Lesson 1: You can run on the Bears. The Cardinals ran 38 times. The lesson, however, is that you need more than 1.8 yards per carry and no fourth-quarter fumbles.
Lesson 2: It’s a pretty good idea to block Brian Urlacher. The 2005 defensive player of the year felt like he wasn’t blocked in the second half. Whether that was an act of will on his part or poor play by the Arizona offensive line doesn’t matter.
The simpler alternative is blocking Urlacher’s bus as it leaves the team hotel. If team operatives can’t see which bus he got on, block them all. They’re bigger, slower and don’t navigate tight spaces nearly as well.
Lesson 3: Beware the fingers. The fingers that NFL officials seem to be most worried about this year are those Bears center Olin Kreutz likes to wiggle before the snap. NFL teams are learning to fear the four fingers that Tommie Harris, Tank Johnson and others repeatedly hold up on the sidelines as a reminder to each other to play four quarters. Minnesota didn’t. Arizona didn’t. The Bears do.
