I provide you with my pick by pick breakdown and grade of the Bears 2008 draft. I have initially stated that I found the draft underwhelming, but that by no means makes it a bad draft. While it appears to be a draft that lacks in explosiveness, Angelo seemed to make up for that by landing a lot of quality players who should find ways to contribute.

Pick 1 (Round 1): C. Williams LT, Vanderbilt
The start of the first round really could not have worked out better for the Bears. Williams pretty much fell into their laps, and it’s an incredible blessing considering some scouts had him ranked as the #2 LT in this draft class. Williams should proved a huge boost the line by sliding in at LT and allowing a health John Tait to take over at RT. He’s got a strong track record against SEC opponents and has outstanding size and lateral movement. Ideally he fits here for many years to come
Grade: A

Pick 2 (Round 2): M. Forte RB, Tulane
The selection of Forte here has been criticized because many feel he is too similar to Benson. Both are larger backs who run with power and lack elite top end speed, but that is where the parallels seem to end. The biggest difference between the two is Forte’s ability to locate the hole. He’s a one cut runner who identifies the hole and then hits it hard. Additionally he has solid hands and is a solid blocker who can stay in on 3rd down. I really think Angelo see’s Forte as a bigger version of Thomas Jones and if Forte possess enough quickness to get around the edge (his biggest question mark) than I think this is a steal.
Grade: B

Pick 3 (Round 3): E. Bennett WR, Vanderbilt
A smart, quick route runner. He’s been compared by Mel Kiper to Hines Ward, but I wonder if that’s really a good thing. At 5’11”/209 he seems to have the necessary strength but there are concerns about his ability to get separation. His 4.48 40 seems to indicate good enough top end speed, but he seems to lack the quickness and second gear to make plays in space. That aside Bennett was one of the most productive WR in SEC history and should fit right into the slot position.
Grade: C+

Pick 4 (Round 3): M. Harrison DT, Arkansas
I am really not sure how to approach this pick. On one end Harrison is a lighting quick pass rusher, huge but not really powerful and seemingly a perfect back up and insurance policy for Tommie Harris. On the other hand ha has already had serious drug related problems with law. So I wonder if this guy is Dustin Dvoracek or Tank Johnson. If he’s Tank then it’s a waste of a 3rd round pick who’s never going to make a serious impact. If he’s Dustin then he’s a steal who can spell Harris and potentially provide long-term security at the 3-technique.
Grade: C

Pick 5 (Round 4): C. Steltz S, LSU
The Bears need at S was pretty evident all of last year and I think Steltz can come in and help address that need. He’s probably destined to be a ST standout for now, but he plays with great instincts and an extremely high motor. Most importantly, while he doesn’t have great speed he is very adept in run support and is supposed to be an excellent blitzer. Those are two qualities that were desperately missing from the position after Mike Brown went down in the opener. Who knows, we could see him paired with Danieal Manning sooner than we think.
Grade: A

Pick 6 (Round 5): Z. Bowman CB, Nebraska
In the pass happy NFL landing guys like Bowman and Trumaine McBride are esstential for keeping up on defense. Bowman is a freakish athlete at CB, great blend of size (6’0”) and speed (4.38). There is a lot to be concerned about with his history of knee injuries. Also Bowman transferred to Nebraska out of junior college so his experience against high level competition is limited. For now his athleticism should be on full display on ST, in the future he could combine with McBride, Tillman, and Vasher to make amongst the best CB groups in the NFL.
Grade: B+

Pick 7 (Round 5): K. Davis TE, Michigan State
Huge kid at 6’6”/262 and he runs pretty well for that size at 4.6. Both of those should make him an immediate redzone threat. However, despite that size Davis has yet to develop into a solid blocker and that will be an important evolution as he tries to make the roster as a 3rd TE. Davis was also flagged for character problems because of misdemeanor assault charges in ’06 and he was suspended by MSU for 4 games. In a best case scenario he’s Clark’s eventual replacement, but this pick just strikes me as more potential than actual
Grade: C+

