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Lots of news from Halas Hall as OTA’s are in full swing.  Brad Biggs was Twittering has ass off, sending frequent updates throughout the day on Wednesday, as the media was allowed to observe workouts for the first time in a couple of weeks.

Matt Forte limped off the field toward the end of practice, but Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner doesn’t seem concerned.   According to Twitter, Chitownforte22 tweeted “I’m good!!” Let’s hope so.

Newly acquired linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa ran with the 2′s behind Nick Roach, while Hunter Hillenmeyer sat out, recovering from sports hernia surgery.  A sports hernia just sounds painful.

Frank Omiyale was holding down the starting left guard spot while last year’s starter Josh Beekman ran as the second team center.

Trumaine McBride was cleared to practice while Peanut Tillman sat out, still recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.  Apparently, Tillman spent his time on the sidelines mocking the offensive plays.

Tommie Harris participated in practice.  It’s good to see him getting some work.  Harris is as important as any other defender for the Bears’ D to regain Super Bowl form.

It looks like Jarron Gilbert’s deal is close to getting done.  His agent, Frank Bauer (no relation to Jack, but I heard he uses some interesting negotiating tactics) was on hand for OTA’s on Wednesday.    Now about the Iglesias guy.  Let’s get it done!

I hate to even write these words, but it appears Mike Brown took another step closer toward becoming former Bear Mike Brown as the safety visited the Kansas City Chiefs.

Jay Cutler continues to impress, making some nice throws throughout  offseason workouts and drawing the praise of his biggest fan, Jerry Angelo.  On the Bears’ official website, Larry Mayer sat down with the GM.

LM: Jay Cutler hasn’t missed a single day of the offseason program since he was acquired by the Bears on April 2. How pleased are you with the attitude and leadership skills he has displayed?

JA: I’ve been very pleased with his day-to-day attitude, and obviously it’s reflected with his work ethic and how he’s approached things. He’s rolled up his sleeves and he’s gone to work. He’s certainly not resting on any laurels. He’s come in here to prove himself and establish himself. I think we’re all impressed with that-I’m talking about coaches and players-because that’s the right way to do it. He’s got to earn his stripes here, and by showing up and doing the things that he’s doing every day, he’s doing it the right way.

Follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/BearGogglesOn.

Adrian Peterson had another big day against the Bears with 121 rushing yards and 2 touchdowns.  Those numbers are great if you have him on your fantasy team, but in real football it wasn’t enough to help the Vikings get past the Bears.  Meanwhile, the Bears continued to struggle to establish the run, led by 56 yards rushing by Matt Forte.  Almost every rushing play was over before it started for the Bears, but luckily scoring came from a lot of different sources.

Kyle Orton put together another great game with 283 yards on 21 of 32 passing and 2 touchdowns.  If Orton can continue to keep up this level of play fans will begin to wonder why the Bears even bothered with Rex Grossman.  What Orton lacks in throwing the deep ball he makes up for with great accuracy and a wonderful ability to call audibles at the line.  I don’t know where this sudden knack for audibles came from and why it wasn’t used in previous seasons but I hope it continues.  Orton has shown a leadership ability on the field by looking at the defense and deciding whether to change the play.  Just as exciting is the success those audible plays have had for the team to get first downs and keep the chains moving.

If the Bears don’t win this game, the storyline for the Bears are the dropped touchdown passes by Marty Booker.  He finished with 3 catches for 79 yards and a touchdown, but what you don’t see on the stat sheet are the two touchdown catches he blatantly dropped.  There are always difficult catches and miscues on the field, but twice Orton put the ball right on Booker number in the end zone and he dropped it.  The Bears seem to be showing a growing confidence in Booker and he needs to respond with better consistency.

The irony is before the game the biggest concern was the Bears secondary that was depleted from injuries and could have given Gus Frerotte a big day.  Instead, Frerotte threw 4 interceptions, all of them to young Bears defenders getting playing time because of injuries.  Safety Kevin Payne, and corners Corey Graham, Trumaine McBride, and Zachary Bowman all came down with interceptions.  The Bears defense also finally remembered that sacking the quarterback is a good thing, getting one from Kevin Payne and Tommie Harris.

