Brian's Swan Song Strikes a Discordant Note, as Urlacher and the Bears Go Their Own Way

I really don't know if Brian Urlacher is physically capable of ever again playing middle linebacker at a level that would make him a defensive asset rather than a liability.

Following a season that was plagued--and prematurely ended--by injuries, it's entirely possible that neither Urlacher himself nor the Chicago Bears really know the answer to that question.

While I won't apologize for having a sentimental side when it comes to sports, I realize--as per the Cubs' ill-fated decision to bring Kerry Wood back last season--that emotion cannot much matter when it comes to personnel decisions in professional sports, which is, of course, a business.

So whether the Bears believe that, at age 35, Urlacher's skills have eroded too egregiously, that he would be an unnecessary distraction during Coach Marc Trestman's first season or that it's just smarter to develop a young linebacker in a year unlikely to end with the hoisting of the Lombardi trophy, I can't--from a football logic perspective--too convincingly fault the Bears for parting company with the future Hall of Famer.

But as a fan, I don't like it.

First of all, while I have avidly watched the Bears my entire conscious life, I don't pretend to have the wherewithal to intelligently assess Urlacher's play in 2012 and how severely it may have diminished from his dominance in prior seasons. But it seems to me that the Bears' defense last year was pretty damn good, and with Urlacher in the central role--if no longer the best player; that would be Julius Peppers--it stands to reason that he couldn't have been all that bad.

Now I realize that leadership, locker room popularity, reputation, defensive play calling and whatever else ardent supporters ascribe to Urlacher only go so far. None of the above really matters if a linebacker's ability to run and tackle are severely compromised.

But with Urlacher's backup, Nick Roach, having signed with the Raiders, the jury still out on whether 2012 #1 pick Shea McClellin can play middle linebacker and my preference that the Bears not bother with Manti Te'o, unless GM Phil Emery can find a stud linebacker in the draft--where offensive line help would seem a greater priority--I don't readily see the great detriment in bringing Brian Urlacher back for one last season.

Photo Credit: Chris Sweda/Tribune Photo

So for the Bears to offer him a 1-year, $2 million contract--with only half guaranteed--after he made $7.5 million last season, does seem, as Urlacher has stated, like a "slap in the face."

It appears evident, as Dan Bernstein of the Boers & Bernstein show on The Score 670 suggested in a Tweet, that the "Bears lowball to did its job. They save face while getting the fresh start they wanted all along (despite public comments)."

Bernstein may well be right, but I'm not sure of the necessity nor propriety of the "job."

Urlacher himself seems to have seen right through it, telling the Tribune's Vaughn McClure, "I just wish they would have said, 'We don't want you back.' I think this whole thing is just about them saving face and trying to say that they made a run at me."

If the Bears no longer wanted Urlacher, as their ridiculously low offer appears to attest, why not just come out and say "We thank Brian for his phenomenal service to date. It is with tremendous respect that we are opting to move forward in a different direction."

Over. Done. Honest. Gracious. And devoid of what the Tribune's Steve Rosenbloom called "the sloppy, squirrely, deceitful manner the Bears went about it."

Personally, I would have preferred to have seen Urlacher stay in a Bears uniform. But if it was time for him to go--as the great George Harrison once sang, "All things must pass"--it shouldn't have gone down like this.

And as a Bears fan--though not a season ticket holder, tailgater nor sports radio caller--I want to publicly state that I relished watching Brian Urlacher, and loved what he did for the Bears and for the city of Chicago since arriving from New Mexico in 2000.

Though I respect their enhanced perspectives, I have been puzzled by intimations from Rosenbloom, Bernstein, Barry Rozner of the Daily Herald (who filled in for Terry Boers the other day) and another Herald sportswriter, Mike Imrem, that Urlacher was largely unbeloved by fans, especially in relation to his stature as a player and the 'face of the franchise.'

I don't know; I only went to a few games at Soldier Field during Urlacher's tenure as a Bear, but it seemed to me that any fans decked out in team colors were overwhelmingly wearing an Urlacher 54 jersey.

If he wasn't beloved, the fans sure had a funny way of showing it.

On Facebook yesterday, a friend of mine--a former Bostonian and hardcore Patriots fan--posted that just last season he bought a Bears jersey. And like me, several years earlier, his choice was Urlacher.

Seems to me, that if the Bears really wanted Urlacher back, the shared revenues on Urlacher jersey sales for another year would have justified bumping $2 million to $3 million, which Brian said he likely would have taken.

