A quick mid-week roundup

Bears

The NFC North is going to be decided by the health of Kyle Orton. With Orton, the Bears are the best team in the division. Even with all their flaws, I feel comfortable saying that. But is it worth it to rush KO back on Sunday for the most important game of the season? I'm not sure.

As of now, it doesn't look like Orton will be starting on Sunday. From Brad Biggs' Bears blog:

Kyle Orton looked OK on the Halas Hall fields Wednesday afternoon until it came time to drop back on a few warmup passes. Then, he looked a little gimpy on his right ankle, and he was limited in his participation in practice.

The Packers are almost as bad at rushing the passer as the Bears (Bears rank 16th in the NFL with 17 sacks, the Packers have one less), but I'm sure Green Bay would dial up a whole bunch of blitzes if Orton starts. Of course they'll probably do the same thing if Rex starts, considering Grossman handles the blitz worse than Ron Santo handles legs (yeah it makes no sense, but we've gone too long without Santo jokes).

Bulls

Could not agree more with this comment left on BaB:

The fact that Rose has an achy back isn't doomsday or anything, but it has to make everyone a little nervous. Since this guy's put on a Bulls uniform he's been spectacular, but he's also had his fair share of bumps and bruises(Knee Tendinitis, Strained Hip, Pullled Back Muscle).

I understand that it's WAY too premature to determine anything about his durability. But he's only 20 and these things are not ideal. I just hope that injuries don't end up defining his career because they are about the only thing that can stop him at this point.

Please, please, please, please, please let Derrick Rose stay healthy.

A few loose thoughts from Tuesday's game that I never got around to posting:

- I was super pumped to see the Noah-Tyrus-Deng-BG-Rose lineup, which made it sting that much more than Noah and Tyrus played like garbage. I like both those guys a ton and think they should get consistent minutes every night, but I think it's safe to say a few things:

a) While I still think Tyrus will end up being a contributor long-term, he'll never be as good as LaMarcus Aldridge. That trade cost this team big time.

b) The NBA got it right on Noah-Horford. Remember, had Noah come out after his junior year, he would have been the #1 overall pick. That's waaaay too high for a guy whose ceiling is Tyson Chandler.

- Neil Funk and Stacey King are 6,000 percent awesome. So is Red Kerr's new role, in which he's turned into a hybrid of Erin Andrews and Tony Siragusa. Let that sink in for a second. I'm also anxious to see if Hawk and Steve Stone can unseat them as Chicago's best announce team.

- Lindsay Lindsey Hunter! Color me unimpressed.