Dec 23, 2009 7:03 pm US/Central
Bears Say They're Motivated For Final Games
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) ―
Losers of eight of 10 and playoff spectators for the third straight year, the Chicago Bears insist they can find motivation for their final two games. That would be a big change for a team that's shown little the past few months.
As a disappointing season winds down, the Bears meet a team jockeying for playoff position when they host the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night. They figured they would be in a similar spot. Instead, everything fell apart after they won three of the first four games.
This wasn't what the Bears expected when they made the big trade for Jay Cutler, and the quarterback didn't anticipate this, either. When the schedule came out, the matchup against Brett Favre and the Vikings certainly looked intriguing.
At 5-9, Cutler said, the Bears are "obviously not where we want to be."
Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer says there's "a lot still left to play for."
Particularly for younger players, like defensive ends Mark Anderson and Gaines Adams. With veteran Adewale Ogunleye out for the rest of the season after breaking his lower left leg in last week's loss at Baltimore, their performance over the next two weeks could go a long way toward determining how the defensive line looks next season.
If they want a role, this is a chance to earn it.
Like Ogunleye, Anderson has an expiring contract and an opportunity to show that he can approach what he did as a rookie in 2006. Adams can start living up to his billing in Tampa Bay.
"The last couple of games, I want to finish strong, try to go out there and make some plays for the team and try to have some fun," Anderson said. "I would like to finish strong, on a great note."
Adams said: "Every game and every practice, you want to improve and you want to show some things. Just coming out and working hard in practice and putting a great performance together will speak for itself."
How he performs the last two weeks will be more telling.
The Bears thought the arrival of defensive line coach Rod Marinelli would spark a revival in Anderson, and Adams thought working with him would give his career a much-needed boost.
Neither has happened.
The fourth overall pick out of Clemson in 2007 by Tampa Bay, Adams still hasn't lived up to expectations. He has just four tackles and no sacks, after registering 13 1/2 in his first two-plus seasons, since being traded to Chicago in mid-October, and Anderson still remains stuck after a promising rookie year.
A fifth-round pick in 2006, he has just 1 1/2 sacks this season and 7 1/2 since he registered 12 while helping the Bears reach the Super Bowl in his first season. With Ogunleye out, he's been rotating with the first team at left end in practice this week.
"It's a great opportunity, but right now, the main thing is we want to get a win," Anderson said. "We've been struggling. If we can get the last two wins of the season, that'll be great for us."
They're not the only Bears with something to prove.
Chris Williams, last year's first-round pick, has struggled since taking over for Orlando Pace at left tackle. Now, he has a chance to show he can block the league's best when he faces Jared Allen, who's second in the league with 13 1/2 sacks.
"The bottom line is you've got to take it to him," said Allen, who had two sacks in last month's 36-10 win over the Bears going against Pace and Kevin Shaffer. "You've got to try to get it out of his comfort zone and force him into situations he hasn't experienced yet."
While the focus is on the younger players, coach Lovie Smith sees these final games as a test for the veterans.
"Character does show in tough times," he said. "When you go through adversity, real men get stronger from that, and that's what we're hoping we will get from this."
NOTES: Pro Bowl LB Lance Briggs sat out practice Wednesday because of a sore lower back but is expected to play Monday. S Al Afalava (knee), TE Desmond Clark (illness), S Kevin Payne (ankle) and Williams (ankle) did not practice, either. ... WR Devin Hester practiced on a limited basis for the first time since straining his left calf against against St. Louis on Dec. 6.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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