Ricky Manning's Gone (As well as Marriotti)

Its official, the Bears have cut Ricky Manning, Jr. In case you get Ricky and Danieal Manning confused, Ricky Manning is the one that can play nickel corner, and Danieal Manning is the one who can't play corner, nickel or safety.

The Bears cut (not traded like normal people) their best nickel corner and substituted him with one of their worst cover corners. The obsession of Lovie Smith with players like Danieal points to his inability to lead and coach a football team. If you remember, Danieal Manning was the safety that got burned in the Super bowl game by Reggie Wayne leading to an easy long- touchdown pass from Peyton Manning(a lot of Mannings in this post). If Danieal is famous for anything, its his unique ability to get burned.

But the Bears and Mr. Smith somehow believe that the former safety, who couldn't play safety, could somehow turn around and play nickel. Funny I thought it was the other way around, corner-backs who couldn't cover were switched to safety.

To make matters worse, the Bears got zero value out of Ricky. Instead of playing Ricky and hyping him up in the hopes of trading him, the Bears downgraded the veteran, rarely letting him see the field (excluding his play with the 6th stringers), and openly conveyed their dislike of the player. And somehow they're amazed that no other team wanted to trade for him. They could have gotten as high as 5th rounder if they played their cards right. Instead, management made him the perfect addition for another, better managed and coached team.

Oh yeah, and if Danieal doesn't work out, its okay b/c Trumain McBride can step in. Agh. Alright enough of that.

In better news, Jay Marriotti is leaving the Sun-Times. Lets hope he takes his tabloid, US weekly writing with him out of town to somewhere far, far away. Jay "one thought" Marriotti, I think there's an opening at the Onion. Your stories would be a perfect match for their parody sports section.

Chicago Bears: Optimism Edition

Looking at my past posts one could argue that I was a Green Bay Packers fan just hating on the misfortunes of the Chicago Bears. That couldn't be farther from the truth as I am a die hard Bears fan. So to counteract by pessimism, here's another Bears list. But, this time lets call me Mr. Brightside.

Things that make me believe Bears can go to the playoffs this year.

1. Kyle Orton starts taking shots downfield and succeeding. I've ripped Orton before, but during my visit to Bears Camp on Aug. 3rd, I did see an improved Orton throwing the ball. He doesn't have the zip or quick release of Grossman. But, he has a good arm, is tall and can better see the field, and won't drop back 15-20 yards when pressure gets in his face. So here's a little glass half-full; Orton could be a decent option at QB. Again, I just hope he can stretch the field a little.

2. Matt Forte, if given a hole(I know a big if), can get it done in the running game. He's big, quick, shows some elusiveness and could surprise people with his speed. Best of all, he is the anti-Benson. No moping around, no taking 10 seconds to get up after being tackled, and no whining. Even better, he's a great receiver. He's going to be a solid running back. Something the Bears haven't had in a while.

3. Devin Hester is still really freaking good. Maybe he's not a #1 WR. But he's the best KR/PR already to have EVER played the game. More importantly, in his limited time as a WR, he's looked pretty good. Even if he just has the "go-route" as his main offensive weapon, its a pretty good route to have. He's already beaten a few defenses with his blazing speed and I think he'll do it again.

4. Although this likely won't happen, I think Mark Bradley is a good WR. If healthy (again this is optimism time), he's shown that he's a good WR. Even better, Brandon Lloyd seems like a nice and cheap replacement for the overrated and over-paid Bernard Berrian.

5. The Bears have a great front 7. Adewale, Tommie Harris, Dusty, Alex Brown, Mark Anderson, and Izzy to name a few. Plus, the rookie DT, Harrison looks pretty good. Then add Urlacher and Briggs to the mix and you've got one of the best front 7s in football. I'll take that.

6. Mike Brown hasn't gotten hurt yet. Thats optimistic right?

7. Chris Williams will come back eventually. I've never seen him play and have no idea whether he'll ever anchor the line. But, he can't be terrible. See this is me being optimistic.

8. Charles Tillman and Nathan Vasher are good CBs. I also think Graham is a sleeper.

9. Greg Olsen and Kellen Davis have the potential to be the top TE tandem in the league. Even better, Desmond Clark is a dedicated and reliable vet.

