Bears News and Notes

by Adam T on Sep 30, 2008 7:46 AM CDT Comment 17 comments

*** Despite everything ending correctly punter Brad Maynard was supposed to kick that last punt of the night out of bounds. Instead he hit a whopping 58 yarder in play.

'Was it 58?'' Maynard said. ''That's awesome. I probably outkicked the coverage a little. That wasn't really my concern. Dave wanted it out of bounds. Obviously, I should have done that. That's what he asked me to do.

''My biggest concern was catching the ball. A lot of times when I punt directionally, I take a split second right after I catch the ball to look up and get my line to know where I am walking. All I was thinking about was catching [the ball] and getting it out of there as fast as I could, so I didn't really have time to look at the line.''

*** Maybe I missed the memo but when did Nick Roach become a better option than Hunter Hillenmeyer and Jamar Williams?

Jamar Williams tried to bite his tongue, but the Bears linebacker couldn't disguise his latest frustration.

With Hunter Hillenmeyer struggling the first three games, the coaching staff decided to give another linebacker a chance with the first team: Nick Roach, not Williams.

"It's very frustrating because you want to play," Williams said Monday. "You want to do whatever you can to help this team win and just show your skills. But at the same time, it's a business. I have to respect the decisions that are made."

*** Charles Tillman, Nathan Vasher and Brandon Lloyd all hurt. Tillman with a hurt shoulder and Lloyd with a hurt knee are still questionable. Vasher despite the injury finished the game.

As for Tillman, he returned to action for a series after hurting his shoulder but was too sore to continue.

Smith said there was no hesitation to reinsert him. And he didn't believe the injury was related to a shoulder problem Tillman had in 2005.

"That's a long time ago, 2005," Smith said. "I can talk a little bit on 2008. I just know that he's been healthy and that he hurt his shoulder [Sunday] night. And luckily it wasn't anything

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Roach over Williams?

So, does this mean that Williams is now effectively another bad draft pick?

Here’s a thought… maybe they ought to stop listening to Lovie’s request for speedy Cover-2 LBs (Leon Joe, Jamar Williams, Michael Okwo), and start drafting guys who can actually play the position.

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 9:04 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Maybe that guy is Nick Roach...

What do we know about him?

Statistics show that of those who contract the habit of eating, very few survive. (Wallace Irwin)

by alec on Sep 30, 2008 9:09 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't like to use logic to explain our coachs' picks

I’m almost 100% positive that Williams is a better LB, so maybe he’s in their doghouse?

I'M A MAN! I'M 22!

by ChiFan13 on Sep 30, 2008 9:26 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I don't know how you can be so certain (100% is pretty damn sure!)

Here’s a few tidbits from his Northwestern bio:

In h.s. he played receiver, rb and linebacker. Was a Wisconsin all-state wide receiver.

Switched to defense full-time in college—listed at 6’ 2" 240.

Had some health issues…missed time as a junior after a fhernia operation…broke his leg as a senior, missing half the season, which probably led to his going undrafted.

Academic all-big 10. Team captain and co-mvp.

I will add that Northwestern has sent a couple of pretty good linebackers into the nfl.

I’m willing to give the guy the benefit of the doubt.

Statistics show that of those who contract the habit of eating, very few survive. (Wallace Irwin)

by alec on Sep 30, 2008 9:41 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I said almost, so I have some wiggle room. lol

I’ve been impressed with Jamar Williams during the times he’s played, which is why I’m really shocked by the move. Hopefully the coaches know what they’re doing, but this is the same group that has done other stupid stuff, so I’m dumbfounded.

I'M A MAN! I'M 22!

by ChiFan13 on Sep 30, 2008 10:02 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

We all hope they know what they're doing....

So does Daniel Manning.

I’m also amazed that we drafted two offensive lineman in the late rounds this year (T Kirk Barton and G Chester Adams), and neither of them are on this team. Are we THAT bad at scouting lineman? Barton, as you know, was signed by Parcells in less than 24 hours after we cut him. Ugh. Adams is still without a job.

Last year we drafted Josh Beekman and T Aaron Brant. Brant never made it, and is not in the NFL. And, in ‘06… we drafter Tyler Reed. Reed’s still on our friggin practice squad. In ’05 and ’04… we went two consecutive drafts without selecting an offensive lineman. And in ’03, we selected G Bryan Anderson with our last pick. Anderson never made it.

I don’t know about you, but if I was a football writer in this town, I’d be drawing attention to this bad trend, because that’s how we got to the mess we have on our line right now.

