Chicago Bears: 5 Things to Watch in Preseason Opener Against Buffalo Bills

The Chicago Bears, who were originally scheduled to play in the Hall of Fame game last weekend, will open up the preseason officially this Saturday night against the Buffalo Bills.

Things have been intriguing and drama-filled in Bourbonnais, the site of the bears training camp, this offseason. Plenty of talk has been made about Jay Cutler’s toughness, the signing of a mediocre wide receiver in Roy Williams and the separation from longtime center Olin Kreutz.

Plenty of questions surround this team going into the first of four exhibition games this weekend. The plot will involve dilemmas on the field as well as contract disputes off the field. In addition, canceling last Friday’s Family Night practice thickens the story as well because the game is at Soldier Field.

What are some of the major things the Chicago Bears will be looking to figure out this weekend when the ball is kicked off for the first time against another franchise?

5. The New Offensive Line

For those who thought the Jay Cutler-Kristin Cavallari separation was the most dramatic split of the summer, Olin Kreutz beckons to throw his name in the ring for the same award.

When Kreutz and Bears GM Jerry Angelo had a very public contract stand-off, the talks turned out to be over a very small additional $500,000. The Bears offered Kreutz a one-year deal worth $4 million, but Kreutz said he wouldn’t take anything less than $4.5 million for a one-year contract.

The two sides stood firm on their demands, and both parties split apart like a teenage couple on prom night.

The loss of Kreutz meant Chicago was in need of a center, a position the team didn’t expect it would need to fill when the lockout lifted. The Bears brought in former Seattle center Chris Spencer and added him in the mix for the starting center job.

Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice came out earlier this week and announced his preseason offensive line starters with the intent those five players would be the starters Sept. 11th when the regular season began as well.

Tice stated that the offensive line would consist of J’Marcus Webb, Chris Williams, Roberto Graza, Lance Louis and rookie Gabe Carimi from left to right respectively. The aforementioned Spencer will begin in a reserve role.

With this current offensive line formation, the Bears will have three left tackles playing various positions and a center who has only practiced at that position in anticipation of coming in as an emergency snapper.

Plenty of eyeballs will be glued to the new line which last year was a major problem for Jay Cutler and company. It will take time for the new unit to click and gel together, and Saturday will be the first step in that direction.

Offensive coordinator Mike Martz stressed the importance of blocking and creating a firmer pocket for Cutler to throw in. This is the first line of defense to fix that problem. Time will tell if Martz will be pleased with what he sees.

4. The Johnny Knox-Roy Williams Debate

More drama for the Bears offense has picked up this last week after the team’s first of many depth charts was released on Wednesday afternoon.

One ranking however would upset a role player more than any other Bear.

The depth chart stated the Bears starting wide receivers would be Devin Hester and free-agent signing Roy Williams. Johnny Knox, who lead the 2010 Bears in receiving yards and was tied for the team lead in receptions, took offense to the slating.

Knox reportedly became furious with being the third receiver so much that Chicago Tribune Bears beat reporter Brad Biggs published a story Thursday morning on the situation.

Biggs mentions in the piece that sources told him Knox would consider demanding a trade if he is not dubbed a starter at the preseason’s end.

Knox and wide receivers coach Darryl Drake emphatically denied the allegations, calling them false and based on rumors being created just for speculation purposes.

Should this kind of behavior be proven true, Knox could be in serious jeopardy with an organization that doesn’t stand for having players with selfish or troublesome reputations on its roster.

Additionally, Knox is incapable of backing up his side of the story by playing because of back issues. Head coach Lovie Smith stated he believes all his players will be ready to go Saturday against Buffalo. No official decision has been made on the playing condition of Knox.

The other side to this story is Williams who took over Knox’s spot as a starting wide receiver. Williams has plenty of pressure as it is being the free agent acquisition Bears fans were promised and for being “Martz’s guy” because of their past successes.

If Williams proves he can work well within this offense and develop solid chemistry with Cutler, Knox’s chances of being a starting wide out may vanish for some time.

3. The Soldier Field Grass

Rarely does a playing surface float up this high on a list of questions to be answered during a game, but the Family Night debacle last Friday night (no, not like Katy Perry) has made things interesting for Soldier Field and the Chicago Park District which operates it.

