It goes without saying that Chicago Bears fans were shocked and saddened by the tragic death of Dave Duerson. Fans were subsequently taken aback when his family decided to sue the NFL over his suicide . In a new twist to the ongoing Duerson saga, a foundation named for him will be helping high school students who suffer head injuries on the field, proving that something good may come out of this tragedy after all.

The four-time Pro-Bowler killed himself last year with a gunshot wound to his chest, and chose the manner of death specifically to preserve his brain. He had wished for his brain to be donated to science to determine if he did indeed suffer from CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy as a result of his years in football.

The Dave Duerson Muncie Community Schools Athletic Safety Fund will benefit middle school and high school students in Muncie, Indiana, where Duerson went to school. The fund will pay for baseline testing of student athletes, and will then pay for subsequent testing for those students who suffer a concussion but cannot afford the testing. Students will not be allowed to return to the field until their post-concussion results match the baseline tests.

It is important to note that concussions and injuries don’t begin in the NFL. By the time a player is drafted, they have played through at least high school and college, meaning that an aggressive player may have already seen eight years of concussions before ever making it to the big time. It is estimated that 60,000 high school athletes across all sports suffer concussions every year.

The foundation named for Duerson is giving students, coaches, and parents a valuable tool. No matter how competitive the player, it is never worth risking a child’s health and safety to keep them in the game. I am not advocating making high school football a no-contact sport, but making sure that kids avoid injuries that could disrupt the rest of their lives is important. All too often, coaches keep kids in after an injury because they insist they are alright to play. High schools don’t have the resources available to them that the NFL and even college teams do; they lack instant access to neurologists, neurosurgeons, and MRIs. The post-concussion testing will help even the playing field in that respect.

It is heartbreaking to think that Dave Duerson didn’t see any way out of his pain other than to take his life. He would, however, be immensely proud that his legacy is doing something now to prevent other players from facing the same problems that he had, and that is what being a star athlete is all about.

Whitney Levon is a Chicago native whose dedication to the Bears goes back to her first football memory; the Bears’ 1985 Super Bowl victory. She has been covering the Chicago Bears and other Chicago teams since 2010.

Phil Emery is attending his first combine as the GM of the Chicago Bears. He has to have a lot of key positions on his mind these days, but h e has the scouting history to make some sound decisions . Even so, many fans are wondering what his focus will be.

Emery will most likely be looking at the field of wide receivers at the combine. The Bears are determined to stick with Jay Cutler as their quarterback, so now they need to find someone to catch him. The Bears cannot rely on just a running game in 2012, and the wide receiver position is key to this.

The Bears lost Sam Hurd when he was arrested on drug charges, which left a hole in the depth of receivers for the offense. Matt Forte’s position with the team is still unclear, so Emery must do what he can to prepare the rest of the offense. To be fair, the offense needed some serious help before the Hurd scandal and the Forte franchise tag debate, so these two only further complicate a bad situation.

Some are saying that Emery should be looking long and hard at Justin Blackmon . It would take some fancy moves to get Blackmon, but the wide receiver from Oklahoma State may be just what the Bears need. There are some concerns about his speed, as rumors swirl that he may not run the 40-yard dash at the combine , but his track record as a college player may be enough to satisfy Emery even if he doesn’t get to see Blackmon’s speed at the combine.

Emery must come away from the combine with a clear picture of what he wants this Bears team to look like in 2012. We may have to resign ourselves to a re-building year, but if Emery makes the right moves now, we can still have a solid season. What he can’t do is repeat the Angelo mistakes of the past. We have to move the ball down the field and protect Jay Cutler. Phil Emery will only win over Bears fans if he gives the new offensive coaching staff some good talent to work with.

Whitney Levon is a Chicago native whose dedication to the Bears goes back to her first football memory; the Bears’ 1985 Super Bowl victory.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

GREEN BAY, Wis. — Ten things to take away from the Chicago Bears’ 35-21 loss Sunday night to the Green Bay Packers:

1. Going into the game, I planned to write about the gap between the wide receivers for the Bears and the Packers, a topic that is worth plenty of discussion in terms of Aaron Rodgers dueling against Jay Cutler in the years to come.

