Donnell Woolford has raised the stakes for Sunday’s game against Houston at Soldier Field.
“It’s a must game for the defense as far as stepping up and making some plays,” the Bears cornerback said Wednesday. “Because defense gets turnovers and could cause some problems for our offense.”
Houston’s seven fumble recoveries is fifth best in the AFC.
The law of averages tells you that one of these weeks Erik Kramer and Company will stop averaging 28 points a game. The Oilers are ranked fourth in the NFL in defense, a long way from the Bears’ defensive slot of 21, and so the prospect of a reduced output is on the Bears’ minds.
“They have a great offensive and defensive line,” linebacker Vinson Smith said of Houston. “That’s where it starts with any team. Houston’s going to win games, and I hope it doesn’t start with us. They’re not a weak team.”
Added Woolford:
“We have to get our defense back where we can be happy. It’s been bothering me and a lot of other players the way we’ve played. We’re so close to turning it around, but we’re not making the plays in the games.”
Tough times: Tight end Chris Gedney has been battling what was diagnosed as a colitis problem and had hoped he was past the worst. But the team made a short statement Wednesday that he hasn’t responded to the “traditional treatment for ulcerative colitis, and he has been hospitalized for further evaluation and treatment.”
Said Coach Dave Wannstedt: “Chris came to see me yesterday because he’s concerned he’s letting the team down. He wants to be a part of this. We’ll bring in another tight end for practice purposes, but hopefully Chris will be back with us in a week or two.”
On the run: Rashaan Salaam has more rushes and yards this season than any other rookie from the 1995 draft class except one. Denver’s Terrell Davis has gone 418 yards on 108 carries compared to Salaam’s 355 yards from 105 attempts. Davis has scored four touchdowns, Salaam three.
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Salaam has exceeded the output of three other active running backs who were first-rounders with him. The Oakland Raiders’ Napolean Kaufmann is closest to him with 286 yards on 58 carries, which gives Kaufmann the best average among rookies at 4.9 yards a rush.