Bears 23, Vikings 13

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.

Steve Spurrier staying at South Carolina

Rumors of Steve Spurrier's departure have been greatly exaggerated.

As I reported when I wrote that Steve Spurrier could be the next coach at Miami, sources told CSTV that Spurrier could be on the move. Almost immediately there were reports that he was denying this, but it was really just hard to know what to believe.

But have no doubt anymore, with Steve Spurrier extending his deal and having his salary upped... he will be staying at South Carolina.

Oh well... would have been kinda fun to see The Ole Ball Coach back in Florida.

NFL Picks Against the Spread: Week 13

I skipped last week because of the Thanksgiving holiday, but things seemed to be more normal, meaning it was the week I should have been here! Which just means my losing streak is still going strong... obviously I skipped the Thursday night game as well, since I couldn't see it anyway. Stupid NFL Network. Out of sight, out of mind.

Saints (-7) over 49ers
Niners are playing very solid football and have entered right in the middle of the terrible NFC playoff race. So they're a very tempting pick here, especially with the spread up to 7 points. But I just love the versatility of the Saints offense. Drew Brees has been spectacular, Deuce provides inside running, Reggie does a little bit of everything, and I like the receivers there. At home, I'll take the Saints beating the Niners by around 10 or so.

Chargers (-6) over Bills
The spread makes me nervous for a couple of reasons. One, it's in Buffalo in December, and could be rather chilly. Two, SD hasn't been that inspiringly good against mediocre teams this year. Three, JP Losman has looked like *gulp* an NFL QB the past couple weeks. All the signs say to go with the Bills and the spread, but in this NFL season, I'll go against my instinct on this one. Chargers are just so talented.

Jets (Even) over Packers
Lambeau Field in December. These used to be the game of games Brett Favre would never lose. But ladies and gentlemen, this is not your father's Brett Favre.

Vikings (+9.5) over Bears
I just have a feeling here. I don't see the Bears being able to run the ball at all, leaving this offense to Rex Grossman. And I envision the Vikings blitzing the heck out of Grossman, and I'm not sure how he'll respond to that. Brad Johnson against the Bears defense could be a very ugly site, but I think the Vikings defense can keep this game within single digits.

Browns (+5) over Chiefs
I have no way to explain this pick. The Chiefs are playing well, the Browns are not. Larry Johnson is awesome, the Browns offense is not. I'm not even going to explain why I'm picking the Browns here, because even I'm not really sure.

Rams (-6.5) over Cardinals
Congratulations Rams, you play in the NFC! After a 4-1 start, they lost 5 in a row, then eeked out a win against San Fran last week... and they're right back in the playoff race at 5-6. Ain't it grand?

Titans (+7.5) over Colts
When the teams met earlier this year the Colts beat the Titans by 1 in Indy. Now, it's in Tennesee, and Vince Young is starting to get comfortable and played some fine football last week. The Colts continue their efforts of taking it easy against far lesser teams as they allow the Titans to stay in this game.

Lions (+13.5) over Patriots
The Patriots are 5-0 on the road, 3-3 at home. Plus, this is the NFL. A 13.5 point spread just seems a little excessive to me. But gosh, its so hard to pick the Lions to cover the spread. Don't let me down Jon Kitna!

Falcons (+2) over Redskins
Just seems like Vick's due for a good game again. Hey, he's got to at least make everyone think he might be a good QB! But seriously, I like Jason Campbell, but I think he'll continue to go through some rough spots early in his career here.

Texans (+3) over Raiders
I'm sure this game will be very exciting for both people that actually are forced to watch it.

Jaguars (Even) over Dolphins
Joey Harrington is playing better than he ever was in Detroit, but let's get serious for a moment. He still gets rid of the ball WAY too quickly (kinda like the anti-Drew Bledsoe), and at least once a game he will make a terrible decision and throw into triple coverage and have everyone scratching their heads. I'm not on the bandwagon yet. Although it's very hard to pick against Jason Taylor right now.

Steelers (-7) over Bucs
Yes that's right, I'm picking a 4-7 team to cover a 7 point spread. Unfortunately for Tampa, as good as the defense has been the last few years, there is definitely a dropoff now. Age will do that to a person. I love the way Romo is playing, but 5 TD passes?

Giants (+3.5) over Cowboys
I'm not sure NY will go quietly into the night just yet. I think the comments by Michael Strahan should at least get Burress to, you know, try harder. The Giants know if they lose this they'll be in trouble... I mean, they won't be buried because they play in the NFC, but I imagine there's already lots of tension because they don't seem to like Tom Coughlin, and this probably wouldn't help. I look for an inspired effort from the Giants.

Broncos (-4) over Seahawks
I love the Cutler move and think it was a long time coming. Jake Plummer cannot carry an offense, and this was not a Super Bowl caliber team with Plummer at the helm. I think Cutler was the best QB in the draft, I think he's got a very strong arm, and he's smart back there. If, and this is a big if, he picks up the offense quickly, this is not a team I would want to face in the playoffs. So, uh, I kinda like Cutler.

Panthers (-3) over Eagles
I generally find that I have no idea how the Panthers will play from week to week. So this is mostly just a guess.

Week 11: 6-8-2
Season: 69-83-8