The Packers gave the Bears too many chances to give them this game, and the Bears did not take care of business. While some may say Rodgers had a great game, his 55.4 passer rating was lower than Caleb Hanie’s 65.2 rating.  But with a lack of leadership from Cutler, it was very tough for the Bears to pull off a win.

Cutler has been a great addition to the team and has brought the team to new heights. He has been the best Bears quarterback in a long time and can be trusted with the ball. The Bears’ problem is the lack of a good offensive line and receivers. Defense is rarely a problem for the Bears any year, and they could have held up through the Super Bowl if they made it there.

The Bears’ offensive line has given Cutler hell the past two seasons. The Bears led the NFL in sacks allowed, with a grueling 56 takedowns. It’s amazing he only had one concussion through the regular season, while Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers suffered two this season and look where Rodgers team is now.

The O-line also lacks in giving Matt Forte room to run the football. The team sits at the bottom of the pit for rushing yards and rushing touchdowns. Despite the weak line, Forte was able to break 1,000 yards this season. Imagine the damage he can do if he had a good line and the pressure he would take off of Jay Cutler.    

Despite his limited time for passing, Cutler was able to sit at a 86.3 passer rating for the season, which stacks in the top half of all quarterbacks in the NFL. He also finished in the top 20 for passing yards. While dealing with a group of average wide receivers, their lack of experience and overall skill also limits Cutler’s potential. There was not one Bear receiver that broke the 1,000 yard mark or over 6 touchdowns. It’s hard to rely on such young receivers to pull through with big plays that big names like Miles Austin or Reggie Wayne do regularly.

Overall, Cutler is a great quarterback for the Chicago Bears and we cannot blame him for one injury. He brought our team to the NFC championship game with a bye, a result we did not expect at the beginning of the season at all. If we inprove our offensive line and touch up on our receivers, the Bears will be a Super Bowl contender for years to come.

Matchup: Baltimore Ravens at Pittsburgh Steelers, Saturday, 4:30 ET on CBS

This very well may be the best game to watch all weekend. Both come in with identical regular season records of 12-4, and each won a game on the road against each other earlier in the year, with the Steelers taking the division crown thanks to a better division record. The two teams match up almost ridiculously evenly, but the Steelers have one thing the Ravens don’t: Ben Roethlisberger. He already has two rings to his name, and after last off-season’s troubles, he is hungry to silence his critics. It’s hard for me to see the Ravens beating the Steelers twice at Heinz Field in one season, especially in the playoffs. If the Ravens are going to win, it will be because Troy Polamalu is not one hundred percent. It will be a very close game and a defensive struggle going down to the wire, but the Steelers will prevail in this one.

Prediction: Steelers 21, Ravens 17

Matchup: New York Jets at New England Patriots, Sunday, 4:30 ET on CBS

Rex Ryan is on a mission to beat his archrival Bill Belichick in this divisional rivalry. Antonio Cromartie is out to make Tom Brady look like a fool for pointing at the Jets’ sideline after throwing a touchdown pass earlier this season. The Jets seem to make everything personal come playoff time, but it is Belichick, Brady and the Pats who are going to roll in this game and make Cromartie, Ryan, and the rest of the outspoken self proclaimed preseason “Super Bowl Champion” Jets look foolish. Ryan has made accusations that Brady does not study game film like Peyton Manning, and while he may be right, the sole difference between the two this year is that unlike Manning, Brady will beat the Jets. The Pats have the Jets on their home turf, and the Patriots’ offense is firing on all cylinders right now. Brady is the likely to be named the league’s MVP thanks to an outstanding regular season and a 14-2 record. He has three Super Bowl victories and numerous postseason appearances. The Jets are still inexperienced at many positions, most notably quarterback, and quite simply the boys from Boston aren’t. Expect the Patriots to expose a young Jets team that lacks the talent to compete with the premiere teams in the NFL.

Prediction: Patriots 34, Jets 14

Matchup: Green Bay Packers at Atlanta Falcons, Saturday, 8:00 ET on FOX

Green Bay has been plagued by injuries all season long, and amazingly they have found ways to win. Unfortunately, the Falcons are just too good to let the Pack slip through the cracks this time. Matt Ryan has one loss in his career at home in three years. Aaron Rodgers is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the NFL, but the Falcons’ speed will just be too much for the Packers to handle. Michael Turner will run rampant all over Green Bay and open up the passing game for “Matty Ice”. Rodgers will be baited into making a few mistakes, and that will seal the Packers’ fate in this one. The Falcons didn’t have the NFC’s best record by coincidence.

