AZ54

Haven't had a chance to watch the game in slo-mo but intial impression is that Webb was better than Williams. That first impression also included the fact we'll be drafting LT early next year.

I've had it too but just mildly, enough to notice it in the morning where I can't walk without pain for a few minutes and occasionally at work. Once I got some (expensive) walking shoes that limited flexing of the arch area it disappeared in a just a few days... and I work 14hr shifts. That won't work for playing football.

Keep tackling with your head down and you will always get injured. If this is how he had been tackling since high school that right there might be the single biggest reason Hardin has his injury history. Put your head down and you can't make last second adjustments while tackling, not to mention the risk of sticking your neck out there. I wonder if years from now we will look back on the players decision to limit tackling in practices as something that led to even more injuries. Tackling technique, like everything else, needs to be coached.

What is bold used for? At first I thought it was rookies then I saw McCown bolded. There is no way they cut him to keep Blanchard. Blanchard will never be ready to play with no reps as the 3rd string QB.

Nobody had a problem when SMC used spin moves to get several QB pressures this preseason. At least I didn't see the threads on this board talking about how he just barely missed a sack. Watching plays in slo-mo t is obvious SMC has had many spin moves that almost immediately got him in front of the QB but the move hasn't always worked as he seems to commit to it early (i.e before the snap) and/or doesn't always set it up well. As the preseason has worn on he has had more time with the 1's and he is facing better competition and thus the bad setups are even less effective. He has also had some good moves where he went upfield initially and then came back inside to get early pressure. It hasn't been all good with him but neither has it been all bad. I'm willing to be a bit patient with SMC as he has a quickness and suddenness to his movements that no other Dline has on our roster and I think the improvement since day one of training camp has been pretty good. He does need more strength but there is no getting around the fact it will take a year or two to get him where he needs to be in that department.

Lol, not at you but at the implication that we have any depth whatsoever on this Oline. We don't have a problem with cap space and whether it is cap friendly or not we need to keep the best players to protect Cutler. That might be tough to swallow with the weak performances we've seen this preseason but nonetheless protecting Cutler is job 1.

Don't know what they offered him but I'm thinking he should have accepted and stayed. The only film other teams have of him is when he fumbles so he won't be a hot commodity as a FA. On top of that, what does he think his market value is to another team at this point of the season? Is it really more than what the Bears were offering?

FWIW...The Giants game you are referring to was in the 2010 season.

If the best 5 lineup is: Webb, Williams, Garza, Louis, Carimi then we need to do that. Steady play at LT won't matter if there's a turn-style named Spencer right in front of Cutler. There is no reason Williams would not remain our backup OT. For those of you who watched and focused on the line play did you notice anything worthy of a roster spot from any of our backup OTs? I haven't seen anything really positive from either Brown or Brandon.

Finally got to sit down with the DVR for a bit and watch the game. I was surprised at how often Washington brought pressure. The Oline held up ok on most blitzes but there were some miscommunications. We didn't get great support from our RB and TE blockers. Overall a step forward this week versus week 1. Nothing I saw gives me confidence Cutler will ever have more than 3 seconds to throw the ball but in those 3 seconds our WRs can now get open. Run blocking...there were some holes this week too. Effective running down in the redzone was nice to see. Cutler looked confident running the offense even if it wasn't a perfect day for him. WR...Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey both look good. We will be tough to defend. I don't see Jeffrey ready to start yet but he could have that role by midseason. At a minimum this year we have the best depth we've had at WR in a very long time. Even Weems seems like he'll be able to contribute as a WR and he's a better athlete than Rashied Davis. TE...didn't notice them much for their blocking or pass receiving other than Rodriguez standing out late in the game. Rodriguez struggles against blizting players but out in the open field he's a good receiver and more agile in the open field than Greg Olsen was. If he is effective on special teams I expect he'll have a role this season on game days. RBs...Bush is more nimble than I thought in both running and pass catching. DLine...pressure coming from all directions was nice to see. It wasn't always consistent from the same source but on each play it seemed someone broke through to force RGIII to move out of the pocket. SMC didn't show up as much as he did against Denver but he did some good things. The Bears have no hesitation about dropping him into zone coverage. LBs...I didn't focus much on their play and nothing really stood out but Costanzo made a couple nice plays. The coaches put him in at MLB early pushing Roach back to SLB. This might be the starting combination we see next game against the Giants. Secondary....these guys clearly have had little practice tackling. Not the best angles and not the best technique and the injuries show that. A lot of teams are going through the same issues. A good pass rush made coverage issues less important. Can we keep that going?

