It's a common refrain among Bears fans, media, and the usual Cutler critics that Jay targets Brandon Marshall too much. This seems a pretty fair assessment when you consider that Marshall represented over 40% of the Bears targets last year, and 46% of their total passing yardage last year. Add in the fact that Jay targeted Marshall on all 5 of his passes in the second preseason game last week, and the fear remains that Phil Emery's big offseason addition of Martellus Bennett, or the continued development of Alshon Jeffery, is all for naught: Jay will continue to look Brandon's way on every play.
Is this true? Well, the overall numbers from 2012 certainly support this hypothesis, as I said above. I think the truth, however, isn't quite as bad as many people think.
For one, when Brandon Marshall and Jay Cutler were together in Denver from 2007-2008, Jay attempted over 1083 passes, and completed 681 of them. Unfortunately, targeting data is unavailable from those years, but we do know that Marshall came down with 206 of those passes. That means Marshall accounted for roughly 30% of Jay's completions, a fairly standard number for a number one receiver, and well below the 41% of Bears completions that Marshall accounted for last year.
I can feel Iggins! eyes rolling as I've brought up the 2007-2008 Broncos again, but they're not really the crux of my argument. That was merely to establish that 30% of targets or total completions for a #1 receiver is a fairly healthy #. Consider that Tom Brady's top target last year, Wes Welker, got 27.5% of Brady's targets and 29% of Brady's completions in a much-more diverse offense than whatever the hell it was Mike Tice thought he was doing last year.
There are two things to consider when arguing that Jay targeted Brandon too much last year: injuries and incompetence, the former in terms of Earl Bennet and Alshon Jeffery, and the latter notably in the form of two individuals named Kellen Davis and Devin Hester. In the first two games last year when Jay had his entire depth chart to throw to (Marshall, Jeffery, Bennett, Hester, Forte, and Davis), Marshall accounted for 32% of Jay's targets and 34% of his completions. Slightly higher than their old numbers in Denver, but still reasonable.
In week three, Matt Forte was out with an injury, the first of the year for the offense, but Jay still distributed the ball fairly evenly, targeting Marshall on 11 of his 31 passes while targeting Jeffery on 7, Bennett, Hester, and Davis on 9 total, and Bush on 4.
Week four, however, is where the trouble started. Earl Bennett missed the game with an injury, and Jay targeted Hester and Davis with a combined eight passes, while targeting Marshall with eight as well. Marshall caught seven of his eight targets, while Hester and Davis caught 6/8. Balance was good, everyone was happy.
Over the next eight games, however, either Bennett or Jeffery (and sometimes both) were out of the lineup. In that time, with Hester and Davis now serving as two of Jay's top four targets, Marshall's target % shot all the way up 47.5%. The reason? Well my theory is that it had something to do with Davis catching a very mediocre 8 of 19 targets (42% catch rate, and I know you're thinking "holy shit, was it ever that high?") while Hester, who, to his credit, caught 13 of 20 balls, racked up just a mediocre 11 yards a catch in that span and had several absolutely brutal drops. Compared with the absolutely masterful performance of Marshall in that time period (he caught an absurd 63% of those targets while averaging 12.4 YPC, in case you needed me to remind you that Brandon Marshall is fucking awesome), it makes sense that Jay said "to hell with balance." By the end of the season, the ineptitude of Hester and Davis led Jay to simply ignore them, as the two of them combined for just two targets in the last three games.
It's worth noting that Forte's % of Jay's targets remained pretty consistent throughout the season at about 12% (which is too damn low, but I think we all know Tice is to blame for that more than Jay), and that in the five games where Jay had all three of his top three wideouts, he targeted the Jeffery and Bennett duo (39%) just as often as he did Marshall (39%).
So does Jay target Marshall too much? It's hard to say that when it works so damn well. It's pretty clear that for the Bears to have a healthy passing game in 2013, however, he is going to have to spread the ball around. I don't think it's fundamentally against Jay's nature to do so. He did it quite well in Denver, and he was always pretty even-handed with all of his shitty receivers in the years before Marshall came to Chicago, so I think he's capable of it. I just think crucifying him based on last year seems a bit harsh, since he clearly started with good intentions and the stats show that he was more than willing to throw to people who weren't Kellen Davis and Devin Hester.
The key for balance in 2013, then, is not some fundamental change in Jay's approach, as some have suggested, so much as it is important that his other receivers stay healthy, his tight end maybe try catching more than one out of every three passes thrown his way, and Marc Trestman hopefully understanding that Matt Forte can do some beautiful things downfield if you let him try.
Showing posts with label Kellen Davis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kellen Davis. Show all posts
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Friday, March 29, 2013
2012 Bears Position Reviews: Tight Ends
This review is a lot easier to write now with the Bennett acquistion in the rear view mirror and Kellen Davis now a Brown. I'm not sure if I can stomache describing the performance of the Bears tight ends in 2012 if I thought there was a possibility it could happen again.
To say the TE position was an unmitigated disaster last year is probably an affront to unmitigated disasters. The Hindenburg was at least an engineering marvel at one point. Kellen Davis and Co. were just shit from start to finish.
#87 Kellen Davis: 16 games, 15 games started, 19 receptions for 229 YDs, 2 TDs, 12.1 YPC, 14.3 YPG
Oh boy. I'm going to do this review in the compliment sandwich format.
Good thing about Kellen Davis: 12.1 YPC is a nice average for a tight end.
Bad things about Kellen Davis: Well, after bitching that he was misused as a blocking and red zone only tight end under Mike Martz, Kellen got a new contract and a nice opportunity to prove himself. He responded by dropping 30% of the passes thrown his way, fumbling to start the game agains thte Houston Texans, regressing as both a pass-blocker and a run-blocker, and ultimately finished as the 55th ranked TE in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. I can't tell you how bad that is, but according to the internet, there are only 32 teams in the NFL, so...Kellen failing to break the top fifty may be a bad thing.
The problem with Kellen is that he looks like a great tight end. He's 6'6", 260 and he runs a 4.5 40. He gets open downfield on the seam route. Everything about him screams "throw me the ball." Then, you know, he just doesn't catch it. Kellen Davis was more ineffective at catching the football than Devin Hester. His catch rate this year made Roy Fucking Williams look like Jerry Rice.
The most disappointing thing about Kellen was that last year was a golden opportunity for a tight end to make himself an indispensable part of the offense. After Marshall the wide receiver corps was a revolving door of injured or ineffective players. Tice was apparently determined not to use Forte as the receiving threat he'd been under Martz, so any tight end worth his salt could have had one hell of a year as Jay's #2 option. Instead, the Bears would have been equally well off just putting a cardboard cutout of a tight end on the field. It, too, would get open as the defense ignored it, and it would be just as useless as Kellen as the ball bounced in futility off of it's cardboard hands onto the ground.