But after the Bears put up a season-high 441 yards offense against the Packers in their loss at Lambeau Field, we first have to examine the collapse of the defense in a game that eliminated Lovie Smith’s team from the postseason for the fourth time in five years. It has to be the primary concern because this is a franchise built around the defense for a coach with a defensive background and a general manager who has had his most success drafting on that side of the ball.

The Bears are supposed to be able to compete against Rodgers and the Packers because of their defense. Prior to this season, the Packers had scored more than 21 points against the Bears on just one occasion. They had answers for Mike McCarthy’s offense.

“They had a great defense,” Rodgers said Sunday night after he had a career-best five touchdown passes before being pulled with 7 minutes, 54 seconds remaining in the game. “They’re very well coached. I have a lot of respect for coach (Lovie) Smith and coach (Rod) Marinelli and the job they’ve done for them. I have played them nine times as a starter and it’s always a difficult game — physical, the mental chess match that goes on between Brian (Urlacher) and myself. They played a lot more one-high than they usually do against us and guys were able to get open and we made some plays down the field.”

Smith and Marinelli got all the offense they could have expected from 32-year-old journeyman quarterback Josh McCown and No. 3 running back Kahlil Bell. The offense controlled the ball for 35:48, 11:36 longer than the Packers had it, and the Bears ran 19 more offensive plays than Green Bay. The defense hadn’t been good enough to carry the team to a victory over the previous month. In this instance, the defense was fresh and it couldn’t even keep the Bears in the game. You name it, it went wrong. They couldn’t get off the field when it counted as Green Bay converted five of nine third downs. The pass rush against an offensive line that was missing both starting tackles was anemic. The coverage was frequently compromised.

“Defensively, just didn’t have it tonight,” Smith said.

It was 14-10 early in the third quarter after left guard Edwin Williams recovered a fumble by Bell in the end zone for a touchdown. The Packers struck back almost immediately with a play that cost Chris Harris his starting job back in October. Jordy Nelson ran a Pump-8. He faked a corner route and then ran a  post ( 8 route). Free safety Major Wright did just what the Packers hoped for — he opened his hips and got turned around. All Nelson had to do was run under the 55-yard bomb from Rodgers for a touchdown, one of a career-high five for the quarterback. It’s the same route Calvin Johnson ran to burn the Bears at Ford Field earlier this season.

“That was a designed play,” Rodgers said. “With Jordy, we were trying to get him on a safety. We were fortunate enough to get two-high coverage there, which really allows him to run free on the safety. On the backside, (strong safety Craig) Steltz was kind of hanging low with (tight end) Jermichael (Finley), who was running a deep crossing pattern. The protection is usually pretty good in that type of play. I had plenty of time, raised up and kind of had a spot on the field I wanted to hit, the far hash. I put the kind of throw I wanted to on it and Jordy did a nice job running underneath it.”

Said Wright: “It’s a hard play because Nelson fakes one way and comes back in the other way. That’s it.”

That pushed the Packers’ lead to 11 and after a three-and-punt, Green Bay mounted a 75-yard drive that was capped by Rodgers 7-yard touchdown pass to James Jones, one of two on the night for him. It was a back shoulder throw and cornerback Zack Bowman, in the Cover-1 Rodgers was describing, was almost helpless. Rodgers had picked the Bears apart earlier on quick slants. There were three touchdown passes on quick slants — a 2-yarder to tight end Finley, a 2-yarder to Jones and a 2-yarder to Nelson.

The slant was there time and time again. Bowman, who was beaten twice on the slant, wasn’t quick enough to make a play on the ball and the receivers are split so wide that there is no way safety help can arrive in time. That’s the way the defense is designed, with the defensive backs taught to take away the outside. It’s why you see opponents hit the Bears in that spot.

“They are playing the fade route,” Finley explained. “And once you play the fade route and you give them the stick, they’re going to jump out the window.”

