Noots’ Notes-Game 12: 17-9 Win over St. Louis

By
Michael Nudo

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The Bears (5-7) showed that they’re slightly better than the bottom-feeders of the league with a 17-9 win over the Rams (1-11). What does this signify? It indicates that they’re as good as their record shows—below average.

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OFFENSE

Quarterbacks:
Jay Cutler (8-17-143, TD) only completed 8 passes but had some very big plays within that set. He connected with Devin Hester for a 48-yard play action pass in the early going. He hit Early Bennett over the middle for 71 yards and later the two hooked up for a 3-yard touchdown. Cutler did fumble a shotgun snap but was able to recover it. He made enough big plays and avoided key mistakes to ensure a victory over the lowly Rams. GRADE: B

Running Backs:
Matt Forte (24/91, TD, Fumble, 1-5) had the ball stripped away on the Bears’ first possession. He had struggled to find running lanes in the first half, but settled in as the game wore on. Kahlil Bell (11/35) took on a complementary role and provided a spark. Fullback Jason McKie had an up and down game, picking up some key blocks but also missing one on a fumble. GRADE: C

Receivers:
Earl Bennett (2-74, TD, Fumble) took in a short pass over the middle on third down and broke away for a 71-yard reception. Bennett might have had another catch later, but was clearly interfered with—and there was no call. Devin Aromashodu saw plenty of action but was held without a catch. He dropped a zero route. Devin Hester made a leaping 48-yard reception between defenders. He also appeared to have a touchdown catch later, but replays overturned it, because he only had one foot in bounds. Johnny Knox’s (3-15) biggest play won’t show up in the statistics. He drew pass interference to set up a first and goal inside the 5-yard line. Greg Olsen (2-1) had a pass deflect off his fingertips that nearly resulted in an interception. GRADE: B-

Offensive Line:
A new look on offense had Chris Williams at left tackle and Kevin Shaffer at right tackle. Williams allowed a sack when Chris Long was just too fast for him to stop. Shaffer blocked well at right tackle for both the run and pass, and flinched once for a false start. Olin Kreutz and Frank Omiyale were inconsistent in run blocking. Hang a star on Roberto Garza’s play. He made numerous key blocks pulling to lead the way for Bear running backs. GRADE: B-

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DEFENSE

Defensive Line:
Against a makeshift offensive line, the Bears’ defensive line needed to dominate. Adewale Ogunleye (3 tackles, sack, TFL) had numerous pressures and missed two sacks. But he did get a key sack on a third down play, and he had Boller wrapped up to force an incomplete pass on third down at the end of the game. Alex Brown took a poor angle on an end around, but also drew holding and had a nice pass break up on a short throw to Steven Jackson (28/112, 4-9) over the middle. Anthony Adams (4 tackles, sack, TFL) did a decent job of keeping Jackson under wraps. Israel Idonije (3 tackles, sack) made a few plays against the run and rushing the passer. Tommie Harris, Mark Anderson and Marcus Harrison didn’t make much of an impact. GRADE: B

Linebackers:
Jamar Williams (18 tackles, 2 PDs) started on the weak side for Lance Briggs and was all over the field. He had two pass deflections in coverage and made numerous plays at the line of scrimmage against the tough-running Jackson. Hunter Hillenmeyer (5 tackles, INT, PD) had a pressure and also an interception. He has made some big plays over the last two games. Nick Roach (7 tackles, TFL) had a huge tackle for a 4-yard loss on a swing pass to Jackson. He was active and provided good run support. Overall, this group played very well. GRADE: A-

Secondary:
Cornerback Zack Bowman (3 tackles, FF) forced a fumble on a pass to Gibson that Al Afalava (3 tackles, FR) picked up in mid air and returned 43 yards. Kevin Payne (8 tackles, 2 PD) had the start at strong safety, with Afalava moving to free. Payne’s physical presence helped keep Jackson reasonably in check. He also played well in coverage. Charles Tillman drew a facemask penalty and had a less than memorable game. There were some opportunities to pick up yardage against the Bears’ secondary, but Kyle Boller’s inaccuracy did not allow the Rams to capitalize.
GRADE: C+

Special Teams

Robbie Gould hit on his only field goal attempt, from 27 yards. His kickoff depth was good. Brad Maynard didn’t put any of his 7 punts down inside the 20, and had a few real head-scratchers that were quite short. Kick and punt coverage was spotty, including a 30-yard punt return and a 43-yard kickoff return. Maynard had to make the tackle on one of the punts. Adrian Peterson committed a holding penalty that negated a long return for Knox. Kahlil Bell failed to get on the field for a punt and cost the team a time out. Kickoff returns were decent, but punt returns were an adventure of bad judgment, fumbles and backward running that spanned numerous players. Do I need to mention the ill-fated fake field goal attempt? I guess I just did. This was one of the few contests in a long time that special teams nearly cost the Bears the game in terms of mistakes and field position. GRADE: D

Coaching

The offensive balance was much better. It was tilted toward running, but against a team allowing nearly 150 rushing yards per game, this was the route to success. It also made the most sense since you were looking at new people at both offensive tackle positions. With Boller at quarterback, it made sense to try to contain Jackson and dare the Rams to beat you with the pass. This worked. There were a few mistakes of discipline, but overall the effort was good and the plan was executed. There were a few rough spots, but the result at the end was decent. The special teams coaching left a lot to be desired. GRADE: C

Noots’ Nut Crackers
Shaw on Amendola

Nudo’s Kudos
Jamar Williams
Roberto Garza
Adewale Ogunleye
Earl Bennett
Kevin Payne

Horns
Brad Maynard
Dave Toub

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Posted: 12|7|09 at 1:45 am. Filed under: Game Summary.

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