Grading the Chicago Bears…Tight Ends
For those of you that know me, you know I’m am not a card carrying member of the Greg Olsen Fan Club. In fact, while in Green Bay, Packers fans accused me of actually being too hard on him. Wow, even the enemy thinks I’m too rough.
But I’ve got my reasons for not thinking Olsen is very good. He runs poor routes, fails to get open, cannot block and drops/fumbles the football way too often. I know he’s had some solid games, but I can point to numerous occasions where he’s been a non-factor or even a minus.
Brandon Manumaleuna was brought in to be a bad-ass blocking tight end. He was given big money and expected to be an important part of protecting Jay Cutler and opening holes for Matt Forte. While he got better towards the end of the season, he didn’t exactly blow up opposing defenders the way we expected him to do so. He did catch some big passes during the season, but his primary responsibility was to block. Frankly, Manumaleuna didn’t live up to expectations. It was announced today he’s having a procedure done on his right knee. This could be an indication of why he wasn’t as good as expected.
Desmond Clark dropped a touchdown pass in week three against the Packers. From that point forward, he was banished to football Siberia. He became a non-factor the rest of the season and will be taking his talents elsewhere.
I think Kellen Davis may potentially be their best tight end. He got much more involved late in the season and has the size and speed to create match-up problems for opposing teams.
Overall, I give this unit a generous C-. I cannot ignore Olsen’s big games and Manumaleuna did block better in the second half. Davis had some huge catches as well. But, the negatives from this group just made it barely functional.
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Grading the Chicago Bears
At 4-3, the Chicago Bears find themselves in a tie with Green Bay atop the NFC North. While on paper this looks pretty good, the Chicago Bears have managed to look pretty bad in losing three of four games. Two of those losses came to teams they should have beaten. Without any further buildup, here are my grades for the 2010 Chicago Bears…
Quarterbacks (C-)
Jay Cutler has made some good throws and some bad ones. Todd Collins made no good throws and Caleb Hanie hasn’t done much of anything. While the line hasn’t been good, the quarterbacks haven’t been either.
Running Backs (C)
Matt Forte isn’t very good at blocking of holding onto the football. Chester Taylor is the consummate professional. While Forte has had some spectacular plays and a good game against Carolina, he allows his quarterback to get killed. Taylor is consistently above-average. This needs to improve.
Offensive Line (D)
They’ve been bad, but the running backs and tight ends haven’t helped. Does Olin Kruetz actually block anyone? So a “D” is given out of my frustration to other people not helping a weak unit.
Tight Ends (F)
This has been the most disappointing group. Greg Olsen may make a play once in a while, but his lack of blocking and inconsistent play make him a bad player. Brandon Manumaleuna for a guy that supposedly can block…hasn’t. Desmond Clark and Kellen Davis ain’t worth hot either.
Wide Receivers (C+)
Johnny Knox is coming into his own. Earl Bennett has been solid and Devin Hester has made some plays. Devin Aromashodu is a non-factor.
Defensive Line (B)
Julius Peppers is a dominant football player. Israel Idonije has played well since being slotted as a starter. Tommie Harris isn’t any good and the others are just there.
Linebackers (A)
The best unit on this team and maybe in football. Enough said.
Secondary (B)
Receivers haven’t been going crazy and they cause turnovers. I wish they had a shut-down corner, but this unit has been solid.
Special Teams (B+)
Devin Hester is back. Robbie Gould is awesome and Brad Maynard is solid. Good coverage and Early Bennett’s block on the Seattle punter was one of the best I’ve ever seen.
Coaching (C)
Lovie Smith not challenging Jay Cutler’s TD last week along with Mike Martz’s inability to stop a blitzing corner are bad. Rod Marinelli has done a good job with the defense. At 4-3 this team is still in it, but things have to change next week or we will be in for a crappy final nine games.
Overall (B-)
As of this morning, the Chicago Bears are a first place team. Doesn’t mean there a good one, but who in the NFC really is that good?
Chicago Bears Tight Ends…Not so Good…
[picappgallerysingle id="9580961"]For those of you that know me, you know that I have never been a fan of Greg Olsen. He has never seen a block that he likes. Additionally, while he makes catches there are many occasions when he is out of a play before it begins. He will get caught up in interference or not be able to shed a defender. The Chicago Bears have claimed that he is now a recognized target, but so are Dallas Clark, Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates. However, the difference is that the three guys not in a Chicago Bears uniform make plays on a regular basis.
[picappgallerysingle id="9469343"]Speaking of Gates, the Chicago Bears signed his former teammate Brandon Manumaleuna as one of the big three with Julius Peppers and Chester Taylor. Manumaleuna is supposed to be a devastating blocker and will occasionally catch a pass when he’s open. Well this preseason, he hasn’t caught a pass or blocked very well. Now in his defense, he was hurt. For a guy that is considered by many to be such a great blocker, I ain’t seeing it. He was a key player for the Mike Martz offense in St. Louis, so let’s hope this is just him getting his legs back after an injury. But like with Marv Cook, the Chicago Bears haven’t had the best track record of bringing in tight ends from free agency.
[picappgallerysingle id="3196792"]Desmond Clark has been one of the more underrated Chicago Bears during his career. This season, he has made the transition to h-back as well as playing some tight end. H-back is a combination between the two positions, but one of the primary jobs of an h-back is to block for both the quarterback and running game. Clark has struggled with both of these tasks. In his defense, it is a new season and he is learning a new position. However, it better improve really quickly or this could be a disaster.
