AZ54

Perhaps there's some truth that but I'd have to see data on other teams turnover at these positions. The NFL is tough and these are the smaller players in a physical game. WR tend to be bigger (6' and over) but CBs tend to be smaller (5'9"- 6') because they need to change direction quickly. Tillman and Vasher might be nearing their expiration date but I think they have a couple more good years left. At least I hope they do. You are right, JA is always throwing more late round picks into the mix, he definitely prefers the numbers game with DBs. This year we got Afalava late.

I remember that joke, I laughed when I read it. I think Rashied has got better after his first year but not enough. He's not very big so speed is his main asset but he doesn't have any shiftiness to go with it. When you have a little WR you expect him to make some plays on his own and that's rarely the case with Davis. In either case I totally agree we know exactly what we have with him and there just is no upside. If these young guys perform close to what he does then I think we need to go in that direction regardless of the loss of experience. Special teams will be a factor but in the end you have WRs on the team to catch passes on offense, not to tackle on kickoffs. Translation: Teach someone else how to play on special teams. It's going to be interesting to see how the young guns play in the preseason games and when exactly they get in the game.

That'll work for me too! Thanks

You were already seeing it back then and Rashied Davis didn't make your list!

I have no problem if McBride doesn't make the cut. I think we know what he is and if someone beats him out then we're a better team. Steltz hasn't shown enough for me to think differently of him either but I think he's in a safer position than McBride is.

I don't know where you get the info on who is playing at what spot but there has to be someone else lining up in the slot in practice besides Davis. Before I get going on Davis I'll add that I like the fact the team is limiting what the rookies have to learn, at least so far. Why can't Hester move inside to the slot on some plays? They say Hester knows 110 routes now and I've already seen him there in practice so why not in games? Olsen lines up there on some plays too, and he also lines up wide (thus putting Hester in the slot). We plan to use a lot of two TE sets this year like we did last year. Bennett knows how to line up in the slot too. I don't even see why Iglesias couldn't be our slot WR, he's supposed to be quick in/out of his cuts and his size can handle the linebacker/safety hits better but even if he comes in the game you can move Bennett inside. I question just how badly we need Davis "the slot receiver"? Saying Davis is good in the slot is a relative term. He's better in the slot than he is out wide but in either case he's always had a case of the drops, there's just fewer of them inside. It might come down to keeping Rashied or Knox. We all thought experience would be the factor keeping Rashied there (myself included) but I don't see us able to protect Knox on the practice squad. He has too much potential IMO to lose him so therefore it becomes a decision of do we really need Davis for just one more year at the risk of losing a promising young talent? I need to see how well Bennett is doing, along with Rideau and Aromashodu but if they are playing well in the end I don't see Davis making a difference in our W-L record and so I cut him. That statement doesn't mean Knox will make a difference this year either, but next year I think he will.

I can't really answer your question. I said many times it wasn't that Orton was publicly misbehaving, rather that he admitted he didn't dedicate himself the way he needed to. Here's one more link to once again show that he transformed himself entering the 2007 season and began to outperform Griese. I just can't find the article where he stated his change in attitude. Regardless it was obvious the difference in him from the start of the 2006 season to the start of 2007 season and everyone noticed it. Other than that we're going to have to agree to disagree. Lately Graham has been saying that he doesn't care where he plays he just wants to get on the field. I'm hopeful he's back on track to become a key member of our secondary. http://www.wearethepostmen.com/2007/08/02/...aster-stronger/ ************************************************************************* Although it’s early in training camp, Orton has in the eyes of many observers outperformed Griese, the veteran brought in last year in part because the organization wasn’t completely convinced Orton was capable of being a long-term NFL quarterback. Orton remade himself physically over the course of the last year. He dropped not only weight but also the bitterness he felt over being demoted from a rookie starter in 2005 for 15 games, 10 of them victories, to little more than insurance, inactive for all 19 games in the Bears’ extended 2006 season. Instead, he worked his way into what he says is the best shape of his life and rededicated himself in the Bears’ off-season programs. And while coaches will make no predictions on the depth chart at this juncture, Orton has played his way into a competition that a year ago seemed to have left him behind, possibly for good.

I don't know any Bears fans that are upset at or make fun of Denver. More typically it's the opposite, we thank them for the Pro Bowl QB every opportunity we get. I don't know anyone really beating down Orton either other than to call him out for his shortcoming on the deep routes. Maybe this guy is reading too many high school message boards.

