. This is exactly what Angelo/Lovie do to remain in their jobs. Be s***ty, but make a run at the most convenient time to make everyone forget it. A good coach would have reigned in Martz last year. Might have saved us a loss at NO and Det this year.

I guess making a run to the Superbowl and NFC Championship is quite the convenient time to go about it. Your argument is quite um...interesting here.

[RockRaines]

No one is doing this and i've repeatedly argued that Ditka SHOULD have won more with what he had and ISN'T some great coach like people think.

 

BTW SS, in the last 2.5 seasons including this one, Gould has increased his range, hitting longs of 52, 54 and 51. 10 of his 12 career 50+ FG's happened during this time. That's not Janikowski range, but it's not exactly amateur hour either.

You arent still aguring that Gould is a HOF candidate are you?

[bmags]

Rodgers is really just an average player at this point.

 

gosox, have you ever seen such polite respect from bears fans as this year. I learned something about myself, personally. I just hated Brett Favre completely. Now that you just have an amazing QB who is reasonably nice and plays beautifully, I really don't hate them. I just want to see them lose.

[GoSox05]

gosox, have you ever seen such polite respect from bears fans as this year. I learned something about myself, personally. I just hated Brett Favre completely. Now that you just have an amazing QB who is reasonably nice and plays beautifully, I really don't hate them. I just want to see them lose.

 

 

Aaron Rodgers is a likeable guy. I'm sure some people will start to get irritated with all the coverage he gets, but for this year he totally deserves it. He is out of this world right now. I look at his stats about once a day and every time i'm in shock.

 

 

Bear fans have been polite lately. Not sure I like that. Shouldn't we be yelling at each other?

 

[southsider2k5]

Aaron Rodgers is a likeable guy. I'm sure some people will start to get irritated with all the coverage he gets, but for this year he totally deserves it. He is out of this world right now. I look at his stats about once a day and every time i'm in shock.

 

 

Bear fans have been polite lately. Not sure I like that. Shouldn't we be yelling at each other?

 

I think the universal sentiment is Hate the Packers, Respect the team. They are awesome this year. There isn't much more to say.

[GoSox05]

I think the universal sentiment is Hate the Packers, Respect the team. They are awesome this year. There isn't much more to say.

 

Yeah I feel the same way about the Bears.

 

 

Now when it comes to the Vikings.

[Steve9347]

Yeah. That's kinda my take. I have a co-worker who is a huge Packers fan and he comes in talking sh*t every Monday. He's the only reason I've been annoyed by the Packers this year. I mean, we all know they are amazing and will win on Sunday, so I don't really understand the talking sh*t. Bears fans have no ground to stand on...

 

I mean, it is a bit tiring that their games aren't entertaining because, at least this year, the outcome is a given. However, I don't really have any animosity towards the Packers or Rodgers. The Lions, on the other hand, being their classless selves, are truly annoying. I will absolutely root for the Packers on Thanksgiving.

[southsider2k5]

Yeah. That's kinda my take. I have a co-worker who is a huge Packers fan and he comes in talking sh*t every Monday. He's the only reason I've been annoyed by the Packers this year. I mean, we all know they are amazing and will win on Sunday, so I don't really understand the talking sh*t. Bears fans have no ground to stand on...

I mean, it is a bit tiring that their games aren't entertaining because, at least this year, the outcome is a given. However, I don't really have any animosity towards the Packers or Rodgers. The Lions, on the other hand, being their classless selves, are truly annoying. I will absolutely root for the Packers on Thanksgiving.

 

No doubt about that. f*** Detroit.

[bmags]

go pack on turkey day.

[cabiness42]

Yeah. That's kinda my take. I have a co-worker who is a huge Packers fan and he comes in talking sh*t every Monday. He's the only reason I've been annoyed by the Packers this year. I mean, we all know they are amazing and will win on Sunday, so I don't really understand the talking sh*t. Bears fans have no ground to stand on...

 

I mean, it is a bit tiring that their games aren't entertaining because, at least this year, the outcome is a given. However, I don't really have any animosity towards the Packers or Rodgers. The Lions, on the other hand, being their classless selves, are truly annoying. I will absolutely root for the Packers on Thanksgiving.

 

I will root for the outcome that benefits the Bears the most, and since I don't see the Packers losing 3+ games to give the Bears a shot at winning the division, the best outcome is for them to beat any and every NFC team that might be competing with the Bears for the WC.

 

 

 

[HeGone33]

I'm amazed that on this board, and many other pages where the Bears are the topic of discussion, there is this huge battle with the Lions that I find quite silly. Articles about is this the new rivalry, articles about how Johnson is so afraid of Peppers now. It's almost as if the Bears and their fans have to get so much joy beating up there little brother who found some success recently, because they know they can't beat up the real team which is the Packers.......

