How proud am I at this show of open mindedness from our boys on the field? Its enough to bring a tear to the eye of even this cynical blogger. From the Sports Pickle.
Yes, we’re all getting desperate for offseason entertainment.
ProFootballTalk.com is running a poll within each division to find out who the fans want to see on HBO’s Hard Knocks. Today is the NFC North’s turn.
Now it may seem to most of you that the right thing to do is to vote for the Bears. Don’t. Vote for the Packers. Because this looks to me like a great way to cause a huge training camp distraction, which is probably the reason why several teams have already turned down the opportunity. There would be nothing worse for a young team that to have players who are already on top of the world get their egos stroked by putting them on television for a summer. You could almost guarantee a let down to start the season.
Not that the poll actually counts for anything. And not that the Packers would be stupid enough to let HBO do it. But I’m willing to fool myself into taking anything seriously if it means fewer stories about lawyers and lockouts at this point.
Sean Jensen at the Chicago Sun-Timesrecently interviewed Bears quarterback Jay Cutler and asked him about the workouts they were planning. To the surprise of many, only the offensive players were planning to workout together:
“Cutler said the workouts would be for offensive players only.
“’I mean, those defenders have been in the system for eight years, nine years,’ Cutler said. ‘What are they gonna do?
“’What am I going to tell Lach?’ Cutler said, referring to linebacker Brian Urlacher. ‘‘Your drop is a little short. Sorry, buddy.’ Offensively, we have a lot of room to improve.’”
The offense actually started last Wednesday without the defense and Cutler’s reasons for not pushing them to be there above are true enough. But what the veteran defensive players either don’t understand or, worse, don’t seem to care about, is that even though they personally don’t need the workouts, the team needs them to be there.
I love Brian Urlacher but like many if not most great athletes he’s a little emotionally stunted. Sometimes you can tell that there’s a lack of maturity there that makes him self-centered, not on the field, but in other little ways off it. This is one example of it and I’m sure many of his teammates are no better.
“It’s easy to go out there and run routes with your teammates when you’re not held accountable by working against a defensive back and having a coach look over your shoulder. It’s just not the same.”
“Working against a defense [is what’s missing from the workouts]. Running routes is just like doing warmups before a game when you come out of the locker room. There are some benefits to that. You can work on your timing. Let’s say the depth of the route is 10 yards, you can really fine-tune that. Work on getting your head back. Jay (Cutler) can work on getting to that fifth step, planting the foot and throwing the ball. But without the competition aspect, without having the DB drive underneath that route and make a play on it, without having that DB working against receivers so they can create separation and get down the field, it’s not football.”
Bottom line your offense can’t get better without a defense there to play against.
Admittedly you might question just how much of a “competition aspect” there would be without coaches present and without the risk of even accidental contact. And I understand that the offseason is a precious time for these guys and I’m sure the defensive players are enjoying the time off.
But the Packers, the Lions and the Vikings are getting better and the Bears aren’t going to keep up by sitting stagnant and saying, “We’re veterans. We don’t need to work.” Urlacher needs to get the defense out on the field to workout with the offense.
Jeff Dickerson at ESPNChicago.comreports that “Jay Cutler led workout with offensive players”. I think he means “Greg Olsen got the players together for a workout and Cutler was there throwing passes.”
Why do I say that? Well this typical answer to a fan’s question from Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribune has a lot to do with it:
“Interesting comment in a recent mailbag about a possible leadership void on the team. Jay Cutler just doesn’t strike me as a leader, and a successful quarterback has to be one. Look at Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, even Jim McMahon when he played. Am I way off base here? Rick, Spanaway, Wash.
“The best way to be a leader is to throw touchdown passes. If Cutler does that, nothing else really matters. But he certainly can be a better leader in other ways. Remember, one of the reasons he was available in a trade is he wasn’t everything that Manning and Brady are in terms of intangibles. The Bears’ hope is that he matures into a leader. We’re waiting.”
Pompei also weighs in on the debate about where newly drafted offensive tackle Gabe Carimi should play:
“Dan, I have read numerous times since the draft that Gabe Carimi will play right tackle with J’Marcus Webb the left side. I must be confused as Carimi played left at Wisconsin and faced three first-round draft pick defensive ends from the Big Ten this year and played four years at the position… I say let Carimi play himself out of the position at least. Could you explain it to me please? I am baffled by this nonsense. Trainedape, Kenosha, Wis.
