Crybaby. Loser.

These words have seemingly been following Jay Cutler since he joined the Bears in 2009.

Last Thursday night in Green Bay was towards the top of the list of Cutler’s worst games, throwing four interceptions and getting sacked seven times.

Media pundits and critics were up in arms over Cutler’s displays of raw emotion and frustration, culminating with his verbal assault and bumping of left tackle J’Marcus Webb.

Cutler’s nationally televised outburst led to floodgates being opened for former players and coach’s opinions:

Former Steelers‘ quarterback, Terry Bradshaw (h/t The Chicago Tribune):

“People were complaining about it last night; bumping the linemen, screaming and hollering;  that to me is counter-productive, you don’t do that.  I prided myself, I took great pride in never saying a word.”

Former Steeler’s Head Coach, Bill Cowher (h/t Chicago Sun-Times):

“(Cutler) displayed questionable demeanor as the leader of the team. ‘I think it’s a problem”

Former Chicago Bears‘ defensive end and Cutler teammate, Adewale Ogunleye (h/t The Chicago Tribune):

“At the end of the day, you start losing the respect of your teammates, you start losing the respect of that offensive line when publicly you’re bumping people and yelling at them in their face. I don’t think it is the right thing to do.”

These three, along with many others were quick to strike Cutler down for showing his emotions and frustrations with Webb, who has been nothing short of a revolving door since his arrival in 2010 as a seventh-round draft pick.

Webb started 12 games in his rookie season as a right tackle and has been the starter at left tackle since the beginning of last season.  According to Pro Football Weekly, Webb has given up 27 sacks in his career, including 2.5 sacks so far this season.

Anyone who has watched the Bears since Cutler’s arrival knows that the biggest need on the offensive side of the football has been pass protection.  In 43 career games with the Bears, Cutler has been sacked a staggering 119 times.  That averages out to nearly three sacks a game, enough to make any man a bit frustrated.

Thursday night gave observers their first real look at a frustrated Cutler.  In the past, many have been quick to criticize Cutler for his lack of emotions, often confusing his facial expressions with derision or disgust.  Often referred to as “Jay Cutler Face“, Cutler’s look of boredom is often chastised, yet Olympian McKayla Maroney’s “Jay Cutler Face” is viewed as humorous and light.

Because of how often we see Cutler’s typical facial expressions and lack of emotions, Thursday night showed people a side of him we have not seen before, opening up the opportunities to further criticize the way the man acts.

Last year, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was shown on the sidelines arguing with then offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien, and former Colts quarterback Peyton Manning was once featured on NFL films arguing with his offensive lineman during a game in 2005.  Culter is obviously not at the same level as either of these quarterbacks, yet it proves that even the best become frustrated and at times show their emotions.

There is no question that Cutler’s performance on the field Thursday night was terrible.  Yes, the offensive line was a major factor in his poor decisions, but in the end, the four interceptions were his fault for pushing the issues and trying to teeter the line between risk and reward.  Cutler needs to improve on his decision-making and offensive coordinator Mike Tice needs to find a better game plan that will allow the offense to succeed.

It is never unfair to criticize a quarterback for throwing an interception or for coming up short on a play, but to criticize a player for showing his emotions is the truest definition of being a crybaby and a loser.

Matt Eurich is a contributor to Bearsbacker.com. Follow Bears Backer on Facebook and Twitter for up to the minute news about the Bears. Also, check out Matt’s work on Bleacherreport.com and follow him on Twitter @MattEurich.

You can blame Jay Cutler, you can blame Matt Forte’s ankle injury, you can blame the offensive line, you can blame the wide receivers, heck you can even blame the tight ends.

But it all comes down to the play calling and game planning and that wasn’t up to par last Thursday night in Green Bay.

Bears offensive coordinator Mike Tice has to be watching the game film and wondering to himself “what was I thinking?”

It was obvious the Packers were going to take the Bears’ receivers out of the game as much as they could.

Brandon Marshall was one of the receivers the Packers looked to contain. Tramon Williams didn’t give him any separation whatsoever. The Bears typically have a tough time against a 3-4 defensive scheme.

The Bears offense at one point in the game was geared towards working the ball to tight end Kellen Davis.

Lovie Smith has never been a coach whose made great second half adjustments and that ultimately led to the loss. The Bears need to come into next Sunday’s matchup with the Rams with a better game plan.

Clay Matthews got to Cutler with ease because J’Marcus Webb wasn’t getting help on the left side. Webb is clearly not as athletic as Matthews, so why not help him out by moving a tight end to that side.

Cutler did have plenty of opportunities to scramble out of the pocket, but he was flustered inside the pocket and wound up getting sacked.

His interceptions were all pretty ugly, but three of them were intended for Earl Bennett and atleast two of the three were 100% Bennett’s fault.

The Packers didn’t even play that well scoring 23 points and only one offensive touchdown. You tell me at the end of the game that Aaron Rodgers only had 219 passing yards and one touchdown and the Bears lose? That’s pretty hard to believe.