I'll check out the game on NFL Network tomorrow but I'm surprised nobody has any comments yet. From the highlights I've seen it appears our Oline played well, not dominant but good enough to allow the playmakers time to do their thing. The Cutler to Marshall connection is definitely alive and well.

Not at all.

Tice drove the train to get Webb drafted and I think as a 7th rd pick he was worthy of that selection. He has the raw ability to do the job but as with many draft picks you can't measure what is inside a man's head. It's the mental mistakes Webb cannot overcome for whatever reason. Park Williams there and give him some real time to settle back into the role.

Same surgery Carimi had this past offseason to clean things up inside the knee. I doubt Urlacher will be ready for Indy. He needs to first get pain free and then get the strength back in his knee before contact. I'd say at least 4-6 weeks is needed and the Bears should take a cautious approach with him.

If true this won't be the first time Lovie has put someone as a starter based on raw athletic ability not performance.

After just one game it's apparent that with both Marshall and Jeffrey on the outside teams will have to worry about big plays near the sideline and that means safeties will be needed to help out. You know Matt Forte will be smiling if he can get a lane to run through.

I agree, Webb was really bad and yet again very inconsistent. I'm now at a spot where I think we're better off with Chris Williams consistent, if below average, play. With Webb you just don't know where he's going to have a mental lapse and give up pressure: outside, inside, bull rushes, or penalties. If Chris Williams can give us consistent play and protect the inside rush lanes then I'll take that and Tice showed in this first game that we will be helping with chip blocks out of the backfield. Cutler has to know what to expect in his pass protection. Spencer also had a horrible game. I don't know if it's the new footwork in moving from right side to left side but he was pushed all over the field. Even Carimi was pushed around at times. The only guy I didn't notice on the Oline was Louis who seemingly held his ground on pass protection. Nobody opened holes for running plays.

You heard wrong and I think Chris Williams may end up as our starter at LT. I'd rather have consistent below average play at LT where at least you know what you have to do to help the guy versus Webb's highly inconsistent play where he gets beat inside, outside, straight backwards, and his penalties. We'll see how this develops.

I thought McClellin played well for his first game at a new position. He got washed out on a double team at the goal line and some are making a big deal about that. He wasn't drafted to be a goal line defender. The point is he fills a spot on our roster as a speed rusher which we have not had for some time. If he can chase down Hanie like that he'll be chasing down Aaron Rodgers too. More important to me than chasing down Hanie was his ability to get upfield and turn the corner. He has also added a spin move and for a guy who has never done that before he did it effectively a couple times. Give him some time and experience and I think we'll have a good player. He's already come a long way in just two weeks of practice at DE.

I was also very impressed with Corey Wooton. On a few plays he made Clady look like Webb beating him to the outside forcing Clady to hold him (literally grab him around the body). On another play he beat him on a good inside move to get early pressure on Manning who had to release the ball early. He played better than Izzy and if this continues I can see him challenging for playing time at Izzy's expense.

Blew out his hamstring and needs surgery. They also have trouble at LT and are now testing a few different backups at the spot including Andrew Datko.

I think if he were done for the season we'd see more activity in terms of bringing in more FAs to camp in the hopes of uncovering a decent LB for depth. I can't believe we'd be that satisfied with the depth on the current roster to sit back and do nothing. The fact we're not doing that tells me Urlacher's issue isn't that serious. I tend to think he's had some minor procedure, perhaps removing scar tissue makes sense, or something along those lines, and he'll be back to work in a few weeks. If true then I hope he's ready by the Packers game in week 2. IIRC every report in training camp said he was moving well and if he wasn't they couldn't have covered that up, it would have been a big story from day one.

Did you really say he has to compete with Cindy Rice? Among other problems, Rice's non-stop injury parade is the reason they have to go out and drag WRs off the street into training camp last minute.

After seeing the recent highlight video of practice and watching Peppers pancake him in three steps I am highly doubtful. I was going to post that link for Jason but then I figured it would fall under cruel and unusual punishment.

I was surprised to read that quote too. Bodes well for our future if this trend with good young talent continues. Even our late round rookie CBs seem to be doing well. Next up....can Emery draft a good LB?