Urlacher knows what's up...
Despite taunt, Brian Urlacher a fan of
New Orleans Saints' Reggie Bush
Bears' Urlacher praises Saints' 'dynamic' talent
By Vaughn McClure |Tribune reporter10:37 PM CST, December 10, 2008Bears fans figure Brian Urlacher has every right to pummel Reggie Bush on Thursday night after what happened the last time Bush visited Soldier Field.
During the 2006 NFC championship game, the Saints running back ticked off all of Chicago when he pointed at Urlacher before doing a flip into the end zone to celebrate an 88-yard touchdown reception off a screen pass.
Urlacher certainly remembers—the final score, that is.
"I think we won that game, right? Honestly, to me, that other stuff was so blown out of proportion," Urlacher said. "I don't think Reggie directed that toward me.
"I don't even think about it until somebody brings it up. He was excited about his play and turned around and pointed, I guess. And I was the guy right there. He's lucky I didn't catch him. If I was running at full speed, I would have."
Urlacher used the words "respectable" and "well-spoken" to describe Bush, referring to their off-season encounters at various celebrity events. He has equally as much respect for Bush, the player.
"He's one of the most explosive players in the NFL," Urlacher said. "Any time he's in the game, it changes the way you have to approach their offense because he's so dynamic."
Defensive end Adewale Ogunleye recalled the Bush taunt but didn't make a big deal about it, either.
"I haven't talked to him about it since then," he said. "I said what I had to say that day, got over it. We won the game and, hopefully, he has learned his lesson."
Bush returned to the lineup Nov. 30 after missing five games with a knee injury. The Saints still racked up yards without him and enter Thursday night's game with the league's top-rated offense.
The addition of Bush, however, simply gives quarterback Drew Brees another weapon.
"Brees is the MVP of the league right now, in my mind," Urlacher said. "He has had a great season. He makes everything go for them.
"Obviously, when they run the ball, he's even better. But he's just a great quarterback, period."
Coach Lovie Smith said earlier in the week that the Saints get off the bus passing the ball, not running it. Regardless, Urlacher said the emphasis remains on stopping the run. Bush and Illinois product Pierre Thomas give the Saints a solid one-two punch. And veteran Deuce McAllister is always available for short-yardage situations.
"No, we can't focus on stopping the pass because we tried that against Green Bay, and they [ran all over] us," Urlacher said. "They handed it off every time they saw Cover-2. And they gashed us.
"[New Orleans] is not going to throw it every single down. So we have to stop them when they try to run it, put them in some second-and-long, third-and-long situations where we have a chance to get some pressure on them."
New Orleans ran for a season-best 184 yards Sunday against Atlanta. Last season against the Bears, Thomas made his first career start with Bush sidelined with a knee injury and ran for 105 yards. He also caught 12 passes for 121 yards.
"But he didn't hurt us that badly because we still won the game (33-25)," Urlacher said. "I'm not saying he's not a good running back. He catches the ball well. He runs it well. But we've been pretty sound against the run all season.
"We'll just get in our gaps and get up the field like we've done all season … and, hopefully, tackle better than we have the last couple of games."
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/chi-11-bears-chicagodec11,0,3766881.story
This FanPost was written by a reader and member of Canal Street Chronicles. It does not necessarily reflect the views of CSC and its staff or editors.
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personally...
I think people make way to big of a deal about taunting. It may be a generational thing but I find a big difference between spitting in someone’s face and pointing at someone as you celebrate a TD. I find it hella entertaining too. But maybe that’s just me. I’m sure some of you guys just like a guy to score and go sit down at the bench. That’s fine too but a guy like Reggie gets too much flack considering how he isn’t anything like some of the stuff I’ve seen.
Don't worry I got your back cuz...
What he gets flak for
is that he knows it will draw a penalty, but does it anyway.
But I have a question regarding this: if Bush taunted Urlacher during the play, why wasn’t it called back? Why did a TD that was scored after the infraction still count? The NFL has too many rules that make no sense.
Stupid Bucs...
He’s lucky I didn’t catch him. If I was running at full speed, I would have."
MT
Taking games 1 game at a time, but wearing a cup just in case
oops
forgot to laugh
umm right he was going to catch Bush?
MT
Taking games 1 game at a time, but wearing a cup just in case
He had an angle on him
I thought at the time that he’d catch Bush, but Reggie has afterburners and Urlacher does not.
WHO DAT!
I am going to be a grownup and refrain from extending this line of conversation with profane, belittling comments towards Mr. Urlacher (I even took care to spell his name correctly)
.
.
.
.
.
…but THAT is some bullshit.
(sorry, Mom)
I just wonder, Stujo...
will us winning this game and crushing Urlacher, actually help relieve some of this DEEP family trauma?
I mean it may take a little more…like us beating them in the reg season and then somehow beating them again (don’t ask me how) in this year’s NFC Champ game that we host (proving that Northern outdoor teams can’t figure out how to play in southern domes) and then we go on to win the SB XLII. And maybe it all has to happen while you’re beating your brother at Stratego in the basement of your childhood home. Paging Dr. Freud?
"We're one of the better third-down teams in the league..." Saints linebacker Scott Fujita
by Hans Petersen on Dec 11, 2008 9:18 AM CST up reply actions
I honestly don't get this one
As I recall, Reggie caught ball near the left sideline, then angled across the entire field, scoring near the far right of the end zone. Urlacher was downfield from him and might have cut him off; he took a good angle, but Bush was simply faster than he thought, and was beyond the point of convergence before Urlacher got there. After that it was hopeless.
Is my memory failing with age?
WHO DAT!
that's exactly what happened
And you can see it again today, NFL Network is showing the 2006 NFC championship game at noon, I think.
Conclusion: Brian Urlacher is a big ass liar who needs to get his helmet popped off.
I wonder if he was being sarcastic...
and the reporter didn’t paint it that way. I mean why wouldn’t he be running at full speed to stop a touchdown? Hilarious!
Don't worry I got your back cuz...
What has always bothered me ...
about all of the Bush taunting crap from that incident is this. The bears, and most of the other teams that we played that year, seemed to take special relish in giving reggie a little extra after the play. It wasn’t enough to tackle, they had to give his ankle a little twist, etc… Plus, who knows what is said in the pile after he was being tackled. I don’t blame him at all for a little show-boating at that point.

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