“I understand your confusion. When the Bears project Carimi to play right tackle and Webb to play left, they are looking at athletic and physical traits of both players. The left tackle usually is required to be a little lighter on his feet and have better hand quickness and length. The right tackle usually is a more powerful player who can get leverage and engulf smaller defenders. Carimi has more right tackle traits and Webb has more left tackle traits. That doesn’t mean Webb can play the left tackle position better than Carimi, or vice versa. It just means that Webb at left and Carimi at right probably is going to be the starting point. And even though Carimi was a left tackle in college, every NFL team I have spoken with thought he would be best as a right tackle in the pros.”
ESPN‘s NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert disagrees saying that he thinks Carimi’s a left tackle and makes some interesting comments along the way:
“For a number of reasons, Carimi’s short- and long-term destinations fall somewhere short of certain. The Bears’ offensive line remains an unfinished puzzle, and in the immediate aftermath of the draft, coach Lovie Smith wouldn’t even commit to whether Carimi will play tackle or guard. Offensive line coach Mike Tice acknowledged it is more likely that Carimi ends up playing tackle — ‘I think he’s an outside player, personally,” Tice said — but made clear that the full picture won’t be visible for a while. ‘”
It is entirely possible that the Bears plan to try Carmi at left tackle but they don’t want to say so. If you say “left tackle” the agent’s eyes light up with dollar signs. If you say, “guard”, he’ll scoff but at least you’re starting the negotiation at the bottom. Having said that, I could be way off base. Most of these draft picks are more or less slotted and there might not be that much money at stake.
“I was wondering if the Bears coaches are seeking out you and other Bears beat writers more to use you to give messages to the players. Since the coaches can not communicate with the players or their agents, might it be possible that they use the media to pass along information to their players?… Thanks. Jayson Becker, Minneapolis
“Speaking for myself and the other media members who I am in contact with, I have not found that coaches are trying to use the media to send messages to players. Even during the lockout, there are other, more sensible ways for coaches to send messages to players without having to go through the media. And I’m sure they have sent messages through backdoor channels.”
Pompei also had this comment for the National Football Post in his Sunday Blitz feature:
“[Bears offensive coordinator] Mike Martz usually evaluates quarterbacks a little differently than a lot of other people. And his track record suggests he knows what he’s doing. The player he really liked in the first tier of QBs this year was Andy Dalton. Martz measures quarterbacks mostly based on accuracy, intelligence and toughness, and he tells me he thought the new Bengals signal caller had all three in spades. He was very impressed with the new Bengal’s grasp of the game. In the second tier of quarterbacks, Martz liked the player he’s going to be coaching, Nathan Enderle.”
Pete Prisco at CBSSports.comreviews the 2008 draft from a 2011 perspective. His evaluation of the Bears looks to be more or less on target.
“The Bears had 12 picks, but little to show for it. First-round pick Chris Williams was tabbed to be a tackle, but he struggled there and has been moved inside to guard. That’s not a good thing. Second-round running back Matt Forte is a starter who had a good rookie season, struggled in 2009 and bounced back to play well in 2010. He’s a good pick. None of the other 10 picks started for the Bears in their title-game loss to the Packers. Receiver Earl Bennett (third round) and tight end Kellen Davis (fifth) and corner Zack Bowman (fifth) did play. Two others from this draft, defensive tackle Marcus Harrison and safety Craig Steltz, were on the roster but did not play. They had too many picks not to land more than one quality starter.
“Questionable Fit:
“Stephen Paea, Chicago Bears: Like the three teams listed above, the Chicago Bears entered the 2011 draft with considerable needs along their defensive front, especially inside at defensive tackle. The Bears elected to release former first round pick Tommie Harris and may need to fill a hole at nose guard should scheduled free agent Anthony Adams play elsewhere next season. Like Adams, Paea is shorter than most teams want at defensive tackle and relies on a combination of explosive strength and leverage to control his opponent. Should the Bears plug Paea in at nose as a replacement for Adams, I don’t know that the former Beaver will prove as successful as Adams has been in Chicago. Simply put, Paea is not a particularly instinctive defender. He’ll blow up his share of plays due to his incredible strength (Combine record 49 reps of 225 pounds), but he won’t make many plays outside of the guard-center-guard box. Even worse, Paea is not ideally suited to take over for Harris. Besides the lack of instincts, Paea isn’t particularly quick, making him a tough projection as a three-technique who is expected to penetrate and create havoc in the backfield. I like Paea’s upside, his value in the mid second round and the fact that he’ll be reasonably protected by Julius Peppers on the outside. However, Paea is not the dominant force his reputation has led some to believe.”
Elsewhere
Mike Florio at profootballtalk.comis starting to wonder if Donovan McNabb‘s career is over.
“Though we’re not yet ready to drop a shovel of dirt on McNabb’s 12-year NFL career, it’s a possibility that we no longer would regard as shocking. McNabb will demand being installed as the Day One starter, and he’ll want the kind of financial package that inherently will demonstrate that the Eagles were wrong to trade him and that the Redskins were wrong to dismiss him. At this point, we can’t think of a team that will do it — and we can’t envision McNabb accepting any lesser terms in order to continue playing.”
