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And the Adrian Peterson era begins (in a deep NFL Films voice)...On
a crazy day of missed field goals, sloppy turnovers and winds
recorded at 47 miles per hour, the Chicago Bears eked out a 17-9
victory over the hapless 49ers to retain sole possession of first
place in the NFC Norris division.
Actually, the score was Bears 17, Bobby Wade 9. Bobby Wade
had an awful time trying to field punts with three turnovers on
three return attempts handing the Niners 9 points. He didn't fumble
on other punts, but that was because he stayed clear of the ball and
didn't try to return it. Hey Bobby, you're not in Tucson anymore,
figure it out or get out! To his credit he took the boos from the
crowd like a man and didn't shy away from the media after the game.
To add insult to injury, Cedric Benson went down towards the
end of the first half with his body going one way and his knee going
the other in a grotesque looking knee injury. Originally, they
thought it would be a torn ACL or something more serious, but Benson
was walking with a brace after the game and he thinks it might not
be as bad as originally thought. An MRI on Monday morning revealed a
sprained MCL and Benson will be out 3 to 6 weeks. Either way, not
good, and I hate to say it, but karma might be biting the 17 million
dollar holdout right in the ass...or should I say knee....
That left the door open for my man AP (Adrian Peterson). AP
filled in nicely with a couple big runs and a couple big first
downs. He finished the day with 120 yards on 24 carries and 1
touchdown. Great job by AP and the O-line also deserves a lot of
credit with 172 total rushing yards on the day. Speaking of the
O-line, we got the truth in the Fred Miller "broken jaw / fell in
his home" incident. Apparently, Olin Kreutz gave him a right hook
when they were out on the town last week and ended up breaking his
jaw. And for the record, whenever any sports figure says they "fell
in their home," they're LYING.
The Bears were not the only ones to feel the wrath of the
wind. On a stupid call by Mike Nolan on the last play of a dismal
first half, the Niners tried to kick a 51 yard field goal. The wind
completely killed the attempt and Nathan Vasher fielded the ball 108
yards deep into the end zone....the rest is history.... After a spin
at about the 18 yard line and a Chris Berman whoop, Vash reversed
the field and found himself behind a wall of Orange Bears. Brian
Urlacher sealed the play from behind, then he put on the
afterburners and passed Vash again to get the final block in the
longest return in NFL history. A miked up Vasher said on the
sideline, "Wow, the NFL's been around a long time...." This play
seemed like it happened in slow motion, reminiscent of the 6 minute
Tractor Traylor play of a couple years ago, except that Traylor
didn't score on the play.
Amazingly, going into halftime the Bears were up 7-3 after
numerous mistakes in the first half. In the second half Bobby Wade
continued to fumble, most notably, he fumbled on the Bear's 2 yard
line. However, the sick, nasty, dominating, lovely, poetic Bears D
stifled the Niners hopes of a gift wrapped touchdown and forced them
to settle for 3 points. Then, the wrath of the wind hit the Niners
again when they fumbled a Bear's punt on their own 30 yard line. The
Bears were able to convert the turnover into 7 points and that
pretty much made it a ballgame. It wasn't pretty, but they got the
job done to ink the paper with a 5 game winning streak. I doubt
they'll match the Alabama Blacksnakes' record 10 game winning streak
in 2004 (Imperial Palace league), but its good enough for first
place in the division and a 6-3 record....who'd a thunk that in the
beginning of the season???
Next week, Julius Peppers and the Carolina Panthers come to
town. Orton, you will get thrashed if you don't do your homework
this week. You need to be able to read a zone coverage and not throw
the ball into coverage like you did in the end zone against the
Niners. Until then, get better Cedric and Fred, Defense stay nasty,
and GO BEARS!!
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