So that's what it's like...

It's been a while since I've felt like this after a Colts game.  Come to think of it, I would have felt this way had I watched one of our 5 preseason games, because that is what last night felt like.  Everyone was getting their bearings, trying things out, etc.  Unfortunately for the Colts, and us, the Bears did all of this in their Preseason games, and they knocked us around.  I guess this is the feeling almost every other team has felt sometime in the past 3 seasons.

I've read through most of the comments this morning from everyone, and I mostly agree with everything.  The one thing I haven't seen is a good explanation of why the Bears moved the ball very effectively on offense, even without major weapons, and I think the answer is a simple one:

They took what our defense gave them, and did not get impatient one time in the game.  They were very content to gain 4 yards on every play, and keep moving the chains.  Very few teams (read: coaches) have the discipline to not go for more than what the Tampa 2 gives you.  It will give you 4 yards a play, even when the defense is playing decent.  The Tampa 2 takes advantage when an offense starts to take risks down the field, or they need more than 8+ yards on one play.  The Bears, consistently, had 3rd and shorts, which is why they were 10-16 on 3rd downs.  Having 16 3rd down plays also shows how they kept taking 4 yards and moving on.

Other than the one big run by Forte, I don't think the defense played bad.  As BBS said below, taking that run out they only managed 3.4/carry.  Unfortunately, 3.4 x 3 > 10 yards, so they kept making first downs.  Plus they had some really good play-action calls and completions on 3rd downs as well.

As far as the offense goes, numerous things were going against us.  One, the Bears, and Urlacher confirmed after the game, wanted to stop the run on every play.  There were times they had 8 guys on the line of scrimmage, with 5 of them lined up over the middle of our line, which had a combined 12 starts (all by Johnson, at another position).  While I think we should have tried to run a little more, they never stopped daring Manning to throw the ball.  I liked the running of the slants, as they are quick passes that are great against a blitz.  But where were the variation plays off of them?  Why no slant-pump fake-go route, especially when there was no safety help?  The corners obviously knew they were blitzing, so they started to jump the slants.  Why not more screen passes, or draw plays?  I'm wondering if the inexperienced middle of the line played a part in that.

Every season, the biggest improvement comes from Game 1 to Game 2, especially with a lot of young guys.  It's still too early to start panicking about Peterson next week.  He still hasn't played a down yet this season.  I feel confident that the coaches know they've screwed up, and will right the ship.  I just wish they would have done this in the preseason, rather than on National TV, opening up a brand new stadium.

While this game was a kick in the nuts, it's still a better feeling than what they must be feeling in New England.  We all know how we'd feel if Manning was done for the year.  I really hope Brady can come back from this injury, as the entire NFL will suffer without him playing this season.  It really is the Bizarro NFL already, and we aren't even a week in.