What the Chicago Bears NEED to do to FIX OUR PROBLEMS……..The Bear Necessities!

From a Chicago Bears fan, I have some things to say about our football team…let me beat you to it, and say, yeah they suck this year. Let me tell you why….the trade for Jay Cutler is still the best thing the Bears have done in a very long time. He is the piece we need to build around. The FRANCHISE quarterback. His performance so far is not great by any means, but you can’t deny his positives. Our current receiving core isn’t going to cut it. If Cutler had more experienced and taller receivers, I think that would be a start. Our failed attempt to acquire Anquan Boldin gives us fans hope that Jerry Angelo still knows what he needs to do. The Cardinals will now gladly trade Anquan Boldin this off-season, and I think we need to do whatever it takes to get him. I still think we should have signed former Jaguars (WR)Matt Jones. He is still out there, and despite having some off the field issues, he has all the tools we need at the position. Next year if we had Anquan Boldin, Matt Jones (or another free agent signing), with Devin Hester or Johnny Knox in the slot with Greg Olsen at Tight End, this would fix our receiving core. Another huge problem is our terrible offensive line…we will be without 1st, 2nd, and 4th round picks in the 2010 draft, so we need to do our research and get ourselves some offensive lineman, and some help for our secondary. Free Agency might also help both of these positions a bit. As far as our running game is concerned, I think it all starts with our offensive line. They aren’t giving Matt Forte the holes he needs. Some of the blame has to go to Forte himself as well. He seems too antsy, and just needs to have a good off-season of strengthening and conditioning. I’m not totally opposed to adding another running back through the draft or free agency though. Kevin Jones is not the answer as our back up. He is just too injury prone, and I wouldn’t mind adding a bruising type back. Our defense is getting older, and I think the acquisition of (DE)Gaines Adams from the Buccaneers will help. I’m not too concerned with our defensive line or linebackers. They just need to stay healthy, and we need to make sure we have adequate depth in case of injury.

There has been some talk of letting Head Coach Lovie Smith go after the season. I have mixed emotions on this….I think Lovie is a players coach, and I doubt there is a single player in that locker room that holds any ill will towards Lovie Smith. He lead us to a Super Bowl in 2007, and that should tell you right there that he is capable of being our head coach. I feel that Lovie needs to fire himself up a bit more, and drop the reserved approach. He should still treat his players as men, but needs to take a tougher approach to it. I read somewhere that former Denver Broncos head coach, Mike Shanahan would be a perfect fit. I don’t disagree with that at all, because he is from the Chicago area, was the head coach of Jay Cutler since he entered the league in 2006, and has lead the Denver Broncos to multiple Super Bowl championships. It is no guarantee he would take the job here anyway, but you can see why it would be attractive to the Bears, as well as Shanahan himself. It surely is an interesting scenario. I just don’t think Lovie is to blame for all of our problems. We need to fire Ron Turner in the offseason….that is one thing I am very sure of. We need to start from scratch and implement a new offensive scheme with a new offensive coordinator, who will build our offense around Jay Cutler’s abilities. As far as free agents in 2010, I will list a few players that would help us in getting this thing turned around. Remember that we don’t have many choices in the 2010 draft, so we need to bring in fresh faces through free agency or trades. Bringing in the right group of talent could get this thing turned around. It seems like any offensive player who comes to Chicago from another team, never does as well as his previous stint with the old team. The players that leave the Bears to go to different teams seem to do so much better with their new team, than with their stint with the Bears…just look at (RB)Cedric Benson – Bengals, (RB)Thomas Jones – Jets, (WR)Bernard Berrian – Vikings, (QB)Kyle Orton – Broncos, (DT)Tank Johnson – Cowboys & Bengals….it’s too much to be coincidence. Our upper management needs to make sure we work extra hard in the off-season, to not only evaluate players, but evaluate how their independent skills will mesh with the next guy.

