StansWeather.Net » Chicago Bears http://www.stansweather.net Comprehensive weather resources for Illinois Mon, 02 Jan 2012 23:26:42 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 Bears fall to the Colts in rainy Superbowl http://www.stansweather.net/2007/02/04/bears-fall-to-the-colts-in-rainy-superbowl/ http://www.stansweather.net/2007/02/04/bears-fall-to-the-colts-in-rainy-superbowl/#comments Mon, 05 Feb 2007 03:48:03 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=30 Here I was worried about not being able to watch the game in HD, but that was the least of my worries. Our local CBS station (WCIA) had just went live with their HD transmitter a few weeks ago. However, due to bad weather they had not been able to get their high power transmission lines up on the tower. Luckily though, my friend’s house was close enough to the tower that we could pick up the HD signal. The way the game started off was just amazing. Hester flew through the defense to return the opening kickoff for a touchdown. I don’t know how he continues to do that, but he’s something special. It was ironic because I told my friends that I was watching with that I wished Hester would just run it back for a TD and that’s what he did. (Indy never kicked it to him again after that) It started to rain and never let up during the entire game. I thought that would favor the Bears style of play, but Indy seemed to have more success. (at least to hanging on to the ball) Being down just 2 at halftime, I knew the Bears were still in the game but had to do something on offense. Unfortunately, Rex Grossman had one of his worst games ever at the worst time to have it. I don’t know if it was the weather conditions or just bad decisions, but he just chucked several balls up for grabs and they were picked both times. There’s not much the defense could do since the offense couldn’t stay out there long enough to give them a rest.

Despite the Colts win, it wasn’t a dominating win. The Bears had numerous chances but just kept turning the ball over or coming up short on 3rd down. (I think the Colts had over 3x as many 1st downs as the Bears) There’s definitely some changes that need to be made for next year’s team because this is embarrassing. Hopefully the sour taste of losing the Superbowl will provide for some much needed motivation next season. Someone needs to sit down and put together all the bad / stupid decisions from Rex Grossman and just pound it into him. If he can’t fix those mistakes, then the team needs to go another direction. I supported him throughout the year, but he really blew it in this game. Hopefully the long off-season will give him plenty of time to fix his issues and get better. This was his first full healthy season, so hopefully he can build on it. Congrats to the Colts, glad to see Manning finally get his ring. (of course I didn’t want to see it at the Bears expense) As with the Illini and Cubs, I will say it for the Bears: Maybe Next Year?

P.S. The commercials were really horrible this year. The Bud Light commercials were the only ones with anything decent, everything else sucked. What the hell is with salesgenie.com? Are they hoping to have the success that monster.com did a few years back? And the Prince halftime show, ugh…

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2007/02/04/bears-fall-to-the-colts-in-rainy-superbowl/feed/ 1 Bears dominate the Saints and head to the Superbowl!!! http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/21/bears-dominate-the-saints-and-head-to-the-superbowl/ http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/21/bears-dominate-the-saints-and-head-to-the-superbowl/#comments Mon, 22 Jan 2007 01:54:10 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=29 Most of the experts had written the Bears off for this game.

-The Saints were a team of destiny and had a powerful offense.
-The Bears defense was not as powerful as it was during the early part of the season.
-The Bears hadn’t beaten any good teams this year.

Blah!

There’s a reason the Bears were 13-3 this year and had the #1 seed in the NFC. Sure they had some bad games, but the end result is that we won games. Everyone blames Rex Grossman, yet he lead the Bears to a 13-3 record. This was the first full season that he was able to stay healthy and gain experience.

