Lovie Smith

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There's plenty to work on in Chicago before preseason closes this Thursday, so let's hope Lovie Smith's staff can 

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Despite Lovie Smith's coy answers, Harris is the starter at strong safety, count on it. What the deal means: The Bears traded a decent back-up linebacker for an above-average starting

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at the defensive tackle position, so Wootton should and needs to see the field on a regular basis. Lovie Smith can't afford for Wootton to red-shirt like the aforementioned picks.

Round 5, Pick 141 Joshua Moore, CB Kansas State

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Head coach Lovie Smith and Angelo addressed the media to discuss their pick, lauding Wright's takeaway ability and leadership qualities.

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day night in the third round and the rest on Saturday in rounds 4-7.)

Defensive Back:

Ya think? Lovie Smith's team desperately needs a safety worth even a mediocre contract. Both the free and strong safety positions are up for grabs, so one or possibly two should be selected. Hey Jerry! How about you draft a safety that doesn't suck something awful? Depth at corner is desperately need as well.

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The only real concern is that YOU understand it. 

Relating this to my beloved Bears, Lovie Smith was also adamant against the change. Why am I not shocked that Lovie Smith was against change? Oh wait, because he's stubborn and never changes. Pfft.

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This year it was different. With no first or second round draft picks, Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith had to swing for the fences in free agency or they'd be on the chopping block for sure after the 2010 season. After a fantastic Friday, it's time to examine the moves the Bears made and how they improve the team going forward.

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It's been a complete switch. Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith are all-in.  

We all knew Peppers was going to be a high priority for Angelo since he's head and shoulders the best DE on the market.

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In Lovie Smith's much maligned cover-two scheme, getting pressure with your front four is key. Adewale Ogunleye's impending departure and the death of Gaines Adams makes signing Peppers a no-brainer. When he wants to he's one of the best pass-rushers in the league. Every now and again he'll take plays off (or seasons, as evident by his 2.5 sack 2007), but he's racked up double digit sacks in six of his eight years in the NFL.

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This is still Lovie Smith's defense and that will never change as long as he is the head coach. Marinelli will barely call plays since he's never been a coordinator before in his lengthy football career. Is the promotion ridiculous? Yes. Significant? No.

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z will step into what boils down to be the offensive head coaching job.

 

Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith exhausted a list of potential candidates which included: Jeremy Bates (Seattle), Rob Chudzinski (San Diego), Ken Zampese (Cincinnatti), Kevin Rogers (Minnesota) and Hue Jackson (Oakland) over the month-long PR debacle. Candidate after candidate turned down the Chicago job for (supposedly) greener pastures all while Mike Martz sat idly by, waiting for even an interview. Last Friday, Martz finally sat down with Bears brass, followed by a trip to Tennessee to have dinner with Bears franchise QB Jay Cutler. After Jay expressed his support for Martz,

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ope anyway.) Marred by injuries (Charles Tillman and Israel Idonije out, Danieal Manning doubtful), Lovie Smith's defense will need to fill their gaps and avoid giving up big plays. If they can, it shouldn't be difficult keeping the lowly Lions under 17 points. Calvin Johnson will get 100 yards in receiving today. Take that to the bank. That should be more than low enough. Jay Cutler and the offense should have no trouble tearing apart the second-worst defense (worst pass defense) in the NFL. Matt Forte should get a ton of carries and a rare 100-yard game to end the regular season. Johnny Knox is doubtful with his ankle injury from last week, but Devin Hester will return to the field in his absence. Devin Aromashodu is going to see plenty of balls his way in the season finale. Odds: Chicago is favored by 3.5 on the road.  Prediction: The Bears should (note my italicized emphasis) be able to handle the 2-13 Lions. Honestly, I would not be surprised in the least if they found a way to lose. Still, Bears win by at least 7. Message to

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There's not a huge difference between 5-9 and 6-9. Lovie Smith's job status could have been decided already. Jay Cutler was going to have a poor season either way, right? That being said...

Eff you Minnesota. Seriously. Take that Brett Favre. Hope you enjoy playing the first weekend of the playoffs because you just lost out on the number two seed in the NFC. 

