Five Questions for an Enemy Blogger: Divisional Playoff Edition

This is the first command performance with a non-NFC West opponent, as we did a regular season version of the Bear's Five Questions post in Week 4. This week's enemy blogger is Ryan Wilson of the Bear Fanhouse, who has provided the answer to the following five questions. Be sure to read all the way to the end, as for the Playoff Edition, we've ask our guest "enemy" to provide a final score prediction, and you might be surprised with his response.

Now, on to the questions...

1. Lovie Smith could have started Brian Griese in the season finale, under the guise of resting Rex Grossman, and nobody would have thought twice about it. Instead, he chose to publicly humiliate his starting QB by pulling him in the second half, leading many to speculate just how long a leash Grossman will have on Sunday. What do you make of this obvious head-game between the coach and the player?

Going into the Green Bay game Grossman knew he would only play a quarter or two. At least that's what he said last week right before telling everybody that he really didn't prepare for the Packers. That said, pulling Grossman at halftime wouldn't have been anymore humiliating than leaving him in to set some kind of single-game interception record. And given his uneven play all year, Grossman will be on a short leash, although it would've been a lot shorter if Griese didn't give such an uninspiring second-half performance.

2. The Bears humiliated the Seahawks at the beginning of the season when we were without a healthy Shaun Alexander and Jerramy Stevens. Do you think this will be a re-run of that week 4 matchup or does the miraculous way we beat the Cowboys have Bears fans just a little scared.

Nah, it won't be a Week 4 repeat. Chicago's defense was dominating early in the season (save the Arizona debacle), but lost DT Tommie Harris to injury and he was a big part of why the defensive line was so successful. The Bears still have a very good defense but only rank 21st against opposing teams' No. 1 receivers (which is good for Jackson or Branch), but first against opposing teams' tight ends (not so good for Jerramy Stevens).

3. Josh Brown has made a habit of pulling out last-second, game-winning kicks. Tank Johnson has a nasty reputation for having lots of weapons on hand. When Brown lines up for the game winner on Sunday, proving his ProBowl worthiness, what do you think the chances of him being mysteriously shot like Johnson's friend Willy Posey?

(Scared to answer for fear of Tank Johnson killing me)

Seriously, both Seattle and Chicago have two of the best kickers in the league and it wouldn't surprise me if one of these dudes had a chance to win the game on a last-second kick.

4. Last week the Cowboys failed to go after Seattle's injury depleated secondary, which may have cost them the game. Do you think Grossman will be given the green light to try to go deep on Seattle, knowing that one errant throw could earn him a one-way ticket to the bench?

Lord, I hope not. I wrote on the FanHouse earlier this week that Grossman's best chance at success -- or at least not getting benched -- involved three things:
1. The defense dominates like it did earlier in the regular season;
2. Grossman/Griese don't fumble handoffs to Thomas Jones/Cedric Benson;
3. Devin Hester goes nuts on special teams.

Obviously, the defense will have to play well to give the Bears a chance because you never know which Rex will show up. To mitigate that, Chicago would be wise to test Seattle's run defense with Jones and Benson and only throw in extreme cases. And about that Devin Hester guy...

5. Devin Hester has single-handedly won games for the Bears this season, and Nate Burleson has brought excitement and a bonafide threat to the Seattle return game. What do you think the chances are that this contest will be decided by Special Teams?

Well, like I wrote in the previous question, Chicago having a big night on special teams would help Grossman immensely. Hester is obviously amazing, but Burleson's had a pretty good season too. I think Gould might be a litter better than Brown in terms of overall consistency, but there's no denying Browns' ability to make the high-pressure kicks. In terms of punting, Plackemeier has had a phenomenal rookie season.

If Hester's able to break one, I like the Bears; if the Seahawks can contain him, and stop the run, I wouldn't be surprised if they win by two touchdowns. So, basically, it's comes down to Grossman (but we already knew that). If EVIL REX shows up, I think the Seahawks win 28-6. If GOOD REX makes an appearance, I like the Bears 21-14.

So there you have it, straight from the Bear's mouth.

As I wrote in my post-game piece from Week 4, "if you're going to kick a Bear in the ass, you'd better have a plan for it's teeth." I'm hoping that the Seahawks are heading to Chicago with a detailed plan and an extra-large can of whoop-ass!