It appears it was Aromashodu day in the media: http://www.chicagobears.com/news/NewsStory.asp?story_id=5995 http://www.suntimes.com/sports/football/be...tler-10.article http://blogs.chicagosports.chicagotribune....o-bowl-qbs.html

I don't know how someone gets body fat down to 1.5% other than starvation. More impressive is his increased knowledge. When you step back and look at what Turner might be doing I'd say we're going to have both Olsen and Hester lining up all over the field and running routes all over the field. No longer will personnel dictate what type of play we're going to run. Don't forget that Earl Bennet had to learn the entire playbook last year as well. It could be tough for a defense to figure out and should create some nice mismatches.

Finally a little love for Graham. The best part of this article is: http://www.chicagobears.com/news/NewsStory.asp?story_id=5991 ******************************************************************************** ***** The 2007 fifth-round draft pick insists that he doesn’t have a preference in terms of a position. “To be honest, I want to play wherever I can get on the field,” Graham said. “If it’s nickel, safety … I’ll play defensive tackle if I can play in a game. I just want to go out there, do what they ask me to do and just continue to be a team player. You just want to play and get better.” ******************************************************************************** ***** That's exactly how he needs to approach all this shuffling around. Hopefully he continues to settle into the nickel role. If he can solidify that spot for us it would be huge in terms of our depth. It would keep DManning at FS full time which I think helps him out mentally (he needs that). On top of that we'd have Bowman as our backup CB behind Tillman and Vasher, so far that looks to be like pretty good depth. Then we'd have DJ Moore battling with McBride for the 5th spot. Woodny Turenne might be in that mix too. Over at safety Afalava is starting to show up and appears to be on the radar for a roster spot.

Good then you can update that photo of Cutler to one of him in his Bears uniform.

So was Cutler and the offense that good or is our D that bad? With Tillman and Bowman out I'm taking the latter with some "Cutler is that good" thrown in.

That's actually video from across the entire first week of practice. It is good to watch because they keyed on certain players in each segment. In other words you'll see about 5 or 6 plays in row of Earl Bennett, then 5 plays of Rideau, etc.

Definitely seems like Knox is facing a steep learning curve/adjustment. No suprise considering where he played but it's still very early in camp so I'm holding out hope for him to come along better after he has a couple preseason games behind him. If he doesn't get it I can see him on IR because I don't think we'd be able to keep him on our practice squad. The downside of course is that players on IR can't practice (unless they're on the Patriots) and that's not helpful. Lately there seems to be more positive vibes about Iglesias getting comfortable with the offense.

Today in the post practice interview Cutler again mentioned Aromashodu as a WR who was played well. Aside from Cutler I haven't heard many others mention him and now Cutler's done it twice this week and today specifically said he needs to get some time in with the 1's. For Cutler to come out and say he needs to get some time with the 1's is a pretty good sign of his progress. All the talk has been about Rideau stepping up this year and that's good. I'd like to hear any feedback on Aromashodu from those who've been to camp or attended today's practice at Soldier Field. Is this guy looking like someone who might make the final roster?

I think it means we keep throwing darts at developing players hoping one hits the bullseye. I don't see this guy as anything more than a potential practice squad player.

Not ahead of myself at all, that's why I said I want to catch the first preseason game to see for myself.

It's simple, you state that Brown's leadership and ability to get players in the right spot was why we needed him on the field. Yet he failed in that responsibility on that last play. Atlanta had two plays they could do ... 1) run or pass for a TD or .. 2) throw a 15-20 yard pass and go out of bounds leaving time to kick a FG. They had no timeouts. While he had to protect the middle first, Brown should have been cheating a couple more steps toward the sideline knowing he's too slow to get there from where he was. Being a couple more steps toward the sideline might have given up more yardage on an over the middle catch but so what, he had 35 more yards to give up and another safety back there to give chase. Give up another 10 or 15 yards wouldn't have mattered because with time running out they wouldn't have gotten the kick off in time. I see Brown failing at getting his fellow DBs aligned properly which was supposed to be his strength and main reason we had him on the field. I see Brown failing to get outside fast enough to breakup the pass. The coaches threw Hamilton under the bus but left Brown alone. Later they moved him back to SS. I do believe I am the only Bear fan blaming Brown for that play but watching highlights of it over the summer hasn't changed my mind. I also blame the DBs coach, Defensive Coordinator, and head coach for this failure. Who does a pooch kick to give a team good field position like that? Anyway, too many bad memories from last season but on a positive note it was for a worthy cause because it ended up in Jay Cutler wearing a Bears uniform. No pain no gain.