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Before the the blowout, Bears GM Jerry Angelo came out and denied a Comcast report that said Lovie Smith's job was safe. He even went as far as to say money would not be an issue when it came to deciding what was best for the team. That was possibly the best Bears news I've heard in a while. Still, I'm not convinced Lovie is going anywhere. The Bears will lose to Minnesota on Monday night, but a lackluster outing against Detroit could seal Smith's fate if it isn't already.

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e without safety Ed Reed and receiver Mark Clayton.* Regardless of the outcome, I would like to see Lovie Smith let some of his younger talent on the field just so we know what we might have for next season. (Juaquin Iglesias anyone?) Seeing as how many reports have Smith returning for the 2010 campaign, I wouldn't think that's too much to ask. Though so far Lovie's been focused on trying to win meaningless games and not the future.

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As the only big wide-out on the roster, Lovie Smith must be able to see the match-up problems he can cause. He may not be Randy Moss, but with Cutler he won't have to be.

-Lovie Smith is still an idiot when it comes to game-managing. Or the idiot is whoever tells him what to do. On one play late in the game, Smith managed to lose two timeouts. One he called after the play's resolution, the other was lost when he challenged the prior play. That left him with one time-out for any comeback attempt. Another bad decision came while the Bears were driving down the field with momentum from scoring on the previous series and Lovie called out the punt unit on a fourth down in Green Bay territory with less then ten minutes to go. It just killed me and any real hope of victory.

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rs on the ground with pressure from their front four.

Adding to my dim outlook on this contest is Lovie Smith's ridiculous defensive personnel decision. Last week against the Rams he started Kevin Payne and Al Afalava at the safety spots because they're best against the run. That would come in handy against Steven Jackson (who still ran for over 100 yards). Despite having switching safeties multiple times during his tenure, Smith for some reason feels a need to keep it the same this week, even if Payne and Afalava are exposed in pass coverage. I assure you, they will be, and that is squarely on Lovie's head. Danieal Manning, while certainly more suited to play the nickel position, should be back at free safety in order to put the best coverage men on the field. Stopping the Packers' aerial assault should be Lovie's main concern, but he's not putting his team in the best position to succeed at it.

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After a still-ongoing bevy of computer issues, I'm back with a classic-text version of my Bears blog. I may have missed a Gameday Preview, but let's face it, did you need one? Every Bears fan knew their team HAD to beat the lowly Rams or face the embarrassment of losing to one of the worst teams in football. Thankfully, that didn't happen as the Bears put up 17 points at Soldier Field, more than enough to dwarf the offensively-challenged Rams. So what did I learn from this much-needed win?

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That simple math led to the demise of Lovie Smith's team and the deflation of their playoff hopes as they fall to 4-6.

 

In this frustrating loss, we saw the Bears make play after play on defense, especially Charles Tillman, whom I've rewarded the moniker of "Master of the Ball-Punch." His forced fumbles kept the Bears alive, but the offense could not generate the points to overcome Donovan McNabb, DeSean Jackson and the Philly offense. I look to Ron Turner's play-calling, with plenty of backwards passes and wide receivier screens as a reason for the offense's ineptitude. That play should just be ripped out the playbook and removed from Turner's memory banks.

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their best player, I’d say getting the ball out of his hands is a solid idea.

Suggestion to Lovie Smith's staff and players: don't suck this week. And to Tommie Harris: don't punch anyone. 

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asses (two to Larry Fitzgerald), Warner all but obliterated any chance of a second straight win for Lovie Smith. Chicago looked lost defensively, as if they did not expect Larry Fitzgerald to be Warner’s top target. Nice job guys. With Anquan Boldin a late scratch, Fitzgerald caught 9 passes, most of which were 8-12 yards in length. The Cardinals didn’t need Boldin, with Warner finishing the game with 5 TD’s through the air. What didn’t help was losing corner Charles Tillman and safety Al Afalava through the course of the game, leaving an already struggling secondary without key performers.

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speed along with Garrett Wolfe will be sorely needed.  

If this contest has much drama, Lovie Smith didn’t prepare his team enough. No offense to the Browns, but they’re just horrible. There will be no excuse if the Bears lose to a team this inept. I’m looking forward to a hopefully relaxing Bears game this weekend.  

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ands of Carson Palmer, Cedric "holding a grudge" Benson and the Bengals. 