10. We've already been to the Super-bowl in 2006. Why can't we do it again in 2008? Before you answer that question remember to stay positive. Go Bears.

Chicago Bears: The implications of Kyle Orton

Wow, that happened about 2 months too early. You see I usually get depressed from the Bears after a month into the season after all the losing, inept coaching and amateur play. Well my depression just kicked in. I heard Kyle Orton was named the starter. As Lovie Smith will likely say several times this year, "Kyle is our Quarterback". A simple sentence, sure. But translated it means, "Kyle is terrible, we are terrible, but we need to stick with our terrible quarterback".

Now, this is obviosly unfair to Kyle. He admittedly looked okay in training camp and during pre-season. He might be a good QB that carries us to some wins. But, by selecting Orton as our QB, the Bears are really telling us, "Get ready for some boring offensive football". Orton as our starter really means the following:

1. We're rarely going to push the ball upfield. The Bears are going to settle for some 4 yard or less passing plays. Unfortunately, this will also yield 3 yard or less running plays.

2. The Bears will take zero risk in the passing game. Which, if you know anything about Finance means that the Bears will be granted zero rewards in the passing game.

3. Now I know why the Bears signed Marty Booker. His max potential right now is to be an okay possession receiver. Watch out for a lot of 4 yard outs and stop routes.

4. This also means saying good by to our play-makers. Bradley is likely gone. The Bears have no use for upside potential right now. We're going with Booker, Rashied Davis (aghhhhhhh) and Brandon Lloyd. Devin Hester may mix things about a bit on a play-action pass. But likely, he'll be used more as a dummy player or running trick plays. I can just see the John Shoop comparisons.

5. Speaking of Shoop. Get ready for some Shane Mathews football. QB 10 for 14, 101 yards, and 1.9 yards per catch stats.

6. The Bears are going to rely solely on their defense and Special Teams. This seems absurd as I am not sure we are a top 5 defensive team even when healthy. But what happens when Mike Brown gets hurt or Tommie Harris gets slowed down due to a nagging injury?

7. In order to win any game the defense must hold teams to 13 points or less. Thats 85 Bears/Baltimore Ravens realm. Do you really think they can do that?

8. This team's ceiling is 9 wins, and maybe 10. Which sounds great, but either way its a plan destined for a 1st round exit in the playoffs. The NFL has changed my friends. If you can't put up points on the board, its over. Do you think the Cowboys, Colts, Pats are going to score less than 13 points? That may happen one game all season for those teams.

9. The elevation of Orton, the "throw Grossman under-the-buss" off-season the Bears instituted, and the inept actions of Jerry Angelo, all lead to one conclusion. The Bears will never, ever, ever win a SuperBowl with Angelo or Lovie at the helm.

10. Lastly, just to pour the salt and alcohol in the wound, its rebuilding time for the Bears. Next year we're looking for a QB in the draft. We need to rebuild the offensive line completely. We need to find a whole new receiving core. Meanwhile, Urlacher and Brown get another year older. Yep, I fear my friends that the Bears little run is over. Its time to start looking towards 2011 when the Bears might be good again.

Finally, I have one last thing to say. The Bears threw Rex Grossman under the bus. I honestly feel sorry for the guy. They never gave him a chance. The put him behind a terrible OL, let Seattle blitz all day without any additional blocking. And then, they put Orton in for two series. The first one he goes 3 and out. The second one he takes advantage of a prevent defense in a 2 minute drill by throwing easy short passes to the flat for 5-6 yards a piece. He makes one nice throw to Lloyd. They then take him out of the game out of fear he'll show his truer colors. And then the idiots blame Grossman for the terrible offense and hang their hats on Orton's great 2 minute drive. Ridiculous.

Here's to 6-10 men. Open those bottles of Prozac.

Ohhr--- Shi$

Orton's our starter according to Sun-Times.

Chicago Bears: Mini-Mouses of the Midway

Last week I wrote about how the Bears were in Barney as in Barney Rubble, Trouble! This week.. well lets just say they're a notch below awful. After saturday's pre-season game, my primary thought is "these guys went to the superbowl?". Here's a collection of my random thoughts following the game:

1. The Bears offensive line played as if it was the first time they had every seen a blitz. It was open-mike night at Zanies, with a bunch of amateur lineman giving their act.