Kevin Payne is an interesting player that I’m going to spend more time researching.  He’s been nothing but criticized in Chicago for his poor coverage skills and allowing receivers to get behind him for big plays.  But if you look at him on paper he came away with 7 tackles, a sack, and an interception that he brought back 50 yards.  How exactly can a kid so productive be dogged as a liability?  Only in Chicago…….

The Bears are far from the strongest team in the league but they sure are playing like a team that believes they can hang in with everyone else.  They manage to screw up plenty of games, but they are a few plays away from being 7-0.  It seems crazy but if you take away the improbable Falcons comeback, the blown lead against the Panthers, and the blown lead against the Bucs, this is an undefeated team.  It was always the Bears who had to come up with points late in the game to try to win.  This season the Bears are having no trouble scoring points but they are having trouble hanging on to leads.  It got scary for a few moments today, but perhaps this team is finally figuring out how to secure a lead late.

The Bears tried to run the ball late and run down the clock but the Vikings had Forte’s number all day.  The Vikings had their chance for heroics, but the Bears came down with an interception and breathed a sigh of relief.

I should probably be happier that the Bears came away with a win, but I’m a bit troubled how they won.  The defense broke down and allowed the Vikings to keep scoring and stay in the game.  This should have been a blown out like the Lions game.  The Bears have always had good defense and run the ball well.  They won today, but they did it by losing their identity as a ball club.  Now the question becomes, do they try to regain their old identity or do they embrace this new identity as a way to win?

Starting cornerbacks Charles Tillman and Nathan Vasher are both becoming question marks week-by-week for their availability on Sundays.  Vasher has a wrist injury and Tillman appeared at Halas Hall today with his arm in a black sling after a shoulder injury that took him out of Sundays game.  Tillman’s replacement, Trumaine McBride, injured his shoulder later in the game and had to come out.  Safety Danieal Manning suffered hamstring troubles and will also miss practice time this week.  Oh, and don’t forget safety Brandon McGowan has already been put on injured reserve earlier in the season. 

The Bears are a leg injury to Mike Brown away from complete disaster at the secondary.  This is not a good way to go into a game against the Vikings and former teammate Bernard Berrian.  The Bears could be forced to put second year corner Corey Graham and Marcus Hamilton, just signed from the Tampa Bay Bucs a few weeks ago as their starting corners. 

Tillman and Vasher are still holding on to hopes of playing this Sunday, but neither are 100% and would have to play through the pain.  This Sunday could be a repeat on last Sunday when the Bears did a great job of stopping the run but appeared helpless stopping the pass.  The front four on defense will have to work twice as hard to get at the quarterback and create havoc.  If the Vikings pass the ball a lot, they may force the Bears to take linebackers of the field (their strength) and put an extra corner on the field (their weakness). 

The more I see of this Bears defense, the more I think we need to start talking about talented safeties coming out of college and entering next year’s draft.  Coaches are making due with safeties and corners selected in fifth and sixth rounds of the past few drafts.  Some have some talent but none are particularly ready to take on a starting role on their own.  As good as the Bears defense may be, it lacks an intimidating presence at safety to put next to Mike Brown.  Kevin Payne has emerged as a solid starter with his solid tackling and good coverage, but he cannot take on the load himself.  After a couple injuries this defense gets thin very fast in the secondary. 

The one bright spot is the Vikings commitment to the run and Adrian Peterson may force them to stick with the run and keep a more balance attack.  The Bears defense can handle stopping the run and will certainly look for payback after Peterson torched them last season.  However, at some point the Vikings will have to go to the air and if the Bears cannot find a way to put pressure on either the quarterback or the receiver, this could be an ugly game. 