Good thing about Kellen: he's fucking gone. Enjoy Cleveland, pal.
#89 Matt Spaeth: 16 games, 8 games started, 6 receptions for 28 YDs, 1 TD, 4.7 YPC, 1.8 YPG.
Matt Spaeth does one thing, and he does it well. When you pass to him, you end up with shit like that awful, awful drop against the Panthers. As a receiver he's so bad and slow that they kept Kellen Davis in the starting lineup for 15 games, for the sake of f*&k. He finished with a +10.6 rating as a blocker from Pro Football, and was their top-rated run-blocking TE. He was, however, overpaid for a blocking specialist (the last casualty of the Martz Era, you could say) and is approaching 30, so the Bears got cheaper and younger without sacrifice too much blocking by signing converted offensive tackle Steve Maneri from Kansas City to take his place.
So long, Matt. We'll always have...did you do anything we'll remember?
#86 Kyle Adams: 15 games, 2 games started, 4 receptions for 40 YDs, 0 TDs, 10 YPC, 2.7 YPG
The only tight end from last year who has survived the purge so far, Adams isn't much more than a warm body. He's slow (4.84 40 time), he was rather unimpressive blocking and catching, and seems rather superfluous given the addition of Bennett and Maneri and with Rodriguez presumably taking a bigger role as a lead blocker and a receiving option next year.
#48 Evan Rodriguez: 12 games, 5 games started, 4 receptions for 21 YDs, 0 TDs, 5.3 YPC, 1.8 YPG
Not technically a tight end, but it didn't seem fitting to give Evan Rodriguez his own article. Despite coming out of college with a reputation as a receiving-only tight end who is a liability as a blocker, Evan was one of the top-rated lead blockers in football last year but saw just eight targets all year. The West Coast Offense is one of the few that still utilizes a true fullback, particularly in the passing game, so you would expect Evan to play a bigger part next year, provided he stays healthy and avoids further entanglements with the law.
That's all for now. Next time: the annual review of the perpetually disappointing offensive line. I'll begin steeling myself immediately.
To say the TE position was an unmitigated disaster last year is probably an affront to unmitigated disasters. The Hindenburg was at least an engineering marvel at one point. Kellen Davis and Co. were just shit from start to finish.
#87 Kellen Davis: 16 games, 15 games started, 19 receptions for 229 YDs, 2 TDs, 12.1 YPC, 14.3 YPG
Oh boy. I'm going to do this review in the compliment sandwich format.
Good thing about Kellen Davis: 12.1 YPC is a nice average for a tight end.
Bad things about Kellen Davis: Well, after bitching that he was misused as a blocking and red zone only tight end under Mike Martz, Kellen got a new contract and a nice opportunity to prove himself. He responded by dropping 30% of the passes thrown his way, fumbling to start the game agains thte Houston Texans, regressing as both a pass-blocker and a run-blocker, and ultimately finished as the 55th ranked TE in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. I can't tell you how bad that is, but according to the internet, there are only 32 teams in the NFL, so...Kellen failing to break the top fifty may be a bad thing.
The problem with Kellen is that he looks like a great tight end. He's 6'6", 260 and he runs a 4.5 40. He gets open downfield on the seam route. Everything about him screams "throw me the ball." Then, you know, he just doesn't catch it. Kellen Davis was more ineffective at catching the football than Devin Hester. His catch rate this year made Roy Fucking Williams look like Jerry Rice.
The most disappointing thing about Kellen was that last year was a golden opportunity for a tight end to make himself an indispensable part of the offense. After Marshall the wide receiver corps was a revolving door of injured or ineffective players. Tice was apparently determined not to use Forte as the receiving threat he'd been under Martz, so any tight end worth his salt could have had one hell of a year as Jay's #2 option. Instead, the Bears would have been equally well off just putting a cardboard cutout of a tight end on the field. It, too, would get open as the defense ignored it, and it would be just as useless as Kellen as the ball bounced in futility off of it's cardboard hands onto the ground.
Good thing about Kellen: he's fucking gone. Enjoy Cleveland, pal.
#89 Matt Spaeth: 16 games, 8 games started, 6 receptions for 28 YDs, 1 TD, 4.7 YPC, 1.8 YPG.
Matt Spaeth does one thing, and he does it well. When you pass to him, you end up with shit like that awful, awful drop against the Panthers. As a receiver he's so bad and slow that they kept Kellen Davis in the starting lineup for 15 games, for the sake of f*&k. He finished with a +10.6 rating as a blocker from Pro Football, and was their top-rated run-blocking TE. He was, however, overpaid for a blocking specialist (the last casualty of the Martz Era, you could say) and is approaching 30, so the Bears got cheaper and younger without sacrifice too much blocking by signing converted offensive tackle Steve Maneri from Kansas City to take his place.
So long, Matt. We'll always have...did you do anything we'll remember?
#86 Kyle Adams: 15 games, 2 games started, 4 receptions for 40 YDs, 0 TDs, 10 YPC, 2.7 YPG
The only tight end from last year who has survived the purge so far, Adams isn't much more than a warm body. He's slow (4.84 40 time), he was rather unimpressive blocking and catching, and seems rather superfluous given the addition of Bennett and Maneri and with Rodriguez presumably taking a bigger role as a lead blocker and a receiving option next year.
#48 Evan Rodriguez: 12 games, 5 games started, 4 receptions for 21 YDs, 0 TDs, 5.3 YPC, 1.8 YPG
Not technically a tight end, but it didn't seem fitting to give Evan Rodriguez his own article. Despite coming out of college with a reputation as a receiving-only tight end who is a liability as a blocker, Evan was one of the top-rated lead blockers in football last year but saw just eight targets all year. The West Coast Offense is one of the few that still utilizes a true fullback, particularly in the passing game, so you would expect Evan to play a bigger part next year, provided he stays healthy and avoids further entanglements with the law.
That's all for now. Next time: the annual review of the perpetually disappointing offensive line. I'll begin steeling myself immediately.
Monday, October 1, 2012
Bears 34, Cowboys 18- Cinco De Romo
Oh, so THOSE are the Bears we thought we were getting this year. It was awesome of them to show up.
That was fantastic. It's hard to think of a Bears game in recent memory that was more complete, against a talented opponent, in a hostile environment. The Bears played good defense, they played smartly on offense, and they set up the Cowboys early in order to open up the playbook later. It was exactly who we thought they'd be before this year, and I'm really glad to see them put it all together.
This was a big win. The Bears now sit atop the NFC North (with the Vikings. We'll see how that works out) and are set up pretty well. They get Jacksonville, a bye, and a porous Lions secondary at home in the next three weeks. Things are looking up.
On with the details:
THE GOOD:
Jay Cutler: Man. You know, as frustrating as it is to watch Jay struggle like he did against Green Bay, the criticism is sometimes more understandable when he has nights like tonight. When you see him pick apart what had been the #1 pass defense in the NFL and make it look so easy, you can't help but wonder why he can't do this every night. Jay was absolutely phenomenal tonight, completing 18 of 24 passes for 275 yards and 2 TDs, with zero interceptions. He averaged over 11 yards per attempt and a whopping 15 yards per completion. He evaded the rush most of the night and made plays inside and outside the pocket. He was, frankly, as perfect as he's ever been.
The Offensive Line: Yes, there were 2 sacks (one of which was totally on Jay, and I'll admit that), but for the most part they kept Jay clean and they kept the run game going. It wasn't easy, and it wasn't entirely effective, but they kept the team out of 2nd and 3rd and long and gave them a chance to function. I'll take it. I'm especially proud of J'Marcus Webb, who got beat only once by Ware and didn't false start or hold for the first time since seemingly ever.
The Secondary: They were where they were supposed to be all night, and the result was four interceptions, one each for Tillman,and DJ Moore, and two for Major Wright, who is really developing into the playmaker the Bears told us he was going to be. The usual meatballs may make some fuss over Romo having over 300 yards passing, but the secondary made the plays they had to make on a night when the defensive line was struggling to get home.
Lance Briggs: Oh, that was just fucking awesome.
Brandon Marshall: 7 receptions, 138 yards, 1 TD. The question before the game was whether Marshall could beat the Cowboys vaunted new secondary. He destroyed them, and it wasn't even close. Real receivers are incredible.
Kellen Davis: Woah. Who pissed in his Wheaties? Davis had 3 catches for 62 yards, all of them nice grabs. This is important. If he can develop as a viable outlet for Cutler, this offense will take a huge step forward.
Devin Hester: He finally did what he should be able to do with Marshall drawing all of that attention: he burned a defender in single coverage and caught a beautiful TD. Awesome.
The Bad:
The Defensive Line: This was hardly a bad effort. They only got one sack, but they hurried Romo all night and played a huge role in the 5 picks, but, hey, someone's gotta be on this side of the ledger, and 1 sack is low by their already high standards.
The Ugly:
Tony Romo: His protection was actually decent for most of the night. He made some great throws outside the pocket, he was hurt by drops, but, holy shit. Those were just awful, awful interceptions.
That's all for now. It's always hard to close the book on a big Bears win like this. Sunday can't get here fast enough. Go Bears.
That was fantastic. It's hard to think of a Bears game in recent memory that was more complete, against a talented opponent, in a hostile environment. The Bears played good defense, they played smartly on offense, and they set up the Cowboys early in order to open up the playbook later. It was exactly who we thought they'd be before this year, and I'm really glad to see them put it all together.
This was a big win. The Bears now sit atop the NFC North (with the Vikings. We'll see how that works out) and are set up pretty well. They get Jacksonville, a bye, and a porous Lions secondary at home in the next three weeks. Things are looking up.
On with the details:
THE GOOD:
Jay Cutler: Man. You know, as frustrating as it is to watch Jay struggle like he did against Green Bay, the criticism is sometimes more understandable when he has nights like tonight. When you see him pick apart what had been the #1 pass defense in the NFL and make it look so easy, you can't help but wonder why he can't do this every night. Jay was absolutely phenomenal tonight, completing 18 of 24 passes for 275 yards and 2 TDs, with zero interceptions. He averaged over 11 yards per attempt and a whopping 15 yards per completion. He evaded the rush most of the night and made plays inside and outside the pocket. He was, frankly, as perfect as he's ever been.
The Offensive Line: Yes, there were 2 sacks (one of which was totally on Jay, and I'll admit that), but for the most part they kept Jay clean and they kept the run game going. It wasn't easy, and it wasn't entirely effective, but they kept the team out of 2nd and 3rd and long and gave them a chance to function. I'll take it. I'm especially proud of J'Marcus Webb, who got beat only once by Ware and didn't false start or hold for the first time since seemingly ever.
The Secondary: They were where they were supposed to be all night, and the result was four interceptions, one each for Tillman,and DJ Moore, and two for Major Wright, who is really developing into the playmaker the Bears told us he was going to be. The usual meatballs may make some fuss over Romo having over 300 yards passing, but the secondary made the plays they had to make on a night when the defensive line was struggling to get home.
Lance Briggs: Oh, that was just fucking awesome.
Brandon Marshall: 7 receptions, 138 yards, 1 TD. The question before the game was whether Marshall could beat the Cowboys vaunted new secondary. He destroyed them, and it wasn't even close. Real receivers are incredible.
Kellen Davis: Woah. Who pissed in his Wheaties? Davis had 3 catches for 62 yards, all of them nice grabs. This is important. If he can develop as a viable outlet for Cutler, this offense will take a huge step forward.
Devin Hester: He finally did what he should be able to do with Marshall drawing all of that attention: he burned a defender in single coverage and caught a beautiful TD. Awesome.
The Bad:
The Defensive Line: This was hardly a bad effort. They only got one sack, but they hurried Romo all night and played a huge role in the 5 picks, but, hey, someone's gotta be on this side of the ledger, and 1 sack is low by their already high standards.
The Ugly:
Tony Romo: His protection was actually decent for most of the night. He made some great throws outside the pocket, he was hurt by drops, but, holy shit. Those were just awful, awful interceptions.
That's all for now. It's always hard to close the book on a big Bears win like this. Sunday can't get here fast enough. Go Bears.
Monday, July 23, 2012
Your Start Kyle Orton Bears Training Camp Preview: The Offense
Bears camp begins this week, so it's time for my annual look at the camp roster to try and shake out what the Bears will look like come opening day and what we might expect from those 53 guys. Today we start with the offense.
A brief recap: when we last left our heroes they were grinding out a meaningless season finale win over Minnesota that only resulted in Brian Urlacher getting injured on a Hail Mary...wait, Hail Mary......CHIEFS GAME...fuck...Chiefs...AFC West...TEBOW...MARION BARBER. CALEB HANIE. GAHHHHH. Why is there all this blood everywhere? Who put this dead horse in my bed? OH MY GOD, THAT'S NO HORSE, IT'S JOHN ELWAY...*wakes up in cold sweat* Jesus. Okay, where was I?
Oh yes, the Bears ended last season at 8-8 following an excellent 7-3 start and a horrifing 1-5 finish. Since then they've replaced the GM, overturned the talent at the offensive skill positions, took care of several headaches by re-signing Lance Briggs and Matt Forte, and now enter training camp free of controversy and full of optimism. This should be good. Let's see who gets to have fun in Bourbonnais over the next month:
*- New to team.
