I’m still extra worked up about this loss but reading through all of the comments has helped me realize I’m not the only one who feels so crappy about this loss (and who was so pissed about the officiating). I generally don’t like to carry on about the officials. Usually I allow that in each game, they will make several mistakes and a team has to just learn how to play with them. But when the ratio is 18 penalties to 5, you HAVE to wonder.
But after watching the 2 Collins’ picks again on that last drive, I’ve realized that there are a couple more comments I need to make. On the first one when he picked it and then fumbled – the referees let the play carry on all the way until a Packer recovered the ball. Only then did the official with no vantage point come charging in and rule it an incomplete pass. None of the players stopped scrambling for the ball, which indicates pretty clearly to me that no whistle was blown. More than odd. Then, on the Burnett play, a play that at the very very least was a close play and very much NOT an obvious pass interference (because it wasn’t pass interference at all), 3 different officials threw flags against us. Three. If nothing else, it seemed the officials were simply watching extra carefully for possible penalties on us while turning a blind eye to the Bears.
I promise I’m moving on from this loss, but another quick point. Another reason I’m still so worked up about all of this is that I finally have the ability to DVR games. So on the interceptions and the Forte fumble, I went back and had another look myself multiple times. After doing that I still came away with the opinion that we had 3 turnovers taken away from us. Just granting us one of those may have been the difference in the game.
Lastly, I will add that while I’m frustrated, I’m not totally dejected. I have a feeling this loss will inspire the team a bit…I feel badly for Detroit because they will be facing a pissed off team that of course, won’t have nearly as many penalties because they’ll be the home team. (I’m doing some research on this home team penalty advantage – will post soon.) I think we’ll recover and win more games, but I really think we need a decent RB if we want to get to the highest level of the NFL this year. As for the Bears, I continue to think they’ll eke into the playoffs, but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility that the foundation they are building this season on might crumble at some point. They have some talent, but they seemed too lucky/opportunistic last night to be really good over time.
packergeeks 
September 28, 2010 at 12:12 pm |
I’m agree with all of you Cheeseheads. There must have been a conspiracy by the team of officials that worked the Monday night game. The league wanted them to make sure that the Bears won because Chicago is a large market and good for TV ratings. That’s it. It has to be. There is no other explanation. There is no way that one of our d linemen would have roughed up Cutler or actually committed any of those other 17 other penalties. The officials have been trying to make it right for the Bears ever since that Don Majkowski game when the Bears claimed that he crossed the line of scrimmage before throwing a touchdown pass. He never crossed the line of scrimmage!!! The TV networks doctored the playbacks to make it look like he crossed the line of scrimmage!!! The Bears are crybabies and now the league is listening to them, making us pay for some perceived injustice and because the Bears are good for TV ratings. Well when they come up north, I think that we should grab our shotguns and do some bear and zebra hunting.
September 28, 2010 at 12:59 pm |
I can’t bear to stew about that game last night. So…I move on.
Report today that the Bills have started listening to offers for Lynch. Here are my thoughts on it. I think the Bills need draft picks far more then they need players in the final years of their contract. (Hawk, Colledge, etc..) They need to completely revamp that roster over the next 2-3 years and draft picks have far more value to them then players. One, the draft picks will be with them 4-5 years and will be a bunch cheaper then extending someone else’s veterans. No GM is going to offer them a 2nd round pick for Lynch. It will probably take a 3rd and some additional compensation. TT should offer a 3rd and a conditional draft pick which starts out as a 6th but could turn into a 5th with good production from Lynch or a 4th with great production from Lynch. This Packer team is built to win a championship in the next few years and TT needs to make a move that helps that short term goal even if it hurts the team marginally in the long term.
September 28, 2010 at 2:34 pm |
Unfortunately i enjoy betting on sports and as a packer fan it was obvious that we were in a particularly dangerous spot last night going into the game. I hate the idea of fixes and i’m NOT saying it was, but there were a few signs that would have made any gambler nervous last night. The main concern going into the game was that over 70% of all bets on last nights game were on the Packers. Obviously, this means a lot of money stands to be made by the books if the Bears cover. If you watch for these sorts of things they seem to occur a lot of the time when teams are huge public favorites.
