The Chicago Bears were beyond awful on offense last season, and their defense didn't play at the same level that they have in previous years.
This culminated in a 7-9 season where they missed the playoffs and created major doubt at multiple positions.
What is going to happen to these positions come this season? Well, their major positions of need going into the Draft were QB, RB, WR, and OL. I personally think that they will be fine at most of these positions.
Here's why...
Quarterback
Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton are in a quarterback competition. I know that that phrase doesn't exactly scream strength to most people, but I think that these two players aren't as bad as everybody thinks.
If they have the weapons around them, they can be fine.
Running Back
Cedric Benson isn't a good runner. He doesn't show any of the heart or drive that he showed while running at Texas.
The Bears have basically given him one chance, and that is play now or be benched.
They made that statement by drafting Matt Forte out of Tulane in the second round. Forte has all the size, speed, and drive that Benson had coming out of Texas.
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Coming from a smaller school, he is also more likely to keep that drive to show he wasn't over-valued.
I really liked this pick. Instead of going for somebody like Brian Brohm or Chad Henne who would have taken a year or two to develop, we got somebody who can contribute right away.
Offensive Line
The Bears' offensive line was beyond bad last season. I really can't see that happening this season.
They drafted Chris Williams to play left tackle. This means that John Tait can go back to the position where he is more comfortable and can contribute more.
The Bears were also smart by grabbing some guards in the later rounds. I think that with Williams, Olin Kruetz, and Tait, the line will be a lot better than it was last season.
Wide Receiver
This is really the only position of concern I have for this team. The choice of Earl Bennet brings, in my opinion, somebody that we have to scheme for.
He is only 6'0", so he isn't going to be able to go up and grab balls against some of the taller corners.
I think that Marcus Monk, the seventh round pick, is a wild card that could become a force in the NFL. He has all the intangibles, but spent most of the last season injured.
Without the injury, he was a possible second or third round pick. If he can play at that level in the NFL, we have the steal of the Draft.
Defense
A lot of people say that we forgot to play defense. But in reality, they just got tired of having to carry the team all season.
Through the first two games of the season they held Ladanian Tomlinson and Larry Johnson to under 50 yards each. Those guys aren't exactly pushovers.
After that point, we were dashed and murdered almost every week. If the offense can hold their own, the defense should be back to its old dominant self.
Devin Hester
He is really the guy who will decide if this Bears team goes all the way or gets another high Draft pick.
If he is a great wide receiver, then the Bears’ offense will follow. If he can't be the receiver the Bears hope he can be, then he will stay in his scheme routes and continue to be the greatest return man of all time.
Well, this season is going to be better than most people are expecting. I think that we could probably go somewhere around 8-8 or 9-7 and a Wild Card spot.
I'm Joe W.
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8 months ago
Good article! Really looking forward to the '08 season
8 months ago
The Bears could be anywhere from 5-11 to 10-6. . . who knows. I agree that Hester could be the X factor, but not at wide receiver. He is so explosive in the return game that teams have to kick away from him. He will impact the offense, but probably on end arounds and screens.
from 8 months ago
But the Bears think that he could be anywhere from Dante Hall to Steve Smith on the offense, hopefully he can be a combination.
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