Kansas City Chiefs vs. Chicago Bears: 5 Things to Watch

Last week, the Chicago Bears saw their five-game winning streak get snapped against the Oakland Raiders. 

In order for the Bears to stay in the thick of the playoff hunt, they will need to begin a new winning streak this weekend against the 4-7 Kansas City Chiefs.

Here are five things to watch this week as the Kansas City Chiefs come to Solider Field to take on the Chicago Bears.

Tyler Palko or Kyle Orton?

After losing his job to Tim Tebow earlier in the season, the Denver Broncos released Kyle Orton last week and was claimed on waivers by the Chiefs.  Amidst the injury to Bears' starter Jay Cutler, the Bears also tried to make a waiver claim on Orton, only to be denied by the Chiefs.

Quarterback play for the last two weeks for the Chiefs has been abysmal.  After the injury to starter Matt Cassel, fourth-year player Tyler Palko was given the starting job. 

In two starts, Palko has thrown for 444 yards and has thrown six interceptions compared to zero touchdowns.  In those two games, the Chiefs are averaging just six points per game.

Orton clearly is the better option for the Chiefs, but as of today, head coach Todd Haley has stated that Tyler Palko will be their starter.  It would not be a surprise if Palko continues to struggle, and the Chiefs use a condensed "dumbed-down" version of their offense for Orton to run.

Stopping Tamba Hali

One bright spot of this Kansas City team has been the play of outside linebacker Tamba Hali.  Hali entered the league in 2006 and played his first few seasons as a defensive end, before head coach Todd Haley and defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel switched from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4 and moved Hali to outside linebacker.

In 2010, Hali led the AFC with 14.5 sacks and was voted to his first Pro Bowl.  So far this season, Hali leads the Chiefs with seven sacks and has also forced two fumbles.

Expect Hali to be matched up against Bears left tackle J'Marcus Webb, and it would not be a surprise to see the Bears bring over an extra tight end or use a running back to chip Hali on their way out of the backfield.

More Consistent Offensive Play-Calling

As great as a coordinator we all know that Mike Martz can be, we have also seen how bad he can be as well.  It's no secret that Martz fully trusts the offense that he runs and has been stubborn in the past to adjust it.

With a quarterback making his first start last week, it was assumed that Martz would get the benefit of the doubt and utilize some of Caleb Hanie's strengths.  One major play-calling mistake would have been near the end of the first half. Mike Martz called for a tight-end screen, which was ultimately picked off and nearly ran in for a touchdown. 

Granted, Hanie probably should not have thrown that ball, but the fact that that play was called, when the Bears had the chance to take the lead before halftime, completely reiterates Martz's stubbornness.

If the Bears want to beat up on the Chiefs, Martz again needs to realize that Hanie is not Jay Cutler.  Hanie needs to continue to get comfortable in this offense, and not putting him in to situations where he can succeed, just slows down his learning curve.

Keep Hanie Away from Brandon Flowers

In the past few seasons, Chiefs cornerback Brandon Flowers has quietly become one of the best corners in the league.  So far this season, Flowers has picked off four passes as well as deflecting 17 passes.

Coming in to the league, many teams had concern over Flowers' size (5'9", 187lbs).  Much to Flowers' credit, he utilizes his great strength and speed to counter teams' bigger receivers. 

Flowers is not afraid to play against the run and is considered a ball-hawking corner.

If Caleb Hanie does not want a repeat of last week's three-interception performance, expect him to steer clear of Flowers' part of the field.

Better Defensive Line Production

There's no denying that Julius Peppers has been one of, if not the best, players on this Bears team.  Through 11 games, Peppers leads the team with eight sacks and leads the league in quarterback pressures. 

Coming in to this season, the thought was, along with Peppers that the defensive line was the strength of this Bears defense.  So far this season, the Bears are ranked 20th in the league, with just 23 sacks.

Israel Idonije has been a bit of disappointment with only three sacks, after coming off a career-high of eight last season.  Production from the inside has been better than expected, with Henry Melton collecting five and first-year Bear Amobi Okoye collecting three.  But in order for this defense to work, pressure is key.

Although the Chiefs possess a pretty solid offensive line, the Bears need to take advantage of a struggling quarterback and use this as an opportunity to bring up their sack totals.