Friday, Dec. 10, 2010
Posted 4:37 PM
By John Mullin
CSNChicago.com
The Bear defense will be without Pisa Tinoisamoa for the third time in four weeks after the veteran starter at strong-side linebacker was declared out of the New England game.
Im dealing with it day to day but stuff happens so you try to make the best of it, said Tinoisamoa, who had arthroscopic knee surgery last month. I feel great but Ive still got to wait on it, just having had surgery Patience isnt one of my best assets but weve got to be smart with this.
He isnt biding his time for them necessarily, but Tinoisamoa said that he does not want to come back prematurely and then be unable to play in the playoffs. In the meantime, Nick Roach was able to practice Friday, back from the hip injury he suffered in the Detroit game, and Roach is expected to start Sunday.
He got better as the week went along, coach Lovie Smith said, so hopefully hell be able to go on Sunday.
If Roach is unable to play, Rod Wilson would start. Wilson filled in at Detroit after Roach was injured.
Wait, you mean they run the ball, too?
NFL
With the hype and fascination surrounding Tom Brady and the New England passing offense, it has been easy to overlook a Patriot running game comprised of BenJarvus Green-Ellis and Danny Woodhead, who have combined for 1,054 rushing yards, 4.6 yards per carry and 14 rushing touchdowns.
The problem they pose for defenses is that Green-Ellis is a pile-driver and Woodhead, at 5-7, 195 pounds, hides behind pilesand catches passes, 28 as a matter of fact.
Green-Ellis is a one-cut, physical, get-downhill type of back who fits their scheme real well, the type of guy who gets more yards after the first hit, linebacker Lance Briggs said. Hes in the 220s so the guy can run through tackles and thats probably his biggest asset.
Woodhead was a little more difficult to type-cast. Briggs was asked about him this week and clearly didnt know all the names he was about to see. Tough guy, he said, stammering a bit for someone who never does. help the team.Hes a big team player, he concluded, laughing.
Briggs coach understands. Both of their running backs are good players, Lovie Smith said, but you can see why you might get overlooked.
No regrets
Bears kicker Robbie Gould has no hard feelings over being cut by the Patriots late in training camp 2005 by a New England team that had Adam Vinatieri at the time. And the man who was forced to let Gould, one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history go doesnt look back wistfully either.
I think any time you look back, there are always things that you can look back on and think that you might have been able to handle it a little bit differently or done something a little bit differently, Bill Belichick said. But I dont really spend a lot of time worrying about that. We did what we did. Robbies a good player. Hes had a great career and hes an outstanding kicker. We knew he was good when we had him here, but again, its one of those situations where you have to make some decisions and you make the ones that you think are best for your team.
Checking in
Good friend Alex Marvez from FOXSports.com is at Halas Hall Friday working on an interesting look at the Bears, particularly the defense. Alex and I go back quite a while and he was an outstanding beat writer covering the Denver Broncos and then the Miami Dolphins before FOX grabbed him.
Alex checked in with us during training camp from Bourbonnais (from where partner Jay Glazer also named the Bears as his darkhorse pick for the NFC in 2010) and itll be good to hear what he thinks of the team he saw in its formative time vs. what its become.
By the way, The Glaze had the Bears come up in his recent FOXSports.com chat, and whether they are a legitimate Super Bowl contender. As ever, The Glaze cuts right to it.
John "Moon" Mullin is CSNChicago.com's Bears Insider, and appears regularly on Bears Postgame Live and Chicago Tribune Live. Follow Moon on Twitter for up-to-the-minute Bears information.