Category: Carolina Panthers

Replay Still Needs Reform and Other Points of View

Bears

“Most NFL teams would not want a fourth-year pro as their No. 3 quarterback. It’s a situation where if the team didn’t believe in him as a No. 2 after that much time, it’s never going to be comfortable with the player in that role.”

“The most logical scenario would be to make him the No. 2 or allow him to compete with another veteran. If he doesn’t win the job, it would be time to move on.”

  • Biggs also reports that the Bears are looking at running backs, another low priority.  Cal’s Shane Vereen is on the radar.
  • With only two linebackers on the roster, the Bears would appear to be thinking about that position as well.  The Bears are reportedly working out Syracuse linebacker Doug Hogue.
  • Amongst the players at the higher priority categories, Biggs says that the Bears are hosting Boise State wide receiver Austin Pettis for a workout and offensive line coach Mike Tice was at Florida’s pro day to watch what seems like their entire offensive line workout.  That would include guard/center Mike Pouncey who I’m sure the Bears would love to take in the first round but who is unlikely to be there for them.  Tice and Martz were also taking a good look at likely first round offensive tackle Gabe Carimi at Wisconsin’s pro day (via Vaughn McClure at the Tribune).  Biggs reports that the Bears are also bringing in Northwest Missouri State corner Ryan Jones for a workout.
  • And finally, Dan Pompei at the Tribune had an article focused on the Illinois pro day where three highly regarded draft picks attract almost every team in the NFL.  These are defensive tackle Corey Liuget, linebacker Martez Wilson and running back Mikel Leshoure.  The Bears would be most interested in Liuget but Biggs reports that Tim Spencer, the Bears running backs coach, had “a long chat” with Leshoure.
  • ESPN‘s Todd McShay released another mock draft.  This one is two rounds.  He has the Bears taking Mississippi State offensive tackle Derek Sherrod in the first round and North Carolina defensive tackle Marvin Austin in the second.  This would be a reach for Sherrod with guards Danny Watkins from Baylor and Orlando Franklin from Miami still on the board.  McShay has Watkins going in the second round to the Lions and Franklin going to the Steelers at 31.

Elsewhere

  • Kevin Seifert, ESPN‘s NFC North blogger, tries to get a handle on the Vikings draft.  He says the first thing the Vikings have to do is decide if they want to target a quarterback and if Jake Locker is their guy.  If so, look for them to trade down into the twenties.  They could try to trade up for Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert but it would likely be a long, costly climb.  The knock on Locker is his accuracy.  He never managed a completion percentage better than 58.2 percent in his career.  Statistically, quarterbacks with a completion percentage of less than 60 percent in college don’t do well.
  • McShay has the Vikings picking Boston College offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo in the first and Dalton in the second.  That would certainly work.  He also is giving Lions fans wet dreams by projecting Nebraska cornerback Prince Amukamara to still be there for them in the first with Watkins in the second.
  • Tom Sorenson at the Charlotte Observer says that there are lots of indications that the Carolina Panthers are planning to take Newton as the first overall pick.
  • The New York Jets are on the clock:

  • Chad Ochocinco will be trying out to play professional soccer during the lockout according to the Cincinnati Enquirer.  Whatever.
  • The NFL isn’t the only one on the other end of a lawsuit from Tom Brady.  Poor baby’s had a rough week.

One Final Thought

Farmer also reports that the competition committee will be recommending changes to instant replay.  they took some steps in the right direction but they didn’t make the change we all know should be made.  Challenges should be completely eliminated and the decision to review should be made in the booth.  The NFL is the only league where the burden of making sure the calls are right falls upon the head coaches. The whole system is ridiculous.

Angry Birds NFL Style and Other Points of View

Bears

  • Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times tracks 25 mock drafts to see who they have the Bears picking.  It seems clear that a lineman of some type would be the ideal.  He quotes ESPN‘s Mel Kiper on why the Bears should take an offensive tackle instead of a defensive tackle in the first round:

“You can get defensive players in the second round area at the defensive tackle spot that can be a factor for you.  At offensive tackle, not so much. … It’s just slim pickings. You have a better chance to getting a defensive tackle than an offensive tackle at that point.”

  • Vaughn McClure at the Chicago Tribune documents the (somewhat belated) response of wide receiver Johnny Knox to criticism that former NFL runningback Marshall Faulk leveled at him last month:

“‘I do understand what he was trying to say: There are things I can do a better job of in terms of protecting myself and Jay,’ Knox said. ‘I honestly see what he was talking about.'”