“According to the Sports Junkies [at 106.7 the Fan], citing multiple unnamed sources, coach Mike Shanahan asked McNabb to wear a wristband after he struggled to remember plays. McNabb declined, explaining that it would make him look stupid. (More accurately, McNabb said, ‘It’s bad for my image.’)”
Summary: Aaron Rogers tells ESPN 540 this story about a “brawl” that took place during a TV timeout before the Super Bowl coin toss:
“Well, over to the left, about 10 cameramen have been trying to get in place to get the best shot, and two of them are fighting. They’re yelling at each other in different languages, flipping each other off. The one guy is flipping him off, and the other guy below him is just taking all these pictures of it….
“So they’re screaming at each other. The up guy is flipping him off and the down guy is taking all these pictures of him. So then the [low] guy stands up and he starts taking pictures of him. So they’re both screaming at each other taking pictures of each other for a good minute and a half.”
“Rational minds may disagree, but we’d rather give up a third or fourth-round pick for Orton than whatever Kevin Kolb is going to cost in draft picks and money. (Kolb is obviously out of play for Minnesota, but our opinion holds true for any team.)”
“The quarterback situation has made Minnesota an easy pick for last place in the NFC North. With Orton, should that come to pass, the Vikings suddenly become far more formidable simply because of the projected reduction in stupid quarterback tricks.”
Mullin’s got a point. I keep hearing over and over and over ad nauseum about the Lions but with any kind of a decent veteran QB the Vikings are going to be very underrated. Only the apparent loss of Pat Williams-type defensive tackle in the middle makes me hesitate. The NFC North is going to be very, very good next year.
“I saw it during my own career, and [Eagles defensive coordnator Juan] Castillo has a point when he says (via the Philadelphia Inquirer): ‘To play fast, you can’t be thinking.’
“Teach landmarks, run-pass keys and specific techniques that apply to the front seven and the secondary. The rest? Just play football. The exact theory behind the Tampa 2 scheme under Tony Dungy and what we see today in Chicago with Lovie Smith.”
“I took a survey of front office men last week to ask if they liked having the draft before free agency, and the overwhelming response was they did. Only one man said it didn’t matter to him because it didn’t change his team’s philosophy of drafting the best available player.
“But six others said they like it this way, even though there is little hope of it remaining like this.”
“Only five out of the league’s 32 play-callers called plays from the coaches’ booth last season, according to research from the Baltimore Ravens’ public relations department.”
I still can’t imagine it isn’t easier to think in the booth.
“BREAKING: Rex Ryan About to Say Something – SportsPickle News”
[Our] source cites the fact that Ryan has contracted his cartoonishly large stomach and filled his lungs with enough breath to conceivably pass through his vocal chords, an evolutionary process generally befitting a human being who is about to form sounds, as evidence that Rex Ryan is about to say something.”
Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribunereminds us of this rule. It could be a quite a restriction on the Bears in free agency depending upon what they want to do.
“Another complicating factor is the Final Eight rules. If 2010 rules are in place, the Bears and the other top seven teams in the league last season would be limited to signing one unrestricted free agent for each one they lose, and they couldn’t pay the player a lot more than what the departing player receives.”
Pompei reviews the positions on the field and what the Bears may choose to do at each of them. One of them is defensive tackle:
“The drafting of Stephen Paea alleviates the need here and also could result in Anthony Adams leaving as a free agent.
“The Bears still appear interested in bringing back Adams, but probably will not pay more than they think he’s worth. If they need to replace Adams, raiding the Packers for free agent Cullen Jenkins is an enticing option.”
I hate to see Adams go. He seems to be one of those guys who quietly gets the job done. And Cullen Jenkins is going to be a popular guy once this gets rolling. I’m thinking the Bears won’t overpay him, either.
But I think linebacker will be the position to watch:
“Lance Briggs in the only one the Bears have who is sure to be back, so the team will be looking for one or two free agents. One of them could be the starter on the strong side. Keeping Nick Roach and letting him compete for the job makes sense.
“Other players who could work for the Bears include Ben Leber, Leroy Hill and Thomas Davis.”
Roach is good enough and he can play special teams. But something tells me we’re going to see someone new on the strong side.
Let’s all just hope it gets started sometime before September.
