40 mph winds in Chicago?

Patsfanin Philly said:

For wind, think of the last game of 2008 in Buffalo with 40 mph winds and FG attempts going out of bounds. Cassel only threw 8 times that day and Sammy Morris and Jordan ( and Fred Jackson) ran all day long.....

http://www.nfl.com/liveupdate/gamecenter/29770/BUF_Gamebook.pdf

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I still love MFC's punt on 3rd down

But with 40mph winds, if Mesko punts with it, could he clear the field?

Shame we won't need to find out

CuriousGeorge said:

That is nothing out of the ordinary and the estimates are conservative. Good luck trying to kick a field goal. The "grass" at Soldier Field is going to mess up the release point. Nothing over a 40 yarder for you!

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Three things not to forget:

One, we play in a place not known for balmy winters.

Two, we own the Steelers at Heinz Field, including a memorable AFCCG blowout at night when the temp was already in the single digits, the wind was blowing at 20 or so, a few feet of snow were piled up on the sideline and Brady was playing with the flu and a 102 temperature and they had to take the IV out of his arm to put on his uniform (14 for 21, 207 yards, 2TDs, while Ben threw three pics).

Three, Brady's average pass this year is going about five yards in the air downfield (an exaggeration to make the point that he's not depending on Randy getting open forty yards away any more).

We can run the ball with Law Firm behind Mankins, Crumpler, and Gronkowski. I like our chances in a wind storm.

At least it would be fresh grass. Soldier has been resodded since the last game there.

Chicago Bears: Soldier Field resodded - chicagotribune.com

PatsFanSince74 said:

Three, Brady's average pass this year is going about five yards in the air downfield (an exaggeration to make the point that he's not depending on Randy getting open forty yards away any more).

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True but teams still have to respect the deep ball even w/no Moss, not so much if the wind is up to the 30-40mph range. Everything suddenly gets tighter in the short passing game.

In a vacuum I think the Pats win this game without too much trouble, but weather can be an equalizer whether anyone wants to admit it or not. It makes the game tougher. This year's Bears aren't the 2008 Buffalo Bills.

jaychamp said:

True but teams still have to respect the deep ball even w/no Moss, not so much if the wind is up to the 30-40mph range. Everything suddenly gets tighter in the short passing game.

In a vacuum I think the Pats win this game without too much trouble, but weather can be an equalizer whether anyone wants to admit it or not. It makes the game tougher. This year's Bears aren't the 2008 Buffalo Bills.

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Absolutely. I've had this game circled in my mind as "dangerous" ever since the schedule came out. Still, I'd be a lot more worried without Gronkowski and Hernandez in the mix.

Cantabrigian said:

At least it would be fresh grass. Soldier has been resodded since the last game there.

Chicago Bears: Soldier Field resodded - chicagotribune.com

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That may not be a good thing. It all depends if the new sod has taken enough root to stay firm on the ground. Otherwise, the field may be coming up in clumps all day.

The Bears will make us look bad THIS Sun. - Jets Insider.com Forums

The JESTER are hoping for Bears to win 100-0 against us. You have to see and feel how they are feeling...

Patsfanin Philly said:

For wind, think of the last game of 2008 in Buffalo with 40 mph winds and FG attempts going out of bounds. Cassel only threw 8 times that day and Sammy Morris and Jordan ( and Fred Jackson) ran all day long.....

http://www.nfl.com/liveupdate/gamecenter/29770/BUF_Gamebook.pdf

Click to expand...

I was at that game. The wind gusts literally would knock you off balance.

While I'd prefer it not to happen, it'd be nice to see Brady juke Urlacher again .

as for the weather, bad weather usually favors the Patriots (or the prepared). Still, it's goign to be a tough game and no gimme by a long shot.

gregz0r said:

Soldier field was just resodded over the past two weeks. It should be better...

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Indeed it was, and it hasn't gotten over 40 since. The sod won't take, it will be a quagmire.

Bears are used to playing on a quagmire, as it is only a decent field the first 2 games of every season. Both teams do have to play on it, true, but one of them is more used to it than the other.

Pat's field looked pristine on Monday. Just saying.

I recall a game at Buffalo where the wind was so strong it bent and twisted both sets of uprights! Gostkowski was our secret weapon. He kicked a field Goal that left his leg aimed at the end zone out-of-bounds pylon, only to get blown sideways and drift through the uprights.

Kicking an extra point was an true adventure.

BTW Brady's short passing was unaffected by the wind but the Bills long passes were impossible to complete.

This obviously favors the Pats. Their entire offense is predicated on short, quick passes and yards after the catch. Does anyone honestly think this is a disadvantage with Welker, Branch, Woodhead, and a couple of tight ends who can box out smaller players?

Bearstuff said:

Indeed it was, and it hasn't gotten over 40 since. The sod won't take, it will be a quagmire.

Bears are used to playing on a quagmire, as it is only a decent field the first 2 games of every season. Both teams do have to play on it, true, but one of them is more used to it than the other.

Pat's field looked pristine on Monday. Just saying.

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But, have you seen that field in Pittsburgh??? Just sayin..

KontradictioN said:

They've used it more often lately, but that doesn't mean that they're suddenly a run first team. Chicago has had a 100 yard rushing performance out of their power back (Forte) twice this season. Against Detroit, he amassed a whole 64 yards on 13 attempts. Our run defense can contain the run better than Detroit, so I don't see them having a lot of success on the ground... especially if we commit 8 men in the box. Where Forte worries me most is on wheel routes out of the backfield. That's where he'll be most dangerous.

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Forte wasn't used as much vs the Lions as he had been used in the past weeks. My impression was they were trying to keep him fresh for the final stretch. Taylor got a lot more playing time against the Lions than he has most of the season, and isn't nearly as effective a runner as Forte.

What the Bears have started doing is quick, short passes. The Bears were throwing really fast slants across the middle that were gashing the Lions for decent chunks of yardage. Of course...that's the Lions...but if the weather is bad, I'd expect them to do more of that.

While i am worried of a let down this week after 4 big wins/big games...i think the weather will favor the pats with the short passes..

DaBruinz said:

But, have you seen that field in Pittsburgh??? Just sayin..

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Yep. Heinz and Soldier are consistently voted the worst fields in the league by players.

The resodding makes Soldier a clearly worse field at this point. WhoTF resods in freezing weather? Chicago's Park Authority (not team) owns the field and is completely clueless.

Bearstuff said:

Yep. Heinz and Soldier are consistently voted the worst fields in the league by players.

...

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That works for us. Since 2001, the Pats are 4--1 at Heinz Field, including two AFC Championship Games...

Bearstuff said:

Yep. Heinz and Soldier are consistently voted the worst fields in the league by players.

The resodding makes Soldier a clearly worse field at this point. WhoTF resods in freezing weather? Chicago's Park Authority (not team) owns the field and is completely clueless.

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You do realize that the LEAGUE has a say in whether or not a field gets re-sodded, yes? Hmm.. No.. I guess you don't. Several years ago, when the Pats still had grass, the league stepped in and forced them to re-sod.. Right about this time of year.. Because the field was so bad..

Of course, Dungy, Polian and the Colts immediately cried foul over it and started making BS claims.. but that is beside the point.

kkpat said:

The Bears will make us look bad THIS Sun. - Jets Insider.com Forums

The JESTER are hoping for Bears to win 100-0 against us. You have to see and feel how they are feeling...

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I like the guy that says, "It's easy to play defense when you're up 17-0 early!"

I wonder if he's seen the breakdown on this forum that shows how much better our defense has played in tight game situations.