I never anticipated my inaugural piece here at beargoggleson.com to be a collection of pithy, subjective training camp observations, but alas, here we are.

After an active offseason, in which the Bears seemingly added a bevy of new talent, the 2012 Chicago Bears were unveiled to the public this past week, and I witnessed them first-hand on Friday afternoon. I am far from a kool-aid drinker, but must admit, I was impressed with the talent new General manager Phil Emery has assembled, and look forward to this season with more anticipation than I can ever recall.

Without further ado, here’s my list of notes, where I spray to all fields.

• Brian Urlacher practiced with a brace on his left knee, but didn’t appear to be hobbled by the MCL sprain he suffered in the 2011 finale. Urlacher looked fluid in his drops, with good knee bend and quick change of direction. He was actually featured in a few zone blitz packages, but blitzing has never been Urlacher’s forte. I was encouraged by Urlacher’s movement on the field as he appears to be completely healthy heading into the season.

• Israel Idonije looked very thin. As I wrote about here, I have concerns about the depth at defensive tackle, and was happy to see Emery saw it the same way by acquiring Brian Price, in a low-risk, high-reward transaction.  I initially speculated that Idonije could be moved inside on passing downs, and spoke with John “Moon” Mullin about my theory after practice. Moon quickly shook his head “no”, saying Idonije reported to camp at 262 pounds. Look for Idonije to be utilized solely on the edge, spelled by rookie Shea McClellin.

• Tim Jennings was targeted and beat deep regularly. Much like last season, Jennings was susceptible to double moves, and was beat by Brandon Marshall on a deep out, and then by Earl Bennett on a wheel route. Visions of what Jordy Nelson, Titus Young, and other NFC North receivers might do to Jennings ran through my head. Jennings needs to improve, or Kelvin Hayden will take his job.

• Speaking of Marshall, he is as good as advertised. Big, strong, sudden, quick feet, no wasted movement, great body control, and the desire to attack the ball at its highest point. Marshall is easily the best offensive weapon I’ve seen in a Bears uniform since Sweetness himself. It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch Marshall and Jay Cutler work this season, as Cutler looks his way often.

• New feel to the offense. New Offensive coordinator Mike Tice’s offense will look drastically different than what we saw from Mike Martz the past two seasons. The Bears will blend two offensive systems, Tice’s power running and vertical passing game with the roll-out/get the quarterback on the move offense we saw Cutler run in Denver with new quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates. The Bears took several snaps from the shotgun, rolled the quarterbacks out on bootlegs/nakeds/waggles, and ran a fair amount of no huddle plays. With the new personnel – particularly at wide receiver and running back – the up-tempo aspect of the no-huddle could really put a defense on its heels.

• Emphasis on vertical and seam routes with the tight ends. Tice likes to run the tight ends vertically to challenge the safeties. With a player like Marshall on the outside who commands safety attention and help over the top, the Bears could have some opportunities for big plays from the tight ends. But do they have enough talent at the position to capitalize? Paging, Kellen Davis.

• Speaking of tight ends, bubble player Kyle Adams stood out in 7-on-7 and during the team period. Adams ran with confidence over the middle of the field, catching every pass in his direction, typically in traffic with a trailing linebacker and a safety over the top. If Adams has a strong camp, he could push someone like fullback Tyler Clutts – as Tice’s offense typically doesn’t feature a traditional fullback – off the roster.

• Rookie Evan Rodriguez is an intriguing prospect. While he’s not built in the prototypical mold of a tight end, he has traits similar to Redskins tight end Chris Cooley. Rodriguez has sure hands, and is very slippery in the open field. His versatility to line-up as an F-back (fullback in an off-set I formation), H, and Y, makes him a player to keep an eye on in the pre-season. Tice would be wise to devise a small package of plays to get the ball to Rodriguez in the flats.

• Rookie Alshon Jeffery is a big target out there who catches everything near his body, and wasn’t afraid to go over the middle of the field. Jeffery will make an impact as a possession receiver and a red zone target, but he needs to work on his footwork at the top of the route tree. Jeffery is a long strider, who rounds off his routes. With a little bit of fine tuning, and a set package of plays, Jeffery could evolve into a nice compliment to Marshall.

