[The Stache]

Bears report Thursday at Midnight. First practice is Friday.

[The Stache]

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RETURN TO GLORY

[The Stache]

Training camp preview: The pass rush
Source: Jeff Dickerson / ESPN Chicago

Prized free-agent defensive end Julius Peppers (81 career regular-season sacks) instantly improves the Bears' pass rush. That much is certain. It's the rest of the defensive line that remains somewhat of a question mark entering the 2010 season.

In the three years since Super Bowl 41, one of the Bears' biggest problems has been their inability to consistently harass the quarterback. Everything about the defense is predicated on the ability of the front four to generate pressure, and when it fails to happen, things tend to fall apart.

The Bears made it a point to revamp the defensive end position this offseason, signing Peppers while saying good-bye to veterans Alex Brown and Adewale Ogunleye. Last year, the two former starters combined for 12.5 sacks, only two more than Peppers tallied by himself during his final campaign in Carolina.

But at the other defensive end spot, new starter Mark Anderson registered only 3.5 sacks, a far cry from his breakout rookie year in 2006 when he had 12. To further complicate matters, Anderson has been in this position before. He was elevated to first string in 2007, but was unable to effectively play both the pass and run, and eventually lost to starting position back to Brown. What has Anderson done to restore the Bears' faith in him? Why was Brown deemed expendable? These are question only Anderson can answer by his performance on the field. The Bears do have plenty of depth at defensive end in the form of Israel Idonije, Jarron Gilbert and rookie Corey Wootton, but it may be unfair to expect any of the reserves to put up high sack totals.

Conventional wisdom suggests Peppers' arrival should loosen things up inside for tackles Tommie Harris, Anthony Adams and Marcus Harrison. At least that's the hope. Adams is a dependable interior lineman, but he's much more proficient at stopping the run as opposed to taking down the quarterback. Harris and Harrison are supposed to be the difference makers. Although Harris didn't play poorly last year, he hasn't been a consistent disruptive force since 2007, the season before he signed a four-year extension. Harrison is extremely talented, but sidetracked by personal issues and illness the last two offseasons.

If Harris, surgery-free this offseason for the first time in recent memory, and Harrison find a way to put it all together, the Bears should be dangerous up front. And if the Bears get after the quarterback, the defense will regain its swagger. But if they don't, Peppers can't possibly be expected to do it all by himself. We've all seen firsthand the effects of a below average pass rush.

It's no longer a cliche when Lovie Smith says "it all starts up front." That could be the theme for 2010.

[Indianplaya17]

I fucking excited for the Bears. Only good thing about summer ending.

[The Stache]

Im going to Bourbonnais to check out camp on the 17th, 18th and, 19th

Ill post pics when the time comes.

[betroit02]

Im going to Bourbonnais to check out camp on the 17th, 18th and, 19th

Ill post pics when the time comes.

nothing like some solid jay cutler INT pictures!

[gtriv420]

Bears' receivers look to continue to improve in camp
By John Mullin
CSNChicago.com

The kids could play after all

No group went as far beyond outsiders’ (and some insiders’) expectations last season than the wide receivers. Three (Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, Johnny Knox) caught 45 or more passes, notable if for no other reason than Bennett and Knox had never caught an NFL pass previously and Hester was a work-in-progress convert from returner and sometimes cornerback.

Devin Aromashodu, slowed by injury during preseason, was bumped aside by Knox, but caught 22 passes, four for touchdowns, over the final four games. Aromashodu collected a combined 226 yards in the Bears’ second games against Green Bay and Minnesota, both playoff teams.

"’m definitely one of those guys who wishes the [2009] season wasn’t ended," Aromashodu said. "Unfortunately we didn’t start as fast as we wanted to but we have stuff to build on and showed everybody we can play."

That fact was not lost on coaches and front office, which did not consider receiver any sort of offseason priority and now goes into training camp potentially with six virtual roster locks, five of whom have caught touchdown passes in the NFL.

The Cutler Factor

The downfall of the Bears’ offense in 2009 arguably was the overconfidence (some would say arrogance) of Jay Cutler in his arm. Despite acknowledged unfamiliarity with his receivers, Cutler too often threw to places he shouldn’t have, believing that his arm could cover whatever check he chose to write.

But not all overconfidence is automatically bad. What Cutler brought to the offense, at least initially, was a swagger. The young receivers were around that all year, learned its limitations but also learned its value.

"No question you want that," said receivers coach Darryl Drake. "You've got to have that swagger, that chip. You've got to if you're going to be good and handle the pressures of this game. You've got to walk with the confidence that you know what you're doing; Jay’s got it and that rubs off.

"I've got young guys, so the more they see that and understand that, the better."