Elsewhere

  • ESPN‘s NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert goes over how a work stoppage will affect teams in the NFC North in terms of football-related issues.  He thinks it will be disastrous for the Vikings.  They will have no offseason with a new offense, a new quarterback and no NFL monetary commitment towards a new stadium.  This entry is a good read.
  • Darin Gantt at the Charlotte Observer thinks the labor stoppage could actually help Panthers quarterback Matt Moore.  Moore is the most experienced quarterback on the roster and a long lockout could prevent them from upgrading in free agency.  Any drafted quarterback might not be NFL ready.
  • Charlie Sheen responds to the NFL labor stoppage.
  • Seifert wonders if fans will be renewing their season tickets.  Renewing on time basically contributes towards the owner’s lockout fund.
  • Gary Myers at The New York Daily News points out that if franchise tags are not determined to be valid in court, Peyton Manning is set up to become one of the most lucrative free agents in history.
  • Prominent sports agent Gary Wichard died Friday morning.
  • Former Cincinnati Bengals star Cris Collinsworth and 82 others were rescued from a seafood barge eatery on that broke free from gangplanks and floated down a flooded Ohio River.
  • Patriots safety Brandon Meriweather provides further evidence for the adage that nothing good happens when you are out at two o’clock in the morning.
  • On a related note, rumor has it that former Bear and current Patriots safety Brandon McGowan will be a free agent.  Via Pro Football Weekly.
  • Former NFL safety Matt Bowen breaks down the four verticals versus the cover two.  He uses the Bears defense of the Patriots at the end of the first half of their game last season as an example of how not to defend it.  As you can see from the diagram, right corner Charles Tillman fails to re-route the receiver inside at the line of scrimmage.  Free safety Major Wright also bites on an inside pump fake.

  • Bob Sturm at the Dallas Morning News is breaking down big Cowboys special teams plays.  In this entry he also highlights the almost impossible job that special teams coaches all over the league have.  Really good stuff.
  • Omar Kelley at the South Florida Sun-Sentinel explains why the Dolphins are “overpaying” Paul Soliai.  If the 3-4 has done one thing it has made nose tackle the hardest position to find outside of quarterback.  That will show during the draft as teams scramble to find them.
  • Former Colorado tackle Nate Solder had his pro day last week.  Matt Russell, who is Denver’s director of pro scouting and who played for the Buffaloes before being drafted by Detroit in the fourth round of the 1997 NFL draft took on Solder.  The results weren’t pretty:

One Final Thought

The Sports Pickle has designed an NFL version of Angry Birds.  Here’s a screen shot:

    Would an Assistant Coaches Union Have Helped Tice? And Other Points of View

    Bears

    • Vaughn McClure at the Chicago Tribune reports that top receiver prospect A.J. Green was in town.  Unfortunately it was for an NFL Films feature and not to visit the Bears.  They could only wish they had a pick high enough to justify such a visit.
    • Michael C. Wright at ESPNChicago.com asks a sharp question.  Would a union have helped offensive line coach Mike Tice to be allowed to interview in Tennessee for their offensive coordinator position?  The Titans were denied permission to contact Tice by the Bears.  The NFL assistant coaches are meeting at the NFL Scouting Combine to consider unionizing.

    I think the answer here is likely “No.  Tice was under contract and had the Titans been allowed to contact him, it would have been because head coach Lovie Smith simply thought it was the right thing to do.  But in the business landscape, a contract is a contract whether you are part of a union or not.  Indeed, once you get union representation, you take the “human” factor out of the equation and everything becomes all business.  The position on these issues like this is likely to harden and no one will ever get permission.

    But get this.  Minnesota Vikings coaches get ninety days of full pay after a lockout begins, followed by a 75 percent salary reduction for 90 days and then dismissal.  September is 6 months from March, folks.

    That means that the Bears can (and I think likely will) keep keep their most valuable coaches employed during what would have been the season, probably because they wouldn’t want to lose them.  But the Vikings apparently aren’t going to do that.  If other teams have handled it in a similar fashion, there could be a free-for-all tussle amongst teams to sign assistants once a lockout ends.

    Elsewhere

    • The Vikings may have a savior that will get them a stadium to keep them in Minnesota.  Let’s hope.
    • Jeremy Fowler at the Pioneer Press reports that Vikings players are planning to workout together in the hopes of learning their new offense despite being locked out of the facilities at Winter Park.
    • Tom Kowalski at milve.com says that once the NFL filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against the players, pretty much all hope for a clean, quick resolution to the labor problem was lost.  He says that the StarCaps case proved that once you put it all into the hands of the lawyers, nothing quick or clean will come of anything:

    “Three years and tens of millions in legal fees for a few celebrity diet pills. What do you think the price is for the fate of 2,500 football players and the long-term fate of the NFL?”

    I would say that Kowalski’s got a point but that the complaint wasn’t when it started.  It started when lawyer DeMaurice Smith was elected NFLPA president.  The players have been angling to get the NFL into court ever since.

    • NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has written an op-ed column on the CBA talks which has appeared in various newspapers around the country.  Adam Schefter reacts in a way which I agree with.  I wouldn’t pay much attention to the rest.  The owners aren’t going to open up their books, nor should they:

    • Carolina owner Jerry Richardson has been accused of being “condescending” in meetings with players.  I’ve read some of the comments and it sounds to me like “direct” might have been a better term.  Richardson is a former NFL halfback and I think that the players at the bargaining table shouldn’t heave been surprised at some blunt comments from him.  He’s basically not just an owner.  He’s a peer.  Cowboys owner Jerry Jones apparently agrees (via Darin Gantt and Joe Person at the Charlotte Observer):

    “Jerry’s greatest strength is communication  The more that is at stake, the more direct and clear he is with his words. When he speaks with people he cares about deeply – players, business partners, his fellow owners – he is always particularly straightforward and to the point. That is how he shows his respect for the situation and the individuals involved.

    “He is one of the most effective leaders I have ever known because he is one of the best communicators I have ever been associated with.”

    • Mel Kiper and Todd McShay break down the running backs in the NFL Draft:

    One Final Thought

    Bob Sturm at the Dallas Morning News on receiver Roy Williams and the danger of high expectations:

      “You always wonder how you would feel about a player if he was not tied to his contract. Expectation levels shot up for Tony Romo and Miles Austin when they went from being one of the cheapest contributors in the league to one of the most expensive on the roster. Perhaps one of the worst moves Jerry Jones has ever made was his decision to not only trade premium draft picks to the Lions, but then to sign Roy Williams to a 6-year, $54 million deal before he ever stepped on the field for the Cowboys.

      Offseason Brings Plenty of Off Field Player Troubles, Even More to Follow and Other Point of View

      Bears

      “Broncos executive vice president of football operations John Elway recently said it’s not a sure thing that QB Kyle Orton will be traded, but a PFW insider said it would be very tough to bring the veteran back. While QB Tim Tebow may not give the team the best chance to win, he does have the backing of the fans in Denver. Elway has talked about reconnecting with the fans and could lose some credibility by sticking with Orton. A daily team observer said he gets the feeling that fans would rather win three or four games with Tebow than six or seven with Orton.”


      Elsewhere

      • Barry Rozner at the Daily Herald thinks that there will be no games lost in 2011 due to a work stoppage.  I hope he is right.  I fear that he is wrong.  To every argument I can only say one thing:  “Remember 1994 when we lost and entire World Series”.
      • Daren Gannt at the Charlotte Observer highlights the decision of former Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator Mike Trgovac to leave for a defensive backs position in Green Bay for less money.  Trgovac seems happy but I wonder how pleased he’ll be when someone tries to interview him for a defensive coordinator position elsewhere only to have Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy block the move.
      • Agent Drew Rosenhaus is doing what he can to keep Plaxico Burress in the back of the NFL’s mind.  Burress is serving out a two year sentence for accidentally shooting himself in the leg with unlicensed handgun while at a night club in November of 2008.  He is expected to be released June 6.

      The Bears need a go to wide receiver and Burress would be an ideal candidate to fill the position.  But he hasn’t played in two years and he would have to come at the right price.

      “Don’t be surprised if Matt Flynn follows the path of Matt Hasselbeck, Aaron Brooks, Mark Brunell and Kurt Warner and leaves Green Bay to become a starting quarterback elsewhere. Teams in need of a quarterback are taking a good look at Flynn, who performed exceptionally well against the Patriots in New England in December.”

      “It seems there rarely are enough good cornerbacks to keep pace with all the good receivers. But the coming draft offers a deep group of cover men. April will provide the opportunity for teams to stock up and build depth at the position. As many as 19 corners could carry grades that would justify them being picked in the first four rounds.”

      This fact has probably not been lost on the Bears.  Playing a base cover-2, they have not traditionally invested a lot in the position.  But they could arguably could use a good cover corner now as they mix in more single coverage against select NFL teams.

      “On the same day Green Bay was dispatching the Steelers for the NFL title, the Bangor Daily News reported, a man was arrested on suspicion of breaking into an auto-parts store in Ellsworth, Maine.

      “And in Iowa City, Iowa, The Des Moines Register reported, a man injured his back when an argument turned violent during a Super Bowl party.

      “Their names: Vince Lombardi and Aaron Rogers.”

      One Final Thought

      Looks like there are plenty of players stirring up the usual amount of trouble as the offseason begins.  Here are some samples:

      A work stoppage with no offseason workouts and some very bored players should bring some interesting things to the news this year.  Can’t wait.

