Here's the thing with the Lance Briggs situation. I'm not going to go back and re-hash who said what and when - this is a blog, not a short novel.
Lance wants big money and security (read: guaranteed money). He's in a dangerous profession, not to mention the danger of working with self-policing co-workers. Remember Benson getting teed off on in training camp last year? Think there's a code among NFL players that transcends team and league-mandated rules?
The Bears, naturally, want Lance to live up to his contract. If Lance has a problem with anybody, it should be Gene Upshaw and the Players Association, not the Bears. They're playing by the rules agreed upon by the league and the union. Don't like it? Too bad.
Yes, Lance could sit out. In some respects, he'd be smart to do that; his likelihood of suffering a career-ending knee injury is much lower not playing football. Yes the Bears could trade him, although the current offer out there - swapping 1st round picks with the Redskins - doesn't seem like such a good deal. A two-time Pro Bowl player like Briggs, at his age and position, commands a first round pick, straight up, in the opinion of this fan.
Until I get the kinks worked out of this time machine I've been assembling, we'll just have to wait and see. I'm guessing that the Bears let him sit the season out, if he's so inclined. The person that needs to get smart in this chess-game is Lance Briggs. His agent is setting him up for big money... or a career image issue as a bad team mate and a guy who doesn't do what he says he's going to do. Remember, Lance: that guy works for you, not the other way around.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
Play of the year
The Bears official website has a survey out asking what was the play of 2006.
My vote goes to Hester's punt return TD against Arizona. That play extended our undefeated run, and provided the deciding points in a road game in which our offense tossed up a goose egg. It proved we could win with special teams and defense alone, on the road, in a game in which we wer clearly outplayed. It was a spectacular play, and it sent a pretty intimidating message to the rest of the league.
My runner up would be Gould's game-winner against Seattle in the Divisional game. The Bears hadn't won a playoff game in over a decade, the team and fans were still trying to get the monkey off their back from consecutive home losses in divisional playoff games, and the game had dragged on and both teams were clearly exhuasted. We neede a big play, and Gould came through with a long kick in tough conditions to clinch the victory. I was there, and it was the craziest I had ever seen Soldier Field in my 13 years of attending live games (note I used had, not have, because the Saints game the next week was off the charts).
My vote goes to Hester's punt return TD against Arizona. That play extended our undefeated run, and provided the deciding points in a road game in which our offense tossed up a goose egg. It proved we could win with special teams and defense alone, on the road, in a game in which we wer clearly outplayed. It was a spectacular play, and it sent a pretty intimidating message to the rest of the league.
My runner up would be Gould's game-winner against Seattle in the Divisional game. The Bears hadn't won a playoff game in over a decade, the team and fans were still trying to get the monkey off their back from consecutive home losses in divisional playoff games, and the game had dragged on and both teams were clearly exhuasted. We neede a big play, and Gould came through with a long kick in tough conditions to clinch the victory. I was there, and it was the craziest I had ever seen Soldier Field in my 13 years of attending live games (note I used had, not have, because the Saints game the next week was off the charts).
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Archuleta
So the Bears traded a 6th round pick for Adam Archuleta yesterday. My reaction is tentatively positive. The guy was a stud in St Louis, has experience in a cover-2 system (he played under Lovie the first 3 years of his career) and is going to come over relatively cheaply (3 years $8 million is the ballpark number).
I just hope he isn't viewed by the organization as a cure-all for our issues at the safety position.
We should still keep Mike Brown. When the guy is healthy, he is the emotional leader and backbone of the defense. Some have written that he might be cut for cap reasons, but his cap hit is only about $2.5 million, which to me is a bargain for a solid veteran on a team well under the cap like the Bears. Regardless of who starts, and how that position shakes out, he is too valuable as a presence, and too good when healthy, to cut him for a net cap savings of ~$2 million, when we're $10 million plus under the cap, and there are no premiere free agents left to spend big money on.
We still need to develop Danieal Manning. The guy is the fastest safety I can remember in a Bears uniform, he hits like a freight train when he gets a guy teed up, and he seems to have a good head on his shoulders. I put the blame on him for his blatant blown coverage on Reggie Wayne's long TD in the Super Bowl (he double teamed a guy going over the middle and let Wayne loose deep, when he should have picked him up since the corner released him to play up). But overall, he had a pretty good season, especially considering he was a rookie from a small division II school in Texas, playing in a big, cold, northern city with a huge fan base and media following. He started almost every game, and you almost never heard his name mentioned on passing plays, which is a positive for a defensive back. He seemed to lose a little ground later in the year, but the overload of his first 16 game season plus playoffs, combined with the lack of on-field leadership at the safety position, were the main reasons for that. Hopefully, now he'll adjust well to the longer season since he's been through one, and Archuleta and Brown can provide the veteran leadership on the field that will help him continue to develop.
Chris Harris needs to be moved to special teams, where he can blossom. He has filled in nicely as a spot starter at the safety position, but the fact is he is too slow to be a truly effective free safety over the long haul, and he is too often out of position and too often misses making a sure tackle because he tries to make the highlight reel. Those hits are great the 3 times a year he connects, but the other 10 times he whiffs and gives the opposing offense an extra 5-10 yards. He is not starting NFL safety material IMO, but as a 4th safety, he's pretty good. Additionally, his wreckless, big-hitting style lends itself to action on special teams, where he will be sorely needed now that Todd Johnson and Cameron Worrell are gone, and that Adrian Peterson's role on special teams may be diminished due to his probable increased role on the offense.
