The struggling Buffalo Bills (1-4) have failed to utilize the talented and controversial wide-receiver Terrel Owens this year, and now rumors are flying about a possible trade to the Chicago Bears (3-1).  T.O. has not made an impact for the Bills, but he has not really gotten much of a chance.  So far this season he only has 12 catches for 202 yards and one touchdown.  That is a lot of yards per catch (16.8), but only 12 catches is uncharacteristic of T.O.  The Bills have failed to use T.O. the way they wanted to when they brought him in and gave him $6.5 million for one year.

Now the big question is, should the Bears take a chance on him?  I’m not so sure the Bears should, due to all the baggage and controversy T.O. would bring.  Quarterback Jay Cutler said almost nothing when asked about the possible trade, which could be a sign that he wants nothing to do with T.O.  Cutler proved in the off-season with the Broncos that he likes to get things his way, and he is not afraid to speak up when he doesn’t.  T.O. and Cutler could be a recipe for disaster in the locker room, but at the same time they are two very talented players that could do some major damage together.  So, there is a lot of upside to a trade for this caliber of a player.  The Bears are very inexperienced at wide-receiver, but players like Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, and Johnny Knox have been stepping up for the Bears.  Right now I’m a little bit up in the air about this possible trade, but since the Bears are playing well and their young receivers are proving themselves, I would have to say no at this point.

Backup running back Adrian Peterson will miss the next 2-3 weeks due to a strained MCL in his right knee.  Peterson has carried the ball 5 times for 28 yards (5.6 ypc) so far this season and he has also caught 2 passes for 11 yards (5.5 avg).  The Bears were planning on getting Peterson more involved in the offense until he got injured.  Smallish Garrett Wolfe will move up the depth chart and get a boost in playing time.  Look for him to give Matt Forte a breather on some third downs to keep him fresh.  Wolfe has carried the ball 11 times for 45 yards (4.1 ypc) with a TD run and he has also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg) so far this year.  As long as Matt Forte stays healthy, Peterson’s injury won’t hurt the Bears.

The Bears with be without 28-year old DT Israel Idonije for a while after he underwent arthroscopic knee surgery earlier today.  There is no timetable back for his return yet.  He has played in all 4 games for the Bears this season and he has 4 tackles, 1 sack and he has forced a fumble.  Luckily for the Bears that they are very deep along the D-Line so they won’t miss Idonije too much while he’s out.

The Chicago Bears DE Adewale Ogunleye is having a career year so far this season and has been a nightmare for quarterbacks.  Ogunleye had 2.5 sacks along with a fumble recovery in the Bears’ 48-24 win over the Detroit Lions Sunday.  He now has 4.5 sacks through the first four games, which leads the NFC, and is on pace for a career high 18 sacks.  Ogunleye has been a great leader for the Bears and their defensive front line.  Tommie Harris has been a great leader for them as well, and although he is battling knee problems he has played effectively through the injuries including an interception in the win against the Lions.  If Ogunleye keeps up this type of play and Harris can get healthy, no quarterback in the league will want to face the Bears defense and they will take the NFC North title.

The Chicago Bears improved their record to 3-1 after beating down on the Detroit Lions (1-3) today at Soldier Field.  The Lions were putting up a good fight in the first half and the score was tied 21-21 at the break, but the Bears showed up in the second half and killed the Lions.  The Bears may have been underestimating their opponent, but they realized in the second half that it is not the same Detroit Lions team that went 0-16 last year.

Some great adjustments were made at halftime by Lovie Smith and the rest of the Bears coaching staff.  The best change was moving Charles Tillman to match-up with the Lions’ talented receiver Calvin Johnson.  Johnson had 6 catches for 119 yards receiving in the first half but Tillman and the rest of the Bears defense held Johnson to only 2 catches for 14 yards in the second half.  Adewale Ogunleye had a great game as well, as he pressured Lions’ rookie quarterback Mathew Stafford all game and finished the day with 2.5 sacks.  One of his sacks on Stafford injured the rookie’s knee and Daunte Culpepper finished the 4th quarter for Stafford.

Matt Forte finally had a good game for the Bears, as he finished the day with 121 yards and a touchdown.  He had two huge runs, one 61-yard run that lead to the Bears first touchdown in the first quarter and a 37-yard touchdown run to seal the victory for the Bears in the 4th quarter.  Rookie Johnny Knox had a 102-yard return for a touchdown, the first touchdown return of his career.  Jay Cutler played well again for the Bears, as he finished with 141 yards and two touchdowns on 18/28 (64%).  He also had a rushing touchdown where he leaped in the air and was hit hard, spinning him 360 degrees into the end-zone. The Bears have a bye next week.

Cornerback Charles Tillman was a little gimpy coming into this season but he is playing very well right now.  He has made 12 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, has defensed 2 passes, forced 2 fumbles and he has 1 interception.  Tillman will likely make some big plays against rookie QB Matt Stafford in the game on Sunday.

The Chicago Bears (2-1) are hosting the Detroit Lions (1-2) at Soldier Field Sunday.  The Lions are coming off their first win in 20 games after beating the Washington Redskins, and the Bears have a two game winning streak after beating the Seattle Seahawks last week.  The Bears passing offense has looked solid the past two games, but the running game is still struggling.  The Lions running game has looked pretty good the past two weeks and their passing game looked much improved last week.  Their rookie quarterback Mathew Stafford had a turnover free game after throwing five interceptions in his first two games.

The Bears should win this game pretty easily, but it could be close with Bears defense hurting and the Bears running game struggling.  The offensive line and running back Matt Forte have struggled to get much going in the first three weeks and Forte injured his knee last week.  It’s not serious though and he is listed as probable so he should be fine Sunday.  In three games so far Forte has rushed for 150 yards on 59 carries (2.5 avg)  and has no touchdowns.  The Lions defense has given up an average of 111 yards per game on the ground, so maybe Forte will finally have a big game.

The Bears defense is hurting, especially at the linebacker position.  With their star and leader Brian Urlacher out for the year, Hunter Hillenmeyer has done a solid job of filling in for him.  Now Hillenmeyer is out with a rib injury and Nick Roach will most likely start for him.  The Lions will probably look to attack the Bears with a lot of short passes and try and take advantage of their depleted linebackers.  Lions’ quarterback Stafford has a lot of talent and a strong arm, and had a much improved game last week.  The Bears’ defensive line has been playing very well and have been getting a lot of pressure on the opposing teams’ quarterbacks, so I think they will be able to pressure the rookie Stafford into some mistakes.    He is capable of making some big plays though, and has often been compared to the Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

Overall, I think the Bears are a much better football team and the Lions are over-matched.  The Bears do have some key weaknesses though that the Lions can take advantage of, but I don’t think they will do enough.  Cutler will be able to eat up the Lions secondary and Forte will at least be somewhat effective against the Lions weak run defense and could have himself a breakout game.  The Bears will win this won convincingly.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION:  Bears 31, Lions 17