      Ron Rivera Welcomed as a Bear, Will Always be a Bear and Other Points of View

      Bears

      • Sean Jensen at the Chicago Sun-Times reports that the Bears won’t use the franchise tag.  Not a big surprise, first because Angelo is known not to like ot use it and second because none of the Bears free agents warrants it.
      • Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune ends his positional analysis with special teams.  He points out that.  the unit’s top six tacklers all will be unrestricted free agents: Corey Graham, Garrett Wolfe, Brian Iwuh, Rashied Davis, Rod Wilson, and Josh Bullocks.
      • Biggs’ bottom line:  “The faces change but the helmet doesn’t and the Bears remain among the best in the NFL on special teams.” When is someone going to wake up and offer special teams coach Dave Toub a head coaching position?
      • Dan Pompei, also at the Tribune, answers your questions.  He continues the wide receiver talk:

      “Do you think we will make a play for free agents Sidney Rice or Vincent Jackson? Also, will the newly signed CFL WR Andy Fantuz make the team and make an impact? — Mike Ockhurtz, Frederick, Md.

      “I don’t believe the Bears will go for a free-agent wide receiver with a big price tag. They have other positions that are more pressing. I am very intrigued by Fantuz, but it’s difficult to say how much of an impact he will have until we see him padded up and competing with NFL players. He looked great in Canada, but that’s a different game, and he was playing against inferior competition.

      “What’s with Devin Aromashodu? Why didn’t the coaching staff let him play almost all year? Is he going to come back? — Mario, Eagle Pass, Texas

      “I think Aromashodu is done with the Bears. He and offensive coordinator Mike Martz clearly were not on the same page. Aromashodu is a gifted player who never has been able to consistently realize his abilities, going back to his college days. His substandard blocking attempts did not endear him to the coaching staff.”

      Yes, I had a feeling that this was the case.  It wasn’t just the blocking.  I don’t think Aromashodu liked contact much and Martz obviously felt he would be a liability when asked to go over the middle, something he was bound to be required to do.

      “Any rumors how the Bears will respond to Caleb Hanie‘s RFA status? I imagine his agent’s phone has started ringing already. I don’t envision him being a career backup. — Mike, Forney, Texas

      “I would expect the Bears to protect themselves with Hanie, assuming they can’t sign him to a contract prior to the start of free agency. But I don’t think they need to be concerned about another team offering him starter’s money. While Hanie has obvious potential, I don’t think he’s had enough opportunity to create that kind of market for himself.”

      I expect that Pompei is completely right here but Hanie is never going to be a Martz favorite.  Its obvious that he prefers a quarterback who will stand in the pocket, make a quick read and throw.  That’s apparently not Hanie’s forte (though in fairness he hasn’t really had a chance to show that).

      “Loads of history. Great players. Great coaches. Fantastic fans. But they have no Super Bowl victories since 1985. That hurts. Even so, this is a storied franchise that will always seem to be near the top of these rankings. Their pre-Super history is loaded with successes.”

      Elsewhere

      “There are smart people still not convinced that Brett Favre, 41, will remain retired and that he could surface next season not with the Vikings but perhaps the Carolina Panthers. Favre’s ego might force him back after his ill-fated finish last season.”

      “We’ll just stay true to our mantra on offense and defense and special teams, and that’s less volume, more creativity.”

      • Mel Kiper at ESPN talks draft.  ESPN seems to have picked up on Cam Newton their “story” for the draft, thus setting some team up for major disappointment.  Accuracy is still the name of the game and I just don’t see it.  The Jake Locker comments are interesting, though.

      “To me, there are two issues with this kid. Issue number one is he came out of a shotgun [formation], and if you watch the tape it’s basically a very simple offense. One read and either the ball was out or he was out. Can he adapt to, can he process and assimilate a very structured and complex pro offense against a complex pro defense? And secondly, and most importantly, when you get to a certain skill level in the NFL, which this kid certainly has, at the quarterback position what kind of kid is he? Is he going to be the first guy in the building? Is he a gym rat? Is he football smart? Is he a leader of men? All of those things to me are way more important than any workout in shorts.”

      One Final Thought

      Tom Sorenson at the Charlotte Observer relates this story about how Walter Payton greeted former Bear and current Carolina head coach Ron Rivera:

      “‘I’m Walter Payton. Welcome to the Bears,’ he said.

      “Payton, 5-10, offered his hand and Rivera took it. Payton began to squeeze. Rivera, who towers above Payton in the picture, squeezed back.

      “‘He wants to see your knees buckle,’ says Rivera. ‘I knew that.’

      “They stood there, squeezing. Rivera’s knee didn’t buckle.

      “They continued to squeeze. Rivera’s knee continued not to buckle.

      “Payton was relentless but Rivera was a linebacker. You think a linebacker’s knee is going to give first?

      “Well, yes. The pressure was such that Rivera’s knee buckled.

      “This meant he officially was a Bear. Like Payton, he would play for no other NFL team.”

      Marshall Faulk Doesn’t Think Much of the Bears Receivers and Other Points of View

      Bears

      “On spending the bulk of his career in the NFC Central: ‘Playing in the NFC Central, the old black-and-blue division, people really didn’t throw the ball. .?.?. It wasn’t the NFC East, where they threw the ball a lot, or the NFC West, where they threw the ball a lot. I could’ve gotten more opportunities, but you have to take advantage of what’s there.’’’