2. While I think Seattle violated some unwritten rule about blitzing in the pre-season, their was no excuse for Ron Turner's play calling during that first quarter. They kept on blitzing and he kept on calling 5-7 step drops or even worse, play action fakes, when we hadn't run the ball once in the first few drives. The line was bad, but Ron Turner made things ugly by not adapting to the constant blitzes.

3. Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton are average NFL QBs. They can play good, and even Great in REx's case if they have time to throw the ball and if they had players other than 1st graders at WR. Its not that hard to figure out that a QB needs time to throw. If you can't provide that protection, not even Brady or Manning are going to have a good day.

4. Marty Booker's career is over. Like New Kids on the Block, Booker is someone I would just rather not see. He made one nice catch when the they called an under throw route where the WR fakes like he's going long, but just stops and catches an under-throw. While Booker is exceptional at this b/c he can't get passed a DB anymore, this is not enough to make it on this team. Bears better not cut a young player with promise (e.g. Bradley, Haas or even Monk) for the one year lack of production of Booker.

5. Daniel Manning is terrible. I harp on this too much, but he's just awful. How he plays over Ricky Manning as a slot corner, I don't know.

6. Kellen Davis's catch was brilliant. Maybe its okay if D. Clark is hurt.

7. But on that note, where is Greg Olsen? Why aren't we getting him the ball.

8. So we can't pass. I get that. But, we can't run either? I'm beginning to think that we should just punt on 1st down.

9. I've always been a fan of Grossman. I believe if he was on a professionally managed football team he would be a pro-bowler for 1 or 2 years. But, he has to stop dropping back 10 -15 yards. Just step up and take a sack and minimize the loss.

10. Reports are that Mark Bradley, Garret Wolfe, Dan Bazuin and Michael Okwo are on the border of making the team. They were all early round draft picks in the last couple of years. Either a) Angelo sucks or b) our coaching staff can't grow our players. Which leads to one conclusion, fire everyone (except scouting department) if Bears fall on face. Its my true feeling that Lovie Smith isn't equipped to win a Super Bowl.

Again, sorry for the pessimism. But, Bears look a lot like a 5-11 team. Lets hope something good happens Thursday night.

Okay, that Phelps guy is pretty good.

Backtrack to July 12, 2008. I'm racing my wife at the local pool. Let it be known that I'm a terrible swimmer (although I hold the world record for longest underwater swim with one breath in the CLR aka Chicago Loop Region). And after four laps, I repeat 4 laps across the pool I was done. Exhausted, finished, want to go home lay on the coach done.

Fast forward to August 12, 2008 and I'm talking to my Dad on the phone as the US swim team led by Michael Phelps, starts the 4 by 200 meter freestyle relay race. As Phelps gets to the end of his swim my Dad says, "This is too much. Ridiculous (first time I ever heard my Dad say that word), its not fair. Phelbes (he also cannot pronounce his name) is unbelievable. As the other swimmers dive into the pool and we near the end of the race, Dad yells "Ohh no. I can't even see the 2nd place guy. Where is he? Phelbes is too good. This is unfair".

Darn right. I don't really care or follow swimming. I don't have a Michael Phelps t-shirt in my closet. But I have to admit, Phelps is amazing. So while I'm no Spitz, I do appreciate greatness. And Michael Phelps is great. Its not too often you get to see dominance in sports, so I for one, I'm going to sit back and enjoy this guy. 10 Golds, the most ever by an Olympian! Two more Golds to get the record for most in a single Olympic Games. Tiger take a seat (seriously take a seat b/c Golf is f'in boring). USA basketball sit down (oh now you guys try. Thanks but its a little to late for me). Now, its Michael Phelps' time. To him I say, Bravo. And, as Dad says, "Phelbes is too good".

The Bears are in Barney

The 2008 Chicago Bears are in Barney. You know from that line by Don Cheadle in Ocean's Eleven. Come on. They're in Barney. Barny Rubble... TROUBLE!!!!!!!

