Chicago Bears: 5 Key Veterans Who'll Take a Backseat in 2012

Things are changing for the Bears, and changing rapidly. There is a new GM in town, and he's making trades and signing players who make a difference. That could affect some veterans this season.

Sure, the Bears will still rely on some of the familiar faces from previous years, such as Brian Urlacher, Julius Peppers and Jay Cutler. But they may try to work others into the rotation as the season goes on.

Now I'm not suggesting that all of the changes will take place from the start of training camp, nor do I feel that the first regular season game will be the same lineup we'll see in Week 16. Still, things will be different.

For one thing, the team has to get younger. But the Bears want to win now. That's a difficult balance, but one that the Bears will attempt to juggle.

This was a tough assignment because in reality, the Bears will depend on their true veterans this season.

Meanwhile, who are the players who will be relied on less in 2012? Note that by "veterans" this doesn't mean these guys are old. It just means that some of the names we saw starting last year may get challenged in 2012.

Here we go.

Matt Forte

Look, I am NOT suggesting that Forte will be traded, though I raised the question here. Nor do I think he won't be a big part of the offense once again. I'm just saying that with four backs, he may get used less.

One of those four will not be with the team when it opens the season, and that is probably Marion Barber. But with a solid backup in Michael Bush, and Forte still lacking that contract extension, the Bears may want to see what they have.

The same applies to Kahlil Bell, who looked good last year, though he needs to hold onto the ball better.

If Forte is here, and I believe he will be, he will get the most touches of any Bears back. He will also catch a lot of passes. But his workload may be lessened.

While that's not technically "taking a backseat," he may feel that way.

Major Wright

We saw a brief, but impressive display from Craig Steltz toward the end of last season, and while he may not be as good as he looked, he was better than I believed.

That said, I am not sold on Wright at strong safety and neither are the Bears. So naturally Steltz will get opportunities and may eventually outplay Wright, sending him to the backseat.

The draft is very weak at strong safety, but they could pick someone like Harrison Smith out of Notre Dame, who could also challenge for the starting job.

However, I think it is more likely that Steltz and Wright will battle it out.

J'Marcus Webb

I know Webb is only 23, but he is the veteran in the sense that he is the current starter at left tackle. But if the Bears go into camp without competition at this position, they will be very stupid.

Webb was one of the worst LTs in the NFL last year. He played the run fine but ranked last in terms of sacks and penalties. In short, he cannot play the position at the level the Bears need if they are going to contend this season.

So, either the Bears will use their first-round pick on Stanford's Jonathan Martin, or they will need to offer competition from within.

Your guess is as good as mine as to who that might be. I just know it can't be Webb.

Unfortunately, the Bears didn't show any interest in free agents Demetrius Bell or Jared Gaither.  

Marion Barber

Either Barber gets released or they go with four backs (unlikely), but no matter what he will take a back seat to newly acquired Michael Bush.

Barber wasn't awful last season. In fact, he was much better than Chester Taylor in 2010. But that brain cramp he suffered when he stepped out of bounds and the resulting fumble in OT versus Denver seems to be all anyone can remember.

Plus, cutting him saves $2 million from the salary cap.

Barber takes a backseat in 2012.

Roy Williams

Like Barber, Williams is a candidate to be released. But if he stays, he will not be on the field as much as he was last season.

With the addition of Brandon Marshall and a drafted wideout (hopefully), Williams won't repeat as the receiver who took the most snaps again.

Williams was brought in because he had his one and only 1,000-yard season with Mike Martz in 2006. But they couldn't recapture the magic again, and he and Cutler never seemed to get comfortable with each other.

He could possibly be a useful third-down receiver with his height, but he will definitely take a backseat to Marshall.