Chapter 889: Facing a Strong Opponent Again
Offense and defense are always a contradictory pair. This is true for soccer, basketball, and also for football. The law of "offense wins games, defense wins championships" is also common in all ball sports.
When people talk about NFL powerhouse defenses, in addition to teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baltimore Ravens, and Buffalo Bills, the Chicago Bears are another top defensive team with a long history. On various lists of the best defenses in history, the 1985 Chicago Bears are the undisputed best choice.
That year, the Chicago Bears' defense reached its peak. They were hailed by the league as a "hopeless" defense, and even a top-tier defense that no one could surpass in the long history of football. Throughout the season, they gave up 258.4 yards per game and 12.4 points per game, both of which were the best in the league and set a new league record.
In that regular season, the Chicago Bears mercilessly crushed every offense in the league. Almost no one could put up a decent fight. They only lost one game all season.
Dan Marino'sMiami Dolphins beat the dominant Chicago Bears at home, but that was after the Bears had won 12 consecutive games and were physically and mentally exhausted, so they lost 24-38.
Other than that, the Chicago Bears had an excellent record of 15 wins and 1 loss throughout the season. They marched into the playoffs, where they shut out their opponents in both the divisional and conference championship games, and entered the Super Bowl without any suspense. In the final against the New England Patriots, the terrifying defense was still merciless, winning 46-10, a brutal and bloody victory with a 36-point lead.
It's worth mentioning that in that Super Bowl, the New England Patriots' ground offense only advanced 7 yards. A pitiful 7 yards.
At that time, defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan's technical support and a roster of top-tier defensive players made for a perfect combination.
Defensive ends Dan Hampton and Richard Dent, linebackers Mike Singletary and Otis Wilson, and safeties Dave Duerson and Gary Fencik.
Every player was a top-tier standout. They had both defensive talent and strict discipline. In a single season, they had a total of 34 interceptions and 60 sacks, leading the league. Their net point differential of 258 for a single season was the fifth highest in the Super Bowl era since 1970.
It should also be noted that the Chicago Bears' ground offense was also the best in the league that season, which objectively limited the amount of time the defense spent on the field. In other words, in their limited time on the field, the defense still performed at a historically high level. Their man-to-man coverage, quarterback blitzes, and excellent ground defense successfully dominated the game. They were an unsolvable problem.
As the second oldest team in the history of the league, the Chicago Bears were once the top powerhouse in the league. They won the league championship eight times and, after entering the Super Bowl era, won the Super Bowl in the 1985 season with an unstoppable momentum. The team has had players like Walter Payton, Sid Luckman, and Clyde Turner, all of whom are legendary players in history.
If we only count Super Bowl championships, the Bears, who have only been to the Super Bowl twice—one win and one loss—don't seem to rank high. But in fact, they are one of the greatest and most outstanding teams in the league. In the history of the Chicago Bears, they have retired a total of 14 jersey numbers, which is the most in the NFL. In addition, they have a total of 28 players in the Hall of Fame, which is also the most in the NFL.
Without a doubt, the history of this team is an inseparable and indispensable part of the NFL.
After their last glory in the 90s, the Chicago Bears entered a new round of growing pains with new and old players. After missing the playoffs for six consecutive years after 1994, they finally returned to the playoffs in 2001 and appeared in the Super Bowl in 2006. Unfortunately, they lost to the Indianapolis Colts, led by Peyton Manning, and failed to win a second time.
After that, Chicago fell into another slump.
In the five years from 2007 to 2011, the Bears only made the playoffs in 2010. They unfortunately lost to their division rival, the Green Bay Packers, in the conference championship. Other than that, they were always plagued by their own mistakes, often fumbling at critical moments, just like last year.
In Week 10 of the regular season, their record was still 7 wins and 3 losses, and they had a head start in the playoff race. But then they suffered a 5-game losing streak. Although they beat their division rival, the Minnesota Vikings, in the last week of the regular season, they still finished with a record of 8 wins and 8 losses and sadly missed the playoffs.
In other words, they had the strength but always lacked that final push.
The current Chicago Bears roster has a defense that is comparable to a Pro Bowl-level team.
Defensive end Julius Peppers, defensive tackle Henry Melton, cornerbacks Charles Tillman and Jim Jennings, and outside linebacker Lance Briggs.