QUARTERBACKS: #6 Jay Cutler, #2 Jason Campbell*, #12 Josh McCown, #4 Matt Blanchard*
No surprises expected here, of course. Cutler will start so long as he stays healthy, which will hopefully be all 16 games, and the franchise goes as he goes. Even ESPN has come around to the idea that they were wrong about him, since the addition of actual talent on offense means Jay will finally put up numbers they can't ignore. This will be his best year yet.
Jason Campbell, not long ago, was the type of guy Bears fans would have worshipped: slightly above average. He's more than capable of keeping the ship upright if Cutler goes down again. Ideally you never have to use him, but even if the exact same scenario as last year should happen again (Cutler out for 5-6 weeks, team simply needs to go .500 to keep playoff hopes alive) the Bears are in an infinitely better situation than they were a year ago thanks to Jason.
McCown makes a lot of sense as the third stringer. Considering the team will likely only get to him if the offensive line is so bad that it gets both Cutler and Campbell knocked out, it's not a bad idea to have a guy who can run for his life back there.
Matt Blanchard went to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. I hope he enjoys his two week break from working as a kayaking instructor, which I assume is the only degree available at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Obviously the depth chart here is set and Blanchard's just a camp arm. Overall this is the best depth chart the Bears have had at QB since Johnny Lujack and Sid Luckman were both on the roster. Hopefully they don't need it, but it's nice to know it's there.
HALFBACKS: #22 Matt Forte, #29 Michael Bush*, #32 Kahlil Bell, #25 Armando Allen, #38 Lorenzo Booker*, #45 Harvey Unga
Forte and Bush are locks and will get about 90% of the touches. Forte is the best runningback the Bears have had in my lifetime (sorry, Neal Anderson and Thomas Jones), and I'm glad he's been extended. Bush is attempt #3 at finding a highly paid complement to Forte. Marion Barber, statistically, wasn't bad, but was oft-injured and fell out of favor after the Denver game. Bush should easily exceed Barber's production and should outproduce Chester Taylor's 2010 season somewhere around the third preseason game.
Kahlil Bell was tendered as a restricted free agent, and should make the roster as the #3 back, but he may have some competition as the Bears signed veteran Lorenzo Booker last week. Booker has some more experience on special teams than Bell, and the Bears may want to go cheaper at the #3 HB spot since they've invested so much in Forte and Bush. Bell himself may want an opportunity to earn more carries on a team with a less crowded depth chart.
I don't expect Armando Allen to make the roster. that's really all I have to say about him. I forgot all about Harvey Unga, who the Bears took in the supplemental draft in 2010 and who has now been injured or dismissed for personal reasons for two seasons. He'll be cut as well.
FULLBACKS: #44 Tyler Clutts
Clutts is overrated by meatballs who were just happy to have a fullback again, but it looks like he's here to stay. Oh well. At least we'll get more horrible puns every time another checkdown pass bounces off of his stone hands.
WIDE RECEIVERS: #15 Brandon Marshall*, #17 Alshon Jeffery*, #80 Earl Bennett, #23 Devin Hester, #14 Eric Weems*, #11 Devin Thomas*, #13 Johnny Knox, #18 Dane Sanzenbacher, #81 Terrien Crump*, #82 Britten Golden*, #19 Joseph Anderson*, #83 Chris Summers*
This is the most vastly upgraded unit on the Bears roster, and maybe the most improved receiving corps in the NFL.
The top four are clear: Marshall is the big, game-changing receiver the Bears haven't had, well, ever. Jeffery has the potential to be Brandon Marshall. The BBE, who will hopefully stay healthy this year, is an outstanding slot/possession guy who can also play outside the hashes opposite of Marshall when the Bears stick Hester in the slot to work him deep (something they'll do more this year than they ever have). Hester is now a role-player, something he was always meant to be.
The real question comes after those four. How many receivers will the Bears keep? Last year they kept six, the first time in the Lovie Era where they've kept more than five. They'll probably keep six again this year as Eric Weems is a lock for the roster as well, but probably won't see any reps at wide receiver since he's simply a poor man's Devin Hester.
So who is the sixth man? Knox is easily taken care of, as they're not going to throw him out there before he's 100% healthy and they may not want him anymore as it is. He'll likely hit the injured reserve, or maybe the PUP list, and the Bears will make their decision on whether to cut or keep him after he's in playing shape again.
The camp bodies don't stand a chance, so ignore Crump, Golden, Anderson, and Summers, even if Crump has an awesome name.
It all boils down to a battle between Devin Thomas and Sanzenfucker for the last roster spot. Thomas is a 6'2, 221 former second round pick who may have some untapped potential on offense and has played very well on special teams in the NFL. Sanzenfucker is a roughly 4'8", 97 lb undrafted schmuck who didn't make an impact on special teams last year and only made the roster as Martz's little toy. He got some playing time when Bennett was hurt and committed the cardinal sin of white wide receiverdom by dropping six passes. My point, basically, is Sanzenfucker is gone and I will dance and bathe in the meatball asshurt the day he is cut. Welcome to the Bears, Devin Thomas!
TIGHT ENDS:#87 Kellen Davis, #89 Matt Spaeth, #88 Evan Rodriguez*, #86 Kyle Adams, #84 Draylen Ross*, #85 Brandon Venson*
In Ron Turner's last two years the Bears had one of the deepest tight end corps in the NFL, with Greg Olsen and the vastly underrated Dez Clark combining for nearly 1000 yds each year and Kellen Davis as the third string TE. After two years of transition under Martz, the Bears tight ends will once more be featured as receivers between the twenties.
Kellen Davis will start, and I'm confident he'll perform adequately in a much bigger role this year. I'd think 400-500 yds receiving and anywhere from 5-8 touchdowns would make sense. He'll lose some reps on third down to Rodriguez, who will also play in two tight end sets. I'd expect Rodriguez to chip in somewhere around 400 or so yards this year as well before earning more reps in year two. Spaeth may get some reps at fullback and is solely a blocking specialist. He may fit into a role similar to that of Jim Kleinsasser in Minnesota during Tice's Vikings years.
I don't think the Bears will break camp with more than 3 tight ends this year, so expect Kyle Adams to continue bouncing back and forth between the practice squad, the waiver wire, and the roster as he did last year. Draylen Ross and Brandon Venson will most likely never be heard from again.
OFFENSIVE TACKLES: #72 Gabe Carimi, #73 J'Marcus Webb, #74 Chris Williams, #75 AJ Greene*, #76 Brandon Cory*, #79 Tyler Hendrickson*
Carimi is the key to damn near everything this year. If he stays healthy and plays as well as most believe him capable off, the entire line will stabilize. If the line is stable, there'll be very little that can stop the Bears offense this year thanks to their additions at wide receiver and runningback. If Carimi goes down again? Let's just not discuss it. For the record, I think he'll be a great player.
