SmartassBoiler

Stepping down? How can a very talented TE who is converting from backup to starter, with a year of experience underneath his belt, possibly be in for a worse season than his rookie year? I completely understand the pessimism regarding the Chicago Bears offense, but Olsen will be heavily involved in the passing game this year, especially with the lack of talent at the WR position. He's an interesting TE1 if you wait around forever, and a great TE2 with upside. Stepping up, possibly into the lower TE1 catagory.

It would have been cool to draft Mendenhall, but that's not the Bears style. They never make that exciting pick that gets the fans pumped, unfortunately. I was fully expecting them to go LT in the first round, but I was hoping for Otah or Alberts. Given the fact the Bears attempt to build their offense arround a power running game each year, why would they draft a tackle like Williams with concerns about his run blocking instead of a massive road grader like Otah or Alberts?

Ugh. I was hoping to use Young this week with Jacobs out again, but I guess I have to turn to Kolby Smith despite a bad matchup. Fock you, commissioner's office.

Given they used Hall and Sapp last week when they had Johnson, I believe that waiving Johnson means Selvin Young is ready to go this week. Young came back on the field after his injury against the Titans, so I bet Denver was probably just erring on the side of caution last week by deactivating Henry. I don't think Henry is ready to play yet, even if he's not going to be suspended.

The problem with the coaching staff isn't necessarily the coaching, but moreso the arrogance shown on the defensive side of the ball. I don't feel like repeating myself from other threads, but the problem is that they are too headstrong with their system and don't make the necessary adjustments. Case in point is the Carolina playoff game a few years back where Steve Smith tore us a new one. Also this year when they wouldn't move Ricky Manning Jr. from his nickel CB role despite the injuries to Vasher and Tillman. You can't tell me that Ricky Manning Jr. wouldn't play better than whatever crap was on the field at CB for a couple games. Plus they keep moving Danieal Manning back and forth between CB and S. If you want him to develop as a S, fockin' leave him there. The fundamental problem is that we do not have enough offensive talent to overcome the injuries suffered on defense this year.

I'm right here and can fully admit we suck.

Seriously though, he's a quality DT that can both rush the passer and stop the run. He would definitely be starting next to Tommie Harris had he stayed out of trouble. I do question exactly how he'll fit in as a 3-4 NT considering he's not known as being a huge guy with a lot of strength. Given Lovie Smith prefers lighter, quicker DL to shoot the gaps and cause pressure, it seems as though he's moving to a polar opposite system.

He's easy to forget. Yeah, it made a lot of sense. Thomas Jones was unproven at that point with only one good season, and even in that season he got banged up, just like he had a history of. Braylon Edwards, #1 on the Bears board at the time, went before the Bears could pick him. Ronnie Brown was gone. It was between Benson, Cadillac, and Mike Williams, and I wanted them to take Cadillac because I thought he was the better back. Now Caddy has hardly panned out for Tampa, but who knows what he would have done in Chicago. Gruden ran him into the ground the first few games in Tampa, and he hasn't been the same since. I know Caddy wasn't the best fit for our offensive system, but he was a slasher that they could have adapted the offense for. Oh well.

They need to fire whoever heads up their offensive talent scouting. They are gold in finding defensive talent, but they can't handle the other side of the ball. Greg Olsen gives us some hope at one position, at least. QB - Griese? Barely a short term answer, hardly a long term answer. RB - Benson? Crap. Gone. WR1 - Berrian? Can't hang onto the damn ball, and now Rosenhaus is his agent. Gone. WR2 - Muhammad? He's adequate, but aging. TE - Olsen? Looks like they finally got one right. He can be a building block for the offense. O-Line - Fred Miller and Ruben Brown are both aging and need to be replaced next season. Tait, Kreutz, and Garza are solid. Yup, pretty bleak on that side of the ball.

Cedric Benson is a selfish piece of trash. If he spent as much effort running with the football as he does replying to the media's criticism, he'd break a tackle here and there. Maybe. Benson has nothing going for him. He's not fast. He doesn't run hard and break tackles. He has poor vision. He's miserable at catching passes. He can't block. The Bears offensive line isn't playing as well this year as they have the past couple years, but there are holes there to run through. It takes Benson too long to get to one. There is no question in my mind that this would be a better football team if (the other) Adrian Peterson would be elevated to the starting RB. He does every single thing better, but the Bears front office/coaching staff is too stubborn to admit that their 2005 4th overall choice is a complete bust. Hopefully a full 2007 season of barely 3 YPC is enough to convince them that they need another RB this offseason.