Prediction: Falcons 24, Packers 13

Matchup: Seattle Seahawks at Chicago Bears, Sunday, 1:00 ET on FOX

The Seahawks are coming off one of the biggest upsets in postseason history after defeating the defending champion New Orleans Saints last Saturday in thrilling fashion thanks in part to Marshawn Lynch’s ridiculous ground-shaking 67 yard TD run. But the Bears are feeling very confident going into this matchup after being embarrassed by Seattle at home in week six. Granted it is Jay Cutler’s postseason debut, the Bears’ defense will be able to force Matt Hasselbeck to throw some interceptions, and the Bears defensive line will shut down the Seahawks’ running game unless they find a way to run up the middle and past the speed of the Bears’ spectacular linebackers. Another reason the Bears will win is thanks to Pete Carroll’s ignorant decision to kick to Devin Hester. Odds are he will greatly regret it.

Prediction: Bears 27, Seahawks 10

As for the rest of the division, the Green Bay Packers still sit at one game back and have an easier schedule coming up. The Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions can be pushed away from the playoff picture, as their records and upcoming games will not be make it possible for them to make a challenge for the division title this season.

It is hard to remember what the Bears were previewed as in the preseason. The Bears had a humble 0-4 record. But that is past them now and they are on a four-game winning streak. This has raised some eyebrows within the conference, as well as throughout the league.

A major factor in the Bears stampede is their defense. The “Monsters of the Midway” are back. The Bears have managed to surrender only eight passing touchdowns this season and force sixteen interceptions. The ground game is up to par with nine allowed touchdowns and ten forced fumbles. These turnovers help turn the game around and when the offense can take advantage; it gives the Bears a big push to pulling off a victory in any game.

As of this week, the Bears have pulled into the top ten power rankings on ESPN.com, the first time they have been in that list since week six when they sat at a 4-1 record and Jay Cutler was in injury trouble.

Julius Peppers has been earning his paycheck, and was named NFC Defensive Player of the Month for November. Peppers is in the top five for sacks in the NFL and has been contributing every week to gives the opposing quarterbacks a reason to panic. Jay Cutler has also been doing well, becoming NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors. He has come off his best week of his career, boasting 247 passing yards, four touchdowns with no interceptions, and a dazzling 146.2 passer rating versus the Philadelphia Eagles.

The Bears next game is against New England Patriots who should be their ultimate test of the season to see if they are worthy of taking the division and becoming the team to beat in the NFC North. This game should be a great matchup and you can expect a close result, and hopefully the Bears can come away with a win.

The first game features the New England Patriots (8-2) and the Detroit Lions (2-8) at 12:30 PM ET. The Patroits’ only losses this season came on the road and the Lions’ two wins were when they were in Detoit. Tom Brady is having a decent season so far and Benjarvus Green-Ellis, who is getting the bulk of the carries in the backfield, has only taken four rushes to the end zone this season. The Lions feature the quick Calvin Johnson who is leading the team with ten touchdowns and is on pace to break the 1,000 yard mark this season. New England’s defense has been struggling this season, and may leave Johnson deep which can cost them. If the Lions play their best, this matchup can become a great one to watch.

At 4:15 ET, the New Orleans Saints and Dallas Cowboys square off. The Cowboys are hurt with Tony Romo out, but Jon Kitna has done well taking the team over since. Drew Brees has had his ups and downs this year and his TD-Int ratio is causing some concern (22-14). Last year, Dallas topped the Super Bowl champions. The Cowboys have struggled especially at home (1-4) and may turn this week’s game over to the Saints.

The final game at 8:15 ET includes the New York Jets (8-2) and the Cincinnati Bengals (2-8). Cedric Benson of the Bengals has been a dud this season and cannot get anything going for him thus far. LT is having a great year, but his numbes have been slowly declining as the season continues. Both teams need this win, but the Jets look to have the better chance with Mark Sanchez doing his job under the quarterback position.

Overall, this Thanksgiving day matchups are shaping up to be some interesting games. The Patroits,  Saints, and the Jets look to have the edge and I can expect them to secure these wins on Thursday.  Even though the opposing teams might not have the best records, they all can make strong pushes to make these games close.

The Eagles have two deep threat receivers in Desean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. The two receivers both have nice speed to contribute with their great set of hands. The two combined for  1010 yards and ten touchdowns and hauling in a combined 60 receptions. But the Eagles also have some help on the ground by LeSean McCoy who gets a decent amount of carries. McCoy has 572 yards rushing and two touchdowns.

