T-Minus Four Days Until Chicago Bears Training Camp

OK, things are starting to get exciting around here. We can almost taste the start of football season. Yesterday, I started highlighting story lines for training camp.

Building to The Chicago Bears Strength

It is fairly easy to find the things the Chicago Bears do not do well. In fact, the pro-White Sox media (OK, had to throw this in here…) seems to find many things wrong that the Bears do. But, this is not the worst football team on Earth. Here are a few areas of strength for the Chicago Bears.

Special Teams

Brad Maynard and Robbie Gould are one of the premier kicking duos in football. Both kick in one of the toughest venues in football and do it at a high level. The Bears also have a strong group of returners. The best of all of these dudes is Devin Hester (will the old Devin Hester please stand up). Johnny Knox and Daniel Manning have both proven valuable in this roll as well. The Bears also cover kicks and block very well. Kudos to this group!

Starting Quarterback

Jay Cutler is a gifted quarterback. He has a cannon for an arm and can move out of the pocket. While he made some bad throws last year, he didn’t get much help. With a new system in place and more experience for his wide receivers, Cutler is due for a strong season.

Tight Ends

Finally the curse of Coach Ditka is gone. The Chicago Bears are blessed with good tight ends. While I am not the biggest Greg Olsen fan, he does bring some things to the table. Desmond Clark is a solid tight end and the most valuable of the group is Brandon Manumaleuna. Having this guy will help with the blocking on the offensive line. And when you are not looking, he will slip out and catch a pass.

Linebacker

You have one Hall-of-Famer (Brian Urlacher), one possible Hall-of-Famer (Lance Briggs), and a really solid player (Pisa Tinoisamoa) starting in this group. In addition, there is one solid backup (Nick Roach) and a veteran (Hunter Hillenmeyer) in this group.

In Closing…

I wanted to give us all some good thoughts for the day. It is easy to be negative, but today, its all about the love.

Chicago Bears Player Profile…Lance Briggs

Lance Briggs is one of the best players in the NFL, and certainly was the Bears’ best defensive player last season. He makes tackles and understands angles to ball carriers as well as any linebacker in the game today. He has been overshadowed by Brian Urlacher for much of his career, but Briggs proved himself last season.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Briggs has never gotten the respect from Bears’ fans he deserves. This has a lot to do with his contract issues from a few seasons ago. I was one that thought the Bears should let him go, but to the organization’s credit, they found a way to keep Briggs in the picture. If he didn’t have all the contract problems, perhaps Briggs would get his full credit. I know he gets voted into Pro Bowls, but I think that comes as much from other players from around the league more than local fans. I enjoy watching Briggs play. I hope the fans will start giving him the respect he deserves.

The Verdict…

There is no reason to think Briggs will not play at his high level next season. With Urlacher and Pisa Tinoisamoa finally healthy, the Bears will have one of the best linebacking groups in the NFL. Do not be surprised if Briggs leads the group in tackles and is allowed to get after quarterbacks a little more this season.

Ten Most Underrated Bears of my Lifetime

I enjoyed writing the first two articles on former Chicago Bears, so lets cap it off with the ten most underrated Bears.

1. Neil Anderson

Following up a legend is hard to do. Neil Anderson was a great running back and the second best one I saw in a Bears uniform. He had great speed and was a tough runner on the inside. It is too bad his career got cut short by personal issues off the field.

2. Lance Briggs

Brian Urlacher steals all the headlines and Briggs did himself no favors by complaining about his contract, but Briggs is a great linebacker who has never gotten the credit he has deserved around the league. Sure he has made a few Pro Bowls, but this guy deserves stronger praise.

3. Matt Suhey

Guys are crossing my lists, but Suhey was an awesome football player. Notice people do not often mention the drought of fullbacks in Chicago, but the Bears have not had one since number 26.

4. Brendon Ayanbadejo

Lovie loves talking about the four phases of the game, and Special Teams are on of these. So why did the Bears let this guy go. He was one of the best in football and the Bears rewarded him by not paying him what he deserved.

5. Jeff Graham

Erik Kramer had an awesome year with the Bears, and Graham was a huge part of it. He was a good receiver that was not afraid to go over the middle and make plays. For some reason, the Bears did not see his value and let him go.

6. Peanut Tillman

For some unknown reason many Bears fans seem to take issue with Tillman. He is a great cornerback and has proven his talents with the team. I just wish people would cut him some slack.

7. Brad Maynard

He is unspectacular but amazing. He always seems to come up with big punts and puts the opposing teams in poor field position.

8. Leslie Frazier

Its too bad he got hurt on a trick play in the Super Bowl because he was getting to be a really good player for the Bears. Still not sure why Ditka decided to risk his top corner on a punt return with a big lead.

9. Bernard Berrian

I really liked Berrian as a Bear and was upset the team let him go. I am not sure why a team that is so far under the cap would not match the Vikings offer. He was a really nice football player.

10. Jim Morrissey

A last round pick with the Bears in 1985 and played several productive seasons with the Bears, a guy that never really got credit for being a good football player.

