Pigskin Pimpin On A Sunday Night: Bears, Salukis & Much More

Your favorite football feature that is chock-full of cheerleaders is back.

Out Of Hibernation: The Segment Formerly Known As Bears Buzz

Sometime Sunday afternoon, I came up with a more clever name for the blog responsible for the Chicago Bears round-up segment.  Though it lacks the alliteration of Bears Buzz, it is name that seems to fit Bears rewind blogs -- especially after yesterday's game against the Cleveland Browns.

Pigskin Pimpin On A Sunday

Your weekly installment of football stuff and gratuitous cheerleader photos after the jump ... has been replaced for this week.

Do The Bears Need Change At The Top?

I knew it wouldn't take long before the calls for heads to roll would be coming in.  And I don't blame Bears fans.  Not one bit.

There are only so many times you can put up with failed screen attempts, dive plays run for players who are barely tall enough to ride a rollercoaster.  Bubble screens on third and long.  Ron Turner's playbook is so vanilla, chocolate wants no part of it in a swirl.  It's bad and embarrassing.  And to think, Bears fans (myself included) thought there would be an improvement with Jay Cutler under center.

And while Devin Hester, Johnny Knox and Earl Bennett have stepped their games up, the Bears offense as a whole is still as boring as ever at times.

The only way the Bears are going to get change in the offense is if it says good-bye to Lovie Smith, who prior to this week's debacle, had done a pretty good job calling the defensive plays.  But Smith, who has two years remaining on his current deal, seemed to have had his playbook switched with the old Bob Babich kind.

So, where should the Bears go with this?  You'll see after the jump.

Bears Buzz? More Like Bears Bust

Jay Cutler admits the Bears were embarrassed on Sunday.  Well, um, duh.  I would hope so.  Anger after the jump.

Pigskin Pimpin On A Sunday

Your weekly installment of football stuff and gratuitous cheerleader photos after the jump.

Bears Buzz: Damned In The Dome

Dave Kaplan used 97 words to describe Jay Cutler's on-field performance in Sunday night's 21-14 loss against the Atlanta Falcons.  He used 110 words to describe Cutler's post-game performance.

Yep.  It's going to be one of those kinds of Mondays in Chicago.

Making Sense Of Nonsense: Gaines Adams

Over the winter, M.J. Hartwig had a series called "Making Sense of Nonsense" as he tried to find rationalization by some of the offseason moves in baseball.  This morning, I find myself doing something similar for the Chicago Bears, who acquired defensive end Gaines Adams from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in exchange for a 2010 second round pick.

The Bucs are 0-5 and are in the midst of a major rebuilding project.  So I cannot fathom a reason why their management would trade the former No. 4 overall pick in the 2007 draft to a NFC rival for a second round pick.  On the other side, why would the Bears want to acquire a player who has clearly underperformed since coming to the NFL while mortgaging their future in the process.

I guess one man's garbage is another man's gold.

Adams broke out in a big way during his junior year at Clemson, collecting 9.5 sacks and followed it up with a 12.5 sack season as a senior.  The 6-foot-5-inch, 258-pound lineman was named to all five official All-American teams, justifying his place an an elite-level draft pick.  However, Adams has struggled on the field since coming to the pros, leaving critics and experts to label him as a bust as the team passed on (the real) Adrian Peterson, who was selected three picks later by the Minnesota Vikings.

Somewhere, the Bears think this is a good move.  And on some level it is.  Acquiring Adams is somewhat of a safety net in case the team is unable to to re-sign Adawale Ogunleye or Mark Anderson.  Ogunleye is leading the team with 4.5 sacks, while Anderson has played well -- but not well enough compared to his monster rookie season. 

Adams could also find himself as the pet project of defensive line coach Rod Marinelli, who has done an outstanding job reforming the Bears' front four into a fearsome group of badasses.  And while Marinelli has earned his paycheck through four games, he could go further into cementing his place on the coaching staff by milking all the talent out of Adams.

