25-year old WR Johnny Knox is done for the year for the Chicago Bears.  He will undergo surgery today to stabilize a vertebra in his back.  He will have a 3-4 month recovery period if his surgery today is successful.  Knox played in 13 games for the Bears this year and he caught 36 passes for 712 yards (19.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He also returned 14 kickoffs for 374 yards (26.7 avg) this year for the Bears.  Knox has now played in 44 games in his first three years with the Bears and he has caught 132 passes for 2,199 yards (16.7 avg) with 12 TD grabs.  He has also returned 54 kickoffs for 1,483 yards (27.5 avg) with 1 TD return for the Bears.  The Bears are going to miss Knox as he was the one receiver that they could really count on.

The Chicago Bears were winning 14-7 at the half and things were looking good….but then the roof caved in.  Caleb Hanie was pathetic once again today as he completed 10 of 23 passes for 111 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 interceptions (two of which the Seahawks returned for TDs).  Josh McCown finished the game and QB and he completed 1 of 2 passes for 12 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT. He also carried the ball 5 times for 34 yards (6.8 ypc) in this game.  Kahlil Bell led the way on the ground for the Bears in this game with 65 yards rushing on 15 carries (4.3 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 43 yards (8.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Marion Barber (11 carries for 33 yards) and Dane Sanzenbacher (2 receptions for 26 yards) also pitched in for the Bears in this game.  The Bears finished up with 132 yards rushing on 31 carries (4.3 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 25 passes (44%) for 89 yards as they had possession of the ball for 28:23.

The defense actually played pretty well for the Bears today despite what the scoreboard looked like.  Safety Craig Steltz (8 tackles), LB Brian Urlacher (6 tackles and 1 tackle for a loss), safety Brandon Meriweather (6 tackles) and DE Isreal Idonije (5 tackles and a fumble recovery in the end zone for a TD) led the way for the Bears on D today.  The Seahawks finished up with 60 yards rushing on 33 carries (1.8 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 31 passes (61.3%) for 226 yards.  The Bears are now 7-7 on the season.

The Bears have waived 26-year old WR Sam Hurd.  This decision was really easy for the Bears after Hurd was arrested earlier this week for trying to buy a huge amount of drugs off an undercover cop.  Hurd is considered a drug dealer by the police and he supposedly sold the drugs he was getting to dozens of NFL players.  Hurd played in 12 games for the Bears this year and he caught 8 passes for 109 yards (13.6 avg).  He also returned 1 kickoff for 24 yards and he had 5 tackles as he played on a lot of the Bears’ special teams units.  Hurd has now played in 74 games in his first five years in the NFL and he has caught 53 passes for 739 yards (13.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He also has 67 tackles, 3 forced fumbles and 3 fumble recoveries.  This is likely the end of Hurd’s NFL career as he is facing a sentence of up to 40 years, if convicted.

The Bears have lost three games in a row with Caleb Hanie at QB and they have only scored 33 combined points in those games.  But, they are 5-2 at home, so maybe the fans at Soldier Field will inspire the troops this Sunday.  The Seahawks are red hot right now as they have won four of their last five games.  But, they are only 2-4 on the road this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bears have the ball:  The Bears don’t trust Caleb Hanie, so look for them to be very run heavy in this game.  Marion Barber and Kahlil Bell are going to have a hard time finding a lot of running room against a Seahawks’ D that is allowing 104.3 yards rushing per game this year but only 3.7 yards per carry.  The Seahawks only have 25 sacks, so Hanie should have time to throw the ball, but the Seahawks also have 17 interceptions this year as they have ballhawks in the secondary.  Hanie will have to be careful this weekend for the Bears as they can’t afford him to make too many mistakes.

When the Seahawks have the ball:  The Bears are going to have to stop RB Marshawn Lynch this Sunday and it isn’t going to be easy as he is on a roll right now.  If the Seahawks are running the ball well, it sets up QB Tarvaris Jackson to make some throws down the field to WRs Doug Baldwin and Golden Tate.  Jackson has been hot lately, so the Bears are going to have to get after him with the pass rush.  If Jackson has time to throw the ball, he’s going to have some success against the Bears as they are giving up 256.5 yards passing per game so far this year.

PREDICTION:  SEAHAWKS 17, BEARS 13

The Chicago Bears should have either signed Donovan McNabb or coached up rookie Nathan Enderle or Josh McCown to start at QB.  But instead, they seem more than happy to go down with the ship with 26-year old QB Caleb Hanie.  Hanie has played in 5 games for the Bears so far this year and he has completed 41 of 79 passes (51.9%) for 502 yards with 2 TD passes and 6 INTs (48.6 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 8 times for 64 yards (8.0 ypc) so far this year.  The Bears have only scored 33 points in Hanie’s three starts so far this year and that just won’t cut it.  The Bears need to make a change at QB, or their season will be over for sure in three weeks.