-Lovie Smith’s cover two defense is overrated and doesn’t work with the personnel on this team. His defensive scheme requires the four defensive linemen to get pressure on their own, which hasn’t been happening during Smith’s tenure. Without that consistent pressure opposing quarterbacks will be able find receivers in the open parts of the field. What good is a defensive scheme if EVERYONE knows how precisely to attack it week in and week out? Taking over the defensive play-calling isn’t working out exactly as Smith had planned. Scrap the cover two, or at least stop depending on it so much. It simply isn’t working. 

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It simply shows another reason why Lovie Smith’s defense isn’t working as well as in the past. Tony Gonzalez was too wide open on his endzone grab because defenders were too preoccupied with keeping their zone that no one followed Gonzalez across the goal line. When a Hall of Fame tight end is that alone in the endzone, something is wrong.   

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First, it took Lovie Smith a full half to realize Zack Bowman wasn’t getting the job done against Calvin Johnson. Johnson gained 119 of his 133 receiving yards in that first half, matching up against the smaller Bowman. When they went to Charles Tillman in the second half, Johnson was limited until he went out with a leg injury of his own. 

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At 345 pounds, he’s not an easy man to move around.

  

Focusing on Lovie Smith’s defense, this contest should play right into their strengths. Charles Tillman should be matched-up with the dynamic Calvin Johnson for most of the game. Tillman is much better-suited against bigger receivers and Johnson certainly is a beast. Zack Bowman’s youth will be pitted against veteran receiver Bryant Johnson, so he should have the speed to make-up for any mistakes. If he plays, Lions running back Kevin Smith will not be 100% due to a shoulder injury, which could give more opportunities for a fumble-forcing defensive unit.  

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That came back to bite the Bears later.

In his postgame press conference, Lovie Smith said linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa suffered a knee sprain and tight end Desmond Clark had a back bruise. If Tinoisamoa or Urlacher are out for an extended period of time, the Bear rush defense will suffer greatly.

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the informed, let’s get you ready for this Sunday night opener on the not-yet frozen tundra! Lovie Smith and the Bears are coming off a solid preseason where they saw glimpses of what their new QB was capable of. Their first-team offense scored 17 first-half points on both the Giants and Broncos while the defensive starters held their counterparts to only a field goal in each of those contests. 

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Who are my wide receivers? I’m sure Lovie Smith will tell me Earl Bennett second on the depth chart, followed by some combination of Devin Aromashodu, Johnny Knox, Rashied Davis, Brandon Rideau and Juaquin Iglesias. (In that order as far as I’m concerned.)

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With Lovie Smith calling the plays, the defense only gave up one field goal to Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride. That cannot be overlooked. Rod Marinelli’s influence on the defensive line was apparent, with his lineman accounting for four of the Bears’ five sacks.

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(also a few away from 7-9 in that same ideology), fans are growing restless with the Jerry Angelo / Lovie Smith regime. With NFL free agency starting tonight at 12:01 am and around twenty million in cap space, the Bears have the opportunity to fill holes and bolster their biggest roster weaknesses. I’ll shoot you through some of their trouble spots and whose services they should be pursuing.

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Of course, all of these possibilities required a Bears win in Houston that never happened. Lovie Smith’s crew never showed the desperation and intensity you would expect of a team fighting to make it into the post-season.  

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If Bob Babich and Lovie Smith expect a win tonight, their defense can’t be so transparent. Creativity will throw Rodgers off his reads and perhaps force a few errant balls downfield. As much as the coaches need to prepare, the players need to perform, and that starts with the defensive line. If they can get to Rodgers early, it could set an early tone from which the “playing for pride” Pack won’t recover.  

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If the Bears expect to defeat the top-ranked aerial assault that is Drew Bress and the Saints, Lovie Smith’s defensive expertise must be in full effect.
 

