Good Q&A with Tice

[nfoligno]

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bears

 

Tice in no hurry to settle starting O-line

 

Mike Tice believes Lance Louis is a protype right guard because of his size and strength.BOURBONNAIS, Ill. --

 

Bears coach Lovie Smith, and offensive coordinator Mike Martz recently expressed concern about the club finalizing its decision-making process in naming the starters along the offensive line.

 

The unit’s coach, however, isn’t in such a hurry.

 

“I have to have patience,” offensive line coach Mike Tice said. “The way I look at it is I’ve got five weeks to get these guys ready to play winning football. That’s my job.”

 

Smith and Martz seem to be content to let Tice handle it. Since the start of the club’s offseason conditioning program, the Bears have worked seemingly countless combinations of linemen in an attempt to find the best five linemen to protect quarterback Jay Cutler.

 

The Bears -- having identified two groups of players to zero in on for evaluation -- might be close to finally making a decision.

 

“It’s just about finding the right combination. We’ve looked at a lot of different guys,” Smith said. “But we need to be able to lock our [starting] five in and go from there.”

 

Sitting down for this exclusive Q&A with ESPNChicago.com, Tice goes in depth about the state of the offensive line, its struggles, and how the staff has purposely put the line in one-one-one matchups with new acquisition Julius Peppers to gauge the group’s competitiveness:

 

What’s the status of the situation on the offensive line? With the season approaching, don’t you have to make a decision soon on the starting five?

 

Mike Tice: Not really. If you look at it, we haven’t played a preseason game yet. I think we’ve been able to put two groups together: a first line and a second line. Now they’ve got three practices under their belt. They’ve got Friday, they’ve got the minipractice yesterday morning, and they’ve got the full practice last night. What I look for as we get towards the end of this week, and they get four, five, six practices together, I look for them to start sorting out some stunts. I look for them to be better in their combination blocks because they’re working together. As we know, all the good lines are the guys who have worked together over time. So we’ve got to build that unity, because except for the left tackle, most of the time all of your blocking schemes are two guys working in tandem, whether that’s a tight end and a tackle, a guard and a tackle, a guard and a center. So we’ve got to build that. And the only way to build that is to give some guys a chance to work together. So we’ve identified two groups -- a first and second line -- and we’ve got a couple of rookies that are getting filtered in there right now.

 

So how much have things changed from the first week of camp to now?

 

MT: The first week through Thursday, all the practices we were in and out with guys, in and out with guys. Now we’ve kind of settled in on a couple of groups we want to look at. Nothing’s really etched in stone as far as who’s the guy at a couple of spots. We’ll just see how they improve. You know, right now we’re just inconsistent. We’re doing some really good things. Then we’re doing some things [where I’m] like, ‘OK, now, did I cover this in a meeting or did I not?’ (Laughing) You know, you start wondering if guys are really playing with any confidence at times. … But if you just keep repping these guys, keep covering things, and give these guys a chance to work together, we should see some marked improvement through the course of the next couple of practices.

 

Could you shed some light on the switch of long-time starting right guard Roberto Garza to the left side? That’s not an indictment on his ability is it?

 

MT: I like -- and I have liked since I looked at him in Atlanta as a free agent [in 2005] -- Roberto on the left side. I think his athleticism, the way he pulls, his quickness … he’s suited for the left side in my opinion. That’s just my opinion. Someone else might think otherwise. I look at Lance [Louis] [and see] a big, strong guy; a prototypical right guard in my opinion; a young guy, but very mature. The game, it means a lot to him. He’s very serious about his trade. I want to give him a look in there and see what happens. I don’t know what’s gonna happen. I don’t know whether when the lights come on Saturday night, he might fall apart. I don’t know. I hope not. Then we’d have to kind of go back to Square 1. You know? So I’m gonna see how he develops. He’s done a lot of good things, and as a young guy, he’s done a lot of bad things. Now we’ve got to get the good things on the side of the higher percentage.

 

Is there any pressure on your part to hurry up and put this offensive line together?

 

MT: No. I have to have patience. We’ve got to stay the course. We’ve got to continue to work the techniques we’re working, because technique is really what’s gonna win in this league. We’ve got to be more consistent. We’ve got to keep the thumb on them and strive for that consistency. We can’t let their technique fall apart when they get tired. We’ve just got to keep doing it. The way I look at it is we’ve got five weeks. I’ve got five weeks to get these guys ready to play winning football. That’s my job.

 

How much does it help for your guys to match up with a guy like Julius Peppers every day? It looks like you guys haven’t double-teamed, or done anything schematically to try to stop him.