      “But those of us who had the privilege to see Dent play every week don’t need statistics or honors to justify his place in the Hall.”

      “But every time I see Johnny Knox run a slant he goes behind the defender and you see an interception go the other way and everyone looks at Jay Cutler and says, ‘How did he throw that pass?’ That is going to be a mistake no matter who the quarterback is.”

      “I see no pure wideout. When we ran [Mike] Martz‘ offense in St. Louis we had three or four pure wideouts. … If you are still teaching that stuff to your wide receivers then in this offense you can’t blame the QB.”

      • Corey Wooton goes over goes over the getting off the ball in this YouTube video.

      • Dan Berstien and Terry Boers at WSCR in Chicago – Lovie Smith is a Liberian?


      Elsewhere

      • From Pro Football Weekly‘s Audibles.  This feature is a collection of anonymous quotes from NFL men around the league:

      “Everyone got all excited about Michael Vick — and there was reason to be excited early — but if you look at how he finished the season, you see (that) teams started to figure out that if you make him play quarterback, he is not that good.  He’s not a great three-step, five-step, read-and-throw-to-the-open-receiver quarterback. And he takes more hits because he does not read it quickly. Look at the Indy game when (Colts MLB Gary) Brackett drills him. If his primary (receiver) is not there and he has to go through the thought process, he holds it for an extra second to second-and-a-half, and in this league, that is the difference between a  defender breezing by — like they do with Peyton Manning, barely touching him — or getting drilled. If I’m Michael Vick, I’m digging up every game that Steve Young played late in his career when he made his transformation, and I’m studying it.”

      • Death is not an option:  Carolina wins the Super Bowl or Big Foot is found in North Carolina.  From Tom Sorensen at the Charlotte Observer.
      • Joe Reedy at the Cincinnati Enquirer provides an update on the Carson Palmer situation.  Despite a change at offensive coordinator, Palmer apparently still wants out of Cincinnati.  And despite the owner stating that he won’t be traded he still apparently believes he will be.  He is selling his house.
      • Speaking of the Bengals, I can’t wait to see new offensive coordinator Jay Gruden run a West Coast style offense with a running back who flat out refuses to catch the ball out of the backfield.
      • Pat Williams says he’s done fighting the NFL over Star Caps.  Via Brian Murphy at the St. Paul Pioneer Press.
      • James Walker at ESPN.com reports that the Cleveland Browns have made some interesting roster cuts.  Included on the list of players is defensive tackle Shaun Rogers and former Bear – and Ram – offensive tackle John St. Clair.
      • The Sports Pickle thinks that the Packers Super Bowl title should be revoked over this video.  Sounds good to me.

      One Final Thought

      Mitchell quotes Dent further:

      “I was very, very thirsty for (the Hall)… Once you play the game a certain way, people start telling you, ‘You know, you may have the opportunity to be in the Hall.’ A bunch of people don’t understand the (Hall) process. I don’t understand the process.”

      “I was patient, didn’t care to call anybody out… My day has come.”

      The video is from the Chicago Tribune website.

      Player Says Seventy Percent Are in the Game Only for the Money and Other Points of View

      Bears

      • Eric Washington has left the Bears to become the defensive line coach for the Carolina Panthers.  He held the same position with the Bears but I’m sure everyone knows that, title aside, Rod Marinelli really hods that position here.  Via Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times.
      • Hayes also reports that the Eagles have requested permission to interview Jon Hoke, the Bears defensive backs coach, for their defensive coordinator position.  this is all well and good but let’s see these teams show a little love for that wonderful Packer defense by raiding their staff.
      • Dan Pompei answers you questions:

      “Please tell me that you would not prefer any of [the backup quarterbacks on the free agent market], simply because of their experience over [Caleb] Hanie as the Bears backup QB. Tim Flynn, Denver”

      “Look, the market for backup quarterbacks is not a pretty one. There aren’t enough good players go around to be starters, let alone backups. I wasn’t suggesting any of those players. I was just stating they may be available, and they may be fits for the type of players Martz is looking for. My suggestion would be to make Hanie the No. 2. He is as good an option as the Bears could find.”

      Pompei is probably right.  But you never know.  Offensive coordinator Mike Martz obviously likes the veteran back ups…

      “It’s not a story that is going to disappear for Cutler — it can’t after so many peers throughout the league kicked him while he was down. That was the bigger issue. It wasn’t that the Chicago Bears quarterback’s toughness, which is well-established, was questioned. It’s the fact that given an opening, so many chose to pounce on him, crossing unwritten lines in doing so.”

      • But not all of the players are jumping on Cutler.  Broncos right offensive tackle Ryan Harris, who played with him in 2008, had some nice things to say.  Via Vaughn McClure at the Chicago Tribune:

      “I know him from my experience with him, and my experience was that he was always tough and always focused on the game.”

