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Bears Fri Sep 13 2013
Bears Mailbag - Seven Burning (& Crazy) Questions
Week 2 of the NFL season, and the Bears are once again completely healthy when it comes to the injury report. Charles Tillman and Julius Peppers each missed a day of practice due to being sick, but both are fully expected to be a go on Sunday against the Vikings.
As for the game - it should be simple. Stop Adrian Peterson from consistently doing stuff like this, and everything should be fine.
So instead of digging up a weird angle on what should be a straightforward game, I asked the wonderful people I know on Facebook to come up with questions they wanted answered. The results were, uhhhh, let's call them interesting.
Based on one week of action (which is limited I know), do you think Jay Cutler looks more comfortable with this offense than he did with the offense all of last year? - Greg K.
I do think he's more comfortable for two major reasons. His offensive line was clearly improved during the offseason, and o-line coach Aaron Kromer is quite possibly the best in the NFL at what he does. During his time in New Orleans with Jermon Bushrod, the Saints allowed the least amount of sacks in the league. Though part of that is due to the fact that Drew Brees gets rid of the ball quickly.
Which leads to the second reason. The offense is built around getting the ball out to the receivers quickly and let them make plays. It's the same type of West Coast system that Cutler used in Denver with Mike Shanahan to earn a spot in the Pro Bowl. It's not rocket science, it's basic principled football. It just took a GM and coaching change to get the right people in the right spots.
How relieved do you think Matt Forte is that he got a goal line touch? -Greg K.
I don't think goal line carries or touches is something that Forte worries about anymore. He has his money, and the kid that blew away the Bears staff when he came out of Tulane with his professionalism probably doesn't get worked up anymore about losing carries close to the endzone. It was weird seeing Forte in on those goal line plays and the 4th-and-1 that keyed the victory, but the reason wasn't because they trust Forte more or Michael Bush less in those situations. It was simply a choice based on the plays they had called.
The trap play on the goal line and the stretch run on fourth down are plays that require some patience, and that is Forte's biggest strength as a runner. The coaching staff put players in situations where they had a high probability of success.
Who would win in a fight, a hurricane or Coach Ditka? -Jason K.
How do you think Cade McNown, Curtis Enis, and Rashaan Salaam watch a modern day Bears game? Does Enis have to hold the antenna at a weird angle so they can pipe the game into their van they all share by the river, or are they concerned his knee will give out right as the game winning kick goes up so they make McNown do it? But the concern there might be he will manage to intercept the wrong TV station and pipe in the packer game? But if they go with Salaam I'm guessing he would just keep dropping the antenna and they would be able get reception for commercials only? So how they do it Chad....How. Do. They. Do. It? - Jeff L.
See what happens when you combine no playoff appearances with a colossal amount of Busch Light?
The scenario you described is completely plausible. I'd throw in the possibility that they're waiting around for David Terrell to go to the slammer on felony drug charges so they can just go watch the game at his house and keep an eye on it. Maybe he has high definition?
Wanna know what's sad? Those are nearly all the Bears first round draft picks from 1995-2001. The only guys that were left out are 15-year-pro Walt Harris, and future Hall of Whiner Brian Urlacher. Maybe he can hook all these guys up with a cool place to watch a game. But I doubt any of them called him when he retired, so he's probably mad at them too.
What will the Bears roster will look like after this season? Who's leaving? Who's returning? What will the team needs be? What will the financials look like? - Mark M.
It would be impossible to accurately answer this question right now. 15 more regular season games followed by what everyone hopes to be a playoff run is a lot of film to break down. There's no doubt the team is going to look even more drastically different next year than it already does this season. One thing is certain though: Julius Peppers can't be a no-show for too many more games this year. It would be a chunk of dead money on the books, but it would still save the team quite a bit of cash and cap space if they released him next July.
Taking into account the Bears personnel from the last few years who may still be active elsewhere in the NFL, which of those players would best fit the new system? - Jen K.
Very interesting question here, and something I hadn't thought about before it was asked yesterday. The name that always pops up as a former Bear is Greg Olsen. I still haven't quite figured out the love affair this town had with him. Maybe it's because he was one of the few first round draft picks made by Jerry Angelo that wasn't an absolute bust? He's a poor blocker, and was loose with the football during his time in Chicago. I didn't like the way he was forced out of town by Mike Martz either, but the guy isn't Tony Gonzalez.
That being said, Olsen probably wouldn't fit this system well. The Bears grabbed Martellus "The Black Unicorn" Bennett because he's one of the best blocking tight ends in football (though he sucked in that regard last week). Other than Olsen, there really isn't any former Bears player floating around the league that would fit this system well. That's how bad Jerry Angelo was at his job. Only three of his first round picks from 2001-2011 are still in the NFL (Olsen, Rex Grossman, and Gabe Carimi) and none of them are with the Bears. Olsen is the only decent one in the bunch too. Grossman is third on the depth chart in Washington behind a pair of second year QBs, and Gabe Carimi is starting at guard in Tampa Bay, and they'd like for that to stop.
How about the Superfans and Aaron Rodgers commercial? DA BEARS! - Aaron P.
I think a better question is what would the sales numbers be if there actually was a Ditka Quarterly magazine (:02 mark in the video)?
