Benson vs. Jones, other battles set
May 23, 2005
BY MIKE MULLIGAN STAFF REPORTER
Paul Edinger got booted Sunday mere minutes after the close of minicamp -- so much for the great Kicking Competition of 2005.
There really is no such thing as a minicamp position battle, but the Bears went to great length to create one this weekend when they moved the field-goal portion of their workout program to the middle of practice to have the kickers face off against one another under the watchful eyes of teammates.
Coach Lovie Smith said something about creating a pressure situation when asked about the kicking contest. Smith alternated using veterans Edinger and Doug Brien in the morning practices Friday and Saturday and undrafted rookies Tyler Jones and Nick Novak in the evening sessions. With just one practice Sunday, all four attempted five field goals midway through the workout as teammates ringed the field and yelled out encouragement and dished ridicule.
"The People's Choice,'' one wise guy screamed as Edinger approached what turned out to be one of his final field-goal attempts as a Bear.
Truth be told, the kicking competition effectively ended the day Brien signed, a fact Edinger and his camp were so certain of, they requested his release. Edinger was scheduled to make $1.1 million this year. Brien, for whom the Bears discussed trading earlier in the offseason, comes significantly cheaper. He will make $750,000 this year as a minimum-benefits veteran and will count only $450,000 against the salary cap.
Given that kind of cap savings and Edinger's struggles the last season and a half, Brien was a lock to stick, especially when he turned down a chance for the same deal with Tennessee to sign in Chicago. Surely, he signed with the Bears for a reason.
Here's a look at what minicamp taught us about the top five positional battles -- real and imagined -- for training camp in Bourbonnais:
Right Guard
Candidates: Terrence Metcalf vs. Roberto Garza.
Overview: This figures to be the most legitimate and open battle of training camp, if only because Metcalf's status as a former draft pick (third round in 2002) makes him the man to beat. He was retained with a low tender offer as a restricted free agent, which makes this a contract year and make-or-break time in his career. A good athlete who has relied on power over technique in the past, Metcalf finally might be ready to blossom in his fourth season. Garza started at three positions in Atlanta and was ready to hit the free-agent jackpot before concerns about a 2003 knee injury led him to the Bears. He can play right or left guard or center and moves a bit like Olin Kreutz. He would be a luxury as a backup given his versatility but is probably too good to be kept off the field.
"Obviously, that's the ultimate goal,'' Garza said of starting. "You want to get on the field. You don't want to be a backup. So obviously there is some competition, and we'll see what happens in training camp.''
Projected winner: Up for grabs.
Running Back
Candidates: Thomas Jones vs. Cedric Benson.
Overview: Jones ran off the field ahead of reporters after every practice of minicamp and has declined to speak about the repercussions of the Bears' selection of Benson with the No. 4 overall pick. Jones lined up with the starters in minicamp, but that is a temporary role. Of course, Jones himself is evidence that a high draft pick can struggle as a rookie. He was the No. 7 selection in 2000 by Arizona and opened the season as a starter before losing his job to Michael Pittman four games in. Still, Benson will get every opportunity to succeed. He'll wind up banking about $15 million this year.
"I don't think the Bears drafted me not to play,'' he said.
Projected winner: Benson
Strong-side Linebacker
Candidates: Hunter Hillenmeyer vs. whoever.
Overview: The Bears have two linebackers capable of making the Pro Bowl in Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs, but the talent level falls off a cliff from there. Hillenmeyer, a backup middle linebacker, wound up as the starter on the strong side after Marcus Reese and Joe Odom failed. Because the team made no significant moves at the position in the offseason, the job falls to Hillenmeyer again by default. He's not a great athlete, but he's competitive and will get the job done. Still, he's the kind of guy you should be looking to replace. The rest of the players at this position look like they will make an impact only on special teams. Urlacher and Briggs better stay healthy.
Projected winner: Hillenmeyer
Wide Receiver
Candidates: Justin Gage vs. Bernard Berrian.
Overview: Both will get a lot of playing time, but the starting job opposite Muhsin Muhammad is an important role. Gage was an internal exile last year in Terry Shea's system, while Berrian showed he could make big plays downfield as a rookie. Gage might be better over the middle, but Berrian's big-play ability will earn him plenty of playing time. The player who could run into a numbers game is Bobby Wade, a starter last year. In addition to the aforementioned three receivers, the Bears likely will keep rookies Mark Bradley and Airese Currie. Free-agent signee Eddie Berlin is a great special-teams player. In addition to Muhammad and Berrian, a player who attracted a lot of attention at minicamp is Ron Johnson, a former fourth-round pick by Baltimore in 2002. He could pull off a surprise at training camp.
Projected winner: Berrian.
Punt returner
Candidates: Bernard Berrian vs. Nathan Vasher vs. Bobby Wade.
Overview: The curious decision to put R.W. McQuarters on the trading block with an eye toward cutting him if he can't be moved opens a position of strength to competition. This might be Wade's best chance to make the team, but he's probably third in the race right now. Berrian looks the part, catching the ball well and running with authority in practice. If he can keep that going in game action, it might not be much of a dropoff from McQuarters. Vasher, a former receiver, has great hands but doesn't appear to get himself in great position when catching the ball. He could take a lot of abuse in this role, which is scary because he has a slight build anyway and the Bears are dangerously thin at cornerback behind him.
