Article on Url...

[madlithuanian]

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/couch/12582...-greg04.article

[GrizzlyBear]

They removed it

[AZ54]

It's there and I agree with what he says. Urlacher just does not fight through blocks anymore and not just Oline blocks but FB too. He is either slower or lazier because he does not show any burst to the ball on outside runs, plays where he used to take a RB down for a 2 yard loss are now a 2 yard gain.

[GrizzlyBear]

Well when I linked to it was gone, I think they might have a glitch. Either way, Url is not the same player. He was here in Arizona this off season seeing his kid. Friend of mine saw him at the kids soccer game. Said his neck injury was minor, But Iam beginning to suspect it was little more major then he let on. Maybe more on his psyche. Seeing that fullback from Detroit make mince meat of him was terrible. The old url would have blown that guy up. I just dont think he has it like he did. Hard to believe but its true. I susupect if not this year comming or one after, we draft a middle linbacker.

[Controlled Chaos]

Urlacher would thrive in another scheme. This fuckin Tampa 2 is horseshit and a waste of his talents.

 

I love his quotes when being asked about Detroit running the Tampa 2. By answering that he gave us the same fuckin reason it isn't working for the Bears.

 

Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher is blunt when asked if the Tampa Two is passé.

 

"I don't think it is, if you play it the way it's supposed to be played," Urlacher said Wednesday in another conference call. "I mean, if you don't have the players to do it, it's not going to work. But if you've got the players to do it, it's going to be successful."

 

"There are some ways to beat this defense," Urlacher said. "Teams have figured it out. But the No. 1 thing is pressure on the quarterback. It fixes all those problems."

 

To stop the run, you need good gap discipline. You must do your job and plug your gap, not try to do too much and go after the ball.

 

"The hardest thing for me was when the ball is going one way and I'm going the other way to my gap," Urlacher said. "Because it's such a gap-control defense, if you don't go to your gap, you're going to get gashed. I always want to go to the ball, but you have to go to your gap. Sometimes your gap is away from the football."

So lets take one of the best most freakish players to ever play the position and have him basically play a 3rd safety on passing downs and then on the runs, make him go to his gap, whether the ball is there or not. Brilliant!!!

 

Everybody has breakdowns. Lions running back Kevin Smith scored a 12-yard touchdown against Chicago because a Bear wasn't in his gap, Urlacher said

Of course there's breakdowns, because players want to make plays. They want highlights on ESPN...they want to get up and pat themselves on the back for the crowd. They don't want to just stay in a gap even when the ball is going another way. So if someone like Urlacher is disciplined and stays in his gap, but someone like Harris gets tall, trying to make a move and get in the back field, but winds up getting pushed 8 yards out of his gap. Then people complain Uralcher was nowhere near the ball. I hate this defense and I guaranfuckintee so does Urlacher.

[Bears4Ever_34]

The guy has an arthritic back playing in the National Football League, as if playing the game wasn't hard enough, I can't imagine the pain he has endured with a bad back and neck. Its obvious his play has slipped and he isn't the same player he used to be but he's still Brian Urlacher.

[madlithuanian]

Good points...

 

Urlacher would thrive in another scheme. This fuckin Tampa 2 is horseshit and a waste of his talents.

 

I love his quotes when being asked about Detroit running the Tampa 2. By answering that he gave us the same fuckin reason it isn't working for the Bears.

 

Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher is blunt when asked if the Tampa Two is passé.

 

"I don't think it is, if you play it the way it's supposed to be played," Urlacher said Wednesday in another conference call. "I mean, if you don't have the players to do it, it's not going to work. But if you've got the players to do it, it's going to be successful."

 

"There are some ways to beat this defense," Urlacher said. "Teams have figured it out. But the No. 1 thing is pressure on the quarterback. It fixes all those problems."

 

To stop the run, you need good gap discipline. You must do your job and plug your gap, not try to do too much and go after the ball.

 

"The hardest thing for me was when the ball is going one way and I'm going the other way to my gap," Urlacher said. "Because it's such a gap-control defense, if you don't go to your gap, you're going to get gashed. I always want to go to the ball, but you have to go to your gap. Sometimes your gap is away from the football."