It happens seemingly year after year in this rivalry.

“It’s a thing of beauty,” Finley said.

Is he surprised the Bears have not adjusted with something vs. the Packers, especially in the red zone?

“If I was the defensive coordinator, I would try to come up with ways to stop it,” he said. “But hey, I can’t fix what are their problems.”

Rodgers said the Packers were careful to include both the quick slant and the back shoulder throw in their game plan in the tight red zone — inside the 10- or 5-yard lines.

“A little bit of both,” he said. “We had good plays called and guys ran good routes. We run a number of fades down in the red zone, and we’ve had some success with those. We mixed it up a little bit and had some success with the slants.”

CHICAGO (AP) — Red Bryant and the Seattle defense made it a tough second half on the Chicago Bears and helped the Seahawks pull away to a convincing 38-14 win Sunday.

Bryant returned an interception 20 yards for the go-ahead TD in the third quarter — one of four picks by the Seattle — and the Seahawks kept their faint playoff hopes alive.

Chicago quarterback Caleb Hanie was hit hard on the play by K.J. Wright and threw the ball right into Bryant’s arms as Seattle (7-7) scored two touchdowns in a 50-second span early in the third quarter to take control.

Brandon Browner returned another interception 42 yards for a TD in the final quarter as the Seahawks outscored Chicago 31-0 in the second half. Seattle had four sacks and also a fumble recovery.

Marshawn Lynch added two touchdown runs for Seattle. Tarvaris Jackson finished 19 of 31 for 227 yards after going 4 of 12 for 51 yards in the first half.

Chicago (7-7) lost its fourth straight and played most of the game without wide receiver Johnny Knox, who was carted off the field after injuring his back while scrambling for a fumble early in the game.

Knox’s injury was the latest setback for the Bears over the last month. Quarterback Jay Cutler (broken thumb) and running back Matt Forte (sprained knee) have been sidelined and this week receiver/special teams player Sam Hurd was arrested on federal drug charges and subsequently cut by the team.

Jackson came out on the first possession of the third quarter and drove the Seahawks 80 yards. He hit a 33-yard pass to Golden Tate, who broke two tackles on the play, and then hooked up on a 43-yarder to Ben Obomanu, setting up Lynch’s 3-yard TD run to tie the game at 14-14.

Seattle got a 33-yard field goal from Steve Hauschka and then iced the game early in the fourth on Jackson’s 2-yard TD pass to Michael Robinson, a score set up by Leon Washington’s 36-yard punt return.

Hanie, who has struggled mightily since Cutler was hurt Nov. 20, kept his feet moving, stepped to the side of the pocket and bought enough time before delivering a 25-yard TD pass to Kahlil Bell with just under two minutes left in the half for a 14-7 lead.

Knox grabbed a pass from Hanie four minutes into the game and lost the ball when Kam Chancellor knocked it out of his hands. As Knox made a diving attempt to retrieve the ball, he was hit hard by Seattle’s Anthony Hargrove during the scramble. Earl Thomas eventually recovered for the Seahawks at the Bears 23.

Knox remained on the ground for several minutes while he was being attended to before he was put on a stretcher and wheeled off the field with what was announced as a mid-back injury. He put his hands to his face and moved his arms while on the stretcher and got an ovation as he was taken off the field.

Jackson then passed to Cameron Morrah for 21 yards to the Bears 1 and from there Chicago’s defense dug in, throwing Washington and Lynch for losses. Lynch caught a short pass on third down and Hauschka came in and kicked a 22-yard field goal.

But the Bears’ Corey Graham was called for a leverage penalty on the play for hopping on the back of a teammate to try and block the field goal attempt, and the penalty gave the Seahawks a first-and-goal from the 2. Lynch then scored on first down— his 10th straight game with a TD — and Seattle had a 7-0 lead.

Later in the opening quarter, Jackson tried to throw from his own end zone but the relentless Julius Peppers hit his arm, the ball popped loose and Israel Idonije recovered for a Chicago touchdown. The play was reviewed and upheld and the Bears had tied the game.