Pick 8 (Round 7): E. Baldwin DE, Michigan State
Good rush end. He only played 2 years at MSU showing promise, had good combine, and is the Spartan single season sack record holder. He’s really a typical Bears type end who likes to get around the end and make plays in the backfield. However, holding up against the run is the issue and I don’t really know where he fits on the roster. The Bears already have 3 DE (Brown, Ogunleye, Anderson) last year’s 2nd round pick (Bazuin) and the flexibility to move Idonije to the outside. I don’t see them carrying 5 DE so if he’s going to make the team someone has to get cut, that’s why I’m down on this pick
Grade: D

Pick 9 (Round 7): C. Adams OG, Georgia
The Bears continue to show their value of big school and conference players late in the draft with Adams. The Bears desperately need depth at G so it should give Adams a decent chance of making the team. Has ideal size at 6’4”/320, but has been tagged with the dreaded “doesn’t play as big as his size suggests”. He’s about as good as you can do this late and hopefully some work at the NFL level can increase his punch and drive.
Grade: B-

Pick 10 (Round 7): J. LaRocque OLB, Oregon St
Very typical undersized OLB prospect for the Bears. Has a reputation of being instinctive and productive despite his athletic deficiencies. Really doesn’t have much of a chance to make the team except as a ST player, so his effort will be the key to his success on the next level.
Grade: C-

Pick 11 (Round 7): K. Barton OT, Ohio St
Barton defines the lunch pail mentality when it comes to offensive linemen. Scouts Inc had this to say, “Barton is very tough and experienced. He almost always finds a way to get the job done. The problem is that his athletic deficiencies are going to show up at the NFL level.” He is stiff and slow right now which probably means he’ll eventually have to move inside, but there is always room for guys who work hard.
Grade: C

Pick 12 (Round 7): M. Monk WR, Arkansas
Monk intrigues me more than any other Bears pick outside of Forte. He would’ve been a much higher pick 2 years ago, but a knee injury derailed his senior season. He sort of reminds me (at least in body size) of a Plaxico Burress, and really has decent speed. The questions will be his explosiveness coming off the injury and if he can create separation. I really think he’s going to make the team and could be a big surprise this year.
Grade: B+

The Bears again added a lot of depth and might have found some contributors in the late rounds. Williams was pretty much a consensus pick so there are no problems there. However, a lot will come down to the impact Bennett and Forte make. Both have enough warning signs that you could see them being non-factors, but if each does make a big impact at his position than this was a great draft. The biggest problem was the lack of obvious “big play” potential players picked up here, but personally I’ll be happy if Forte can just grind out about 4 yards per carry.

Overall Grade: B-

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Underwhelmed. The Bears 2008 draft was certainly nothing spectacular and we won’t have the talking heads raving on and on about an “A” draft, but it wasn’t particularly disappointing either. The Bears used a lot of late round picks (as they always do) on players that were simply the best value at that point and didn’t necessarily address a need.

This is going to be an interesting training camp. First round pick Chris Williams should slide right in somewhere on the OL, but the addition of 2nd rounder Matt Forte probably means someone is going to get cut. With Peterson, Benson, and Wolfe already on the roster I doubt the Bears carry 4 RB and that means someone has to lose his job. Forte is probably also the most questionable pick of the draft by the Bears, with Rutgers Ray Rice still on the board. The 2nd day saw added competition at WR where the Bears add Earl Bennett in the 3rd and Marcus Monk in the 7th. They will compete with Brandon Llyod and Mark Bradley for the last two WR roster spots, unless the Bears can justify carrying 6 WR because of Hester’s and Davis’ contribution on Special Teams.

Also the Bears added a 5th round TE Kellen Davis (bye bye Fontel Mines), a 5th round CB
Zackary Bowman (bye bye Ricky Manning Jr.) a 4th round S Craig Steltz (bye bye Adam Archuleta), and a 3rd round DT Marcus Harrison (bye bye Anthony Adams?). So while the Bears seemingly fail to address their desperate need for play-makers on offense (unless Forte is a big surprise) they did have a solid draft of address a few needs and adding depth.

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It is the doldrums of the football offseason, but with the NFL draft coming up in just about a month there’s no better time than now to start thinking about seeing a game in Chicago in ‘08.

Recently I searched through several ticket sites to find the best prices in general, and the best bet seems to be TickCo. Whenever seats for this season go on sale, check out their general listing of NFL tickets or more specifically the Bears listing.

We’re eager for things to get underway this year, and hope to head out to a few games this fall. Tailgating never sounded better. Go Bears!