The Redskins have a new found ground attack by Ryan Torain. Torian is really starting to emerge as a great power back for the Redskins offfense.  Torain on 91 carries has 391 yards and three touchdowns. But there is still the good hands in veteran receiver Santana Moss, who up to today is leading the team in receptions. Moss has hauled in 48 receptions for 604 yards and two touchdwons.

But what everyone will be watching is the quarterback play between McNabb and Vick. Vick was the backup when McNabb was inPhiladelphia. But now Vick is the starter and McNabb is the new starter for the Redskins.

The Falcons led for the majority of the game, with their defense doing a good job against the Ravens offense.  The Falcons had a ten point lead at halftime after a Jason Snelling, Falcons running back, hauled in a 28 yard touchdown catch from Falcons’ quarterback, Matt Ryan, leaving the Ravens scoreless in the first half.  The Ravens offense struggled to get going in the first half with Joe Flacco, Ravens quarterback, and Ravens’ running back Ray Rice being shut down. 

However, in the second half the Ravens came to life.  After a Matt Bryant, Falcons kicker, field goal Anquan Boldin, Ravens’ wide receiver, received a five yard touchdown pass from Flacco leaving the score at 13-7 Falcons.  After this, Roddy White, Falcons wide receiver, caught a four yard touchdown pass from Ryan.  Flacco went on to throw two touchdown passes on his next two drives to give the Ravens a 21-10 lead over the Falcons.  The Falcons got the ball back with 65 seconds left in the game to put a drive together down one point.  The Falcons drove down to the Ravens’ 33 yard line, where Ryan completed a 33 yard touchdown to White to give the Falcons a 26-21 lead over the Ravens with 20 seconds remaining. Their two point conversion failed however.  The Ravens failed to put anything together with this time, and they ended up losing 26-21.

The 33 yard touchdown pass to White was a questionable call because it looked like White had pushed off his defender.  The refs failed to call offensive pass interference which won the Falcons the game.  After the game White told reporters that he had pushed off and he got away with one.  This was a huge call in the game which clearly made the difference between the Falcons winning or losing the game.

Ryan threw the football 32/50 for 316 yards and three touchdown passes.  White was his major target who hauled in 12 receptions for 138 yards and two touchdowns.  White has proved himself as one of the top receivers in the NFL. 

The Falcons play the Rams next week, while the Ravens play the Panthers.

That hard work paid off for one of our own who graduated in 2003, his name Britt Davis.

Davis is currently on the practice squad for the Denver Broncos in the National Football League.

Davis was a three sport athlete in his days at RB. He ran track, played basketball and football. He was one of RB’s best athletes of his time. He helped two 5A teams to the playoffs in football. After Davis had graduated in 2003, he left RB with 90 touchdowns, nine 300 yard passing games and his face on the Wall of Fame here at RB. He was awarded as an All-State quarterback in 2003.

When asked what his favorite memory of RB football was Davis said, “My favorite memory would have to be my senior year when we beat Morris who was ranked pretty high that year. The reason was we played when I was a junior and they just beat me up, so it felt good when we beat them; or it would have to be my sophomore year when I played corner and we played Joliet Catholic.”

After he graduate in 2003, Davis was recruited by Northern Illinois as a quarterback. As he soon figured his new role at NIU would be as a wide receiver. His biggest year came in 2006 when he hauled in 57 receptions for 731 yards and 3 touchdowns. And from there Davis made a impact and his name would be put into the NIU Huskies record book. He finished his four year career as the fifth overall in NIU history with 146 receptions and  1,1676 yards.

After his career at NIU, Davis signed with the New York Jets in 2009. Davis made his transition from college to the pros easily “the transition for me was easy, I thought. In college you have to worry about class grades and practice. Being a professional athlete is eat, sleep, football,” he said.

Davis was undrafted in 2009 when the Jets signed him where he has his favorite memory which is he ran a twenty yard in route for his first career reception. His stay was short in New york, but now Davis is signed to be on the practice team for the Denver  Broncos.

Davis said, “At this level it’s a business. Growing up playing HS, playing in college it’s a game. Now at the end of the day it’s our job to play football, were all here to work. We eat sleep and play football.”

Maybe one day Davis will get his shot at showing people what he can do, playing in front of thousands on a Sunday afternoon.

 Recently, the NFL has toyed with the idea of installing a new 18 game regular season that has just two preseason games because they believe that the preseason drags on and fans get tired of it. The NFL is already making a lot of money from revenue, but they believe that they can make a significant amount more money in an 18-game season.