I also have a hard time believing that the Packers were that terribly undisciplined. By my count Cutler was picked off 5 times in that game and only one of them counted. What the hell is that? I agree that the Zombo personal foul on the incredible Burnett interception was the correct call but all of the others were fishy at best. In addition, the packers offense and defense were flying high in the first half with the exception of the final minutes (what a bummer that was). Then all of a sudden the 2nd half starts and we can’t do anything without a penalty? The refs kept the bears in the game. We were definitely sloppy out there but everyone knows that basically holding can be called on every play as well as pass interference for the most part. When you see a team with 18 penalties you know that the game is dirty. It also means that the game had to be dirty on both sides of the ball, yet the bears were only flagged 4 times i think. Its a little strange to me….
Lastly, the Burnett interference call at the end was ridiculous… His coverage was like a glove. The ball was underthrown and HE HAD POSITION and EVERY RIGHT to be where he was. It was a terrible pass. He turned around. I can understand if he hadn’t turned around but he did. Collins pick was an unbelievably difficult play to make. The bears barely picked up any honest yards on that last drive…
I hate to whine like this but i had a feeling things weren’t going to go our way before the game even started….
September 28, 2010 at 5:36 pm |
sorry for the same comment in two different posts…thought the first one got messed up…
September 28, 2010 at 6:14 pm |
I suppose the Superbowl frenzy evident from training camp on, has taken a pause. Let’s be real about the “but ifs and shoulda-couldas.
Players hold, interfere, jump off sides, fail to run routes, attempt kicks outside their realm, have field goals blocked, etc. when they are being or perceiving to be outmanned. This happened for both teams last night, just more for the Pack. Julius Peppers was pumped and probably held every play. We know he takes plays and games off, but Urlacher and Briggs told him “not this game.” Can you conceive of any player in a Chi-GB game that wouldn’t give a little extra? That leads to ugliness sometimes. I wouldn’t have any other way in this rivalry of rivalries.
As far as officiating, please. there is no worse venue for “Homer” calls than Lambeau– ah, perhaps Notre Dame’s basketball stadium. Of course it was an ugly sloppy game. If you’re looking for a Picasso, you won’t find it at a Bear-Packer game.
A game like this comes down to a few intangibles, so often, that you must think George Blanda was at Soldier Field last night.
I’m a realist, the “Monsters of the MIdway” are not Superbowl material, but Lovie Smith is living up to his pledged goal of beating GB.
I say keep him !!
September 28, 2010 at 6:36 pm |
Rockbear – if you ever come to this website, you’ll know that some of your comments actually support my home-field-advantage “homer” call argument. (I call it the Naked Gun argument – officials playing to the home crowd.) I totally agree that we get plenty of calls at Lambeau. Just like last night, the Bears got tons of calls. But I get particularly upset when I believe poor calls may have affected the outcome of the game. Just as I would understand if you were pissed if homer calls at Lambeau affected a game. (I can even admit that there are games we win at Lambeau I don’t feel good about because I know we got all the calls.) I guess I just wish the officiating were more consistent overall so the players could determine the winner.
As far as Lovie goes – I also say keep him. he’s pretty good at beating the Packers, but he’s just not that good of a coach overall. I’d be pleased if he remained.
September 28, 2010 at 9:39 pm |
Andy…I would tend to agree with you to a point. I think when CM3 almost ripped off Cutlers helmet on his tackle in the first half it set the tone and the refs watched us a lot closer. I think it’s a lot like MLB umpires. They allow some pitchers a lot of latitude with the strike zone and others not so much. The only thing we can hope for is that they call a game consistently for both sides…this game they did not do that. When it’s all said and done we had crappy special teams play, 18 penalties (taking away 3 picks and 1 TD) and NO running game. In spite of that we were in a position to win at the end until Jones’ Fumble. Am I happy that we lost…heck no. But it’s only one game and the Bears still suck. Hopefully this serves as a wakeup call and the Pack gets their collective head out of their butts the rest of the year.