Left tackle is still J'Marcus Webb's job to lose. Unfortunately, I think he's more than capable of losing it to Chris Williams. Williams was really coming along at guard before he went down, so moving him back to tackle is somewhat irritating. It's hard to say Williams was a bust at LT, though, since he started just seven games there between 09-10 before he was injured and later moved to guard. Whoever wins will benefit from a coordinator that places less emphasis on the left tackle as an isolated blocker. I think the Bears will make something work with these two this year and will avoid the disasters of the past, but I think a true standout will be their top priority next offseason.
The Bears usually carry only three tackles, so I'd expect Greene, Cory, and Hendrickson all to get cut. One of them will make their way to the practice squad of course.
OFFENSIVE GUARDS/CENTERS: #63 Roberto Garza, #67 Chris Spencer, #60 Lance Louis, #70 Edwin Williams, #62 Chilo Rachal, #78 James Brown, #64 Ricky Henry, #68 Nick Pieschel.
Garza and Carimi are the only two players locked into starting jobs on the offensive line at the moment. I think Spencer and Louis are the likely starters at guard, which makes sense. Louis has always played well at guard but has suffered from injuries and a move to right tackle forced by the awfulness of Frank Omiyale. While Louis was wildly inconsistent on the outside, he's earned the right to start on the interior. Spencer played very well last year and also deserves to begin the season as a starter.
The main backup should be Rachal, who is a dominating run blocker (the best run-blocking guard in all of football in 2010 according to ProFootballFocus), but extremely inconsistent in pass protection. If Tice can tap the potential that made Rachal a 2nd round pick in 2008 I'd expect him to force his way into the lineup. Edwin Williams played extremely well last year after Chris Williams went down, so there's no reason to expect him not to make the roster. I'd also not be surprised if the Bears go younger soon and drop Garza in favor of shifting Spencer to center and making room for Rachal or Eddie at guard. Either way, the Bears will be as capable on the interior as they were last year when they paved the way for over 2,000 rushing yards.
Henry and Pieschel are just guys, but James Brown is highly intriguing prospect from Troy who was at one point a potential second-third rounder at tackle. His versatility makes him difficult to cut, as the Bears may not be able to sneak him onto the practice squad. He may make the roster as a backup at both guard and tackle, or the Bears may try their injured reserve redshirt.
If you were keeping track, my expected depth chart on offense is this:
QB: Cutler/Campbell/McCown
HB: Forte/Bush/Bell
FB: Clutts
WR: Marshall/Jeffery/Bennett/Hester/Weems/Thomas
TE: Davis/Spaeth/Rodriguez
LT:Webb/C.Williams
LG:Spencer/E. Williams
C: Garza/Spencer
RG:Louis/Rachal
RT: Carimi/Brown
That's a total of 25 players if they opt to keep Brown on the roster.
As a whole, this offense should, provided the key players stay healthy, be the most productive unit the Bears have fielded since 1995. I probably could have just typed "JAY CUTLER TO BRANDON MARSHALL, TOUCHDOWN BEARS" and your pants would have exploded. I know mine just did.
Go Bears.
A brief recap: when we last left our heroes they were grinding out a meaningless season finale win over Minnesota that only resulted in Brian Urlacher getting injured on a Hail Mary...wait, Hail Mary......CHIEFS GAME...fuck...Chiefs...AFC West...TEBOW...MARION BARBER. CALEB HANIE. GAHHHHH. Why is there all this blood everywhere? Who put this dead horse in my bed? OH MY GOD, THAT'S NO HORSE, IT'S JOHN ELWAY...*wakes up in cold sweat* Jesus. Okay, where was I?
Oh yes, the Bears ended last season at 8-8 following an excellent 7-3 start and a horrifing 1-5 finish. Since then they've replaced the GM, overturned the talent at the offensive skill positions, took care of several headaches by re-signing Lance Briggs and Matt Forte, and now enter training camp free of controversy and full of optimism. This should be good. Let's see who gets to have fun in Bourbonnais over the next month:
*- New to team.
QUARTERBACKS: #6 Jay Cutler, #2 Jason Campbell*, #12 Josh McCown, #4 Matt Blanchard*
No surprises expected here, of course. Cutler will start so long as he stays healthy, which will hopefully be all 16 games, and the franchise goes as he goes. Even ESPN has come around to the idea that they were wrong about him, since the addition of actual talent on offense means Jay will finally put up numbers they can't ignore. This will be his best year yet.
Jason Campbell, not long ago, was the type of guy Bears fans would have worshipped: slightly above average. He's more than capable of keeping the ship upright if Cutler goes down again. Ideally you never have to use him, but even if the exact same scenario as last year should happen again (Cutler out for 5-6 weeks, team simply needs to go .500 to keep playoff hopes alive) the Bears are in an infinitely better situation than they were a year ago thanks to Jason.
McCown makes a lot of sense as the third stringer. Considering the team will likely only get to him if the offensive line is so bad that it gets both Cutler and Campbell knocked out, it's not a bad idea to have a guy who can run for his life back there.
Matt Blanchard went to the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. I hope he enjoys his two week break from working as a kayaking instructor, which I assume is the only degree available at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
Obviously the depth chart here is set and Blanchard's just a camp arm. Overall this is the best depth chart the Bears have had at QB since Johnny Lujack and Sid Luckman were both on the roster. Hopefully they don't need it, but it's nice to know it's there.
HALFBACKS: #22 Matt Forte, #29 Michael Bush*, #32 Kahlil Bell, #25 Armando Allen, #38 Lorenzo Booker*, #45 Harvey Unga
Forte and Bush are locks and will get about 90% of the touches. Forte is the best runningback the Bears have had in my lifetime (sorry, Neal Anderson and Thomas Jones), and I'm glad he's been extended. Bush is attempt #3 at finding a highly paid complement to Forte. Marion Barber, statistically, wasn't bad, but was oft-injured and fell out of favor after the Denver game. Bush should easily exceed Barber's production and should outproduce Chester Taylor's 2010 season somewhere around the third preseason game.
Kahlil Bell was tendered as a restricted free agent, and should make the roster as the #3 back, but he may have some competition as the Bears signed veteran Lorenzo Booker last week. Booker has some more experience on special teams than Bell, and the Bears may want to go cheaper at the #3 HB spot since they've invested so much in Forte and Bush. Bell himself may want an opportunity to earn more carries on a team with a less crowded depth chart.
I don't expect Armando Allen to make the roster. that's really all I have to say about him. I forgot all about Harvey Unga, who the Bears took in the supplemental draft in 2010 and who has now been injured or dismissed for personal reasons for two seasons. He'll be cut as well.