Hanie, who was replaced late in the game by Josh McCown, finished 10 of 23 for 111 yards with three interceptions.

CHICAGO — Red Bryant and the Seattle defense made it a tough second half on the Chicago Bears and helped the Seahawks pull away to a convincing 38-14 win Sunday.

Bryant returned an interception 20 yards for the go-ahead TD in the third quarter — one of four picks by the Seattle — and the Seahawks kept their faint playoff hopes alive.

Chicago quarterback Caleb Hanie was hit hard on the play by K.J. Wright and threw the ball right into Bryant’s arms as Seattle (7-7) scored two touchdowns in a 50-second span early in the third quarter to take control.

Brandon Browner returned another interception 42 yards for a TD in the final quarter as the Seahawks outscored Chicago 31-0 in the second half. Seattle had four sacks and also a fumble recovery.

Marshawn Lynch added two touchdown runs for Seattle. Tarvaris Jackson finished 19 of 31 for 227 yards after going 4 of 12 for 51 yards in the first half.

Chicago (7-7) lost its fourth straight and played most of the game without wide receiver Johnny Knox, who was carted off the field after injuring his back while scrambling for a fumble early in the game.

Knox’s injury was the latest setback for the Bears over the last month. Quarterback Jay Cutler (broken thumb) and running back Matt Forte (sprained knee) have been sidelined and this week receiver/special teams player Sam Hurd was arrested on federal drug charges and subsequently cut by the team.

Jackson came out on the first possession of the third quarter and drove the Seahawks 80 yards. He hit a 33-yard pass to Golden Tate, who broke two tackles on the play, and then hooked up on a 43-yarder to Ben Obomanu, setting up Lynch’s 3-yard TD run to tie the game at 14-14.

Seattle got a 33-yard field goal from Steve Hauschka and then iced the game early in the fourth on Jackson’s 2-yard TD pass to Michael Robinson, a score set up by Leon Washington’s 36-yard punt return.

Hanie, who has struggled mightily since Cutler was hurt Nov. 20, kept his feet moving, stepped to the side of the pocket and bought enough time before delivering a 25-yard TD pass to Kahlil Bell with just under two minutes left in the half for a 14-7 lead.

Knox grabbed a pass from Hanie four minutes into the game and lost the ball when Kam Chancellor knocked it out of his hands. As Knox made a diving attempt to retrieve the ball, he was hit hard by Seattle’s Anthony Hargrove during the scramble. Earl Thomas eventually recovered for the Seahawks at the Bears 23.

Knox remained on the ground for several minutes while he was being attended to before he was put on a stretcher and wheeled off the field with what was announced as a mid-back injury. He put his hands to his face and moved his arms while on the stretcher and got an ovation as he was taken off the field.

Jackson then passed to Cameron Morrah for 21 yards to the Bears 1 and from there Chicago’s defense dug in, throwing Washington and Lynch for losses. Lynch caught a short pass on third down and Hauschka came in and kicked a 22-yard field goal.

But the Bears‘ Corey Graham was called for a leverage penalty on the play for hopping on the back of a teammate to try and block the field goal attempt, and the penalty gave the Seahawks a first-and-goal from the 2. Lynch then scored on first down— his 10th straight game with a TD — and Seattle had a 7-0 lead.

Later in the opening quarter, Jackson tried to throw from his own end zone but the relentless Julius Peppers hit his arm, the ball popped loose and Israel Idonije recovered for a Chicago touchdown. The play was reviewed and upheld and the Bears had tied the game.

Hanie, who was replaced late in the game by Josh McCown, finished 10 of 23 for 111 yards with three interceptions.

CHICAGO (AP)—Red Bryant and the Seattle defense made it a tough second
half on the Chicago Bears and helped the Seahawks pull away to a convincing
38-14 win Sunday.

Bryant returned an interception 20 yards for the go-ahead TD in the third
quarter—one of four picks by the Seattle—and the Seahawks kept their faint
playoff hopes alive.