About 3 weeks from the start of the regular season and the Bears haven't figured out the following:
1. Who the starting QB is.
2. Who the starting WRs are.
3. Who the starting LT will be (and possibly RT if John Tait is moved back to LT).
4. Who the starting LG is.
5. Who the starting RB is (Forte is likely however).
6. Who is going to line up next to Tommie Harris at DT.

Even worse, the most inept organization in football not named the Cardinals or Raiders has the following concerns.
1. Is the guy we just paid #1 WR money a #1 WR.
2. WHat happens when both Mike Brown and Brandon McGowan get hurt (note, this is not an if, empirically this is a fact).
3. Our supposedly great defense gets shredded in the ground game (ala KC in the first preseason game).
4. That our coaching staff believes Trumaine McBride is a good corner and better than Ricky Manning.
5. THat our moron coaching staff believes Daniel Manning has any value (In my opinion he should go back to the Div. 3 school he came from).
6. That Kyle Orton is the next Trent Dilfer, except that he is much worse.
7. That our OL, even with a healthy Chris Williams is below average.
8. That Marty Booker sucks and shouldn't be playing with the 1st team offense. (I know Mark Bradley has been disappointing due to injury, but if they cut him for Booker I am going to freak out. Booker is done. BRadley at least shows great talent when healthy and he is young).
9. That the Fake Adrien Peterson should never, ever, be allowed to carry the rock (unless Forte, Jones, Pope or Wolfe are injured).
10. That Lovie Smith is a below average coach that seems to let his bias (players from the south, heart, or faith) get in the way of rational thought.

Ahhhhh. I can't stand this team as it is now. We are such an amateur organization. Its like we're the Washington Generals and everyone else is the Harlem Globetrotters. And don't even get me started on how the Bears couldn't foresee that Williams Injury or I-Truth's research on the Anghelo drafting since 2002. Aghhhhhhhhhhhhh!

The Legacy of Jerry Angelo

Just doing a little research to complement a story I had previously written:

Do you realize that since the era of Jerry Angelo (2002), the Chicago Bears have drafted only 5.5 players that are currently starters (and Devin Hester who we have no clue what he is). Let's see... roughly 7 picks a draft multiplied by 5 years... that's 35 players. 5.5/35= less than 16% success rate.

In case you were wondering who the players were... Alex Brown in 2004, Charles Tillman and Lance Briggs in 2003, Tommie Harris and Nathan Vasher in 2004 and the half is Kyle Orton in 2005. NOTE: Besides Orton (who has yet to be named a starter), all players are defensive players.

Players that we drafted that are gone or suck....
Marc Colombo (1st)
Roosevelt Williams (3rd)
Terrance Metcalf (3rd)
Rex Grossman (1st)
Michael Haynes (1st)
Tank Johnson (2nd)
leon Joe
Craig Krenzel
Cedric Benson (1st)
Mark Bradley (2nd)
Airese Curry
Chris Harris
Danieal manning (2nd)
Dusty Dvoracek (3rd)
Jamar Williams
Dan Bazuin (2nd)
Garrett Wolfe (3rd)
Michael Okwo (3rd)
Josh Beekman
and coming soon.... Chris Williams (1st)

FAILURE AFTER FAILURE. This begs the question... If you constantly failed at your job, how much longer would you be around?

HBO's Hard Knocks is Awesome!

You know its finally football season when its time to put HBO Hard Knocks on your Tivo's season pass. Ahhhhhhhhhhh, finally. For those who don't follow the show, Hard Knocks is a reality show with the exception that its based on reality. Not since the Baltimore Ravens training camp have the players been so interesting. Think about it-Romo, TO, Pacman Jones, Tank Johnson, Jerry Jones, and the dude thats evidently the coach who does nothing, Wade Phillips. Episode 1 was so brilliant that even had my wife watched the show and made comments like, "TO's body is sick. Who is this Jerry Jones guy and why does he look like an alien? Tank Johnson and Adam Jones sure seem like nice guys". Absolutely brilliant. Alright here are my quick thoughts.

1. The Bears are to the Cowboys like Indiana Hoosiers Football is to Ohio State Football. I know HBO is just hyping them up, but the Cowboys look like they got their act together.

