Category: Green Bay Packers

Jay Cutler Is a Twinkie and Other Points of View

Bears

“Something positive

“DT Tommie Harris looked creaky at times and was asked to handle only about 15 snaps a game. Given his hefty contract, it’s no surprise that the Bears released him after the season. But Harris can still play. He can still get uncommonly deep penetration with his initial quick step off the ball. As long as he’s not asked to move laterally, he can produce. Any 4-3 team needing a situational interior pass-rusher should take note.”

  • CBS Sports’ Rob Rang has updated his Big Board.  Some names of note for Bear fans:

16. Mike Pouncey, OG, Florida: Size, strength and the athleticism to block at the next level, Pouncey’s ability to stand out against SEC competition makes him an easy first-round pick.

20. Tyron Smith, OT, Southern California: In terms of pure talent, Smith is this year’s best tackle — but his experience lies on the right side, his future lies on the left and scouts have questioned his maturity. He’ll impress when he works out at USC’s pro day March 30.

21. Gabe Carimi, OT, Wisconsin: A road grader with enough size, reach for pass protection, Carimi would be best off moving to right tackle.

22. Corey Liuget, DT, Illinois: Overshadowed a bit by ex-teammates Mikel Leshoure and Martez Wilson at Illinois, Liuget will wind up the earliest-drafted and best NFL player of the trio.

23. Danny Watkins, OG, Baylor: Don’t let his marginal tests at the combine or the fact that he’s 26 distract from the fact that Watkins is the toughest, nastiest interior lineman in this class. He might not make the first round, but he’ll one day be viewed as a steal.

24. Derek Sherrod, OT, Mississippi State: I’m admittedly higher on Sherrod than most, but see him as an ideal swing tackle capable of stepping in immediately and well worth a first-round pick.

25. Phil Taylor, DT, Baylor: A top-20 talent athletically, but will have to answer questions about his suspension and transfer from Penn State to get drafted there.

Mikel Leshoure was 35.

  • The Bears are on the clock with the ESPN crew:

Elsewhere

“Myth Buster

“Jared Allen is a dominant pass rusher

“In 2010 at least, this wasn’t true. Allen was not much of a factor early in the season–– even though he faced frequent one-on-one blocking. He came to life down the stretch … once he faced inferior competition. This isn’t to say Allen is not an elite defensive end. But his struggles last season only give more ammunition to detractors who point out that a majority of his sacks in ’09 came against the feeble Packers and Bears offensive lines.”

“Myth Buster

“Jahvid Best is a superstar in the making

“The ’10 first-round rookie running back has superstar features (speed, lateral agility, terrific acceleration and soft hands). But he had a tendency to abandon his blocking last season, which led to too many potential three-and four-yard gains ending in gains of zero or lost yardage. Experience and playing behind a more consistent offensive line should help.”

  • Williamson also does another entry in his weekly “Pressure Point” series which looks at a player who must improve in 2011.  This week its Marshawn Lynch and Williamson doesn’t pull any punches:

“Lynch is more effective as an every-down runner and, at his best, he can wear down a defense. But he just doesn’t do a good enough job of creating on his own when the blocking is sub-par. He becomes a lateral runner instead of a bulldozer. He too often gets what is blocked and nothing more.”

“With all the team needs Seattle has, I would not use a lot of resources on the running back position right now…  But if Lynch doesn’t step up his game in 2011, I would look for a back one year from now.”

  • According to the New York Post, Jenn Sterger is suing her former manager to get back materials related to the Brett Favre sexting scandal.  He may intend to use those items in a tell-all book.  I had a feeling that Sterger would have dropped this without a fuss if it weren’t for bad advice she was getting from the start of it.  I’d say this supports the idea.
  • NBC 2 Fort Myers in Florida reports that Oakland Raiders offensive tackle Mario Henderson was arrested on a weapons charge Thursday morning (via BenMaller.com).  At 6’7″, 300 lb Henderson is so large that he couldn’t fit into the back of the police car.  He was offered the option of lying down in the back or walking four blocks to the station.  He decided to lie down.
  • Commissioner Roger Goodell needs to start staying awake in that tanning bed.  Via Deadspin:

Sun burn

One Final Thought

Jay Cutler‘s true, soft nature revealed:

However, lets not make the mistake of believing this means he’s not tough.