I wouldn't touch Portis. He still has the premier RB role on the offense, but there are a few problems. First of all, the offensive line has turned into a disaster thanks to injuries, and it's limiting the entire offense. Secondly, Campbell is doing nothing to stretch the field despite having 2 deep threats at WR, although this could be a product of the offensive line as well. Finally, Portis does not look right. He doesn't have the same speed and burst that he's had over the past few years, and it's obvious to me that he's not 100%. If the Redskins fall out of it, although that seems unlikely given their solid record, Portis could be shut down.

Right, because the way you act had absolutely nothing to do with that. I have no problem giving the Lions team their due. I'm a fan of both Roy Williams and Calvin Johnson. They have a lot of offensive talent, their playcalling has gotten better the last couple of weeks, and their overall attitude has improved thanks to getting a coach with the right demeanor. The problem is that you inject every Bears thread with negativity, wonder why some Bears fans blast you at every turn, and then you turn right around and start the same old crap when the Lions do well. You run and hide whenever the Lions start playing poorly. You predict a loss, and then gloat when they win. It is impossible for you to be the better man and rise above the childishness that you decry when it goes against you. You can call me projecting all you want, but this has nothing to do with the Bears poor play this year or with the solid Lions play this year. It has everything to do with you.

My opponent needed 50 yards, and judging from Ryan Grant's performance, he defintiely would have gotten there. Thank you FF God.

So you're that old and still act like this? No wonder you spend so much time on here. Congrats to the classy Lions fans.

Are you seriously not man enough to compliment the Bears once in a while? It's ridiculous how you troll every Bears thread.

Woohoo!

Yeah, and then they come over here and complain that nobody helps them. It's a real wonder why.

I started both Warner and S. Moss this week, and now Jacobs is getting pulled at the goal line when I need 25 points from Jacobs/NYG D. Fock this.

It's weird how the roles are reversed. Our offense has actually put up a few capable outings with Griese at the helm, but now the defense has gone South. The team's loyalty to two players are a big key to their 2007 downfall. 1) Rex Grossman. As mentioned above, the Bears franchise showed illogical loyalty to a player who had given them nothing up until 2006. They had a chance to make a run at several QBs such as Drew Brees or even a veteran stopgap like Jeff Garcia to plug the hole. All the Bears needed was a smart QB who could manage the clock and not make mistakes, and the perfect solution for that is a veteran who has proven his worth. Now, I don't fault them for giving Grossman a chance after his 2006 season. He showed potential last year, but never recovered after the tailspin that occurred midway through 2006. He had a couple good games down the stretch, but that was it. To give him a chance to see if he'd fix his flaws like many QBs do after their first full season was the right move, but he got worse. It never should have gotten that far, however. 2) Mike Brown. There's no denying his talent when he's on the field, but how many season-ending injuries does he need to have to make the Bears realize that they can't rely on him? The defense is a markedly different bunch with him on the field, and their run D is general atrocious without him there. The front 7 does a solid job against the run, but when a guy does get through them, they go much farther than they should because the safeties we have are hardly that good. The other thing that irks me is the arrogance of the Bears defensive game planning. It was exposed against the Panthers 2 years ago in the playoffs, and it's rearing its ugly head again this year. The Bears have a capable replacement corner in Ricky Manning Jr. who could take over for the injured Nathan Vasher. However, they state that the nickel corner is a specified role in this cover 2 scheme and that they won't move Manning from it. WTF? They can't honestly tell us that Manning is more important to the nickle package than he would be starting, especially when Todd McBride is the alternative. Not only that, but they keep trying to move Daniel Manning to cornerback when he should be focusing on being Mike Brown's replacement. When they move D. Manning to corner, it forces Brandon McGowan onto the field, who is obviously worthless. It's created large problems in our secondary, which has hurt both the pass and the rush defense.

I read that Fred Taylor was a limited participant in practice yesterday due to some groin issue. Does anyone know addiitonal details about it? Unfortunately I'm relying on him in 2 leagues this week thanks to injuries and bye weeks.

Bryant Johnson, if he plays and Boldin doesn't. Bobby Engram, who will take the flanker position in the Seahawks offense with Branch out.

He's the easiest fish in the sea. He feels the need to bust out a wordy diatribe every time somebody says something negative about the 49ers since they're actually a perfect franchise. Alex Smith is the next Joe Montana, so shut up already.

It's absolutely ridiculous how little of an effort they make to get him the ball. No offense to Lynch, who is a good RB, but Evans is easily the best offensive player they have. It's no wonder their offense struggles every week.

Agreed, but I did somewhat conditionalize it as "sloppy".

Good game, guys. It was a sloppy affair, which definitely played into the Bears hands.