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Bears will NOT win any of thier last 4 games if Grossman doesn't play....
And Jay Mariotti backs me up...lol
Prize in reach, change at QB must be considered
December 5, 2005
BY JAY MARIOTTI SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST
The defense is a rock show, a heavy-metal disturbance, an outbreak of havoc that compels fans to scream, bark, clap their mittens, hug thy neighbor, pound the side of the press box (please stop) and make so much noise that the roar just might "SHAKE THE LAKE'' one of these days, as the Soldier Field scoreboard suggests.
The quarterback? When Kyle Orton drops back to pass, it's a good time to fetch a beer or use the facilities.
The defense continues to stalk the NFL record for fewest points allowed in a 16-game season, torturing Brett Favre with so many blindside hits Sunday that it might have knocked a sensible concept -- retirement -- from the back of his mind to the forefront. By the end, after Peanut Tillman had rocked his world and Nathan Vasher wounded his pride with a game-clinching interception and touchdown romp, Favre was left to stumble off with a limp, his index finger slashed and bloodied by Tommie Harris' helmet while a shooting pain went up his arm. "No one should be frightened. It's just a game, that's all,'' Harris said when asked if Favre and opponents are scared of Monsters Inc. "You still go home to your family.'' While speaking in tongues, sure.
The other quarterback? The best thing I can say about Orton is that his passer rating increased from 3.6 at halftime to 10.1 after the third quarter to a razor-sharp 23.7 at game's end. Maybe next week, he'll crack the magical 30 barrier. "I don't think my passer rating is going up anytime soon,'' cracked the rookie, trying to make light of a growing concern.
Defense super; Orton's not
What we have here is an antithetical crisis, an issue that can be ignored no longer even amid these weekly defensive stampedes. Yes, Orton has been behind center for the Bears during an eight-game winning streak that has led to a 9-3 record, with the NFC North title in sight after a 19-7 numbing of Favre and the Packers. And if that is the only goal, this city can go right ahead and celebrate a passing of the Upper Midwestern football torch, an afternoon that halted an embarrassing 11-game home losing streak to the Packers and reminded Favre that he'll face two full-body poundings a year if he keeps playing. But I happen to think beyond the short-term thrill of finally one-upping a big rival. The defense, I'm convinced, is Super Bowl-worthy.
Orton, I'm convinced, is not Super Bowl-worthy.
If Rex Grossman is ready to play, I urge the Bears to prepare him as a starter. And if Orton struggles again Sunday in Pittsburgh, I urge the Bears to make the switch. It would be a radical maneuver, maybe the first time a team has changed QBs so late in a season with such a gaudy win-loss record. But in the NFL, a team has only so many chances to win a championship. If the Bears possess a Super Bowl defense, capable of scoring on every play, the coaches would be doing the unit a cruel disservice if they stuck with Orton too long and let him drag down the cause in January.
A historic defense would be a terrible thing to waste. I'm starting to think that could happen as Orton continues to regress and give his team almost nothing. By now, we assumed he would be contributing to victories. But after a solid performance against Carolina, he looks like a raw kid back in the fields of Bourbonnais, failing to take advantage of numerous gifts from his playmaking defense. It isn't just me who notices a tentative Orton, an Orton who has lost all connection with $30 million wideout Muhsin Muhammad, an Orton vulnerable to the blitz, an Orton who baskically made two plays Sunday after making a handful in Tampa. Lovie Smith and Ron Turner are seeing the same problems.
"The quarterback position, we need to play better at it,'' Smith said in his strongest words to date. "We know we need to get going in our passing game.''
"We need to start making plays,'' said Turner, the offensive coordinator.
And if Orton keeps struggling, would the coaches consider a change? "It hasn't come up,'' Turner said. "We haven't thought about it.''
I didn't hear a "no'' in there.
He's no Trent Dilfer
It would be easy to bask in the testosterone glow, lead cheers for the defense and conveniently ignore the Orton Ordeal. But that wouldn't be real, would it? Don't mistakingly believe this is the same performance the Baltimore Ravens got from Trent Dilfer in winning the Super Bowl five years ago. While Dilfer was no Tom Brady, he was a veteran manager who put up a 76.6 passer rating and threw 12 scoring passes as a part-time regular-season starter. In the playoffs, he helped win the AFC title game with a 96-yard scoring pass and was solid in the Super Bowl. He solidified the position. Orton makes it cloudier by the week. He tries to argue that he's winning games, saying, "I'm not frustrated. A win is a win.'' But face it: The defense is winning in spite of him.
As yet, there is no clamor among the defensive players for a change. They are having too much fun. "If people are leaving before halftime, they need to stay in their seats,'' Vasher said. "Because we're making plays.''
"I like that,'' said Tillman, dressing in the next stall.
Eventually, though, they will grow frustrated if Orton and a limp passing game keep making every Sunday an excruciating experience. Afterward, a world-weary Favre praised the Bears. "That's as well as I've ever seen them play defensively,'' he said.
