Sunday's game against the Kansas City Chiefs felt like a turning point in the Bears season, and not in a positive direction. The Bears lost Matt Forte to injury early in the game, and then lost to the Chiefs 10-3 in front of a home crowd at Soldier Field.
Bears Lose 10-3, Playoff Hopes Dimming
Neckbeard Takes a Detour to Kansas City, Hanie Starts for Bears
Undeterred, the Bears went to Plan B and signed Ivan Drago lookalike Josh McCown to the roster as Caleb Hanie's backup.
Rex Grossman To Start For 'Skins
As we jump ahead to the 2011 season, Jay Cutler, Kyle Orton and Rex Grossman are all starters at the same time in the NFL.
Morning Box Score: Cutler, Bears Triumphant In Denver
Having begged his way out of town in April, Jay Cutler returned to Denver on Sunday night as a member of the Chicago Bears, to face off against the Bears' former QB Kyle Orton and his Broncos. Fans showered Cutler with boos when he took the field, but with a 27-17 victory, he had the last word before departing the Mile High City this time. At home on the turf of Invesco Field, the Bears' QB threw for 144 yards while completing 15 of 21 passes, with a touchdown pass and no interceptions--good for a 106.1 passer rating. He closed out his half of work by leading the Bears on a 98-yard drive that gave the team a 17-3 lead at the intermission. "I knew it was going to be a hostile environment, which was good," said Cutler. "It's good preparation for us going into Green Bay the first (regular-season) game."
Culter Trying to Fill Orton's Shoes
While we were excited to see the Bears upgrade from Kyle Orton to Jay Cutler on the field, we feared an end to crazy QB antics to entertain us during the off season. Never fear, Bears fans.
Extra, Extra
- Chicago Police are investigating what seems to be a serial rapist terrorizing the Bucktown neighborhood after another attack of a woman leaving the Western Ave. Blue Line stop.
- Former pro-wrestling star Verne Gagne is in hot water after a man he threw to the ground in a nursing home died as a result of the incident.
- On the eve of the 10th anniversary of Gene Siskel's death, former partner-in-criticism Roger Ebert gives a heartfelt remembrance of Siskel.
Bears Looking At QB Options, Including...Michael Vick?
The Bears enter this off-season as they do every year, with questions at quarterback. After a surprising start to last year, Kyle Orton seemed to have earned himself the starting job. But a late season slump that followed a mid-season injury prevented him from locking down the position. Even if he does remain atop the depth chart, they need somebody to back him up, and Rex Grossman isn't likely to return.
What If The Bears Had Landed Warner?
Perhaps the story of Super Bowl XLIII is the latest act for Kurt Warner, who's career has seen peaks and valleys unlike any player -- at least those who haven't harmed their own careers through crime or substance abuse. From the Arena Football League and stocking grocery store shelves; to league and Super Bowl MVP; to bench warming tutor for the next generation of quarterbacks; to Super Bowl starter once more. When the surprising NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals take the field on February 1, the unassuming Warner will be under center.
Morning Box Score: Bears Fold Against Vikings
For the first 25 minutes of Sunday night's game against the Minnesota Vikings, the Bears looked to have the inside track at claiming sole possession of first place in the NFC North. Then, in a matter of seconds, the momentum of the game shifted in the Vikings' favor and they never looked back on their way to their 34-14 pummeling of the Bears.
Morning Box Score: Bears Slaughter Rams
Coming off last week's ugly loss in Green Bay, the Bears were looking for an opportunity to move forward in their quest to outlast their rivals and win the NFC North. Working in the Bears favor more than anything, perhaps, is their remaining schedule -- starting with Sunday's match-up against the St. Louis Rams. The Bears took care of business and headed north of .500 with a definitive 27-3 victory.
Morning Box Score: Pack Attack
With the Bears atop the NFC North, Lovie Smith's perfect record at Lambeau and Kyle Orton's return to the field, we Bears fans felt pretty good when waking up Sunday morning. But none of that mattered as the Packers destroyed the Bears 37-3. The Bears were equally horrible on both sides of the ball, where the offense managed 234 yards of total offense and a lone field goal while the defense showed little ability to stop the run or pass.
Extra, Extra
Orton Expects To Play Sunday
Could our long, municipal nightmare soon be over? After just one-and-a-half games, might Rex Grossman return to clipboard duty while Kyle Orton lines up under center this coming Sunday? Possibly. While the initial diagnosis on Orton's sprained ankle suggested the Bears starting QB might miss a month, he resumed practicing this week, splitting snaps with Grossman in practice on Wednesday. So that's a good sign, right? Orton was optimistic when asked by the media about his chances, "I'm preparing like I am [playing]," Orton said. "Just going to go from there, day in and day out."
Morning Box Score: Titanic Edition
The Bears suffered the loss of Kyle Orton at perhaps the worst possible time in their season. Rex Grossman had to take the reigns of the Bears offense for the first time in 2008 against the undefeated Tennessee Titans. That scenario didn't sound promising, and the end result was as expected -- the Bears dropped to 5-4 with their 21-14 loss at Soldier Field Sunday afternoon.
