The Bears' Third Quarter: So much for that 8-8 talk

At the end of the last quarter of the Bears' season, I feared that there was still the possibility the team could finish 8-8. And now with four games left to go, we already know that won't be the case. Thanks to four more wins over the course of the four games since that last update, the Bears have secured a winning season and are leading the NFC North as the team enters its final four games of the year.

I'm not entirely sold that we should begin planning a Super Bowl party quite yet, but at the same time, I can't deny that the Bears certainly deserve to be in the conversation for favorites to come out of the NFC when the playoffs begin. The final four games to close out the year will be perhaps the toughest stretch of the schedule this year (visits to Minnesota and Green Bay while two of the AFC's best teams come to Soldier Field), but Chicago has set themselves up rather nicely by taking care of business in the third quarter.

If nothing else, it appears for the time being that Lovie Smith has saved his job.

RECORD FOR THE QUARTER: 4-0 (9-3 OVERALL) — In hindsight, maybe the schedule doesn't look as daunting as it once did. But I'll fully admit that I was fearing something more along the lines of a 2-2 finish coming into this update, so the flawless record over the four-game stretch was certainly impressive.

BEST WIN: November 28 (Bears 31, Eagles 26) — Both teams came into the game at 7-3 and thus, this was perhaps the most anticipated challenge of the quarter. But the Bears responded quite well to it by essentially commanding from start to finish, thanks to four touchdowns, no interceptions, and a 146.2 passer rating from Jay Cutler. The defense also snapped Michael Vick's streak for consecutive passes without an interception at 238 when Chris Harris picked off the Eagles quarterback late in the end zone late in the first half. The play was huge as it not only killed a potential go-ahead drive for Philly, but also led to the Bears adding another score to take a 21-13 lead into halftime. Matt Forte ran for 117 yards in the game, the most by anyone against the Eagles this season, and Earl Bennett had two touchdown grabs in the win. Again, this was perhaps the stiffest test the Bears faced of any team this quarter, and the win was a testament not only to the quality of the Chicago defense, but the capabilities of Jay Cutler as well.

WORST LOSS: N/A (!!!) — I considered re-wording this segment to "WORST WIN," maybe "ugliest," but why be a buzzkill here? Astonishingly, perhaps the closest the Bears were to losing a game this past quarter was the team's most recent game against the lowly Lions, when they trailed at the half and entering the fourth quarter. Luckily, another "questionable call" from the officiating crew (you might recall that the referees have a way of making devastating rulings against Detroit this year) helped the Bears get into the end zone one more time and avoid a potentially catastrophic end to this quarter of the season. Still, Chicago was in the lead for most every other quarter of football they played during this portion of the schedule, so fortunately, there's no need to harp on a contest that got away or where wrongs didn't end up getting righted. Let's just hope they can keep those kind of end results going.

MVP: Earl Bennett — He's been steadily improving each of the past four games, in terms of receptions and yards. He followed up his two touchdowns against Philly by pulling in seven receptions for 104 yards against Detroit—both career-highs for him. Considering the question marks surrounding the Bears receiving corps entering this season, Bennett has emerged as a popular target for Jay Cutler and now a real threat for upcoming opponents to have to deal with as the team prepares to close out the year. There was some talk about how both Bennett and Cutler were Vanderbilt alums, and that connection at the time seemed somewhat forced. But now it appears that maybe there was something to it, as over the past four games, Bennett has becoming more and more reliable to not only make the catch, but shed tackles and earn additional yardage.

LVP: J'Marcus Webb — Yeah, he's still a rookie, but it's been a rough go of things for Webb the past three weeks especially. The problems began with the Thursday night game against Miami when Dolphins outside linebacker Cameron Wake routinely got by the right tackle. One of those times resulted in a sack and Webb was also flagged for a couple of holding penalties. The following week against the Eagles, it was Philadelphia's own rookie, Brandon Graham, who took advantage of Webb for a quarterback sack as well as additional tackles for lost yardage against the run. And most recently against Detroit, Webb's struggles allowed Lions defensive end Cliff Avril to finish with a career-high three sacks. The offensive line has been making slow but steady progress under Mike Tice, but Webb seems likely to continue to be a target of any opponent's defenses as long as he remains the weakest link in the Bears line of protection. It's hardly surprising that the Bears intend to work the 360-pound Herman Johnson they just signed off the Arizona Cardinals practice squad at the right tackle spot that Webb currently occupies. It's easy to sympathize with the rookie's inexperience, but if the goal is still about getting to the Super Bowl, then the Chicago coaching staff needs to ensure that their offensive line can keep Jay Cutler from sustaining any more concussions. And over the course of the past three weeks, it's been Webb that's the easiest to point to the finger at.

THREE THINGS I'VE LIKED SO FAR:

1. NO COMPLAINTS ABOUT NO LOSSES — Again, I ended the last quarter by thinking 8-8 wasn't unrealistic and here we are at the very next update knowing that a .500 finish is impossible because the team has already secured a winning record for the season.
2. JAY IS OUR QUARTERBACK — No interceptions in the last two games and triple-digit passer ratings. This was the guy we were getting excited about, so let's hope he keeps it up.
3. HOW GREAT WAS THAT PEPPERS SIGNING? — The man is arguably among the all-time great free agent signings in Chicago history—not just Bears history, but all Chicago sports teams. Seriously.

THINGS I HAVEN'T:

1. AROMASHODU, WHERE ARE YOU? — The hopes were much higher for Devin entering the season, but he's been largely absent from making any sort of impression. On one attempted target for him against Detroit, Aromashodu appeared to not even be looking at the ball.
2. THE HEALTH OF THE LINEBACKING CORPS — Pisa Tinoisamoa is out until the playoffs and Nick Roach had to leave the Lions game, which forces the Bears to turn to either Rod Wilson or Brian Iwuh. Sure, at least it's not Urlacher or Briggs, but the unit cannot afford to be depleted any further.
3. THE UPCOMING FINAL ACT — Now that the Bears have been staking a claim to being one of the favorites in the NFC, they need to finish strong in the most formidable four-game stretch of their schedule. Three of the four teams they'll be playing have playoff implications, and a game in the Metrodome is always tough (not to mention that I have to hear to hear that stupid fucking Viking horn thing).

25 WORDS OR LESS:

It's too soon to start a Super Bowl Shuffle, but not too soon to think about the playoffs.