2. TO is unbelievable. I have never been a fan of the guy, but I must admit that I'm starting to fall for the guy. No homo of course. He's funny and unbelievably athletic. At one point he caught a simple post route for a TD and effortlessly slammed in a dunk on the goal post. He's just freaky.

3. Wade Phillips and Lovie Smith are twins. They both don't seem to add any value to their team. If Bears fall flat on their ass this year, can we go out and get Jason Garret the Cowboys' offensive coordinator? He actually looks like he knows what he is doing.

4. Jerry Jones is both the best and worst thing about the cowboys. You can tell this guy simply wants to win. He does a great job of getting talent and putting his team in a position to win. But at the same time, he's his own worst enemy. He has way too much control over the football side of things. Why is this guy making the final call on draft day or cutting a player? I know he's the owner. But wouldn't they be better served having a football guy making those decisions?

5. Adam Jones and Tank Johnson actually do look like nice guys. That there my friends is the power of television.

Thats all I got for now. I can't wait till next Sunday when Jerry Jones will presumably waive half of the team.

Chicago's Radio Personality Ratings.

The Score:
1. Mike North:
Grade: F
By far one of the worst sports radio personalities this city has ever witnessed. I thank god that his racially divisive and crude attempts at humor are no longer part of the Chicago airwaves. North is the Jay Marrioti of radio. A walking tabloid headline waiting to happen. I hope we never hear this moron's voice again.

2. Mully and Hanley:
Grade B: I like these guys, especially Mully. They give some reasoned sports analysis and offer a lot of passionate debate on our teams. However, they tend to go a little over the top. A little Sun-Times exaggeration if you know what I mean.

3. Boers and Bernstein:
Grade: Z. The worst, and I mean the worst sports radio tandem ever. I know, I'm going a little Bill Walton here with the exaggerations, but its deserved. The worst most insanely idiotic personalities on radio. They make Mike North look like John Madden in his prime. In fact, there are points during their broadcast that I don't understand one sentence that they are saying. And I am not ignorant. Their inside jokes are about as funny as the bully who makes fun of the mentally crippled kid. In fact, they are so humorless that an outside observer may deem the duo to be mentally crippled kids. Someone at the Score, PLEASE get rid of these two.

4. Lawrence Holmes:
Grade A. By far one of my more favorite sports hosts in the city. Love, admire, appreciate his Bears analysis. He gives solid analysis without being arrogant, over-the-top, or annoying. Just wished he was on air more.

5. Other Score positives: Mat Abba..., Hub Arkush. Negatives (people I could do without but are harmless: Doug Bafone, Mike Murphy.

ESPN:

1. Mike and Mike
Grade: B+. Yeah, they're national, but up until a few weeks ago it was M&M or Mike North. And you know how I feel about Mike North. M&M are solid. They've unfortunately gotten into the habit of inside jokes and discussing non-sports related items. Also, if watching on ESPN2 the highlight people (especially Sage Steel) make me want to rip my ears (although not my eyes) out. I could also do without the frequent commercial breaks. But overall, these guys are passionate and engaging. Their analysis is not perfect, but they get great guests and have fun with things without going overboard. Plus, its nice to see some humility and people who understand that they are privileged to have such jobs.

2. Waddle and Silvy:
Grade: B. I want to give these guys more, but in my opinion they talk way too much baseball and not enough football or basketball. I think Waddle is the best TV personality we have in this City. He is absolutely fantastic on NFL network and of the final word. I would go so far as to say that Waddle is one of the best NFL commentators in the nation. Crazy, I know I said it. But, for some reason it doesn't translate as well to the Radio. Silvy is good. But I like DeFalco better.

3. Matt, Jurko, Harry
Grade: D. I really just don't get these guys. They annoy the crap out of me. I lot of people like them and they are marginally better than B&B. But, I would rather have the guys noted below at this time slot.

4. The Show (Defalco, Dickerson, Hood)
Grade: A-. Love J. Hood. One of my favorite radio personalities next to L. Holmes. Defalco is engaging. I wish these guys were on in the afternoon instead of the people at 3 above. Again, like the other high grades, they get my approval because they offer solid analysis on sports, don't go overboard on the lame inside jokes, aren't arrogant, and talk passionately and smartly about our sports teams.

