Bears Want to Go Where Seahawks Have
Friday, January 12, 2007; 7:36 PM
CHICAGO -- An impossible to miss, mysterious sign was planted near the driveway to the Chicago Bears practice complex this week, imploring a team desperate for a playoff victory: "Play Angry."
Getting mad won't necessarily secure a victory Sunday for the Chicago Bears on what should be a frosty and perhaps snowy Soldier Field. Playing well against the Seattle Seahawks, the defending NFC champions, is more important.
  Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith looks out over the field at football practices in Lake Forest, Ill., Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2007. The Bears take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, Jan. 14, 2007 in a NFC divisional playoff football game in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast) (Charles Rex Arbogast - AP)   The Indianapolis Colts overcome the rain and a sloppy start to beat the Chicago Bears, 29-17. The Colts' victory ignites a wild celebration among the white-and-blue attired fans in the sea of colorful vinyl rainwear that populated the soggy stands. Peyton Manning fills the final hole in his legend as the greatest quarterback never to win the biggest game. Leonard Shapiro: Tony Dungy and Manning seal their place in history by winning the Super Bowl. Manning adds a Super Bowl MVP award to his long list of achievements. Joseph Addai and Dominic Rhodes plow forward for the Colts go-ahead touchdown and never look back. There was a collective failure by the Bears' offense, but Rex Grossman provides the most vivid images. Notebook: Two assistant coaches who participated in the Super Bowl likely will interview for Dallas' head coaching job. On Our Site Wilbon and Kornheiser share their thoughts live during Sunday's big game. Photos: Relive all of the action from the NFL playoffs. Audio: Manning on the Win. Audio: Grossman on the Loss. Audio: Dungy Praises Smith. Quarterly Report (PDF) A Slew of Errors (PDF) Graphic: Play of the Game. MARK MASKE'S NFL INSIDER • Jaguars Tackle in Critical Condition • Lions Bolster Backfield With R. Johnson |
Since they lugged personal belongings into their training camp dormitory six months ago, the Bears have been saying the two magic words of the NFL. Super Bowl.
"I don't want to be one of those players (saying), `I'm going to wait till next year,'" Bears defensive back Charles Tillman said.
"I might never have it. We might never make it this far again. Who am I to say? Now that we are in, now is the time to seize the moment."
The Bears didn't do that a year ago in a similar scenario.
After winning a division title, securing a first-round bye and playing a team they had already beaten in the regular season, the Bears were ousted by the Carolina Panthers when Steve Smith put on a pass-catching clinic at Soldier Field.
The player Smith burned a couple of times during the long afternoon was Tillman, going around him early for a TD when the Bears cornerback stumbled, and later outjumping him for a pass that set up a field goal.
Tillman, sidelined the final two weeks of this regular season with a sore back, has a chance to bounce back. And he should be busy against the Seahawks' multiple-receiver sets.
Atoning for his postseason performance of a year ago motivates him _ to a certain extent.
"I'm not going to say `I played a bad game, Errrr, I got to play better now,'" Tillman said. "Disappointment is my personal trainer, so yeah it fuels me in a sense."
Seattle came to Soldier Field on Oct. 1 missing some of its offensive firepower, most notably last year's MVP Shaun Alexander and tight end Jerramy Stevens, and left Chicago with a lopsided 37-6 defeat. Now they're expecting a better performance, hoping to give Matt Hasselbeck more time to throw after he was sacked five times in the first meeting.
