Why We Should Be Optimistic about the Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears won the 2010 NFC North Title and made it all the way to the NFC Championship game. If it wasn’t for Todd Collins, the Chicago Bears almost won the football game. There are a few Hall of Famers on this roster and some young players that developed last season.
Despite age creeping up on some of the older players, they still played at a high level last season. Brian Urlacher continues his Hall of Fame Career and Julius Peppers is a beast. Lance Briggs continues to be one of the the most underrated players in football. Devin Hester returned to his scary form as a returner. Matt Forte became one of the best running backs in football. While the offensive line wasn’t amazing, it got much better towards the end of the season. J’Marcus Webb and Chris Williams developed into solid NFL linemen. Mike Tice is one of the top offensive line coaches in football, and he has a year under his belt to better understand his talent.
Jay Cutler will enjoy having the same offensive coordinator for two years. Instead of learning a new system the last three years, he has the same coach. Mike Martz does know offense, and I think this will benefit Cutler and company. Rod Marinelli is a great coordinator as well and had his unit playing strong.
While the Chicago Bears will not creep up on anyone this season, there is talent on this roster.
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NFL Changes Kickoff Spot from 30 to 35 Yard Line…NFL You are Ridiculous
The NFL officially stands for the No Fun League with its change in the kickoff rule. Can they make the game any more boring for Chicago Bears fans? One of the marquee players in the league is Devin Hester. People love seeing him with the ball in his hands returning kickoffs. Now with this rule change, people will enjoy possessions starting at the 20-yard line.
While Devin Hester isn’t the only Chicago Bear that returns kickoffs, Danieal Manning and Johnny Knox also return kicks as well. Both have shown explosivness in that area as well.
With the current lockout and bad blood brewing between the NFL, players and fans, why make things even less exciting? I really believe owners are their own worst enemies.
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Grading the Chicago Bears…Special Teams
The Chicago Bears were one of the top Special Teams units in football. Devin Hester was the league’s most frightening return man and Corey Graham covered the field like a blanket. This unit was probably the primary reason why the Chicago Bears made the NFC Championship Game.
While these two don’t quite have the numbers of Hester, Danieal Manning and Johnny Knox were two of the best return men in football on kickoffs. However, Hester is one of those guys you drop everything you’re doing to see with the football in his hands.
Robbie Gould has been one of the most accurate kickers in the NFL. While he didn’t have his best season, he’s been a stabalizing force in that position for the Chicago Bears. For us Bears fans, we’ve lived through some horrific kickers and Gould really is one of the best. Brad Maynard is a solid punter who’s specialty is kicking it within the 20-yard line. However, it looks as if Maynard’s days with the Chicago Bears are coming to an end.
Patrick Mannelly deserves a shout-out as well. He’s been one of the league’s best long-snappers for many years now.
I give this unit an A. It would have been an A+ except there were times where they gave up returns and failed to create open holes.
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Grading the Chicago Bears…Wide Receiver
The Chicago Bears are not a franchise that has a proud tradition of wide receivers. In fact, without really going through the historic roster of this team, I would venture to say its probably one of the weakest positions in the franchise’s history. This season was no exception.
Johnny Knox was probably what many would have considered the number one receiver on the Chicago Bears. He nearly broke the 1,000 yard mark for receiving yards and proved to be a solid blocker when asked to do so. He did have some moments this year, but also failed to fight for some footballs and cost his team turnovers. Knox struggled with physical corners and wasn’t able to out-muscle guys for the football.
Devin Hester is a kick returner that occasionally caught passes. He had some great plays as a wide receiver, but struggled with his route-running and like Knox, could get outworked for the football. Hester is a threat and that allowed him to make some plays. But he isn’t here because of his wide receiving abilities.
Earl Bennett became a physical presence in the the short to intermediate passing area down the stretch. He did injure his leg and really wasn’t the same at the end of the season. Bennett’s best highlight was his block on the Seattle punter on one of Hester’s punt returns that sent the dude flying across Soldier Field.
Rasheed Davis is a special teams guro that actually caught a few passes this season. He’s a valuable guy and certainly gives you his best effort. But he’s here because of special teams.
Devin Aromashodu dropped a touchdown pass in week one and really fell into the dog house. Not only did he stink of the field with his play, but he mouthed off to the media. A no-no when you’re not very good.
Overall, I give this unit a C. I think they made plays but based on the level of talent, we got what was expected out of this group.
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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.
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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.