2010 Free Agent Wide Receivers of Interest :
– Eagles (WR)Jason Avant
– Bills (WR)Terrell Owens
– Ravens (WR)Mark Clayton
– Bengals (WR)Chris Henry
– Broncos (WR)Brandon Marshall (looks like he will get an extension in Denver though)
– Giants (WR)Sinorice Moss

2010 Free Agent Cornerbacks of Interest :
– Cowboys (CB)Terence Newman
– Colts (CB)Marlin Jackson
– Eagles (CB)Ellis Hobbs
– Packers (CB)Will Blackmon
– Panthers (CB)Richard Marshall
– Steelers (CB)Deshea Townsend
– Steelers (CB)William Gay (RFA)
– Falcons (CB)Brent Grimes (RFA)

2010 Free Agent Safeties of Interest :
– Colts (S)Antoine Bethea
– Packers (S)Atari Bigby
– Steelers (S)Ryan Clark
– Eagles (S)Sean Jones
– Jets (S)Eric Smith
– Saints (S)Usama Young (RFA)

NFL Week 7 Fantasy Relevant Scores As They Happen In The Late Games

FIRST QUARTER
– Jets (RB)Thomas Jones rushes for a TD
– Bengals (QB)Carson Palmer passes to (WR)Chris Henry for a TD
– Falcons (QB)Matt Ryan passes to (WR)Roddy White for a TD
– Bills (RB)Marshawn Lynch rushes for a TD
– Jets (QB)Mark Sanchez rushes for a TD
– Dolphins (RB)Ricky Williams rushes for a TD
– Bengals (QB)Carson Palmer passes to (WR)Chad Ochocinco for a TD
– Dolphins (RB)Ricky Williams rushes for a TD

SECOND QUARTER
– Panthers(D/ST) Panthers (DT)Hollis Thomas and (DE)Tyler Brayton get safety
– Bengals (QB)Carson Palmer passes to (TE)John Paul Foschi for a TD
– Jets (RB)Shonn Greene rushes for a TD
– Dolphins (RB)Ronnie Brown rushes for a TD
– Cowboys (QB)Tony Romo passes to (WR)Miles Austin for a TD
– Bengals (QB)Carson Palmer passes to (WR)Laveranues Coles for a TD

THIRD & FOURTH QUARTER
– Bills (QB)Ryan Fitzpatrick passes to (WR)Lee Evans for a TD
– Jets (QB)Mark Sanchez passes to (WR)David Clowney for a TD
– Bengals (QB)Carson Palmer passes to (WR)Chad Ochocinco for a TD
– Cowboys (QB)Tony Romo passes to (WR)Patrick Crayton for a TD
– Falcons (RB)Michael Turner rushes for a TD
– Cowboys (QB)Tony Romo passes to (WR)Miles Austin for a TD
– Saints (QB)Drew Brees rushes for a TD
– Saints(D/ST) Saints (S)Darren Sharper **42 Yard Interception Return for a TD**
– Bengals (RB)Cedric Benson rushes for a TD
– Jets (RB)Shonn Greene rushes for a TD
– Bears (QB)Jay Cutler passes to (WR)Devin Hester for a TD
– Panthers (RB)DeAngelo Williams rushes for a TD
– Saints (QB)Drew Brees passes to (WR)Marques Colston for a TD
– Cowboys(D/ST) Cowboys (WR)Patrick Crayton **73 Yard Punt Return for a TD**
– Dolphins (RB)Ricky Williams rushes for a TD
– Saints (RB)Reggie Bush rushes for a TD
– Falcons (QB)Matt Ryan passes to (WR)Eric Weems for a TD
– Saints (QB)Drew Brees rushes for a TD
– Saints(D/ST) Saints (CB)Tracy Porter **54 Yard Interception Return for a TD**

