Bears question penalty call after scuffle

The day after an unnecessary-roughness call on Charles Tillman affected the outcome in a 27-24 loss to Tampa Bay, the Bears still wondered why an offsetting penalty wasn't assessed on Buccaneers offensive ...

[Susan]

YAY!! I have been unhappy ever since that call was made on Tillman, and then some crummy columnists called for his head.

The call was garbage. The loss was a team effort. I am happy to see my favorite Bear vindicated.

[Arnie]

One thing I miss about this Bears team is that in the past when they came across someone like Trueblood, there would be retaliation...not in the way Tillman did, but just constant throughout the game. Several years ago before "Gentleman" Lovie took over Dwayne Rudd was playing linebacker for the Vikings, and he had gone way overboard with cheap shots and taunting. The next time they played the Viking, guys like Big Cat and Chris Villareal basically beat Rudd into submission throughout the game that by the fourth quarter he actually asked the Viking's staff to take him out of the game, he couldn't handle it anymore and was afraid for his safety.

Trueblood had been doing stuff like that the whole game, and the Bears didn't do much about it until the very end when they couldn't control themselves anymore. I'm sorry, but football is not a gentleman's sport, and trying to make your players behave like gentleman is wrong. Winning teams play with a mean streak (not cheap shots, or late hits) and asking them to be "nice" can only last for so long and then eventually results in something like what happened at the end of the game on Sunday.

[TeePee]

Quit the whining, Bears. Maybe if you would have played the game with a killer instinct, you would not have been in that position to lose the game. The Bears have not been the same since Rivera left. This coaching staff and GM has ruined this team.

[Rocket Man]

Lovie

You are building your team around players made out of quick sand. Stop defending them like they are your son who might have done something stupid like smoking pot. You have a very undisciplined team. Too bad. We all had such high hopes for you and the Bears. Once again, Sunday ends in frustration for those who long for the Paytons, Ditkas, Hamptons, and Fenciks of the world to return to Chicago football.

[AmazingGrace]

"TeePeee" -- Bears fans do not "WHINE" - we OBJECT when there are blatant decisions to undermine their play. Trueblood by reputation is a DIRTY PLAYER, and somewhere, somehow, some NFL player that is meaner than him will take him out. Go Tillman, and the rest of the Bears!!

[allchifan]

Smith is clueless and has an undisciplined team following his lead...why worry.....it will just get better by itself...Smith is an idiot, hired by another idiot, Jerry, and followed by two more, Turner and Babich...we were outcoached, outplayed....things have to change

[richard in chandler az]

You can see the refs feet watching Trueblood hit AO over and over, that official should be fired! He failed to do his job plain and simple!

[AmazingGrace]

Thank you, Richard... A wise man you are.
If they can suspend and penalize players and coaches for "bad" behavior, some action needs to be created for the ref's in the game.-- Chandler, huh? Go, SunDevils!(class of '76)

[boohoo]

The Bears blew this game plain and simple...how typical that they are trying to place blame elsewhere. If they need someone to blame, all they have to do is look in the mirror.

[John]

I have been playing or coaching the lovely game of football for the better part of the last 25 years, and I am only 33 years of age. I saw the play, watched it over and over again. Yes, Trueblood hit him, no question. Did the Refs see it, more than likely not. Was it a shitty call, no question. Was Tillman trying to defend his teammate, no question about it. One thing I've learned about this game, and about the life, the second hit always gets caught! Having played O-Line, I have been punched, eye gouged (spelling), bit, kicked, spit on, scratched and other things. I have never resorted to retaliation other than by means of between the whistles! Thats how the game is played, not with Cheap shots, not with extra curricular activity, with good old fashioned football.

I have always been as mean as hell between the whistles. I might have held a defensive linemen or two (not really but they always said I did hence their anger) but never a punch, never a leg whip, never anything to draw a flag or getting kicked out of game.

All I am saying is, if the D-Line had any balls they would have just beat the crap out of him legally, as it was pointed out in an above post, run at him, give him a bull rush, treat him like the clown he is! Those that cheat, are the ones that are cowards and can't do it the right way. Good luck bears, you gotta get meaner, thats how you win football games, smarts and attitude!

[TSS]

It appears based on the first 3 games the Bears have a pattern of dirty play. The only one they should blame are themselves. They were outplayed in the 4th quarter and in overtime and lost.

[Malcolm]

allchifan must be watching a different team than me if he thinks Lovie is an idiot. That man is one heck of a coach. His teams have performed all but last year when they were all hurt.

[PJW]

The overall penalties reflect a poorly coached team.

[Strut2k]

Players should be questioning why they focused on pushing and shoving instead of winning the game.

[Vic]

Who cares about the penalty? Stop whining!!

[Bob Dylan]

Quit crying. What Tillman did was wrong and the penalty should have been called. If you don't think that Kreutz does things in the pile you are sadly mistaken.

[bucem01]

Did anyone see the begining of the game?opening kickoff adrain peterson cheapshots adam haward.next play alex brown shoves donald penn.penn retaliates and gets a personal foul?where's your offsetting penalties there eh?of course now we gotta pass and bears get 3 out of it!!the enforcer trueblood waits till the last play and gets his shots in baby!!to bad the bears are stupid to fall for it.what goes around comes around!

[Gimy]

da bears SHOULD be p2ssed, it was a horrible HORRIBLE call by the refs. you can't possibly give the bucs another chance when all tillman did was run over and barely PUSH the pile. if anything, no penalty on anybody. but on the bears, not on the guy who was doing the aggressive behavior? nope, no call on the guy playing prison patty cake to Ogunleye...nah. fine and a one game suspension for Trueblood.

[blitz krieg]

we lost don't make excuses. tillman should know better. 6-10 coming! we don't have a quarterback.

[Nobama 08]

Get over it, the Bears SUCK. Be lucky to win 4 games this year.