(The following is a weekly exclusive Q&A with Bears All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher conducted by FOXSports.com's Senior NFL Writer/NFL Insider Jay Glazer. Urlacher has elected to conduct a weekly sit down with Glazer to open up about the latest news from the Bears and his own play in what has so far been a disappointing Bears season. In this installment, Urlacher gives insight into the mindset of his team facing the "skittish" Eli Manning, Chicago's defensive struggles and why in the world teams still kick to Devin Hester.)

Eli Manning has taken his lumps this week after an atrocious performance last week vs. your division rival Minnesota. Even his GM, Jerry Reese, declared he looked "skittish" at times. From what you have seen of him on film, does he look skittish to you?

I don't know if that's the right word. If you put pressure up the middle on him, just like most quarterbacks, he can't step up on his throws. If he can't step up, he can't make accurate throws. But to be honest with you, when I watch film I don't pay a lot of attention to the quarterback. I look at the linemen, try to find something on them, and the running backs a lot more than the quarterback.

Even with his problems, our first priority is still to stop the run. That's our key in this game and then pressure Eli.

With a win last week and the Giants and Lions seemingly taking turns south, you guys are actually back in the playoff hunt. Do you go into this game as if it's a playoff game or is it that blowing the matchup out of proportion?

That's actually what Coach (Lovie) Smith's message is: this is a one-game playoff. Every game from here on out we are approaching as a one-game playoff. We're trying to approach it as if we lose another game we're out of it.

Brian, your defense is supposed to be the heart and soul of this team. What the heck happened to that vaunted, unbreakable Bears defense?

We're too inconsistent. Coach Babich (defensive coordinator, Bob Babich) put up a stat today from the Denver game. Our defense was on the field for 70 plays. On 60 plays we gave up a total of 180 yards. The other 10 we gave up 240! That's 10 plays we're giving up big plays. It's frustrating. We have guys in the right position to do something but we're just not making the plays.

Have you guys had any player-only meetings or clear-the-air meetings recently to try to figure out an Rx for your woes?

We've done that. We tried meeting as a defense. We tried to meet to as a team. Peer pressure is the biggest pressure you can have on a football team. We had those meetings like three or four weeks ago but obviously that's not the answer. The answer is to do your job.

It seems like every week we do this, I have to ask the same question: why in the world would anyone possibly kick to Devin Hester. Are you guys thinking the same thing on the sideline?

Jay, it's unbelievable. I don't know how he does it. I don't know how you explain it. It's unreal. Every week I say he won't see another ball kicked to him or punted to him the rest of the year. Then, teams go out and kick to him. I've never seen anything like it. We can't figure out how he does it either but it makes every special teams play exciting as we're standing on the sideline.

The one thing nobody is talking about though is the job the guys blocking for him are doing. Some returns they set up so well he's not touched. Those guys are doing an unbelievable job.

If I'm a special teams coach I'm squibbing, kicking out of bounds, anything but kicking to him. I hope they keep doing it and we'll just keep scoring touchdowns.

Now that you are back in the playoff hunt, what's the one game you lost that absolutely ticks you off today?

The Detroit game at our place or the Minnesota game at home. Minnesota ran all over us. These losses could really hurt us in the long run. You don't want one game to be the reason you don't get in. We put ourselves in a tough spot.

Rex Grossman actually hasn't been bad in his return to the starting lineup. He's actually been a bit of a bright spot. What's the difference in his play during this stint as opposed to his play before he was benched?

He's not being careless with the football. He's taking care of the football better. We have to protect our quarterback better. We have to run the ball to protect him. Losing Cedric (Benson) is huge. We have a really good backup in Adrian Peterson but losing your starting running back hurts. Our season isn't shot yet. I know we've lost a lot of guys but so have the Colts and they've still won with all their injuries. We've gone through worse injury situations in the past, we'll fight through it.

(The following is a weekly exclusive Q&A with Bears All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher conducted by FOXSports.com's Senior NFL Writer/NFL Insider Jay Glazer. Urlacher has elected to conduct a weekly sit down with Glazer to open up about the latest news from the Bears, his play and overall league issues. Consider it Urlacher: Unplugged.)

