The Bears offense is no longer the grind it out attack that they were a year ago in their Super Bowl year. They're a quick strike group which relies on the big play.,
The new starter at quarterback for the Bears, Brian Griese has made the Chicago offense more explosive but he continues to turn the ball over just like his predecessor Rex Grossman. Those turnovers have doomed the Bears especially with the defense being able to dominate the way they did a year ago. The Eagles defense has to prevent the big play which is the only thing that keeps Jim Johnson up at night.
The Bears mistakenly traded away running back Thomas Jones, thinking that they could rely on former number pick Cedric Benson to carry the load. Benson has been a major disappointment as a ball carrier. The lack of a running game exposed former QB starter Rex Grossman.
Once they shut down Benson, it’ll be time for Jim Johnson to confuse Griese and get in his mind. They’ll drive him crazy with blitzes and fake blitzes. They’ve got to be careful about not letting the Bears speedy receivers get open for a big play. Griese doesn’t have a great arm but Bernard Berrian is able to get deep. I don’t worry about their possession guy Muhsin Muhammad because he can’t outrun anybody, but Rashied Davis and Berrian are dangerous.
The Birds also hope to get some pressure form their “D” line without relying solely on the blitz. Defensive ends Trent Cole, Jevon Kearse and Juqua Thomas need to be heard from early and often. The Eagles defense must avoid giving up the big play.
There’ll be a monster battle inside between the Eagles defensive tackles Mike Patterson and Brodrick Bunkley versus Bears All-Pro’s center Olen Kreutz and guard Reuben Brown. They’ve got to tighten up things from the Jets game which wasn’t their best.
The Eagles defense will have to be on watch for return man extraordinaire Devin Hester because the Bears will probably try to utilize him in the offense. He could cause match up problems with the corners because he’ll be tough to cover one on one.
Rookie tight Greg Olsen who I wouldn’t have minded seeing the Eagles grab in April’s draft, can play. He's got a great combination of size and speed. This will be another major test for Bird’s strongside linebacker Chris Gocong.