[picappgallerysingle id="9580886"]Kellen Davis isn’t a lock on this roster. He is used primarily as a special teams player and catches occasional short passes. Quite honestly, he has looked the best of the four this preseason (although I have to say that Olsen is a far superior pass catcher, but I think blocking is as big of a part of the tight end position as catching passes…unless you’re Jay Novecek). He seems to get a pad on someone and helped with the running game. That does not mean I think he is more talented than the other three (well more than Olsen in the blocking department, my two-year old son can block better), I just am giving him credit for being the best of the tight ends this preseason.
Closing Preseason Thoughts…
I think one of the dangers of the preseason is the ability of us fans to gripe about something. When teams play four games, fans want to see what his or her team can do. In the case of the Chicago Bears, we saw very little from this squad. If this team finishes 13-3, people will forget the preseason fairly quickly.
I have no issue with Lovie Smith holding out some of his star players. That being said, it would seem that learning a complicated offense like Martz’s one require a lot of practice. The lack of blocking really did not allow this group to find a rhythm. Maybe this is getting done at Halas Hall, but based on the results (and I am sure most of you would agree), we do not have much to feel good about at this point. This can all change a week from Sunday against the Detroit Lions.
Chicago Bears Vs. Arizona Cardinals Pregame Preview
Ah, here we are…most experts consider the third preseason game the most important of the four. Starters will play into the third quarter and teams will treat this as close to a regular season game as possible. However, the biggest story line may be coming from the Arizona Cardinals sideline and not the Chicago Bears.
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Derek Anderson has been tabbed the starter by Ken Whisenhunt. This replaces long-time project Matt Leinart. While the Cardinals are playing this as not a locked decision, it doesn’t look good for Leinart who is considered a bust after being a first round pick out of USC.
Isn’t it nice that a quarterback controversy has nothing to do with the Chicago Bears? See that league, we have our starter in place. Well, for the time being unless the offensive line decides that it is time to start protecting the franchise.
From a Chicago Bears perspective, I mentioned the issues with the offensive line above but there is one glaring concern with the defense. Brian Urlacher will miss this contest with a left calf injury. While not considered to be season threatening, it is still a concern because he missed all of last season. Tommie Harris and Julius Peppers showed a lot last week and hopefully will continue to mesh as teammates. If so, this could be quite a dominating combination.
[picappgallerysingle id="9580314"]I would like to see Johnny Knox and Devin Hester step up this week. Both have shown some flashes, but I think these two guys can be a strong NFL tandem, so it is time for these two to prove me right once again (see Garrett Wolfe and Al Afalava). If the offensive line can give Jay Cutler some time, it would be nice to see the Chicago Bears open up the offense created by Mike Martz. Knox and Hester provide blazing speed and play-making abilities possessed by very few teams. Now it is time for us to see this in action.
[picappgallerysingle id="1370169"]Finally, lets all hope that Patrick Mannelly plays tonight. While Desmond Clark is good at a lot of things, long-snapping isn’t one of ‘em. It was embarrassing watching him on some of his snaps, and he will be the first to admit it.
Once again, I will be tweeting from Soldier Field during the action. Please feel free to follow me at www.twitter.com/bearshq.
Chicago Bears vs. Oakland Raiders Preseason Recap
I just got home from the game this evening (enjoyed my tailgate and game experience with my wife) and left Soldier Field with some mixed feelings on this squad.
What Went Well…
Matt Forte finally showed his fans some of his talents from his rookie season breaking off an 89 yard run. The Chicago Bears blocked well on this play and he made one move and was gone. Quite a change from last season.
Tommie Harris was dominating the defensive line at points. While he didn’t record any sacks, you could tell the Raiders were nervous. He seems to be getting some explosiveness back in his game. Julius Peppers also made some strong plays in the game including two stops on the goal line and recorded a sack.
Devin Hester had some nice plays tonight. On an end-around and middle route, he made plays. Bodes well if he continues to do so.
The Chicago Bears second unit on defense actually held its own despite being put into bad situations. There was some nice penetration on the pass-rush and guys flowed well to the ball.
What Didn’t Go So Well…
Chris Williams was being used pretty much the whole night by Kamerion Wimbley. Wimbley recorded four sacks and six tackles. Not good from the starting left tackle.
Tying into point one, Jay Cutler was running for his life at quarterback. He didn’t have any time to throw and was being thrown around like a rag-doll by the Raiders. In order for the Mike Martz offense to work, Cutler needs time to throw. Once again, not a great sign.
The starting defense lost Brian Urlacher early. While the team claims it was not a threatening injury, the Chicago Bears really need his services.
Dan LeFevour isn’t very good. Enough said…
Garrett Wolfe cannot catch, run or block. Why is he still around? Time to cut the cord.
Let’s pray that Patrick Mannelly never gets hurt. Desmond Clark is a good tight end, but a pretty crappy long snapper.
Eric Peterman is probably updating his resume at the moment. It is inexcusable to muff a punt within the 20 yard line or anywhere for that matter.
The Verdict
Chris Williams really sucked tonight. This does not bode well for the Chicago Bears’ chances. He needs to play a lot better or Jay Cutler will be killed. It isn’t like the rest of the offensive line was that great either, but if Williams cannot get the job done, this team is in trouble.
I will take the Chicago Bears at their word that Brian Urlacher isn’t that injured. But if he is, that sound you are hearing is the Chicago Bears chances falling off a cliff. Hunter Hillenmeyer is a good guy and hard worker, but hardly someone you want out there on a regular basis.
Finally, as my wife loves to point out at games, what is the deal with this 4th Phase nonsense? If you do not execute the other three, it really doesn’t matter how loud I cheer. So good catch by my lovely bride.
