by John HickeyFiled under: Chicago Bears, Seahawks, NFC North, NFC West
RENTON, Wash. -- Soldier Field has history behind it and the Chicago Bears have fan support behind them.That's not necessarily going to make things easier on the Bears Sunday as they take on the Seattle Seahawks in the second round of the playoffs.
Playing on the Soldier Field turf is problematic at this point of the year, as the Bears were quick to point out on conference calls with the Seattle media Wednesday.
The turf tends to be soft and slippery. Unless there's a big freeze -- always a possibility -- and then it could be hard and slick.
"I don't know if anybody has an advantage, really,'' quarterback Jay Cutler said when asked if the offense has the advantage over the defense on the presumed treacherous footing. "Both sides are going to be slipping and falling.
"We've dealt with it. We've come to terms with it and they're not going to change it. I'm sure the Seahawks are well aware of it, as well.''
Linebacker Brian Urlacher isn't a big fan, either. He's played in the cold in Chicago before. He's seen it fall apart a series or two into the game.
"(The turf) stinks for both of us, I know that much,'' Urlacher said. "It's not going to be good for both teams.
"They're going to have to learn to adjust your footing, adjust your steps, whatever you've got to do to not slip. That's just the way it is late in the season at Soldier Field.''
Asked just what the problem is, both players had slightly different answers.
"They change it out a lot,'' Cutler said. "Any time you're going to change out the field in freezing temperatures, I'm sure it's not going to really take hold. So it's going to be really thick and it's going to come up a little bit and it's going to be a little soft.
"So it's a little bit of everything.''
From Urlacher's perspective, "you just slip'' when playing winter football in Soldier Field.
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