Bears Should Dominate Colts in Season Opener

The start of the 2012 NFL season is right around the corner, and for the Chicago Bears, it should be a great start to a promising season. The Bears will start the regular season by hosting rookie quarterback Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts.

The biggest story coming into Week 1 for Chicago is the health of middle linebacker Brian Urlacher. All offseason, Urlacher has been hampered by a knee injury that was sustained in the 2011 regular season finale.

The 13-year veteran practiced for the first time in a month with the team this past Monday, and expects to play on Sunday. Even though Urlacher says that his knee feels fine, the Bears organization should still be cautious. After Sunday’s game, Chicago has a very short week to prepare for a Thursday night game versus the Green Bay Packers.

Outside of Urlacher’s knee, the Bears’ defense should have a fun time welcoming Luck into the NFL. Last season, the Colts were ranked 26^th in rushing, averaging 99.6 yards per game. Chicago’s stout run defense was fifth in the league (96.4 ypg). It looks like all the pressure will be put on the arm of Indianapolis’ rookie quarterback.

Offensively, quarterback Jay Cutler will finally get a chance to play with a couple of new toys that the Bears added to the offense. Wide receivers Brandon Marshall and rookie Alshon Jeffery add a dimension to the passing game that Chicago fans have never seen. Marshall and Jeffery are 6’ 4”, 230 pounds and 6’ 3”, 216 pounds respectively. Two big targets added to the Bears’ passing attack will make it much easier for Cutler to find targets in tight coverage.

In addition, Chicago still has arguably one of the best running backs in the league in Matt Forte, and Michael Bush as a complement.

Chicago’s potent offense should have a field day against a Colts defense that gave up an average 370.9 ypg last season.    

As for special teams, the Bears have gotten stronger in the return game as well. Along with Devin Hester, Chicago has added Lorenzo Booker and Eric Weems to the mix. Booker showed his big-play ability in the preseason when he returned a kickoff 105 yards for a touchdown. As for Weems, he has made his mark as one of the best special teams players when made the Pro Bowl as a member of the Atlanta Falcons.

Indianapolis was dead last in the league in kick return coverage last season, so don’t be surprised if the Bears takes one to the house at some point in the game.

It looks like Chicago has the advantage over Indianapolis in all three phases of the game in this Week 1 matchup. Therefore, I think that it’s safe to say that the Bears will win by a landslide. My prediction: Bears 35, Colts 17.

Clyde A. Speller
Follow me on Twitter @ClydeASpeller