For the second straight season, the Bears will be without first and second round picks -- unless the team acquires one before the April draft.  It's not as if the Bears have had great success in the top two rounds, but that's a back-handed insult of a team's ability to scout top talent if I've ever heard one.

So all the Bears trade rumors were a bit misguided.  Does Jerry Angelo have any one else to deal for, or yet, does he have anything to deal in the first place?

Pigskin Pimpin: Salukis FTW! Edition

The Southern Illinois University football team had won 127 games from 1994-2008.  None of them were at the UNI Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

In what is arguably the most bitter rivalry in the Gateway Missouri Valley Football Conference, the University of Northern Iowa had always gotten the better of Southern Illinois when the games were played indoors.  Panthers fans called it "Dome Magic."  Saluki fans called it (expletive deleted) ... among other things.

And as yours truly predicted on Friday, it all came to an end as the Salukis beat the Panthers 27-20 on Saturday at the little dome of horrors.

Consider the following.  Southern has had six head coaches try and fail to beat UNI in its back yard since Rey Dempsey's squad did the trick in 1983 en route to the school's lone national title.  Ten different First Team All-Americans have suited up in the maroon and white.  None of them came home with a road win at Northern Iowa.  Southern has fielded 16 different 1,000-yard running backs.  But none had carried the Egyptian Hunting Dawgs to a road win in the terror dome.

That all became nothing more than a past nightmare as Deji Karim rushed for 125 yards and what turned out to be the game winning touchdown. The 1-yard score on 4th-and-Goal gave SIU a 20-13 lead with about five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

On the Panthers' ensuing possession, cornerback Brandon Williams took back a pick six to put the game on ice.

And for good measure, former Saluki great Jerry Hairston Jr. scored the winning run for the New York Yankees after leading off the bottom of the 13th with a base hit.  I guess you could pencil in a 10-tackle day for Bart Scott against the Bills and a 100-yard rushing game for Brandon Jacobs against the Saints as a pair of former Dawgs will hit the gridiron later today.

And now, the rest of your Pigskin Pimpin' on a Sunday morning...

Bears Buzz: Can Bears Fly By Falcons?

Bears Buzz is the new segment which provides insight, analysis and below-the-belt shots at Chicago's opponents throughout the year. After a bye week, the Chicago Bears march into Atlanta to take on the Falcons.

Is Terrell Owens The Missing Piece In Chicago?

 Photo via

The good news is that there is a player on the open market that can help the Chicago Bears.  He has averaged more than 1,100 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns per season over the last three years.  And in the biggest game of his career, he caught nine balls and racked up 122 receiving yards.

The bad news is that his name is Terrell Owens.

Cedric Benson, Kyle Orton Enjoying Post-Chicago Renaissance

 

Cedric Benson spent a lot of time on his back in Chicago. Now he's (statistically) the best running back in the NFL in 2009.

Cedric Benson is leading the NFL in rushing with 487 yards on 111 carries.  Kyle Orton has completed 63 percent of his passes, thrown for 7 touchdowns and his only interception went to Randy Moss.

So, how are the Bears only 3-1.  Oh, that's right.  Neither plays for Chicago anymore.

Despite said 3-1 mark to open the season, GM Jerry Angelo and head coach Lovie Smith are taking some heat for letting these two walk the plank.  Those coming from that angle have misplaced their anger.

Bears Buzz: They Are Who We Thought They Were (And They Still Suck)

Bears Buzz is the new segment which provides insight, analysis and below-the-belt shots at Chicago's opponents throughout the year. This week, the Detroit Lions reverted to their old ways.  Not that it wasn't expected, and believe me, no one in Chicago minded.

Cutler vs. Orton Picking Up Steam After Week 4 Wins. Are Possibilities Endless?

At times, I find myself peeking on the status of Kyle Orton as if he was an ex and as if his games are his Facebook status updates.  I really do not care what Orton does for the most part, because I'm happy with my new love interest quarterback, Jay Cutler.

