Mike Nadel: For bum-turned-hero Grossman, joy trumps vindication
If you were Rex Grossman, would you have been able to resist looking into all of those television cameras and shouting: "Take that, you (bleeps)!"?
Bless his heart, Rex resisted.
After throwing a clutch touchdown pass to rescue his Chicago Bears, Grossman leaped into the arms of offensive tackle John Tait, pumped his fist and ran to the sideline to be congratulated by the teammates who never had lost faith in him.
Then, in his brief interview session after Sunday's 17-6 victory over the Oakland Raiders, he talked about what the victory meant to the Bears. As for his personal feelings, he offered only that they were "indescribable." Asked if he felt like saying, "I told you so," he issued a terse response:
"No."
Maybe you believe Rex is a stiff who just got lucky one time. Or maybe you think he's been criticized unfairly and still can be a good NFL quarterback. Regardless, unless you are colder than a Chicago winter, you should be at least a little happy for the man.
"You have to be," team captain Olin Kreutz said. "You couldn't write that story any better."
Seven weeks after losing his job to journeyman Brian Griese, nine months after humiliating himself in the Super Bowl and one season after many Bears fans first started booing him, Grossman replaced an injured Griese, shook off the rust and delivered a perfect 59-yard strike to Bernard Berrian with 3:11 to go.
"Rex has not shut it down or moped around," Kreutz said. "All the criticism he took, and being demoted, he could have said: 'Screw it, screw the team.' But he didn't.
"I hope people appreciate the fact that he never quit on the team. He was professional. He worked hard, and he never let getting demoted affect the team. You earn your respect slowly in the NFL, and he's earned it."
With those words, you get some insight into Grossman's popularity in the locker room. His teammates were genuinely sad for him when he got benched and genuinely thrilled for him as Berrian crossed the goal line.
"Even at his lowest point, Rex was a guy you could count on," Tait said. "And that speaks a lot about him and his character."
For me, Grossman's character never was at issue, because he kept bouncing back from the most intense scrutiny I've ever seen an athlete face. His arm strength wasn't at issue, either; as Berrian said: "He can throw it a mile."
His decision-making ability and psyche were the big question marks -- and they still will be if coach Lovie Smith opts to start Grossman next Sunday at Seattle. (The Bears believe the injury to Griese's non-throwing shoulder isn't serious.)
Kreutz all but lobbied on Grossman's behalf, saying: "We all know what Rex is, and when he gets hot, he can light it up. If he gets momentum, he's a scary quarterback."
Many Bears fans would agree with the scary part -- and they'd say that's not a good thing. Then again, Griese has been every bit the turnover machine. Would it be worth it to give Rex one more try?
"Why don't you let us enjoy this win right now?" Smith asked the media. "Why don't you let us watch some video, and we'll go from there?"
The video will show a nervous Grossman fumbling his first snap after replacing Griese late in the first half. It will show Rex opening the second half with a nice 33-yard toss to Moose Muhammad on a crossing route. It will show that Grossman should have been intercepted by Michael Huff on a poorly thrown pass in Greg Olsen's direction. The video will show Rex being sacked on consecutive plays early in the fourth quarter and looking rattled on the next possession.
And the video will show Grossman's beautiful bomb to Berrian, who got several yards behind cornerback Chris Carr and just kept running as Rex's pass fell into his waiting arms for a 10-6 lead. The defense, led by a re-energized Adewale Ogunleye, took care of the rest.
The guess here is Grossman's big play won't be enough to get him back into Lovie's lineup if Griese is healthy, but figuring out what's going on in Smith's mind is about as easy as trying to figure out his team.
Every time we start to count out the Bears, they "save" their season. On the previous two occasions, Griese was the late-game hero.
Incredibly, after all they've been through, the Bears are only two games out of playoff contention with seven weeks left.
Of course, if they lose at Seattle, they'll be doomed again.
You know what? All of this speculation is enough to give anybody a headache. Let's agree with Smith and let the Bears enjoy a victory they desperately needed.
Mostly, let's give Grossman this moment of triumph (if not vindication). The man deserves it.
Mike Nadel (mikenadel@sbcglobal.net) is the Chicago sports columnist for GateHouse News Service. Read his blog, The Baldest Truth, at www.thebaldesttruth.com <http://www.thebaldesttruth.com> .