ESPN AFC South blogger Paul Kuharsky and NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert debate: Who will have the bigger impact, Jake Locker or Christian Ponder. This factor in Locker’s favor caught my eye:
“Competition: Nobody gets an easy road, but if they are playing, Locker will be facing a much easier division. The Colts will be a prime contender in the AFC again. It’s unlikely the Jaguars or Texans are exceptionally threatening. Meanwhile, Ponder will be on the division’s worst team, facing the teams that played in the last NFC Championship Game and the Detroit Lions, who will be ranked by many (including me) as breakout candidates.”
A couple things:
Its nice to see the NFC North getting some respect but that AFC South division looks tough enough to me.
Hard not to notice that with the lockout going on in the absenc of any other real news, ESPN has decided to continue to pound on the draft quarterbacks story. This was over-hyped even before the draft. Now its just becoming intolerable. There has to be more than this, even if its just speculating about free agents.
How desperate is the media getting? We have this via Gregg Rosenthal at profootballtalk.com:
“One stat from Tom Canavan of the Associated Press sums up the problem perfectly.
“He reports that seven New York Giants are present at Eli Manning’s loose “passing camp” at Hoboken High School on Wednesday. And there are eleven reporters present to cover them.”
(Personal note: Its kind of a good thing for this blog that things are slowing down with the lockout. Those who check here regularly will note that the posts have been fewer lately. This isn’t laziness on my part. I’m afraid I have a real job and its picking up so I’m spending my early morning hours more on business, probably until the end of June. I’ll try to keep posting a couple times a week until then.)
“The Bears cut DT Tommie Harris this offseason and needed to find a three-technique tackle to replace him. They filled their two most pressing needs with their first two picks, improving both lines. Paea possesses both strength and quickness and could help at either interior position for the Bears. He’s capable of manning the nose or playing in gaps, where he is more comfortable. Rod Marinelli should be able to light a fire underneath him.”
The Bears picked a guy in the second round who needs a fire lit underneath him?
ESPN‘s NFC North blogger Kevin Seiferttalks about the misconception amongst at least some NFL experts that Stephen Paea will be a run stuffing nose tackle in the Bears 4-3
“Today, you might laugh at the thought of putting John Randle, Warren Sapp and Stephen Paea in the same sentence. But we do so more to describe a mentality than assess his skill level. I would be worried if a second-round draft pick was hoping to become, say, the next Ted Washington or Tony Siragusa. All I’m saying is the Bears are hoping for — and need — more than run defense from the No. 53 overall pick of the draft.
Seifert is under valuing the nose guard position but the Bears are running a 4-3 not a 3-4 so he’s got a point.
“With the high amount of collisions required at the safety position in Lovie Smith‘s preferred defense, GM Jerry Angelo seemingly must address the position every year. There’s a chance Danieal Manning could depart, as well. Conte was a late riser who really impressed secondary coaches in the evaluation process. He plays like a poor man’s John Lynch and elevated on draft boards in a weak safety class.”
“Enderle is a big, smart stationary passer who too often over thinks the game. He has the mental capacity to handle all the demands of Mike Martz‘s complex offense. The key to Enderle’s development will be how much Martz can hone his instincts and teach him to cut it loose and trust what he sees.”
“If you think it’s too early to look into next year’s class, consider that NFL teams meet to share notes on 2012 senior prospects every year at this time. It’s the tipoff to the draft process starting anew, the initial gathering of information shared by scout services that aids in lining up travel schedules for scouts who return to college campuses beginning in August.”
Here’s what he said about the Bears 2012 “pick”:
“15. Chicago Bears: *Stephon Gilmore, CB, South Carolina
“Gilmore’s thin build belies a toughness and attitude that all cornerbacks need to succeed. Though no guarantee to be a first-round pick without a strong junior year, his upside warrants this projection.”
He doesn’t sound like a prototypical fit for the Bears defensive system but I’ll bag that pick when we come to it.
“Chicago committed 27 blown blocks that led to sacks or penalties, according to Football Outsiders’ Game Charting Project, the third-highest total in the league, but blown blocks tell only part of the story. The Bears ranked 30th in the league in adjusted line yards on runs up the middle last season, where [Olin] Kreutz and Garza do most of their dirty work. The FO game charters noted many instances of missed blocks by Garza that led to stuffed running plays, and even Kreutz whiffed on his fair share of blocks against quicker defenders.”
“Frank Omiyale could move from left to right tackle, allowing J’Marcus Webb (7.5 blown blocks last year) to move inside to challenge Garza.”
“‘There are very few people in the NFL who understand football techniques and schematically know the game as well as him,’ [former offensive line coach Harry] Hiestand said.
“A couple of years ago, Kreutz would have told you he had no desire to coach. Now, he says ‘we’ll see what happens.’ If the Bears can identify an heir apparent, he’d probably handle a mentoring role well.”
“Obviously, we gave up a lot of sacks but we were still able to get to the NFC Championship Game. We’re not too far off. We have to make improvements and get a couple more guys in there. We’ll see what happens.”