Is Brian Urlacher the Best #9 Pick? And Other Points of View

Bears

  • Bears guard Roberto Garza did a nice interview with George Vondracek at Corpus Christi Caller Times.  Interestingly, he thinks his job might be in jeopardy:

“‘Anytime you give up more than 55 sacks a year obviously there are some changes that are going to have to take place, and we’re ready for that,’ Garza said. ‘Obviously, my job’s going to be up for grabs. So I have to go out there and prove to them that I’m going to continue to be the starting right guard.'”

  • Neil Hayes at the Chicago Sun-Times says that the competition committee will not change the rule that resulted in an incomplete pass to Lions receiver Calvin Johnson in the first game against Detroit last season:

“If you read the rule, it’s not a catch,” [Giants president and competition committee member John] Mara said told the paper. “The reason it’s not a catch is you’ve got to control the ball when you hit the ground. It makes it easier to officiate. It’s a bright line that you can draw.”

Though its not a popular decision, I’ve made it clear that I’m with Mara on this one.  If Calvin Johnson or anyone else doesn’t like it, all I can say is get up and hand the referee the ball next time.  That’s what receivers on good teams are coached to do.

“Orlando Franklin | OL | Miami (Fla.)

“Although GM Jerry Angelo might prefer to find a replacement for Tommie Harris with this pick, the board could be more favorably filled with OL talent. Franklin could be the most physical blocker in this year’s draft and perfectly fits the nasty disposition that OL coach Mike Tice seeks in the trenches.”

Elsewhere

  • The Green Bay Packers are on the clock:

  • And so are the Pittsburgh Steelers:

One Final Thought

Is Brian Urlacher the best #9?  Pro Football Weekly provides an answer:

Mike McCarthy Is Not the Genius I Thought He Was and Other Points of View

Bears

“The Bears did it by changing Peppers’ $10.5 million roster bonus into a signing bonus so they could prorate that $10.5 million over the life of the contract, which runs through 2015. The restructuring should give the team options once free agency finally begins, while allowing the team to re-sign some of its own free agents.”

Obviously the Bears wanted this initially in the form of a roster bonus so they wouldn’t have to pay it if Peppers had less impact than expected last season.  Now that they know that’s not the case, they can pay it and simultaneously spread the cap hit out.

In fairness to Mullin, you could argue that Martz single handedly destroyed the Rams with his personnel moves.

Elsewhere

  • ESPN‘s NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert points out that with the resigning of A.J. Hawk,  the Packers have a glut at linebacker.  This gave them leverage but now that the negotiation is over, something is likely to have to give.  It sounds like Nick Barnett might be the odd man out.
  • Judd Zulgad at the Minneapolis Star Tribune says that the Vikings have failed to offer a tender to Tarvaris Jackson, making him a free agent.  Wise move.  No one knows what the Vikings answer at quarterback is going to be but I think its safe to say Jackson, who was wildly inconsistent, wasn’t it.
  • Philip Zaroo at mlive.com gets points to originality but little else as he argues that a lockout would be a good thing.
  • For those of you who still care to read anything other than “We’ve come to a settlement”, here’s Michael Silver‘s rather optimistic report at Yahoo Sports which details the goings on yesterday behind the scenes.

One Final Thought

OK, maybe there’s hope for Bears fans after all:

New Energy Drink “Tastefully Done” and Other Points of View

Bears

“[Cutler] is financially secure and head strong. It’s probably too late for him to make a radical change. And the truth is he usually gets the ball where he wants it to be despite bad mechanics. The bigger issue with Cutler is getting him to make better decisions about where he wants the ball to go.”

I would say that decision making is a big issue.  But if Cutler doesn’t improve his mechanics he’ll never be a consistent passer and we’ll be seeing a lot more performances like the NFC title game.  Assuming Pompei is right, and I think he is, Cutler is wasting his talent.  That’s a terrible shame.

