Grading the Chicago Bears…Secondary
In 2009, the Chicago Bears secondary was terrible. Al Alalava and Kevin Payne were your starting safeties and along with Danieal Manning. It was painful to watch.
What a difference a year makes?!? The Chicago Bears traded for their old friend Chris Harris and moved Manning in as the starting strong safety. DJ Moore had a great year as the nickel safety. Rookie Major Wright proved to be a big hitter when he could stay healthy. Craig Steltz exploded out of camp as a potential starter but disappeared thanks to an injury during the preseason.
Charles Tillman is a favorite target of fans. He can be terrible against the slant pattern. However, he’s an excellent tackler and causes many fumbles. He’s a poor man’s Charles Woodson. Zachary Bowman was productive last season and struggled this year. He was replaced by one of the more underrated Bears this season in Tim Jennings. Josh Bullocks and Corey Graham are also cornerbacks, but their contributions come on special teams where Graham is a stud.
Obviously things were going right from a coaching standpoint. Jon Hoke was interviewed by the Philadelphia Eagles for their vacant defensive coordinator position. He didn’t get the job but it’s a nice pat-on-the-back for his career.
Overall, I give this unit a B+. While I think Harris was overrated and missed many tackles, he did get interceptions. Manning had a strong season. The cornerbacks played well and the coaches pulled the plug on Bowman quickly. Moore had a great season for a nickelback.
Follow me on Twitter at BearsHQ.
Being Jerry Angelo
Like Lovie Smith, many fans share mixed feelings on Jerry Angelo. He’s been credited with doing some good things while general manager of the Chicago Bears, but also gets a lot of criticism as well.
This past off-season, Angelo cleaned house within his scouting department and brought in former Seahawk general manager Tim Ruskell to help with player scouting and evaluation. Obviously, there’s been a problem somewhere within the organization, and as my wife likes to say, poo flows downhill.
Regardless of these moves, I think it’s fair to evaluate Angelo based on him being the boss. I think it didn’t take a rocket scientist to find Julius Peppers. He showed guts giving up Kyle Orton and three draft picks for Jay Cutler and a fifth round pick that eventually became Johnny Knox. The Cutler trade will be his defining one for his tenure with the Chicago Bears.
I highlight these two moves because these are the highest profile moves he’s made. Frankly, his track record with free agents is sub-par at best. And that’s being unbelievably generous. Peppers really wasn’t much of a risk. He brought in train wrecks like Muhsin Muhammad and Adam Archuleta. The Archuleta move was particularly disturbing because he traded Chris Harris in anticipation of it. While Harris is back, it just didn’t make any sense to get rid of a good young safety for the worst one I’ve seen in my lifetime.
He’s made some good moves that haven’t been as publicized. The addition of Pisa Tinoisamoa and Anthony Adams were solid pickups on the defensive side of the ball. Offensively, Roberto Garza and Frank Omiyale have proven to be solid NFL offensive linemen. But, the whole Thomas Jones/Cedric Benson fiasco really marred him as a general manager. While Matt Forte may be better than both, the whole scenario just worked out poorly.
Being a general manager in the NFL is an extremely difficult job. Very little praise will come your way and the crap hits the fan when things fall apart. I’ve got two concerns with Angelo, its his evaluation of offensive talent specifically on the line and receiver positions.
While Chris Williams worked out respectably as a guard last season, he was drafted to be a tackle. That is the only high draft pick in many years the Bears have used on an offensive lineman. Granted, they traded a lot of picks the last two seasons, but the commitment wasn’t there before either. While I’m not pleased with the lack of offensive line depth or development, J’Marcus Webb may have been a steal as a seventh round pick. Kudos on that selection.
The Bears still don’t have anyone in the stable of receivers that strike fear in opponents. While there’s some speed, there’s not a lot of tough guys that will make a tough catch. Earl Bennett showed that potential towards the end of the season, but I’m not exactly ready to call him an elite receiver. This is something the Bears desperately need and fast. If Cutler is going to take that next step, he needs a top-tier wide receiver. Guys like Knox and Devin Hester will be great complementary receivers, but aren’t elite guys. As far as I’m concerned, bringing in an top receiver is priority number 1A this off-season along with improving the above-mentioned offensive line. Honestly, I’m not terribly confident in Angelo’s ability to do either one. Defensively, the Bears could use a better three-technique due to Tommie Harris’ decline in that role. But this isn’t as much of a priority as wide receiver and offensive line.
