defiantgiant

It seemed sort of inevitable; he's clearly lost a step as a running back and last season he wasn't that great on special teams. Still, he was an awesome guy. I hope he can land somewhere else and do well.

I think this is actually the best idea. Put Peppers at left end, next to Harris at the 3-technique. That way the line goes: Brown-Left Tackle-Left Guard-Adams-Center-Right Guard-Harris-Right Tackle-Peppers-Tight End So Brown draws the left tackle while Adams anchors against the left guard and center: even if neither of them gets any pressure, the blocks they're occupying mean that the right side is at a pretty bad disadvantage. Even if the TE stays in for a double-team block, that right tackle is going to have to block Peppers, which leaves Tommie in the B gap one-on-one with the right guard. Even in his diminished form last season, he should win that matchup a fair amount of the time. They could pull the left guard to help with Harris, but that would open up a lane for a linebacker to blitz.

Right, but teams wouldn't necessarily be able to put a corner or a safety on him if our wideouts were more of a threat. Suppose we're in a normal 2-WR set and the other team is in a base 4-3 or 3-4. If either Hester or Aromashodu could draw double coverage, they'd have both corners and a safety tied up covering the Devins. Presumably the other safety is responsible for deep coverage (unless they're in Cover Zero) which only leaves linebackers to cover Olsen. The problem is that none of the wide receivers, as of right now, demand double coverage. In fact, the player who drew the most attention from opposing DBs last season was actually Olsen. If one of our young receivers can step up, I think Olsen will see a lot of favorable matchups in 2010. I wasn't suggesting that we should actually switch him to WR, just that we should line him up in the slot sometimes, and use him as an on-the-line Y receiver other times. Like what the Colts do with Dallas Clark. Basically, I'm just saying that they need to try to get him matched up on a linebacker, like a slot receiver would be.

Yeah, he had a 1000-yard rusher every season. Marshawn Lynch, then Justin Forsett, then Jahvid Best.

Olsen is fast for a TE, even for a receiving TE. He's not a flat-out burner, but I can't think of any TEs who are, other than Vernon Davis and maybe Dustin Keller. He also runs pretty good routes: he's smooth and controls his body well, and he can separate pretty well from the guys he should be matched up on (linebackers and safeties.) He couldn't separate when teams were putting a corner on him, but that's to be expected. The bigger problem is the other one you mentioned: he doesn't seem to do very well when he has to go up and challenge a defender for the ball. For whatever reason, he just doesn't get vertical particularly well, and when he ought to win the size matchup, he frequently doesn't. When teams put a corner on him, you wouldn't expect him to separate with his speed, but he should be able to use his size advantage and box the defender out. He doesn't, though. I don't know what the problem is, but he's not the two-way matchup problem the coaches make him out to be: he plays like a wide receiver against linebackers, which is great, but he also plays like a wide receiver against cornerbacks. Basically, I think he ought to be used like a big slot receiver. Get him matched up on linebackers and safeties where he'll be able to separate, and let him win that matchup with his speed and body control. Unfortunately, in order to do that, we'd need receivers who demand coverage from the corners, otherwise teams will keep putting a corner on Olsen, and he'll keep struggling.

Yeah. If he wanted a job as an assistant WRs coach, I'd be all for it. But he's just not worth the roster spot at this point. He couldn't make an impact in Jacksonville, and that team was desperate for receiver help. How does he think he's he going to beat out Hester when Hester outperformed him last season? Holt 2009: 103 targets, 51 receptions, 722 yards, 0 TDs Hester 2009: 91 targets, 57 receptions, 757 yards, 3 TDs Hell, on a per-target basis, Earl Bennett outplayed Holt, too: Bennett 2009: 88 targets, 54 receptions, 717 yards, 2 TDs

That's a surprise about Manning. Maybe moving him to strong safety isn't such a bad idea. He's more of a catch-and-drag tackler than a guy who will come up and pop the ballcarrier, but if he's that reliable, maybe he could be OK on the strong side. As for Peanut, though, I'm not surprised at all that he's #3 in the league. He's been one of the best tackling corners in the NFL for a long time. Not to mention the forced fumbles.

Rotoworld is saying that the Cowboys are interested in Atogwe, too. I think he's going to start drawing a lot of interest around the league...I hope the Bears can seal the deal.

Yeah, Martz really doesn't like using a traditional fullback. He had two awesome lead-blocking fullbacks in Madison Hedgecock and Moran Norris, but he pretty clearly prefers an H-back type of role for the FB. And like the article said, he calls up plays from 1-back sets a lot. That's not great news for Forte: as bad as McKie is, Forte definitely runs better behind a lead blocker than out of a singleback set.