FULLBACKS: #44 Tyler Clutts
Clutts is overrated by meatballs who were just happy to have a fullback again, but it looks like he's here to stay. Oh well. At least we'll get more horrible puns every time another checkdown pass bounces off of his stone hands.
WIDE RECEIVERS: #15 Brandon Marshall*, #17 Alshon Jeffery*, #80 Earl Bennett, #23 Devin Hester, #14 Eric Weems*, #11 Devin Thomas*, #13 Johnny Knox, #18 Dane Sanzenbacher, #81 Terrien Crump*, #82 Britten Golden*, #19 Joseph Anderson*, #83 Chris Summers*
This is the most vastly upgraded unit on the Bears roster, and maybe the most improved receiving corps in the NFL.
The top four are clear: Marshall is the big, game-changing receiver the Bears haven't had, well, ever. Jeffery has the potential to be Brandon Marshall. The BBE, who will hopefully stay healthy this year, is an outstanding slot/possession guy who can also play outside the hashes opposite of Marshall when the Bears stick Hester in the slot to work him deep (something they'll do more this year than they ever have). Hester is now a role-player, something he was always meant to be.
The real question comes after those four. How many receivers will the Bears keep? Last year they kept six, the first time in the Lovie Era where they've kept more than five. They'll probably keep six again this year as Eric Weems is a lock for the roster as well, but probably won't see any reps at wide receiver since he's simply a poor man's Devin Hester.
So who is the sixth man? Knox is easily taken care of, as they're not going to throw him out there before he's 100% healthy and they may not want him anymore as it is. He'll likely hit the injured reserve, or maybe the PUP list, and the Bears will make their decision on whether to cut or keep him after he's in playing shape again.
The camp bodies don't stand a chance, so ignore Crump, Golden, Anderson, and Summers, even if Crump has an awesome name.
It all boils down to a battle between Devin Thomas and Sanzenfucker for the last roster spot. Thomas is a 6'2, 221 former second round pick who may have some untapped potential on offense and has played very well on special teams in the NFL. Sanzenfucker is a roughly 4'8", 97 lb undrafted schmuck who didn't make an impact on special teams last year and only made the roster as Martz's little toy. He got some playing time when Bennett was hurt and committed the cardinal sin of white wide receiverdom by dropping six passes. My point, basically, is Sanzenfucker is gone and I will dance and bathe in the meatball asshurt the day he is cut. Welcome to the Bears, Devin Thomas!
TIGHT ENDS:#87 Kellen Davis, #89 Matt Spaeth, #88 Evan Rodriguez*, #86 Kyle Adams, #84 Draylen Ross*, #85 Brandon Venson*
In Ron Turner's last two years the Bears had one of the deepest tight end corps in the NFL, with Greg Olsen and the vastly underrated Dez Clark combining for nearly 1000 yds each year and Kellen Davis as the third string TE. After two years of transition under Martz, the Bears tight ends will once more be featured as receivers between the twenties.
Kellen Davis will start, and I'm confident he'll perform adequately in a much bigger role this year. I'd think 400-500 yds receiving and anywhere from 5-8 touchdowns would make sense. He'll lose some reps on third down to Rodriguez, who will also play in two tight end sets. I'd expect Rodriguez to chip in somewhere around 400 or so yards this year as well before earning more reps in year two. Spaeth may get some reps at fullback and is solely a blocking specialist. He may fit into a role similar to that of Jim Kleinsasser in Minnesota during Tice's Vikings years.
I don't think the Bears will break camp with more than 3 tight ends this year, so expect Kyle Adams to continue bouncing back and forth between the practice squad, the waiver wire, and the roster as he did last year. Draylen Ross and Brandon Venson will most likely never be heard from again.
OFFENSIVE TACKLES: #72 Gabe Carimi, #73 J'Marcus Webb, #74 Chris Williams, #75 AJ Greene*, #76 Brandon Cory*, #79 Tyler Hendrickson*
Carimi is the key to damn near everything this year. If he stays healthy and plays as well as most believe him capable off, the entire line will stabilize. If the line is stable, there'll be very little that can stop the Bears offense this year thanks to their additions at wide receiver and runningback. If Carimi goes down again? Let's just not discuss it. For the record, I think he'll be a great player.
Left tackle is still J'Marcus Webb's job to lose. Unfortunately, I think he's more than capable of losing it to Chris Williams. Williams was really coming along at guard before he went down, so moving him back to tackle is somewhat irritating. It's hard to say Williams was a bust at LT, though, since he started just seven games there between 09-10 before he was injured and later moved to guard. Whoever wins will benefit from a coordinator that places less emphasis on the left tackle as an isolated blocker. I think the Bears will make something work with these two this year and will avoid the disasters of the past, but I think a true standout will be their top priority next offseason.
The Bears usually carry only three tackles, so I'd expect Greene, Cory, and Hendrickson all to get cut. One of them will make their way to the practice squad of course.
OFFENSIVE GUARDS/CENTERS: #63 Roberto Garza, #67 Chris Spencer, #60 Lance Louis, #70 Edwin Williams, #62 Chilo Rachal, #78 James Brown, #64 Ricky Henry, #68 Nick Pieschel.
Garza and Carimi are the only two players locked into starting jobs on the offensive line at the moment. I think Spencer and Louis are the likely starters at guard, which makes sense. Louis has always played well at guard but has suffered from injuries and a move to right tackle forced by the awfulness of Frank Omiyale. While Louis was wildly inconsistent on the outside, he's earned the right to start on the interior. Spencer played very well last year and also deserves to begin the season as a starter.
The main backup should be Rachal, who is a dominating run blocker (the best run-blocking guard in all of football in 2010 according to ProFootballFocus), but extremely inconsistent in pass protection. If Tice can tap the potential that made Rachal a 2nd round pick in 2008 I'd expect him to force his way into the lineup. Edwin Williams played extremely well last year after Chris Williams went down, so there's no reason to expect him not to make the roster. I'd also not be surprised if the Bears go younger soon and drop Garza in favor of shifting Spencer to center and making room for Rachal or Eddie at guard. Either way, the Bears will be as capable on the interior as they were last year when they paved the way for over 2,000 rushing yards.
Henry and Pieschel are just guys, but James Brown is highly intriguing prospect from Troy who was at one point a potential second-third rounder at tackle. His versatility makes him difficult to cut, as the Bears may not be able to sneak him onto the practice squad. He may make the roster as a backup at both guard and tackle, or the Bears may try their injured reserve redshirt.
