Obama to Honor Chicago Bears— the '85 Bears

Sports analysts agog after Denver Broncos' latest victory

(NEWSER) - After a stunning performance in yesterday's last-minute 13-10 victory against the Chicago Bears, sports commentators are wondering if Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow really is capable of miracles.

• Declaring Tebow his "personal quarterback and savior," Jeff Neuman at RealClearSports catalogs five miracles made in last night's game. "Zero points on his team's first 11 possessions—and then three scores on their last three, aided by a coach's weird strategy, thin air, a fumble, and a total brain cramp by a veteran running back. Truly, Tim Tebow works in mysterious ways."
• Writing for the Montreal Gazette , Ed Willes also drops the M-word, wondering if "we've ever seen a run like this in the last 50 years of sports: an athlete who's at once both divisive and irresistibly charismatic; an athlete who's in the miracle business every week; an athlete who transcends everything around him."

Tampa, Chicago will play league's fifth regular-season game at Wembley

(AP) - With the lockout over, the NFL will return to London for a fifth straight year. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will play the Chicago Bears at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 23 in the fifth regular-season game in the British capital. The game had been under threat because of negotiations over a new labor agreement between the league and its locked-out players. The two sides announced a 10-year labor deal yesterday to end the dispute. More»

Local-team upsets match to an 8% upswing in abuse

(NEWSER) - Losses by local NFL teams may trigger episodes of domestic violence among their fans, a new study suggests. Researchers examined domestic violence reports in 1995-2006 and found that upsets of home teams matched up with an 8% bump in incidents of domestic violence. The surge in violence almost doubled when traditional rivals, such the Bears and Packers, squared off. More»

Invite us when we don't win, says Harrison, who declined in '06, too

(NEWSER) - Linebacker James Harrison, the NFL defensive player of the year and a key cog in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Super Bowl victory this year, won’t accompany his team to the White House this week, WTAE-TV reports. Harrison also turned down the honor when Pittsburgh won in 2006. “If you want to see the Pittsburgh Steelers,” Harrison said, “invite us when we don’t win the Super Bowl.” More»

Former NFL star Perry was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré last year

(NEWSER) - William "the Refrigerator" Perry is in serious condition at a South Carolina hospital, the Chicago Tribune reports. The former Bears defensive tackle was diagnosed last year with Guillain-Barré, a syndrome that causes inflamed nerves and weakness. The star of the 1986 Super Bowl "is improving every day and they hope he is released in a week or two," says his agent. More»