Heading into the 2003 season, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion that unless the Chicago Bears somehow managed to win the Super Bowl, GM Jerry Angelo would can head coach Dick Jauron, offensive coordinator John Shoop and who knows who else.

I wasn't so sure this was a great solution to the Bears' problems. The one thing that kills football teams more than anything is something that a coach can only hope to control — injuries. The one season Jauron's team stayed relatively healthy, in 2001, the team went 13-3 and won the NFC Central Division. So, with a healthy team, it seemed that Jauron could hold his own in the NFL.

Well, I changed my mind within 30 minutes of football last Sunday, more specifically, the second half of the game against the St. Louis Rams. Jauron and Shoop proved their worth all right — about that of a Cade McNown rookie card.

For those of you who missed it, here's a look at some of the key plays that probably could have been prevented with a worthwhile coach on the sideline.

Halftime

Okay, so this isn't really a key play, but it is definitely worth looking at. Running back Anthony Thomas, whom Shoop rudely neglected the week before in Detroit, had 71 yards on 15 carries and one touchdown at halftime last Sunday.

Jauron told Fox sideline reporter Dan Jiggets at halftime, "We have to give him the ball more in the second half, and hopefully we'll come out way out on top of this thing."

Okay, great, but what happened? Thomas had only 8 carries for 21 yards in the second half.

8:49 left in the third quarter, Bears — 14, Rams — 3

Quarterback Chris Chandler looks left and finds Marty Booker up to the Bears' 37 yard line. Booker, who thinks he just won the Super Bowl, turns around and spikes the ball at the feet of Rams cornerback Travis Fischer. Booker receives an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and pushes the Bears back to the 22 yard line, giving the momentum back to the Rams.

This is Jauron's fifth season as the Bears coach. If he can't communicate to his players that they need to control their emotions on simple 14 yard pass-plays by now, then he isn't doing his job.

3:46 left in the third quarter, Bears — 14, Rams — 10

The Rams successfully recover an onside kick after scoring a touchdown. If Jauron wasn't at least suspecting this out of the ballsiest coach in the league in Mike Martz, again, he isn't doing his job. Jauron had an excuse waiting for reporters during his press conference after the game. He said that a Rams player touched the ball before it went ten yards, so it was an illegal play.

Well, before I wrote this column I watched the kick about 27 times, and the ball never touched any Rams player before it went ten yards. Jauron wasn't ready for the play, so he covered it up with an excuse.

25 seconds left in the game, Bears — 21, Rams — 23

Chandler finds Dez White up to the Rams' 44 yard line. White fakes like he's going out of bounds and cuts inside right into a swarm of Rams defenders. It's a very nice play, but there's one problem. The Bears are out of time outs.

Jauron would later defend White's decision, saying that if he breaks the tackle and puts the team in field goal range he's a hero. Are you kidding, Dick? White has to go out of bounds with the clock running under 20 seconds. Plus, if White broke the initial tackle, three more Rams were waiting for him. He wasn't going anywhere.

Eight seconds left in the game, Bears — 21, Rams — 23

The Bears are at the Rams' 40 yard line. Paul Edinger looks ready and willing to kick a field goal on the sideline, but Jauron doesn't believe in his kicker. Chandler drops back and launches a pass into the end zone. No Bear is within 20 yards of where the pass drops.

I have two problems with this sequence of events. Jauron said that Edinger's range is 52 yards, no further, after the game. Problem number one: give Edinger a shot. The worst that can happen is you lose the game, which happened anyway. Problem number two: I've never seen a Hail Mary hit the ground with nobody around it. This happened because Jauron called a quick pass out to the sideline, but Chandler knew they wouldn't have time so he called for a Hail Mary in the huddle and confused his teammates. Nobody ran the Hail Mary. All the receivers ran quick out routes to the sidelines. That's how Chandler described the confusion on the Bears' Web site.

This second half alone will cost Jauron his job.

Mike Szwaja is a junior in communications. He can be reached at sports@dailyillini.com.