Ummm… Hello?? Bears are NFC champs and are going to the Superbowl!!! Who will they play? It’s still too early to tell as the Colts/Pats are still playing. I enjoyed the game at a local watering hole (Jillians) here in Champaign with some friends and had a blast. I don’t know if I will have any voice for a few days, but it was worth it. :)

Finally, I can go to a Superbowl party and have MY team there to root for. This is going to rock!!!! Congrats to the Bears and good luck in the Superbowl!!!!!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/21/bears-dominate-the-saints-and-head-to-the-superbowl/feed/ 0 Gould wins it in OT with a 49 yard field goal!!! http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/14/gould-wins-it-in-ot-with-a-49-yard-field-goal/ http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/14/gould-wins-it-in-ot-with-a-49-yard-field-goal/#comments Sun, 14 Jan 2007 21:39:06 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=28 I didn’t know which Bears team was going to show up today, or which Seahawks team would either. Grossman played pretty well and only had one interception and a fumble. As many times as the Seahawks have won with a game winning field goal this year, it was nice to see the Bears pull it off. Now it’s on to the NFC Championship game against a very potent Saints team. One more win away from the Superbowl, this is truly exciting!

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2007/01/14/gould-wins-it-in-ot-with-a-49-yard-field-goal/feed/ 0 Bears squeak out victory in OT http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/18/bears-squeak-out-victory-in-ot/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/18/bears-squeak-out-victory-in-ot/#comments Mon, 18 Dec 2006 13:19:26 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=27 Thank goodness we have a great offense. Huh? What did he just say? Yeah, that’s right. :) Our defense playing short-handed had trouble stopping the Bucs in the 4th quarter. Rex Grossman showed up though and got us the necessary yardage in OT to get 2 FG opportunities. (the first one was missed) So with the win (and the Saints loss) the Bears clinched home field advantage throughout the playoffs. w00t! :) Hopefully the defense can work out the kinks over the next 2 games.

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]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/18/bears-squeak-out-victory-in-ot/feed/ 0 Grossman looked like his old self in victory over the Rams http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/12/grossman-looked-like-his-old-self-in-victory-over-the-rams/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/12/grossman-looked-like-his-old-self-in-victory-over-the-rams/#comments Tue, 12 Dec 2006 13:03:18 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=26 Well the critics were silenced last night as Grossman broke out of his funk and looked like the guy we saw earlier in the season. He was overshadowed by the rookie Devin Hester who returned 2 kickoff returns for touchdowns. The guy is amazing and he’s only a rookie! No turnovers for the Bears and it definitely made a difference. With this win the Bears clinched a first-round bye in the playoffs and move their record to 11-2. Did anyone else notice that this was supposedly an away game, yet there seemed to be a lot more Bears fans there? (Soldier Field – South!) Another amazing performance on Monday night and more importantly another victory. :)