 

MT: What we’ve done -- it’s not a game -- so we haven’t game planned to put two guys on him. If we were in a real game, we’d make sure we’d address that situation. What we’ve decided to do, Mickey [offensive coordinator Mike Martz] and I -- and we’ve talked about it at length -- is ‘Let’s give our players a chance to get better at their techniques and compete. Let’s see what kind of compete they have.’ I think [left tackle] Chris [Williams] has risen to the challenge. I think over the last couple of days he’s done better in one-on-ones against [Peppers]. Last night, I thought he had a very nice practice against him. In fact, I told Chris I thought it was his best practice. He had a couple of plays [that weren’t so good], but when you play offensive line, you don’t grade out 100 percent [all the time] because it’s a street fight every play. I told the guys if we’ve got six plays … if we win four out of six plays, we’re gonna be a good offense. I’m talking about up front. We’ve got six plays in our sets that we’re doing; sets of six. If we can win four of these we’re gonna be doing pretty good. That’s a pretty good defense we’re playing against. They’re flying around pretty good, you know. And they’re throwing the kitchen sink at you. There’s a lot going on. And we’re running a lot of different concepts. We’re just looking for that consistency.

 

You’ve been around long enough to know when a guy’s got that ‘dog,’ that nastiness coaches want. Which guys on this offensive line have that ‘dog’ in them?

 

MT: Obviously, Olin [Kreutz] is a maniac, and he’s a great, great, great competitor. My other veteran Roberto, he’s a great competitor. Those two guys aren’t gonna back down from anything. I think Chris, because he’s gone against Peppers so much is learning how to fight. I really do. I think Frank [Omiyale] is competing well. He just needs to understand what kind of effort it’s gonna take for us to be an elite offensive line. He’s working to that end. I look at Lance, and he’s a fighter. Probably the guy (laughing) who’s got the dog in him the most, and he’s getting the least amount of reps, is the Chief. You know, [No.] 79 [Jamarcus Webb]; the rookie? That guy’s a fighter, now.

[Daventry]

Great stuff, thanks for sharing. He sounds like a guy who knows what he is doing.....

[madlithuanian]

What a novel concept for this regime! Finally, not some odd-up-and-comer from the college ranks...but real NFL experience guys!

 

Great stuff, thanks for sharing. He sounds like a guy who knows what he is doing.....

 

[nfoligno]

Its not even just about the college guy vs the NFL guy. There are plenty of college coaches I would take over some NFL coaches. Its about having quality coaches. Period.

 

More than any other unit on the team, I have felt for some time that our OL lacked any level of competent coaching. It appears to me that has finally changed. It is early, and there is yet so much to prove, but if the OL fails this year, for once I will believe it is purely due to talent, and not coaching.

 

Next on my list is the DL. Our SB year we had a 12 sack rookie. Tommie Harris, entering his 3rd season, had developed into one of the league's elite DTs. Tank Johnson, also in his 3rd season, had developed into a solid all around DT. Then we let Don Johnson walk, and what has happened since?

 

We have drafted Bazuin, Harrison, Gilbert, Melton and now Wootton, each of which cost no less than a 4th, with Bazuin costing a 2nd. Taking the rookie out of the equation, who has developed? Bazuin is gone. Harrison is getting another chance after blowing it last year, and showing nothing prior. Gilbert and Melton are facing roster cuts this year, and I am not sure I have read a report on either yet.

 

We always focus so much on Angelo for drafting players, the OC and DC for the schemes players are used in and the HC for, well, running the team, but less focus is made on the position coaches, and that is the person expected to teach and develop these kids.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bears

 

Tice in no hurry to settle starting O-line

 

Mike Tice believes Lance Louis is a protype right guard because of his size and strength.BOURBONNAIS, Ill. --

 

Bears coach Lovie Smith, and offensive coordinator Mike Martz recently expressed concern about the club finalizing its decision-making process in naming the starters along the offensive line.

 

The unit’s coach, however, isn’t in such a hurry.

 

“I have to have patience,” offensive line coach Mike Tice said. “The way I look at it is I’ve got five weeks to get these guys ready to play winning football. That’s my job.”

 

Smith and Martz seem to be content to let Tice handle it. Since the start of the club’s offseason conditioning program, the Bears have worked seemingly countless combinations of linemen in an attempt to find the best five linemen to protect quarterback Jay Cutler.

 

The Bears -- having identified two groups of players to zero in on for evaluation -- might be close to finally making a decision.

