New England Patriots 17, Bears 13

A sloppy game- but a good, close one.

Not something for a Bears fan to be too discouraged by. Still, this was a "statement game-" and the statement didn't get made.

There will be calls for Brian Griese, but he's not the answer. Rex Grossman is the Bears' quarterback of the future, and it's important to remember that he's effectively still a rookie. He's probably still a year or two away- and as a result, the Bears are probably a year or two away from reaching the potential of this particular group of players. Still, that doesn't mean that they aren't legitimate Super Bowl threats right now.

In fact, I wouldn't be surprised to see a rematch in January's Super Bowl- which would also, of course, also be a rematch of Superbowl XX.

Minnesota next week.