Bears Blitz

Sam Hurd Scandal Will Be Too Distracting for Chicago Bears to Overcome

Published by Tim Daniels on December 16, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

In the heat of a playoff race, the Chicago Bears were blindsided by a drug scandal involving wide receiver Sam Hurd. Head coach Lovie Smith called the incident a “total surprise,” according to the Associated Press, and it might turn out to be the final nail in Chicago’s postseason coffin.

“Sam wasn’t in meetings this morning and that’s how from there of course we started searching trying to find out why a player wouldn’t be here,” Smith said. “There was no tipoff, didn’t know it was coming.”

The Bears find themselves one game behind the Detroit Lions with three games left to play. They were already riding a three-game losing streak following injuries to star offensive players Jay Cutler and Matt Forte, and now they have to deal with what could turn out to be a major story.

While fans and television analysts tend to look down on clichés, teams in a tight playoff race truly attempt to take it one game at a time. When every play could end up being the difference between a playoff trip and sitting home in January, any distraction is a problem.

A distraction of this size, which seemingly came out of nowhere, will be difficult to refocus from in the span of four days—even for a tough-minded team like the Bears.

Sunday’s home game wasn’t going to be easy before word of the arrest broke as the Bears face the surging Seattle Seahawks. Following that game, they finish the regular season with back-to-back road games. Chicago is just 2-4 outside of Soldier Field in 2011.

It’s a situation that rubs salt in an already deep wound as it begins to look more and more like the Bears will let a 7-3 start slip away. Football is a game of momentum and it’s clearly working against the “Monsters of the Midway.”

If there’s any glimmer of hope, it’s linebacker Brian Urlacher.

He’s one of the NFL‘s best leaders, so if anybody can get a team back on the right track to victory, it’s Urlacher. He faces an uphill battle, though. The media is going to prefer talking about the Hurd situation in every session for the time being, especially as the news continues to develop.

No matter how often the Bears insist they are only worrying about the Seahawks, the scandal will continue to rear its ugly head. Final judgment should be reserved until Hurd gets a chance to tell his side of the story, but the evidence is mounting.

That’s tough for any professional sports team to deal with, particularly one that’s facing virtual must-win situations from now until season’s end.