Stinker in Atlanta

That was just a pitiful, ugly game the Bears dropped in Atlanta tonight. They were in it until the end, but they absolutely deserved to lose that one. Nothing I liked about that game, so let's get to what I didn't like.

Offensive line looked just terrible. Penalties, blown assignments, nothing in the running game, bad pass blocking. I think it's time to start talking about Frank Omiygale being a bust at guard and putting Josh Beekman back in there. I thought Beekman played well last season starting throughout his rookie campaign. I think Omiygale looks spotty at best, at worst he looks down right bad.

I thought the entire team played sloppy throughout, especially coming off the bye week. Lovie Smith's defense looked unprepared. They couldn't generate the slightest bit of pass rush, they looked downright surprised when Atlanta went to the no-huddle, and Zack Bowman looks BRUTAL back there at corner. The special teams, usually spot on, looked awful (what is it about playing in the Georgia Dome that those guys on special teams don't like?)—bad punting by Brad Maynard, bad kick coverage, that awful 12 men on the field call that cost them possession before Nate Vasher miraculously made a play. And all those penalties. Ee-gads.

We had a serious case of the red zone blues tonight. Three lost turnovers in the red zone, not counting the turnover on downs at the end of the game (which was probably more a result of penalties than anything else). That's the difference in the game right there. And that's an important difference between the haves and the have-nots in this league. Good teams take advantage of their trips to the red zone. Mediocre teams and bad teams ... well, you get the idea.

Mostly I'm disgusted by the sloppy play and lack of preparedness for this one. Ultimately it's up to the players to make plays, but it's hard not to hang this one on bad coaching. Sloppy play reflects directly on the coaching staff. That was an undisciplined, ugly game.

Beautiful

The Bears beat the Detroit Lions in convincing fashion Sunday at Soldier Field, 48-24, to advance to 3-1 heading into the bye week. We're in a three-way fight for the lead in the division, behind Minnesota and Green Bay, but we're in it.

Things I like about the Bears win over the Lions:

Line play. Both the offensive and defensive lines looked damn solid. The offensive line had easily its best day of the season, allowing Matt Forte to rush for 121 yards on 12 carries. The defensive line continued its strong play, putting consistent pressure on Lions QB Matthew Stafford, registering four sacks and an interception by DT Tommie Harris.

Special teams. What can you say about the Bears special teams play? A 52-yard field goal by "Chip Shot" Robbie Gould. A 102-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Johnny Knox. Four punts downed inside the opponents 20-yard line by Brad Maynard. There isn't a better special teams coach in the business than Dave Toub.

Coaching. The Bears and Lions were tied at the half. They made some adjustments in the locker room at the half, and came back out and dominated. I especially like the way CB Charles Tillman was moved to man coverage on Calvin Johnson with safety help in the second half.

Things that scared me (as much as you can be "scared" after hanging 48 on a pro team):

Zack Bowman. Granted, Calvin Johnson is a tough draw for anyone, and he's going to make a lot of DBs in this league look bad. But Bowman looked atrocious against Johnson. Thank god they moved Tillman on him in the second half or Johnson would have had 200 yards receiving in the game.

Wide Receivers. Two drops by Johnny Knox, and not a whole lot else by anyone. As big as their play was against the Seahawks a week ago, they were a non-factor against the Lions. It looked like the receivers struggled to get open most of the day.

Greg Olsen. Yes, he caught a touchdown pass. But six other throws to him fell incomplete. He hasn't been nearly as a big a factor in the passing game as advertised.