Michael C. Wright at ESPNChicago.commakes a good point as he answers your questions:
“Q: Where does Herman Johnson fit into the offensive line plans?”
“– Mike (Valparaiso, Ind.) ”
“A: At 6 foot 7, 360 pounds, Johnson definitely fits the mold of the humungous players coveted by offensive line coach Mike Tice… Johnson’s best shot at competing for a chance to contribute in 2011 is to report to the team (whenever they’re allowed to) in tip-top shape. The Bears have told me they’re not concerned about players reporting out of shape. But with a guy as big as Johnson, you’ve got to be at least a little worried.”
“Is there any way the Bears bring back Tommie Harris on a cheaper contract or incentives-laden contract? Tom C, Columbia, Mo.
“If you look at the history of the Jerry Angelo/Lovie Smith regime, when they turn the page on a player, they typically do not go back. They did it with Chris Harris, but he was a different case than most. I think we have seen the last of Tommie Harris in a Bears uniform.”
This is about the third time I’ve read a fan question revolving around this issue. I’m having a hard time understanding it. Tommie Harris had about as good a year as he’s going to have last year and it was very average. Its fairly well established that the three-technique tackle has to make that defense go. The Bears need an upgrade and Harris would just be taking up a roster spot without playing special teams.
The Lions, Cowboys, Saints and Jets players are all working out on their own together. Will the Bears? To answer that question, I’ll just say this. The Saints have Drew Brees. The Bears have Jay Cutler.
“Some of these workouts are overrated. Unless they are done under the supervision of coaches, their value is limited. The primary benefits of these types of workouts are building camaraderie and working on timing between quarterbacks and receivers. These types of workouts are not going to decide who wins the Super Bowl. That being said, the Bears quarterbacks and receivers should have been working out together long ago. If they have not been (and I am not completely sure they have not been), it shows a void of leadership on the team.”
“It’s possible that some players are awaiting a ruling from the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis, which is determining whether NFL owners will get a permanent stay to keep the lockout in place. If that’s the case, the earliest teams would re-open for business is the end of June. You could expect more players to start organizing themselves if that comes to bear. We’ll keep you updated.”
“What scared me about (Washington’s) Jake Locker is that won-lost record. It was ugly. Look at the personnel at Stanford. It’s not great outside of Andrew Luck. Look at Jim Everett at Purdue. Look at Mississippi since Eli Manning left. If you are a great quarterback, no matter what you have on the line, at receiver and running back, I think you go 8-4, 7-5 and play in bowl games. How do you start four years and go 15-25?”
I think this is something that you could generally apply to all quarterbacks, pro and college. I’ve heard the excuse made numerous times that Jay Cutler lost so many games because he played at Vanderbilt. But I look at his body language and his leadership skills and I wonder. Does that really hold water?
Another Audible gives us insight into Andy Dalton you won’t find expressed anywhere on the record:
“When we interviewed (TCU QB) Andy Dalton, he said the accomplishment he was most proud of was gathering 750 kids to listen to his ministry every week, not winning the Rose Bowl. When we asked him how he is going to handle guys on the field when the bullets start flying and his teammates are yelling at him, he said the first thing he is going to do is pray about it. I couldn’t help but think, this might be the next Danny Wuerffel. If you are talking about (Dalton) going to be your starter, I would be nervous.”
“But executive vice president Stephen Jones wondered last month how the labor issues would affect their pursuit of these hidden gems.
“‘It will be different,’ he said. ‘We’ll see if it is a disadvantage.'”
“There is obvious reason for concern. Because of the lockout, all 32 teams will have more time to research the strengths and weaknesses of the undrafted rookies. Not much else is going on, after all. There are no mini-camps being conducted, no organized team activities to plan and no roster moves to be made.”
The Cowboys might be at a disadvantage in another way (along with almost everyone else). Eric Edholm at Pro Football Weekly says that six unnamed agents told him that they’d been contacted by teams about undrafted free agents (against the rules). In fact Missouri center Tim Barnes actually named the Bengals, Ravens, and Dolphins as having contacted him.
“‘It was almost like a normal year in terms of contact, a little less (phone contact) than normal maybe, only without the signed contracts at the end,’ one of the agents said.”
Edholm told WSCR last night that from the information he’s gathered it looks like as many as 10-12 teams may be involved.
“Williams told ace Texans reporter John McClain he played at 290 pounds last year. There is no prototype of an outside linebacker who weighed that much. The Texans have pointed to DeMarcus Ware as an outside linebacker Williams can be like. But Ware weighs about 30 pounds less.”
