NFC NORTH Bears are gloomy, but Vasher is hopeful

The Bears gave up a season-high 434 yards in a 29-21 loss to Carolina.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) -- A day later, after a gloomy end to an otherwise surprisingly good season, Chicago Bears' cornerback Nathan Vasher noticed the sunshine outside Halas Hall.
Then, he predicted a bright future for his team.
The Bears' season ended Sunday with a 29-21 loss to the Carolina Panthers in the NFC divisional playoffs. And now, the question is: Are the Bears ready to take another step up the NFL's hierarchy, or was this another one-year aberration?
"It was very disappointing, but the sun did come out today and it was a bright day so we just look forward to next season, and we know that we started out on the right foot this year and we just try to continue to build on that," Vasher, a Pro Bowl cornerback, said Monday.
Making their first postseason appearance in four years, the Bears allowed a season-high 434 yards. They were unable to contain Pro Bowl receiver Steve Smith or get to quarterback Jake Delhomme, whom they sacked eight times in a 13-3 victory in November.
Smith caught two touchdown passes and finished with a career-high 218 yards. And Delhomme was sacked just once while passing for 319 yards and three touchdowns.
Telling statistics
That explains why Carolina is preparing for the NFC championship game in Seattle and the Bears are turning their attention toward next season.
Chicago was an unexpected 11-5 in the regular season, reversing its 2004 record and winning the NFC North after a 1-3 start in coach Lovie Smith's second season. The Bears won eight straight and scored their signature victory over a Carolina team that ultimately ended their season.
And they reached the postseason despite losing Rex Grossman to a broken left ankle in the preseason, an injury that kept their starting quarterback out of the first 13 games.
Now, the Bears hope things don't fall apart the way they did following their previous playoff appearance. After going 13-3 in 2001 and earning a first-round bye, Chicago lost by 14 to Philadelphia. Then, injuries hit. The Bears plummeted to 4-12 the following year.
More losing seasons
Two more losing seasons followed, a fact that was not lost on middle linebacker Brian Urlacher. The 2001 team, like the current group, was relatively young.
The oldest regular starter on a defense that was the NFL's toughest to score on this season is 28-year-old Adewale Ogunleye.
"We were young last time, too, and we ended up being 4-12 the next year," Urlacher, the NFL's Defensive Player of the Year, said after Sunday's loss. "I'd like to think we'll be better next year. We have a lot of guys coming back. ... We're optimistic, but I'm not going to look at that right now."
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