How hard is it as a player to believe in a quarterback like Rex Grossman who has already been pulled because of poor play? Why would you possibly think it will be different now?

That first snap when (Rex) came into the game and he fumbled I was like, uh oh. I think he was just over-excited. Once he calmed down, he played great. I was excited for him, it was fun to see him get out there and have fun again. If he stays healthy and plays well I think he could be our guy the rest of the way. I'd like to see him stay at quarterback because he played well last week and I think we can win with him. The thing is, you keep talking about (the) quarterback but what we need to do is run the ball. If we can run the ball, it'll help out whoever is back there at quarterback.

At 8-1, the Packers and Cowboys sit on top of your conference. Who do you think is the best in the NFC right now?

Right now I have to say the Cowboys are the best team in the conference because of the way they play, their style. We got pounded by Dallas but we beat Green Bay so obviously you can tell why I'm answering the way I am.

Last week you came off the bye with so much excitement and optimism. Heck, you went as far as saying you guys would almost run the table and make the playoffs. But there you were through three and a half quarters in Oakland down 6-3, how deflating was that?

Our offense was moving the ball well but after a few good drives we'd stall out. At no time in that game did I think we stink. It's tough to play there. We never got down. If we lost that game it would have been really hard. We would have had to win out the rest of the games to get to the playoffs. It would have put our season in the tank. With Green Bay playing the way they are it would have been hard to comeback.

Devin Hester had a long return called back last week vs. the Raiders. What's your reaction to the fact that teams still punt to him? You know, there are two sidelines they can easily kick it out of.

I don't understand it. I'm glad they do it but I don't think it's very smart. The Raiders did a good job of covering him but if you keep kicking to him, it'll pay off for us in the long run. He'll get you more than he doesn't. I think he tricked teams last week. He fooled the world into thinking he lost a step (laughs). I think he has too, they should continue to kick to him.

What do you think of Ricky Williams coming back?

If he passes all of his tests and he's cleared to play, hey why not let him back. He's done everything he's been asked to do.

Are you surprised he was reinstated?

Yes, considering the tough stance the Commissioner has taken on everything. But like I said, he's served his time and done everything he's supposed to do. Let him back in then.

(The following is a weekly exclusive Q&A with Bears All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher conducted by FOXSports.com's Senior NFL Writer/NFL Insider Jay Glazer. Urlacher has elected to conduct a weekly sit down with Glazer to open up about the latest news from the Bears, his team and his own play in what has so far been a disappointing season for the Bears.)

Prior to the bye week, you revealed just how much back pain has plagued you this season. Did the break help at all or will it limit you for the rest of the season?

It goes in spurts. I don't think the off time helped as much as some new exercises I've been doing has. For some reason, the last three weeks it has felt... not good but better than it has this whole season. It's encouraging. I'm trying to do different things like take different vitamins and do these exercises for it. It's going to be an ongoing thing so I'm trying to learn how to deal with it.

You said it "goes in spurts." Give me an example of when it's worse.

Once I get stretched out and loosen it up on Sundays, it feels pretty good. The worst it really feels is when our offense has a long drive. After I loosen it up and then I sit and I'm not running around on it during a long drive, it tightens up a bit.

This season has been disappointing to say the least. Your offense has never exactly been considered a juggernaut but your defense has. The D has been far from dominant or even the least bit consistent. Did you use this off week to figure out what the heck happened to this vaunted Bears defense?

I've been trying to figure out what's wrong with me and the team every single day I'm at work and then when I leave work. This week I didn't think about football at all. Sometimes getting away and stepping back helps you see things better. I'm still trying to find the answer to why I'm not playing like I want and why we aren't playing well as a team.

I didn't want to think about football at all. I needed to recharge my batteries. This week was a mental break for me. The bye week came at a perfect time for us. I hung out with my kids and did absolutely nothing. It was great. I came back so refreshed. I think a lot of our guys did.