“Offenses will try to force Williams to drop. The Texans will counter by moving him to the other side of the formation. But that will mean another linebacker, likely [Brooks] Reed, will have to drop and cover a tight end or back. That’s not an appealing option for the Texans either.”
“The Vikings long have been connected with Redskins QB Donovan McNabb, who could be traded or released, and we hear there’s still a decent chance that the Vikings could get involved with him.”
Jared Allen thinks he’s going to get 17 sacks in 2011 to put him over a hundred for his career. Allen is nothing if not entertaining.
“’Our thought has been we have always been looking to make our program as effective as it can be,’ said the N.F.L. executive, who insisted that he not be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. ‘There have been some things, H.G.H. is one of them, that the union has resisted,’ he added. ‘When we get to the point where there is not a party involved, maybe we should consider what we consider important to keep pace with science and trends.’
“’If we had some clarity of where this thing was going to end up,’ he said, the league ‘might have more clarity of what we would do.’
“George Atallah, the spokesman for the National Football League Players Association, said the group would have no comment.”
For those who aren’t reading between the lines, this is a negotiating tactic. The NFL knows full well the extent to which HGH is used in the league and how much it will impact the current players if they start to test for it. Careers based upon how well a person’s body responds to HGH would likely rapidly go down the tubes.
Alan Schawz at the New York Times takes an in depth look at the brain trauma discovered in almost every pro football player who has so far been examined:
“The set of 15 players tested by B.U. researchers to this point is far from a random sample of NFL retirees that could represent the wider population. Many of the players died under conditions that could be related to CTE: [Charlie] Waters and [Dave] Duerson by suicide, John Grimsley from a gun accident, Tom McHale from a drug overdose. Their families then donated their brains largely to seek an explanation for the mens’ behavior.
“‘There’s a tremendous selection bias, so you can’t make any conclusions about the incidence or prevalence of disease,’ said Dr. Ann McKee, the B.U. group’s lead neuropathologist and director of neuropathology at New England Veterans Administration Medical Centers.”
“I don’t see any dramatic changes. My role will really be as a sounding board, an advisor if [team president] Ted [Phillips] wants me in that role; as a representative of the family, of ownership and the board; and to create as positive of an environment as possible. The way I see it my job is to work with and in support of the president and CEO in creating a climate that’s conducive to sustained success.”
“I read comments from Jerry Angelo where he indicated that this was a tough draft. Apparently he had a hard time getting a handle on things but I don’t think he ever explained why. Could you shed some light on it? Tom Shannon, Chicago
“What Angelo meant is that it was difficult for him to get a handle on how the draft would play out regarding the Bears. To start with, any time you are picking 29th, things are usually unpredictable. And that was the case this year. But this draft had more peculiarities than most, especially in the most important spot for the Bears, from the late first round to the late second. You had the volatility that the quarterbacks would create. Then you had four positions – wide receiver, linebacker, safety and tight end – with very few legitimate prospects in that late first round, second-round range. So that would force teams to go in other directions that they might not normally go in. All in all, the Bears were fortunate the draft played out like they hoped it would, and they were able to walk away from the first two rounds with potential starters at their two biggest areas of need – offensive tackle and defensive tackle. But they really couldn’t predict it would have happened that way.”
Pompei also answers this fan’s question about the Bears repeatedly addressing the same positions in the draft every year with empahisis on free safety and quarterback:
“You are right that this is the second free safety the Bears have taken in as many years. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t happy with Major Wright. You can never have too many safeties who can cover. Perhaps if some of the safeties they had taken in previous years had become better players, they wouldn’t have had to select Chris Conte. But it’s not like they were taking safeties in the high rounds that were not panning out. They were taking safeties late, with the hopes that one of them could come through.”
“With the addition of Gabe Camiri, the Bears have their bookend tackles for the next decade. I like the we need to get bigger philosophy for the O line. So, any truth to the rumors of Chris Williams playing center? I think Olin Kreutz is overrated at this point of his career; and too small. “David, Oak Brook
“I don’t see any chance of Chris Williams starting at center this year. If the Bears did want to give Williams a new position, they would need an offseason to acclimate him. They don’t have an offseason this year thanks to the labor problems. So I think their options with Williams are limited. It’s possible the Bears will have Williams learn to play the position eventually and consider him as a potential successor to Kreutz, but it’s not something that is going to happen soon. If this team gets its way, Kreutz is going to be snapping the ball in 2011.”
“The NFL is a cutthroat business at every level. That’s why I got a kick out of [Baltimore owner Steve] Bisciotti‘s comments about saying what the Bears did was a deviation from their great legacy. No one in the history of the league was more cutthroat than George Halas. In fact, this move was in perfect keeping with the Halas tradition.”