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Given the disastrous 2007-2008 season that has been followed up by an equally uninspiring free agency period has turned many Bears fans against Jerry Angelo. Just a little over a year ago most Bears fans wanted Angelo to lead this team forever. But as the team has struggled Angelo’s difficulties with 1st round picks and refusal to bring in the flashy free agents have started to get under people’s skin. And yet… maybe we shouldn’t run him out of town just yet.

The recent string of new Cornerback deals got me thinking. It was not long ago that most people, myself included, figured either Charles Tillman or Nathan Vasher was gone. Since they are both Pro Bowl caliber players their new deals would likely break the bank. Additionally Angelo’s track record from Tampa suggested he never put too much money into one position. Then just before the start of the year both got new deals locking them up as a duo for the next 5 years. As smart of a deal as that may have seemed then it only seems smarter now. Here’s a rundown of this off-seasons big contracts at the Cornerback position:

• Marcus Trufant – 6 years/$50.2million ($8.3mil/yr)
• Asante Samules – 5 years/$57million ($11.4mil/yr)
• DeAngelo Hall – 7 years/$70million ($10mil/yr)

Now I think it’s fair to say that none of those players are markedly better than Tillman or Vasher if they are better at all and yet Tillman signed a deal for 6years/$41.5million and Vasher for 5years/$28million. I find it hard to believe that there is a $42mil difference between Hall and Vasher. And for all Hall’s flash Vasher actually as the same number of INTs (17) over the last 4 years even with missing most of this past season. Add in the recent Briggs deal and maybe this Angelo guy isn’t all bad.

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Well there have been more than a few shocking twists and turns in the first week of NFL free agency. Capped with the retirement of Brett Favre (woo hoo!!!!!) there have been some pretty stunning developments. There been no shortage of rumbling and grumblings here in Chicago with what has been a fairly inactive Bears team. The perception of a team that is full of holes not being more free-wheeling on the market really seems to upset the fan base. On top of that, who would’ve thought a week ago that it’d Lance Briggs still in a Bears uniform and not Bernard Berrian? And who thought that Berrian would actually land a bigger deal than Briggs that included more guaranteed money than Randy Moss got? Add that to the Griese trade, pulling Ayanbadejo’s deal off the table, the return of Marty Booker, and missing out on every marquee free agent it’s a good time to take step back and see what’s next.

We can start by looking at the losses in the last week: Griese, Ayanbadejo, and Bernard Berrian. First and foremost it’s pretty stunning that we got anything for Griese, so I’ll gladly take a late 2009 draft pick. It appears that Jon Gruden is developing technology to morph QBs together and concentrate all of their talent into one player. Honestly is there another possible explanation? I mean Jeff Garcia, Bruce Gradkowski, Luke McCown, Chris Simms, Jake Plummer, and Brian Griese (that’s right SIX QBs on their roster) have to add up to a Pro Bowl QB, right? Or at least an Eli Manning equivalent. As for Ayanbadejo, can any team really justify $2mil/yr for a Special Teams player? The Bear more than any team in the NFL have proven the importance and the impact of Special Teams and Brendon has been a big part of that as a captain and Pro Bowler. However, for a guy who is never going to legitimately take snaps at LB for the Bears there is no justification for allocating that much money for him. While it’ll be a shame to see him go, an incoming RB should free up Adrian Peterson to return to all phases of Special Teams and that should mitigate most of the impact of his departure. Finally we have the ridiculous contract of Bernard Berrian. I understand that the Vikings are desperate for a receiver, but does anyone really think he’s worth $42mil over 6 years? As good as he’s been over the last two years I am incredibly happy the Bears weren’t goaded into matching or topping the offer. Berrian is a solid player but far from a definitive #1 receiver, and yet somehow managed to land more guaranteed money than Randy Moss. The world of free agency is certainly a crazy one and given the prices I don’t think the Bears lost anyone they’ve need to keep so far.

