So the prodigal son has returned without ever having left. Lance Briggs agreed to a six-year contract with the Bears today worth about $36 million with $13 million in guaranteed bonuses. After all the fuss and drama of last season, it’s good to see Briggs finally get the huge contract he deserves. Briggs played like a possessed man in ’07, ranking second on the team in tackles with 140, including ten tackles-for-loss. He also added two sacks, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery. If you watched any game last year, you know this guy was always leaving it all on the field every game, holding down the weak side position and providing a great complement to Urlacher. And now that he’s coming back, we can be certain Lovie will keep Urlacher in the middle instead of experimenting with him on the weak side (He’s also incredibly smart. Remember when he crashed his Lamborghini on the Edens at 4 AM the night before practice and inexplicably left the scene? I mean,

Continue reading "Briggs decides to stay in Chitown, Berrian thinks it's not cold enough"

Brian Griese was traded back to his old team today for an undisclosed 2009 draft pick. We all knew this was coming, especially since he was due a $300,000 roster bonus tomorrow and wouldn’t have stayed on the roster even if he hadn’t been traded. This is comforting news for Angelo, who got something, anything, for Greesee rather than just giving him the ol’ das boot. I don’t really understand what the Bucs were thinking. Take a gander at their current QB roster for ‘08:

•    Jeff Garcia
•    Bruce Gradkowski
•    One of the McCown brothers (the younger, less demure one)
•    Brian “It Ain’t Easy Being” Griese
•    The rights to Jake “The Snake” Plummer

Continue reading "Griese traded to Bucs for '09 draft pick, 24-pack of Heineken"

At last! I’ve come across some breaking news to legitimate this website’s reputation as the forefront for all news regarding our beloved Bears (save for ChicagoBears.com, from which this information has been culled) – Angelo has attempted to inject some life into the offense by bring back the club’s last 1,000 yard receiver, the wily veteran Marty Booker. Booker has been a virtual non-factor the last few years in the league, stuck catching balls thrown from the latest projects to emerge from the Miami Dolphins’ QB University (an institute of uninspired complacency with lots of bright graduates – Cleo Lemon, John Beck, what was left of Daunte Culpepper and Trent Green, and the older, more brusque McCown brother). I’m sure the main reason Angelo brought Booker back was because, naturally, he let perhaps the last intriguing free agent WR walk off to another team earlier today. With Javon Walker off the market, our trusty GM dusted off the old depth charts to see exactly who could be brought in to salvage the O.

Continue reading "The Triumphant Return of Marty Booker"

The Bears gave Brandon Lloyd a one-year contract last week, reeling in a cast-off from the Redskins who’s been plagued by injuries and questionable locker room chemistry the past two seasons. Lloyd’s production will be a complete gamble, but there are some good reasons to like this deal. First off, he’s coming incredibly cheap, dime-store, like we just snatched him up off the shelf at that seedy bodega down the street. There’s basically nothing to lose, am I wrong? Anybody is an upgrade at this point. I remember a time when Lloyd impressed me mildly – two 40+ catch seasons in San Fran, great hands, good burst off the line, strong vertical leap, mediocre blocking, a propensity for SportsCenter Top-10 one-handed catches. When I read about him being traded to Washington, I pictured him working the middle of the field, Santana Moss putting some double-moves on the outside and burning the safety with an inside post pattern, Antwaan Randle El drawing up in a hitch – the near-mechanized cogs of Al Saunders’ vaunted offense in perfect syncronization. Well, we all know how that turned out (Did he really think every one of those players could digest a 700-page playbook? Didn’t he check their Wonderlic scores?).

Continue reading "Lloyd Reunited with Turner, Hugs and Tears Abound"

The ceremonial fireworks of the opening weeks of free agency have finally started dying down and there’s a lot of dust to clear through. A few teams have made some big strides, immediately raising their hopes for 2008 with key acquisitions and retainers. I’m pretty sure we can all agree that the Browns are probably the poster child for this offseason. On the heels of a ten-win season in which they were unfortunately robbed of a playoff spot, the team too good for a logo had much to look forward to – rising young talent in Edwards (who finally learned how to catch short passes over the middle) and Winslow (who finally realized it wasn’t a good idea to pop wheelies on your bike in May), a terrific offensive line with a young left tackle quickly making a name for himself, a defense that could only really improve. Now, they’ve set themselves up for great success by bringing in talent on both sides of the ball. Re-signing Anderson was a must in my opinion, and the Browns will be all the happier seeing him rather than future franchise QB Quinn trying to direct the offense. Giving Quinn more time as a spectator will aid the transition from college and help him adjust for when he eventually makes his debut. Sure, some would argue that Quinn deserves his shot now, but no one can say that the extra time won’t hurt – two years on the bench is the most valued experience for a fresh QB. With Anderson, even if he does prove to be nothing more than a flash in the pan (as we might suspect from the closing weeks of last season), Quinn is waiting in the ranks. The Browns’ offense also became much more explosive with the addition of Stallworth, a legit speedster who seems to be on a new team each season. The Saints, Eagles, Pats -- can’t we get some consistency? Millions of fantasy owners don’t want to gamble on you each year! We like sure things! (Ironic side note: There are no sure things in fantasy football.)

Continue reading "Browns No Longer Committed to Sucking; Thoughts on Rashard Mendenhall"

ESPN columnist KC Joyner took a statistical look at the route-running efficiency of Hester a few days ago, compiling a table that breaks down his experience as a receiver and basically reinforcing how I feel about Chicago’s new #23. Unfortunately, in order to view said table, one must be privy to the world of the ESPN Insider ( http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/insider/columns/story?columnist=joy). If you aren’t, it highlights three things: (a) Hester is at his best running on the go and double-move go routes, catching Griese’s 81-yard bomb at the end of the Minnesota game and Orton’s 55-yarder in the final game. Obviously, this is where he’s his most explosive -- burning defensive backs and hauling in the long ball. He is the heir apparent to Berrian in this capacity and the Bears seem confident enough in this ability to pencil him at #2 on the depth chart for now. However, as Joyner also points out, (b) Hester is suffering from a low YPC on quick hitches and screens. He’s caught eight balls using these two routes but managed a paltry 27 yards total -- only 3.4 yards per catch. Hester needs to learn how to create some space between him and defenders, like Steve Smith (or perhaps Steve Smith of 2005). Working on separation tactics will boost his potential for short yardage situations. And obviously, (c) the kid just lacks overall experience. It should be interesting to see how he adjusts to his new role come September. I still think it’s too early to put him at #2, but it seems the Bears (for better or worse) have their minds set on this.

Continue reading "The Devin Hester Experience"

The Bears emerged victorious from the courtroom earlier this week with a decisive off-the-field victory over the embittered 49ers. According to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, San Francisco illegally contacted Chicago linebacker Lance Briggs’ uber-agent, Drew Rosenhaus, during the 2007 season – a “blatant, outright, stupid, stupid, stupid violation of NFL anti-tampering policy,” he remarked. “We basically caught [San Francisco GM] Scot McCloughan with his hands in the proverbial cookie jar. If you know what I mean.” This attempt at humor left many witnesses baffled and appalled, especially when the commissioner followed it up with a series of erratic winks.

McCloughan defended his integrity after court adjourned. “I don’t get what the big deal is. All I did was send Drew a few texts, asking him, you know, if he wanted to hang out or possibly come over to my swinging pad to watch some MTV or something. Can’t a guy hang out with another guy in the beautiful city of San Francisco without getting hassled by the commissioner of the NFL?”

Continue reading ""Get Your Hands Off My Linebacker!""