TE Adams trying to crack roster again

TE Adams trying to crack roster again

August, 16, 2012 Aug 16
8:55
PM CT

By Jeff Dickerson | ESPNChicago.com

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BOURBONNAIS, Ill. – For a position that’s been overlooked the last two years, the Chicago Bears now find themselves with an abundance of depth at tight end. There are four players worthy of being on the 53-man roster, including second-year man Kyle Adams, who made the club last summer as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Purdue.

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http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2012/0816...dams11_200.jpgJonathan Daniel/Getty ImagesKyle Adams' special teams prowess gives him an advantage in trying to make the roster.

As a rookie, Adams played in just nine games, mostly on special teams, before he ended up on injured reserve due to a hamstring injury. But Adams recovered in time to participate in the Bears’ offseason program, a luxury he did not have last year because of the NFL lockout, and parlayed a strong spring into a solid first three weeks of camp.

Adams spent time lining up on the first team Thursday when the Bears went to a double tight end formation.

“It’s a world of difference, particularly understanding defense and understanding what we are trying to run,” Adams said. “Last year, you’re just trying to take in as much as you can and survive. This year, I feel like I understand what is going on, and I’m just trying to get my technique down.”

Already a proven commodity on special teams, Adams has flashed the ability to stretch the field in the vertical passing game. However, Adams knows he must improve his blocking if he ever wants to be an all-around tight end in the NFL.

“I take a lot of pride in catching the ball, but I really need to work on my blocking,” Adams said. “Catching the ball is always something I’ve been blessed with. Our last year at Purdue, we kind of transitioned to a spread offense so I caught the ball more than I blocked.

“The toughest thing about blocking in the NFL is that everyone is good. There are no bad players with bad techniques. You can’t get away with anything. So you have to be mindful of that.”

The man can dance

Keep Adams, keep Rodriguez and ditch Spaeth. It's either that or sew his uniform and Webbs together and make them a blocking duo at LT. Spaeth is little more than a small OT so we may as well use him that way.

Might need to keep Speath for that exact reason though; he might have to be permantly glued to the left side helping whoever wins that LT position.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Riczaj01

Might need to keep Speath for that exact reason though; he might have to be permantly glued to the left side helping whoever wins that LT position.

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That, and Spaeth is a BIG red zone target resource at 6'7" who has good hands. He was handcuffed under Martz and used as a "blocking guy" but if you watch him (or youtube) you can see clearly that this guy has great hands. We just need to use him more that way. And I think we will.

We have one tiny TE in Rodriguez, and that's fine to have 1 pure "receiving" TE like him. But do we need two? I like having Davis and Spaeth as BIG targets (both men present a HUGE catching radius for Cutler to use) for the passing game in the red zone, as well as blocking.

Spaeth is only 28 years old. A 3rd rounder out of Minnesota who will be productive in the NFL for years to come. I'm not so sure Adams has the ceiling that Spaeth has. UFA tight ends are a dime a dozen.