Come To Think of It...What We Learned from the Chicago Bears' Victory

Well, in a nutshell...not much. OK, that wouldn't make for a very interesting article, now would it? But to be honest, we can't yet be exactly sure what to make of this Chicago Bears team, especially based on a one-game sample size, as impressive a victory as it may have been.

But we'll try. 

The first thing you must do is ask yourself: Are the Bears really that much better than we knew, or are the Colts really that much worse than we thought?

Well, consider that Colts QB Peyton Manning hadn't taken a single snap all preseason, so this was basically equal to the first game of the exhibition season for him. Granted, he's good enough to still be judged as a formidable opponent, no matter what the circumstances are. Still, this clearly took its toll on the passing game.

Second, the Colts were playing with injuries to their starting offensive line. Nothing is worse than a lack of cohesiveness on the line, as those guys work together to form a unit that bonds as much as anything.

Center Jeff Saturday hasn't started practicing yet. OG Mike Pollak hasn't returned since injuring his knee a couple of weeks ago.

To make matter worse, the Bears played very well and executed a nearly flawless performance. But it's not like they were perfect. Nate Vasher didn't play particularly well. And kick returner/WR extraordinaire Devin Hester didn't return any kicks for TDs.

In fact, he made the bonehead play of the game by trying to deke out the Colts when he failed to take a knee in the end zone. This resulted in a touchdown for the Colts.

Another question to ponder is the state of the Bears' running game. With Kyle Orton unlikely to put up big numbers, having a strong running game is obviously vital to the Bears success.

The Colts could not stop the Bears running game and perhaps this was the main difference between this year's Bears team and recent seasons.

But Indianapolis’ defense has struggled in stopping the run in recent years, so is Matt Forte really that good? Well, consider that the Colts have improved in their run defense the last couple of seasons. But we'll have to wait and see on this one. So far, so good. 

Speaking of Orton, while he did nothing to excite fantasy owners, he did what the Bears coaching staff wanted him to do. That is, he controlled the tempo of the game and did not make mistakes.

If he can stay away from throwing interceptions, this could continue. But the Bears' line will have to protect him and give him time to throw.

Which brings us to our next piece of analysis, the Bears' offensive line. Prior to the game, it was thought that the Bears line was so bad that Orton would have to take out additional medical insurance.

But they actually turned in a very credible performance of run and even pass blocking. And they re-signed offensive tackle Fred Miller after the game. Fred had been released in the offseason.

Perhaps the key to the victory was coaching.

Yes, as much of a critic as I am of Lovie Smith and his staff, I must admit they had the Bears ready to play better than Tony Dungy did. The Bears' defense gave pre-snap looks that confused the Colts' rookie center.

They often aligned seven men on the line of scrimmage. Although they usually retreated back into coverage, mainly cover-two, these looks forced the Colts' young, inexperienced line to scramble for help.

All in all, it was a great team effort Sunday night and a huge confidence booster for the Bears. And, come to think of it, while we may not be sure what kind of team the Bears will be this year, it sure was a great way to start the season.