 

It's almost like by starting 5-0 they stole the Bears candy of being the 2nd best in the division, and it really pissed the Bears off........shouldn't they be more pissed and start trying to be more competitive with Green Bay? Maybe stop with all this we respect them they respect us and get angry and pissed with the Pack?

 

I'm a 49ers fan, and they have had a great year so far which has been a blast watching after so many years of pure crap. But as good as they've been, reality is there slim to none chance they can compete with Green Bay right now.

[Quin]

I'm amazed that on this board, and many other pages where the Bears are the topic of discussion, there is this huge battle with the Lions that I find quite silly. Articles about is this the new rivalry, articles about how Johnson is so afraid of Peppers now. It's almost as if the Bears and their fans have to get so much joy beating up there little brother who found some success recently, because they know they can't beat up the real team which is the Packers.......

 

It's almost like by starting 5-0 they stole the Bears candy of being the 2nd best in the division, and it really pissed the Bears off........shouldn't they be more pissed and start trying to be more competitive with Green Bay? Maybe stop with all this we respect them they respect us and get angry and pissed with the Pack?

 

I'm a 49ers fan, and they have had a great year so far which has been a blast watching after so many years of pure crap. But as good as they've been, reality is there slim to none chance they can compete with Green Bay right now.

 

Well, that and the whole Stafford trying to decapitate D.J. Moore thing.

 

[bmags]

I'm amazed that on this board, and many other pages where the Bears are the topic of discussion, there is this huge battle with the Lions that I find quite silly. Articles about is this the new rivalry, articles about how Johnson is so afraid of Peppers now. It's almost as if the Bears and their fans have to get so much joy beating up there little brother who found some success recently, because they know they can't beat up the real team which is the Packers.......

 

It's almost like by starting 5-0 they stole the Bears candy of being the 2nd best in the division, and it really pissed the Bears off........shouldn't they be more pissed and start trying to be more competitive with Green Bay? Maybe stop with all this we respect them they respect us and get angry and pissed with the Pack?

 

I'm a 49ers fan, and they have had a great year so far which has been a blast watching after so many years of pure crap. But as good as they've been, reality is there slim to none chance they can compete with Green Bay right now.

 

It's more the way the Lions are behaving. They are a bunch of dirty players. I want them all to cry.

[GoSox05]

I put the blame more on the Lions than the Bears. The Lions have been really trying to play up this tough attitude stuff.

 

It's annoying and comes off a little fake.

[Kyyle23]

I'm amazed that on this board, and many other pages where the Bears are the topic of discussion, there is this huge battle with the Lions that I find quite silly. Articles about is this the new rivalry, articles about how Johnson is so afraid of Peppers now. It's almost as if the Bears and their fans have to get so much joy beating up there little brother who found some success recently, because they know they can't beat up the real team which is the Packers.......

 

It's almost like by starting 5-0 they stole the Bears candy of being the 2nd best in the division, and it really pissed the Bears off........shouldn't they be more pissed and start trying to be more competitive with Green Bay? Maybe stop with all this we respect them they respect us and get angry and pissed with the Pack?I'm a 49ers fan, and they have had a great year so far which has been a blast watching after so many years of pure crap. But as good as they've been, reality is there slim to none chance they can compete with Green Bay right now.

 

How would it help the Bears if I got pissed at the Packers? I dont like that meathead mentality. I respect Rodgers a lot, the guy is playing at an uber-elite level. The entire offense is in a crazy rhythm, it is hard to deny that. I want the Packers to lose, but getting pissed at them isnt going to make the Bears any better and it wont make the Packers any worse. And the Bears know that they have a date with the Packers at the end of the season, they know it is important even though it probably wont be for first

 

 

In regards to the Lions, they play dirty and talk a bunch of s***. They got their shots in a month ago and all the sudden want to act like b****es when it comes back their way. Too f***ing bad, time to grow up and act like a professional team and stop trying to act like schoolyard bullies. They didnt take any candy, they gave some bulletin board material, and here the bears are 5 weeks later, tied with them in second place.

[southsider2k5]

Well, that and the whole Stafford trying to decapitate D.J. Moore thing.

 

 

It's more the way the Lions are behaving. They are a bunch of dirty players. I want them all to cry.

 

 

I put the blame more on the Lions than the Bears. The Lions have been really trying to play up this tough attitude stuff.

 

It's annoying and comes off a little fake.

 

All of this. It is like skating a no talent goon squad in hockey. I keep waiting to see Bob Probert or Dino Cicerelli

[Balta1701]

I have little problem with cocky attitudes, getting press attention, pretending you're an underdog, pretending you're #1 all the time, whatever.

 

I have a problem with the cheap shots.