Your thoughts???

Week 4 Ratings: Second Half Defense Leads Bears over Eagles

In week 4, the Chicago Bears looked like a playoff team, at times.  At other times, the Bears looked like a last place team.  The Bears come out of the gates quick, putting up 7 points in three plays.  Taking a 21-14 point lead into half time, the third game the Bears lead going into the half.  The third quarter was a mess though, and the Bears offense turned the ball over three times, while gaining just four yards and zero first downs.  The defense came through though on a huge goal line stand, forcing a turn over on downs by the Philadelphia Eagles.  The Bears almost blew another fourth quarter lead, but came out on top, 24-20.

Lets take a look at how the Bears did, position by position.

Quarterback- 18/34, 199 yrds, 3 td, 2 int- Rating: 3/5

Kyle Orton started off great.  Taking the Bears down the field in three plays, all passing, on their opening drive resulting in a 19-yard pass to Greg Olsen.  Orton would finish with three touchdowns, a career high.  All three touchdowns came in the first half though.  The second half was a different story though.  In the third quarter Orton turned the ball over three times, one interception and two fumbles.  All three turnovers came on three consecutive possessions.  In the end, Orton turned out a pretty good performance, but needs to play like he did the first half more consistently if the Bears are going to make a run at the division.

Running Backs-  26 carries, 78 yrds, 3.0 avg- 6 catches, 43 yards- Rating: 3.5/5

This was not the best rushing performance by the Bears run game, but it did the job.  They picked up yards in key situations.  Matt Forte carried the ball 19 times for just 43 yards.  Kevin Jones spelled him three times for 16 yards.  Devin Hester gained 15 yards on an end around, and Marty Booker picked up three yards on what looked to be a wide receiver option.  Forte continued to be a reliable receiving option for Orton out of the backfield though, as Orton found him five times when he was getting into trouble.  In the end, you would like to see the ground game pick up more yards, but in a game where Orton shined in the first half, the ground game was able to eat away the clock in the fourth quarter.  Forte turned in a total 24 touches for 88 yards.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends- 12 catches, 157 yrds, 3 TDs- Rating: 3.5/5

The Chicago Bears reveiving core looked great as a group, but no one stood out alone.  Hester, Booker and Olsen all caught touch down passes.  Hester also dropped a pass over the middle of the field that would proably have ended in a touchdown.  He redemed himself with a 20 yard grab down the sideline for a second quarter touchdown that put Chicago up 21-14.  Olsen had three catches, and zero turnovers! Booker also got his first touchdown back with the Bears.  Brandon Lloyd, last weeks leading wide out, had two catches for 33 yards before leaving with an injury, which he did not return from.  Besides the dropped catch by Hester, the wide outs performed well.

Defensive Line- 13 tackles, 1.5 sacks – Rating: 4/5

The Chicago Bears were without pro-bowl defensive lineman Tommie Harris and did not have to face pro-bowl running back Brian Westbrook or pro-bowl guard Shaun Andrews.  They held running back Correll Buckhalter to just 66 yards rushing but he averaged 4.1 yards per carry.  The were able to keep Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb on the run though, sacking him 1.5 times.  The line made a huge stop in the fourth quarter though.  As the eagles drove 75 yards down the field with hopes of tying the, the Chicago Bears stopped them at the one yard line on 3 consecutive plays, yielding a turn over on downs.

Linebackers- 11 tackles, 1 sack- Rating: 3.5/5

The Bears linebackers played a great game Sunday, although not putting up huge numbers.  Lance Briggs was continuosly chasing guys around the field, and had two crowed ‘awwing’ hits.  Hunter Hillenmeyer sacked McNabb once, and Brain Urlacher was all over the field as usual, picking up 8 tackles.

Defensive Secondary- 22 tackles, .5 sack, 1 int- Rating 4/5

The Chicago Bears secondary played very well Sunday, allowing the least amount of passing yards and touchdowns by McNabb for the season.  Danieal Manning got into the back field to assist Ogunleye in a sack.  Kevin Payne tied Urlacher for the team lead in sacks with 8 tackles, he also returned an interception for 49 yards, almost scoring a touchdown.  The secondary had a touch time trying to cover speedy rookie DeShawn Jackson who scored the only receiving touchdown for the Eagles.  Charles Tillman left in the fourth quarter after being in obvious pain after missing a tackle.  The Bears secondary was able to prevent any really big plays, something usually tough for the opposing teams to do against the Eagles offense.

Overall Team Rating: 4/5

The Chicago Bears were the clear underdogs against the Eagles, as nobody was really giving them a chance.  The Bears showed early that they were a team that should not be looked over.  The second half play by the Bears offense, mainly Orton,  was clear to why they blew second half leads the last two weeks and are only 2-2.   The defense showed its true character with their goal line stand, which was definitely the focal point of the second half.

While it was first half offense that got the Bears going in week 4, it was traditional Chicago Bears defense that finished of the game in the second half.