• Running backs Matt Forte and Michael Bush are in great shape – especially Forte – and could form the best backfield in the NFL. Forte looked very quick and decisive with his cuts, showing no residual damage from the knee injury he suffered last season against the Chiefs. Bush looked strong and powerful in the open field, with great body lean, lowering his head at the sign of any wannabe tackler.

• Given the competition at left tackle between Chris Williams and J’Marcus Webb, the rest of the line from left to right was: Chris Spencer, Roberto Garza, Lance Louis, and Gabe Carimi. Carimi looks to have slimmed down a bit in the offseason. Equipped with a brace on his surgically repaired right knee, Carimi appeared to be running with a very slight limp on the field.  The focus will be on the left tackle “battle”, but Carimi should also be scrutinized, as he’s yet to prove himself at the NFL level.

Granted, it’s only July, and this team does have several question marks, in particular the secondary and both lines. But I have a level of comfort with Emery at the helm that I haven’t had in decades. Emery has been proactive in addressing needs, and mentioned he will never rest on improving the roster. With the talent to compete, the pressure is now squarely on the shoulders of Head coach Lovie Smith.

No excuses in 2012, Lovie.

Questions, comments, reactions? Follow me for interactions on Twitter @djdurkin

Jan 16, 2011; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears tight end Kellen Davis (87) dunks the ball over the goal post after scoring a touchdown during the fourth quarter of the 2011 NFC divisional playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-US PRESSWIRE

When the Fantasy Football magazine rankings come out each year the projections generally mirror the past seasons  results with exceptions  like, Adrian Peterson coming off injury, or Matt Forte with possible lingering hold out ramifications.  It should not be a shocker then that Kellen Davis doesn’t appear in the Top 20 rankings for Tight Ends in any major issue or website so far.

From the beginning of time, or whenever Mike Martz became a genius and started calling offensive plays one thing was certain in the Martz playbook. The tight end position was non existent or not even on the playing field in his five wide receiver sets.  If it were up to Martz, the tight end position would be extinct like that of the T-Formation.  Granted the draft pick was used to get Brandon Marshall, but its because of the use of tight ends by Martz that a very good receiving tight end in Greg Olsen was sent packing to the Carolina Panthers before the start of the 2011 season.

Kellen Davis became the starter with the departure of Olsen, and even being held down by the Martz offense he still had 5 receiving touchdown to go along with 18 receptions and 206 receiving yards. In three years, Davis has 28 receptions and 9 touchdown  in  limited action for the Chicago Bears.

Welcome to the summer 2012 and the new offensive regime under Mike Tice.  Tice has a vastly different views on how to run an offense.  One of the biggest differences is the tight end position. Under the Tice offense while coaching the Minnesota Vikings, Jim Kleinsasser and Jermaine Wiggins averaged 53 receptions per season and 491 yards with 4 touchdowns as the starting tight ends from 2002-2007. With the offensive talent now assembled at Halas Hall,  the offensive of today should be able to mirror that of the Minnesota offense of nearly a decade ago.  Kellen Davis could and should be set up to have a mini breakout season within the Tice offensive package.

The tight end rankings have the usual suspects at the top of the rankings the Patriot tight ends Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez, Jimmy Graham, Jason Witten, and the old stand bye Antonio Gates.

Mandatory Credit: Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE

Once you get passed the upper echelon in the tight end position there are a lot of players to pick from where match ups could be the biggest difference in having  a huge fantasy day or  getting little to no production out of that position.  Davis could fit that bill nicely and with his value at an all-time low you won’t have to sacrifice even a middle round draft pick on him.  Davis should still be sitting there when the last few rounds of your draft roll through and everyone is picking kickers and defenses. Davis will be a steal late in the draft with the stats he can put up in this offense especially with his ability to score touchdowns 1 out of 3 times he catches the ball.  You won’t want Davis as your #1 TE, but he can be a good fill in and help you collect valuable points to win  in critical weeks such as bye weeks.

Grab Davis late, stash him, and when the Bears offense is putting up big numbers unleash him on your opponents when the matchup is right, which is the definition of a super sleeper.  Getting production from your #2 TE in bye week or injury weeks can separate you from your competition while  you collect wins when your team is not expecting it, and help you get into your playoffs where money is earned and not given!

