Since when did ANYONE ever conceive of the notion of correlating the Chicago Bears, arguably the NFL's most storied franchise, with the the classic musical "Grease"?

The answer came in the form of six "Gross, man!" interceptions and a 1-2 start to the season. Such an abomination was bound to force Lovie Smith's hand with all the talent this team has. Not returning to the Super Bowl wouldn't mean the return of Harry Carey in the Japanese suicide form, but missing the playoffs? Well, that's another story.

Whilst watching preseason games, I had a slight inkling of what I might see occur about the third or fourth ballgame. Grossman's gaffes behind center at simply receiving snaps from one of the finest centers in the game in Olin Kruetz during the Indianapolis game made me realize that if people weren't willing to accept that he can't possibly lead our beloved team to the promised land, they couldn't possibly be expected to afford the ticket for the gravy train to Glendale.

This prediction came true. In San Diego, Grossman completed only 12 of 23 passes for 145 yards and an interception. He also dropped a ball while scrambling out of the pocket in a gesture which would surely cause Jim McMahan to hurl. Against the Kansas City, he was 20 of 34 for only 160 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions.

And then, there was last week's ballbuster versus Dallas: 15 of 33 and three interceptions.

While Rex completed better than 50% of his passes in the first two games, he was averaging around five yards or so per pass, not enough to fool the opposing defense on the ratio of passes to running plays. It appears that Rex, with his immobility, bated defenders to gang up on the line of scrimmage, which not only made life difficult on the running game, but on him to properly manuever in the NFL's version of No Man's Land. An offensive line can only serve as a dam for so long before the river's powerful rapids (defense) break through.

Change was needed. And, it was inevitable. Week Three served as the ultimate causality for Rex's demotion as it conveyed the message that a lack of consistancy doesn't ultimately translate to success in the NFL.

So, what better to ignite a stagnant Chicago offense caused most obstensibly by lagging quarterback play than to start a fire.

A Griese fire, that is.

I was most impressed by Brian Griese's mobility and pocket presence in preseason. Granted, he didn't play first team defenses, but this is a former Pro Bowler here with extensive starting experience. He is one of the most fundamentally-sound quarterbacks in the league, a true product of his teacher and father, Bob Griese. And, he has poise and a competitive fire that appears a tad too faint within Rex, as is apparent by Grossman's body language and reactions to public scrutiny and self analyses.

While I'm not willing to say that Brian Griese is the permanent solution to the Bears' ultimate problem, I think it's safe to say that our depth below the original top gun behind center will prove most beneficial for the boys. This change will not only light a fire in an offense which is puttering from points A to B, but also should give it confidence in the competence in its field director. Simply put, Brian Griese won't lose football games because he can't complete passes or handle snaps. That alone is a great comfort to me, and hopefully to many of you as well.