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But [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] deserves a lot of credit for taking stock of himself and doing whatever was necessary to become [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] again. It couldn't have been easy. And it was against the odds. [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] was not a candidate to become an artful pitcher when he lost his fastball. He did something even more difficult. He found his fastball.
And in 2003, the Bears christened new Soldier Field against the Packers on ''Monday Night Football'' and were even worse, losing 38-23. [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] had nine tackles, but everybody was talking about Paris Hilton, who watched the game from a luxury box as a guest of [link widoczny dla zalogowanych]'s. Whatever happened to her?
[link widoczny dla zalogowanych] and Briggs might not be as good together today as they were in 2005 and 2006, when both were named to the NFL's All-Pro team. But experience makes up for a good chunk of the difference.
Which brings us to tonight's game against the Packers on ''Monday Night Football.'' The Packers are Super Bowl contenders. The Bears haven't made the playoffs in three seasons.

After nine years in the league, [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] can use his head for more than a fortuitous deflection of a coin toss. It was his call for Briggs to blitz against the Lions on a first-and-10 at the Lions 9-yard-line in the fourth quarter of the season opener. With perfect timing, Briggs jumped the snap count, got his arms around quarterback Shaun Hill as he was handing off to Jahvid Best and forced a fumble that Briggs recovered at the 1-yard line. If that kind of thing happened in 2005 or 2006, I missed it.
The last time [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] played against the Packers on ''Monday Night Football,'' he had two tackles, none of them in the second half. His biggest contribution to the Bears' 20-17 overtime victory in 2008 at Soldier Field was during the coin-toss after regulation. The coin hit [link widoczny dla zalogowanych]'s helmet and came up heads. The Bears won the toss, took the ball and drove for the winning field goal.
[link widoczny dla zalogowanych]'s two-tackle night was the clearest indication he wasn't what he used to be. But his previous two appearances against the Packers on ''Monday Night Football'' weren't highlights, either.
Experience really does count
At 29, Briggs is in his prime. But at 32, [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] has been rejuvenated after playing just one half of regular-season football in the previous 20 months. [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] has had his ups and downs around here since becoming a star a decade ago. He suffered some self-inflicted personal wounds that were compounded by over-the-top media coverage -- I wish I could name names, but I can't. He was clearly on the downside physically in 2008. And while he's been a tremendously loyal teammate, his power play for an $18 million contract extension prior to the 2008 season was ill-advised and took up salary-cap space that could have been used to keep or sign other players.
But for the first time since the 2004-07 run against the Packers, [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] and Briggs are playing together at a Pro Bowl level. That might not be enough to take the Bears to the Packers' level, but it gets them a heluva lot closer.
Who can forget [link widoczny dla zalogowanych]'s 16 tackles in a 19-7 victory in 2005 or the 26-0 victory in the 2006 opener that was a harbinger of great things to come? Or his 85-yard interception return for a touchdown against Favre in the 35-7 rout in 2007? [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] and Briggs were great, and the Bears were beating Favre. It doesn't get any better than that.
That was the sixth of seven consecutive losses [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] and his teammates suffered against the Packers. It seemed like no matter how good [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] would become, the Bears would be the Packers' rag doll for as long as Brett Favre wanted them to be.
In 2002 the Bears lost 34-21 in Champaign. [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] had 11 tackles and was 0-for-1 passing when he took a handoff from Marty Booker on a fake field goal and threw incomplete to Patrick Mannelly. That was a tough year for everybody.
Give credit to [link widoczny dla zalogowanych]
But that changed in 2004. With the emergence of Lance Briggs as a Pro Bowl linebacker and Tommie Harris as a Pro Bowl tackle, the Bears won six of the next eight against the Packers in a glorious run reminiscent of the Mike Ditka-Forrest Gregg era. (The only losses during that span came in 2004, when [link widoczny dla zalogowanych] was injured, and in the regular-season finale in 2006, when the Bears were more interested in getting ready for the playoffs than finishing 14-2.)
[link widoczny dla zalogowanych],[link widoczny dla zalogowanych], Briggs leading the way for Bears