Though every fan wants to see more football and see their team’s starters play in games that count, this is not a good idea for the players. In a league that is so adamant players that players be cautious after a concussion, it is surprising that they would push an 18-game season on the players. Already, quarterbacks Kevin Kolb and Jay Cutler have had to miss games because they got concussions the week before. Fans would see even more concussions and players missing significant time due to other injuries if the season was expanded for two more games. The players are so big and so fast that the season needs to be short because of the beating taken by players week in and week out. The NFL has been talking as if this is a done deal recently, but they aren’t sure when this will be installed.

Several players and former players have spoken out against this idea. Notably Steelers receiver Hines Ward and Colts quarterback Peyton Manning have expressed their displeasure with this idea. Both are veterans and know how their bodies feel week after week, season after season.  Ward believes that an 18 game season will shorten careers. He said that every year, his body is just one big bruise by the 13^th game, and he can’t imagine what it would feel like during the 18^th game of the season. I agree with Ward that careers would definitely be shorter. It is such a violent game that each additional game adds a risk of injury. And with players already banged up, the risk of injury increases even more.

Manning is more concerned with the shortened preparation time for his team. He says the training camp and four preseason games are necessary for his team to click in the first week of the season. The quality of play could go down in the season with 18 games. The games would be sloppier because the teams are not as prepared at the start of the season. Also, the end of the season could have more no name players because of the additional injuries. I think the games would not be as good with the two additional games.

This 18 game season would be good for fans who want more football and of course for the NFL to make more money, but it would be bad for the players. The health of the players is what is most important and the cons of an 18-game season outweigh the pros greatly.

Sometimes change is good, but in this instance, change could cause a lot of pain.

The Giants had nine sacks in the first-half, setting a new NFL record. Three of those sacks were by Osi Umenyiora, who also forced Cutler to lose a fumble. Cutler was unable to get anything going when he was in because of the constant pressure. He finished the day with just 42 passing yards, three fumbles, and an interception.

Todd Collins was the second quarterback in the game for the Bears and he left the game even more quickly than Cutler. The thirty-eight year old quarterback has not been the every day starter for a team since 1997. He also threw his first interception before being knocked out of the game by a vicious hit.

Third-string quarterback Caleb Hanie finished the game as the Bears were defeated 17-3.

The defense led by Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher played very well despite the Giants having good field position for most of the game. The obvious concern for the Bears was the offensive line, which gave up ten sacks total. Every time Cutler seemed to drop back, he was instantly swarmed by the Giants defense, who was led by Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora with three sacks apiece.

The immediate concern for the Bears is the health of their prized quarterback. Cutler left the game with a concussion, an injury that is being treated very seriously around the NFL because of the severity of the problem. This is an injury that sidelined Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb for a week, though his may have been worse than Cutler’s. Lovie Smith seems to think that Cutler will be ready for Sunday’s game against the Panthers.

Though this defeat was very hard because of the injuries and offensive line woes, the first quarter of the 2010 has been very successful up to this point. Most people had the Bears 1-3 up to this point with losses to the Packers and Cowboys as well. Instead, the Bears find themselves in position to make a run to the playoffs.

The Bears face off against the Seahawks and Redskins after the Panthers before they head into their bye week. These are all winnable games if the Bears play like the first three weeks rather than last Sunday.

If you didn’t know, Mike Vick was the starting quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons. He was drafted first round, first pick out of Virginia Tech after his sophomore year.

However at the time of his return he was behind the Eagle’s leader and former Joliet Catholic quarterback Donovan McNabb and a young, rough and ready Kevin Kolb. Then the unimaginable happened when the Eagles traded their veteran McNabb to the Washington Redskins, putting Vick at the second string position for the start the 2010-11 Philadelphia season.  

In the first game of the season Kevin Kolb got injured early in the game. Vick went in and almost won the game against the Green Bay Packers. He put up great stats showing a strong arm and that he hasn’t lost his speed. In this game he would complete 16 passes out of 24 for 175 yards with 1 touchdown. He also would rush for 103 yards on 11 carries.

However Kolb would be only out for that game, bringing up the tough question of which quarterback to start? Andy Reid chose Vick and that proved to be a great choice.

In the second week the Eagles were matched up against the Detroit Lions in the motor city. The Eagles won 35-32. Vick proved himself yet again throwing for 284 yards, with an impressive 21 completed passes out of 34. He threw a pair of touchdowns and run a touchdown in.

Showing his true colors and earning his starting position he again proved himself worthy in week three against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Vick led the team to a strong victory 28-3; Vick was a part of every score this game. He would threw three touchdown passes and rush another in.

Mike Vick is definitely one of the biggest surprises early in the NFL season this year. He is the second highest rated quarterback in the league just behind Peyton Manning with a 110.2 passer rating. Vick has yet to throw an interception this year and with his momentum he could definitely lead the Eagles to the playoffs.