DIVISIONAL ROUND PREVIEW: SEAHAWKS-BEARS
With the NFC so unproductive as a whole this season, it is almost fitting that the Seahawks and Bears will match up in the playoffs. Seattle, last year's NFC Champ, was supposed to cruise to a division title and repeat as NFC champions, but a rash of injuries and just pure under achieving led to nothing but a title in the NFL's worst division. In fact, were it not for Tony Romo's ability to place a football on the ground for his kicker, Seattle would not even have won a playoff game in their defense of the NFC title. The Bears did what Seattle was supposed to this season, and won the regular season crown in the NFC. Never has a team had so many question mark after going 13-3. First off, the Bears defense, once referred to as the best of all time, has gotten worse and worse as the season went on. Without stars such as Tommie Harris they no longer look invincible. The other question is what is with Rex Grossman? Sometimes this guy looks like a star and at other times he looked like me playing QB. With a QB this inconsistent, it's a wonder how they won thirteen games. But hey, that's how it goes in the mediocre league known as the NFC.
QUARTERBACKS: After leading Seattle to the Super Bowl, Matt Hasselbeck looked like he had established himself as one of the premier QBs in the NFC. Hasselbeck got off to a fast start in 2006, but since the injury to his knee in week 7, Hasselbeck has struggled to regain the form he had earlier in the year. He began to turn the ball over more than any other time in his career, and possibly due to his injury, he looked tentative in the pocket under pressure. Haseelbeck was unable to shake these types of performances in the first round as he completed only half his passes and matched his 2 TDs with 2 INTs. Despite his recent struggles, Hasselbeck still has the experience and talent to be relied on in the big spot. The Bears QB, Rex Grossman, also got off to a hot start this season. However, he became an absolute train wreck halfway through his first season as a full time starter. Every time Grossman makes a great play, he will follow it with one that makes you scratch your head. He has become so turnover prone that the Bears may actually be better off just running the ball on every play. The Bears defense is good enough to overcome Grossman most of the regular season, but Rex must limit all mistakes if he wants to lead this team deep into January. EDGE: SEATTLE
RUNNING BACKS: With all of the injuries that have devastated the Seahawks playoff roster, it's important to have a rock you can rely on. That rock comes in the form of their running back Shaun Alexander. While his Wild Card round numbers (24 carries for 69 yards) may not look too impressive, it's his presence that makes him so important to Seattle. As long as Alexander is on the field for the Seahawks the defense must protect against the run and cannot solely commit to the pass. The last time these two teams matched up, Alexander did not play, so the Bears will not have the benefit of seeing him before. In order for Seattle to advance to their second straight championship game, Alexander must run the ball effectively. The Bears may not have the star power of Alexander on their roster, but Chicago's running game has been just as effective this season. Early in the year it was the reliable Thomas Jones who led the offensive attack for the Bears. He's the solid, dependable type of RB that fits the Bears system of grinding out yards. Once the Bears got way out in front of everyone else in the NFC, it was Cedric Benson who started to see a lot of carries. Benson is the more explosive RB of the two, and his bruising size paired with his good speed makes him very difficult to tackle. The Seahawks should see a lot of both RBs as Chicago attempts to have their running game lead their offense, not Rex Grossman. EDGE: EVEN
RECEIVERS: Like last week, Seattle's receiving core is still decimated by injuries. All their WRs, although hobbled, were able to play in their win over Dallas. This week, Darrell Jackson is even worse than before, and even though it appears like he will play, he may not last the entire game. The Seahawks will be missing D.J. Hackett, who is one of their reliable options on offense. Deion Branch and Nate Burleson will have to step up and play better than they did last week to make the Bears pay a little more attention to their passing game. In addition to their WR, the Seahawks also have the very talented TE Jerramy Stevens, who will need to play as well as he did last week to give the Seattle offense a boost. The Bears have a healthier, but less talented WR core. Grossman has a good relationship with Muhsin Muhammed, and his veteran leadership should be a calming presence for Grossman in the huddle. Their other two receivers, Bernard Berrian and Mark Bradley, are quality deep threats for the Bears. They are very talented players but lack the consistency to be star players in this league. The major reason for the lack of consistency is that the offense plays well when Grossman plays well and struggles when he struggles. Regardless, when the day is over, I doubt any WR will have a major impact on the final score. EDGE: EVEN
