Mongo3451

Madlith - I'm on Facebook. How do I find the TalkBears group?????

Over the course of his career in Chicago, Lovie Smith has seen about all that there is to see. He started his career with a lowly team that looked to improve as the season progressed. Year two, he saw his Bears, lead by a tenacious defense and special teams, beat the packers and make the playoffs, much to the satisfaction of Bear nation. Year three, the team peaked by winning the division and making it to the Super Bowl using the same formula as the year before and utilizing their new weapon in Devin Hester. Year four, the Bears were proclaimed to be bulletproof by the collective thoughts of some NFL executives. They were regarded as the only team in the NFL that would win despite it’s QB. But the loss of Thomas Jones in conjunction with the lack of motivation in Cedric Benson saw a dramatic change in our offense. Good Rex/ bad Rex was just simply bad Rex as a result. Also, in the Kevlar year we saw multiple injuries to the strength of our team, the Defense. So we went into the off-season arguing about QB, RB, OL, defense and Hester. What we found was the offense with Orton and Forte was a pleasant surprise. Even with a crappy OL and no #1 WR. We also found that the Defense and Hester (in the return game) did not live up to expectations. We also found that D Manning is a beast in the kick return game. Through all this we finished 9-7 in a relatively lackluster season and an abysmal final game, in which we could have made the playoffs against an inferior team. This left many, including myself, calling for Lovie’s head. Now we look at the current off-season and the upgrade of our OL and Cutler. We still have major loot to spend under the cap and a free agent WR upgrade is expected. Marinelli and Lovie now control the D and expectations are again high. Here we are, on the cusp of another season and looking forward to what team Lovie will produce this year. Remember, he started with little and we became a SB team in three years, followed by an injury plagued stinker, followed by a lackluster 9-7. We have seen the best and worst of Lovie. He has taken more control of the team this season to make this year the validation of his tenure. What will the result be?

Yes sir! Those also help promote counter plays and cutback lanes in the run game. Nasty!

I've been thinking about posting thoughts on the effect signing Cutler will have on the Bears. Here are my thoughts: Offense: The effect here is obvious. He has all the tools, mobility included. He'll stretch the field with his arm allowing Turnwer to call any play he wants. Forte and Co. will have more room to run, as a result of a softer box. Lastly, Cutler will have to accounted for when designing pass rushes, as he will dangerous out of the pocket. Defense: Lovie will be able to release the hounds in various ways knowing he has a QB that can put numbers on the board. Also, with an improved running comes greater time of possession, keeping the defense off the field. Talent: With our new additions, free agent talent will be more attracted to come here. Keep your fingers crossed for Holt! JA and Lovie: Did a masterfull job of putting the team on notice this off-season. JA in being critical of players and coaches and Lovie purposly scheduling OTA's during prime vacation time and assuming responsibility for the D. Team motivation: This may be the biggest lift of all. If you are a Bear, you have to be sky high right now. The addition of Cutler, Pace and Marinelli will lead to greater dedication in the off-season. The entire team has been put on notice that the window is back open!

Thanks for the stats. They tell me three things. 1st - It doesn't matter where he plays. 2nd - More catches on the road means, he's the go to guy in hostile territory. 3rd - More TD's at home makes sense, as the 12th man is not hindering your audibles and timing in the red zone. I hope that ends the Holt scrutiny.

I'm not sure if Holt has ever been regarded as a speed reciever. I think he has always been renowned as a great route runner with arguably the best set of hands in the NFL. Now, if he's an admitted fair weather guy that may be a problem.

I'd take Rexy on a one year deal, if he would sign it. He knows the system and would be better than O'Sullivan with our improved(hopefully) OL.

I agree with the mental midget point, to a degree. That's for the staff to inverstigate. Some guys just love speed. To me that's minor. The second point I really disagree with. Do you honestly think Cutler is contacting Plax without the consent or knowledge of the brass? I don't think anyone has those balls. Lastly, it took Moss how long to grow up? I think Plax is at the age where he can show he's an eternal turd or wants to be a pro. Again, the staff will have access to a lot of intell we don't have and can make that determination. I find Eli's endorsement of him to be credible, considering Eli and his family's history of consumate professionalism. Like I said in a previous post, we'll have to use discretion if he is signed.

