Bears Trade Brian Griese To Tampa Bay

by WCG on Mar 3, 2008 2:10 PM CST in Transactions

In a world of WTF that is becoming the Chicago Bears off season, something finally went our way.

Brian Griese a dead man walking so to speak, knew that today was likely his last day as a Chicago Bear. With a 300,000 dollar bonus due today, we was going to be released. That is unless some team who for whatever reason likes him so much that they are willing to jump the gun and deal for him. Luckily for us there was such a team.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have traded an undisclosed draft pick in 2009 for the veteran QB. The pick will no doubt be a second day pick and if gets as high as a sixth rounder, I'll smoke a cigarette, roll over and call it a good night.

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Haha

Someone must have owned Angelo a favor that still works for the Bucs....

Visit The NEW Cub Reporter (www.thecubreporter.com)

by thecubreporter on Mar 3, 2008 2:14 PM CST 0 recs

Somebody over there

still is in love with him. They wanted to resign him before we picked him up, but couldn't work out the numbers.

by WCG on Mar 3, 2008 2:33 PM CST up 0 recs

Cap room...

This frees up some cap room we have absolutely no intention of utilizing whatsoever.

by NCarlson on Mar 3, 2008 2:42 PM CST 0 recs

Yeah, that's right

because we're not trying to sign Urlacher, Harris, Hester or Ayanbadejo. Remember them? Urlacher will eat at least $3-$4M per year more, so will Harris, so will Hester. I have no problems with freeing cap space to sign the future of our franchise (or to reward the folks in their prime).

I'm sick of this notion that the Bears are cheap. That is no longer true.

by mikebdot on Mar 3, 2008 2:54 PM CST up 0 recs

I won't call them cheap

and I certainly give them credit for trying to lock up our best players, but still we missed the playoffs, we had horrid line and running game. Those are not going to instantly improve through the draft. At least bring some people in and see what they are asking.

by WCG on Mar 3, 2008 2:57 PM CST up 0 recs

I don't disagree

but we will use the cap space. Even if it's on players that aren't great. We also have to sign the draft picks we don't have yet. I'm not quite sure what to make of the lack of action in signing people, but just because it isn't reported doesn't mean we aren't meeting (or at least floating ballpark numbers) to quite a few players. It isn't as though Brad Biggs is involved in all the phone calls to all the people to set up actual meetings. Johnson went to Buffalo because they said "we'll probably offer between x and y, pending interview". Not sure why this should be any different than any other job hunting process. Call someone up, say what you think you're worth, decide whether or not it's worth the visit and go on with your life.

Shorter me: It's not like we aren't contacting people, no need to bring them in if we don't want to pay the price...

by mikebdot on Mar 3, 2008 3:26 PM CST up 0 recs

Brilliant!

Gotta love how Gruden loves to stock up on QB's.

by sirus19x on Mar 3, 2008 2:44 PM CST 0 recs

Revised:

Gotta love how Gruden loves to stock up on OLD QB's

Peanut Tillman is my hero

by Breezy on Mar 3, 2008 4:36 PM CST up 0 recs

HA

If they waited a day. couldn't they have gotten him for nothing, you know, exactly what he is worth.

by stumpo on Mar 3, 2008 3:18 PM CST 0 recs

correct me if i'm wrong...

But the Bucs traded for him while under contract. If they waited a day, they would have to try to sign him as free agent. And while there may not have been a big market for him, the Bucs didn't have to negotiate.

by Chad on Mar 3, 2008 4:28 PM CST up 0 recs

wait...

we got a whole draft pick for griese? bravo JA, bravo. now do something that actually helps our team next year

by Jbasic89 on Mar 3, 2008 3:25 PM CST 0 recs

i'm surprised

no one has said a stupid comment like "stop hating on griese, he had some good games". sadly, i've actually read some of those here. i can't believe we actually got something for griese. thank you gruden.

I am like your Dan Aykroyd and biglow would be Jane, the ignorant slut. -Chad

by thecoolest on Mar 3, 2008 7:17 PM CST 0 recs

Well...

He did put together a hell of a drive in the last two minutes of that Eagles game.

I never ever wanted to see him in a Bears uniform again, but nonetheless, that was one of the bright spots of that sad season. Saying nothing of the time that -wasn't- the minute fifty-three when he looked like a champ, I'm glad we had him for that game, at least.

--d

by itsugly on Mar 4, 2008 3:29 AM CST up 0 recs

see only

bad things happen in free agency for the bears. For instance the day they decided to sign brian griese.

i think hes up there with Kordell Stewart, Craig Krenzel and Rick Mirer as my all time favorite qb signings.

although i hate to be too hard on him. With the departure of berrian and after watching griese's chemistry with bradley against the lions, I fear we might have cut him too soon.

Ahh those were the times of 07. Dressed in bright orange and at home, our veteran backup underthrowing recievers in triple coverage..... and yes he very well might have been calling his own plays.

by rahulsriram on Mar 3, 2008 8:57 PM CST 0 recs

i'm pretty sure...

we traded for Mirer. Our first round pick which, IIRC, turned into Walter Jones.

by Chad on Mar 4, 2008 12:55 AM CST up 0 recs

You are correct, sir

We got him in 1997 along with a 4th round pick for our #6 pick. He completed 53 out of 103 that year and we cut him prior to the 1998 season. He then went on to screw the Packers, 49ers, Lions and Raiders.

It is heartbreaking in these times to think that Jones could have been ours, but we probably would have taken Chris Naeole or Tom Knight.

That is also the year that Tony Gonzalez and Warrick Dunn went in the first round.

by WCG on Mar 4, 2008 2:09 AM CST up 0 recs