Basically, it comes down to wins and losses with any front office person (minus Jim Hendry). I feel as if I’ve given some fair and constructive feedback as a fan of Angelo’s performance. While I don’t think he’s a disaster, I’m not sure if he’s done enough to warrant sticking around when his contract expires. This will be his most critical off-season. Considering the type of season the Chicago Bears had this year, a few key additions may be enough to put them over the top.
Follow me on Twitter at BearsHQ.
As much as I do not like the Chicago White Sox, I received a nice shout out from the guys at www.paleandhosed.com. They’re your one-stop shop for the latest and unbiased White Sox needs and notes.
Chicago Bears Lance Briggs’ Status Still Up in the Air
For the second day in a row, Lance Briggs has not practiced for the Chicago Bears. This leaves his status up in the air for Sunday. Briggs has only missed three games since entering the league in 2003. Brian Iwuh is expected to start if Briggs doesn’t.
What does this mean for the Chicago Bears? It is obvious to anyone with a brain that Briggs has been a huge part of this defense. He has become one of the league’s top linebackers. It is concerning considering that along with Brian Urlacher, Briggs has played at a high Pro Bowl level all season long.
Look for the Chicago Bears to use the nickle package a lot on Sunday. While they will give up a little in run support, it is important that they do not lose pass coverage. Ideally, it would almost make the most sense to move Chris Harris into the nickle position and play another safety. Harris is a good tackler and strong against the run. The Bears may even use some variations of the 46 defense with Harris blitzing, but most important is to prevent big plays which the Chicago Bears have been doing well all season.
Injuries are a part of football, and with the loss of Cutler from last week and Briggs this week, the Bears will need to show some resilience.
Follow me on twitter at bearshq.
Chicago Bears vs. Detroit Lions…Anything Safe?
I wanted to share an interesting situation with everyone…
[picappgallerysingle id="7436787"]When Chris Harris and Danieal Manning take the field later today, it will be the 42nd and 43rd different safety to start under Lovie Smith (keep in mind that Harris played strong safety in the past and will start at free safety and the reverse also applies to Manning).
Manning is one of the most frustrating Chicago Bears. He has tremendous talent but doesn’t ever seem to quite “get it”. He is out of position on many plays and seems lost. Then he will turn around and make an unbelievable play. Plus, he has proven to be an excellent kick-off returner. This is a big year for Manning, and hopefully he can rise to the occasion.
[picappgallerysingle id="9715528"]Going into the preseason, Harris was a lock at safety. Based on his play in the preseason, his job isn’t quite as secure. With Major Wright and Craig Steltz breathing down his neck, Harris will have to step up his game. I would hope Harris has something to prove to the Chicago Bears upon his return, but perhaps there was a reason why he was traded to the Chicago Bears from the Carolina Panthers. I really hope we don’t have another Adam Archuleta on our hands. Man did he suck!
[picappgallerysingle id="9563205"]After being injured in the first preseason game, Wright is ready to roll. All indications are that he is a solid all-around safety. With the secondary being a huge question with this team, and frankly, the lack of solid play out of the current starters (well at least in the preseason…both had moments but overall didn’t play at a high level), Wright may give these guys a little push to perform. Additionally, Steltz was also playing well in training camp until injuring his ankle.
[picappgallerysingle id="2690351"]Follow me on Twitter at bearshq for regular updates during the game. Go Bears!!!
Chicago Bears Release Tim Shaw and Al Afalava
Al Afalava started for the Chicago Bears last season, and Tim Shaw led the team in special team tackles. But the NFL is a cruel league and both are no longer on the team.
Afalava wasn’t a huge surprise. Last season the secondary pretty much sucked. Along with Kevin Payne, not a lot of good things came from this tandom. By drafting Major Wright and trading for Chris Harris, the writing was on the wall. Alfalava overcame some off-the-field issues while at Oregon State stemming from a drunk driving conviction. He got passed this but now needs to prove to another team he can play.
Born in England, Tim Shaw has bounced around the NFL after his time at Penn State. He replaced Brian Urlacher on the roster last season. I’m a little surprised on this move, but others including Brian Iwuh seemed to be more versatile. Ironically enough, Iwuh also beat Shaw out in Jacksonville last season.
Stay tuned for updates on the final roster on my Twitter account (bearshq) and on bearsheadquarters.com.