Chicago quarterback Caleb Hanie was hit hard on the play by K.J. Wright and
threw the ball right into Bryant’s arms as Seattle (7-7) scored two touchdowns
in a 50-second span early in the third quarter to take control.

Brandon Browner returned another interception 42 yards for a TD in the final
quarter as the Seahawks outscored Chicago 31-0 in the second half. Seattle had
four sacks and also a fumble recovery.

Marshawn Lynch added two touchdown runs for Seattle. Tarvaris Jackson
finished 19 of 31 for 227 yards after going 4 of 12 for 51 yards in the first
half.

Chicago (7-7) lost its fourth straight and played most of the game without
wide receiver Johnny Knox, who was carted off the field after injuring his back
while scrambling for a fumble early in the game.

Knox’s injury was the latest setback for the Bears over the last month.
Quarterback Jay Cutler (broken thumb) and running back Matt Forte (sprained
knee) have been sidelined and this week receiver/special teams player Sam Hurd
was arrested on federal drug charges and subsequently cut by the team.

Jackson came out on the first possession of the third quarter and drove the
Seahawks 80 yards. He hit a 33-yard pass to Golden Tate, who broke two tackles
on the play, and then hooked up on a 43-yarder to Ben Obomanu, setting up
Lynch’s 3-yard TD run to tie the game at 14-14.

Seattle got a 33-yard field goal from Steve Hauschka and then iced the game
early in the fourth on Jackson’s 2-yard TD pass to Michael Robinson, a score set
up by Leon Washington’s 36-yard punt return.

Hanie, who has struggled mightily since Cutler was hurt Nov. 20, kept his
feet moving, stepped to the side of the pocket and bought enough time before
delivering a 25-yard TD pass to Kahlil Bell with just under two minutes left in
the half for a 14-7 lead.

Knox grabbed a pass from Hanie four minutes into the game and lost the ball
when Kam Chancellor knocked it out of his hands. As Knox made a diving attempt
to retrieve the ball, he was hit hard by Seattle’s Anthony Hargrove during the
scramble. Earl Thomas eventually recovered for the Seahawks at the Bears 23.

Knox remained on the ground for several minutes while he was being attended
to before he was put on a stretcher and wheeled off the field with what was
announced as a mid-back injury. He put his hands to his face and moved his arms
while on the stretcher and got an ovation as he was taken off the field.

Jackson then passed to Cameron Morrah for 21 yards to the Bears 1 and from
there Chicago’s defense dug in, throwing Washington and Lynch for losses. Lynch
caught a short pass on third down and Hauschka came in and kicked a 22-yard
field goal.

But the Bears’ Corey Graham was called for a leverage penalty on the play
for hopping on the back of a teammate to try and block the field goal attempt,
and the penalty gave the Seahawks a first-and-goal from the 2. Lynch then scored
on first down— his 10th straight game with a TD—and Seattle had a 7-0 lead.

Later in the opening quarter, Jackson tried to throw from his own end zone
but the relentless Julius Peppers hit his arm, the ball popped loose and Israel
Idonije recovered for a Chicago touchdown. The play was reviewed and upheld and
the Bears had tied the game.

Hanie, who was replaced late in the game by Josh McCown, finished 10 of 23
for 111 yards with three interceptions.

CHICAGO — Chicago Bears receiver Johnny Knox was taken from the field on a cart with a mid-back injury in the opening minutes against the Seattle Seahawks and left the game.

Knox had just caught a pass from Caleb Hanie about four minutes into Sunday’s game when Kam Chancellor poked the ball out of his hands. As Knox made a diving attempt to retrieve the ball, he was hit by Anthony Hargrove and stayed down for close to 10 minutes while being tended to by medical personnel.

He was eventually placed on a stretcher and taken from the field on a cart, putting his hands over his face and wiggling his fingers as he left the field.

The Seahawks’ Earl Thomas recovered the fumble at the Chicago 23.

Late in the half, Bears safety Chris Conte suffered a foot injury trying to tackle Seattle’s Justin Forsett and left the game.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

The Bears hope he will return this year. So does Cutler, but he wasn’t making any guarantees.