Roster-watching

Aromashodu, Hester and Knox are the starter-designates going into training camp. They comprise a composite quarterback’s dream: size in Aromashodu, speed in Hester and Knox.

The number of receivers placed on the Bears’ 53-man roster will be at least six, given the anticipated load in the Martz offense. Five of those are virtual locks: Aromashodu, Bennett, Hester, Knox and Juaquin Iglesias, a third-round pick who, like Bennett in 2008, saw nearly nothing of the field his entire rookie season.

Knox was the “found money” of 2009, a fifth-round pick thrown in as part of the trade with Denver for Jay Cutler. "I'm just glad that I was part of that trade and to be in a place like Chicago with Jay Cutler," Knox says.

One seemingly annual variable is Rashied Davis, who initially made the roster in 2005 as a cornerback but caught 35 passes in 2008, 17 in 2007 and 22 in 2006 after his switch to offense. More significant that just his catch total, however, is his special-teams niche; Davis has posted double-digit coverage tackles in three of his five seasons and can and will return both kickoffs and punts.

And do not wager against Davis. He did not play high school football, yet has never been cut by a team, whether college, Arena or NFL.

"I've always had to fight for my job so this year is no different,” Davis said. "Whoever's here is here."

[gtriv420]

Urlacher eager to prove skeptics wrong

Bears middle linebacker excited about team's prospect for resurgence on defense and offense

Brian Urlacher is hunched in front of his home desktop computer trying to download the latest hit from R&B artist Usher. After accomplishing his goal, Urlacher flips on the Samsung flat screen hanging above his dining room table then plops down to devour some Portillo's as "Tin Cup'' plays in the background.

"Even in times like this, when I'm at home relaxing … I don't think I can ever just completely stop thinking about football,'' he says. "Yeah, it's nice to get a break, get a month away before the seventh-month grind. But I'm just excited to start football again. You just don't know.''

With the Bears set for their first camp practice Friday in Bourbonnais, an eager Urlacher is confident neither his surgically repaired right wrist nor the defense he leads will be an issue this season.

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He understands the concerns, knows how skeptics seem to have little faith in coach Lovie Smith's defensive scheme. Urlacher has grown tired of the complaints, like how the Bears play too far off the receivers on the corners.

"The people who are not on our defense don't understand what we're trying to do,'' Urlacher says warming up to the jargon. "If it's Cover 3 and they catch a 5-yard hitch, that's a good play because the corner has to stay over the top. If he gets beat in Cover 3, that should never happen.

"In Cover 2, if we don't sack them and they get a check down for four to seven yards, that's the defense. There are certain holes in every defense. That's just the way it is.''

But Urlacher firmly believes those holes will be less-noticeable this season for numerous reasons, not just because of his much-anticipated return after missing 15 1/2 games last season.

His eyes get wide as he mentions Julius Peppers, the prize catch of the free agent class and a guy Urlacher marvels over because of the defensive end's talent and work ethic. He cites the additions of Peppers as a primary reason the Bears can revert to the same dominating defense they were during the Super Bowl run.

"I mean the year before the Super Bowl and the year of the Super Bowl, we were good,'' he says. "We ran so much Cover 2, and it worked, man. We had pressure on the quarterback. We had a lot of picks.

"Yes, we have the talent and the ability to play more man coverage. But here's the thing: Cover 2 works. When we do it right and when we have pressure with our front four and we're breaking on the ball like we've been doing all this spring, it works. There is no doubt in my mind that we will have pressure on the quarterback this season.''

With Peppers, a healthier Tommie Harris and Mark Anderson leading the pressure, Urlacher anticipates a less blitz-happy defense as well.

"I would hope we blitz less,'' he says. "Hopefully we won't need to. Pressure on the quarterback from the front is huge. You're dropping seven and that's more eyes on the quarterback, more people breaking on the football. It's just better for everyone.''

Urlacher pauses to confirm a surprise appearance at a Bears event then brings up another key component, new defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli.

"He doesn't put up with mediocrity,'' he says. "Coach Marinelli thinks that if we can't play our entire defense right, we will run one defense the entire season. The one that we can do right is one we're going to play, and we're going to play that defense good and win with it.''

Urlacher refuses to give himself too much credit but at the same time, understands how crucial he could be to the defense's resurgence after the unit had just 28 takeaways last season.

He prefers to offer praise to five-time Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs for making plays even out of his gap, to Zack Bowman for being a ball hawk and to nose tackle Anthony Adams for being the most gap-disciplined player on the defense.

Not to mention what Urlacher anticipates from the offense and quarterback Jay Cutler in 2010.

"I get sick and tired of people asking me about what happened to Jay. Nothing happened to Jay,'' Urlacher says, raising his tone a notch. "Jay threw for 27 touchdowns last season. What the hell? How many quarterbacks did that?

