Monk cut as well as 2 others

[GakMan23]

Running game showing signs of improvement

By Bob LeGere | Daily Herald StaffContact writerPublished: 8/25/2008 12:03 AMSend To:

 

The Bears' 109 rushing yards (on 22 carries) against the San Francisco 49ers wasn't spectacular, but it was a big improvement over the previous week's 51 yards on 20 carries.

 

Most important, it stanched the pass rush that overwhelmed the Bears against Seattle.

 

"I think it definitely helped," offensive coordinator Ron Turner said. "(Against the Seahawks) we came out and threw it a lot early. Even though we had a couple runs called, we audibled to a couple passes because of bad looks. But (against the 49ers) we came out and ran the ball, and you ask any offensive lineman anywhere, and that's what they want to do. They want to have a chance to come out and run the ball and get after people a little bit and get a feel for the flow of the game, and I thought they did."

 

The Bears are averaging 4.7 yards per rush, compared to last preseason's 2.7, but they have been outgained on the ground 484-335, although they've had just 71 running plays to their opponents' 105.

 

He's all that: Kyle Orton is usually considered an adept manager of games and a proficient high-percentage passer, but he showed more ability to stretch the field last week, completing passes of 55 yards to Mark Bradley, 23 and 21 yards to Rashied Davis and 18 yards to tight end Greg Olsen.

 

"He manages the game very well, and that's not a negative; there's nothing wrong with that," offensive coordinator Ron Turner said. "But he's not just a game manager. His rookie year when he came in, obviously the package we had for him was limited, and with our defense and special teams we asked him basically to do that for the most part. But he is so much better of a quarterback than that. It's a positive that he does manage the game and has great presence and football intelligence, but he can do much more than that."

 

Dog days: It sounded a bit odd when 25-year-old defensive tackle Tommie Harris referred to himself as old after the third preseason game, but he explained.

 

"I am old," he said. "I play in the trenches, dude. That's (like) dog years."

 

First cuts: Although NFL rosters don't have to be trimmed to 75 until Tuesday, the Bears got down to that number Sunday by waiving safety Josh Gattis, wide receivers Marcus Monk and Ryan Grice-Mullen and cornerback Leslie Majors.

 

Gattis, a fifth-round draft pick of the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2007, was cut by them in the preseason and signed by the Bears. He played on special teams in four games last season and spent three weeks on on the practice squad. Monk, a seventh-round pick this year out of Arkansas, had 1 catch for 14 yards in the preseason. Majors, a Thornwood High School graduate, was signed as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Indiana. Grice-Mullen was originally signed by the Texans as an undrafted free agent but released in the off-season. He was signed by the Bears on the second day of