2009 NFL Trade Deadline (Terrell Owens to the Bears?)

Tuesday, October 20th is the date in which teams can no longer trade during the NFL season. So now, is the time for the teams with a chance at playoff contention to go shopping for that one or two players that they think can help them battle through the playoffs, straight to the Super Bowl. As of right now there are 4 teams (Buccaneers, Titans, Rams, Chiefs) that have yet to produce a single win this season. All of them stand at a record of 0 wins and 5 losses. There are 5 teams (Raiders, Browns, Lions, Bills, Panthers) that have only produced 1 win this season. All in all, there are 9 teams that have to be already thinking about next season. I’m not saying that is the way to go about it, but if you can produce a 1st or 2nd Round Draft Pick for a guy that is not in your future plans, or who’s contract expires at the end of the season anyway, why not make a deal. Even if you are getting a package of picks and/or a player you think could be a part of your future, now is the time to do it. Teams that are in the hunt to take control of their division, should be looking at their current weaknesses, and looking for players that could give them that boost to help them get there. For example, the Bears at 3-1 will need to stay in pace with the Vikings who are at 5-0. The big internet rumor going around at the moment is Buffalo Bills (WR)Terrell Owens could possibly be traded, and the team that has come up in most of these rumors is the Chicago Bears. You could argue that the Bears are good right where they are at with their wide receiving core. Devin Hester, Earl Bennett, and the surprise emergence of rookie Johnny Knox are getting the job done without a doubt…but you have to wonder how much of that is due to the sure-fire accuracy of Jay Cutler.

Now you have to wonder, what kind of damage do you think could be done to opposing defenses, if the Bears aquired (WR)Terrell Owens from the Buffalo Bills for lets say a future 2nd or 3rd Round Draft Pick. I know they have already traded away a plethora of picks to get Jay Cutler, but it’s looking so far to be well worth it. The Bills have Lee Evans (who the Dolphins are reportedly interested in trading for, but won’t happen), Josh Reed, Roscoe Parrish (who is another Bills wide receiver with a great chance of getting traded before the deadline), James Hardy (who will be coming off the PUP list soon), and Steve Johnson (who has already shown great promise).

It all makes perfect sense, because the Bills have a dismal 1-4 record, only have Owens under contract for one year, could potentially receive a great 2010 draft pick for him in exchange, and still have good enough receivers to hold up the rest of this year. The Bears would be taking a risk in aquiring Owens, but it’s undeniable that the connection of Cutler to T.O would wreck havoc among opposing defenses. He would bring a lot of veteran knowledge and leadership to a young receiving core, which would surely benefit the talented group of young receivers the Bears have already. I think Terrell Owens is slowly maturing and has proven it by his behavior so far with the Bills. This is his worst season so far to date, and he has kept his cool, and has said all of the right things to a media that provokes him disrespectfully, after a bad game. The Bills have had 4 of them already this season.

The reality of Terrell Owens being traded at all is slim to none though. Especially with the Bills deciding to ditch their no-huddle offense. It could happen though, and trades such as this I find very intriguing. Trades within the NFL were a rare commodity at one point, but it seems that in the past few years, we’ve seen an increase in movement. Over the next few days I will keep you up-to-date on all of the NFL trade rumors, and examine what players could be “on the market” over the next week.

On a personal note, what I think the Bears should do, is sign free agent (WR)Matt Jones, formally of the Jaguars. He showed plenty of #1 receiving potential, and has all the skills necessary to be one in this game for a long time. He is still young, and has height, which will blend together well with have (TE)Greg Olsen on the field at the same time. With Matt Jones and Devin Hester on the ends, Johnny Knox in the slot, and Greg Olsen, it would bring together a group that we would be able to rely on for a long time to come. We would lose nothing by signing him, because I’m quite sure he would only get signed to the veteran minimum. Let him come in and earn a contract extension next year. He would succeed too. because if you think about it, most of his time he had David Garrard throwing him passes. Decent QB, but no Jay Cutler.

If we signed Matt Jones, then we wouldn’t have to bring in a guy like Terrell Owens. We would also save a ton of money by doing it this way, and wouldn’t have to trade a draft pick. Maybe save that pick to trade for a guy like Shawne Merriman/Chargers, Aaron Kampman/Packers, Derrick Johnson/Chiefs, or Nnamdi Asomugha/Raiders, who are all rumored to be available for the right price, but I’ll save all of that for the days to come. So many possibilities!

-Dale Underiner (TSR Writer)-