The reason for calling off the public practice last weekend was because of the fresh sod that was laid down ahead of the practice. The sod reportedly was not water properly, resulting in large canals between the rows of grass.

Such playing conditions open the door for injuries and unnecessary setbacks. The only decision was the one that was ultimately made, canceling the scrimmage.

Plenty of opinions on the state of Chicago’s playing field rose up last winter during the home-stretch of the season. The Bears experienced heavy snow and poor weather conditions during games against the Patriots, Jets and Seahawks in the playoffs.

Players, coaches and management have all been asked since the cancellation for their two cents regarding the natural grass vs. field turf debate. While some players didn’t seem to mind too much one way or the other, the face of the franchise has plenty to state on the topic.

Brian Urlacher called the field “a joke” saying that “[he] doesn’t know how the Bears don’t have field turf yet.”

Urlacher went on to mention that field turf would allow the Bears to utilize the team’s speed better, creating a more distinctive home field advantage for the Bears.

Fans willing to gamble on whether the field will be in tip-top shape Saturday should place all their chips on “yes.” The park district will surely address the issue and have it looking its absolute best for this preseason opener.

If the field remains to be an issue, don’t expect this conversation to go away anytime soon.

2. How Devin Hester Operates With the New Kickoff Rule

One of the biggest strengths for the Bears over the last decade has been the play of the special teams units. More specifically, the role(s) of Devin Hester.

The first five games of the 2011 preseason took place Thursday evening and lots of talk was made regarding the new kickoff rule where teams tee the ball from their own 35-yard line.

Also, the 10 gunners are now allowed to start any closer to the ball then their own 30-yard line, meaning it takes longer for them to achieve top speed and get downfield slower.

For those debating if the new kickoff rule really made a big effect on the five preseason games, the numbers would astonishingly confirm that.

Granted, these numbers are coming off of only five contests which consist of such a small sample size of an actual NFL season (256 regular season games).

In the five games last night, the average starting field position following a kickoff was the 22.5-yard line. The 2010 NFL average was the 27.

There were a total of 50 kickoffs last night. Of those, 40 of them were fielded in the end zone. A total of 16 touchbacks (32 percent) were recorded, which is substantially higher than last year’s average touchback rate of 16.4 percent.

Moving the ball for kickoffs is nothing new. As player strength and training skills improve, the game has to adjust to change with the times to keep things fair.

This move of five yards is not because kickers struggle getting the ball downfield but rather as a safety precaution to limit the amount of collisions and wedge hits on returns.

The NFL used to kick off from the 40-yard line form 1941-1973. In 1973, the ball would be moved back to the 35. When the calendar changed to 1994, the ball was again moved back, this time to the 30-yard line where it remained until this season.

If these stats hold relatively true and kick returners see their work reduced in half, Hester will have fewer chances to break off big returns.

Fewer returns will hurt the offense because the field will be longer, and Hester always provides the threat of skipping the offense all together by taking the kickoff to the house.

How will Hester adjust to this role and what will opponents do when playing the Bears to limit his touches even more?

1. The Matt Forte Contract Dispute

Matt Forte has made it crystal-clear he wants a new contract. The Bears agree but have yet to do anything about getting the first Chicago Bear since Walter Payton to have a 1,000-yard rushing and 500-yard receiving season a new deal.

Forte is entering the final year of his rookie contract in which he is slated to make $550,000 in base salary. Forte has proven that with the amount of plays that run through him that he is worthy of much more.

In addition to being the team’s leading rusher, Forte was also tied for the team lead in receptions with Johnny Knox.

When training camp began, Forte stated publicly he did not intend to holdout from camp until a deal got done. But will he refuse to play in preseason games until his wallet gets fatter?

Lovie Smith stated that this game will be conducted normally for a preseason opener, meaning usually one or two drives for the starting squads.

So even if Forte “refuses” to suit up for the exhibition contest, Smith might just defend him by saying he wouldn’t play much anyway. There’s no reason to risk his health.

Fans probably want to see former Cowboys running back Marion Barber strut his stuff anyway and see what he can do in a Mike Martz offense.

Follow Brett Lyons on Twitter @BrettLyons670.