Raymont Harris Pick: 114

Harris was never a superstar but for a kid drafted in the 4th round he turned out to be a solid contributor. He was a fan favorite and worked his butt off for the team but was never given respect by an organization that preferred to draft big name running backs that couldn’t perform. Harris was the consummate player and never said a word. He just showed and was ready to kick ass when his team called on him. Commentators like John Madden coined the phrase “all-back” as a result of watching Raymont Harris. He would run the ball on play, lead block as a fullback the next play, and go over the middle and catch a pass the next play. He did anything and everything the team asked of him. Over 54 games he gained 2,509 yards and 16 touchdowns, while throwing his body in front of tacklers for the likes of Rashaan Salaam and Curtis Enis. He was respected and feared among the players in the league for his punishing style of running. He would wear down the opposing defense throughout the game and punish them in the fourth quarter to take over the game. He’s everything that Cedric Benson wishes he could be, but never will. He was a true class act and should have been treated with more respect by the Bears.

Chris Villarrial Pick: 152

The Bears were hoping to get a decent offensive guard in the 5th round of the draft in 1996. They ended up with a 10-year starter on the offensive line that helped anchor 155 games. Anytime you can pick up a key member of your team in a late round and have that player contribute for a decade, you have just done your organization a huge favor.

Marcus Robinson Pick: 108

Taken in the 4th round of 1997, Marcus didn’t develop right away, but when he did he was amazing. He with the Bears for five seasons, accumulating 187 catches, 2,695 yards, and 20 touchdowns before leaving. His breakout season was his second with the Bears when he caught 84 passes for 1,400 yards and 9 touchdowns. He was a great find and good team player that was always greatful for his success. He returned to Chicago this summer to retire with the team where he had the most success and happiness in his career. He played a season in Baltimore and three in Minnesota but never experience the explosive success he had in Chicago.

Patrick Mannelly Pick: 189

Never heard of Patrick Mannelly? That’s because most fans don’t pay much attention to the long-snapper. You heard me right. Mannelly was drafted in the 6th round of 1998 and is still the starting long-snapper for the team. He has played in 157 NFL games and has never started and pretty much doesn’t have any NFL statistic to associate with his name. However, he has hung around with the Bears and collected a professional football player paycheck for 10 years because he can snap the ball to the kicker and punter. You really want to teach your kids the secret to success in the NFL without the risk of injury? Teach them to long-snap.

Jerry Azumah Pick: 147

Jerry’s career was cut short by injuries but despite being drafted in the 5th round and 10th player drafted by the Bears in 1999, he contributed. The athletic corner back started for three years and was named to one Pro Bowl and 10 career interceptions. He played seven seasons and later in his career he really started to shine as a major player in the defense. He finished 2002 with 82 tackles, 2003 with 82 tackles and 4 interceptions, and in 2004 he played 12 games and finished with 51 tackles and 4 interceptions. After that he was plagued by chronic injuries that forced him to retire from the game.

Rosevelt Colvin Pick: 111

Colvin was taken ahead of Azumah in the 1999 draft in the 5th round and had much of the same success. He was paired with a young Brian Urlacher at linebacker and the pair would become a fierce duo for offenses to manage. He only stayed with the Bears four seasons and didn’t do much his first two seasons, but once given the starting game he flourished. He finished 2001 with 69 tackles and 10.5 sacks and 2002 with 64 tackles and 10.5 sacks. Starting quarterbacks learned to keep an eye on Colvin or suffer the consequences. He left for New England and played a key role in their great linebacker unit and is now headed to the Houston Texans.

Michael Green Pick: 254

Mr. Irrelevant of 2000 taken in the 7th round turned out to be anything but for the Bears. The cornerback ended up playing strong safety for the Bears and was named the starter in his third season. He finished 2002 with 100 tackles and remained the starter for three seasons. It’s quick amazing to think a kid taken so late in the draft could end up playing such a major role on a great defensive unit. However, he is another example of how injuries can cut a player short and he was out of the league by 2007. But for a few years he was able to climb from the basement of obscurity in football to a top safety in the league.

Alex Brown Pick: 104

Taken in the 4th round of 2002, Brown has been relied upon as a developing star at defensive end. Coaches didn’t have a lot of confidence in him originally but he has a very strong work ethic and has become an outstanding student of stopping the run. He was replaced last season by Mark Anderson but Anderson had trouble stopping the run and Brown was quickly put back to work. The Bears recognized their need for the big run stopper and signed him to a long-term deal this past year. He’s been a starter for five seasons, and even though he prides himself on getting after running backs, he has accumulated 31.5 career sacks along with his 283 career tackles.

Bobby Wade Pick: 139

Taken in the 5th round of 2003, Wade had a tough time in Chicago. He had trouble getting involved on the offense and coaches decided to try his talent on punt and kick returns. The result was disasterous as Wade constantly battled fumble issues and coughed up several punts in key game situations, often letting the ball bounce off his chest and right between his hands. Fans started to boo when he ran out for a punt and probably made matters worse for Wade as his fumble troubles got worse. Coaches got frustrated and Wade was allowed to go to leave to Tennessee and now Minnesota where he is enjoying some success.

Justin Gage Pick: 143

Taken four picks after Wade, their careers have mirrored one another. In four seasons with the Bears he never broke out but now with Tennessee he enjoyed a career year last year and established himself as a real threat. Too bad neither player found their stride before leaving Chicago for a new destination.

Nathan Vasher Pick: 110

Taken in the fourth round, “The Interceptor” has developed into a starting cornerback was locked up last season with a long term contract. In four seasons with the Bears he has 130 career tackles and 17 career interceptions. He has earned a reputation as a shut down corner and when he spent most of the last season injured the defense appeared to play differently without him. He offers a security for the other players on defense that he can hold is own and create plays and turnovers. That kind of confidence from your teammates cannot be easily replaced and he will play a big role in the defense being able to dominate this season.

Chris Harris Pick: 181

The Bears made a huge mistake with 6th round pick Harris when they traded him in his third season to Carolina for a draft pick. The Bears assumed they had extra talent at safety, the position Harris played, after signing Adam Archuleta last off season. Archuleta is no longer with the Bears after a disappointing season and Harris had a career year in Carolina. He finished last season with 97 tackles and 8 forced fumbles and only has more potential to grow. The Bears may be sorry they let this talented late round safety go for so little.

Honorable Mentions:
(recent picks that could go either way)

Mark Anderson - Taken with the 159th pick in the 5th round he had a break out rookie year with 12 sacks, but last year he only had 5 sacks and looked like he still had a lot to learn. When he started last season he looked worse and appears to be better just coming in on third downs. It remains to be seen if he will return to form his third season or continue to decline.

Trumaine McBride – Taken in the 7th round with the 221 pick in last year’s draft, he was heavily relied upon last season in an injury plagued defense. He ended up a starter and playing in all 16 games at cornerback last season, starting in 9 and accumulating 35 tackles. It may not be amazing numbers but for a rookie thrown in the mix taken in a round where he should have been on the practice squad, that’s a pretty good find. Coaches are keeping on eye on how he is able to develop as a player as a result of his vast playing experience last season. He may be able to build upon that experience and become a key player on the defense.

This year the first round pick is likely to be an offensive tackle and given the lack of pursuit for a free agent lineman, the Bears are likely to comply. The dilemma comes with the second round and two third round draft picks the Bears have hanging in the air. The Bears have so many needs on the offensive side of the ball that no names or positions have been keyed in for the next pick. The reality is the Bears are likely to take the most talented offensive player, with the exception of tight end, that is on the board.

In an ironic twist of fate, the Bears have shown an almost comical inability to evaluate first round talent, but have an uncanny ability to located talent in the later rounds of the draft. Last year the Bears took the popular pick of Greg Olsen in the first round, which thus far seems like a great pick, but were also able to find Kevin Payne in the 5th round, Corey Graham in the 6th round, and Trumaine McBride in the 7th round, a trio of cornerbacks that contributed on defense last year due to injuries. In 2006, the Bears found talented linebacker Jamar Williams in the 4th round and blazing defensive end Mark Anderson in the 5th round. In 2005, the Bears went wrong with Cedric Benson in the 1st round, but picked up Chris Harris in the 6th round. In 2004, Bernard Berrian was picked in the 3rd round and Nathan Vasher in the 4th round. In 2003, Lance Briggs was taken in the 3rd round, and wide receivers Bobby Wade and Justin Gage, both starters for other teams, were taken in the 5th round.

