The Bears lost the NFC Championship on Sunday to their NFC North rival, the Green Bay Packers.

The game meant so much to both teams. Most importantly, a trip to Dallas for the Super Bowl. This was the third match up between these two teams this season and the 182nd of all time.

This rivalry might be the most established in all of sports besides, MLB (Yankees-Red Sox), NBA (Lakers-Celtics) and NHL (Red Wings-Blackhawks). The Bears against the Packers is just a match up everyone enjoys watching.

The Bears seemed to be uninterested in the first half. They struggled mightily, allowing Green Bay to put up 14 first half points. So, with a 14-0 lead at halftime for the Packers, the Bears seemed to be in it on the scoreboard, but out of it in the way they were performing on the field.

They came out in the second half with a banged up Jay Cutler (he suffered an MCL II sprain, which is likely to keep a player out 3-4 weeks) and he went out after the first drive by the offense. QB Todd Collins (claims to have suffered a shoulder injury in his short time in the game) came in, then was taken out at the end of the third quarter in favor of Caleb Hanie.

Hanie sparked the team, driving the Bears down the field for two touchdowns, but he threw a pick six to big DT B.J. Raji, which really hurt the comeback. The Packers hung on to win 21-14. They ended the Bears season.

It’s sad because the Packers get the chance at the title, not the Bears, but the Packers deserved it more. They did beat the Bears on their home field.

Who knows what the Bears will do next season. They need some changes that is for sure. They need to bring a big bonafide #1 receiver into the mix, add some offensive lineman, decide what to do with Tommie Harris and figure out the defense because it is aging.

Those are the wants, needs and questions of many Bears fans right now. But I have a big gripe about the game that took place on Sunday. The coaching was bad in the first half, but the decision to have Todd Collins as the number two quarterback ahead of Caleb Hanie is joke.

I joked all week about the Bears starting Todd Collins over Jay Cutler, but I never thought I would actually see that veteran bum on the field for the Bears in the NFC Championship. Collins threw four incomplete passes, two of which were almost picked off by Green Bay.

To put Todd Collins at the number two quarterback position is a joke. He completed 10 passes and threw four interceptions in a week five affair with the Panthers. After that game, the Bears should have either given Caleb Hanie a look or brought in another veteran because Todd Collins is a joke. How he could be in the NFL and make one million dollars is beyond me.

I honestly believe I could throw farther than him. I think the Bears wasted a whole quarter with Todd Collins running the offense. Right after Urlacher’s big interception, Collins came in and that really hurt the momentum for the Bears. Hanie might not have won the game for the Bears, but he would have performed much better than that old bum Collins.

The Bears will have to figure things out this off-season if they want to regain there composure because a lot of fans are upset at their coaches and players right now, especially QB Jay Cutler. I’m not going to complain, this season was very great to watch, but to lose to the Packers in the NFC Championship, that is tough.

Hopefully that gives them a drive to come back stronger next season. We can only hope. Right?

Bear Down!