So lets take one of the best most freakish players to ever play the position and have him basically play a 3rd safety on passing downs and then on the runs, make him go to his gap, whether the ball is there or not. Brilliant!!!

 

Everybody has breakdowns. Lions running back Kevin Smith scored a 12-yard touchdown against Chicago because a Bear wasn't in his gap, Urlacher said

Of course there's breakdowns, because players want to make plays. They want highlights on ESPN...they want to get up and pat themselves on the back for the crowd. They don't want to just stay in a gap even when the ball is going another way. So if someone like Urlacher is disciplined and stays in his gap, but someone like Harris gets tall, trying to make a move and get in the back field, but winds up getting pushed 8 yards out of his gap. Then people complain Uralcher was nowhere near the ball. I hate this defense and I guaranfuckintee so does Urlacher.

[Butkus]

Urlacher would thrive in another scheme. This fuckin Tampa 2 is horseshit and a waste of his talents.

 

I love his quotes when being asked about Detroit running the Tampa 2. By answering that he gave us the same fuckin reason it isn't working for the Bears.

 

Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher is blunt when asked if the Tampa Two is passé.

 

"I don't think it is, if you play it the way it's supposed to be played," Urlacher said Wednesday in another conference call. "I mean, if you don't have the players to do it, it's not going to work. But if you've got the players to do it, it's going to be successful."

 

"There are some ways to beat this defense," Urlacher said. "Teams have figured it out. But the No. 1 thing is pressure on the quarterback. It fixes all those problems."

 

To stop the run, you need good gap discipline. You must do your job and plug your gap, not try to do too much and go after the ball.

 

"The hardest thing for me was when the ball is going one way and I'm going the other way to my gap," Urlacher said. "Because it's such a gap-control defense, if you don't go to your gap, you're going to get gashed. I always want to go to the ball, but you have to go to your gap. Sometimes your gap is away from the football."

So lets take one of the best most freakish players to ever play the position and have him basically play a 3rd safety on passing downs and then on the runs, make him go to his gap, whether the ball is there or not. Brilliant!!!

 

Everybody has breakdowns. Lions running back Kevin Smith scored a 12-yard touchdown against Chicago because a Bear wasn't in his gap, Urlacher said

Of course there's breakdowns, because players want to make plays. They want highlights on ESPN...they want to get up and pat themselves on the back for the crowd. They don't want to just stay in a gap even when the ball is going another way. So if someone like Urlacher is disciplined and stays in his gap, but someone like Harris gets tall, trying to make a move and get in the back field, but winds up getting pushed 8 yards out of his gap. Then people complain Uralcher was nowhere near the ball. I hate this defense and I guaranfuckintee so does Urlacher.

 

 

Great players are great players at the end of the day, and to blame the system is a cop out IMO. We have been playing Cover 2 for how many years and now all of a sudden Url and the rest of the pack are playing in a bad system??? Please...Url is getting old, Harris is old before his years, Brown is unfortunately likely washed up, and the only person on the D performing like a Pro Bowler is Briggs, who is not that great really. If everyone was healthy we would be a great D, but we are not, and Url seems to personify that.

[madlithuanian]

Url really had his greatest success under Jauron...where the 2 big boys in the middle just stuffed it and he was able to improvise. Since moving to cover 2, he's had more impact batting balls and picking off QB's than sacking and getting pressure. I think it's been a steady decline under the cover 2 for Url.

 

Let's remember who the std was in cover 2 in Tampa...Brooks. That's Briggs' spot in Chicago, nor Urlacher.

 

Great players are great players at the end of the day, and to blame the system is a cop out IMO. We have been playing Cover 2 for how many years and now all of a sudden Url and the rest of the pack are playing in a bad system??? Please...Url is getting old, Harris is old before his years, Brown is unfortunately likely washed up, and the only person on the D performing like a Pro Bowler is Briggs, who is not that great really. If everyone was healthy we would be a great D, but we are not, and Url seems to personify that.

[AZ54]

I agree, Urlacher made tons of great plays in the cover 2 defense during the Lovie years. I won't speculate on back injury or neck injury but it's obvious he's not running as fast as he used to, he's not getting around blockers like he used to (notice I said around because he was never great at handling head-on blocks). His speed was his game and if he doesn't have that he's not the same player.