by Sean Heffernan

Prior to the Bears kicking off to the Packers last night there was a sense of optimism in Chicago about their football team that hadn’t been alive since the days of the ’85 Bears. By remarkable circumstances the Bears’ GM, Jerry Angelo, had scooped up disgruntled Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler from the Denver Broncos. After years of wallowing at the shaky arms of terrible to mediocre quarterbacks for decades, Bears faithful now had a star thrower to lead their team to greatness.

Expectations for the 2009 season grew with each day drawing nearer where to September 13^th where at Lambeau Field the “Cutler Era” would begin against their dreaded rival to the north. As Robbie Gould kicked off into the Green Bay night, Chicago Bears fans collectively breathed a sigh of relief as the most anticipated season in the history of the 90-year-old organization had finally begun.

That sigh was about all the relief Bears fans got last night.

 No one could have dreamed of a worse start to the season. Jay Cutler looked anything, but the savior Bears fans have hoped he’d be this year, throwing a career high four interceptions. To be frank, Cutler looked like a Bears quarterback: confused, pressured, panicky, and frustrated. Cutler, who’s known for his risk taking, got off to a terrible start in the first quarter rolling out and throwing across his body straight to Packers safety, Nick Collins, who then returned the ball 31 yards.  

It was evident all night that the Bears’ receivers were not on the same page with Cutler. Cutler did connect with Devin Hester a number of times for good gains including a 36-yard touchdown pass, but the rest of the receiving core looked lost most of the game. Earl Bennett caught only 7 of the 14 balls Cutler threw to him. Tight end Desmond Clark struggled finishing his routes, leading to one of Cutler’s interceptions. Clark also dropped a touchdown in the second quarter that would have been a easy catch had he not broken off his route early. Cutler went on to throw two more interceptions both of which involved miscommunications with rookie wide out Johnny Knox.

In the face of Cutler’s terrible debut in a Bears uniform, the most devastating part of last night’s game manifested itself today, as the Bears announced that middle linebacker Brian Urlacher was out for the season after hurting his wrist in the first series of the second half against the Packers. No doubt the Bears’ defense will miss their leader who was poised to have great year after recovering from back and neck ailments that had plagued him in previous years.

To add further harm to injury starting outside linebacker, Pisa Tinoisamoa, injured his right knee in the first quarter only a few snaps into his 2009 season. Tinosamoa is currently day to day with a sprained PCL, but hasn’t been ruled out for next Sunday’s home game against the Pittsburg Steelers.

The Packers’ defensive line made the Bears’ offensive line look pitiful. Newly signed guard Frank Omiyale got manhandled throughout most of the game. Even with Cutler under center, the Packers were forced the Bears to beat them on the pass and in the end the Bears failed miserably. Offensive Coordinator, Ron Turner, didn’t do Cutler any favors.  

In the fourth quarter the Bears were threatening to go in for six on the Packers’ five yard line, but three bad play calls forced the Bears to settle for a field goal. Turner called two straight running plays into a defense that had bottled up Matt Forte the entire game. In Forte’s defense, he had little chance to get in the end zone as the Bears’ formation on first and second down lacked any real passing threats.

Why run two predictable running plays when the other team has been shutting down your running game consistently up to that point? On third down Turner called a roll out pass for Cutler where his only option was Greg Olsen who was covered by a mess of Packers. The Bears had to settle for three points and went on to lose the game.

Had the Bears scored a touchdown they most likely would have won in spite of of Cutler’s interceptions and Urlacher’s injury. Another strike against the Bears coaching was Lovie Smith’s two missed penalty challenges that left them with two timeouts they could have used on the final drive had Cutler not thrown his final interception on the first play.

The Bears’ 2009 season opener was nothing short of a disaster. For the Bears to have any chance of winning the division this year some unheralded players are going to have to step up. The Bears’ inexperienced receiving core is going to have to get on the same page with their star quarterback while the defense copes with the loss of their captain.

If the Bears can defeat a good team in the defending Super Bowl champion Steelers next week we might be singing a totally different song a week from now, but after last night’s debacle I doubt any Bears fan will be in the mood for a song soon.  

What do you think? Can the Bears rebound next week? Share your thoughts below.