Rounding Up Chicago Bears' Offseason Buzz, Post-Minicamps
The Chicago Bears wrapped up their final minicamp practice of the year late last week, and the team will now have the next several weeks off before training camp begins on July 30.
The Bears will hold training camp on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, Illinois, for the 14th year in a row this summer. Even though the Bears will not be conducting any practices until the end of July, there is still a lot of buzz surrounding the team.
Head coach John Fox was hired by the Bears in January, and while he is happy with the direction the team is heading, he knows there is still a lot of work to do.
“I think we’ve made progress,” Fox said, according to Larry Mayer of ChicagoBears.com. “We’re by no means there yet. We’ve made a lot of changes—upstairs, downstairs, throughout the building. The guys have responded well. Guys have bought in and worked hard and that’s all I can ask.”
There have been injuries, holdouts and players stepping up on both the offensive and defensive side of the football over the course of the last several weeks, and just ahead, we round up some of the buzz surrounding the Bears following the conclusion of their final minicamp session of the 2015 offseason.
OLB Pernell McPhee Has Impressed This Offseason
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General manager Ryan Pace's first big free-agent signing this offseason was outside linebacker Pernell McPhee. The young linebacker spent the first four years of his career in Baltimore, and he finished his Ravens career with 92 tackles, 17 sacks, seven pass deflections and three forced fumbles in 60 games.
Pace signed McPhee to a five-year, $38.75 million deal this past May, and the former Mississippi State star has looked good this offseason in Chicago's new 3-4 defense, according to Bleacher Report's Dan Pompei:
"2. Pernell McPhee probably was the best defensive player on the field. He’s going to add an edge to the D. I’d say he’s better than expected
— Dan Pompei (@danpompei) June 19, 2015"
McPhee has the ability to play both outside linebacker and defensive end, but he should see the majority of his reps on the outside at linebacker. While he was brought in to put pressure on opposing quarterbacks, he will also have other responsibilities this season.
“It’s a big difference,” McPhee said last Thursday, according to Nate Atkins of ChicagoFootball.com. “I’m usually a pass-rusher, and they brought me in to do other things, make the defense real difficult so you don’t know who’s coming."
McPhee measures in at 6'3" and weighs 280 pounds, but he is surprisingly quick for a man of his size. The likelihood of him dropping back in coverage on a consistent basis is low, but he is athletic enough to drop back and cover a part of the field in zone coverage.
Fox said part of the reason why he was drawn to the young linebacker in free agency was because of his experience playing for a winning team in Baltimore.
“You’re looking for ability and how it fits in your scheme and things, but the fact that he came from a program that’s won and experienced that, kind of understands that culture, I think that’s always helpful,” Fox said, according to Atkins.
McPhee was a relentless competitor on the field for the Ravens in a limited role, and he will now have a chance to prove he can be an every-down player in the NFL. If he can add an edge to the defense like Pompei thinks he can, McPhee has a chance to break out this season in Chicago in defensive coordinator Vic Fangio's scheme.
TE Martellus Bennett Is Still Looking for a Pay Raise
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Tight end Martellus Bennett skipped out on the team's voluntary minicamp and all of OTAs earlier this offseason, but he was in attendance this past week when the team held its mandatory minicamp June 16-18.
After his first practice on Tuesday, he spoke to the media for the first time this offseason about his holdout.
"I think that everybody, even you guys should be lobbying for new contracts," Bennett told the media, via Hub Arkush of ChicagoFootball.com. "If your performance is at a high level and you're playing to a high level, then you want to be compensated for the level that you play at."
Bennett broke out in a big way last season, notching career highs in catches (90), receiving yards (916) and touchdowns (six), and he was named to his first Pro Bowl following the season. Despite his impressive year, he has been a slightly above-average tight end throughout his career and still has two years remaining on his contract.
He signed a four-year deal with the Bears in 2013 worth $20.4 million, and the Bears have not publicly expressed a desire to offer him a new contract this offseason. Pace has not commented about Bennett since he returned to the team last week, but he did discuss Bennett's absence from offseason activities back in May.
"With him, it's individual choices," Pace said at the time, according to ESPN.com's Jeff Dickerson. "I've been talking to him and his agent. We'd love for him to be here right now competing, especially with what we've got going right now. That's his individual choice and it's voluntary, but hopefully he'll be here sooner than later."
Bennett brought a lot to Chicago's offense last season, but he had more than a few mental lapses in 2014. According to Pro Football Focus, Bennett's eight drops last season tied him with Jimmy Graham for the most in the NFL among tight ends.
He is a solid run-blocker, but he has struggled with pass protection in the past. He has been strong out of the gate in his two seasons with the Bears, but over the course of the last two years, his production has declined as the season wore on.
The former second-round pick scored three touchdowns in the team's first two games in 2013 but did not register another touchdown until Week 7. His fifth and final touchdown of the season was recorded in Week 12, and he went the final five weeks of the season without finding the end zone.
He also had a similar season in 2014. After scoring four touchdowns in the first three weeks of the season, he did not score again until Week 8. His final touchdown of the season was recorded in Week 14. If Bennett wants to be paid like some of the big-name tight ends in the league like Rob Gronkowski and Graham, he needs to be more consistent in the red zone.
The Bears currently have six other tight ends on the roster, and they appear to be prepared to move on just in case Bennett decides to hold out again once training camp begins next month.
WR Kevin White Is Expected to Be Ready for Training Camp
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When the Bears opened up minicamp last Tuesday, first-round pick Kevin White was not in attendance, according to the Chicago Tribune's Brad Biggs:
"#Bears WR Kevin White did not participate in team's first minicamp practice. We'll see what John Fox says.