I thought the Bears should have given the ravens the pick. But I admit that I also smiled at Biscotti’s comment. What would he know about Bears tradition? I’m sure Halas would have laughed him out of the league if he had asked him to just give him that pick.
Biggs profiles Conte. Opinions of him seem to vary wildly:
One scouting director in another city said he was the top safety on his team’s board. A veteran scout for another club mocked the selection, the seventh safety the Bears have drafted in seven years.”
“While most of the teams towards the bottom of the rankings had tough years, like the Redskins and Vikings, the 2010 Bears were an anomaly. One explanation is the success of trades and free-agent acquisitions, which is how the franchise acquired Jay Cutler and Julius Peppers. Another is Chicago’s success at drafting contributors who don’t necessarily start. Either way, the Bears’ championship game appearance shows there is definitely more than one method to having a successful season.”
“In a recent ‘Chalk Talk’ you quoted Jerry Angelo about the injury to Stephen Paea’s knee: “He went to the [Combine] recheck in Indy—we interact with 10 other teams in the league and everybody that we interact with was fine with him.” What does “interact with 10 other teams” mean? “Tom S. “Chicago
“The NFL splits into four groups of five teams and two groups of six teams to do medical evaluations of players at the Combine. The Bears are paired with the Dolphins, Eagles, Lions, Steelers and Texans. Doctors from one of those teams examine each prospect and then give a report to the other five clubs. Individual teams can seek to gather additional information on their own when warranted, such as asking the player to take an MRI exam. The group of six teams also trades its medical information with a handful of other clubs. (That’s why Jerry Angelo mentioned interacting with 10 other teams). Players with medical issues at the Combine return to Indianapolis for a recheck at a later date. That’s also what Angelo was referencing when discussing Stephen Paea’s knee injury.”
“I have written about concussions before and the headaches that were the result of helmet-to-helmet hits as a pro, college and high school player. They won’t go away anytime soon, nor will we see concussions stop at the NFL level.
“Actually, I believe they will increase. The reasons are clear: Talk of an 18-game schedule, the speed of players and, above all, the desire to use the helmet as a weapon.
“Lower your head on contact and put the ballcarrier down.”
I’d be nervous, too. I can’t wait for the next moron to call into WSCR and complain that they shod put the players in dresses because the new rules are taking the violence out of the game.
“’We didn’t draft [Nathan Enderle] to be the third quarterback,’ Martz said. ‘If that was the case, then there was no reason to draft a quarterback.'”
It’s true enough in that you draft him to eventually become more than that. But Martz seems to me to be implying something more immediate:
“You have to be good at that position to win, and one just isn’t enough. We feel really good about Caleb, but what if Nate is better? Who knows? I don’t know that he is or isn’t.”
I know what he is. A rookie. And you just implied that without a single season of experience he might still be better than your current second quarterback who has three under his belt.
Yes. I think Martz definitely has a problem with Hanie.
“Asked if he has abandoned a passing philosophy that — with Kurt Warner and Marc Bulger — emphasized throwing to spots and timing-based routes, Martz said, ‘We never left that. That’s what the system is.’
“But Martz said the way defenses approached his offense forced them to deviate from that.
“’That’s probably the best way to put it,’ Martz said.
“’But [Jay Cutler] has no problem with that at all. It’s not something he can’t do. But we leaned on the running game.'”
Martz might not have abandoned the philosophy but to my eye Cutler clearly did (which is probably why Jensen asked the question). Cutler might actually not have a problem with it in theory. But for whatever reason he and the rest of the offense didn’t execute it on the field and Cutler was often looking for open receivers instead of throwing to a spot. Let’s hope they get their act together this year.
“Now, I can’t speak for Jay [Cutler] in the sense of, I don’t know what being a diabetic does to you. I have no idea, so I can’t really speak to that. But I’m just saying that he needs to improve his body language, and I think everybody would admit that.
“But as far as the game of football and the ability to throw the football, he does that very well. And I think the other quality we got to get to is the leadership thing. You’ve got to be able to lead as a quarterback.”
I usually ignore most of whatever spews out of Ditka’s mouth. But I admit I’m not exactly left wondering when Cutler is going to start organizing those offseason workouts during the lockout.
Elsewhere
Speaking of OTAs I find it ironic that players pushing for reduction of out right elimination of them are out there doing it on their own during the lockout.
Bengals quarterback coach Ken Zampesethinks big picture when talking newly drafted quarterback Andy Dalton. Via Joe Reedy at the Cincinnati Enquirer:
“As I looked at the other guys that were coming out, who would I sleep better at night having? It was Andy (Dalton). You start thinking about quality of life during the season and how the day-to-day stuff goes, that was the guy.”