“I’ve got to be smart about it,” he said. “Obviously, I’d want to play next week if they’d allow me. I don’t think that’s going to be in the cards. It could be I’m done for the season. I just have to be smart about it and realize that there is a long-term picture here. At the same point, I want to be out there and my teammates want me to be out there.”

Cutler was injured trying to help tackle Antoine Cason on an interception return in the fourth quarter of a 31-20 victory over the Chargers, Cutler had three screws and two pins surgically inserted into his throwing hand three days later in Vail, Colo.

He said the thumb is “structurally sound” and the screws will stay in. He said the pins come out after three to 10 weeks.

Cutler also said he did not suffer any ligament damage, but did hyperextend and dislocate it. He has started rehabilitation and is trying to get the swelling to go down, but he expects to lose some flexibility in his thumb.

He’s not sure when he’ll be able to start throwing, let alone play.

“We’ll have to take it week by week, take some X-rays and CT scans the next couple weeks and see if the bone’s healing like it should be,” Cutler said. “I don’t want to put a real number on it because I just don’t know.”

With Cutler sidelined, the Bears turned to Caleb Hanie last week and the results were mixed.

Making his first start, Hanie threw three interceptions in the first half and flubbed a spike in the closing seconds of a 25-20 loss at Oakland, resulting in a game-ending intentional grounding call. He also did some things reasonably well, throwing for 254 yards and two touchdowns while running for 50 yards on five attempts, but Chicago (7-4) saw a five-game win streak end.

With stars Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher anchoring the defense and Devin Hester leading one of the top special-teams units, the Bears believe they have enough to get by. It would help if they had their starting quarterback, though.

A lot.

Cutler actually finished that game against San Diego and wound up with 286 yards passing. He also threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, but the only play anyone was talking about afterward was this one.

With an 11-point lead against San Diego and the ball on the Chargers 30, Cutler was trying to hit Johnny Knox, but the receiver slipped. Cason picked off the ball at the 20 and returned it 64 yards before being pushed out of bounds by Matt Forte at the Bears 16.

Cutler helped prevent a touchdown on the return, but paid a heavy price. He raced over and got knocked to the ground by linebacker Donald Butler as he pushed Cason with his right hand, which smacked the turf as he fell. Major Wright intercepted Philip Rivers’ throw in the end zone three plays later, and the Bears ran 71/2 minutes off the clock on the next possession, with Cutler completing two passes on the drive, to Matt Spaeth and Forte.

Cutler did not realize at first that he was injured.

“I was (ticked) at Johnny about the pick so coming off the field I didn’t really notice,” said Cutler, who thought Butler grabbed his facemask. “I was more worried about talking to him in a calm manner. After I settled down and went back on the field, I knew there was something definitely wrong and it was kind of serious. I didn’t really imagine I’d have to have surgery.”

He said it was “really uncomfortable” but kept playing. He informed trainers something was wrong during a timeout on the Bears’ long possession but told them, “We’ll just have to deal with it after the game.”

And beyond.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

There’s a lot of talk about the many injuries plaguing the Oakland Raiders going into the game at Oakland on Sunday, November 27, against the Chicago Bears. Here is a look at the latest update on injured players, and who should be on the field in week 12.

Darrius Heyward-Bey(notes)

Wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey took a horrific hit last Sunday in Minnesota, enough to knock his helmet off, and was said to have suffered a concussion. Heyward-Bey was on the field at practice today, running around, throwing balls and looking good. Of all the injured players, he is the most likely to be in the game against the Bears this Sunday. The Silver and Black were looking thin as far as receivers, and this is definitely a piece of great news.

Darren McFadden(notes)

It’s getting to the point where I don’t even want to bring the name McFadden up. He’s been out since he left the game against the Kansas City Chiefs in week seven, and although he was said to be out of the boot as much as eleven days ago, he wasn’t even on the sidelines at practice today. The latest rumor is that he’ll be out for the game against the Miami Dolphins as well.