If you were keeping track, my expected depth chart on offense is this:
QB: Cutler/Campbell/McCown
HB: Forte/Bush/Bell
FB: Clutts
WR: Marshall/Jeffery/Bennett/Hester/Weems/Thomas
TE: Davis/Spaeth/Rodriguez
LT:Webb/C.Williams
LG:Spencer/E. Williams
C: Garza/Spencer
RG:Louis/Rachal
RT: Carimi/Brown
That's a total of 25 players if they opt to keep Brown on the roster.
As a whole, this offense should, provided the key players stay healthy, be the most productive unit the Bears have fielded since 1995. I probably could have just typed "JAY CUTLER TO BRANDON MARSHALL, TOUCHDOWN BEARS" and your pants would have exploded. I know mine just did.
Go Bears.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
2011 Bears Position Reviews: The Tight Ends
In 2010, the whole "Martz doesn't use the tight end" thing proved to be largely overblown, as Greg Olsen and Kellen Davis combined to have a pretty decent season. Last year, however, with Olsen gone and Davis taking over the top spot, Martz truly earned his reputation. Altogether, the Bears TE duo of Kellen Davis and Matt Spaeth combined for just 25 receptions for 256 yards, although they did have 7 combined touchdowns. That was the lowest yardage total for a Bears TE unit since 2005.
That doesn't mean we can't break down these two players, though.
#87 Kellen Davis: 18 receptions, 206 yds, 5 TDs, 11.4 ypc.
I like Kellen Davis. He's a good football player. It's not just that a third of all of the catches he's made in his entire career have gone for touchdowns (28 catches, 9 TDs). It's mostly got to do with his athleticism and the fact that, unlike Greg Olsen, he really can block. Kellen got off to a rough start like everyone else, and during the five games at the beginning of the season he allowed five pressures as Martz often had him alone on an island against team's starting defensive ends. After the shift back toward sanity, Kellen allowed zero pressures in his last eleven games. That's good stuff, folks. He struggled slightly in run blocking, but nowhere near as much as his predecessor, who was typically a nonfactor.
The Bears smartly re-signed Kellen for a very fair price. I think he'll open some eyes this year as a receiving tight end, but if his main contribution is simply helping to keep Cutler upright, well, that's fine by me.
#89 Matt Spaeth: 7 receptions, 50 yds, 2 TDs, 7.1 ypc.
Spaeth was every thing he was advertised to be: a stout run blocker, an OK pass blocker, and a complete non-entity catching the ball. I did enjoy when he scored a touchdown against the Falcons on that "Play-action toss to the wide-open #2 TE" play that's resulted in 98.7% of all Bears touchdowns since 2005, though. I expect Matt will be back next year as a blocking specialist, and that, too, is fine with me.
#44 Tyler Clutts: 8 receptions, 48 yds, 0 TDs, 6.0 ypc.
I'm including Tyler here just because there's nowhere else to put him. Martz finally broke down this year and admitted that he needed a fullback rather than just a fat tight end. He got Tyler Clutts, who caught passes about as well as a blind Muhsin Muhammed and didn't grade out very well as a blocker, at least according to Pro Football Focus. I think he was better than his grade at run blocking, but overall he's not much of a contributor and I wouldn't be surprised to see the team look at some veterans who might have more to offer in Tice's smash mouth offense.
That's all for the tight ends. I think the team may find a mid or later round rookie pass-catching specialist to come in and compete for some playing time, but I'd put more money on Kellen Davis emerging as a pass catching threat next year.
That doesn't mean we can't break down these two players, though.
#87 Kellen Davis: 18 receptions, 206 yds, 5 TDs, 11.4 ypc.
I like Kellen Davis. He's a good football player. It's not just that a third of all of the catches he's made in his entire career have gone for touchdowns (28 catches, 9 TDs). It's mostly got to do with his athleticism and the fact that, unlike Greg Olsen, he really can block. Kellen got off to a rough start like everyone else, and during the five games at the beginning of the season he allowed five pressures as Martz often had him alone on an island against team's starting defensive ends. After the shift back toward sanity, Kellen allowed zero pressures in his last eleven games. That's good stuff, folks. He struggled slightly in run blocking, but nowhere near as much as his predecessor, who was typically a nonfactor.
The Bears smartly re-signed Kellen for a very fair price. I think he'll open some eyes this year as a receiving tight end, but if his main contribution is simply helping to keep Cutler upright, well, that's fine by me.
#89 Matt Spaeth: 7 receptions, 50 yds, 2 TDs, 7.1 ypc.
Spaeth was every thing he was advertised to be: a stout run blocker, an OK pass blocker, and a complete non-entity catching the ball. I did enjoy when he scored a touchdown against the Falcons on that "Play-action toss to the wide-open #2 TE" play that's resulted in 98.7% of all Bears touchdowns since 2005, though. I expect Matt will be back next year as a blocking specialist, and that, too, is fine with me.
#44 Tyler Clutts: 8 receptions, 48 yds, 0 TDs, 6.0 ypc.
I'm including Tyler here just because there's nowhere else to put him. Martz finally broke down this year and admitted that he needed a fullback rather than just a fat tight end. He got Tyler Clutts, who caught passes about as well as a blind Muhsin Muhammed and didn't grade out very well as a blocker, at least according to Pro Football Focus. I think he was better than his grade at run blocking, but overall he's not much of a contributor and I wouldn't be surprised to see the team look at some veterans who might have more to offer in Tice's smash mouth offense.
That's all for the tight ends. I think the team may find a mid or later round rookie pass-catching specialist to come in and compete for some playing time, but I'd put more money on Kellen Davis emerging as a pass catching threat next year.
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
In Review- The Tight Ends
Given the fact that it appears likely-ish that there Will possibly be football next year, I have decided to resume my unit-by-unit evaluations of the 2010 Bears. I covered the QBs, RBs, and WRs earlier in the offseason so you can look back to find them if you care. Today: the tight ends.
#82 Greg Olsen.
I've never really hidden the fact that I've never cared for Greg Olsen. Usually I vacillate between downright hatred and begrudging apathy toward him. I thought the Bears should have traded down from #31 in 2007 and picked up any number of the valuable players that went in the 2nd round that year (Ryan Kalil, perhaps? Nah. Let's just keep pretending that Olin Kreutz hasn't been mediocre at best since 2005!). Desmond Clark had a few years of production left in him, and then Mike Martz came around to make the position mostly irrelevant. Basically, I never wanted Greg Olsen in the first place and he's done very little to warm his way into my heart.
With that said, I think Greg had his best year as a Bear this year. He was more productive as a blocker than he's ever been (mostly since he had to be if he was ever going to see the field), he cut down on his mistakes, and he made some big catches on 3rd down and in the red zone even though his overall receiving numbers were down from his last two years. His playoff game against the Seahawks was absolutely outstanding and showed that he can still be a force in this scheme when he needs to be. Like I've said before, Kansas City ran a very similar offense under Vermeil and Al Saunders and utilized Tony Gonzalez, so Martz is capable of making Greg a major part of his scheme. That made Greg's disappearance against Green Bay all the more frustrating, although I don't know if that was Martz's fault, Greg's fault, or Cutler/Hanie's fault.
