Lovie Smith Gets Two-Year Contract Extension from the Chicago Bears

Before I was an Indianapolis Colts fan, before there even was such a thing as an Indianapolis Colt, I cut my sports teeth on the Chicago Bears. Back then, in the early 1980s, Walter Payton was just about the only good thing that the Bears had going for them, and he was hamstrung by the lack of talent around him. As we entered the middle part of the decade, though, and as the Colts stealthily slipped out of Baltimore, Bears coach Mike Ditka was assembling the pieces and the philosophy and the attitude that would turn the 1985 Bears into a monster for the ages. Since Ditka left the team in 1992, the Bears have been searching for their leader. Oh, Dave Wannstedt gave it a good go, but he didn't really live up to expectations. Dick Jauron had a nice season in 2001, but it wasn't enough. And then, in 2004, Lovie Smith was handed a few pounds of raw fish and told to re-make the bears into the roaring Bears, and he's been a polarizing figure ever since. With his new two-year contract extension through 2013, the rift over Lovie will surely continue.

I can certainly understand some of the frustration with Lovie, as there have been lean seasons over the past eight years. He sometimes seems intent on taking over the whole show on the defensive side of the ball, alternately calling the shots himself or hiring one of his lackeys as coordinator (see Bob Babich), before finally giving it up to someone real (Rod Marinelli), perhaps in order to save his own hide. His blow up with Ron Rivera before Super Bowl XLI was fairly well-publicized and may have contributed significantly to the Colts' victory, and for that I'm grateful. His teams have also been lackluster on offense, but every Bears team is, and he hasn't had the most stunning personnel with whom to work. Besides, scoring points is on Mike Martz's shoulders now.

I admittedly don't follow the Bears as closely as I used to, or as closely as I follow the Colts. It seems that, from my seat in central Indiana, though, that Smith has led Chicago to some pretty impressive seasonal records and taken them far into the playoffs on a fairly regular basis. It is the nature of sports fans to always want more (Why does Peyton Manning only have one ring?!?!?), but the criticism that Lovie can't win the big game is a little disingenuous. It's like saying that Derek Jeter is more valuable than A-Rod because Jetes made big play or delivered a slap bunt late in a World Series game while Alex only managed to hit 50+ bombs during the regular season. Without A-Rod or Lovie, it's quite possible that their teams wouldn't have any big games to win or lose.

As for me, I'm bummed that the Colts didn't get their customary 12 wins this past season. Maybe an 18-game schedule would have helped in that regard. But the Bears fan in me will take a few double-digit win seasons per decade, with a couple of NFC Championship games and maybe a Super Bowl sprinkled in here or there, any time. I cringe to think what Indy will look like a few years after Peyton and company leave town. I probably won't Lovie that situation as much as I do the current Bears.