They just had to do it. They had to go there, and on Friday of all days, with the glorious sun briefly peeking from those disturbingly thick clouds after what seems like years of ominous weather. They just had to go and ruin my day.

With the devastating loss to the Packers in the NFC title game finally out of my system, the Bears had to go announce that Lovie Smith was getting a two-year contract extension the same day they announced an increase in ticket prices.

Smith told reporters that he’s aware his team has to work next season to keep pace with Green Bay, the Super Bowl champs that only made the playoffs because of Smith’s inept coaching and the Bears’ lackluster performance in their final regular season game.

They wouldn’t have been in the playoffs and they subsequently wouldn’t have won the Super Bowl had the Bears …. Oh, what’s the use of rehashing it. Instead they give a coach a two year extension. And, it seems, on top of it, Smith feels the same way I do.

Referring to the team’s goal of winning a Super Bowl during his time as coach, Chicago Tribune cites Smith as saying, "We're not talking about long term or anything like that. In the coaching profession, it's always about the short term, the next season.''

The organization should have gone with the same mentality, wait and see how the team would finish out next season before locking in a head coach until 2013? Smith’s contract wasn’t up until after next season.  

"We realize we have the Super Bowl champs in our division and we're looking up to them," Smith told the Tribune.

First off, the Bears have never and will never look up to the Packers, Super Bowl champs or not. If George Halas had heard that statement, Smith would have been drop-kicked back to Texas today, especially after he failed to coach the Bears past Green Bay in two vital games at the end of the season.

But this is what we do now. We reward for mediocrity. The Bears managed an 11-5 record this season and made the playoffs. Smith should have had one season left to take the Bears to a Super Bowl or bust. He’s 63-49 in seven years.

For another three years, we’ll watch the vigor continue to drain from this once vivacious football organization.

What the Bears needed after next season was a Bill Cowher or Jon Gruden injection. Please, sun, don’t go away because of my brooding!  

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