      Harris is a free agent this offseason and the Bears are widely believed to be shopping for offensive linemen.  Coincidence?  I think not.

      “Sometimes it’s considered hidden yardage, and Cutler sure supplied plenty of it with his legs. He rushed for 232 yards, 35 behind Chester Taylor for the second-most on the team.”

      • Biggs rates the draft/free agency priority as “low”.  But that depends upon your definition of “low”, I think.   Assuming they’ll end up settling for Hanie as the number 2 (a big assumption) I’d think the Bears might look to draft a quarterback to develop as the number three.  Angelo has said in the past that ideally he’d like to take one every year.
      • Matt Forte speaking to profootballtalk.com about whether he’s heard anything from the organization about an extension.  “I’ve expressed my interest.”  Via Sean Jensen at the Chicago Sun-Times.

      Elsewhere

      “However, not everything about broadcasts is moving forward. When the NFL moved the umpire this season, bumping him from the middle of the defense to a spot behind the quarterback, it was a huge setback for TV.

      “Why? Because the umpire wore a microphone in games, allowing him to pick up the sound of the quarterback and defensive players making their calls at the line of scrimmage, and get the ambient noise of bodies colliding.

      “Broadcasts, [NBC’s “Football Night in America” producer,Fred] Gaudelli said, “took a 20-year step backward when they moved the umpire… From a pure television technological standpoint, right now we’re so handcuffed that we’re putting out sounds that are not remotely close to being state of the art in 2011. We don’t have any sounds.”

      One Final Thought

      Player X, an anonymous player turned blogger, writes for ESPN about “pay check players” in the NFL:

      “It’s Super Bowl time, which means right now there are 30 NFL teams whose seasons are over. In other words, almost 1,600 players are sitting at home watching. (Okay, or maybe on vacation somewhere.) And guess what? Most of them couldn’t be happier.

      “That’s because the majority of the guys — I’d say probably close to 70 percent — are in the game only for the money. They don’t care about winning. The editors showed me the story on Super Bowl rings, and, man, I couldn’t disagree more: Most players don’t care about championship bling. Sure, in interviews, 100 percent of them will say it’s all about winning championships. But they know that’s what the public wants to hear. I’m telling you, most of them are lying. They couldn’t care less about getting a ring.”

      We can only hope this is just a cynical jerk popping off.  I’d hate to think that these guys are throwing their bodies around and away every week for a pay check.

      Big Game Causes Stripper Shortage and Other Points of View

      Bears

      • Dan Pompei at the Chicago Tribune reviews his four most pressing needs for the Bears.  He emphasizes the largely under appreciated need for a good hard look at back up quarterback.
      • Bryan Dietzler at the Bleacher Report runs thorough five potential draftees for the Bears in the first round.  Not surprisingly three are offensive linemen.  He also mentions Justin Houston, a prospect we’re starting to hear a lot about.  Many think he’d be a good defensive end in a cover two type defense.
      • Drew Sharp at the Detroit Free Press makes the interesting point that those players criticizing Jay Cutler have no right to complain about the proposed 18 game seasaon.
      • Who says the Bears don’t have cheerleaders?   This video is wonderful.

      Elsewhere

      What?  There’s something else going on?

      Via Michael David Smith at profootballtalk.com.

      “Late in the third quarter against Green Bay, he watched from his private box as the Packers scored their scored fifth consecutive touchdown to take a 42-14 lead. Fans began to stream out of the Georgia Dome.

      “’People said to me, ‘You must be upset about that,’’ Blank said. ‘I said no. I wasn’t upset that they were leaving, I was upset about the way we were playing. The fans were incredibly supportive all year. After that third quarter, it would’ve taken a miracle just to come back and make the game competitive. It was like the fans were getting hit on the head with a hammer, and it wouldn’t stop. The only way they could make it stop was by leaving. So they left.’”

      “In that division, you have to build a team that can play in the elements and play outside.  I didn’t realize that right away. My first year there, we took Terrell Buckley in the first round. After seeing what it’s like in November and December in Green Bay, I figured out you need to get a bigger person. So we eliminated the smaller stature guys. It helps to get people from the Big Ten and that area that it doesn’t affect. You need bigger people.”

      Anyone else wondering if Bears general manager Jerry Angelo still hasn’t learned this lesson?

      “One of the reasons four teams have yet to name their defensive coordinator is the Packers still are playing.”

      Too bad its only the assistants that look to be raided.  Let’s all hope the Tennessee Titans have their eye on Dom Capers.  He’s certainly deserving and he’d be out of the division.