"Nothing's wrong with him. Just wait. And Mike Martz's offense scores points. That's all there is to it. If the defense is on the field more because our offense is scoring quickly, sign me up. That's fine with me. It's a lot more fun playing with a lead than from behind.''

[gtriv420]

Lovie Smith & Co. must find answers to these questions to keep their jobs

By Bob LeGere

Lovie Smith & Co. must find answers to these questions to keep their jobs
When the Bears take the field Friday afternoon at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais for their first of 23 training camp practices, they will begin to address issues that will ultimately determine whether head coach Lovie Smith, his staff and maybe even general manager Jerry Angelo and others in the front office will be back next year.

President and CEO Ted Phillips implied on Jan. 5, when Smith purged his offensive staff, that a fourth straight year without a playoff game would be the basis for a more thorough house cleaning. Phillips didn't utter a "win-or- else" ultimatum, but that was the implication.

"Ted doesn't have to tell me that," Smith said when asked if his continued employment hinged on postseason participation this year. "No one has to tell me that."
The tone of that airing of the grievances last winter was that the Super Bowl XLI appearance certainly bought Lovie & Co. some time, but that time was running out.

"We're not happy," Phillips said after another 7-9 season added bookends to a 9-7 mark in the 2008-09 campaign. "We're not happy with the season we had. We're not happy with the last three years, and the expectation is we'll turn it around in 2010. At the end of 2010, obviously we'll go through another evaluation process and see where we land.

"There have been many, many established coaches who have had years of non-playoff seasons. But we're tired of that. There's a fine line sometimes between winning and losing, but we expect to win now in 2010."
For that to happen, these key questions must be answered affirmatively:

• Will offensive coordinator Mike Martz and his scheme help Jay Cutler become the franchise quarterback the Bears expected last year?
Cutler and Martz may be the quintessential "odd couple,"
and they are both possessed of super-sized egos, but that doesn't mean their pairing is a match made in heaven. Cutler is cerebral enough to wrap his mind around Martz's daunting playbook, and Martz is smart enough to know that if he fails to produce a potent offense with the rocket-armed Cutler on the trigger, there might not be any more NFL opportunities on the horizon. In short, they need each other, and they seemed to gel immediately.

• Will the young receivers continue to develop while learning a new offense?

Part of what has made Cutler successful in the past is his ability to quickly grasp the mental aspects of the game. But NFL receivers, especially young ones, are known more for their athleticism than their wisdom.
Had the Bears kept the same offensive staff and the same scheme, players such as Devin Hester, Johnny Knox, Earl Bennett and Devin Aromashodu all would have been expected to take another giant step in their development.

Now all eyes will be watching to see if the maturation process continues while they learn a new offense.
Cutler could have the entire offense down pat by opening day, but if his receivers aren't on the same page, it will be a fitful start and maybe another season of growing pains.

• Will the return to health of Brian Urlacher and the addition of Julius Peppers elevate the Bears' defense to the level it played at in 2006?
Seven key members from that Super Bowl defense are still on the roster and, with the exception of the 32-year-old Urlacher, none are yet 30, so it's a unit that could still recapture the magic.

But this defense has been no better than mediocre in any of the past three seasons.

Still, if Urlacher can approach his former Pro Bowl form at middle linebacker, Briggs continues to play at the same lofty level on the weak side, and enigmatic tackle Tommie Harris feeds off the energy that Peppers is expected to produce, there is enough talent to make this a playoff-caliber unit.

A lot of jobs depend on it.

[The Stache]

Man, all these articles are getting me jacked for football. Cubs sucking has something to do with that too.

[sedgy145]

Training camp this weekend!!! And I bet I end up drinking with at least one player....guaranteed!

[Indianplaya17]

GO BEARS!!! 11-5 this year!!!

[The Stache]

Bears arrive at Camp today

Brad Maynard


Cutler


Cutler Scowl


Coaches Mike Tice and Daryl Drake

[The Stache]

Bears' Kreutz ready for camp
Source: Jeff Dickerson / ESPN Chicago

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Chicago Bears center Olin Kreutz, who's coming off Achilles surgery, expects to be on the field when the Bears open practice Friday afternoon.

"Yeah, I'm ready to go," he said Thursday as the team reported to camp. "I should be out there for Day 1, if everything goes as planned. I'm ready to go, and hopefully the foot feels better."

The 33-year-old Kreutz admitted the rehab was tougher at this stage of his career.

"It's probably a little tougher in your 13th year, but everybody has a rough time when you have surgery," he said. "So I did the rehab I had to do and I'm trying to get back."