So I'm glad we got 'Arch,' but I hope that Jerry Angelo keeps in perspective that this is a great signing to COMPLEMENT out current safety corps, not to replace any one of the 3 remaining parts, all of whom have an important role to play on this team.
MIKE ADDS: Arch will be a nice addition to the team, and Mike Brown is still a keeper. Here's where your man Angelo can earn his ranking on the best GMs list, Pat. He's got to draft well this year to replace the guys who've left - and there's a lot of them.
I just hope he isn't viewed by the organization as a cure-all for our issues at the safety position.
We should still keep Mike Brown. When the guy is healthy, he is the emotional leader and backbone of the defense. Some have written that he might be cut for cap reasons, but his cap hit is only about $2.5 million, which to me is a bargain for a solid veteran on a team well under the cap like the Bears. Regardless of who starts, and how that position shakes out, he is too valuable as a presence, and too good when healthy, to cut him for a net cap savings of ~$2 million, when we're $10 million plus under the cap, and there are no premiere free agents left to spend big money on.
We still need to develop Danieal Manning. The guy is the fastest safety I can remember in a Bears uniform, he hits like a freight train when he gets a guy teed up, and he seems to have a good head on his shoulders. I put the blame on him for his blatant blown coverage on Reggie Wayne's long TD in the Super Bowl (he double teamed a guy going over the middle and let Wayne loose deep, when he should have picked him up since the corner released him to play up). But overall, he had a pretty good season, especially considering he was a rookie from a small division II school in Texas, playing in a big, cold, northern city with a huge fan base and media following. He started almost every game, and you almost never heard his name mentioned on passing plays, which is a positive for a defensive back. He seemed to lose a little ground later in the year, but the overload of his first 16 game season plus playoffs, combined with the lack of on-field leadership at the safety position, were the main reasons for that. Hopefully, now he'll adjust well to the longer season since he's been through one, and Archuleta and Brown can provide the veteran leadership on the field that will help him continue to develop.
Chris Harris needs to be moved to special teams, where he can blossom. He has filled in nicely as a spot starter at the safety position, but the fact is he is too slow to be a truly effective free safety over the long haul, and he is too often out of position and too often misses making a sure tackle because he tries to make the highlight reel. Those hits are great the 3 times a year he connects, but the other 10 times he whiffs and gives the opposing offense an extra 5-10 yards. He is not starting NFL safety material IMO, but as a 4th safety, he's pretty good. Additionally, his wreckless, big-hitting style lends itself to action on special teams, where he will be sorely needed now that Todd Johnson and Cameron Worrell are gone, and that Adrian Peterson's role on special teams may be diminished due to his probable increased role on the offense.
So I'm glad we got 'Arch,' but I hope that Jerry Angelo keeps in perspective that this is a great signing to COMPLEMENT out current safety corps, not to replace any one of the 3 remaining parts, all of whom have an important role to play on this team.
MIKE ADDS: Arch will be a nice addition to the team, and Mike Brown is still a keeper. Here's where your man Angelo can earn his ranking on the best GMs list, Pat. He's got to draft well this year to replace the guys who've left - and there's a lot of them.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Playoffs
So the Bears were looking tough and got the bye week. I was nervous about the Seahawks, and they survived that week - not one of their better performances. I went to the Championship game and they bumbled around for three quarters before they laid the wood on the Saints. Favorite moment of the Championship game? All the idiot Saints fans who got showered with a chorus of "who dat?" once the Bears turned it on. We had a fair number of them in our section - they had been letting us hear it (who dat?) for three quarters - and before you know it, they were gonesters.
What went wrong in the Superbowl? I hate to say it, because I spent all season defending him - too much Rex Grossman. The Bears were down 22-17 in the fourth quarter, with the ball. They were playing against probably the best quarterback in the game, and a future first-time Hall of Famer. And they're in a game that they had no business still hanging around in. They had done a good job defensively in keeping the game from being a blowout.
Then, the pick. If they don't turn the ball over there and get points, it's an entirely different game. But, they didn't, and Indy won. Give 'em credit, they were the better team that day.
What went wrong in the Superbowl? I hate to say it, because I spent all season defending him - too much Rex Grossman. The Bears were down 22-17 in the fourth quarter, with the ball. They were playing against probably the best quarterback in the game, and a future first-time Hall of Famer. And they're in a game that they had no business still hanging around in. They had done a good job defensively in keeping the game from being a blowout.
Then, the pick. If they don't turn the ball over there and get points, it's an entirely different game. But, they didn't, and Indy won. Give 'em credit, they were the better team that day.
All aboard
Glad to be here.
Looking forward to re-hashing the 2006 season and Super Bowl run - what went right, what went wrong, what's changed, and what needs to change for Da Beloved to make it back in 2007.
I'm out like Tank Johnson's right to privacy.
Looking forward to re-hashing the 2006 season and Super Bowl run - what went right, what went wrong, what's changed, and what needs to change for Da Beloved to make it back in 2007.
I'm out like Tank Johnson's right to privacy.
Welcome
First post on the - s'cuse me! - Da Bears Blog. Contributors coming soon. I think we'll go back and re-hash probably the playoffs and then get caught up on the off-season stuff.
I'm out like Lance Briggs (more on him to come).
I'm out like Lance Briggs (more on him to come).
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