I predict a bigger year for Olsen next year, as an improved offensive line will hopefully keep him from staying in to block so often and allow him to be the matchup problem on offense that he was brought in to be.
#87 Kellen Davis
It's hard not to like Kellen. He's a good blocker (better than Olsen, at least) and 4 of his 10 career catches have been touchdowns. He's a perfect example of why I think Olsen was a wasted first round pick, since he'd be a more than adequate starter and could have at least matched Desmond Clark's production despite entering the league as a fifth round pick. There's really not much else to say here, other than he's certainly a useful player to have as a back up tight end.
#86 Brandon Manumaleuna
I can't imagine what the hell made Jerry Angelo think that Manumaleuna was worth a 5 year, $15 million contract. I hardly doubt that that was really the market value for a tight end that's solely a blocking specialist, especially when he needed a knee surgery that limited his usefulness in that department in a big way. Manu was used more as a fullback than a tight end this year and he was a serious downgrade from the eminently mediocre Jason McKie in that department. Hopefully Manu will be better this year after he's fully recovered from the surgery, but I highly doubt he'll ever be worth the money. At least he had that one touchdown against the Lions. That gave us all a good laugh.
#88 Desmond Clark
We've finally reached the end of Desmond's long tenure as a Bear (2003-2010), and I'm grateful for everything he did. He was one of the best signings of Angelo's career, and while he suffered from the absolutely atrocious parade of shit the Bears had at QB during his first three years in Chicago (averaged just 314 yards and 1 TD during the Kordell Stewart/Chris Chandler/Rookie Grossman/Jon Quinn/Craig Krenzel/Chad Hutchinson/Rookie Orton nightmare), he was very effective from 06-08 and, for all Olsen's potential, he was a much better all-around tight end during that stretch than Greg has ever been.
With all due respect to his prior career in Chicago, Clark was a nonfactor in 2010 for good reason. His decline was apparent last year and, at this point, Kellen Davis offers more value for less money. His only notable appearance last year was a dropped TD pass on 4th down in the first game against Green Bay, and he finished the year with just 1 catch for 12 yards in just five games. He'll probably end up somewhere else next year and offer average production for a few years, but it's definitely time to let him go. Good luck, Dez.
For all of the fuss about Mike Martz not using his tight ends, the Bears' unit got mixed results. They had just 478 yards receiving as a group, down from 832 the year before, but they had a respectable 7 touchdown receptions and were more of a factor in the second half than the first. Overall, though, the tight ends did what was asked of them (outside of Manumaleuna, unless he was asked to be fat, slow, and terrible at blocking) and this is a unit that should remain mostly intact and should improve next year.
#82 Greg Olsen.
I've never really hidden the fact that I've never cared for Greg Olsen. Usually I vacillate between downright hatred and begrudging apathy toward him. I thought the Bears should have traded down from #31 in 2007 and picked up any number of the valuable players that went in the 2nd round that year (Ryan Kalil, perhaps? Nah. Let's just keep pretending that Olin Kreutz hasn't been mediocre at best since 2005!). Desmond Clark had a few years of production left in him, and then Mike Martz came around to make the position mostly irrelevant. Basically, I never wanted Greg Olsen in the first place and he's done very little to warm his way into my heart.
With that said, I think Greg had his best year as a Bear this year. He was more productive as a blocker than he's ever been (mostly since he had to be if he was ever going to see the field), he cut down on his mistakes, and he made some big catches on 3rd down and in the red zone even though his overall receiving numbers were down from his last two years. His playoff game against the Seahawks was absolutely outstanding and showed that he can still be a force in this scheme when he needs to be. Like I've said before, Kansas City ran a very similar offense under Vermeil and Al Saunders and utilized Tony Gonzalez, so Martz is capable of making Greg a major part of his scheme. That made Greg's disappearance against Green Bay all the more frustrating, although I don't know if that was Martz's fault, Greg's fault, or Cutler/Hanie's fault.
I predict a bigger year for Olsen next year, as an improved offensive line will hopefully keep him from staying in to block so often and allow him to be the matchup problem on offense that he was brought in to be.
#87 Kellen Davis
It's hard not to like Kellen. He's a good blocker (better than Olsen, at least) and 4 of his 10 career catches have been touchdowns. He's a perfect example of why I think Olsen was a wasted first round pick, since he'd be a more than adequate starter and could have at least matched Desmond Clark's production despite entering the league as a fifth round pick. There's really not much else to say here, other than he's certainly a useful player to have as a back up tight end.
#86 Brandon Manumaleuna
I can't imagine what the hell made Jerry Angelo think that Manumaleuna was worth a 5 year, $15 million contract. I hardly doubt that that was really the market value for a tight end that's solely a blocking specialist, especially when he needed a knee surgery that limited his usefulness in that department in a big way. Manu was used more as a fullback than a tight end this year and he was a serious downgrade from the eminently mediocre Jason McKie in that department. Hopefully Manu will be better this year after he's fully recovered from the surgery, but I highly doubt he'll ever be worth the money. At least he had that one touchdown against the Lions. That gave us all a good laugh.
#88 Desmond Clark
We've finally reached the end of Desmond's long tenure as a Bear (2003-2010), and I'm grateful for everything he did. He was one of the best signings of Angelo's career, and while he suffered from the absolutely atrocious parade of shit the Bears had at QB during his first three years in Chicago (averaged just 314 yards and 1 TD during the Kordell Stewart/Chris Chandler/Rookie Grossman/Jon Quinn/Craig Krenzel/Chad Hutchinson/Rookie Orton nightmare), he was very effective from 06-08 and, for all Olsen's potential, he was a much better all-around tight end during that stretch than Greg has ever been.
With all due respect to his prior career in Chicago, Clark was a nonfactor in 2010 for good reason. His decline was apparent last year and, at this point, Kellen Davis offers more value for less money. His only notable appearance last year was a dropped TD pass on 4th down in the first game against Green Bay, and he finished the year with just 1 catch for 12 yards in just five games. He'll probably end up somewhere else next year and offer average production for a few years, but it's definitely time to let him go. Good luck, Dez.
For all of the fuss about Mike Martz not using his tight ends, the Bears' unit got mixed results. They had just 478 yards receiving as a group, down from 832 the year before, but they had a respectable 7 touchdown receptions and were more of a factor in the second half than the first. Overall, though, the tight ends did what was asked of them (outside of Manumaleuna, unless he was asked to be fat, slow, and terrible at blocking) and this is a unit that should remain mostly intact and should improve next year.
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