He said nothing about the offense, of course.
And Jay Mariotti backs me up...lol
Prize in reach, change at QB must be considered
December 5, 2005
BY JAY MARIOTTI SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST
The defense is a rock show, a heavy-metal disturbance, an outbreak of havoc that compels fans to scream, bark, clap their mittens, hug thy neighbor, pound the side of the press box (please stop) and make so much noise that the roar just might "SHAKE THE LAKE'' one of these days, as the Soldier Field scoreboard suggests.
The quarterback? When Kyle Orton drops back to pass, it's a good time to fetch a beer or use the facilities.
The defense continues to stalk the NFL record for fewest points allowed in a 16-game season, torturing Brett Favre with so many blindside hits Sunday that it might have knocked a sensible concept -- retirement -- from the back of his mind to the forefront. By the end, after Peanut Tillman had rocked his world and Nathan Vasher wounded his pride with a game-clinching interception and touchdown romp, Favre was left to stumble off with a limp, his index finger slashed and bloodied by Tommie Harris' helmet while a shooting pain went up his arm. "No one should be frightened. It's just a game, that's all,'' Harris said when asked if Favre and opponents are scared of Monsters Inc. "You still go home to your family.'' While speaking in tongues, sure.
The other quarterback? The best thing I can say about Orton is that his passer rating increased from 3.6 at halftime to 10.1 after the third quarter to a razor-sharp 23.7 at game's end. Maybe next week, he'll crack the magical 30 barrier. "I don't think my passer rating is going up anytime soon,'' cracked the rookie, trying to make light of a growing concern.
Defense super; Orton's not
What we have here is an antithetical crisis, an issue that can be ignored no longer even amid these weekly defensive stampedes. Yes, Orton has been behind center for the Bears during an eight-game winning streak that has led to a 9-3 record, with the NFC North title in sight after a 19-7 numbing of Favre and the Packers. And if that is the only goal, this city can go right ahead and celebrate a passing of the Upper Midwestern football torch, an afternoon that halted an embarrassing 11-game home losing streak to the Packers and reminded Favre that he'll face two full-body poundings a year if he keeps playing. But I happen to think beyond the short-term thrill of finally one-upping a big rival. The defense, I'm convinced, is Super Bowl-worthy.
Orton, I'm convinced, is not Super Bowl-worthy.
If Rex Grossman is ready to play, I urge the Bears to prepare him as a starter. And if Orton struggles again Sunday in Pittsburgh, I urge the Bears to make the switch. It would be a radical maneuver, maybe the first time a team has changed QBs so late in a season with such a gaudy win-loss record. But in the NFL, a team has only so many chances to win a championship. If the Bears possess a Super Bowl defense, capable of scoring on every play, the coaches would be doing the unit a cruel disservice if they stuck with Orton too long and let him drag down the cause in January.
A historic defense would be a terrible thing to waste. I'm starting to think that could happen as Orton continues to regress and give his team almost nothing. By now, we assumed he would be contributing to victories. But after a solid performance against Carolina, he looks like a raw kid back in the fields of Bourbonnais, failing to take advantage of numerous gifts from his playmaking defense. It isn't just me who notices a tentative Orton, an Orton who has lost all connection with $30 million wideout Muhsin Muhammad, an Orton vulnerable to the blitz, an Orton who baskically made two plays Sunday after making a handful in Tampa. Lovie Smith and Ron Turner are seeing the same problems.
"The quarterback position, we need to play better at it,'' Smith said in his strongest words to date. "We know we need to get going in our passing game.''
"We need to start making plays,'' said Turner, the offensive coordinator.
And if Orton keeps struggling, would the coaches consider a change? "It hasn't come up,'' Turner said. "We haven't thought about it.''
I didn't hear a "no'' in there.
He's no Trent Dilfer
It would be easy to bask in the testosterone glow, lead cheers for the defense and conveniently ignore the Orton Ordeal. But that wouldn't be real, would it? Don't mistakingly believe this is the same performance the Baltimore Ravens got from Trent Dilfer in winning the Super Bowl five years ago. While Dilfer was no Tom Brady, he was a veteran manager who put up a 76.6 passer rating and threw 12 scoring passes as a part-time regular-season starter. In the playoffs, he helped win the AFC title game with a 96-yard scoring pass and was solid in the Super Bowl. He solidified the position. Orton makes it cloudier by the week. He tries to argue that he's winning games, saying, "I'm not frustrated. A win is a win.'' But face it: The defense is winning in spite of him.
As yet, there is no clamor among the defensive players for a change. They are having too much fun. "If people are leaving before halftime, they need to stay in their seats,'' Vasher said. "Because we're making plays.''
"I like that,'' said Tillman, dressing in the next stall.
Eventually, though, they will grow frustrated if Orton and a limp passing game keep making every Sunday an excruciating experience. Afterward, a world-weary Favre praised the Bears. "That's as well as I've ever seen them play defensively,'' he said.
He said nothing about the offense, of course.
It's always noon somewhere! 
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