Cutler, again, was better than good as he creeps toward being spectacular in the Chicago Bears' 48-24 win against the Detroit Lions.  He completed of 18 of 28 passes -- two of which went for touchdown scores.  One of said TD passes was a 4th-and-1 pitch-and-catch with tight end Greg Olson after Cutler also ran in for a 5-yard touchdown, flying through the air in way that resembled John Elway's Super Bowl scamper against the Green Bay Packers in 1998.

The 121 passing yards fall about 179 short of what I expected him to do, but in the end, it's about the wins right?

And that is exactly what people said about Kyle Orton's time in Chicago and what they're saying about his 4-0 start with the Denver Broncos.

For the second time this season, one of Orton's receivers turned an underthrown ball into a game-winning touchdown.  This time, it was Brandon Marshall, who came away with a pass intended for Dallas Cowboys cornerback Terrance Newman and ran it in 51 yards for a touchdown.  And unlike Cutler, Cowboys QB Tony Romo could not pull out a game-tying score as he continues to fail miserably and fall short of the lofty expectations laid at his feet by the mass media.

If there is such a thing as a group of "Football Gods," it seems as if they are sending the Bears and Broncos on a collision course that would culminate in a Super Bowl that will be filled with more drama than Eugene Robinson's night with a hooker cop.

Pigskin Pimpin: Week 4

Football stuff and gratuitous cheerleader photos after the jump.

Ten Random Things Floating Around My Head

Ten things I'm thinking about ... other than whoever that girl is .. after the jump.

Who's Burning Detroit?

[Editor's Note]: Last year, Scott Mieszala served as my Assistant Sports Editor before I went all Dusty Baker on him and burned him out midway through the semester.  Still, Scott presented his highly regarded weekly columns.  The fact that he is without a job while scabs such as Rick Morrissey and Chris DeLuca are still employed is a sad.  Someone, hire him.  With that said, and the Detroit Lions are coming into Soldier Field to face the Chicago Bears, I thought it would be the perfect time to bring Scott on to reprise his award-winning column, "Who's Burning Detroit?"


So, who will it be this week?  Find out after the jump.

Bears Buzz: Cutler's Clutch Performance, Forte's Fantasy Value & Seattle's Sickening Unis

Bears Buzz is the new segment which provides insight, analysis and below-the-belt shots at Chicago's opponents throughout the year.  Come on a journey, won't you...

Chicago Football Has Moved Into The 21st Century. Thank You Jay Cutler.

Kyle Orton, your Broncos are 3-0 and I'm really happy for you (not) and I'm gonna let you finish. But Jay Cutler had one of the best game-winning drives of all time!

OK.  Maybe not.  And while it would be totally wrong to anoint the Chicago Bears as Super Bowl champions now, there are some facts that just need to be said aloud right here and right now.

There is no doubt in my mind that Rex Grossman would have thrown an interception during that fateful fourth quarter drive.  Kyle Orton would have made several underthrown attempts to make pass completions only before fumbling away a game-winning opportunity like he had taken several shots of Jack Daniels while the Bears were on defense.

Make no mistake about it, Jay Cutler won this game.  And to think, one brave NFL prognosticator said Cutler would throw three TD passes against Seattle in Week 3.  Um, yeah.  I'll be taking your praise in the form of cash, credit, check or full frontal-nudity.

If Orton or Grossman is under center, there is no way the Bears score their first touchdown because they would have sent Robbie Gould onto the field for the safe three points.  Real NFL quarterbacks make those passes.  Not average QBs like Orton.  Not flashes-in-the-pan like Grossman.

Legit NFL signal callers make those kinds of plays.

And that is why I'm happy to be a Bears fan after the team's 25-17 win against the Seattle Seahawks.

Pigskin Pimpin' On A Sunday

Ohhhh snap it's another edition of your favorite snarky and sarcastic football segment.  Catch it if you can ... after the jump.