I get that Urlacher could be surly and uncooperative with the media; this may explain some of the columns and comments I alluded to above. And I realize that he criticized the fans for booing the Bears and belittled the importance of their opinion after the Bears fired Lovie Smith.

I'm not condoning this; I just don't really care.

Who knows if I would want Brian Urlacher to be my best man? I doubt it will ever come up. But for the better part of 13 years, he was the best thing about the Chicago Bears.

Whatever his flaws, whatever his ongoing on-the-field capabilities, I appreciated him, I thank him and I think he deserved better.

Quick Snaps: Photos of the Chicago Bears vs. St. Louis Rams

Although I have seen the vast majority of Chicago Bears football games played during my lifetime, I have only attended about 10 in person. And the last home Bears game I was at was in 2003, the first season after the renovation of Soldier Field.

So today was a real treat, courtesy of my friend Dave, who was graciously given a pair of tickets by a friend of his.

You couldn't ask for a better day to watch a football game, and while the Bears' offense and their oft-maligned quarterback, Jay Cutler, didn't exactly impress, the combination of a strong Bears defense and a lousy Rams offense enabled the Bears to win 23-6.

Rather than expound on the experience of being at the game, which was certainly fun and enjoyable but not particularly newsworthy sans for the relative novelty for me, I thought I'd share some of the photos I took, from the players entering the field to them exiting it.

Bear in mind that I didn't shoot every play, and on some of the big ones, people standing and cheering often got in the way, but these are a few that I think came out pretty good (with a bit of cropping).

 Opening kickoff:

Robbie Gould's 54-yard field goal:

The Bears' first touchdown, by Michael Bush:

A nearby fan:

 

All photos by Seth Arkin, copyright 2012. Please do not use without proper attribution, and for any commercial purposes, without permission. 

Wait 'til Next Bear Year (and why Caleb Hanie made me proud)

Photo Credit: John J. Kim, Chicago Sun-Times

Well, except for losing to their most hated rival in one the biggest home games in Chicago football history and thereby failing to reach their third Super Bowl, this is a season of which the Bears should be reasonably proud, especially given the low expectations--mine included--going in.

And in a perverse way, excepting that it ended without a ticker tape parade, it has also been a season that should have made Bears fans exceptionally happy. Because the defining elements for many Bears fans--again, myself included--are:

1) Rooting for the Bears through thick and thin
2) Complaining about the front office, coach and starting quarterback
3) A perpetual sense of disbelief, whether in how well or how poorly the team is playing

Today's NFC Championship game, in which the Packers beat the Bears 21-14, was a pretty good--or bad--microcosm of all of the elemental emotions Bears' fandom entails.

Wearing my Urlacher jersey and watching with my friend Dave, I wanted nothing more than for the Bears to punch their ticket to Dallas for Super Bowl XLV--and I honestly wouldn't have been too surprised had they beat the Packers--yet all season I've had the nagging feeling that they weren't as good as their record.

After I predicted the Bears would only win 4 games in 2010, and they then barely won their opener against the lowly Detroit Lions in a game they should have lost, the Bears wound up going 11-5 and taking the NFC Central. During the season, friends pointed out that the Bears mostly beat losing teams, but they did defeat the Packers (in one of 2 regular-season games), the Eagles and the Jets. Yet even as they put together an impressive record, their losses included some terrible clunkers, such as against the Giants, Redskins and Patriots.

Photo Credit: John J. Kim, Chicago Sun-Times

So throughout the season, all three elements were pretty well fulfilled, as fans relished the team's solid playoff push, but--while wondering if it might be a mirage--also spent a good amount of time ripping Coach Lovie Smith, Offensive Coordinator Mike Martz, GM Jerry Angelo and on up the ownership hierarchy.

Many fans may have been satisfied with franchise quarterback Jay Cutler, who on the surface seemingly vindicated himself after an atrocious 2009 campaign, but I still found his decision-making rather suspect. He seemed to throw too many silly interceptions and, though I would be silly to say this really matters all that much, I've been disappointed with his off-the-field demeanor.

Rick Reilly's recent negative column about Cutler on ESPN.com includes too many outdated attributions to hold much water with me, but Cutler has always appeared mealy-mouthed and arrogant in post-game interviews and I've heard direct accounts about how he has been less-than-polite in his interactions with fans, even kids seeking his autograph. None of this is enough for me to hate Jay, or to demonize him, but I've never really liked him, on or off the playing surface.