Shutting down Brees has not been an easy task this season, and his numbers serve as the evidence. He is tied with San Diego’s Philip Rivers for the league lead in touchdowns with 26 and ranks first in passing yardage with 4100 with three weeks remaining. He completes just over 65% of his attempts and has been sacked only ten times through his thirteen outings. It doesn’t bode well for the Bears, whose defense has been particularly vulnerable to air attack. Corners Charles Tillman and Nathan Vasher have underperformed this season, with Tillman being burned on numerous big gains and Vasher plagued by injuries. The only statistic that plays into their favor is that Brees is tied for second most interceptions in the league with 14, a sign that turnovers may be had on the windy field of Chicago. The Bears will surely get their opportunities since the Saints are not a threat to run the ball, in spite of the 180 plus yards they gained on the Falcons last Sunday. Drew Brees will drop-back quite a bit, ensuring that two or three throws will be up for grabs. Chicago needs only to do the grabbing. If they can’t capitalize on their chances, the Bears will be overwhelmed by the weaponry Coach Sean Payton has at his disposal. Jeremy Shockey, Marques Colston, and Reggie Bush all have the ability to break down defenses in various ways, but it is Bush that will be the x-factor for the Saints. His triple threat as a running back, wide receiver and punt return specialist could expose the Bears’ defensive schemes if utilized correctly.

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We all knew Adrian Peterson was good for 100 yards and a touchdown, so it was up to Lovie Smith and the coaching staff to game-plan for the other Vikings that could be a threat. Letting Berrian get that wide open could have been avoided with the right coverage downfield, but the Bears were too concerned with getting pressure at the one-yard line. The other coaching error was the play-calling at the goal line. Running consecutive plays aimed right at the “Williams Wall” was simply arrogant and should have never happened. Any offense should know you go away from the defense’s strength. The Vikings are built to stop runs up the middle, so why try it when it matters most? This is another example of

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In order to fully utilize Forte, Lovie Smith and Ron Turner must place an emphasis on running sweeps and tosses to the outside to avoid the Williams boys. I don’t believe they’ll really commit to that strategy, but it’d be nice if they tried once or twice. Expect a lot of running for the sake of running, probably off the center or the guard right into one of the hefty defensive tackles. That’s the norm for

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The surprise out of the running game was Lovie Smith’s choice to spell Forte during the game. Adrian Peterson, known for his special teams work, filled in on multiple plays and carried the ball 5 times for a solid 35 yards. Garrett Wolfe even found carries during garbage time in the fourth quarter. Heck, even Devin Hester and Rashied Davis ran the ball off of reverses. With everyone getting in on the ground, it was a shock to never see running back Kevin Jones on the field. Jones has apparently not impressed his coaches enough to get playing time over the forgotten Peterson or the small, shifty Wolfe. It’s a safe bet to think that Jones won’t be in Chicago after this season.  

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Orton dropping back should be a rare sight on Sunday since Lovie Smith has three viable options at tailback with Forte, Kevin Jones (who has fallen off the planet apparently), and Garrett Wolfe (great on special teams). Honestly though, it will be a shocker if Jones and Wolfe get more than three carries between them. Lovie wants to run Forte into the ground before he can even make it to the post-season. 

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Apparently, Lovie Smith’s team decided to take the day off. There is no other reason for only putting three points on a suspect Packer defense while giving up an astounding 200 rushing yards to a team that had an at-best average ground game. The Bears didn’t show up to play and the Packers took advantage.  

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If Lovie Smith and coordinator Ron Turner realize this, they can keep Kyle in the high teens for pass attempts by simply handing off to any one of their three running backs. Between Matt Forte, Kevin Jones, and Garrett Wolfe the Bears have an opportunity for a huge day on the ground. The Packers own the NFL’s third ranked pass defense, so going through the air too often won’t end well. They also lead the league in interceptions with sixteen. This would appear to be the perfect game for Kyle to try and play through an injury, since the Packers (like the Bears) have struggled to pressure the quarterback, totaling only sixteen sacks through 9 games. (For all those wondering, the Bears have 17 sacks. Take that Packer fans.)

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This only works if you can stop the pass that you KNOW for a FACT is coming. Lovie Smith’s defense has been unable to defend the pass all season and the trend continued on Sunday, as they allowed Titans QB Kerry Collins to surpass 200 yards for the first time this season. In 2008, the Bears have featured a defensive look they call the “mug.” It basically entails eight to nine defenders crowding the ling of scrimmage, and some mix of backing off or blitzing after the play has commenced.

