So Urlacher goes down in week one & is out for the year, & the Bears proceed to win 3 games in a row. I'm not an Urlacher hater, & the jury is still out, but with every passing week it's beginning to look like perhaps #54 wasn't as important to the success of the Bears Defense as many thought, myself included.
While Nick Roach will never be confused with Ray Lewis, he played well Sunday showing good lateral movement & good reads.
Hopefully the rest of the Bears LB's can stay healthy.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Please go back to giving us your thoughts on how bad meatpants is and stay far away from bears conversation. are you posting this just for reaction? It has to be.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

I'm beginning to think he is a Beardown mult. Just mind boggling stuff to come up with

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Team Cutler.

He can't be serious can he Dan?

I mean it's fun sometimes to zig when others zag but equating the bears record to urlacher's injury has me scratching my head more than normal.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

im with 670 on this one. He's not saying theyre winning BECAUSE Urlacher is out. He's saying maybe it isnt having the drastic affect some thought it would

I agree

Kohn Jirk you probably want Orkman back too huh?

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Maybe RPB, but I wouldn't be shocked to see this taken to the level of the Bears defense is better without Urlacher.

I think it's the same group of people listing the Cubs record with Soriano and/or Bradley out of the lineup. Unfortunately, the if this then that arguments rarely work in sports with all of the variables that go into the outcome of each game.

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Team Cutler.

Read it one more time RPB - he is exactly saying that the Bears are 3-1 because Urlacher is out. Otherwise, I wouldn't have commented - he says that Urlacher is not as important to the Bears defense and whether on the decline of his career or not, in this defense, the middle linebacker's ability to make tackles from sideline to sideline is VITALLY important to the success of the defense.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

So you disagree that Urlacher is/was over-rated? Do you actually have a thought about this or do you just want to be a dick and start a fight?

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

We'll see how this plays out, especially since Hillenmeyer is banged up.
The guy we need to worry about losing any time to is Briggs. He played
like a beast again yesterday.

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Flew too close to the sun on wings of pastrami

No, Dave, he's not.

Saying someone isnt as important to the teams success as once thought...is not saying he's bad.

Its saying maybe the Bears D isnt as reliant on 54 as it used to be.

The linebacking corps (sans Briggs) has been terrible. The defense is riding on 55's shoulders right now, which would most certainly NOT be true in Urlacher was healthy.

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Fire Phil Emery

Briggs has been a monster. I'm glad with Urlacher out that Lance's immense talent is finally being showcased on a more national level. Wow.

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Team Cutler.

Didnt they go winless without Urlacher last time he was out for an extended period of time.

I know there's a difference...its just not as huge as it was 3 or 4 years ago.

The same way losing Ray Lewis now...wouldnt ruin the Ravens defense the way it may have in his prime

I made my point a post later in responding to RPB. Urlacher, whether he is on the downside of his career or not, is still vitally important to this team - let me correct that - a middle linebacker with the ability to tackle from sideline to sideline is vitally important to this defense. Unfortunately, the only one that we have that has been proven to be able to do that is Urlacher. Roach is unproven as of yet and before I give him any kudos I would need to hear how he graded out after the game - it's one thing to watch the game as a fan and say he had a good game, but not understanding or knowing what schemes that Bears were in at all times, I can't say for sure other than the sack that he had a great game. Irish Boy would probably be better able to say that as a student of defensive formations.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

Scorehead touches on a good point.
But something is definately missing in this defense. Their 1st half d has been shitty in all four games (I think, I'm a little hazy).
Naw, scorehead has a good point but the truth is that something is wrong with the D. It's not necesserally that Urlacher is missing, but that sure ain't helping.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

The Meatballs who thought the Bears Defense was finished without Urlacher can no longer defend him and put him in the same category as the tier one Linebacker greats. HOF? Hardly. The Bears Defense is playing well without Urlacher. His importance to the Bears Defense was never quite as high as most people thought, Urlacher included.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

I think they are reliant on Brian's leadership out there. They've been more reliant on Brigg's play the last few seasons than Urlacher's

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"You can kill the revolutionary, but you can't kill the revolution."

Whoa there, fella. I don't know that's an accurate statement.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Ok Kirk...this is where I get off. It was a weird time riding with you. Godspeed

Check the Bears stats the year he was out.

Exactly. I have always been a fan of #54 & I am surprised & encouraged at how well the Bears D has performed without him.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Did you watch the Bears game? Did you watch or notice Roach? He did his job pretty well.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Terrible? to be honest,I can't tell shit watching on TV.
76 yards-105 yds-103 yds-90 yds is what that terrible LB crew gave up in the last 4
games. Those are facts! Also,d-line isn't tackling anybody,so somebody must be stopping those RB'S.

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

I don't think the opposition is going in with a balanced gameplan. Now, it's pass on the Bears. The running stats will be lower as they seem to be pass on at will. False assumption on this stat I bet.

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"Play until it hurts, then play until it hurts to not play."
http://soundcloud.com/darkside124 HOF 2013, MM Champion 2014

Let me just say something here. I am not a big Urlacher fan - truth is I think he is a giant tool. But I cannot diminish his presence in the middle of the Bears lineup nor his ability to change how an offense schemes against the Bears defense. Sure, he has never been good at shedding blockers or double teams and few middle linebackers not named Lewis or Taylor are. But from a game changing point of view, his speed from sideline to sideline and ball hawking ability, along with ability to cover a receiver until help arrives and solid tackling technique are what have set him apart from other MLB's of this decade, other than Lewis.

To say that he hardly stacks up to a HOF'er is probably inaccurate at best.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

Seahawks missing half their starters, the high powered Steelers offense, and the Lions are not how you should judge the defense. Two of those three offenses are barely NFL quality and the Steelers don't exactly light it up either.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Urlacher was playing at a much higher level before the year he was injured. His abilities aren't what they were then.

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CSFMB 2014 Nascar Pick 'em Champion

We don’t have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven’t taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much. — Ronald Reagan

Post hoc ergo propter hoc is a fallacy.

Besides, the defense isn't playing that well. They allowed 24 legitimate points to the Lions at home. The Ray Lewis comparison is once again apt, in that if Lewis were injured for the season tomorrow, the Ravens defense would play pretty much the same with occasional, specific slip-ups (i.e., remember the screen pass that went for a TD against Seattle? Yeah, Urlacher prevents that). But it matters because the difference between elite and average is small but important, and because you only have so many elite working pieces, and losing them has a super-cumulative effect (losing Briggs and Urlacher is more than twice as bad as losing Briggs or Urlacher).

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Fire Phil Emery

John - you seem like a decent enough guy here, so I am going to try to say this without being insulting but yes I watched the game. But the difference between what you and I as observing fans notice from our tv screen is worlds different from what the bears positional coaches may have noticed from the pressbox. As I stated before, until I hear how Roach graded out from yesterday's game or unless Boilermaker Rick or Irish Boy tell me that Roach had a great game, I will defer to the experts.

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Charlie: Oh shit. Look at that door dude. See that door right there? That door marked 'Pirate'? You think a pirate lives in there?
Dennis: I see a door marked 'Private.'

You said he was NEVER as important as people think.