da bears' road ahead

After today's wild action I don't know what to think of da Bears' chances. It's at least nice to see them snap out of their 13-year playoff funk even if it was ugly and unimpressive. But I still don't have much confidence in Rex Grossman despite his good performance today. And the Bears barely managed to slip by a mediocre Squawks team with a depleted secondary. However, the better news is that the two biggest obstacles between da Bears and their second Stupid Bowl win were eliminated this weekend.

First off, what the heck is up with the Bears' defense? Have they just gone home for the season already? Grossman is supposed to be the only choker in Chicago this time of year. It's the playoffs, you idiots. Championship teams don't let the "What the heck are we doing in the postseason?" Seattle Seahawks run up 24 points. When your own offense breaks out and scores 24 points, that should be enough for a win -- especially when you're supposed to have one of the league's best defenses and are playing a playoff game against a middle-of-the-pack team. It's a very good thing "Good Rex" decided to show up today and they have a Pro Bowler kicking long field goals in overtime, otherwise the Bears would be watching the 'Aints host the NFC championship next weekend. But when you're the Bears and Rex Grossman is your quarterback, relying on offense to pull you through isn't going to get you far in the playoffs and sure as heck isn't going to win a championship.

I guess those injuries on defense have hurt more than us Bears fans would like. Somebody had better call up the rest of the defensive unit and remind them the season isn't over yet (but soon will be if they don't show up next week). And it wouldn't hurt to make sure Tank Johnson doesn't get thrown behind bars before next week too. That defensive unit needs all the help it can get these days.

As for the AFC, it's nice to see what appeared to be the two biggest threats get KO'd before the championship game. Not that Indy and New England are cupcakes, but I like the Bears' chances against either of those two a heck of a lot more than against the Chargers or Ravens. Those two looked like the most solid teams in the playoffs until this weekend. But their weaknesses, lack of playoff experience combined with Schottenheimer for the Bolts and lack of an offense for the Birds, ended up killing them sooner than I expected.

I'm having a hard time thinking Indy can go all the way. That'd require the Colts playing like champs for four games straight. Okay, so they've done it for half that stretch so far. But they're similar to the Bears in that they could be the greatest team in the league or one of the worst teams in the league on any given day. The championship-caliber Colts have taken the field in both playoff games, but how long until the doormat Colts reappear? That kind of consistency might win some games but it rarely wins championships. I say rarely instead of never only because last year's Steelers (a.k.a., The Luckiest Super Bowl Winners Of All Time) sucked going into the playoffs and put together four straight improbable wins to steal the Lombardi Trophy away from several more deserving teams. There's no way they were the best team, but they played their best football when they had to and pulled it off. So, hey, anything can happen. But at least the Bears match up well with the Colts. I like Chicago's chances if they meet Indy in Miami.

I don't know what to think of New England. They're not as talented or as experienced as they have been in previous Stupid Bowl runs, but they're just plain scary. That franchise seems to have a thing with winning when it counts. And they closed the regular season on a very strong note. I was actually kinda hoping San Diego would beat them since that would have matched the inconsistent Colts and the inexperienced Chargers against each other for the AFC championship and thus the AFC's Stupid Bowl team would have a major flaw. (Throw in the anemic playoff records of Dungy and Schottenheimer and neither team is too intimidating come January.) But I don't think the Pats have any such flaws to exploit and I'm not sure the Colts can keep them out of it. The Patriots are the kind of team that can bring out the inconsistency in anybody, including the Colts. And, um, the Bears too.

On top of that, the 'Aints played well yesterday against the resurgent Eagles. Their offense wasn't slowed down at all it didn't seem, though the defense did allow the Eagles to push them around a bit. But I don't think the 'Aints are good enough to beat the real Bears. But if the crappy Bears show up then it'll probably be a long and disappointing winter in Chicago.

So...predictions. The NFC is impossible to predict due to the wildly inconsistent Bears. But the game will be at Soldier Field so hopefully the weather will be terrible. That would favor the defense and the running game, and thus such conditions would favor Chicago. (I think the Bears' first-string defense is better than the Saints' rushing offense.) Throw in the fact that the visitor is a dome team from the South and bad weather is all good for Bears fans. So, since I have to choose somebody, I'll take the Bears and keep my fingers crossed.

The AFC also looks impossible. If the same Colts come to play that have been in the last two games then they should win handily. But if they leave any holes for the Pats to work with then they're in trouble. New England isn't good enough to beat the Colts at their best, but, like the Saints against the Bears, they're good enough to take advantage of their opponents' mistakes. They could turn a subpar Colts game into a New England victory. Once again I must side with the home team -- and I'm partial to Tony Dungy anyway -- so I'll take the Colts.

See there, my projected matchup is the same one I had very early in the season. I could look like a genius here. Just to increase my chances of being a football prophet, I'm going to stick with my midseason prediction for the score, too. Bears 30, Colts 20. Grossman tosses a touchdown pass to the Colts, but Manning does him one better and throws two to the Bears. That'll be the difference.