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If Lovie Smith and his Bears want to be among the elite in the NFC, their match-up versus the unbeaten Tennessee Titans on Sunday is the perfect opportunity to show it. Jeff Fisher’s Titans have been the most consistent team in the NFL in 2008, winning each week with a combination of hard-nosed defense and an outstanding running game. They are what the Bears often claim to be, but this season Chicago holds down first place in their division because of its passing game, which is in jeopardy due to the loss of Kyle Orton.  

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This was the first real series of halftime adjustments I’ve seen from Lovie Smith’s crew, and it couldn’t have come at a more important juncture. 

The Bears offense found its former identity thanks to a rested Matt Forte. The rookie tailback carried 22 times for 126 yards, his best numbers all season. His production took the pressure off the incoming Grossman, allowing him to ease into the flow of the game and not force anything early. To be successful, coordinator Ron Turner must continue that strategy and put Rex in the best position to win. He and Orton are almost polar opposite at quarterback, and each requires a vastly different offensive game plan. Look for the field to be stretched further with Grossman, but less of the tight sideline routes will be called. It will be interesting to see how this unit responds to losing one of its captains and most dependable contributor. 

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It’s a problem which seems to have an easy fix, but Lovie Smith and his staff hasn’t figured it out yet. I guess I won’t tell them. If I help them, they’ll never learn. 

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With the taste of a loss to Atlanta still in their mouths, fans will be looking to Lovie Smith to rectify the mistakes of the past. The Vikings are always a troublesome opponent, but this is

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There are plenty of issues to be taken up with Lovie Smith and his coaching staff regarding the decisions made late in that game, but the blame must be shared equally with the players on the field. Their execution (or lack thereof in the case of the defense and special teams) let the Falcons steal back their victory from the Bear jaws of defeat.

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g off their emotional win against Philly one has to wonder if there’s a letdown in the works. Lovie Smith must focus his team after the Harris suspension, so they don’t lose a game

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This season is hit or miss for Lovie Smith and his coaches.  If they don’t show any ability to adapt to in-game situations, they should be fired like any other staff in the NFL. That

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ow better, and if he doesn't learn they he should be benched like any player that doesn't listen.

Lovie Smith also mismanaged the end of the first half. He foolishly was settling for a field goal as he burned his final timeout after a useless run up the middle. Orton then surprised him by hitting Greg Olsen on the sidelines for a first down, but there was no time left for a shot at six points after the offense spiked the ball.

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Now that it has ended, we can focus on who won the quarterback competition for the night. Lovie Smith has come out and said that this game against Seattle would be a significant measuring stick for whomever will start the season opener at Indianapolis. Note how I said "didn't lose" because neither of these QB's have "won" anything. This job is almost assuredly Kyle Orton's, much to my chagrin. Kyle has not won this job, because I don't think he can. I figured the only way he starts at quarterback is if Rex loses the competition. After the game against Seattle, it's almost a give-in. Rex lost his shot to start. Though it wasn't his fault. The coaches aren't putting him in situations in which he can succeed.

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ually falls on the inability for one or both parties to communicate.  If that's true, then Lovie Smith and Ron Turner could be poster boys for the issue.

     Several days ago, the Chicago Bears signed wide receiver Brandon Lloyd.  That really wasn't the big news.  What really was interesting was his comments during a phone conference with reporters in which he stated that Rex Grossman would be the team's starting quarterback.  He followed that up by stating that both Grossman and Kyle Orton are well thought of by the coaches and that he "assumed" that Grossman was the starter.  After a pause, he said that "open competition is what I'm is being told right now".  Someone must have gotten to Lloyd right away to tell him that was not the right answer.  Turner was quick to follow up Lloyd's comments by telling the press that they all know that there will be a quarterback competition in camp.  If that's true, then someone forgot to inform Lloyd.

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#39;re at it shoot Chicago Bears' management, and let's not leave out the man we all love - Lovie Smith! All should take equal responsibility for absolutely, positively throwing away probably the best defense in the NFL and the genius of Devon Hester and special teams.

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But this win against the Packers was a morale booster for a lost season. Lovie Smith now has a 6-2 record against the Packers. That’s better than the last two coaches that the Bears have

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Lovie Smith and the Bear's management have to do something and do it now!! This is not fair to life long Bear's fans or any other kind of fans. To have a top-tier defense and absolutely zero offense is a crime.

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