Jacoby Ford(notes)

Ford suffered an ankle sprain in the game against the San Diego Chargers, and though he was said to be out the boot, he did not practice on Friday and is definitely out for Sunday’s game

Sebastian Janikowski(notes)

Definitely more good news here, in that kicker Sebastian Janikowski is not on the injured list at all, and is likely back at 100%.

Denarius Moore(notes)

Wide receiver Denarius Moore is listed as questionable, but he was able to get out and run around at practice on Friday. Head coach Hue Jackson said he’s taking it day by day, and the Raiders could certainly use another healthy receiver against the Bears. Jackson reiterated after practice that Terrelle Pryor(notes) is not an option in the receiver position. Let’s hope more good news is forthcoming for Moore.

Another player that is definitely out is defensive end Jarvis Moss(notes), and running back Taiwan Jones(notes) is listed as questionable. The Chicago Bears injury list looks especially short when compared to the Raiders. We know quarterback Jay Cutler(notes) is out with a broken thumb, and that could be a big advantage for Oakland. Their wide receiver, Devin Hester(notes), is listed as probable with a shin injury, and is said to likely be in the game for the Bears.

No matter what the injuries or challenges the Raiders face on Sunday, we have to remember how tough and resilient this team is, and with so many great players that will be on the field in addition to all of the positive energy at O.co Coliseum, all I can say is, “Just win baby!”

K.C. Dermody grew up in the Bay Area of California, and has been an Oakland Raiders fan from the time she could walk. She has continued her loyalty to the team through its many ups and downs over the decades, and has been privileged to meet several of her favorite players, including famed quarterback, Jim Plunkett . Follow her at www.facebook.com/KCDermodyWriter or on Twitter @kcdermody.

More from this contributor:

Oakland Raiders and Chicago Bears, Fan’s Take: Three in a Row for the Silver and Black?

Oakland Raiders Defeat the Minnesota Vikings, 27-21: Fan Reaction

Three of the Greatest Oakland Raiders Who Haven’t Been Inducted into the Hall of Fame: Fan’s Take

Oakland Raiders Fan: Fans Against Violence Taking Back the Stands for All Sports

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

LAKE FOREST — Defensive end Julius Peppers has been spotted shifting to the inside a little more of late, throwing offenses off for brief stretches, while helping a struggling defense grow back into a weekly threat.

And as it turns out, the decision of when to slide in and change things up during a game has settled onto the broad shoulders of Peppers, not his coaches.

“Whenever he feels like it, he’s like: ‘Hey, let’s switch. Let me go inside this play.’ I just go, ‘OK’,” defensive tackle Anthony Adams said. “We’ve got a lot of unselfish players on this team. We work on it in practice, in walk-throughs. It’s not anything new, but he’s just making it work a little more nowadays.”

Peppers, who practiced Thursday for the first time in nearly a month, has battled a knee injury most of the season, but it hasn’t slowed him down. The six-time Pro Bowler and 10th-year pro now has six sacks, tied for 13th in the league. He has four of them during the team’s four-game win streak.

“You never know when it’s going to start working for you. You’ve just got to keep at it and they’ll come,” Peppers said after Thursday’s practice. “It’s no particular one thing that’s making it happen right now. We’re all working well together, and we’re making it work.”

In Sunday’s 37-13 win over Detroit, Peppers switched spots with the defensive tackle five times, four coming on third-down plays. He charged in for a sack on one, and had a quarterback pressure on another. He also finished with a forced fumble, a tackle for a loss and a pass defense.

“You can’t ever lose track of Julius Peppers,” Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford said.

San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers, the Bears’ next foe, knows that all too well. He has known all about Peppers since his college days.

“He’s a great player,” Rivers said. “Back in 2000, I faced him for the first time. It was N.C. State against North Carolina, and obviously he was a great player then.

“He’s obviously all over the field. Some of the plays you see him make … he rushes, rushes, rushes, and then he runs from one side of the field to the other to make a tackle for a 2-, 3-yard gain. He’s obviously a big impact player for them.”