  • Larry Mayer at chicagobears.com points out that Edwin Williams could be the Bears center of the future.  I admit that I’d forgotten about him.  He’s got size and he was a center in college.
  • Vaughn McClure at the Tribune has a source that claims the Bears placed a low tender on backup quarterback Caleb Hanie.  This means the Bears can match an offer to Hanie but will get no compensation if he is signed elsewhere.  It will be interesting to see if the rest of the league has higher opinion of Hanie than offensive coordinator Mike Martz and the Bears do.

Elsewhere

“If a player is not playing in 80% of the snaps, then you cannot take him in the first rounds or pay him elite money. This is why Running Backs are seldom taken in the 1st Round anymore. And many Linebackers, too. If you are not an every down player, then we cannot pay you and have enough cash to go around.”

I think this deserves a full blog entry at some point as it applies to the Bears.

I’m torn by this.  On the one hand, its nice to see that money isn’t everything to Rogers.  On the other, you’d like to see that translate into a desire to make your current team into a champion.  Otherwise you end up like the situation in the NBA where there are a handful of good teams with the best players while the others suffer.

One Final Thought

Pompei, again, putting things in perspective as he answers fan questions:

“Why don’t the Bears move to the NFC West? And maybe to another town? Enough’s enough. The whole organization is beyond repair. — SportsGal, Chicago

“I’m not sure what planet you are coming from SportsGal. But in the world I live in, when you make it to the final four in a 32-team league, that means you are a little better than ‘beyond repair.'”

Bears Top NFC Special Teams Unit and Other Points of View

Bears

  • Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune passes along  the fact that the Bears ended the season tied for the top spot in the NFC in special teams in the ratings system popularized by Dallas Morning News writer Rick Gosselin.

The Bears were only fourth overall in large part because they ranked last in gross punting at 40.1 yards.  Punter Brad Maynard has not been offered a contract and there is speculation that the Bears may be moving on without him.

Elsewhere

One Final Thought

For those who think the Bears should try to acquire Albert Haynesworth we have this.  According to the Associated Press a waitress claims that the Washington Redskins defensive lineman sexually abused her at a restaurant.

Upon tweeting the news, former Bear and current Redskins defensive end Phillip Daniels speaks for all of us: “Man does it ever end.”.


NFL Labor Talks Not Business as Usual and Other Points of View

Bears

  • John Glennon at The Tennessean updates the status of the Titan’s quest to fill out their coaching staff.  There’s been no comment from the Titans regarding the reports that they are interested in Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice. as an offensive coordinator.  It could be much ado about nothing.
  • The message is right but unfortunately the Packers aren’t the only thing that sucks in this video:

I will concede, however, that it’s better than I could do.

Elsewhere

  • Sports business analyst Rick Harrow tells ESPN that the labor negotiations are business as usual.  At the same time he contradicts himself by saying that NFLPA president DeMaurice Smith is inexperienced and doesn’t realize that its not a war with the owners.  That’s not business as usual.  That’s real trouble.

“According to sources familiar with the talks, last week’s negotiations between the NFLPA and the NFL broke off when the union characterized its documents as an “illustration” that NFL officials believed represented a proposal for revenue sharing between owners and players.”

“When the NFLPA characterized documents labeled “NFLPA Proposal” as something other than a collective bargaining proposal, the NFL ended the session, a source familiar with the talks said.”

Translation:  Misunderstandings aside, the NFL ultimately walked out of the talks because the union isn’t negotiating.  The owners were looking for a proposal from the union in response to their own.  They didn’t get it.