DEFENSE: Much has been made of the beat up secondary of the Seattle Seahawks, but the patch up job they did proved to be effective as they contained Dallas and prevented the big play. They are still are a weak spot in a disappointing defense, and if Rex Grossman is on, he could make them look bad by the time clock hits zero. While it's the secondary's problems that have made the headlines, the rush defense also has been poor all season long. Julius Jones ran all over them in the Wild Card round and finished with more than five yards a carry. The Bears strong point is their running game, so the Seahawks must play significantly better if they want to slow down Jones and Benson. The Bears defense, while dominant early the season, has fallen on hard times lately. The loss of defensive tackle Tommie Harris can not be understated. Once he went down, the Bears began to have significant trouble stopping the run. With Shaun Alexander coming to town, they will need to do a much better job getting penetration through the offensive line. What the Bears do still excel at on defense is forcing turnovers. They are one of the best in the league at causing the other team to make the big mistake due to their constant pressure. It would be a total shock if the Bears did not force any turnovers against Seattle. EDGE: CHICAGO
SPECIAL TEAMS: The Seattle special teams unit is headed by their reliable kicker Josh Brown. He does not have much experience with pressure situation, but he has been a steady accurate kicker for years now. He should be the only name worth repeating on Seattle special teams because their return game is shaky at best. The Bears on the other hand have one of the best all-around units in the NFL. Their kicker, Robbie Gould, was very successful in his second season. He showed deadly accuracy all season long, but because he is so young and inexperienced, I still have my concerns with him in the big spot. When you talk about Bears special teams, you can't forget the explosive Devin Hester. The rookie return man tied an NFL record with six returns for touchdowns in his first season as a pro. Hester should make his mark before the day is done, and if he finds his way into the endzone, it could be the back breaking play that puts Chicago up for good. EDGE: CHICAGO
FINAL ANALYSIS: As this season came to it's end, neither Chicago nor Seattle looked too impressive coming down the stretch. They both have their holes, but that is just standard in the weak NFC. These two teams are no stranger to playoff experience considering they were the one and two seeds in the NFC just a year ago. When these teams met earlier in the season, Chicago had its coming out party in the way of a rout at the expense of Seattle. Clearly, these two teams are a lot different since that game, but it would be a surprise to see a different result. Quite frankly, Seattle should be sitting at home right now, and after Sunday's game in Chicago, that is where they will be. Expect a dominant performance form the Bears defense and a solid job from Rex Grossman in a win for the NFC North champions. PREDICTION: CHICAGO 27 SEATTLE 13
With the NFC so unproductive as a whole this season, it is almost fitting that the Seahawks and Bears will match up in the playoffs. Seattle, last year's NFC Champ, was supposed to cruise to a division title and repeat as NFC champions, but a rash of injuries and just pure under achieving led to nothing but a title in the NFL's worst division. In fact, were it not for Tony Romo's ability to place a football on the ground for his kicker, Seattle would not even have won a playoff game in their defense of the NFC title. The Bears did what Seattle was supposed to this season, and won the regular season crown in the NFC. Never has a team had so many question mark after going 13-3. First off, the Bears defense, once referred to as the best of all time, has gotten worse and worse as the season went on. Without stars such as Tommie Harris they no longer look invincible. The other question is what is with Rex Grossman? Sometimes this guy looks like a star and at other times he looked like me playing QB. With a QB this inconsistent, it's a wonder how they won thirteen games. But hey, that's how it goes in the mediocre league known as the NFC.