I would tread cautiously with Burress. He is a Prima Donna and a potential liability. However, he is not T.O. Eli made several pleas on Plax’s behalf. The obvious reason would be that he is a highly skilled weapon. The other reason is that Eli saw some redeeming qualities in him. No QB has ever lobbied for T.O. to stay. I have faith in Cutlers ego and demeanor to effectively “towel snap” Burress, if needed. I say sign him with incentives, as he would be an absolute beast in our system as well as the perfect compliment to Hester and Bennett. With him, we could potentially have a top 5 offense by the end of the season.

It depends on the situation. If the relationship is fractured, it's sometimes not repairable. No way in hell I trade my young franchise QB. But, extenuating circumstances come into play. That's where Denver screwed themselves by looking into Cassell and not being tight lipped. (That's a huge strength of JA) With all things being unknown, no way, never. Franchise QB's don't get traded often.

I agree with the trade, but in no means think we stole anyone. The price was high and we paid.

Wow! I'm not nuch much of a stat guy, but damn that was a great one. 1 in 5 1st rounders make the pro bowl... I wonder what the stat is on 1st round QB's???? IMO - that validates the price tag.

JA may wait until the season begins before doing a new deal. That way he can hold onto emercency cash and have a better grasp on personnel and ability to frontload.

Did you use that line because you knew Cutler is from Santa Claus, IN.??? Very nice if so...

I really don't care what Urlacher thinks or says anymore. If were the best player on the team or acted like he wanted to be the face of the franchise, I would probably read into it. Cutler is now the face whether anyone likes it or not.

I saw Cutlers press conference. He was spot on. He has already done a lot to begin winning the locker room. I was actually impressed with how cordial he was. I did not think that was in him.

Exactly! Teams will now actually have to account for Hester every second of every play. The field will be stretched for the play action and run game. We may actually get to utilize Wolfe now that he will have a little room to operate.

Classic!

OMG! I can't take any more joy!!! I bet Turner feels like a porn star right now.

I get what you are saying, but in the case of dog fighting, the descision was made for Vick years ago.(illegal) I would say yes to your question about dogs, as I have a more than obvious bias. A good dog would never harm it's human family.

That was as cheesy as it gets. LOL!

Good question. I can think of a few reasons - pro and con: 1) Greater comfort with Cassell. 2) Trade value to get Cassell would be a lot less than what you would net with Cutler. So, he could get his guy and have extra picks and/or players. 3) New England arrogance. 4) Maybe he DOES have intell that Cutler is a Jeff George type. 5) Maybe they scouted Cutlers flaws in NE and found him lacking. IMO - regardless we must take the chance. Our QB situation has been mediocre for too long. This is one of the most talented "young" QB's I have ever seen.

Cutler has more clout than Orton. Actually, Orton has none. That's why he has to keep his mouth shut. That being said, Elway was the ultimate bitch when he publicly refused to play for the Colts pre draft. Do you think Cutler would get this trade if he didn't play the card the way he did? I personally would be livid if the 1st thing I got from my new coach is that he didn't want me. I think Cutler is somewhere between Elway and George. George being the greatest waste of talent in the history of the league. (zero leadership) I'm sure the Bears have a pretty good insight on the level of turd Cutler may be. Bennett would be a good start.

Very nice IMO. I hope you are right. I really like Orton, but a chance to get the best young gun in the NFL would be a dream come true. Besides, I have yet to see Orton get it together on his deep passes. Hell, you didn't even hear about it in training camp fodder. Totally disagree. Even before the Pace thread, I feel we improved our OL with younger players. We get Williams as a redshirt, Shaffer is better than any tackle we had last year and add Omiyale(who can't be worse than St. Clair. Throw in a potentially healthy Buenning and a year stronger Beekman to the mix. The only downside may be Kruetz and Garza, with Kruetz being our best OL last year. What does Pace do for us? He becomes our best OL this year, something a draft pick would not do. It is important for more than one reason: One - true insurance incase Williams falters would be in place.(I really loved BearSox idea of Williams to LG to learn from Pace for a year) Two - Most importantly, it gives us the ability to trade a couple of picks to Denver for Cutler and still have the line bolstered. Three - even if Orton is QB, it would be nice to be able to open up the playbook for some 5 and 7 step drops. I'm sure there was a lot left on the table last year because of OL. Endgame is this - if we get Cutler out of it, Angelo runs for Mayor and wins by a landslide.

I like Britton if Oher is gone. Also like Gibson, Bruton and Fiametta. Fiametta is a really good run blocker.