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History hints at how Bears' brass will tackle
Bears executives Jerry Angelo (left) and Tim Ruskell (Brad Biggs/Tribune)
By Brad Biggs Tribune staff reporter 3:35 p.m. CDT, April 26, 2011
chi-bears-angelo-ruskell-drafts 
Two days before the start of the NFL draft, there's no telling what way the Chicago Bears will go Thursday night.
Popular thinking is the team will look to trade down from No. 29 and into the second round, but wanting to move down and finding an appropriate trading partner can be two different things. This is general manager Jerry Angelo's 10th draft with the Bears, and he has a timeline that includes some mid-round home runs, a few late-round surprises and some high-round failures.
This marks the first time since 2001 that Angelo will team with director of player personnel Tim Ruskell to coordinate a draft. Angelo was the director of player personnel for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Ruskell was the franchise's director of college scouting before Angelo departed for the Bears in June 2001. Ruskell was promoted to Angelo's old position before a one-year stop in Atlanta as assistant general manager. Then, he served as the president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks from 2005 through 2009.
To best study the future, we'll turn to the past and see if we can learn from history. In tracking drafts Angelo, Ruskell or both have been involved with back to 1987, the men have been involved with the selection of 28 first-round draft picks. Of those 28, 15 have been linemen -- nine defensive and six offensive. Angelo, of course, has used four first-round picks on linemen with the Bears (Chris Williams, Tommie Harris, Michael Haynes, Marc Colombo). In that span, Ruskell drafted defensive end Lawrence Jackson and center Chris Spencer in the first round for the Seahawks.
Three quarterbacks and three linebackers are also among those 28 first-round picks. It's not expected they will address those positions in the first round.
With a need to rebuild an offensive line that led the league in sacks allowed, and a desire to find an explosive defensive tackle, many believe the Bears will focus on these positions in the first two rounds. Some scouts expect as many as 13 defensive linemen to come off the board in the first round, and it's considered the strength of the draft.
"It's a good class," Ruskell said of the defensive tackles. "It was obviously bolstered by what happened in terms of underclassmen coming out. That is really what blew up the numbers for the first round or first several rounds. What's been great for me is getting back reacquainted with Rod (Marinelli), the scheme that I am familiar with and him really going back to ground zero in terms of explaining to us how that has changed and developed over the years and what he has done differently in terms of the Bears. As I remember, that was what was so great about the Bucs, not just with Rod but with all those coaches. We really felt like we got on the same page in terms of what they were looking for. So that when we went out as scouts, we were able to nail it.
"We were looking at players that the rest of the league that wasn't their No. 1 choice. Rod kind of favored the undersized guy inside. He didn't have to be 6-4, whereas some teams said I need a giant. So we had a little bit of an advantage. That's kind of changed now as more teams have developed into the scheme. But it's a good group. The numbers are there throughout the draft. There is not going to be a round that somebody didn't fit on the list if indeed we had to take care of it."
One of the reasons the Bears have dealt with a lack of young players on the offensive line is because they largely ignored the position for five drafts from 2003 through 2007. Angelo hasn't invested many high picks in the position, either.
"They're not pretty picks," he said. "When you look at them, you always want a little more glitter. Offensive linemen don't bring as lot of glitter, but we certainly understand the value. In part, too, we've had a good run in free agency with offensive linemen, and that's bode well for us.
"Not that we dislike drafting, it's not a philosophy, we felt maybe years ago -- I don't feel this strongly about it now -- that you could develop offensive lineman and you could get them in later rounds. That really hasn't historically beared out although we did a pretty good job with (J'Marcus) Webb in the seventh round, hopefully you continue to develop, but no more than that. We respect the value of the position obviously."
So how does business change now that Angelo and Ruskell are reunited?
"A lot of the things that I incorporated in Seattle are things that Jerry and I worked on in Tampa and that maybe he got away from and then I have kind of taken them and gone further with them," Ruskell said. "And some of those we've re-instituted. Things that Jerry is familiar with in terms of the board. Like you said, there's no earth-shattering changes. But we've talked and the best of both worlds is what it's felt like and it's felt good to the scouts and it has felt good to the coaches in terms of the way we've went about our business and everybody got their say and the work was thorough. No matter how you get to that point, that's the goal."
Both men insist there's enough individual thinking going on, although looking over the Seahawks' drafts from the last few years, you see some names the Bears were known to like. Miami cornerback Kelly Jennings was on their list in 2006 when they traded out of the first round. The Seahawks drafted him 31st overall, five spots after the Bears' pick.
"That's been what was great about when Jerry and I worked together before, and working with Lovie (Smith) and working with Rod," Ruskell said. "But it's done in such a professional way. Everybody has their say, and we're open to 'Ok, I didn't look at it that way, let's look at the film again with that perspective.' I think that's healthy, and that's a good thing.
