Bears' Defense is Embarassed as Orton is Impressive

Another preseason Bears game, another loss in the books. Who really cares, its the preseason! Right? Not so fast there buddy. If you weren't paying attention last Thursday, let me run down what you should have taken from this latest outing.

The Bears defense looked putrid against what is an at-best average San Francisco offense. The secondary was picked apart by journeyman J.T. O'Sullivan, who has been named the starter for the season opener, beating out former number one overall pick Alex Smith. The defensive line brought a little pressure, but you can be assured that Tommie Harris is taking is easy to make sure no freak injuries occur. The real weak spot for the defense was showcased on the first four San Francisco offensive plays of the game, when each play Frank Gore rushed for over ten yards. It was embarrassing. The first team defense wasn't tackling or staying in their gaps. They looked nothing like the super bowl defense of only two years ago. The first stringers gave up 27 points while they were on the field. That's unacceptable for a group that's being paid so much money. The scrubs didn't fare much better either. Dan Bazuin, a second rounder last season has yet to show anything on the field of play after being injured all of last season. He's in Lovie Smith's doghouse, which means he and Mark Bradley should try for a jail-break.

The brighter spots came from the offense. Kyle Orton looked poised in his first start since being awarded the job by Lovie Smith.  He got rid of the ball quickly while managing to find a few wide receivers down-field. He was more than just a "game manager," he made enough plays to win the game. Rashied Davis made his case for the number one wideout spot by catching 2 touchdowns, though he dropped a possible third. Matt Forte was solid when he touched the ball, even if Ron Turner only calls running plays that go right up the middle. (My dad says he saw one sweep, I must have blinked.) Kevin Jones impressed by breaking off a 27 yard run on his very first play as a Bear. Unfortunately, the next time he touched the ball, he was engulfed by three defenders in the backfield. That's the offensive line for you. Mark Bradley even showed up to play, catching a short pass and breaking for 55 yards against busted coverage.

Even special teams managed to excite some fans, though Devin Hester did not return many kicks at all. Danieal Manning may have proved he's not completly worthless by running back two kick returns for over 70 yards. Hopefully he'll see the field a a return man and not on my defense. If he provides any sort of spark, Devin Hester can take a few kicks off and have more success as a wide receiver. That can only mean good things for the Bears.

Now, like we all know, this was only a preseason game. So nothing is as bad or as a good as it looks. The sky isn't falling, and we're not ready to declare Kyle ready for the pro-bowl, so let's just wait for the regular season to arrive.

The defense was still awful.