Now despite what they lost over the past week the Bears managed to sign two players I never thought would wear a Bears’ jersey again, Lance Briggs and Marty Booker. When Briggs said a year ago that he’d never play for the Bears again I actually believed him. And then when the resolution was made with the franchise tag it appeared to be the perfect resolution to what had been an unnecessarily hostile situation. But when the market isn’t what he thought we somehow got our Pro Bowl linebacker back for less than our “never had 1,000 yards receiving” wide receiver left for. I seriously can not get over how messed up free agency is. The deal is great for both sides. Briggs got a fair market deal and he will anchor the WLB position (considered the premier position in the Bears Cover-2 system) through his prime year. Additionally, for anyone concerned about Urlacher’s health Briggs provides insurance. As for Booker I figured there would be some hard feelings about the Ogunleye trade. While Booker never repeated his Bears success in Miami, Ogunleye has made trips to the Pro Bowl and the Super Bowl in Chicago. However, in a time of desperate need the Bears convinced the familiar face to return. Luckily Miami was amongst the few teams with a worse QB situation than the Bears so we offered Booker both familiarity and an upgrade in circumstances. Ideally Booker steps right into the void left by Mushin Muhammad. In my opinion anyone who can put up over 500 yards in that anemic still has some skill left and with any luck Booker will be an upgrade. Either way 2 years of Booker at his current price is a lot better than what was left on Moose’s deal, if he actually out produces him that’s icing on the cake.

So as a pretty wacky first week of free agency comes to a close I am actually pretty happy as a Bears fan. While I disagree with the choice to not franchise Berrian, I understand the concern of having a repeat of the Briggs experience. It certainly would stand to damage the Bears reputation around the league if they had to go through another summer of a malcontent franchise player. And other than that I agree with all the moves and non-moves that have been made so far. I know a lot of Bears fans are bitter and angry that the Bears have not made some flashier moves so far. Lost in the fact that we retained the premier player (outside of Randy Moss who was never going anywhere) in Free Agency was the fact that we are left without a #1 WR, 2 missing starters on the offensive line, and failed to upgrade the RB and QB positions. That seems like an awful lot to fill through the draft, especially given Angelos struggles with drafting offensive players. Still, I preach patience. Just because we decided not to make a 31 year old Alan Faneca the highest paid offensive linemen in the NFL doesn’t mean we won’t improve there. I fully expect the Bears to add at least one piece to the line before the draft (I am hoping for Jake Scott, a Guard from Indy) and possibly another after the June 1st cuts. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see them land a veteran running back, like Julius Jones, or bring in some depth at DT. But no matter what the sky isn’t falling. People get too wrapped up in the hype of free agency, and while this week was not what I expected I am pretty happy with it.

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Well it’s official, Rex Grossman will return to the Chicago Bears in 2008.

It’s stunning to think that a guy who was pretty much done after week 3 is somehow back in the fold. But that’s what happens when Griese and Orton were equally ineffective. Given the slim free agent options bringing Rex back on a short term deal was the best option for both sides. The Bears get a QB who can compete with Orton and knows the system already. Rex gets the opportunity to stay in a situation he is comfortable in, and with a good season re-establish some value. Some might say it’s a marriage of equal incompetence, but it seems to me to be more of a fling of convience. Hopefully the improvements from Rex’s 2nd round as a starter this year is what we’ll see next year. But no matter what the Bears don’t really lose out much in this deal.

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Well in the fine tradition of “where the hell did that come from”, Brian Urlacher apparently had surgery on his neck recently.

Now we all know that Urlacher went through the season with chronic back issues. It caused a lot of debate about whether or not Brian would be worth resigning either at the end of his current deal or tearing up his current one to make it closer to his market value. Now Urlacher is having “routine” surgery done on one of the most sensitive and crucial part of the body. Seriously, outside of drilling a hole into his head does anything scare you as much as neck surgery?

The Bears are trying to pass this whole thing off as routine. Just a minor problem that was found during a post-season physical and kept under wraps until after he went under the knife. They seem to think people will just move on because he won’t miss training camp. I think it’s arrogant of them to act like it’s not a big deal an apparently do as much as they could to keep it from the public. I was really hoping this off-season might have a little less drama than last year… so far the Bears are not off to a good start.

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Well mercifully the 2007 season came to a close. It ended about 3 or 4 weeks earlier than most of us expected but at least the torture is over. Looking back with some perspective has only proved more frustrating for me personally. It was a year with so many missed opportunities, so many games that should’ve been won. There were still plenty of heart pounding moments, and Devin Hester is still ridiculous, but if it doesn’t get you to the playoffs it doesn’t really matter.

