Chicago Bears Give Fans Giant Middle Finger by Retaining Lovie Smith

Sure, firing offensive coordinator Ron Turner is a step in the right direction. But what about the men who hired him in the first place? When will the Bears hold the feet of Lovie Smith and Jerry Angelo to the fire?

Add to that the name of Bears president Ted Phillips, and you have the Three Stooges.

To the fans, today's news that head case, er, head coach Lovie Smith will return is like a sharp slap in the face from the Bears organization.

Look, the Bears don't care about you, only your money—and they know they already have that. With every game a sellout and many more waiting for a chance at season tickets, the McCaskey family aren't concerned in the least about what we think.

Still, I believe I speak for most Bears fans when I say this stinks like rotten tuna. But no, there's nothing fishy about this move. It's plain for all to see.

It's about the money, as always, with this organization.

All this does is postpone the inevitable. Why any decent offensive coordinator would want to come in knowing that it is likely a one-year gig is beyond me. Still, Mike Martz, former Lovie mentor, is the front runner to replace Turner, and he has expressed interest.

If the decision were up to Jay Cutler—and let's face it, with all that the Bears have invested in this guy, why shouldn't it be?—former Denver Broncos assistant Jeremy Bates would be the guy.

Bates worked under Mike Shanahan when the trio was with Denver. Bates is currently the offensive coordinator at USC but would be able to jump back to the NFL if given the opportunity.  

Yet no matter who is hired and fired within the Bears coaching carousel, the core remains. The Lovie and Jerry show gets renewed each year despite poor ratings from fans like you and me.

Again I scream, where is the accountability? I'll tell you where—it's hidden in the cash left on the contracts of a coach and GM who have worn out their welcomes.

Finding scapegoats is a lot like applying band-aids where tourniquets should be. The root cause of the problem is not addressed, so ultimately, the bleeding will continue.

Yes, the Bears went to the Super Bowl under Lovie's direction, as his few followers point out. But the league was weak that year, and the defense played very well under defensive coordinator Ron Rivera.

Whatever happened to the former Bears lineman? Oh yeah, he was fired too, by Lovie and Jerry. It seems they didn't see eye-to-eye on the defensive scheme.

Which brings us to another point of contention and yet another reason that Lovie needs to go—the Tampa 2. That base package is obsolete. Yet with Lovie around, we're sure to continue seeing it, since that is all he knows.

Yes, most teams run some cover-2 as a prevent defense, but as a base scheme, the Tampa 2 (and yes, there is a difference between the cover-2 and the Tampa-2) is used by only a small handful of teams.

That's because that defense has been exposed. Still, it's the defense that Lovie has cut his teeth on, so as long as he is here, it will be also.

Meanwhile, I hope you appreciate the snub you received this afternoon, Bears fans. In a billion dollar organization, you wouldn't think that $11 million is such a high price to pay for improvement.

But what do the McCaskeys have to lose? It is, and always will be, a Bears town.