Don’t let your opponents outwork you!

DA BEARS

Much as expected, the makeshift 2011 Chicago Bears fell 35-21 to the Green Bay Packers for the fourth time this calendar year.  The Bears were relying on backups at seemingly every position on offense and the defense couldn’t keep Aaron Rodgers out of the end zone, giving up five passing touchdowns.  QB Josh McCown played surprisingly well, throwing for 242 yards and a TD to go along with two costly interceptions.  Third-string running back Kahlil Bell led a rejuvenated Bears running attack that racked up 199 rushing yards.  Despite the bloated yardage totals, the Bears struggled to put points on the board.  Their first TD of the game was scored by offensive lineman Edwin Williams.  Yep, it was one of those nights. Let’s hand out some grades as the Bears were officially eliminated from playoff contention, again, by the Packers.

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As the Bears prepare to face the Patriots this Sunday, there is one thing that they absolutely have to address from their win against the Lions. The Bears tackling was utterly horrendous, especially in the first half. I kept track during the game and I show that they missed 843 tackles in the first half alone. Really, go ahead and count for yourself. Against the Patriots, one half of bad football can put you in a 20 point hole, ask the Jets top ranked defense about that.

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The story lines abound.  You’ve got the Mad Scientist Mike Martz vs the Hoodie Bill Belichick, the middle linebacker Brian Urlacher vs the pretty boy quarterback Tom Brady.  Chicago vs Boston.  Midwest vs East Coast.  How about a re-match of the Super Bowl XX teams a mere 25 years after the Super Bowl Shufflin’ Bears captured their first Super Bowl title?

You can’t have an instant classic without great teams and some great stories, but the cherry on top will be the weather.  Sunday’s forecast?  Arctic winds, temperatures dropping into the single digits and a good chance for SNOW.  Soldier Field will be rocking on Sunday.  Let’s take a closer look at one of the key story lines – Mike Martz vs Bill Belichick after the jump.  (more…)

It moves! It half-lumbers, half-shuffles off the table. After all of this careful work, after intensely measuring such fragile ingredients, after successfully balancing nerve-wracking nurturing with flat-out guesswork, what is going through the mind of our triumphant Mad Scientist? Is he dancing a jig, giggling like a crazed hermit? Is he slumped in exhaustion, his head buried in his sweaty labcoat? Are his arms raised in tearful elation or folded in self-congratulatory satisfaction?

I believe that our Mad Martz is a perfectionist. I believe that the elation of watching his offense score 21 points in one half, of managing a single series that lasted over TEN minutes, of seeing his once inanimate quarterback throw FOUR touchdowns without an interception… I believe the satisfaction, joy, pride and sense of accomplishment that he felt at the end of that game lasted… only until he saw the game film.

There were some GREAT things in this game. But, there were some horrible ones too. I’m personally puzzled at how we could be so GOOD and so BAD, yet be so dominant.  (more…)

As I took a look back at the 2010 Chicago Bears season to date, I found myself wondering, how did this rag tag group of players win seven games?  Then, as I read about the Eagles CB Ellis Hobbs being out for the season and CB Asante Samuel possibly out this week, it hit me.  The Bears have been unbelievably healthy all season and the familiarity they have had with each other has bred success.  That worries me the most.

The only significant injuries that the Bears have sustained were LB Hunter Hillenmeyer’s concussion, which landed him on the IR during the preseason, and a finger injury to untested, but talented rookie S Major Wright, who has missed five games.  Other than that, a guy or two have missed a game here or there, every once in awhile.  To put it simply, the football gods have been nice to the Bears this year.  To me, it just sounds a little too good to be true, don’t ya think?

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As the bye week wraps up, I’m not going to bore you with more talk about Jay Cutler wishes and Randy Moss dreams.   I want to talk about the lack of something flashy and excitable on the sidelines during Chicago Bears’ games.  No, not Mike Martz spouting out running plays in a bright orange unitard (that’s a picture that will haunt your dreams.)  I’m talking about the former Chicago Bear cheerleaders, the Honey Bears.  It’s just un-American that our football team has no cheerleaders at all.

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