"I think that's where our success in Tampa came out of. A lot of adversity early. A lot of things didn't go our way. As Jerry likes to say, we survived our mistakes. But we learned from them. When we finally got together with the coaching staff and implemented that philosophy with what we were trying to do personnel wise, the thing kind of took off."
Angelo said there was a sign in the draft room in Tampa that read, "If everybody is thinking alike, there's not much thinking going on."
"The goal isn't to get people to patronize your thinking," Angelo said. "The goal is to stimulate your thinking, get honest opinions, independent thinking but obviously based on research. We're not poll takers. We feel good about that. We've been together a long time. The commonality, it helps."
bmbiggs@tribune.com
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...tory?track=rss
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Junior Member
These guys talk like they built a dynasty down there in Tampa. They were a decent team for a few years but that's about it. I sure hope they can get us some great talent this draft.
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Nice post 4th. I think Biggsy did a pretty fair job on provding much insight and pretty much left the opinions to us. I'm not expecting miracles just because WRJ, Ruskel and the coaches are all on the same page. They've claimed as much before without any noticeable improvement in our personnel management. To me even bringing Ruskell on board is no assurance that they'll do much better but they do have a unique opportunity through this draft and FA to make a marked improvement in our weak spots and leave an imprint for the next 4 or 5 seasons.
I keep coming back to the same thing though. Despite past personnel blunders this team did make it to the NFC Championship Game, and nearly won it, without Cutler and an offense that left a lot to be desired. We have three key holes to plug on offense at OG, OT, and WR and one on defense at DT. All of those should be able to be accomplished this offseason as well as adding some youth for depth and ST's. There are also several of our own FA's which need to be re-signed in order to maintain a winning veteran core.
We don't have a whole lot to show from the last few drafts but what has shown up hasn't been all that bad. Webb looks like he's going to be a late round "find" and CWill is improving and maybe he'll finally be able to handle LT and if not maybe Webb or a draftee will. Knox has been another "find" and should get better, Wright may step into a starting role and Kellen Davis gives us pass catching depth behind Olsen and Earl Bennett maybe our best WR.
Aside from that we've also improved dramatically through FA and the Cutler trade. Without him and Peppers we wouldn't have even had a whiff of the playoffs this past year. So I'll give these guys a shot at having a big time draft and FA period this year before I pass too much judgement but let's hope that history dims in copmarison to what we pull off this year. We're close.
I'm getting to that age where a lifetime warranty just doesn't mean as much to me anymore as an afternoon nap. 
Honey Badger Don't Care. Honey Badger Don't Give a Shit.
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Junior Member
I hope your right Soul about the Bears being only a few players away. I know on paper it looks that way and because of how far we went last season, but I felt the same after the 2001 and 2006 seasons as well only to see the team miss the playoffs for several years following each of those great seasons. We did have back to back playoff runs in '05 and '06 under Lovie with what I would consider a far less talented coaching staff then the team currently has.
I'm getting very eager for this draft just to see who JA/Ruskell select. What I really wonder is if at #29 they somehow have a choice between one of their 3t DT prospects and one of their top OT prospects which way will they go. I'm pretty sure I know the answer based on their history and recent statements that early round OL are not glamorous type picks whatever that means. I keep hearing that DL are more prevalent in this years draft than any other position. I just wonder if all they've spent to get a top notch QB in Chicago will change their collective mindset of defense first. I don't mind if they go DT with their first pick but only if the OL they have on their board as first rounders are gone. I see you are a Carimi guy, what if at 29 both Carimi and Luiget are on the board, I know small chance in hell of that happening but if it did I wonder which way they would go and how they have each of those guys graded.
Last edited by thekmann; 04-27-2011 at 03:43 AM.
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Originally Posted by
thekmann 
I hope your right Soul about the Bears being only a few players away. I know on paper it looks that way and because of how far we went last season, but I felt the same after the 2001 and 2006 seasons as well only to see the team miss the playoffs for several years following each of those great seasons. We did have back to back playoff runs in '05 and '06 under Lovie with what I would consider a far less talented coaching staff then the team currently has.
I'm getting very eager for this draft just to see who JA/Ruskell select. What I really wonder is if at #29 they somehow have a choice between one of their 3t DT prospects and one of their top OT prospects which way will they go. I'm pretty sure I know the answer based on their history and recent statements that early round OL are not glamorous type picks whatever that means. I keep hearing that DL are more prevalent in this years draft than any other position. I just wonder if all they've spent to get a top notch QB in Chicago will change their collective mindset of defense first. I don't mind if they go DT with their first pick but only if the OL they have on their board as first rounders are gone. I see you are a Carimi guy, what if at 29 both Carimi and Luiget are on the board, I know small chance in hell of that happening but if it did I wonder which way they would go and how they have each of those guys graded.
