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Bears confident Hardin will make smooth transition
Bears confident Hardin will make smooth transition
By: Larry Mayer | Last Updated: 5/12/2012 4:52 PM
Converting Brandon Hardin from a college cornerback into an NFL safety won’t be easy. But Bears coach Lovie Smith is confident that the third-round pick from Oregon State will excel at his new position.
“It’s always tough when you make any transition,” Smith said Saturday at the team’s rookie minicamp. “But you just look at some of the skills he has: great size for a safety, he’s a physical player.
“That’s what we’re looking for there. It’s a lot harder playing corner than it is safety, so we feel pretty good about him being able to make that transition.”
The chiseled 6-3, 217-pounder is certainly built more like a safety than a cornerback, and he’s looked comfortable at his new position in the first two practices at rookie minicamp.
“It’s going great,” Hardin said. “I’ve definitely been learning a lot. Since I am playing a new position, there’s a lot to learn, a lot of coaching and I think it’s going well so far.
“Mentally it’s a little difficult. I have all the physical aspects to be a good safety. Now it’s just learning a new position, taking in the coaching, learning the different schemes and coverages.”
Hardin played cornerback at Kamehameha High School in Hawaii and later at Oregon State, where he registered 105 tackles, one interception, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery in three seasons. He started all 12 games at right cornerback in 2010 before missing the entire 2011 campaign with a broken shoulder.
The only time Hardin played safety prior to joining the Bears was in the East-West Shrine Game this past January.
“The mental aspect of it, there’s going to be a learning curve there,” Hardin told reporters after Saturday's two-hour non-contact practice. “But I have to learn as fast as I can if I do want to play.”
“I think just coming into this league is an adjustment,” said defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli. “Now you move him a little bit here, position to position, of course there is an adjustment. But he is a big athlete; he’s got good speed, nice range and good ball skills. Now it’s just getting the work, knowing what to do and letting the skill come alive.”
Bears 2011 third-round draft pick Chris Conte made a similar conversion, though his move from cornerback to safety came prior to his final season at California.
Operating a defense that’s fueled by takeaways, Smith has spoken to Hardin about the importance of getting more interceptions than the one he mustered in 38 career games at Oregon State.
“That’s why it was good to see him get one [Friday] in practice,” Smith said. “He’s a quick learner and we’re pretty encouraged.”
Hardin’s biggest impact as a rookie could come on special teams, given his size, speed, athleticism and mentality.
“He really loves special teams,” said special teams coordinator Dave Toub. “He was a gunner on their punt team, the first guy down the field on kickoff, the first guy down on punt.
"He made a lot of tackles. He jumped out at you on special teams, so we’re not going to have to do a lot as far as changing his mindset to play special teams. He’s already there.
"We’re really happy to have him. He has great speed, good size and a great attitude.”
Hardin has skills to be successful safety
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Hardin looks like a John Lynch clone.
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Originally Posted by
BigBadPapaBear 
Hardin looks like a John Lynch clone.
Exactly what I was thinking and if he turns out anywhere near that good we got ourselves one hell of a Safety. Here's just a bit more on his contract status. It seems that 3rd rounders are on that tail end of those top 3 picks who get some bonus money to guarantee their deal and they need to be fit in around the other contracts so that their team doesn't exceed the amount allocated to rookies. Structure rather than amount appears to be somewhat more open to negotiation for them.
Inside the Bears
What's the hold up on Brandon Hardin contract?
By Sean Jensen on May 12, 2012 4:34 PM | No Comments | No TrackBacks
It may seem puzzling to some of you, that the Bears have completed deals for all of their draft picks except for one. Particularly since first-rounder Shea McClellin signed his four-year deal Friday. The lone wolf for the Bears is safety Brandon Hardin, the third-round pick.
So what's the deal?
I'm told contracts in rounds four through seven are no-brainers, and we've already seen a bunch completed in the first- and second-round. Teams and agents are given the minimum and maximum first-year cap numbers, and they calculate the rest of the deal around that. But only a couple (perhaps only two) third-round deals have been done because teams have different approaches on how to reach that number.
Some teams maxed out the 25 percent in years two through four, while other clubs offered smaller additional compensation, such as workout bonuses. Some teams even offered minimum salaries for years two to four.
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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Good stuff Soul. I was wondering what was making it so complicated to sign a 3rd rd pick.
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Well I knew there must have been a reason for the delay but I haven't studied this rookie scale enough to know the in's and out's of it yet and how it impacts negotiations. But given the nature of the beast, the rookie scale, and the cap, etc. it usually comes down to structure and guaranteed.
Even the battle with Forte seems to have more to do with that then the total dollars which are pretty much related to the length of the deal. Another limiting factor is that virtually all rookies are now being signed to 4 year deals so when they finish those they are UFA's in year 5. The day of RFA's is going away. Teams will need to extend their top young players before year 5 or risk losing them. No more tendering guys cheap. They'll need to pay them or lose them. That was the tradeoff for getting these rookie deals back to reality again.
If a guy is seriously outplaying his rookie contract teams better act in year four or before and get a new deal done before the bidding starts.
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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He won't last more than four years with the Bears because the Bears don't believe in paying safeties anything past their first four years in Chicago.
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If he can become a big time S they'll pay him. The problem is that the standard has been set very high with Mike Brown. Sometimes we forget just how good he was when healthy. And yes we messed up not signing Daniel Manning. He was a pimp with the Texans last year.
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Originally Posted by
BigBadPapaBear If he can become a big time S they'll pay him. The problem is that the standard has been set very high with Mike Brown. Sometimes we forget just how good he was when healthy. And yes we messed up not signing Daniel Manning. He was a pimp with the Texans last year.
If Hardin can play up to his potential we'll forget all about Manning. Hardin is bigger and just about as fast. If this kid can master how to play SS in a Cover-2 and Conte keeps progressing at FS we'll have two of the biggest, tallest mid fielders in the NFL. I'm really pulling for Hardin to stay healthy and be a quick learner. Major Wright has managed to get on my "shit list" with his spotty play.
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
soulman If Hardin can play up to his potential we'll forget all about Manning. Hardin is bigger and just about as fast. If this kid can master how to play SS in a Cover-2 and Conte keeps progressing at FS we'll have two of the biggest, tallest mid fielders in the NFL. I'm really pulling for Hardin to stay healthy and be a quick learner. Major Wright has managed to get on my "shit list" with his spotty play.
I agree with you Soul. This is an incredibly talented trio of Safeties. I don't have the same enthusiasm for Wright that I used too but I'm still hoping he develops because he was an exciting safety in college. And Steltz is as solid a backup for our Tampa 2 that you'll find. I'm very excited about the big hits and big plays that these guys can produce. Its sorely needed back there.
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Well it took Manning a while to "get it" too. We all used to complain about his horseshit tackling ability early in his career. There's still hope. At least we've got some young talent there now.
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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