Totally enjoyed listening to that last night. It was funny all the way through. Felt like drinking a beer with those guys by the time it was done. From a football perspective the one thing that caught my attention was the props they gave to Devon Aromashodu. Beyond Cutler and Olsen talking about him I haven't heard much else but it's interesting to note that with Rideau making waves in camp Davis is getting pressure on the depth chart. Rideau is not going to be our slot WR and that's where Davis is so these two are not necessarily in direct competition. We have Iglesias who is coming on lately and making some good plays. He has good quickness, could he play the slot? Knox also appears to be a slot WR type. Need some preseason games to be sure but it appears we've seen enough good things from Knox to think he'll make the final roster. At this point I doubt we'd be able to protect him on our practice squad. For the slot role we also have Hester. We already know that Olsen will be lining up wide in some formations with Hester moved to the slot. While the slot may not be Hester's primary role it seems clear he's going to take some reps there. I've felt we'll keep 6 WR due to the inexperience we have on the roster and that likely meant Davis was assured a spot. However, with Rideau and possibly now Aromashodu making some noise is a bubble forming underneath Rashied Davis? I'm no longer sure the slot role is enough to save his roster spot, so it may well come down to special teams contributions where he should have an advantage.

Orton is going to have it rough this year. Not only does he have to replace Cutler he also has to learn a totally new offense, as does the rest of the offense. We all know that takes time. For Bronco fans that won't matter though because all they'll see is less productivity from the QB and the offense and blame Orton. Until they go back and blame the head coach. That should happen after about midseason.

I spent some time searching for that article where Orton talked about how he hadn't handled his second season the way he should have. I did find this blog post that mentions it back in Aug 2007: http://www.dabearsblog.com/2007/08/remember_kyle_orton.php ******************************************************************************** John Mullin writes a terrific piece in today's Trib. Apparently, Orton has come to camp with a stronger arm and more intimidating physique. Ron Turner has called him lightyears better than he was as a ten-game winner (remember that?) two years ago. According to Mullin, there are two questions: Can Orton emerge from the preseason as the No. 2 quarterback ahead of Brian Griese? And in the event that Rex Grossman does not work out, can Orton possibly play his way into becoming the franchise quarterback of the Bears' future? The answer to both is ... yes. Not gonna lie...I'm interested. All of a sudden, the first preseason game looms not only as a showcase for the development of Rex Grossman but also for the re-invention of his fallen predecessor. Kyle Orton has the next month plus to establish himself as the the quarterback-in-the-wings and I'd be more than happy to see it happen. ******************************************************************************** *** I don't mean to imply he pouted publicly because he did handle things publicly in a professional manner. However, from his change in 2007 vs. 2006 it was clear he didn't work hard at competing for the second string job after Rex was declared the starter in the offseason and then Griese was brought in to be our #2. After leading us to multiple wins his rookie years the fans back then were expecting Orton to make a better showing than he did that year (2006), myself included. Graham's situation IMO appears similar from the outside. Of course, he has had to deal with some position changes and that alone will reduce performance but he's also not new to our system like the rookies. It's all anecdotal stuff, hypothetical, whatever, because all I have to go on is the fact he does not appear to be making a standout impression on anyone, neither media or coaches. If you feel that is because his coverage is so good nobody will throw the ball his way that's fine. I'll wait for a second source to confirm this before getting on that bandwagon.

DM was outstanding on KR. Hester is still PR which is better suited to his talents, not that he can't do both well. At any rate teams were just constantly kicking away from Hester so having him back there worked in the sense you might get 10 extra yards of field position on a kick going out of bounds but you weren't getting 6 pts. We had to find a way to get the ball in his hands. I wish the talk about him being our #1 WR would die down. I still want him effective as a PR and I prefer there be no push to get him a huge quantity of receptions. He's not the biggest WR and IMO over 80 rec with his PR duties will just wear him down and reduce his big play ability in both roles. I'd prefer to see him in more of a #2 role with less touches but more effective as a big play guy. In other words I'd much rather see Hester among league leaders in YPC and YAC versus # receptions. If that helps him get a couple PR for TDs then it's totally worth it. Those return TDs are demoralizing for the other team. Let's spread the ball around to Olsen, Bennett, Forte, Hester, and whoever our #3 WR is, among others and don't worry about making Hester "the #1 WR" .

I watched the weekly highlight film on the Bears website and I have to admit i was impressed with the way Rideau was coming off the line. It seems he finally has learned how to use his size advantage, or maybe he's finally added the strength to his frame. He's not real quick coming out of his cuts and doesn't appear fast but does appear to have sneaky speed that people underestimate. Looking forward to catching next weeks game on TV somewhere someway somehow.

This is kinda funny in a thread titled "Fight at Training Camp".