Teams get a limited number of predraft visits with players, and there are basically two schools of thought on how to use them. Some teams use them to do more thorough checks on guys they've already seen at the Combine, and some teams use them to get a look at late-round players who they didn't get to see at the Combine. I don't know if one is a better approach than the other, but for what it's worth, the Bears have always done the latter. Also, Robert Johnson isn't a bad developmental prospect. He's got decent size at 6'2" 203 pounds, and he had 13 interceptions in three seasons at Utah. Here's NFLDraftScout's report on him: Read & React: Takes proper angles on receivers coming over the middle or track down backs from behind. Good range in the back half due to his length and straight-line speed, but is not always there to help on deep throws. Also a slow step to react to misdirection and will overrun plays. Man Coverage: Struggles in man coverage. He lacks the change-of-direction skills to stay with receivers with above-average agility or route-running ability. High and slow in backpedal. Does not have the fluid hips to transition. Zone Coverage: Typical centerfielder, able to attack the ball when the play is in front of him or to his side. Will go shoulder-first to lay out receivers coming into his area. Has the height, length and vertical leap to get after jump balls in the end zone or break up high passes over the middle. Fast enough to trail receivers coming through his area and break up passes. Closing/Recovery: Flies downhill to attack ballcarriers, but needs work recovering and tracking the ball when players get behind him. Has a burst to the ball when throws are made over the middle in cover-two. Able to read the quarterback's eyes and jump deep sideline routes when not playing off the line of scrimmage. Once beaten, he lacks the immediate acceleration to recover. Run Support: Aggressive coming up against the run, able to cut or wrap up ballcarriers in space with his length. Ducks his head at times when trying to tackle in the flat. Not strong enough to take on and shed blocks inside the box. Tackling: Long arms make it difficult for ballcarriers to escape his grasp, but he is not an explosive tackler. Will miss in the open field because he lacks great change-of-direction skills, and also tries to lay a shoulder instead of wrapping up. Offensive linemen can manhandle him when attacks at the second level because of his lack of strength. Intangibles: Had a tough upbringing in South Central Los Angeles, and his father was murdered when Johnson was very young. Popular among his teammates and has an excellent work ethic.

Great stuff about the 370-carry barrier, nfo. I'd like to see a split like we had in 2006: the Bears ran it 503 times, with 296 going to Thomas Jones and 157 going to Benson (the other 50 were AP and McKie, I assume.) That seems like a good split: around 300 carries for your #1 back, and around half that for your change-of-pace. I'd be OK with 300 for Forte and 150-200 for Taylor.

http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Bronco...r-Marshall.html Look about halfway down...Lombardi's saying that the Bears are trying to deal Des Clark, not Olsen.

Yeah, agreed. Stick him behind Garza and let Tice work with him. I'd like to see one of our developmental prospects actually get developed, for once.

This exactly. Trade value is based on the player's ability measured against his probable longevity and how expensive his contract is. Olsen could easily play for another 8 years. Boldin's going to be 30 this season, and he gets hurt a lot (although to his credit, he's played through some nasty injuries.) I'd be surprised if he has more than 3 or 4 years left in the tank. Last offseason, when Boldin was a year younger and still had some cheap years left on his contract, teams were offering a 2nd for him. Now he's a year older and he's more expensive, and he went for a 3rd and a 4th. Olsen's salary and roster bonuses for 2010 and 2011 put together are only $1,465,732. Boldin's costing the Ravens $10 mil in guaranteed money over 4 years, making him more than three times as expensive as Olsen. That's definitely a consideration in determining trade value. I'm not saying the Bears would be smart to trade Olsen. I wish that they wouldn't. But if they do, there's no way his market value would be less than a 2nd.

The Rams are bringing Brodney Pool (FS from the Browns) in for a visit. Looks like they're preparing for life without Atogwe.

Yeah, I think Forte's going to win out, but I like that they're having an open competition, and from a guy who has borderline-starter ability but doesn't mind being the #2 back. Like you said, Forte was a comparable rusher behind a worse o-line, and while playing through some considerable injuries. Also, I think Forte's the better pass-catching RB: while Taylor is a little bit more of a threat in the open field (Taylor's career YPC is 8.01 to Forte's 7.89) but Forte has a better catch percentage (Taylor has a career 76% catch rate, while Forte's sitting at 81%). If I had to choose between a receiving back being a little shiftier or a little more reliable, I'd go for reliable. I actually think that the running back by committee approach is working pretty well across the league. There are certainly more teams having success with a platoon than there are successful teams with an old-school bell-cow runner. When you look at the best running games across the league last season (the Jets, the Titans, the Panthers, the Dolphins, the Ravens, the Saints, and the Cowboys, in order of yards per game) almost all of them were sharing the load between 2 or even 3 quality running backs. The only exception is the Titans, and they actually used to be a 2-back system, but Chris Johnson just turned into an animal this season. So even the exception on that list still has a borderline-starting back in their #2 spot, they just got lucky and didn't have to use him much. The one thing about all these teams, though, is that they're in a position to ride the hot hand. Shonn Greene outproduced Thomas Jones at the end of the season, and the Jets started feeding him the ball more. Ray Rice outproduced Willis McGahee and nailed down the starting job. But if the starter gets hot, like Deangelo Williams on the Panthers or Chris Johnson on the Titans, they can just keep going to him until somebody behind him can do better. Also, teams with a platoon are better insulated against injuries. When Ronnie Brown went down, Ricky Williams stepped up. Hell, the Cowboys lost Marion Barber AND Felix Jones, and they still had Tashard Choice waiting in the wings to step in, so their run game didn't miss a beat. Meanwhile, the Bears' run game tanked when Forte was dinged up last season, and it really hurt the team. That's the situation I'd like to see the Bears in, and that's why I like the Taylor signing. It's way preferable to waste a little money on the #2 because your #1 guy is outproducing him and stays healthy. I mean, the other option is to have your #1 struggle or get hurt, and then find out you have a depth chart full of scrubs behind him. The players will work out who gets the carries by their production, and if Forte wants to keep carrying the load, all he has to do is hold off Taylor and stay healthy.