I would go with Carimi. We have a dire need at OT, more so than DT. Carimi would at the very least be a great player at RT, and very worst, a very serviceable LT. I think that the fact that we have a wild card up our sleeves in J'Marcus Webb is excellent because he was really coming along nicely at the end of last season.
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Originally Posted by
Dagan81 I would go with Carimi. We have a dire need at OT, more so than DT. Carimi would at the very least be a great player at RT, and very worst, a very serviceable LT. I think that the fact that we have a wild card up our sleeves in J'Marcus Webb is excellent because he was really coming along nicely at the end of last season.
There are those who say that Webb has the feet and the athleticism to play LT. We'll see. Maybe his struggles earlier last year were nothing more than inexperience, uncertainty and competing against much higher level players than he did in college. Martz says he made an incredible improvement over how he started the year and we all know that Tice loves him.
Although right now I see him as the perfect RT that doens't mean he can't progress enough to handle the blind side as well. He can't be bullrushed easily and his size makes him an obstacle to get around so the only question seems to be can he handle speed? I think they'll take a look at him at LT but whether or not they move him depends upon a lot of things not the least of which is how we draft.
I'm getting to that age where a lifetime warranty just doesn't mean as much to me anymore as an afternoon nap. Honey Badger Don't Care. Honey Badger Don't Give a Shit.
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Originally Posted by
thekmann I hope your right Soul about the Bears being only a few players away. I know on paper it looks that way and because of how far we went last season, but I felt the same after the 2001 and 2006 seasons as well only to see the team miss the playoffs for several years following each of those great seasons. We did have back to back playoff runs in '05 and '06 under Lovie with what I would consider a far less talented coaching staff then the team currently has.
I'm getting very eager for this draft just to see who JA/Ruskell select. What I really wonder is if at #29 they somehow have a choice between one of their 3t DT prospects and one of their top OT prospects which way will they go. I'm pretty sure I know the answer based on their history and recent statements that early round OL are not glamorous type picks whatever that means. I keep hearing that DL are more prevalent in this years draft than any other position. I just wonder if all they've spent to get a top notch QB in Chicago will change their collective mindset of defense first. I don't mind if they go DT with their first pick but only if the OL they have on their board as first rounders are gone. I see you are a Carimi guy, what if at 29 both Carimi and Luiget are on the board, I know small chance in hell of that happening but if it did I wonder which way they would go and how they have each of those guys graded.
I truly do believe that we need just a few upgrades over last years to up our level of play and not fall back. I know we did that following the 2001 and 2006 seasons but then again we didn't have players like Cutler and Peppers or a do it all RB with the effectiveness of Forte either.
To me it's pretty obvious what has to be improved and if I can tell I'm sure the team can as well. Two more Olineman, a 3t DT in the rotation, and someone from our current group or a draftee emerging at CB improves the D enough to hold or better last years performance. Tice gets the Oline in order before the bye week this year and improves the running game. Now get Cutler his bigger WR in FA and we've made the improvements in the offense needed to compete. The rest comes from staying relatively healthy all year much like we did in 2010.
If both Carimi and Liuget were there at #29 I'd take Liuget. He's the more unique talent of the two and guys like him are harder to find.
I'm getting to that age where a lifetime warranty just doesn't mean as much to me anymore as an afternoon nap. Honey Badger Don't Care. Honey Badger Don't Give a Shit.
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I look at all those names, and overall, i think: What is this shit?
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Originally Posted by
soulman There are those who say that Webb has the feet and the athleticism to play LT. We'll see. Maybe his struggles earlier last year were nothing more than inexperience, uncertainty and competing against much higher level players than he did in college. Martz says he made an incredible improvement over how he started the year and we all know that Tice loves him.
Although right now I see him as the perfect RT that doens't mean he can't progress enough to handle the blind side as well. He can't be bullrushed easily and his size makes him an obstacle to get around so the only question seems to be can he handle speed? I think they'll take a look at him at LT but whether or not they move him depends upon a lot of things not the least of which is how we draft.
First of all Paul, I want to congratulate you on Gabe Carimi being drafted by the Bears. Secondly, I'm interested in seeing what Webb's footwork is like. Does he have a good enough side-step to keep up with bull-rushing five techniques? Tice does love him and that is because of his hard work and determination to get better. I will definitely be interested in seeing how Training Camp works out because it will be then that we see whether or not he can make the transition to LT or if Carimi is up to the task of taking on the role of the blind side blocker. Some have suggested that there might be a competition between Chris Williams and Webb for spot at RT, and if that's the case, we will see which player will go on to have a serviceable, if not solid, NFL career or if the loser in the competition turns out to be a royal turd.
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I'm sure Tice has a plan but for the life of me I can't really see the Webb to LT thing. Unless he has a great camp and makes quantum leaps in pass pro I would think Carimi would be the successor at LT. Hell Omiyale makes a better RT than LT and he got his share of help vs. DE's.
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