Well, since you didn't think about football in the bye week, I'll give you a little news update. That guy Adrian Peterson, I think you've heard of him, absolutely gashed the Chargers defense for 296 yards. I think you know the kid.

It's funny, I was flying back with Adam (Archuleta) and I was telling him I hope he put up 350 yards on somebody. We gave up 220 to him. You see, he does it to everybody, not just us.

Can this kid be stopped?

Anyone in the NFL can be stopped. There'll be games he doesn't get a bunch of carries because of the situation of the game. If you go by stats, obviously he has to be considered the best in the league right now. He's a big guy and he's hard to tackle.  As big and as fast as he is, he's tough to bring down.

You hit the bye and the one thing that still hasn't worked itself out is your quarterback position. Rex Grossman got benched because of all the turnovers, but Brian Griese has been just as inconsistent. Is it time to turn to Kyle Orton if Griese doesn't turn things around quickly?

We, as players, don't decide who's in the game. Griese is the guy right now and we're behind him. Up until Detroit (in Week 8), he had a rough game in that one, he was playing well. You can't yank a guy based on one game. He's not dumb, he's a veteran QB and he knows what he needs to do to turn it around for us.

What about Cedric Benson? What if he doesn't show more consistency as you start the second half of the season? Should you go another direction there?

He had some fumble problems earlier in the season, but he's gotten much better with that. As a defense, we've put our offense in a bad position. We haven't helped our running game because our defense can't stop anybody. We've got to put him in better positions to run with a lead. How can he get anything going if we keep letting people score and putting us in positions where we're down early?

What do you need to change in how you play the second half of the season?

Make more big plays. Be more of an impact player. My whole career, I've made big plays. I played some games this year and you probably wondered if I even played. I need to quit missing tackles.

You've said you still think the Bears are a playoff team. Do you realize what your team needs to do in order to make that happen? Green Bay and Detroit are going to be pretty difficult to catch.

It's not an eight-game season. We're going to have to go 7-1 or 8-0 to get into the playoffs. We can do that. Once you get in you never know what happens. If you're hot, anything can happen in the postseason.

We have to look at every game like it's a one-game season. But guys are refreshed, rejuvenated. We're hungry. I really, honestly believe we can still make the playoffs. 

The following comments are culled from an exclusive interview Brian did with FOXSports.com senior NFL writer Jay Glazer.

On playing in pain:

"It's a problem that started all the way back in camp. We've done x-rays, bone scans, MRI's, cat scans and this week I flew to Pittsburgh and met with a specialist. He confirmed what the team told me, that they think it's an arthritis type of thing. The thing that's so frustrating is there is no clear-cut solution to give me relief. I just have to deal with the pain.

"The pain is actually worse than when I tore my hamstring a couple of years ago," he revealed. "That injury was worse because I missed games, but this causes more pain. It prevents me from bending and if I can't bend, I'm not able to be as athletic. I also can't backpedal like I need to. Right now we're trying to find pain solutions, I've got it shot a bunch to try to find some relief and actually it felt better last week.

"The frustrating thing is they can't pinpoint it exactly so I have no idea when it will hurt or hold me back, but the pain is pretty much always there."

On his frustrations with the media:

"I haven't wanted to talk about it because I don't want it to be an excuse. Look, I'm out there, and if I'm out there playing I didn't want it out because I didn't want it used as an excuse by me or anybody else. I'm playing hurt, I'm not playing as well as I want to and they want me to explain everything.

"But I decided to open up about this because the media didn't like my answers and started saying I was doing a disservice to the fans. But the fans aren't the ones getting ticked about my answers. The fans aren't the ones who I'm trying to avoid. I just don't want to talk about an injury where there are no answers. But when the media throws the fan angle in, I'm talking. That's what I'm doing now. Don't use the fan excuse with me."

On the Bears' disappointing season so far:

"We've been very inconsistent on both sides of the ball and we've lost games we shouldn't have. I'm part of that too and hopefully, I can get through this thing."