      • Its Dan Pompei Day here on a slow time for NFL news.  Pompei’s long column at The National Football Post is well worth reading in its entirety and the good news is that we’ve got the time to do it.  Here he elaborates upon opinions that Jake Locker had a bad Senior Bowl week:

      “The reason for so many different opinions on Jake Locker’s performance is the quarterback was very inconsistent. You could make a highlight reel of Locker’s best plays that would have been very impressive. And you could have made a lowlight reel of Locker’s worst plays that probably would result in him being undrafted. If a team is looking for a player with great athleticism and ability and the potential to wow you, they will be able to overlook some of Locker’s deficiencies. If a team is looking for a polished performer who gets the job done, it probably won’t be interested in the Washington QB.”

      “What’s your favorite thing about Super Bowl week?

      A) Hearing about all the times the Packers and Steelers have won.
      B) Seeing what Joe Montana is promoting this year.
      C) Stories about Jerry Jones and his big ol’ stadium.
      D) The game’s on Fox, one of the few football networks that doesn’t employ Matt Millen.”

      “Don’t dwell on the dead hooker incident at the team party

      “Remember even though they’re mostly all mediocre alternates replacing good players who thought of excuses not to come, they still don’t completely suck.”

      One Final Thought

      One more Pompei item:

      “Whether the meatball in us likes it or not, the game we love is changing, as this story eloquently points out.  We don’t like change—that’s in our DNA. And we like violence in football—that’s in our DNA too. But once we accept we can’t change what’s going to happen, we’ll all probably agree this is a good thing. With Super Bowl week kicking off Sunday, we can expect a lot more stories about head injuries.”

      Key Obama Aid Betrays Country and Other Points of View

      Bears

      • Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times answers your questions.  This dead on response came to a fan who wanted offensive coordinator Mike Martz to be fired.   Here’s part of it:

      “The other key is continuity. I can’t stress this enough. Talk to quarterbacks who have had multiple offensive coordinators and they will tell you how much of a disadvantage it is. At this point of his career, Cutler needs to continue to learn and mature in one offense rather than switching to another.”

      “Hell no I’m not rooting for the Packers in the Super Bowl. I have a ton of respect for that organization and the head coach, but I don’t want them to win the Super Bowl. They’re in our division, I want them to lose.”

      Couldn’t agree more.

      Summary: The Bears nailed one of the top sleepers in the whole draft, when seventh-round pick J’Marcus Webb was thrown into action and performed pretty well. Suddenly, a draft that didn’t see any picks until No. 75 overall (Major Wright) found some decent value. Corey Wootton also looks like a keeper as a defensive end out of Northwestern. The Bears saw value in him as a local guy who wasn’t at 100 percent during his final season in Evanston, and it should pan out for them. There wasn’t major impact, but given where they were forced to pick, Chicago did well.

      Draft grade: B | Current Grade: B

      • Don Banks at SI.com has released the first of many mock drafts he will put together in the coming weeks.  He has the Bears taking Derek Sherrod, an offensive tackle out of Mississippi State:

      “The Bears have decent options when their turn comes around. They can get help for the offensive line that caused them so many headaches, particularly early in the season, or address their needs at either defensive tackle, receiver or cornerback. Sherrod is the highest-rated remaining tackle, but Texas cornerback Aaron Williams and LSU defensive tackle Drake Nevis would also make sense.”

      • NFL Live’s Trey Wingo, Tom Jackson, and Trent Dilfer at ESPN give the Bears their season report card:

      • This fan has obviously recovered from the loss:

      • Barak Obama‘s special assistant and personal aide Reggie Love has betrayed his country:


      Elsewhere

      • James Walsh at the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports the facts behind former Bear and current Vikings wide receiver Bernard Berrian‘s law suit against a California couple who found his Blackberry.  The couple say they were “negotiating a reward”.  Berrian’s lawyers and apparently the FBI have called it “extortion”.  I would simply call it “unethical” regardless of what the law says.
      • Guard Logan Mankins told Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald that its highly unlikely that he will be back with the Patriots unless they use the franchise tag on him.  He will be the best guard available to the Bears in free agency.
      • Ray Lewis comments upon the honor of playing in the Pro Bowl as players around the league, including the Bears’ Brian Urlacher, back out due to “injury”:

      “When you look at a guy like Peyton [Manning], when you look at a guy like Tony Gonzales, they appreciate it.  When you get over, there’s a certain brotherhood. The guys you went to war against, now you come here and it’s all about family and sharing and understanding.”

      • The NFL players union says the average number of injuries has risen during the 2010 season.
      • ESPN‘s Outside the Lines reveals the results of a scientific study, that for the first time reveals the level of prescription painkiller use and misuse by retired NFL players.

      • Scouts Inc. ranks every single player on both Super Bowl rosters for ESPN.
      • It seems that green Bay nose tackle B.J. Raji has taught the world a new dance.  This new step was inspired by his now famous belly dance in the end zone:

      One Final Thought

      Rachel Cohen writes about the NFL’s soaring television ratings for the Associated Press.  Fox Sports chairman David Hill had this to say about a work stoppage:

      “With the sport reaching heights that Pete Rozelle would never dreamed of, we want to keep it that way.  We know what happens to sports after a strike or a lockout; people turn away and it takes a while for them to come back.  It would be a great tragedy if both sides weren’t able to reach an agreement.”