It makes you wonder if the Bears actually are amazing evaluators of talent but succumb to outside pressure and take the popular pick. One thing is certain, the Bears have yet to figure out how to accurately evaluate NFL ready running backs. They haven’t been able to find a player ready to make the transition since the days of Mike Ditka. The organizations evaluation of defensive talent has been unparalleled and they have made attempts to use that advantage to make trades like they did with Chris Harris last season. The problem is the Bears have little need on defense and the stage is set to rebuild the offense or fall flat.

So what are the Bears priorities? One name that should be at the top of the list for the second round is Felix Jones, the running back out of Arkansas. The Bears badly need a different option than Cedric Benson and Jones could be worth the gamble. However, in recent weeks Jones has been receiving a lot of hype and he may be off the board as early as the first round.

Draft day can result in big name players falling to later rounds and having their options open actually works in the Bears favor. Most of their mistakes have come when they are determined to draft to a position rather than talent. Hype is a hell of a thing because it can change on you in a moments notice and leave you wondering about your future in the second round. Will quarterbacks Brian Brohm of Louisville, Chad Henne of Michigan, or Joe Flacco of Delaware still be on the board?

I can’t help but feel like the Bears will defer wide receiver until the third round. History shows they have had good luck picking receivers in later rounds rather than big name receivers that end up a bust. With two picks in the third round the Bears will still be looking for the best talent and may continue taking chances on the offensive backfield. There hasn’t been much talk about talent at the offensive guard position but it’s a position of need that may come up.

The Bears have a lot of draft picks and are open to making gambles that could pay off and ignite a lethargic offense that needs to get into the end zone. For Chicago fans, the real excitement will come at the beginning of the second round.

Cedric Benson made approximately $620,000 for his base salary with a $4 million signing bonus for this season. He missed out on an additional bonus of $1.7 million by falling 26 yards short of 700 yards rushing. Since when does 700 yards rushing amount to a $1.7 million bonus? Were the Bears expectations for this season really that low?

Better Bet

The more motivated and talented Adrian Peterson that is willing to block and catch passes will make a base salary of $595,000 this year. I guess hard work isn’t as important as draft day hype.

Where’s Waldo?

You’d have to put Nathan Vasher in a striped shirt, glasses, and a cane to find him. I get the feeling the Bears have known for a while the season is done and are not willing to risk putting one of their long term investments at corner on the field and make his injury worse.

Broken Record

I really can’t express enough how bad that Chris Harris trade looks right now. The Thomas Jones trade couldn’t be avoided, but trading Harris was harsh and didn’t bring much in return. After seeing Trumaine McBride and Brandon McGowan play it really makes you appreciate how special Harris was coming right out of college and contributing on the field. It was too much of a gamble not to keep an insurance policy in case Adam Archuleta didn’t live up to expectations.

Moral Victory?

What’s left to play for? Pride and self-respect and nothing more. It would almost be worse if Kyle Orton came out and played well because it will make an even bigger mess of our quarterback situation.

Beat The Packers!

It’s pathetic but it’s basically all we have left. Beating the Packers and possibly having an effect on their home field advantage would be the only high point to end this season. However, considering that is the second to last game of the season, the seasoning ending game at home against the Saints will be nothing more than an excuse for me to eat buffalo wings and drink beer.

Viking Invasion

The dominance in Minnesota of the Other Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor combination makes me raise a serious question. Will the Bears defense be completely humiliated and just embarrassed? Stop laughing, that’s a real question.

Too Early?

I’m sure I’ll write several articles about this later on, but I just want to air it out now before anybody else. The first round draft pick should always be used for offensive lineman when needed. There are several examples of quality quarterbacks and running backs never being drafted and turning into Pro Bowl players such as Tony Romo, Kurt Warner, and Willie Parker. I’ve yet to see an example of a walk-on offensive lineman. It is a position that requires players of a certain size, skill, and pedigree that is almost never lost on talent scouts. Offensive Tackle should be the primary concern for the Bears come draft time, everything else comes second.