Well, for this year, sure, but the Bears have to be proceeding on the assumption that the cap will be reinstated. It would just be irresponsible to assume otherwise. So they've got to be thinking about the cap consequences for 2011 and beyond. Most big contracts (as far as I'm aware) have both LTBE incentives and UTBE ones. I'm just wondering what the balance is between them in Peppers' deal.

When Scott Linehan was talking about how bad they needed a complementary receiver, he said that teams were actually triple-teaming Calvin Johnson this year. Like, they'd put their #1 corner on him and roll both safeties to his side, or they'd bracket him with a corner and a nickel plus a safety over the top. That's just crazy. I don't care what Burleson's problems are...any receiver's going to look good when the other guy is drawing 3 defenders out of the secondary.

I had forgotten that Michael Gaines was on the roster...good point. Maybe we'll keep all four TEs, then. Especially since we probably won't be carrying 4 running backs this year.

What great signings? Schwartz himself said that last season was all about getting 20 one-million-dollar guys, not one 20-million-dollar guy. They just needed bodies at most positions, and that's what they went out and got. Foote and Peterson were OK, Philip Buchanon was all right, but none of those guys were expected to be spectacular. Like nfo said, they're building a base.

I honestly think the ESPN guys haven't updated their Bears talking points since last offseason. Right before the Peppers signing, Jamie Dukes was saying that the Bears needed to bring in Torry Holt. If he thinks Holt would be an upgrade, he must not have watched any Bears games in 2009, or any Jaguars games either, for that matter. If we could bring in a young, proven Pro-Bowl-caliber wideout, I'd be all about it. But it's not nearly as much of a pressing need as it was a year ago, and it's certainly a distant 3rd behind free safety and offensive line. At a minimum, our young guys have shown enough to deserve the benefit of the doubt going into the offseason.

Yeah, definitely for a player with some questions about his motivation. Also, the total value reported to the media always includes all the incentives, even if they're practically impossible to hit. Albert Haynesworth's "$100 million deal" is never going to pay out close to a hundred million in the real world. I'll be interested to see if Peppers has a lot of likely-to-be-earned incentives (like bonuses for putting up 14 sacks a season or making the Pro Bowl or whatever) or whether they're mostly the unlikely-to-be-earned kind (like blocking 10 field goals or scoring 5 defensive TDs in a season.) The latter would make his contract cheaper for the team, but the former might get him to play at a higher level.

I'm not sure that Urlacher necessarily has to provide much pass-rush. Assuming that Peppers and Harris can consistently beat single-blocks (which is a big assumption,) that other rusher could be just about anybody. If teams really have to double Harris and Peppers, they'll be blocking 6 against a 4-man rush. So any blitzing linebacker would be a free rusher: whether that's Urlacher, Briggs, or Pisa, he's going to be looking at a chip block at the very most, unless the other team goes max-protect. I agree about the ripple effect: if Harris and Peppers both play like they're capable of, then any 5th rusher is going to have an easy time of it getting to the QB. And if they start picking up that blitz for real, they'll have to leave Peppers or Harris singled. I think Harris is the big key, though. The way the Tampa-2 is supposed to negate 3-step drops and quick passes is with pressure up the middle. If you can collapse the middle of the line like Harris used to do, the quarterback's going to be under pressure even if he goes to a short drop. As much as Peppers is a huge help and will take attention off Harris, Harris has to step up and capitalize if Lovie's defense is going to work the way it's supposed to.

All these mocks are assuming that we'll deal Olsen for a 2nd.

I think there's another important thing about the Austin comparison. He was always a great size/speed athlete, but what vaulted him from like #5 on the depth chart to #1 was route-running. There was some interview I saw, and the upshot was that Austin spent all of last offseason working incredibly hard on his routes. Then he steps in this season, grabs the starting job, and lights people up. Austin, I think, is kind of a case-study in how much of a difference really good routes can make for a raw, athletic receiver. He went from a return guy to a star receiver in a single offseason, and the big difference was his exceptional routes. With the way Martz preaches precise routes, our receivers are going to have to make the same kind of jump that Austin did. If Hester or Knox or Aromashodu can do it under Martz's coaching, any of them has the athletic ability to be a difference-maker at wideout.