      In the case of baseball, some of us never went back.  And the game has never been the same.

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      Bear Vs. Bear and Other Points of View

      Bears

      “In short, all of the problems this team has experienced at different points of the season showed up in one game — and it just happened to be the most important game of the season.”

      • I will quibble with only one of Pompei’s grades.  He gave the linebackers a 9 of 10 and I did think they made big plays in this game.  But I also strongly suspect that poor linebacker play was behind many of the huge holes that we saw in the running game in the first half.  I probably would have down graded them a bit more.
      • Pompei was tough on Tim Jennings and rightfully so:

      “For the second time in three weeks, the Packers went right at Jennings.

      “Rodgers threw in Jennings’ direction 13 times and exploited him whether Jennings was playing zone or man. Only four of the 13 passes did not result in gains for the Packers.”

      I agree with all of the people who believe that the Bears need to look towards improving the team at the line of scrimmage.  But the Bears also need help at cornerback.  Its a need that too few people are mentioning.

      • Not surprisingly, the Bears would like to extend Lovie Smith‘s contract rather than let him go into the 2011 season as a lame duck.  Brad Biggs at the Tribune hits the nail on the head:

      “The question now is how many years will be in a new deal.”

      “Why is it that the Packers draft Bryan Bulaga in the first round of the NFL draft (No. 23 overall) and he starts in the NFC Championship Game and shuts down Israel Idonije. While Chris Williams, the Bears’ No. 1 pick in 2008 (14th) overall, is playing his third position and was at the very least one-fifth of a poor effort against the Packers’ defensive front Sunday?”

      “How can you have a quarterback [Todd Collins] like that in the NFC Championship Game? The Packers started Matt Flynn against the Patriots on the road and nearly won. How do they do that?”

      “If Frank Omiyale is the Bears’ starting left tackle next season, the Bears are in trouble. You don’t have to see the film or know what protections were called to know that the Bears should expect better than that at left tackle to win a championship. There’s room for good-but-not-great on all NFL teams, but not at key positions like that. Not when you’ve got good-but-not-great — and that’s being charitable — all the way down the line.”

      For those who don’t know, the “key positions like that” are left tackle, defensive end, and quarterback.  The Bears didn’t draft any of the starts at those positions.

      “He engineered two successful surprises: Opening the game with three cornerbacks and one safety, and then making a rare line call that resulted in nose tackle B.J. Raji‘s interception return for a touchdown. The alignment in the secondary left cornerback Charles Woodson as a hybrid safety/cornerback, and defensive end Ryan Pickett said, ‘It gave us a chance to cover and it gave us a chance to play the run at the same time. We had big guys to match up on the run and we had the guys to match up with their receivers on the outside.’ If nothing else, it was the kind of back-straightening curve ball Capers is known for. Meanwhile, Capers accurately presumed the Bears would target tailback Matt Forte on a third-and-5 pass at their 15-yard line midway through the fourth quarter. As a result, he made a rarely-used call for Raji to ‘spy’ on Forte. While rookie nickelback Sam Shields blitzed, Raji backed off the line and surprised quarterback Caleb Hanie. ‘We were taking away the quick routes,’ Raji said. ‘He looked for the check down, and I was there.'”

      • ESPN compares the speed of Bear Devin Hester to that of…  a bear:


      Elsewhere

      “(NFLPA executive director) DeMaurice Smith aspires to be a politician and is milking the labor situation for short-term fame to blow up his name and help earn a spot in office, with no regard for future of the NFL. The longer his name is in the headlines, the better for his career. It’s unfortunate — a lockout is not as much about the players and owners as it is Smith’s ego.”

      • This report from The New York Times via ESPN would seem to support that conclusion:

      “I wasn’t sure about (Panthers new head coach) Ron Rivera hiring Sean McDermott — guys who get fired usually get let go for good reason. But what you have to remember, this is going to be Rivera’s defense. He’s going to call the plays and run it. It’s a lot like Rivera when he came to Chicago. Lovie Smith was there and expected to run (the defense). There’s not as much risk as you think. What Ron needed was someone who could break it down and do the dirty work and that’s where McDermott will be great for him. I think they’ll be a great team. And I like the (Rob) Chudzinski hire (as offensive coordinator). You have to remember — San Diego had the best offense and defense in the league, and they were missing a lot of parts this season. (OLT) Marcus McNeill was out. (WR) Vincent Jackson was out. They were missing a lot of receivers. The defensive line was beat up. They coached the heck out of those guys. Carolina pulled from the right tree.”

      One Final Thought

      ESPN’s Kenny Mayne starts trash talking since Rex Ryan wouldn’t: