Chicago Bears News: A Change At Right Tackle and More
Rise and shine, Chicago Bears fans! The light of Bear Dawn is peaking thru your windows on this Friday morning and its time to close out the week in style. Without further ado, lets start our whip around the interwebs for all the Chicago Bears news that’s fit to print. And probably some that, frankly, isn’t.
Jordan Mills has been a bit of a marked man at right tackle, as far as I’m concerned. With (from left to right) Jermon Bushrod, Matt Slauson, Will Montgomery and Kyle Long, 80% of the Chicago Bears offensive line is pretty darn good. The right tackle spot is the one that’s unsettled, mostly because Mills has failed to seize it.
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Coming off a performance against the Dolphins last Thursday that stood out for the wrong reasons, Mills took reps with the 2nd team offense yesterday in favor of Charles Leno. Brad Biggs reported on the depth chart change for the Chicago Tribune, also citing that Mills left practice with a calf injury while working with the twos.
Or maybe it was his pride that was damaged. Either way, this is a prime opportunity for Leno to win the job at right tackle and it seems likely he’ll start against the Colts on Saturday. Biggs even hints at the idea of moving Long to right tackle (an idea we’ve floated once or twice on this very site) and possibly having Vlad Ducasse at right guard.
Nov 16, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago Bears tackle Charles Leno (72) during the third quarter at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
There are only 23 days until the opener against the Packers, and lack of continuity on the offensive line is not the way the Bears want to go into the season. Hopefully they figure it out soon.
Adam Hoge of WGN also touched on the Charles Leno situation and 9 other items in his 10 Bears Things piece. Included in his observations are several Bears defenders heaping all sorts of praise onto Andrew Luck. No surprise there, but the complimentary words were partly a product of Luck working over Chicago’s newly formed 3-4 defense. They won’t face a quarterback the caliber of Luck every week, thankfully.
For more observations from day two of the Bears’ time in Indianapolis, we check in with Arthur Arkush of Chicago Football. His Chicago Bears Notebook includes John Fox’s reaction to the Bears’ performance in the practices against the Colts. Arkush expresses his belief that the Bears defense is starting to come around, citing pass-breakups by the secondary and pressure by the front seven as reasons to believe.
It wouldn’t be a Bear Dawn without a stop off at the mothership, would it? ESPN’s Jeff Dickerson reports that Fox and the Bears are excited to see how Adrian Amos handles starting duties against the Colts. I think I can confidently say the whole of Bears nation feels the same way and with how bad things have been at the position over the years, solid play by Amos on Saturday would be a victory in itself.
Taking another visit to the Arkush family tree, here are Hub’s observations of day two in Indianapolis via the Northwest Herald. One of the things he points out, and some of the other Bears beat guys did too, is that Tim Jennings seems to be on his way to reclaiming the #2 cornerback spot. As Bears fans we’ve seen him play it well before, but his size makes him a more ideal fit at the nickel.
If he can regain his Pro-Bowl form, I’m all for it. I still want to see more of Alan Ball, however, a player who has been nicked up somewhat this preseason.
Before I let you go for the rest of your Friday, check out the piece written by Rick Telander of the Chicago Sun-Times about Erik Kramer. It’s a sad story, but a good read.
BEAR DOWN.
Next: Charles Leno a Breakout Candidate in 2015?