And Rivers’ coach, Norv Turner, knows you have to account for Peppers on every play, whether he’s inside or out.

“I think they’re giving offenses a lot of different looks and problems with different fronts and the movement up there,” Turner said. “That defense is playing extremely fast, and you can tell they’re playing with great confidence.”

Chicago defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli stressed the fact that they do work on the shifts in practice while game-planning for a team. However, he also admitted he trusts Peppers to pick the right times on game day.

Not everybody is a big fan of the shifts up front. Bears down-lineman Henry Melton, who had the team’s other sack last week while playing inside, has had to adjust to life on the outside on occasion. A switch he insists is not easy to make.

“The only thing is I get pushed outside. It’s a whole ‘nother ballgame when I get to rush from the outside. I get tired, and he gets to go have fun in there,” Melton said with a smile. “I get chipped. I get all the blocks he’s supposed to get because they don’t think he’s going inside. I’m like: ‘Can I go back inside, please?’ ”

He usually gets to soon enough. But he never knows when Peppers is going to decide to change things up again. As long as it’s working, he’ll just have to deal with it.

“It’s OK,” Melton said. “Once the play gets going, there’s a lot of panic because all of a sudden, here’s this disruptive force, and he’s inside there.

“He just does what he’s supposed to be doing: Making plays to help this team win.”

Bears reporter Jay Taft can be reached at 815-987-1384 or jtaft@rrstar.com.

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Nearly halfway through the season, the Chicago Bears finally got a glimpse of the passing combination they had imagined.

On Oct. 23, veteran Roy Williams hauled in four passes for 59 yards and his first touchdown in a 24-18 victory over Tampa Bay.

Chicago, on a bye this past weekend, signed Williams to a one-year, $2.46 million deal to give quarterback Jay Cutler a taller red-zone target and potential No. 1 receiver threat. But in the first five games, the two hooked up only six times for 81 yards. In the last two games, Williams has one more catch for 28 more yards than he had in the first five.

“We’re getting there,” Cutler said. “It doesn’t happen in one, two games. It takes some time and takes practices and a lot of work and repetition and just getting a feel for what he’s going to do on the field and where I want the ball.”

With slot receiver Earl Bennett returning to play against the Eagles on Monday night, the Bears will have their full wide receiver corps healthy for the first time since the opener.

“So we’ve got some pieces coming back,” Cutler said. “[Bennett] is very stable. He’s going to be in the right spot. He’s going to make plays after the catch.

“He’s an every down receiver that I would love to see back on the field.”

The Bears hope that a full and healthy receiver corps lets the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Williams get open more in the red zone. He still hasn’t made a red-zone TD, and that was supposed to be his strength.

“Roy is a bigger receiver that is really physical with corners that gives you an opportunity in certain routes that are a little bit more difficult for smaller guys, like fades at the goal line, those kinds of things,” offensive coordinator Mike Martz said. “He gives us a little added dimension at the receiver position that’s helpful.”

Before the season, Martz said he thought Williams was capable of 70 catches. Later, Martz revised that to say Williams and backup Johnny Knox were capable of 70 to 80 catches.

The numbers might be irrelevant now, with running back Matt Forte dominating the Bears offense.

Williams battled through a groin strain early in the season. He deemed himself fit to play three weeks ago and has been building momentum.

“Confidence is big in anybody, in anybody in the world, in any occupation,” Williams said. “When you feel good, you play good.”

Dropped passes have plagued Williams at times, and he had one early against Tampa Bay on Oct. 23. However, he recovered for a 25-yard touchdown catch, his first TD in 14 games.

“Improvement – you wanted to see that from Roy,” coach Lovie Smith said. “We knew coming in, a couple of nagging injuries, those things, but he played well. And Roy will tell you he can’t drop that ball. But, you know, it happens sometimes.

“You’ve got to be able to put that behind and finish strong, which he did. He did a good job of blocking, too.”

Williams threw a block that helped spring Forte on a 32-yard touchdown run in the Tampa Bay game.