Now that the Bears have observed the lofty level to which they must climb, they can answer the next question whenever they’re ready.
What are they going to do about it?
This might seem an untimely issue to raise after a season that exceeded modest expectations, but it comes in the wake of various reactions to Saturday’s surrender at San Francisco.
Individually and collectively, from management to players, the Bears issued the predictable postmortems. The 49ers are awesome. They are odds-on to win Super Bowl XXIX. To be on the same field with them was a learning experience. And, last but not least, we finished 9-7 during the regular season and beat those fearsome Vikings in Minneapolis for the right to advance in the playoffs.
This is all wonderful stuff, and it’s true.
“Our guys left here feeling good about themselves,” coach Dave Wannstedt confirmed at his Halas Hall farewell address Monday. “And they should.”
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Yes, they should. But, meanwhile, is anybody angry? Humiliated? Embarrassed?
It seems that the Bears were so busy patting themselves on the back for earning the “privilege” of going to San Francisco that, upon arriving there, they didn’t have enough arms available to tackle the 49ers. Moreover, after getting their clocks cleaned by an obviously superior team, the Bears expressed in different words one party line. Give us time. We’re almost there. Now we know what it takes.
If that’s how a young, upwardly mobile football team builds confidence and momentum toward the next season, so be it. But it would have warmed the heart of at least this crotchety witness to Saturday’s devastation if somebody, anybody, within the Bears’ family had conveyed an emotion beyond mere disappointment.
That was the calling card the Bears left at Candlestick Park. They were disappointed. Not chagrined that Jerry Rice and Deion Sanders were almost decoys in the slaughter. Not mortified by the possibility that the 49ers could have scored 88 points instead of 44 had they used their regulars instead of their scrubs. Not offended by the appearance that the 49ers did whatever they wanted whenever they wanted to with so little resistance.
On the contrary, the Bears were merely disappointed. Whatever happened to that us-against-the-world mentality? Where was the hiss and vinegar the Bears summoned throughout the winter? Has a Bears team ever looked so passive as Saturday? If there was nothing to lose, why did the Bears play as though defeat was a foregone conclusion?
In Chicago, a forgiving city, we invariably hearken back to better days. The Bears of 10 years ago are a security blanket. Well, not to spoil the ongoing picnic of congratulations, but those Bears not only had better players, but a better attitude. After their elimination in San Francisco one season before Super Bowl XX, we can’t recall a single discussion about disappointment over a nice try.
Those Bears were too busy throwing things around the locker room. They were furious, enraged, anxious to play the 49ers the next day. To Mike Ditka, 23-0 felt like 123-0.
These Bears? They talked of their Candlestick Park “education” and how they’re only a couple of players away. If that’s the case, we want to meet those players. What are their names, Defensive Line and Offensive Line?
Wannstedt repeated Monday that the Bears are going in the right direction, and he’s not to be doubted, for he is the right man for this job. And perhaps, in this era of free-agent transients, it’s part of the deal to make feel-good statements. It’s politically correct.
But the Bears’ organization has been mad since September about lack of respect. Is anybody mad about Saturday?