Projected winner: Berrian.
May 23, 2005
BY MIKE MULLIGAN STAFF REPORTER
Paul Edinger got booted Sunday mere minutes after the close of minicamp -- so much for the great Kicking Competition of 2005.
There really is no such thing as a minicamp position battle, but the Bears went to great length to create one this weekend when they moved the field-goal portion of their workout program to the middle of practice to have the kickers face off against one another under the watchful eyes of teammates.
Coach Lovie Smith said something about creating a pressure situation when asked about the kicking contest. Smith alternated using veterans Edinger and Doug Brien in the morning practices Friday and Saturday and undrafted rookies Tyler Jones and Nick Novak in the evening sessions. With just one practice Sunday, all four attempted five field goals midway through the workout as teammates ringed the field and yelled out encouragement and dished ridicule.
"The People's Choice,'' one wise guy screamed as Edinger approached what turned out to be one of his final field-goal attempts as a Bear.
Truth be told, the kicking competition effectively ended the day Brien signed, a fact Edinger and his camp were so certain of, they requested his release. Edinger was scheduled to make $1.1 million this year. Brien, for whom the Bears discussed trading earlier in the offseason, comes significantly cheaper. He will make $750,000 this year as a minimum-benefits veteran and will count only $450,000 against the salary cap.
Given that kind of cap savings and Edinger's struggles the last season and a half, Brien was a lock to stick, especially when he turned down a chance for the same deal with Tennessee to sign in Chicago. Surely, he signed with the Bears for a reason.
Here's a look at what minicamp taught us about the top five positional battles -- real and imagined -- for training camp in Bourbonnais:
Right Guard
Candidates: Terrence Metcalf vs. Roberto Garza.
Overview: This figures to be the most legitimate and open battle of training camp, if only because Metcalf's status as a former draft pick (third round in 2002) makes him the man to beat. He was retained with a low tender offer as a restricted free agent, which makes this a contract year and make-or-break time in his career. A good athlete who has relied on power over technique in the past, Metcalf finally might be ready to blossom in his fourth season. Garza started at three positions in Atlanta and was ready to hit the free-agent jackpot before concerns about a 2003 knee injury led him to the Bears. He can play right or left guard or center and moves a bit like Olin Kreutz. He would be a luxury as a backup given his versatility but is probably too good to be kept off the field.
"Obviously, that's the ultimate goal,'' Garza said of starting. "You want to get on the field. You don't want to be a backup. So obviously there is some competition, and we'll see what happens in training camp.''
Projected winner: Up for grabs.
Running Back
Candidates: Thomas Jones vs. Cedric Benson.
Overview: Jones ran off the field ahead of reporters after every practice of minicamp and has declined to speak about the repercussions of the Bears' selection of Benson with the No. 4 overall pick. Jones lined up with the starters in minicamp, but that is a temporary role. Of course, Jones himself is evidence that a high draft pick can struggle as a rookie. He was the No. 7 selection in 2000 by Arizona and opened the season as a starter before losing his job to Michael Pittman four games in. Still, Benson will get every opportunity to succeed. He'll wind up banking about $15 million this year.
"I don't think the Bears drafted me not to play,'' he said.
Projected winner: Benson
Strong-side Linebacker
Candidates: Hunter Hillenmeyer vs. whoever.
Overview: The Bears have two linebackers capable of making the Pro Bowl in Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs, but the talent level falls off a cliff from there. Hillenmeyer, a backup middle linebacker, wound up as the starter on the strong side after Marcus Reese and Joe Odom failed. Because the team made no significant moves at the position in the offseason, the job falls to Hillenmeyer again by default. He's not a great athlete, but he's competitive and will get the job done. Still, he's the kind of guy you should be looking to replace. The rest of the players at this position look like they will make an impact only on special teams. Urlacher and Briggs better stay healthy.
Projected winner: Hillenmeyer
Wide Receiver
Candidates: Justin Gage vs. Bernard Berrian.
Overview: Both will get a lot of playing time, but the starting job opposite Muhsin Muhammad is an important role. Gage was an internal exile last year in Terry Shea's system, while Berrian showed he could make big plays downfield as a rookie. Gage might be better over the middle, but Berrian's big-play ability will earn him plenty of playing time. The player who could run into a numbers game is Bobby Wade, a starter last year. In addition to the aforementioned three receivers, the Bears likely will keep rookies Mark Bradley and Airese Currie. Free-agent signee Eddie Berlin is a great special-teams player. In addition to Muhammad and Berrian, a player who attracted a lot of attention at minicamp is Ron Johnson, a former fourth-round pick by Baltimore in 2002. He could pull off a surprise at training camp.
Projected winner: Berrian.
Punt returner
Candidates: Bernard Berrian vs. Nathan Vasher vs. Bobby Wade.
Overview: The curious decision to put R.W. McQuarters on the trading block with an eye toward cutting him if he can't be moved opens a position of strength to competition. This might be Wade's best chance to make the team, but he's probably third in the race right now. Berrian looks the part, catching the ball well and running with authority in practice. If he can keep that going in game action, it might not be much of a dropoff from McQuarters. Vasher, a former receiver, has great hands but doesn't appear to get himself in great position when catching the ball. He could take a lot of abuse in this role, which is scary because he has a slight build anyway and the Bears are dangerously thin at cornerback behind him.
Projected winner: Berrian.
