When Lovie Smith took over as the Bears' coach, he specifically mentioned that one of his main priorities was beating the Green Bay Packers. Since then, his team has walked into Lambeau Field and scored eleven and seven-point wins. The Packers' Lambeau "aura" is only as strong as the players who can perpetuate it, and Brett Favre's challenge is to prove that he is more than a shell of his former self at this point. But the enthusiasm in his voice has tempered a bit. He realizes he's working with some banged-up running backs, middle-of-the-road receivers, and an offensive line that might just out his life in danger. If that line doesn't improve in a hurry, Favre might once again be forced to commit error after error by throwing into the teeth of the rock-ribbed Chicago stop unit, which, among other things, picked off 24 passes last year. True, we're not all that crazy about Rex Grossman, but if the Bears really need relief they can turn to veteran Brian Griese. If Favre blows up (or should we say when), the Pack has no one to turn to.
THE PLAY: CHICAGO -- |
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