But the Bears just played that much worse and they simply got out coached as well. Mike Tice ran a play action pass on the first play from scrimmage and it ended in a sack exactly like it did against the Colts in Week One. That’s got to be erased from the playbook.

The Bears need to run the ball first to open up opportunities in the passing game instead of the other way around because it clearly didn’t pan out.

Adjustments will be made in this normal week as the Bears prepare for the Rams. Lovie said that running back Matt Forte doesn’t have a high ankle sprain as it was reported after the game rather just a sore ankle.

Forte is a big question mark for Sunday. Expect to see a heavy dose of Michael Bush and recently re-signed Kahlil Bell.

It all starts will the first-year offensive coordinator Mike Tice, he needs to come up with a better game plan in order to help the Bears bounce back.

Its way to early to hit the panic button in Week Three. The NFC North is all tied up at the moment with each team holding a record of 1-1.

It won’t be easy, but the Bears have bounced back plenty of times in the past.

Jake Perper is the owner and head writer for Bearsbacker.com. Follow him on Twitter, @Bearsbacker and on Facebook for up to the minute news about the Bears.

Despite finishing the 2011 regular season with a 15-1 record, the Packers had statistically the worst defense in football. The Packers defense was not completely dominating on Sunday against the 49ers, but they did get big games out of their star defenders.

Clay Matthews is one of the most feared defensive players in the league and one that every offensive coordinator has to game-plan for. In six career games against the Bears, Matthews has registered two sacks and numerous QB pressures. Sunday against the 49ers, Matthews finished with 2.5 sacks and three tackles.

Once again J’Marcus Webb will be in the spotlight facing Matthews. Matthews uses a combination of speed and force to beat his opposition, and the most important aspect for Webb on Thursday will be his footwork. Expect the Bears to give Webb help against Matthews by bringing in a tight end to his side or having the running back chip on the outside.

When not worrying about the pass rush from Matthews, the Bears will be worrying about where exactly Charles Woodson will be. Woodson, the 2009 Defensive Player or the Year, has found himself playing many roles in the Packers defense through the years: cornerback, nickelback and currently this year at strong safety. Although listed as the strong safety, Woodson spends a lot of time playing in the box and still gets rotated in at nickelback at times.

Woodson is a force to be reckoned with; he is notorious for blitzing off the edge and has a knack for getting to the football. Jay Cutler will have to do his best to recognize where Woodson is on the field and to stay away from him. Fullback Evan Rodriguez and running backs Matt Forte and Michael Bush will be called upon in pass protection to block a blitzing Woodson.

Hampered by an ankle injury following the preseason finale, nose tackle B.J. Raji was able to play Sunday against the 49ers. Raji is the perfect nose tackle in a 3-4 defense and has a good mix of run stuffing and pass rush abilities. Expect center Roberto Garza to get a handful of Raji all night Thursday and will likely get inside support from either of his guards.

With the exception to Woodson and starting left cornerback Tramon Williams, the secondary has been much of a concern going into the season. Woodson is the the typical strong safety with Morgan Burnett at the free in their base defense, but during nickel packages, Woodson shifts to the nickel, and last week the Packers used M.D. Jennings.

Jennings struggled on Sunday, missing an assignment on a Randy Moss touchdown and missed a tackle on a 21-yard gain by Frank Gore. Jennings was ultimately lifted for rookie Jerron McMillian. Jarrett Bush started at right cornerback and struggled as well, getting beat twice by Moss as well as being flagged for a pass interference.

The Bears will likely try and exploit the Packers secondary and try to go deep, particularly when the Packers line up in their nickelback package, knowing the inexperience at that strong safety position.

Thursday night may just be the Bears’ toughest game of the season, and if their own defense cannot slow down the Packers, their offense will need to show the explosiveness it did Sunday against the Colts. As in Week 1, keeping Cutler upright and exploiting matchups with their bigger receivers will be key to the offense being productive against the Packers’ defense.

Matt Eurich is a contributor to Bearsbacker.com. Follow Bears Backer on Facebook and Twitter for up to the minute news about the Bears. Also, check out Matt’s work onBleacherreport.com and follow him on Twitter @MattEurich.

For many years the focal point of the Indianapolis Colts defense has been defensive ends Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis.

The Colts relied heavily on the “Tampa-2″ or cover-2 defense during the last decade having been implemented during Tony Dungy’s eight year run followed by Jim Caldwell’s two years as head coach.

Caldwell was fired at the end of last season and the Colts hired former Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano to be their next head coach. Pagano brought to Indianapolis the 3-4 defense and a plethora of moves to the defense.

Despite a change in defensive philosophy, the Colts two most important players are Freeney and Mathis. Both Freeney and Mathis have been transformed from 4-3 defensive ends to 3-4 outside linebackers.

The Colts have shown in the preseason that they are not using a traditional 3-4 defense and often times both Freeney and Mathis have found themselves lining up at the end position with a hand in the ground.

