Fans watching last night's Bears' miserable effort against the Green Bay Packers on national TV must be feeling very uneasy. Normally, the last regular season game is used as a tuneup for the playoffs. But if last night's game was any indication, the Bears may be in trouble. In the 26-7 loss to their divisional rivals, the Bears looked nothing like a team that won 13 games this season en route to a division title and the best record in the NFC. Rex Grossman reverted to his mid-season shakiness, completing two of 12 passes and throwing three interceptions. Backup QB Brian Griese, whom fans have been clamoring to see play, fared slightly better. Despite throwing a 75-yard TD pass to wideout Mark Bradley for the Bears only score of the evening, Griese looked rusty in his half of play and threw two interceptions. Seventeen of the Packers' 26 points resulted from Bears' turnovers. As the story has been all season long, as long as Grossman and the Bears offense can limit their tunovers, the team will do well. But that is a big IF. The defense will take care of the rest, or so we thought. But last night, it was clear that the Bears defense still has holes in it, and that the team desperately misses lineman Tommie Harris and secondary specialist Mike Brown.
What is also troubling is the loss at home. All three Bears' losses this season came at Soldier Field, so home field advantage may not much of an advantage after all.
The Bears have two weeks to shake themselves out of these doldrums and get healthy. How they perform two weekends from now will show just what the team is made of. My guess is they will come out fighting, with a desire to wipe away the bad taste they put in fans' mouths that didn't come from champagne.
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