Chicago Bears Preseason Game #4: Stock Watch (Offense)
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QB Zac Dysert – I know he has only been on the team for two days, but he still looked awkward out there. Dysert had a couple stumbles, a couple bad throws, and just looked bad overall. I don’t know how familair he was with Gase’s offense, but he looked lost at times and earned a -2.7 grade from PFF. With how well Fales played, I’d be disappointed if the Bears gave Dysert the #3 job. They both have practice squad eligibility, so it may come down to which player the Bears brass thinks they have a better chance of sneaking through waivers.
WR Rashad Lawrence – It wasn’t that Lawrence played bad necessarily, it’s just that his competition played better with Josh Bellamy making a key block on Mariani’s TD and a 29-yard catch that almost found the end zone, and Cam Meredith making 4 catches on the night. Lawrence’s one catch for 11 yards pales in comparison and he hasn’t taken enough advantage of significant snaps the last two weeks to separate himself from the crowd.
C Hroniss Grasu – I hate including Grasu every week as I thought he would have secured the starting job by now, but he continues to struggle. Grasu has been over-matched physically, but also commited two penalties one of which negated a tough 16-yard run by Ka’Deem Carey. It looks to me that Grasu will need a year in the weight room before he can contend for the Bears starting center position.
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TE Dante Rosario – It was weird seeing a veteran like Rosario playing almost the whole game (51 snaps) against 2nd-3rd string Browns players on Thursday. If we learned anything from Tim Jennings playing deep into the 4th quarter last week, Rosario could be in trouble. As usual, Rosario didn’t do much on the field with just a couple of short catches and more importantly two missed blocks that I saw. Rosario’s versatility is valuable but he brings nothing to the table as a receiver and I’ve seen him miss blocks in every preseason game this year (-3.5 preseason grade). Despite his history with Fox in Carolina, the fact that he was out there most of the game and didn’t play that well, makes me think Rosario could be one of the final cuts this year.
OG Conor Boffeli – Quite possibly the worst pass blocker on the Bears this preseason, which is saying something. There was a play in the first half where an ILB blew right past him without being touched and pressured Fales into one of his few incompletions on the day. Boffeli has struggled in pass pro all preseason and did again tonight with a team worst -4.0 grade from PFF. He did have a couple of decent run blocks, but he also gave up a hit on Fales and two hurries. Boffeli’s pass pro is so bad right now I can’t see the Bears trusting him with regular season snaps or even a roster spot.
OG Vladimir Ducasse – With the possibility of moving Kyle Long to right tackle and inserting Ducasse into the starting lineup at guard being discussed, Ducasse needed a strong performance to prove he can handle the job. After the way he played Thursday night, I think it’s safe to say Long will be staying at guard. Ducasse did have a nice block that helped spring Jeremy Langford’s 33-yard run, but also missed a few blocks, had two costly penalties, and finished with a -2.8 grade from PFF.
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