Muller: Some Bears Fans Need A Dose Of Reality
By Shawn Muller--
When I sat down on the couch yesterday to watch the news, the talk of the town was, of course, the Bears loss to the Packers in the NFC Championship game, on Sunday afternoon.
Not that I expected it to be anything different. I mean, the game was easily the biggest story--sports related or not--going on in our great city, and, to be quite honest with you, even though the Bears lost, it was nice to see and hear something different on the news for a change, besides the tired and saturated coverage of the mayoral race (thank heavens!).
Obviously, the majority of the coverage surrounding the Bears game was merely regurgitation of the same tidbits we had already been inundated with over the past 24 hours: post-game analysis, player comments, coaches comments, the same highlights (or lowlights), and so on and so forth. I didn't mind these stories. I mean, one has to expect this sort of thing after any big game, right?
Not surprisingly, the biggest "story" of the day, was the "knee gate" controversy surrounding Bears quarterback, Jay Cutler. Could he have continued to play? Was he just being a big baby on the big stage? Did he quit on his teammates? These are just some of the many questions surrounding the much-maligned quarterback since the game clock showed four zeroes inside Soldier Field. Cutler has been trashed more than any other quarterback I can remember, for his role (or lack thereof) in the demise of what normally would have been considered a special season.
Should he have tried to continue playing on a bum knee? Could he have tried to give it a go? I guess we will never know. These points regarding Cutler have been beaten to death by everyone and anyone who saw the game, so I won't dive into it any further.
Instead, let me turn the tides of the "knee gate" situation around. I don't want to focus on what Cutler did or did not do….that has already been done. How about shifting gears, for a moment, and talk about the really sad part of this entire situation that unfolded on Sunday. The Bears losing to their biggest rival was a really tough pill to swallow, but the images I saw on television outweigh the final results of a simple game.
I am talking about a picture depicting a group of idiot Bears fans burning a Jay Cutler jersey.
Now, before I go any further, I want to make one thing perfectly clear: In no way am I painting every Bears fans with the idiot brush. 99% of Bears fans are loyal supporters of the team and treat the game for what it is…a game. It is just a fun way to escape your everyday life and cheer for something bigger than you.
The good thing is…the great fans outweigh the buffoons.
The bad thing is…the buffoons always take the spotlight. This past Sunday proves no different.
Since the dolts from the picture have no problem "calling" an individual player out, let me call you out. It's only fair right? Who takes an NFL game so seriously, that it would cause you to burn the jersey of a player who almost took your favorite team to the Super Bowl? Is your life so boring and unfulfilled, that the only thing that will make you feel better is to burn a jersey? I am sorry that things may not have turned out for you as planned, but acting like a fool is not going to make it any better.
Nobody feels worse about the loss to the Packers than the players do. Acting like children after the fact is not going to change to final score. It doesn't make you look like a "bigger Bears fan". It makes you look ridiculous.
Dumb….Just plain dumb.
Oh boy! You sure showed that Jay Cutler fellow, huh? Yeah…that will teach old #6 not to mess with you tough guys.
Jay Cutler did not cost the Bears a spot in the Super Bowl…the entire team did. The same people who burned the Cutler jersey on Sunday, probably bought their Cutler jersey earlier in the season when the Bears (and Cutler) were flying high.
You are not true Bears fans…you are the select few.
You are the buffoons that real fans shake their heads in disappointment at.
You are the fair-weather fan.
The 2010 NFC North Division Champion Chicago Bears had a great season. True Bears fans acknowledge this fact.
Do you agree with Shawn? Post your comments below.
Shawn Muller has lived in Chicago for 7 years. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and just recently received his certificate in radio broadcasting in October of 2010. Sports have always been a passion of Shawn's. In his free time, Shawn enjoys spending time with his wife Melissa and 3 year old daughter Ava, catching any live sporting event, and traveling. Check out his radio show, "Grab Some Bench with Muller and Bangser" at www.blogtalkradio.com/spmuller24.