Morning Box Score: Return of the Rex Edition
Sunday was one of those days that tests a Bears fan's fortitude. With the Monsters of the Midway on the short end of a 23-13 halftime score to the Lowly Detroit Lions, and our starting QB having just been carted off the field, things looked bleak. Yet, somehow, the Bears found a way to come from behind to win 27-23 and claimed sole possession of first place in the NFC North, a win that's tempered by the loss of Kyle Orton to injury.
Morning Box Score: Bears Win Shootout
With both Bears starting cornerbacks and their nickel back out due to injury, we feared the Bears might give up a whole lotta points. What we perhaps hadn't anticipated was that the Bears would manage to score even more and pull out the win, which they did by beating their NFC North rival Minnesota Vikings 48-41 at Soldier Field on Sunday.
Morning Box Score: Bears Maul Lions
Are the Bears really that good a team, or are the Lions that terrible? The Bears went into Detroit and mauled the Lions on Sunday 34-7 to improve to 3-2 on the season.
Bears Clip Eagles' Wings
If only the Bears could play all their games in prime time. Just like in week 1, the Bears took the field in front of a national audience against a supposedly superior team and left the field victorious 60 minutes later. For a while, though, like in each of the past two games, it looked like the Bears might surrender their lead late in the game. On this Sunday night, however, the Bears held off the Philadelphia Eagles 24-20.
Bears Snatch Defeat From the Jaws of Victory
It's looking like it's gonna be a long season for Bears fans. For the second time in as many weeks, the team squandered a double-digit lead in the second half and lost to Tampa Bay 27-24 in overtime.
Carolina Blues
For a while Sunday, it looked like our Bears just might move to 2-0 on the young season. But a few costly mistakes resulted in the Bears relinquishing a 17-3 lead and losing to the Carolina Panthers 20-17.
Bears Put Down Colts
When the NFL released its 2008 schedule a few months back, we cringed at the prospects of our Bears being embarrassed on national television at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts. Since facing each other in Super Bowl XLI, the Bears had fallen on hard times while the Colts continued to rank among the league's elite.
What's Your Name: Fantasy Football Edition
Last year, we were Wrecks Grossman. But with Kyle Orton's ascension to starter, we feel the need to bench our fantasy football team name.
Bears Fall to 0-3 in Preseason
In what was supposed to be their closest thing to a dress rehearsal before the regular season begins, the Bears lost 37-30 to the San Francisco 49ers at Soldier Field on Thursday. Once again the team looked decent on one side of the ball and lackluster on the other. But in an unusual twist, it was the offense that performed well while the defense showed they're still not ready for the regular season.
Orton Named Bears' Starting QB
Members of the Neck Beard Militia rejoice! Jack Daniels for everyone! Kyle Orton has been named the starting quarterback for the 2008 Chicago Bears. The announcement comes after a long competition between Orton and Rex Grossman and much hand-wringing from Bears fans. Overall, Orton is 12-6 as a starter for the Bears, including a very respectable 10-5 record in his 2005 rookie campaign. The two QBs were on "equal footing" entering training camp so the nod for Orton comes on the strength of his performance in two preseason games so far this year, including good execution in the two-minute drill at the end of the first half against the Seahawks on Saturday night. Bears fans can breathe a sigh of relief knowing the Rex Grossman Era is done (for now) and they now know who they can focus all their anger and vitriol on come mid-October.
Bears Lose Preseason Opener
The Bears opened their preseason with a 24-20 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs at Soldier Field on Thursday. And while Bears fans were looking for some answers about their team and its prospects, particularly on offense, instead more questions were raised than answered.
Orton To Start First Preseason Game
Coach Lovie Smith says not to read anything into it, but Kyle Orton will start at quarterback for the Bears when they host the Kansas City Chiefs at Soldier Field tomorrow evening.
Bears Head to Bourbonnais
] just in time to see the Bears off as they head downstate to Bourbonnais, where the team will report for the start of training camp today. Unlike last season when the Bears headed into camp as defending NFC champs, this year's team is under the microscope as fans look for clues about whether or not we can be optimistic about the 2008 squad. There a lot of unanswered questions that we hope can be answered before taking the field on September 7.
A Green Apple A Day Keeps Global Warming At Bay
Earth Day is right around the corner (next Tuesday!) and one of the biggest celebrations is happening Sunday. It's all part of the Green Apple Festival, happening nationwide on Sunday at locations in Chicago, Washington D.C., New York City, Denver, Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. The Chicago event will take place at Lincoln Park Zoo and is hosted by Bears neck-beard sportin' backup QB Kyle Orton (what, Ronny Cedeno wasn't available?) and Jodi Murphy from Discovery Channel's Wrecklamation: Planet Green.
Booker Catches On With Bears Again
Bears quarterbacks Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton can be forgiven if they have a extra pint tonight -- or some fruity cocktail in Orton's case, since he's on his honeymoon in Hawaii -- because the Bears finally got them some help at wide receiver.