The Chicago Bears really blew this game yesterday as they were winning 10-0 with only 4:34 left in the game.  That’s when they couldn’t run out the clock or stop Tim Tebow and his boys, after shutting them out for most of the game!  Caleb Hanie was a game manager yesterday as he completed 12 of 19 passes for 115 yards without a TD pass or INT.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 11 yards (5.5 ypc).  Marion Barber led the way on the ground for the Bears yesterday with 27 carries for 108 yards (4.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 32 yards (16.0 avg).  But, he fumbled in O.T. which led to the Broncos’ winning drive.  Kahlil Bell pitched in with 40 yards rushing on 9 carries (4.4 ypc) and 5 catches for 24 yards (4.8 avg).  WR Johnny Knox led the way in the passing game with 3 grabs for 37 yards (12.3 avg).

The defense was outstanding until the last 4:34 in this football game.  LBs Brian Urlacher (11 tackles) and Lance Briggs (9 tackles) led the way for the Bears in this game.  CB Charles Tillman (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception), DT Stephen Paea (3 tackles, 2 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss and 2 QB hits) and DE Israel Idonije (fumble recovery) also helped out on D for the Bears in this game.  The Broncos finished up with 124 yards rushing on 34 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 21 of 40 passes (52.5%) for 221 yards in this game.  The Bears are now 7-6 on the season.

The Chicago Bears are now 0-2 with Caleb Hanie at QB and they only have scored 23 points in those games.  The Denver Broncos have won five games in a row and Tim Tebow is 6-1 as the starting QB this year.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Bears have the ball:  The Bears would like to run the ball more this week against a Broncos’ D that is giving up 121.3 yards rushing per game and 4.1 yards per carry.  Marion Barber and Kahlil Bell will likely split the workload this week and they could be effective.  Caleb Hanie has been sacked 11 times already, so he’s going to have to get rid of the ball quickly this weekend.  The Broncos are giving up 245.2 yards passing per game so far this year, so Hanie should be able to make some throws down the field but he has to be more careful with the ball.

When the Broncos have the ball:  The Broncos are a run first team with Tim Tebow at QB.  The Broncos are going to run the ball with Willis McGahee (886 rushing yards) and Tim Tebow (468 rushing yards), so the defense is going to get challenged.  LBs Lance Briggs and Brian Urlacher tend to like games like this one.  The Bears’ DEs will have to get a good pass rush on Tebow, while at the same time keeping him in the pocket….and that is easier said than done.  Tebow is getting a little better throwing the ball, so the secondary will have to keep close to WRs Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas.

PREDICTION:  BRONCOS 17, BEARS 16

31-year old LB Lance Briggs continues to play at a high level for the Chicago Bears.  Briggs has played in 12 games for the Bears so far this year and he has 84 tackles, 8 tackles for a loss, 2 forced fumbles, 1 interception and 4 passes defensed.  He has now played in 136 games in his first 9 years with the Bears and he has 948 tackles, 71 tackles for a loss, 10.5 sacks, 14 forced fumbles, 7 fumble recoveries, 64 passes defensed and 13 interceptions (3 returned for TDs).  The Bears need him to keep up the good work the rest of the season, because the team is going to have to lean on the defense if they want to get back to the playoffs.

I know, 26-year old Caleb Hanie has only started two games and it’s a small sample size, but the Bears are in the playoff hunt and they can’t afford to carry him at QB…especially due to Matt Forte’s injury yesterday.  Hanie has played in 4 games (2 starts) for the Bears so far this year and he has completed 29 of 60 passes (48.3%) for 387 yards with 2 TD passes and 6 interceptions (40.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 6 times for 53 yards (8.8 ypc) so far this year.  The Bears should look to sign Donovan McNabb or Brett Favre, if they are serious about making the playoffs this year because Caleb Hanie isn’t going to get them there.

The Bears have lost 25-year old RB Matt Forte for the next 2-4 weeks due to a Grade 2 MCL sprain.  Forte has played in 12 games for the Bears this year and he has carried the ball 203 times for 997 yards (4.9 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He has also caught 52 passes for 490 yards (9.4 avg) with 1 TD grab for the Bears this year.  The Bears won’t likely be able to replace all of the 123.9 yards from scrimmage that Forte is averaging so far this season.  28-year old Marion Barber will be the main RB for the Bears until Forte is ready to return to action.  Barber has played in 9 games for the Bears so far this year and he has carried the ball 76 times for 281 yards (3.7 ypc) with 5 TD runs.  He has also caught 3 passes for 18 yards (6.0 avg) so far for the Bears this year.  Barber is a power runner, so the offense will likely have to be streamlined a little bit with him as the main man.  24-year old Kahlil Bell will replace Barber as the backup RB until Forte is ready to return to action.  Bell has played in 9 games for the Bears so far this year and he has carried the ball 15 times for 57 yards (3.8 ypc).  He has also caught 1 pass for 4 yards so far this year.  Losing Forte is almost as big of a blow as losing Jay Cutler.  The difference is that Marion Barber and Kahlil Bell are legit NFL RBs, while Caleb Hanie is not much of a QB.

UPDATE:  (12/27/2011) – The Bears have officially put Matt Forte on the Injured Reserve List, ending his season.