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/12/12/grossman-looked-like-his-old-self-in-victory-over-the-rams/feed/ 0 Bears fall short on turnover filled game http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/26/bears-fall-short-on-turnover-filled-game/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/26/bears-fall-short-on-turnover-filled-game/#comments Mon, 27 Nov 2006 01:02:55 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=22 I guess when the #1 and #2 defenses in the NFL clash, turnovers are bound to occur. Unfortunately for the Bears, it was the final interception from Grossman that sealed the win for the Patriots. One thing I noticed is that the Patriots have one heck of an offensive line. Brady never got sacked and I believe he was only hit twice. (Grossman wasn’t that fortunate) I’m not making any excuses here for the Bears, but that lovely new field that New England installed looked like crap. I think a lot of the guys on both sides were losing their footing. I definitely blame Urlacher’s missed tackle on Brady on the field because he would never miss a wide open tackle like that. So the Bears drop to 9-2 on the season and hopefully can bounce back next week against the Vikings. I can hear some fans already wondering if we shouldn’t bring Griese into the game, but I don’t think we’re quite there yet. One positive in the game was the strong running game by Cedric Benson. He ran over a few guys in the 1st half, so that was promising. New England right now looks like they could definitely make and win the superbowl. Hopefully the Bears will be there in a few months to change that fate. :-)
Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/26/bears-fall-short-on-turnover-filled-game/feed/ 0 Bears comeback in the 2nd half to beat the Giants! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/12/bears-comeback-in-the-2nd-half-to-beat-the-giants/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/12/bears-comeback-in-the-2nd-half-to-beat-the-giants/#comments Mon, 13 Nov 2006 05:34:17 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=21 The beginning of the game started like the last one ended. I’m sure Bears fans around the country were going ‘oh no, here we go again’. The running game was non-existant and the passing game was not working either. We managed to squeak in a late 1st half touchdown to make it a 13-10 Giants lead at halftime. The Bears then went on to outscore the Giants 25-10 in the 2nd half. I glanced up at the TV at one point to see Hester catch a missed field goal in the endzone. He started walking like he was going to take a knee, but then took off running. 108 yards later, he was in the other endzone with a touchdown. It comes almost one year to the day when Nathan Vasher returned a 108 yard field goal miss for a touchdown against the 49ers. Unbelievable!!! What a great 2nd half for the Bears, very glad to see them hang in there. 8-1, not too shabby!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/12/bears-comeback-in-the-2nd-half-to-beat-the-giants/feed/ 0 Dolphins shock the Bears at Chicago http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/06/dolphins-shock-the-bears-at-chicago-again/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/06/dolphins-shock-the-bears-at-chicago-again/#comments Mon, 06 Nov 2006 13:18:14 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=19 Well this is not how I wanted to see the Bears go down in their first loss of the year. I don’t know if they just got outplayed or if they were looking ahead to next week’s matchup with the Giants. It had many shades of the Arizona game, but even being at home they couldn’t overcome the deficit. There really isn’t a good loss, but maybe this is what the Bears need to better prepare for a deep run in the playoffs. Rex looked like crap again and was forcing way too many plays. The Dolphins defense deserves a lot of credit for bringing it to the Bears. Hopefully the Bears can regroup for Sunday night’s primetime game against the Giants.

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/11/06/dolphins-shock-the-bears-at-chicago-again/feed/ 0 Bears offense shows up to continue undefeated streak! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/29/bears-offense-shows-up-to-continue-undefeated-streak/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/29/bears-offense-shows-up-to-continue-undefeated-streak/#comments Mon, 30 Oct 2006 00:48:39 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=18 The Bears scored 41 points in the 1st half which tied the Bears record. Quite a difference from the Monday night game where the offense couldn’t do anything right. One more tune up game against Miami next Sunday before the big road trip to the northeast. 7-0… Wow… This is fun! :) The Colts also pulled off a late comeback to push their record to 7-0. Maybe both teams will go undefeated and meet in the Superbowl. Now that would be amazing. :)

Full Story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/29/bears-offense-shows-up-to-continue-undefeated-streak/feed/ 1 Do you believe in miracles?? 6-0! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/16/do-you-believe-in-miracles-6-0/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/16/do-you-believe-in-miracles-6-0/#comments Tue, 17 Oct 2006 04:58:27 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=16 During the pre-game show everyone was talking about how bad the Bears were going to pummel the Cardinals. I was hoping that the team wasn’t buying into this and would remain focused. However after the Cardinals went up 17-0, I was just about to turn the game off. Having nothing else to do, I decided to stick around and see how bad we got beat. Grossman was stinking it up big time, definitely the worst game of his career. (he looked like current day Brett Farve out there!) With time running down in the 3rd quarter and the Bears trailing 23-3, the Bears D broke through and caused Leinart to fumble the ball which lead to a touchdown by Mike Brown. Once again, I was about to turn it off but that play gave me some glimmer of hope that we wouldn’t get beat too bad.