QUARTERBACKS: After leading Seattle to the Super Bowl, Matt Hasselbeck looked like he had established himself as one of the premier QBs in the NFC. Hasselbeck got off to a fast start in 2006, but since the injury to his knee in week 7, Hasselbeck has struggled to regain the form he had earlier in the year. He began to turn the ball over more than any other time in his career, and possibly due to his injury, he looked tentative in the pocket under pressure. Haseelbeck was unable to shake these types of performances in the first round as he completed only half his passes and matched his 2 TDs with 2 INTs. Despite his recent struggles, Hasselbeck still has the experience and talent to be relied on in the big spot. The Bears QB, Rex Grossman, also got off to a hot start this season. However, he became an absolute train wreck halfway through his first season as a full time starter. Every time Grossman makes a great play, he will follow it with one that makes you scratch your head. He has become so turnover prone that the Bears may actually be better off just running the ball on every play. The Bears defense is good enough to overcome Grossman most of the regular season, but Rex must limit all mistakes if he wants to lead this team deep into January. EDGE: SEATTLERUNNING BACKS: With all of the injuries that have devastated the Seahawks playoff roster, it's important to have a rock you can rely on. That rock comes in the form of their running back Shaun Alexander. While his Wild Card round numbers (24 carries for 69 yards) may not look too impressive, it's his presence that makes him so important to Seattle. As long as Alexander is on the field for the Seahawks the defense must protect against the run and cannot solely commit to the pass. The last time these two teams matched up, Alexander did not play, so the Bears will not have the benefit of seeing him before. In order for Seattle to advance to their second straight championship game, Alexander must run the ball effectively. The Bears may not have the star power of Alexander on their roster, but Chicago's running game has been just as effective this season. Early in the year it was the reliable Thomas Jones who led the offensive attack for the Bears. He's the solid, dependable type of RB that fits the Bears system of grinding out yards. Once the Bears got way out in front of everyone else in the NFC, it was Cedric Benson who started to see a lot of carries. Benson is the more explosive RB of the two, and his bruising size paired with his good speed makes him very difficult to tackle. The Seahawks should see a lot of both RBs as Chicago attempts to have their running game lead their offense, not Rex Grossman. EDGE: EVEN
RECEIVERS: Like last week, Seattle's receiving core is still decimated by injuries. All their WRs, although hobbled, were able to play in their win over Dallas. This week, Darrell Jackson is even worse than before, and even though it appears like he will play, he may not last the entire game. The Seahawks will be missing D.J. Hackett, who is one of their reliable options on offense. Deion Branch and Nate Burleson will have to step up and play better than they did last week to make the Bears pay a little more attention to their passing game. In addition to their WR, the Seahawks also have the very talented TE Jerramy Stevens, who will need to play as well as he did last week to give the Seattle offense a boost. The Bears have a healthier, but less talented WR core. Grossman has a good relationship with Muhsin Muhammed, and his veteran leadership should be a calming presence for Grossman in the huddle. Their other two receivers, Bernard Berrian and Mark Bradley, are quality deep threats for the Bears. They are very talented players but lack the consistency to be star players in this league. The major reason for the lack of consistency is that the offense plays well when Grossman plays well and struggles when he struggles. Regardless, when the day is over, I doubt any WR will have a major impact on the final score. EDGE: EVEN
DEFENSE: Much has been made of the beat up secondary of the Seattle Seahawks, but the patch up job they did proved to be effective as they contained Dallas and prevented the big play. They are still are a weak spot in a disappointing defense, and if Rex Grossman is on, he could make them look bad by the time clock hits zero. While it's the secondary's problems that have made the headlines, the rush defense also has been poor all season long. Julius Jones ran all over them in the Wild Card round and finished with more than five yards a carry. The Bears strong point is their running game, so the Seahawks must play significantly better if they want to slow down Jones and Benson. The Bears defense, while dominant early the season, has fallen on hard times lately. The loss of defensive tackle Tommie Harris can not be understated. Once he went down, the Bears began to have significant trouble stopping the run. With Shaun Alexander coming to town, they will need to do a much better job getting penetration through the offensive line. What the Bears do still excel at on defense is forcing turnovers. They are one of the best in the league at causing the other team to make the big mistake due to their constant pressure. It would be a total shock if the Bears did not force any turnovers against Seattle. EDGE: CHICAGO
SPECIAL TEAMS: The Seattle special teams unit is headed by their reliable kicker Josh Brown. He does not have much experience with pressure situation, but he has been a steady accurate kicker for years now. He should be the only name worth repeating on Seattle special teams because their return game is shaky at best. The Bears on the other hand have one of the best all-around units in the NFL. Their kicker, Robbie Gould, was very successful in his second season. He showed deadly accuracy all season long, but because he is so young and inexperienced, I still have my concerns with him in the big spot. When you talk about Bears special teams, you can't forget the explosive Devin Hester. The rookie return man tied an NFL record with six returns for touchdowns in his first season as a pro. Hester should make his mark before the day is done, and if he finds his way into the endzone, it could be the back breaking play that puts Chicago up for good. EDGE: CHICAGO
FINAL ANALYSIS: As this season came to it's end, neither Chicago nor Seattle looked too impressive coming down the stretch. They both have their holes, but that is just standard in the weak NFC. These two teams are no stranger to playoff experience considering they were the one and two seeds in the NFC just a year ago. When these teams met earlier in the season, Chicago had its coming out party in the way of a rout at the expense of Seattle. Clearly, these two teams are a lot different since that game, but it would be a surprise to see a different result. Quite frankly, Seattle should be sitting at home right now, and after Sunday's game in Chicago, that is where they will be. Expect a dominant performance form the Bears defense and a solid job from Rex Grossman in a win for the NFC North champions. PREDICTION: CHICAGO 27 SEATTLE 13
posted by The Answer Man @ 3:01 PM
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