  • The Hall of Fame selection process is under scrutiny in the media, presumably in part because there’s not much else to talk about.  Toni Monkovic at the New York Times summarizes the arguments.
  • Mike Florio at profootballtalk.com provides a particularly interesting and thorough at the process.  He has suggestions for improving it.
  • Florio also points out the irony in the league assuming responsibility for the Super Bowl seating mess when it is, in fact, most closely related to the mistakes on the part of the Cowboys and owner Jerry Jones.  Jones is believed to be a strong voice in league meetings against more extensive revenue sharing:

“’Right now, we are subsidizing this market,’ Jones said in August 2009 regarding the Vikings and the place they currently call home.  ‘It’s unthinkable to think that you’ve got the market you got here — 3 ½ million people — and have teams like Kansas City and Green Bay subsidizing the market.  That will stop. . . .  That’s going to stop.  That’s on its way out.’

“So Jones doesn’t want his team to subsidize other teams by sharing revenues, but other teams will potentially be subsidizing the Cowboys by sharing in the expenses arising from his ultimately failed effort to cram 103,986-plus bodies into his new stadium for Super Bowl XLV.”

  • Brad Biggs, also writing for NFP, points out that the Williams Wall is crumbling, at least temporarily.  Both defensive tackles Pat and Kevin Williams have undergone offseason surgery.  They are also each facing possible four game suspensions and they are finally being forced to stand up and take personal responsibility for taking an illegal substance in the StarCaps fiasco.
  • Judd Zulgad at the Minneapolis Star Tribune interviews Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe.  Shiancoe has looked closely at the Atlanta Falcon’s offense and likes what he sees.  Atlanta was the home of new offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave and they used the tight end a a primary target.  The bad news for Shiancoe?  He’s not Tony Gonzales.

One Final Thought

Zulgad says Shiancoe isn’t talking about a new contract as he enters the final season of the $18.2 million deal he signed as a free agent in 2007:

“The thing is that you don’t ever want to be that complainer.  You don’t want to bring any [problems] upon your team in any way, shape, form or fashion. It’s part of your job to know a when and where, a time and a place for certain things. That wasn’t a time or place to ever complain. That’s nothing you’ll ever see me do. I’ll never complain.”

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.

Bears in a Bind if Titans Try to Take Mike Tice

Both Sean Jensen at the Chicago Sun-Times and Brad Biggs at the Chicago Tribune are reporting that the Tennessee Titans might have an interest in hiring Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice as their offensive coordinator.

Some interesting aspects to this:

1)  New head coach Mike Munchak was the offensive line coach there and he would certainly see Tice’s value to the team as a replacement for himself.  However Tice’s value as a coordinator is debatable.

Though he is definitely a leader of men and he would make a fine head coach, there’s been very little evidence that he would make a good X’s and O’s man.  He seemed to recognize the value of the tight ends that he had in Minnesota and he knew how to use them.  But I’m guessing that he had very little to do with designing any kind of a complex passing game involving multiple route combinations beyond creating some individual mismatches.

2)  Lovie Smith and the Bears must give the Titans permission to contact Tice about the job.  Ordinarily this is a no brainer.  Smith has always been supportive of assistants who were seeking to advance and it would take an extraordinary circumstance, indeed, to prevent him from doing that.  This might be that circumstance.

The Bears offensive line is a work in progress.  Tice has been crucial to the training of young players such as J’Marcus Webb and Lance Louis.  To lose him now would be a blow to thier development.  In addition, the Bears are likely to add at least two more linemen to the mix over the next few months, at least one of whom may be a draft pick.  Those linemen will need to be indoctrinated in the Bears offensive system.

But I don’t think that these factors would ultimately cause Smith to hold Tice back if it weren’t for one more major difficulty, as Biggs describes it:

“In mid-February, it would be difficult for the Bears to find a replacement for Tice, who Smith and general manager Jerry Angelo have called one of the league’s best line coaches. Most of the coach shuffling is complete so the pool of candidates isn’t deep.”

This may be part of the reason why the New York Jets denied the Titans permission to talk to offensive line coach/assistant head coach Bill Callahan.  Tice is not an assistant head coach.

3)  The fact that the Titans are looking to raid the Bears coaching staff rather than one of the Super Bowl staffs is as much of an indictment of Angelo as it is a compliment to Tice.