— Brad Biggs (@BradBiggs) June 16, 2015"
"Everybody's day to day with me," Fox said when asked about White last week, according to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune. "I'll meet with the medical people and we'll make that call, and he'll be out here when he's ready."
White missed the entire minicamp, but Fox is not worried about the young receiver not being ready for training camp.
“Yeah, I do [expect White to be ready],” Fox said, according to Dickerson. “Part of the offseason is getting ready for the season. Any decision we make is going to be with the players’ best interests in mind. It could be physical, it could be for a variety of reasons. I feel good about where we are and feel good about where we’ll be when we start camp.”
No information was given by the Bears regarding the nature of White's injury, but he did participate in OTAs.
“He’s a great player,” Alshon Jeffery said earlier this month, according to Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times. “He’s an explosive player. We can’t wait for the season. What he’s going to do on the field is going to be great.”
White will benefit from playing alongside Jeffery and veteran slot receiver Eddie Royal this season, but in order to fully grasp the offense, he is going to need to be on the field as much as possible during training camp. If he is not completely healthy once training camp begins, he may have a difficult time adjusting to the offense once coordinator Adam Gase starts to add more and more wrinkles to the playbook.
Most of the team came away from OTAs and minicamps healthy, but since the Bears have not said much about White, his injury is intriguing. Unless White makes a comment in the coming weeks, we probably will not know what the injury is until he and/or Fox meet with the media when the team reports to training camp.
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DT Eddie Goldman Has Impressed This Offseason
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In order for Chicago's defense to be successful in 2015, it is going to need consistent production out of the 0-technique nose tackle position. The team added Florida State's Eddie Goldman in the second round of this year's draft, and Fox thinks the young nose tackle has done a good job this offseason.
“He’s picking up the defense,” Fox said, according to Mayer. “There are some movement things Ed knows that you have to know. Some of the closed call mechanics are different than these guys experienced in college. I like what I’ve seen. He’s working at it hard and he’s a big square body.”
Goldman's "big square body" should help him be a force against the run in the middle of Chicago's defensive line. Goldman recorded 31 total tackles and 12 tackles for loss while at Florida State, and even though he has the ability to get after the quarterback, he is a consistent threat against the run.
In college, he did a nice job of taking on double-teams to free up space for his linebackers to make a play, but he was also able to break free and take down opposing ball-carriers in the running game.
He is explosive out of his stance, uses his hands well and Pace thinks the young defensive lineman can be more than just a two-down player, according to Mayer:
"I know a lot of people say, ‘when you say nose tackle, this is just a two-down guy.' [But] he can collapse the pocket. He's got a strong power to bull rush. So he can provide that, too. That's going to help out a lot. It helps the outside linebackers when they're coming off the edge if you've got some push in the middle, and he can provide that.
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He needs to develop a secondary pass-rushing move if he is going to be considered an every-down player, but he has the potential to grow in Fangio's defense.
In addition to impressing Fox this offseason in minicamps and OTAs, Goldman has also impressed one of his teammates.
"You can tell he's been coached well," said veteran Jeremiah Ratliff, according to Rich Campbell of the Chicago Tribune. "He came in with great feet for a big man, great speed. And his hands? You don't have to say anything to him about that. He knows what he's doing there. I've got to say I'm impressed with him."
If Goldman can continue to progress on the field and impress the coaching staff and his teammates, the sky's the limit for the young nose tackle in his rookie season.
Jarvis Jenkins Could Develop into a Solid Option at Defensive End
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Chicago's addition of Jarvis Jenkins in free agency flew largely under the radar this offseason, but the 27-year-old defensive lineman has a chance to cement himself as a starter on defense with a strong showing in training camp.
The Washington Redskins drafted Jenkins in the second round of the 2011 draft, but he tore his ACL in the preseason and spent his rookie season on injured reserve. He returned in 2012 and made 44 starts over the next three seasons in Washington's 3-4 defense.
He has accumulated 75 tackles and just two sacks in his career. According to Pro Football Focus, he finished the 2014 season with a minus-7.2 pass-rushing grade. In 552 snaps last season, he recorded just two quarterback hits and five quarterback hurries.
Jenkins discussed what he needs to do to become a better pass-rusher earlier this offseason.
"Be quicker, be active," he said, according to Dickerson. "Pass rush takes time. It takes concentration, it takes focus. It just takes quickness. The main thing about it is you've got to get off the line and just get into the backfield. Everything about pass rush is disruptive, so if I could get in front of the quarterback, I'll be successful."
Chicago's outside linebackers will be asked to put the majority of the pressure on opposing quarterbacks, but Jenkins has talked about how Fangio has given the defensive line more freedom to work up the field in comparison to what he was allowed to do in Washington.
"It's a little more freedom, not much, but his defense is a little more technical because you've got a lot of guys tied into one play," Jenkins said, according to Dickerson. "It's a little bit more technical and your job and your responsibility is very major, because if one person messes up, it screws up the whole continuity."
Jenkins may not be asked specifically to get after the quarterback this season, but he will play a key part in the team's pass rush. By forcing an opposing offensive tackle to work to the outside or to the inside, Jenkins can help free up rush lanes for his linebackers.
He should get the opportunity to pin his ears back and get after the quarterback at times this season, but if he is able to set up his teammates by collapsing the pocket or opening up lanes, he will be able to call the 2015 season a success.
Statistical information courtesy of NFL.com and Sports-Reference.com unless otherwise noted. Contract information courtesy of Spotrac.
Matt Eurich is a Chicago Bears featured columnist for Bleacher Report and a member of the Pro Football Writers of America.
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