After another fumble by the Bears in the 4th, the Cardinals appeared to score a touchdown and take a 29-10 lead. I text messaged a fellow Bears fan and told him that the guy was down by contact and that it should be reviewed. The Bears coach indeed challenged the play and it was overturned. Later in the 4th the Cardinals figured to give James the ball and have him run some time off the clock. Urlacher would have none of this as he stripped the ball right out of his hands and it amazingly ended up going to another Bears player who ran it back for a touchdown. 23-17 now, holy crap. The Bears D was really kicking it up a notch and doing everything they could to get us back in the game. They managed to force the Cardinals to have to punt and that gave some hope that we could hopefully get some good field position. The rookie Hester caught the ball, made a few moves and then took off like freaking Superman. I knew he had speed, but I think he saved the best for that play of the season. Once he got going, I knew no one was going to stop him. 24-23 now Bears with the lead with just under 3 minutes to go. I was so nervous and almost out of breath I couldn’t text message my friends anymore. One of them called me who was having the same illness to share his glee with me.

I knew the game wasn’t over yet though, 3 minutes was alot of time and they only needed a field goal. Leinart looked like a veteran marching his team down the field which had me greatly concerned. So with 52 seconds to go, they got setup for a 40 yard field goal. There was some irony here as the kicker would be non-other than ex-Illini Neil Rackers. (mentioned many times in pre-game as future hall of famer) I was hoping the Bears would block it, but he somehow managed to get the kick away. What the hell? Wide left! The Bears ran out of the clock and somehow managed to win the game.

I’m still speechless as I write this tonight. This game brought back memories of the awesome Illinois / Arizona basketball game when Illinois trailed 15 points with 4 min to go. Defense won that game as well, so it was special to see it again tonight. So to steal a line from Al Michaels: “Do you believe in miracles???”. There was something very amazing from the way the Bears came back tonight. I think this could be the turning point in the season where they put it all together. Grossman had a horrible game, but he’s still young and will learn from these mistakes. (if not, we can play Griese at a moment’s notice!) :) So the train-ride continues at 6-0 after almost derailing in the southwest tonight. All I am left to say is WHEW!!!!! GO BEARS!!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/16/do-you-believe-in-miracles-6-0/feed/ 0 Bears dominate the Bills to stay undefeated! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/09/bears-dominate-the-bills-to-stay-undefeated/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/09/bears-dominate-the-bills-to-stay-undefeated/#comments Mon, 09 Oct 2006 12:34:45 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=15 The Bears put on yet another dominating performance on Sunday with a 40-7 smackdown on Buffalo. The only blemish was a penalty on Urlacher which gave the Bills the ball very close to the endzone which allowed them to erase the shutout. It was nice to see Benson get some playing time and his first NFL touchdown. So now we await next Monday night to travel to Arizona. (I’m already humming the MNF theme song!!) The Bears have gone 5-0 for the first time since the 1986 season, so we’ll see what happens. GO BEARS!!!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/09/bears-dominate-the-bills-to-stay-undefeated/feed/ 0 Bears dominate Seahawks in primetime! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/01/bears-dominate-seahawks-in-primetime/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/01/bears-dominate-seahawks-in-primetime/#comments Mon, 02 Oct 2006 03:33:15 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=13 Wow! I was so sick of people saying that the Seahawks were the best NFC team. I think the Bears really made a statement tonight in dominating the Seahawks with a 37-6 victory. Despite them being without RB Sean Alexander, I don’t think it would have mattered had Walter Payton been in there. The Bears put on a wonderful display for everyone to see! With their 4-0 record now, they hold the only undefeated spot in the NFC! GO BEARS!!!!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

]]> http://www.stansweather.net/2006/10/01/bears-dominate-seahawks-in-primetime/feed/ 0 Bears win late to stay undefeated! http://www.stansweather.net/2006/09/25/bears-win-late-to-stay-undefeated/ http://www.stansweather.net/2006/09/25/bears-win-late-to-stay-undefeated/#comments Mon, 25 Sep 2006 13:46:25 +0000 Stan Olson http://www.stanolson.com/?p=7 Whew! This was a battle of defenses for sure. The Bears held on though thanks to a late TD pass by Grossman. Despite Minnesota scoring 12 points, none of those points were from a TD. A huge test for the Bears comes next weekend against Seattle. It’s a Sunday night game on NBC, so that will be exciting! Go Bears!!! 3-0 in the NFC North!

Full story from ChicagoBears.com

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