5. Tirico, Van Pelt
Grade: B-. Could do without Tirico. I actually like the show a lot better with Michelle Tafoya. Actually, she is surprisingly pretty good. Van Pelt is also good.

Well, they're you have it. Clearly as a younger person I tend to dislike the more established "old-timer" sports personalities, which just may be a reflection of a generational gap and not their ability. Overall, I would say that Chicago sports radio personalities get a B- grade. But on the bright side, it appears that things will get better. North is gone. With the low ratings B&B hopefully will be gone in the near future as well.

Chicago Bears Camp Confidential Aug. 3rd.

I made it up to Bourbanais Sunday for the Bears noon practice. While practice can be boring, training camp gives you access to players, coaches and management, like nothing else. The following lists my thoughts on what I saw and who we talked to.

1. Grossman can make every throw. On every throw the ball seems to launch as if released from catapult. His throws are tight and powerful. Of course, its a lot easier throwing the ball when there is no real pass rush. But for all those Grossman haters out there, you can't dispute that Grossman has the best tools out of this QB lot.

2. Orton actually surprised me. He wasn't too far behind Grossman in his strength, release and "tightness" of this throws. He actually looked like a legit NFL QB, something that I haven't seen from him. Orton is clearly the game manager out of the two. Grossman throws a better deep ball. If Bears go with Orton, you can expect a rather methodical, slow, game manager type offense. With Grossman, we'll see more risk taken, which should equal more rewards, but more picks (or dropped snaps).

3. Its just one practice, but Grossman gets the edge simply because he can stretch the defense better. But, Orton isn't too far behind.

4. Calib Hanie (our 3rd string QB) looks more like an intramural QB than an NFL QB. You could see a large discrepancy between his throws (often wobbly and slow) and those of Grossman and Orton. I don't see him making it too long in this league. But, you never know.

5. Mat Forte is a beast. People complain about his "vertical" running style. To me this seems idiotic as he is simply vertical. He's pretty tall for a RB. In fact, he looks more like a tight end or WR than a RB. He catches the ball beautifully out of the backfield and showed good burst. Whether he can run, I have no clue because it was just a practice. But he does look the part.

6. Charles Tillman got abused all night like a Guantanamo Bay inmate. Hester had him beat on what seemed like every play. Marty Booker even went by him and caught a great pass from Grossman for a large gain. Tillman is physical, but it seemed like the offense was picking on him all afternoon. The same couldn't be said about Vasher as the offense seemed to stay away from his side of the field.

7. Greg Olsen and Hester played pretty well. Olsen plays big and caught everything going his way. He seems like the rock this offense sorely needs. Hester, albeit very small, is amazingly quick. He routinely beat defenders and made every catch. If the Bears can get him space, watch out because he is going to do some great things.

8. The other WRs looked pretty good as well. The Bears may not have a great #1 WR, but they have a lot of good WRs. Bradley, Booker, Lloyd, Rideau and even Monk looked good yesterday.

9. The Defense didn't look good yesterday. Its like they all went out to Rhino bar last night and had a collective hang over. Of course, it probably didn't help that pass rushing is non-existent in these practices, but the defense seemed to take a day off.

10. Lovie Smith appears to do nothing during practices. This may be overly critical, but Lovie seemed to just walk around from drill to drill. I never saw him say a word other than when the players would gather for breaks or at the end. Does he do anything during practice? He certainly isn't a Bill Parcells or Belicheck type coach teaching players. This seems left to the position coaches.

Overall, it was a beautiful day in Bourbaneasy. It was great watching football again. You really can't gather much from training camp practices, but to give credit, the offense looked good.

The one main highlight during the evening came as we were playing football on the side after practice and Jerry Anghelo rode by with his bicycle. Ceasing on the opportunity, I-Truth yelled, "Jerry, 6'3- 215 pounds. I can play WR"! Anghelo responded, "I care about 40 times". To which I-Truth quickly replied, "4.4, 40!". Anghelo came back, "Wow thats unique".

Ahh, fun times.

Chicago Bears Training Camp Photos Aug. 3rd.