Offense—D : Considering the carousel at Quarterback it’s impressive the Bears scored as many points as they did. Then again there is no excuse for a “running team” to average 3.4 yards per carry for an entire season. There are too many frustrations to go into but for some personal therapy I am going to list a few: Rex throwing into double coverage, Mushin Muhammad, Benson falling down on his own, Brian Griese “protecting the football”, Hester’s “involvement”, Fred Miller pretending to block, dropped passes, Greg Olson’s “involvement”, and Kyle Orton not being able to find a razor blade. Whew… ok I feel a lot better now. Looking towards the off-season the Bears need a lot of help. Orton will be in the discussion but I doubt he’s the solution, who else can we bring in? Berrian is likely to walk and Moose is past his prime (putting it lightly) so we need something at WR and for Bradley and Hester to step up big in the offseason. Benson got hurt the moment he finally showed some promise and Peterson and Wolfe are both 3rd down backs so we should be looking 2nd or 3rd round for some competition like Steve Slaton or Ray Rice. And as for the offensive line… just a major overhaul. Fred Miller and Ruben Brown both need to go and probably will or be reduced to backups. Then somehow, by some unforeseen miracle, Ron Turner is going to keep his job. This team must be able to run the ball. Our running game probably cost us 3 wins this season and even more than the Quarterback situation that MUST be fixed.

Defense—C+: Amazingly enough even with how bad we played I almost gave them a B-. I guess perhaps my judgment was initially clouded by our improved play the last 3 weeks. Then I remembered this laundry list: Adrian Peterson’s 224 yards, letting Eli Manning engineer a game winning drive, giving up 34 fourth quarter points to Detroit, losing to Tavaris Jackson TWICE!, allowing six 100 yard rushers, giving up 30+ points five times, and losing to Todd FREAKING Collins. Again, I feel better but not by much. I give these guys a lot of slack for the injuries they endured. At one point Bob Babich’s defense was a complete shell of itself. Still that does not justify the above list. The loss of Mike Brown does not excuse Adam Archuleta and Danieal Manning’s in ability to tackle. That aside some guys did have outstanding seasons. Charles Tillman was a beast and should’ve been a Pro Bowler. Adewale Ogunleye had his best season in Chicago and was downright dominant at times. Tommy Harris managed 8 sacks on one leg. And Lance Briggs proved to be worth every penny of the franchise tag. The pieces for a dominant unit are still there. Harris needs his sidekick, Dvoracek, to stay healthy. Jamar Williams need to prove to be a competent replacement for Briggs. Vasher needs to come back at 100%. And we need a safety who can actually make a tackle, but compared to list of needs on offense this unit really isn’t all that far away. It’ll be interesting to see if Mike Brown comes back and how much of their resources they can afford to put into this defense. But just with a little better luck on the injury front this group should be a lot better next year.

Special Teams—B+: This is the hands down, no doubt, no argument, not even a discussion best part of this team. Unlike the other 2 phases of the game this is one the Bears not only won but routinely dominated. Hester was somehow even more ridiculous managing to take back 6 kicks for TDs even with how much teams were trying to stay away from him. Maynard had another solid season and in my opinion could’ve warranted a trip to Hawaii simply for how he handled the weather in the second Packers game. But there were some things that we not as good. Gould had a good but not great season and missed some makable field goals. And most glaring of course were the coverage units. Our punt unit it was outstanding again but we gave up too many big kickoff returns, including one to Adrian Peterson that cost us a victory. But even with those negatives this was by far the most fun part of the team to watch and grade.

So there you have it. Some final thoughts on a completely unfulfilling season.

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View more of Jeran’s work here.

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Kyle Orton will be the starting QB for Chicago Monday night at the Minnesota Vikings

What a sad sad day it is that the Bears have been reduced to voluntarily going to Kyle Orton to finish their season. But then again at 5-8 with Rex hurt what other options do we have? I am sure we will here plenty this week about Orton going 10-5 as the starter his rookie year. Which is all well and good until you also realize he completed 52% of his passes and had a 59.7 QB rating during those same 15 games. Granted that was two years ago now and it seems that Orton came into this year on a mission. I am going to take a wait and see approach with this but odds are he’s auditioning to be traded more than be next year’s starting QB.

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