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 10:16 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'll bring this up, just to be fair

It’s not that often that a 6th or 7th round pick does something positive with a team. It does happen (see Chris Harris, Marquis Colston, etc. etc.) but not that often. If we had drafted a LB or DB, most likely, the same thing would have happened.

Brant wasn’t good. My buddy is a grad assistant at Iowa State, and he was really surprised the Bears took him. Beekman’s starting for us, and as you said, we dropped both from this year’s draft.

Also, if you remember, this is under the same GM that drafted Marc Colombo and Terrence Metcalf, high-round OL that were worldbeaters.

I'M A MAN! I'M 22!

by ChiFan13 on Sep 30, 2008 10:53 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well... yes, I know the success rate of late round picks

I mean, that’s why they’re late round picks.

But, I’m also willing to wager without any research that out of all the 6th and 7th round picks that made NFL rosters, a very large percentage of them are offensive lineman. That seems to be the part of the draft where many teams find future starters on the line.

The fact that we keep on waiting that long to select lineman is a problem to begin with. Then, the fact that we can’t seem to find any in the 6th or 7th round who are of NFL caliber is another problem.

If you look at some NFL depth charts on Yahoo, you can see how some of the better offensive lines were built:

New England
LT Matt Light – 2nd round
LG Logan Mankins – 1st round
C Dan Koppen – 5th round
RG Billy Yates – UDFA
RT Nick Kaczur – 3rd round

Dallas
LT Flozell Adams – 2nd round
LG Kyle Kosier – 7th round (49ers)
C Andre Gurode – 2nd round
RG Leonard Davis – 1st round (Cardinals)
RT Marc Colombo – 1st round (Bears)

Philly
LT Tra Thomas – 1st round
LG Todd Herremans – 4th round
C Jamaal Jackson – UDFA
RG Shawn Andrews – 1st round
RT Jon Runyan – 4th round (Oilers)

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 11:59 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Now... those 3 teams have been very good offenses for a while

And you can see why… as they place high value in terms of FA dollars/draft picks on their O-lines. They all have multiple high draft picks on their line, but they also each have one 7th round pick/UDFA starting for them.

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 12:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Thanks for showing that

We have good luck with drafting late-round defensive talent. I don’t know why we don’t have the same luck with OL. I guess that’s what it comes down to for me. I don’t know if it’s the fact that they don’t do their research on the late-round offensive talent, but we always seem to get some sort of star player from the late rounds (5th on down).

I'M A MAN! I'M 22!

by ChiFan13 on Sep 30, 2008 12:25 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Luck.. LOL

We don’t have much luck with offensive talent in general.

It comes down to scouting, drafting, coaching, and developing… as well as an overall philosophy that seems to neglect offense to begin with.

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 1:14 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

"overall philosophy that seems to neglect offense to begin with"

i think that pretty much sums up our inability to field a good offense. they are so set on being a running team (i.e. low scoring offense) and strong defense that it is like they don’t even try to assemble any type of offense, they just take what they can get in the bargain bin and roll with it. it is a terrible philosophy.

by lopey986 on Sep 30, 2008 1:16 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Note to the Bears

You’re allowed to be good on both sides of the ball. There is no rule against that. Exhibit A: our last opponent: the Eagles.

I'm not going to even bother trying to update this sig everyday anymore... that's what the standings column on ESPN is for.
Updated on May 25, 2008

by SackMan on Sep 30, 2008 1:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

i think its a good idea

lovie is trying to implement a similiar concept to the lbs as he does the d line. by rotating players in and out of that spot, he not only gets guys like nick roach reps but he keeps everyone fresh.

i mean the main problem in games 2 and 3 was the d not finishing games. well i think in this case, you can argue the strategy worked given how much the defense played in the second half. not to mention hillenmeyer got a sack and demonstrated some serious burst getting to mcnabb late in the game, which maybe doesnt happen if they dont rotate linebackers.

also roach didnt stand out in a negative way at all, so maybe hes playing better than williams right now…. i guess we have to trust the staff on that one.

by rahulsriram on Sep 30, 2008 10:38 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I guess I'm willing

to give the coaching staff the benefit of the doubt. I want to see how Roach does in a game, but on paper, I was sure that Williams was better than Roach.

I'M A MAN! I'M 22!

by ChiFan13 on Sep 30, 2008 10:55 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The coaches have mishandled some stuff

such as Danieal Manning and the Arch Deluxe situation, but they have also done a ton of good on the defensive side of the ball. You have to give them a little latitude over there.

Being Who You Thought We Were Since 2005!

by Adam T on Sep 30, 2008 1:13 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs