Thread: Bears' 'triad' still only No. 3 in the tough NFC North

Bears' 'triad' still only No. 3 in the tough NFC North

Bears' 'triad' still only No. 3 in the tough NFC North

March 23, 2012, 12:14 pm SHARE THIS POST
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Do the Detroit Lions have a strong enough 'triad' to be ahead of the Packers and the Bears? (US Presswire)

	JOHN "MOON" MULLIN Bio & archive

The furor – again – over the disagreement between the Bears and Matt Forte over the monetary value of a No. 1 running back took some attention away from the third significant offensive upgrade made by the Bears in barely a week.

Trading for wide receiver Brandon Marshall and signings of quarterback Jason Campbell and running back Michael Bush improve all three of the primary skill groups. Bush projects to see important playing time even with Forte in place.

With the movement and moves to this point, CSNChicago.com has analyzed the franchise triads on offense – quarterback/running back/wide receiver. The point: to see where the Bears now stand in the key offensive spots in a division that is likely to send at least two teams to the playoffs for the foreseeable future.

Of note also in the NFC North, is that none of the top players for each division team is even age 30 at this point.

Noteworthy history

The models and rationale for assigning maximum attention on this position grouping are simple. This three-pack is the basis for sustained greatness, or even really-good-ness, for that matter.

1970s Pittsburgh Steelers – Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, John Stallworth/Lynn Swann.

1980s-‘90s San Francisco 49ers – Joe Montana/Steve Young, Roger Craig, Jerry Rice.

1990s Dallas Cowboys – Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin.

(Teams like the Tom Brady New England Patriots skew the line slightly but the nature of the “diffusion offense” spreading the ball via underneath passing is its own topic.)

The rating system

Rankings are inherently difficult simply because of gaps between skill/performance levels even at the same position.

With that caveat, CSNChicago.com’s system will be to rank the positions (weighted toward starters) on a points scale of 4-3-2-1. The team total becomes the overall ranking, with a “Reserves” component available as a tiebreaker.

Indeed, with Campbell and Bush, the Bears now rate as the clear No. 1 in the tier just below the starters. What that means, if either the Lions or Packers have an injury to their front three, the Bears pass them, figuratively and possibly literally.

Detroit Lions

QB 3 - Matthew Stafford rates behind only Aaron Rodgers in the division and not many others in the NFC for that matter.

RB 2 - Jahvid Best is in a division marked by elite running backs, regardless of whether or not Forte thinks the Bears are offering him elite money.

WR 4 - Megatron. Period. The rest of the depth chart is incidental.

Team total: 9

Green Bay Packers

QB 4 - Aaron Rodgers wasn’t just the best in the division.

RB 1 - The Packers, like the Patriots, don’t need to run a lot or even throw to their backs. But Ryan Grant and James Starks aren’t true game-changers anyway.

WR 3 - A close call here because of quantity vs. quality, and the presence of Rodgers is a big complicator. Greg Jennings and Jordy Nelson, supplemented by Jermichael Finley (who argued that any franchise tag for him should be pegged to wide receiver not tight end) – Pack’ gets the edge over the Bears for numbers.

Team total: 8

BEARS

QB 2 - Jay Cutler rates higher in some divisions. Not this one.

RB 3 - Forte rates No. 1 in a lot of divisions. Not this one.

WR 2 - Marshall moves Bears up one NFCN notch but still needs more than just Earl Bennett in the long run.

Team total: 7

Minnesota Vikings

QB 1 - Christian Ponder was OK for a rookie. Just OK.

RB 4 - Adrian Peterson still the Big Dog but coming off an ACL and Forte is the heir to the crown, possibly this year.

WR 1 - Percy Harvin and…?

Team total: 6