Amen to that Tuna...
I too feel that the Beras SHOULDN'T be considered a favorite but should be looked at as a dark horse type team. We had a bad year for numerous reasons that include but not limited to a serious rash of Injury, dismal O-line play, the tired old start multiple QB's in a season bit we grew so accustomed too for the last 20 years ect.....
I have a good feeling going into this season, the Defense should be back to full health and that is our bread and butter of this team. We will win based on our ability to field a health and top notch defense. Sure we have a lot of questions to answer but their are a few positives we gained from having such a poor season in 2007.
(1) we were forced to draft a true LT in this draft. We haven't done that since we chose Columbo back in Jerry's first official draft as Bears GM. If Williams can solidify the LT position then we have already imporved two fold as a team. With Williams anchoring the LT spot, RT will also be upgraded jus tby having John Tait move back to his natural position, he is hands down better then Fred Miller and this simple move will have a huge effect on our overall Offensive performance.....
(2) we were froced to draft Matt Forte due to our running woes and Ced being a complete bust. This kid will be a star for us, he has all the tools needed to be a successful RB in this league plus he has great character and an unbelievable work ethic. Now the job for the Bears is to get that O-line up to NFL standards again so the kid won't have to carry the entire burden ala, the late Great Walter Payton had to do for most of hise distinguished career........
(3) Hester showed us some signs as a legit WR as well as improving on his record setting Rerurn duties. The sky is the limit with this kid, get him in space and deliver the ball on time and he can take it to the house any time.
(4) Trumaine McBride showed us so much potetential that he all but relegated Ricky Manning jr. expendable......
(5) The injury woes at DT allowed us to get a good look at Anthony Adams and he played well for us until he was injured, after that we stole a diamond in the rough from Cincinnati by plucking Matt Toeinia from their practice squad. In the games he played in he played surprisingly well for a rookie and made a handful of impact plays, he is a high motor guy with great lower body strength and he fits perfectly in our style of defense.....
(6) The injury history of Mike Brown and the total failure of Adama Archuletta forced the Bears to draft another Safety and Stelz was a great selection for the Bears. He does not possess top speed but he plays smart, has great insrincts and is an solid tackler (something we lacked at that position last season) and has above average ball skills for a safety... His a Mike Brown typr, only bigger !!! Stelz will be a feature in our secondary for years to come.......
(7) The departure of Berrian will allow Bradley to get a legit shot, he was in the dog house last season and Lovie even admitted that he may have made a mistake by keeping Bradley down so far on the depth chart after he returned to full health in 2007. I have always like this kid, sure he has had some injuries but he also proved as a rookie that he posses top end speed and play making ability as a deep threat WR and the honus is on him to take the bull by the horns and win the starting job. If he can do that we will have a preety good (3) WR combo in Bradley, Booker and Hester plus we will see alot of Earl Bennett and his sure hands and the slippery smooth Rasheed Davis in situational duties is an added assett to our Offense. Combine that with an upgraded O-line and our trio of TE's in Clark, Olson and the newly drafted specimen and we have a unproven but potentially explosiev group of players that can be diesuptive to secondaries around the league. Just need to get the QB situation solidified in camp, that's easier sais then done but at least our two main QB's have shown the abilty to win games and aren't raw prospects............
(8) Brian Greise was traded, he was not our long term answer and he only took reps away from Orton. Now that he is out of the way Rex and Kyle will beable to go to camp knowing that the guy whos plays the best, winns the job and the loser drops to #2 which for the Bears, is ussually a sign that the loser of the QB derby will see the field at somepoint. Hopefully not but it will all depend on how our retooled O-line works out.....