All of them are top-tier players in the league. The biggest name is undoubtedly Julius Peppers, the second overall pick in the 2002 draft by the Carolina Panthers. He was traded to the Chicago Bears in the 2010 season. In his rookie season, he won the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. He has been selected to the Pro Bowl seven times, the All-Pro First Team three times, and the All-Pro Second Team three times. He also has a spot in the NFL's All-Decade Team for the first decade of the 21st century.
The player with the best form is Charles Tillman. In the 2012 season, only four players in the entire league were selected as Player of the Week at least twice, and Tillman was one of them.
This veteran second-round pick cornerback, who entered the league in 2003, seemed to have suddenly had a breakthrough last year and was selected to his first Pro Bowl. This year, he has reached a high point in his career and is even on par with J.J. Watt, becoming the biggest star among defensive players in the entire league.
Tillman's performance at the cornerback position is at its peak. He is excellent at forcing fumbles, covering, and making timely tackles. So far, he has recorded six forced fumbles, leading the entire league, which shows his powerful offensive ability on defense.
In the regular season stats so far, the Chicago Bears' defense ranks second in the league, second only to the San Francisco 49ers. Their ground defense ranks second in the league, and their passing defense ranks first. The tactic of a strong front line and a tight secondary traps the opponent's offense like a turtle in a jar.
Compared to their defense, the Chicago Bears' offense is not as flashy, but in fact, they still have an above-average offense.
First, they have a Pro Bowl-level running back, Matt Forte. He is considered a top-tier running back on par with Adrian Peterson, the superstar of the Minnesota Vikings. This is his fourth year in the league. In the past three years, only four running backs have had more rushing yards in a single season than him. He is even better than Marshawn "Beast Mode" Lynch.
Second, they have a potential future Hall of Fame wide receiver, Brandon Marshall. Since he entered the league as a fourth-round, 119th pick in 2006, he has had five consecutive seasons with over 1,000 receiving yards, except for his rookie season. He is also the first wide receiver in history to achieve this feat with three different teams.
Third, they have a near-elite quarterback, Jay Cutler. After being selected by the Denver Broncos with the 11th overall pick in the first round of the 2006 draft, the Chicago Bears made the biggest trade in the team's history in 2009 by signing Cutler and began their journey to build their offense.
In fact, if you just look at Cutler's passing stats, he is an excellent quarterback.
Except for his rookie season, he has had four consecutive seasons with over 3,000 passing yards and even exceeded 4,000 yards in 2008. He has had over 20 touchdowns for four consecutive seasons and also has the ability to run. He has had over 40 rushing attempts for four consecutive seasons and has scored a rushing touchdown for four consecutive seasons.
In other words, he is a traditional pocket quarterback but can also use his legs to make plays in a crisis. This sounds like a watered-down version of Aaron Rodgers, but the fans of his division rival, the Green Bay Packers, affectionately call Cutler their "good buddy."
Why?
Two sets of stats are enough to explain everything. He has had over 15 interceptions for four consecutive seasons, and in 2009, he had 26 interceptions, while his touchdown count was only 27. He has also had over five fumbles for six consecutive seasons, with ten fumbles in 2010 and seven in 2011.
In other words, Cutler alone can cause a double-digit number of turnovers in a season.
Sometimes, the entire defense and offense of a team don't even lose a double-digit number of turnovers in a full regular season. In fact, that's often the case.
So, what's the problem?
Cutler is the problem, or at least one of the problems.
He has repeatedly ruined all advantages with turnovers at critical moments. The Chicago Bears' record in the past few years is the best example of this. They had a record of 7 wins and 9 losses in 2009, 11 wins and 5 losses in 2010, and 8 wins and 8 losses in 2011. They have always maintained enough competitiveness but were unable to play tough when it mattered, which led to this situation.
But Cutler is the best option at the quarterback position for the Chicago Bears, which shows how scarce good quarterbacks are in the league.
Will they repeat their mistakes this season?
Based on their current record, the Chicago Bears are the champions of the NFC North, surpassing their division rival, the Green Bay Packers, and holding the top spot. Their record of 7 wins and 2 losses is also outstanding. Their two losses were in Week 2 of the regular season to the Green Bay Packers and last week to the Houston Texans.
Both teams are tough opponents.
This week, they are about to face their third tough opponent, the San Francisco 49ers!
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