Regardless of whether Freeney and Mathis are playing as a stand up 3-4 backer or with a hand in the ground at the end position, both are causes for concern for the offensive line and Jay Cutler. Freeney is best known for his spin move while Mathis is known more as a bull rusher.

Left tackle J’Marcus Webb will have his hands full all day with Freeney while right tackle Gabe Carimi will be seeing a lot of Mathis. In order for the Bears to properly shut down the two outside linebackers, they will have to attack them. Forcing them to stop the run or trying to have them match up with a tight end running a route will be the Bears best plan to stopping their pass rush.

One of the biggest moves during training camp was the Colts acquisition of Dolphins’ former first round pick, Vontae Davis. Davis is big, physical cornerback who will likely get matched up with Brandon Marshall on Sunday.

Marshall’s best chance to beating Davis will be his speed. With a less than stellar secondary, the likely double teaming of Marshall will also pave the way for other receivers like Earl Bennett, Devin Hester, and Alshon Jeffery to produce.

The biggest blow to the Colts defense this preseason was the loss of last year’s leading tackler, Pat Angerer. Angerer was injured in the preseason opener against the St. Louis Rams and is expected to miss at least a couple more weeks with a broken foot.

To replace Angerer at the inside linebacker position is Jerrell Freeman. Freeman, who signed with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2008, has spent the last four seasons in the CFL before getting a chance to fight for a spot in training camp with the Colts.

Look for the Bears to attack Freeman in the middle of the field by running the football up the middle as well as bringing wide receivers and tight ends across his face.

With so many new changes to their defense, the Bears should be able to exploit the weaknesses that are clearly there for the Colts.

Despite all of their weaknesses the Bears offensive line must be prepared to stop Freeney and Mathis because even though the scheme has changed, their mission is still the same: Sack the quarterback.

Matt Eurich is a contributor to Bearsbacker.com. Follow Bears Backer on Facebook and Twitter for up to the minute news about the Bears. Also, check out Matt’s work onBleacherreport.com and follow him on Twitter @MattEurich.

NFL teams reduced their rosters from 90 to 75 players on Monday and will have to make final cuts tonight, dropping from 75 to 53. All around the league players will be cut not just because their performances are not up to par but because others players beat them out. Often time’s teams can find treasure in other teams’ trash.

Bears general manager Phil Emery has been adamant in his desire to constantly upgrade his team and if there are players available that could help he will take a chance on them.

Here is my list of four positions the Bears could upgrade after finals cuts:

Offensive Tackle

It has been no secret that the offensive tackle position is the biggest question mark heading into this season. Neither J’Marcus Webb nor Chris Williams have done much in the way of cementing their place on the team and the Bears will likely look to see who is available once final roster cuts are made.

The likelihood of finding a left tackle that could replace either Webb or Williams is very doubtful given that teams don’t just let starting left tackles go. Despite likely not being able to find a starter the Bears could find themselves a serviceable swing tackle, someone with the ability to play either the left or the right side in case of an emergency.

Safety

Next to left tackle, the safety position has been one of the biggest concerns of the Bears during the preseason. Second-year starter Chris Conte went down with an injury against the Redskins in the second preseason game is still up in the air on whether he’ll be ready for the season opener and rookie Brandon Hardin was placed on injured reserve from an injury also sustained against the Redskins.

With the likely return of Conte, the Bears will have three players with starting experience at safety: Conte, Major Wright, and Craig Steltz. Anthony Walters and Mark Legree are the other two safeties battling out for a roster spot now but both lack experience at this level and the Bears would be better served to find a veteran that could come in a provide solid depth.

Defensive End

Despite having one of the best defensive ends in the game (Julius Peppers) and a first round pick(Shea McClellin) on the depth chart, the Bears know just how important the pass rush is and are constantly looking to improve it.

While Peppers, Israel Idonije, McClellin, and Corey Wootton are givens along the defensive front, the Bears still may have questions about Chauncey Davis and Cheta Ozougwu.

Teams with young promising pass-rushers may be more inclined to release a veteran and Emery and the Bears could benefit from another veteran who has paid his dues in the NFL.
Middle Linebacker

With Brian Urlacher’s health in doubt the Bears have been practicing with plan B, Nick Roach, at middle linebacker. Roach cannot fill the shoes of Urlacher but has played admirably in his absence. Blake Costanzo has found himself taking reps at the middle linebacker position, but after Roach, there is not much depth at the position. Dom DeCicco has been injured much of camp and does not project to be much more than a special teams contributor.

Much like the tackle position it will be difficult to find another team’s castoff who is able to make a major contribution as a starter, but with it still up in the air on whether Urlacher can return, depth is the real need here. Finding a veteran who is used to running a cover-2 system would be a plus but a young middle linebacker could be someone the Bears could bring in as a project for the future moving forward.

Matt Eurich is a contributor to Bearsbacker.com. Follow Bears Backer on Facebook andTwitter for up to the minute news about the Bears. Also, check out Matt’s work onBleacherreport.com and follow him on Twitter @MattEurich.