As bad as I'm sure this game was to watch for neutral fans, well, it was much worse for me, a Vikings fan. If I wrote out all my thoughts it would probably fill a book, so I'll just write some of them, especially pertaining to the QBs. I apologize in advance for the angry tone.Some numbers for you:
Brad Johnson: 11/26, 73 yards, 0 TD/4 INT
Brooks Bollinger: 7/8, 80 yards
Tarvaris Jackson: 3/4, 35 yards
It's safe to say Brad Johnson was the Bears MVP today. He threw bad picks at crucial times, has, as I read, "paraplegic escapability," (no offense to paraplegics), and missed a few wide open WRs. I mean, really the only positive I can say about Johnson's game is that one of the INTs was not his fault. That's it.
It's not even so much the INT, but its more when and where they happened. In the first, he threw a perfect pass to Danieal Manning, which set the Bears up at about the Vikings 30. Ultimately this didn't have an effect because the Vikings picked off Rex Grossman (more on him later), but it was a bad throw at a bad spot on the field.
The next pick (I think it was the next one) was admittedly not his fault. He threw an excellent ball to Jeff Dugan, who let it hit his chest and it was intercepted by Lance Briggs. That is one I can't put on Brad Johnson.
Then, with the score 7-6 and the Vikings around midfield, Johnson forced a slant pass to Marcus Robinson. Ricky Manning read it all the way and intercepted it. 14-6. Next possession, first play, Johnson is pressured, and instead of taking the sack lofts one over the head of the RB and into the arms of Brian Urlacher for the easy intereception. With the Bears at around the 20, they decide to roll the dice and go for it on 4th and 1. 21-6. Ballgame over.
At this point in his career, Brad Johnson has very few redeemable qualities as a QB. He is not a good game manager anymore, and he showed he can make some really bad decisions. He's got a noodle arm, and any pass thrown over 20 yards is a rainbow. He has no mobility. I'm not just basing it on this game either... because I know the Bears have a great defense... all of these factors have been a trend all season. Benching Brad Johnson near the end of the 3rd quarter was a start... now DO NOT START BRAD JOHNSON NEXT WEEK.
Now, the Bears. First off, the running game impressed me. Thomas Jones had some nice runs early on, and Cedric Benson was solid throughout. But I came in with a very low opinion of Rex Grossman as a QB... and he even surprised me with how bad he was.6/19, 34 yards, 0 TD/3 INT. And honestly, the Vikings didn't even put that much pressure on him. He was inaccurate and made bad decisions. He was throwing off his back foot and seemed antsy in the pocket. His deep ball was not accurate and usually uncatchable, the short passes were off target, and he made poor decisions.
I've said it before and I'll say it again... the Bears have one of the top 2 defenses in the NFL and perhaps the best Special Teams in the NFL (though they did make a couple of big mistakes today)... but they WILL NOT WIN THE NFC THIS YEAR WITH REX GROSSMAN AS THEIR STARTING QUARTERBACK. If I'm wrong, I'll gladly eat crow. But I really cannot see it happening.