The Bears offensive line was roundly criticized and was generally believed to be one  of the worst in the league.  Its obvious that the Titans believe that Tice worked miracles with a talent depleted line and this offer is a general acknowledgement of this fact.  Teams know that if Tice had any players to work with, the Bears offensive line would have been one of the best units, if not the best unit, in the NFL.  Tice should be proud.  Angelo should be ashamed.

Perhaps the Bears can offer Tice an assistant head coaching position and a bump in pay for him to stay.  But if not, I think Smith knows what the right thing to do is.  Generally speaking, you want the people around you to be happy.  Good people do what they can to make that happen.  If nothing else, on a professional level you want to make it so that other coaches and players around the league want to work for you.  Long-term, that’s how you become the best.

Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy was roundly criticized by this blogger when he held quarterbacks coach Tom Clements back from interviewing for the Bear offensive coordinator position.  I would hate to see the Bears sink so low.

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.”

Wide Receiver Seems to Be the Bears Issue of the Day and Other Points of View

Chicago Bears

  • David Kaplan and Fred Mitchell at the Chicago Tribune talk to former Bears and Colts general manager Bill Tobin about how he went about drafting two members of this year’s Pro Football Hall of Fame class: Richard Dent and Marshall Faulk.
  • Former NFL safety and current Chicago Tribune contributor Matt Bowen‘s needs for the Bears:  offensive tackle, cornerback, wide receiver.  The Bears surely do need all three but they probably see defensive tackle as a more critical need than both cornerback and wide receiver.  Probably.
  • Looks like Todd McShay agrees with me.  Maybe I should reconsider my position.  Via ESPN’s NFC North blogger Kevin Seifert.
  • Having said that, Brad Biggs, also at the Tribune, continues his excellent positional review of the Bears, this time with the wide receivers:

“The Bears continue to value their receivers more than others do. They lack a difference-maker at the position and if they want to see Cutler flourish, it’s a position that will have to be addressed.”


Elsewhere

Kevin Van Valkenburg, Baltimore Sun

Here is why there is no chance NFL owners and the NFL Players Association work out a new labor agreement by March 3: It takes only nine owners to shoot down whatever proposal both sides come up with.

This isn’t just a labor dispute in the eyes of some owners. It’s a battle for the future of the sport. Rich men do not like parting with their money, especially the richest and most eccentric of the bunch, and they can (and most likely will) block whatever proposal the two sides put together in the next three weeks until they get exactly the deal they want.

I get a kick out of it when people say that the people involved in this are “too smart” to let it go into the season next year.  If the baseball strikes of the seventies, eighties and nineties taught us anything, its that this is definitely not true.

  • Chris Mortenson at ESPN talks about the labor impasse.  Note that he thinks that the current labor deal has to be allowed to expire to get it out of the jurisdiction of the federal courts in Minneapolis.  Very interesting but not surprising.  The owners are not happy with judge David Doty.

Mortenson comes through with more details in this article.

“’Typically in the staff meeting after the season concludes, I pretty much a have the whole season laid out for our coaching staff,’ McCarthy said. ‘That’s not the case this year.’

“As a result, McCarthy said he and the staff have taken what he called a ‘prepare for the known’ approach to the offseason. Since the annual NFL Scouting Combine is being held as scheduled in Indianapolis in two weeks, and the 2011 NFL Draft is set for April 23-25, the staff is focusing on those set-in-stone events. McCarthy said the assistant coaches are off until Feb. 21, then will have some more time off after the scouting combine. They’ll then return to work to do their scheme evaluation work the first two weeks of March, another annual offseason ritual.”

  • ESPN’s Trent Dilfer thinks more of quarterback Cam Newton than I do.

I’ll give Dilfer his due as a former NFL quarterback.  But I think the guys at Scouts Inc., who have Newton as the 28th rated prospect and who have undoubtedly studied a lot of tape rather than simply judging him based upon a workout, probably have a better handle on him.

  • McShay talks about his mock draft below.

One Final Thought

The Sports Pickle reports that the NFL has made an interesting offer to those who were not allowed to sit in the seats they paid for at Super Bowl XLV.