 

“It’s just about finding the right combination. We’ve looked at a lot of different guys,” Smith said. “But we need to be able to lock our [starting] five in and go from there.”

 

Sitting down for this exclusive Q&A with ESPNChicago.com, Tice goes in depth about the state of the offensive line, its struggles, and how the staff has purposely put the line in one-one-one matchups with new acquisition Julius Peppers to gauge the group’s competitiveness:

 

What’s the status of the situation on the offensive line? With the season approaching, don’t you have to make a decision soon on the starting five?

 

Mike Tice: Not really. If you look at it, we haven’t played a preseason game yet. I think we’ve been able to put two groups together: a first line and a second line. Now they’ve got three practices under their belt. They’ve got Friday, they’ve got the minipractice yesterday morning, and they’ve got the full practice last night. What I look for as we get towards the end of this week, and they get four, five, six practices together, I look for them to start sorting out some stunts. I look for them to be better in their combination blocks because they’re working together. As we know, all the good lines are the guys who have worked together over time. So we’ve got to build that unity, because except for the left tackle, most of the time all of your blocking schemes are two guys working in tandem, whether that’s a tight end and a tackle, a guard and a tackle, a guard and a center. So we’ve got to build that. And the only way to build that is to give some guys a chance to work together. So we’ve identified two groups -- a first and second line -- and we’ve got a couple of rookies that are getting filtered in there right now.

 

So how much have things changed from the first week of camp to now?

 

MT: The first week through Thursday, all the practices we were in and out with guys, in and out with guys. Now we’ve kind of settled in on a couple of groups we want to look at. Nothing’s really etched in stone as far as who’s the guy at a couple of spots. We’ll just see how they improve. You know, right now we’re just inconsistent. We’re doing some really good things. Then we’re doing some things [where I’m] like, ‘OK, now, did I cover this in a meeting or did I not?’ (Laughing) You know, you start wondering if guys are really playing with any confidence at times. … But if you just keep repping these guys, keep covering things, and give these guys a chance to work together, we should see some marked improvement through the course of the next couple of practices.

 

Could you shed some light on the switch of long-time starting right guard Roberto Garza to the left side? That’s not an indictment on his ability is it?

 

MT: I like -- and I have liked since I looked at him in Atlanta as a free agent [in 2005] -- Roberto on the left side. I think his athleticism, the way he pulls, his quickness … he’s suited for the left side in my opinion. That’s just my opinion. Someone else might think otherwise. I look at Lance [Louis] [and see] a big, strong guy; a prototypical right guard in my opinion; a young guy, but very mature. The game, it means a lot to him. He’s very serious about his trade. I want to give him a look in there and see what happens. I don’t know what’s gonna happen. I don’t know whether when the lights come on Saturday night, he might fall apart. I don’t know. I hope not. Then we’d have to kind of go back to Square 1. You know? So I’m gonna see how he develops. He’s done a lot of good things, and as a young guy, he’s done a lot of bad things. Now we’ve got to get the good things on the side of the higher percentage.

 

Is there any pressure on your part to hurry up and put this offensive line together?

 

MT: No. I have to have patience. We’ve got to stay the course. We’ve got to continue to work the techniques we’re working, because technique is really what’s gonna win in this league. We’ve got to be more consistent. We’ve got to keep the thumb on them and strive for that consistency. We can’t let their technique fall apart when they get tired. We’ve just got to keep doing it. The way I look at it is we’ve got five weeks. I’ve got five weeks to get these guys ready to play winning football. That’s my job.

 

How much does it help for your guys to match up with a guy like Julius Peppers every day? It looks like you guys haven’t double-teamed, or done anything schematically to try to stop him.

 

MT: What we’ve done -- it’s not a game -- so we haven’t game planned to put two guys on him. If we were in a real game, we’d make sure we’d address that situation. What we’ve decided to do, Mickey [offensive coordinator Mike Martz] and I -- and we’ve talked about it at length -- is ‘Let’s give our players a chance to get better at their techniques and compete. Let’s see what kind of compete they have.’ I think [left tackle] Chris [Williams] has risen to the challenge. I think over the last couple of days he’s done better in one-on-ones against [Peppers]. Last night, I thought he had a very nice practice against him. In fact, I told Chris I thought it was his best practice. He had a couple of plays [that weren’t so good], but when you play offensive line, you don’t grade out 100 percent [all the time] because it’s a street fight every play. I told the guys if we’ve got six plays … if we win four out of six plays, we’re gonna be a good offense. I’m talking about up front. We’ve got six plays in our sets that we’re doing; sets of six. If we can win four of these we’re gonna be doing pretty good. That’s a pretty good defense we’re playing against. They’re flying around pretty good, you know. And they’re throwing the kitchen sink at you. There’s a lot going on. And we’re running a lot of different concepts. We’re just looking for that consistency.