“The Cardinals’ 2010 season may have solidified Kurt Warner’s Hall of Fame candidacy. Rarely does a team face-plant after losing one player – even if that player is a star quarterback.”
“It takes a special degree of compulsiveness to constantly overthink things in a system as rudimentary as the one San Francisco ran in 2010. In that sense, [quarterback] Alex Smith was peerless.”
Desperate for a quarterback, the Redskins reach and take Terrelle Pryor with the fourth pick in the draft. Higher-rated quarterbacks are available, but Dan Snyder falls in love with the Ohio State quarterback in pre-draft interviews after Pryor promises Snyder he can tattoo advertising on him to open up an additional revenue stream.”
“Just finished watching a highlight film of Julio Jones. If he can carry that over to the NFL….SCARY.”
If he can hold on to the ball.
Todd McShay at ESPN thought the Lions had the best draft in the NFL because they ignored needs in the secondary and took the best available guys. That was defensive tackle Nick Fairley in the first round.
Fairley will help via the pass rush but the Lions are going to still have to do something to improve that defensive backfield and that linebacking corp or they’re not going to be as good as people think.
I previously posted that I thought that Fairley looked angry because he fell to the 13th pick. If the draft had been in January, there’s a chance he would have gone #1 overall. But this Bears fan had a different take on the matter:
The Peter Principle states that “in a hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence”, meaning that employees tend to be promoted until they reach a position at which they cannot work competently.
The problem with climbing up the latter at any place of employment is that they promote you for doing a well at what you do to fill a position where you are called upon to do something totally different. For instance, I was promoted to professor in a science department at an academic institution because I could do experiments at the bench. Guess how many experiments I’ve done in the past five years? What I do all day now is sit at a desk and write when I’m not in committee meetings. The people who work for me do all the real work that I used to do. That’s the way of the world.
I doubt very much that the world of professional football is very different. You go from scout to general manager and your duties differ considerably from what you did before. You either adapt or you fail. Sometimes I wonder about Bears general manager Jerry Angelo‘s transition into his role.
Michael C. Wright says that Angelo was extremely embarrassed by the Bears-Ravens trade debacle. He should be:
“[The Ravens] say the trade was finalized with three minutes remaining on their clock. The Bears never reported the trade to the league.
“Angelo said he told staff members to phone in the deal with a little more than two minutes remaining on the clock. But two staff members each thought the other was making the call so it never was made. Newsome was exasperated as he spoke with the NFL and the Bears while the final two minutes expired.”
I know I seem to be the only fan in Chicago who is really bothered by this in the afterglow of what most consider a successful Bears draft. Certainly the tendency of Bear fans is to defend the team. Jason Cole at Yahoo Sportsunderstands that as well. But he also understands that Bears fans might be letting their bias cloud their view of the situation.
“The most popular point Chicago fans have made is that Baltimore GM Ozzie Newsome is believed to have done the same thing in 2003 to the Minnesota Vikings.
“The problem that Bears fans don’t understand is that there’s a unique difference between the two situations.
“In 2003, Newsome at least tried to call the league to confirm the trade.”
But maybe what was most interesting in Cole’s article were the quotes from an unnamed NFC executive on the matter:
“I would hope nobody would ever do that intentionally to screw somebody over, but even accidentally is really bad You’re talking about people’s jobs being on the line. That embarrasses everybody involved. Ozzie [Newsom] is lucky that [Baltimore owner Steve] Bisciotti trusts him so much. For a lot of other guys, your owner might look at you like an idiot even if the other team made the mistake.”
“I like Jerry, but what he said is BS. If you gave me your word and didn’t even call the league or didn’t call me back in time to fix the situation, that’s wrong. Dead wrong. You should pay some penalty. I don’t know what it is, but something. I think Baltimore should have gotten the pick.
“Again, this is a high-pressure situation. You can’t just say, ‘Oh, no harm, no foul.’ That could be my job on the line.”
If there’s a question of whether Baltimore general manager Ozzie Newson’s job might have been on the line, how much more is it true of Angelo’s?
I’m not going to claim to be the best manager of people. But I can definitively say one thing. The single best way to virtually guarantee that something doesn’t get done is to tell two people to do a one person job. If you do its almost 100% that they’ll each conveniently assume the other person is acting on it it. And if it doesn’t get done, then, hey, you both share the blame. Besides, if two people make the same mistake, how bad could it have been?
Anyone who manages people for a living will tell you that you always ask one person by name to do a job and make them personally responsible. And there’s the rub. Angelo’s a good scout. But is he a good manager? Isn’t that his title?
There is more to being a general manager than scouting. In fact, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Angelo’s role in the process at the ground level is relatively superficial. And if last week’s snafu was any example, he needs to pick up his game in the area that his job really centers on.