[The Stache]

Cutler says players want to win for Lovie
Source: Jeff Dickerson / ESPN Chicago

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler admitted Thursday that the job status of head coach Lovie Smith is part of the motivation for the players this season.

"Lovie is one of the best coaches I've been around, and I know that everyone on this team has a great amount of respect for him, as he does for us," Cutler said as the team reported to training camp. "He treats us well.

"I know some of the guys that have been here longer than me definitely have a lot of ties to him, and we want to go out there for him and play well, because you never know what's going to happen this year if we don't go out and perform -- if Lovie gets to stay or not. That's definitely a question that I'm sure is in the back of everyone else's mind."

Smith said it's a matter of the players performing well for the Bears, not for his job security.

"I feel the same pressure every year," Smith said. "The pressure to win the Super Bowl, that's what we feel right now. The pressure to put the best team on the field we can the first game, the pressure to have a good practice every day. No more than that, but that's enough right there."

If the Bears are to be successful, Cutler will have to reduce the 26 interceptions he threw last season.

"I think everybody does [have something to prove]," Cutler said. "I definitely do. This offense does as a whole. You know it's a young group of guys; they've had some ups and downs. Some guys have been successful. Some guys haven't been successful.

"But I think everyone has a little chip on their shoulder, which I think is a great thing. There's a sense of urgency to go out there and play well, which you have to have on a football team."

[The Stache]

Chris Harris: Peppers is a freak
Source: Jeff Dickerson / ESPN Chicago

Chicago Bears safety Chris Harris, who played the last three seasons with the Carolina Panthers, feels right at home returning to the team he helped lead to Super Bowl XLI.

One of the familiar faces in the Bears' locker room is a guy he played with in Carolina, and Harris believes Julius Peppers is going to start exciting fans when the Bears open training camp Friday.

"He's just a freak," Harris said Thursday on "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on ESPN 1000. "I played behind him for three years, and some of the stuff he does still amazes me. He jumps up and catches an interception, and runs it back for a touchdown.

"He provides great pressure. He's a guy that can't be blocked one-on-one, in my opinion. He has a high motor, and he's just going to be exciting."

Harris believes Peppers will infuse some life into the Bears' Cover-2 defense, which has become somewhat maligned as the Bears' defense struggled since the Super Bowl.

"The Cover-2 starts up front," Harris said. "You can't have a successful Cover-2 team if you don't have a great pass rush. And I think that's one of the things we'll get this year.

"Tommie Harris is back healthy, we have Mark Anderson on the end as well as Julius Peppers. It starts up front with the big guys."

Harris compared the current defense favorably to the Super Bowl defense in at least one regard.

"I think better team speed with this defense now, than when I was here," he said. "That's the biggest difference."

[The Stache]

Man I am so jacked to see Peppers ball out! Haven't had this kind of impact defensive end since the 80's, no offense to Wale, Alex Brown, or any of the others that were here before.

[Indianplaya17]

BOURBONNAIS -- To the uninitiated, the Bears' first training camp session Friday was a tight end-geared passing offense in full display.

Desmond Clark, Greg Olsen and Richard Angulo put on a show in the first public exhibition of the team's offense under new coordinator Mike Martz, with Clark, in particular, making catch after dazzling catch.

The eighth-year Bears veteran played it straight after practice, however, saying it was all a big smoke screen.

"We're just trying to throw people off, that's all it is," he said. "We're not getting the ball this year … I mean, that's what everybody says so it must be true."

Bears coach Lovie Smith has heard the same thing.

"[But] the tight ends were the only guys you guys [in the media] were talking to today so it was good to see all them make plays. … The tight ends will be a big part of our offense and today we really concentrated on [them]."

As for Clark, in particular, he caught a one-hander and leapt for another from Caleb Hanie and later in team drills, had several acrobatic grabs from Jay Cutler.

"Every year I've been here, every day I've been a head coach here, he's been here making plays," Smith said.

Clark, who is technically third on the depth chart, clearly feels he must still make an impression.

"I'm trying to establish a role right now," Clark said. "That's all I can do right now, is just to show I can play in the offense. I'll leave it up to the coaches to clear the road for me but first I've got to show them what I can do because right now, that's what everybody is doing … Nobody is set right now in stone except maybe Jay and Brian. Everybody else is trying to clear the road for themselves.

To me, that's the whole purpose of training camp, especially coming in lower than I've ever been on the depth chart since my first year in the league. I'm just coming out trying to fight my way out."

http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/n ... id=5424677

[gtriv420]

GO BEARS!!! 11-5 this year!!!

Vegas has us going 8-8

[Indianplaya17]

GO BEARS!!! 11-5 this year!!!

Vegas has us going 8-8

+/- 3 Games