As the Chicago Bears football team's season progresses, the Bears find themselves sitting in the third place spot of the NFC North. Behind the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings, the team's record is far less than perfect. The Bears enter Week 11 of the NFL season with a losing record of 4-5. However, led by quarterback Jay Cutler and head coach John Fox, the Bears look to keep the momentum going to try and extend their win streak to three in a row. Cutler has shown to be more impressive under Fox in the past games, and he needs to keep up his consistency in play and productivity in order for the Bears to succeed.
After losing some key players over the past couple of years, the Bears have not seemed to fully recover. When Brian Urlacher retired, the Bears not only lost a great player, but they lost a core member of the team. Towards the end of Urlacher's career, his presence on the field was not as dominant. Faced with injuries, Urlacher found himself sidelined, but he was still a crucial leader for the team. Urlacher's departure caused a lot of controversy, and it was now time for a new face, a new leader, of the Chicago Bears.
Trying to pick up where Urlacher left off, fellow linebacker Lance Briggs took the defensive lead. Cornerback Charles Tillman was also continuously looked upon to make the plays and generate turnovers, as he had been extremely successful in past years. However, these two key defensive players would be riddled with injuries as well. For the 2015 season, Tillman signed with the Carolina Panthers and Briggs retired from the league. The once notorious defensive team was not looking good as the 2015 season commenced.
The legacy of a dominant Bears team was created by George Halas. Creating the line "Monsters of the Midway," Halas set the precedent that the Bears will always be a force to be reckoned with, and no one will ever go in thinking that they were going to have an easy win.
The faces of these so-called "monsters" began in 1940 under Halas and was reborn in 1985 under coach Mike Ditka and his outstanding athletes, such as Mike Singletary and Walter Payton. Ditka, Singletary, and Payton would lead the Bears to the organization's only Super Bowl win, Super Bowl XX.
Now the "Monsters of the Midway" can be used to describe the Bears as a whole, however it evolved to primarily represent the Bears defense. Singletary proved to be an outstanding linebacker, and he along with Richard Dent, William "The Fridge" Perry, Dan Hampton, Otis Wilson and the rest of the stellar 1985 defense helped to make the "monsters" be defense oriented.
Since Urlacher's departure in 2012, the Bears have not been the "Monsters of Midway." In the 2015 season, the Bears have lost Tillman, Briggs, and Jared Allen, all of whom are outstanding defensive players.
The Bears have been going through a slew of quarterbacks and head coaches trying to find the perfect fit, and something to restart the Bears and become the great team that fans all know they have the potential to be. Former coach of the Bears Love Smith headed the team from 2004-2012 showing mixed results and insistency from season to season. Coming off of a disappointing 2014 season, the Bears have lost Brandon Marshall, a key receiver, and even though former coach Marc Trestman tried to turn the Bears offense around, it seems the most consistent scorer is Robbie Gould. Gould is the third most accurate kicker in NFL history with seven seasons of 100 points giving him a Bears record.
With Fox calling the shots now, the Bears hope to turn themselves around and get back on track to being a competitive force that fans love to watch. Being a Bears fan can cause a lot of headaches, but, nevertheless, fans stay devoted and cheer on Da Bears week after week.
It's time for the franchise to rethink their strategies and go back to building a strong defense that is sound and can stop opponents from barreling down the field into the end zone. Of course, the offense needs to be restructured as well. It all begins by finding that light that will ignite the team. That leader who will rise and bring everyone up with them. Whether that player is on the defensive side, the offensive side, or on special teams, the Bears need someone to step up.
Will that player be Jay Cutler? Matt Forte? Marcellus Bennett? Kyle Long? The Bears still have some great talent and big names on their roster, and one of those names need to take charge.
The Bears are unpredictable to say the least. Fans never know what the Sunday match-ups will bring. Bear down, Chicago Bears, and bear down Chicago Bear fans. There's a lot of work to do, and a lot of season left to do it. We have high hopes for the Monsters of the Midway.