Funny thing is, while many callers to sports radio after today's game are bashing Cutler and questioning his manhood for leaving the game due to an as-yet-clearly-defined knee injury, I actually think it is unfair to take him to task for that. I don't remember any other cases of him begging off the field, even in games where he got sacked on nearly every play, so I'm willing to take him at his word. What I have a greater problem with is the seven Bears' offensive possessions while Cutler was in the game, which ended in 6 punts and one interception. Plus, there were at least two throws that should have resulted in Bears' touchdowns, but Cutler overthrew his receivers. Superstar quarterbacks can't do that in big games, and in earning $22 million this season Cutler certainly has a salary to put him in that category, if not the pedigree.

Photo Credit: John J. Kim, Chicago Sun-Times

Other than Smith's stupid--and potentially catastrophic--decision to initially insert Todd Collins rather than Caleb Hanie for Cutler, I actually think Jay leaving the game was the best thing that happened to the Bears today. He couldn't get anything going and, after Collins failed miserably--justifying ire aimed at Angelo for making him seemingly the best backup option--third-stringer Hanie, pumped some life into the team, drove them to two touchdowns and had the Bears in position to potentially tie the score within the last minute of a game in which they were badly outplayed.

In fact, the 16 minutes for which Caleb Hanie was at the helm today were my favorite of the Bears' 2010-11 season. Up until then, the Bears lethargic performance today had me perpetually on the verge of posting my sarcastic Facebook comment asking, "When do pitchers and catchers report [for Spring Training]?" But Hanie kept proving rumors of the Bears' demise to be premature, bringing the score to 14-7 and then 21-14, even after throwing an interception that was returned for a 4th Quarter Packer touchdown. In a game the Bears didn't otherwise look like they had any business winning, Hanie made me proud. Although he ultimately fell short and threw a final interception to seal it for the Packers, after a "successful" season full of elements #2 and 3 above, he almost single-handedly justified my commitment to #1.

I don't know if I would want Hanie to be the Bears starting quarterback next year, and even had he pulled a miracle and led them past the Packers, Cutler probably would have been the right pick--on most levels--to start the Super Bowl (in which the Packers will now play the Steelers). But I also don't think I want Cutler to be the starter next year, although he almost certainly will be. Not because I think he "quit," but because Caleb Hanie showed far more than Cutler what may have been possible.

In fact, it's not with anger but enhanced expectations that I wouldn't mind the Bears starting anew in 2011, with no Cutler, Smith or Angelo. Otherwise, "next year," we might not even be lucky enough to get a repeat.

Reliving Past Glories (in faded photographs): Bears Helmet on House, 1985; Bar Mitzvah Boy, 1981

As one might imagine, there's a lot of excitement around Chicago leading into Sunday's Bears game against the Packers in the NFC Championship. I can't deny being amused at some of the silly Packers jokes being posted on Facebook, but while I am very much looking forward to the game and cheering the Bears onto the Super Bowl, I can't honestly say that my fervor is quite the same as it was in 1985-86 or even 2006-07.

Maybe it's the residual effect of having predicted the Bears would go 4-12, but I've never quite believed in the greatness of this season's team. I hope they keep proving me wrong and would like nothing more than for them to beat the Packers, but that's about as much vitriol I can work up for the denizens of Green Bay. I've never been big on hatred, particularly when it comes to sports.

But, as I'd expected, like in their Super Bowl chases of '85-'86 and '06-'07, the city is supporting the Bears by putting oversized helmets on the lions outside the Art Institute of Chicago. I haven't been downtown to see it, but I also imagine the Picasso in Daley Plaza is adorned (as it was during the Blackhawks' run) and some buildings say, "GO BEARS" with office lighting patterns.

But I still fondly recall the above Skokie house (not mine) which was adorned with an oversized Bears helmet during the 1985-86 campaign. My friend Jeff went to take a picture of it for the high school newspaper, and as Sports Editor I tagged along and snapped one of my own. I have no idea what happened to the helmet and haven't seen anything quite like it since. But as the sign says...

Go Bears!

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Besides the Bears game, it's a big weekend in my family because my oldest nephew, Jacob, will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on Saturday. I've been invited to do an "aliyah" (a blessing before and after the Torah is read) and look forward to hearing Jacob recite his "Haftorah." A celebration with family and adult friends will follow the service and in the evening, Jacob's friends will party with him, and I'll stick around for that as well.

In looking for the Bears' helmet-on-the-house photo in some boxes at my Mom's house, I came across some photos from my Bar Mitzvah on October 24, 1981 (no photos are allowed during the service). Yes, that's me from nearly 30 years ago. Sure, make whatever requisite jokes about me trying to fit into the suit, but I wouldn't be surprised--if it still existed--that it would fit Jacob. Sometimes the past revisits us in strange and funny ways.