 

You’ve been around long enough to know when a guy’s got that ‘dog,’ that nastiness coaches want. Which guys on this offensive line have that ‘dog’ in them?

 

MT: Obviously, Olin [Kreutz] is a maniac, and he’s a great, great, great competitor. My other veteran Roberto, he’s a great competitor. Those two guys aren’t gonna back down from anything. I think Chris, because he’s gone against Peppers so much is learning how to fight. I really do. I think Frank [Omiyale] is competing well. He just needs to understand what kind of effort it’s gonna take for us to be an elite offensive line. He’s working to that end. I look at Lance, and he’s a fighter. Probably the guy (laughing) who’s got the dog in him the most, and he’s getting the least amount of reps, is the Chief. You know, [No.] 79 [Jamarcus Webb]; the rookie? That guy’s a fighter, now.

 

[Mongo3451]

Next on my list is the DL. Our SB year we had a 12 sack rookie. Tommie Harris, entering his 3rd season, had developed into one of the league's elite DTs. Tank Johnson, also in his 3rd season, had developed into a solid all around DT. Then we let Don Johnson walk, and what has happened since?

 

We have drafted Bazuin, Harrison, Gilbert, Melton and now Wootton, each of which cost no less than a 4th, with Bazuin costing a 2nd. Taking the rookie out of the equation, who has developed? Bazuin is gone. Harrison is getting another chance after blowing it last year, and showing nothing prior. Gilbert and Melton are facing roster cuts this year, and I am not sure I have read a report on either yet.

 

We always focus so much on Angelo for drafting players, the OC and DC for the schemes players are used in and the HC for, well, running the team, but less focus is made on the position coaches, and that is the person expected to teach and develop these kids.

You point to DL, but isn't/wasn't Marinelli supposed to fix that last year into this season? Marinelli was more heralded than Johnson. I think it goes to the DC putting the DL in winning situations and talent of the DL. Ours have been down the last couple of years.

[nfoligno]

Yes, Marinelli was supposed to be some great DL coach, but frankly, I didn't see it. Not that I am there. But honestly, when I hear the players on the OL talk about Tice, they are specific about all the small things and details he works on with them. I simply don't recall much of that with Marinelli. I'm not trying to knock him as a DL coach, but I simply didn't see much different between him and the previous coach.

 

No doubt the system is a big factor. Preaching to the choir on that one. But I think it is more than that. I simply think our DL developed better under Don Johnson, and that was under the cover two as well. For all the hype of Marinelli, I just never felt we saw much. Players spoke well of him, but it just seems very different from what I hear from players about Tice taking over.

 

 

 

 

You point to DL, but isn't/wasn't Marinelli supposed to fix that last year into this season? Marinelli was more heralded than Johnson. I think it goes to the DC putting the DL in winning situations and talent of the DL. Ours have been down the last couple of years.

 

[lemonej]

Yes, Marinelli was supposed to be some great DL coach, but frankly, I didn't see it. Not that I am there. But honestly, when I hear the players on the OL talk about Tice, they are specific about all the small things and details he works on with them. I simply don't recall much of that with Marinelli. I'm not trying to knock him as a DL coach, but I simply didn't see much different between him and the previous coach.

 

No doubt the system is a big factor. Preaching to the choir on that one. But I think it is more than that. I simply think our DL developed better under Don Johnson, and that was under the cover two as well. For all the hype of Marinelli, I just never felt we saw much. Players spoke well of him, but it just seems very different from what I hear from players about Tice taking over.

Just a thought who was the DC when Johson was here? That may explain why he is also gone.

[nfoligno]

Oh, I realize he left with Rivera, or are you saying that Rivera allowed DJ to develop the players differently than Lovie does?

 

Hey, I do agree Lovie and the scheme are part of this. Okay, maybe I should just stick with the OL side, and also avoid Marinelli and go general.

 

I think our OL was pathetically coaches for years. I think Tice is doing a great job thus far of actually developing our OL. I think the DL is very similar in many ways. Since DJ and Rivera left, I do not feel like we have done a good job of developing our young DL. This may not be due simply to the position coach, but due also to the DC and HC. Still, in general, the thought process still applies.

 

Coaching held back our OL for years, and now I fear it is doing the same to the DL.

 

Just a thought who was the DC when Johson was here? That may explain why he is also gone.