Bears waive Bell after reserve RB refuses to take pay cut

he Bears have parted way with running back Kahlil Bell after he declined to take a pay cut.


Bell, who was scheduled to make $1.26 million this season, was waived Thursday evening. The Bears figured his salary was too high for a third-string running back and asked Bell to play for $700,00. Bell, in turn, asked to be released so he could seek an opportunity elsewhere.


The Bears already have significant money tied up in starter Matt Forte and backup Michael Bush, so it was no surprise to see them seek a cheaper third running back. Armando Allen has impressed throughout the preseason, while Lorenzo Booker opened eyes with a 105-yard kickoff return for a touchdown last Saturday against the Redskins. Allen or Booker could be in a battle for the third spot, provided the Bears don't seek another third option elsewhere.


Bell, a former undrafted player from UCLA, started the final two games of last season after Forte sprained his knee. Although Bell had a 100-plus yard rushing performance against the Packers, it didn't keep the Bears from asking to cut his pay.


In 20 games (three starts) played over three seasons (2009-11) with the Bears, Bell had 557 rushing yards on 119 attempts. He added 137 receiving yards and one touchdown on 20 receptions.





Vxmcclure@tribune.com


Twitter@vxmcclure23

Meh. Business decision. Couldnt be helped.

That leaves Allen vs. Booker for the 3rd RB spot. Booker's TD return was impressive but I like Allen.

Lovie should take a pay cut

Bell was VERY average. I'll be honest, I would rather have Allen. And what about Unga? Any chance they keep him now?

They may keep Unga and use him similarly to the way the Buccaneers used Mike Alstott. I don't know if that's something that Lovie Smith would consider doing, but I would like it very much if we had someone who could serve as like a second running back on the field at all times.

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Originally Posted by JustAnotherBearsFan99

Bell was VERY average. I'll be honest, I would rather have Allen. And what about Unga? Any chance they keep him now?

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I would think Unga is in competition with Clutts @ FB and I can't see how we don't keep TC for his blocking and STs. Unga might be PS material but I can't see him really making the roster as it looks now. Jmo

Damn .... wish I could turn down a 700K job.

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Originally Posted by JustAnotherBearsFan99

Bell was VERY average. I'll be honest, I would rather have Allen. And what about Unga? Any chance they keep him now?

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This is a follow up to my last post, JABF99. Basically, I'm still enamored with the offensive system the Bears employed back thirty years ago under Mike Ditka when we slammed Walter Payton and Matt Suhey into the opposing defense. I don't know why this isn't a popular thing to do now, but it would keep opposing defensive lines on their toes considerably more if the threat of running the ball off-tackle and in isolation patterns became more real.

Just think about it this way: like the Big Ten schools of the past when Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler coached, the Wisconsin Badgers of the past twenty years under Barry Alvarez and Bret Bielema, and the USC Trojan teams of the 1960s and 1970s, we have the offensive line that is capable of run blocking very well even by our worst linemen. To answer any naysayers who would point to the contrary, I emphatically say no to the concept that running the old style "three yards and a cloud of dust" has gone out of style. The Bears were able to break .500 last year while finishing in the top ten in the league in rushing, and through most of Lovie Smith's tenure in Chicago, this team has run the ball far more effectively than it has passed it. Now, we have the ability to do both, and it is something of which it should be taken advantage.

Lovie Smith knows this would work out well. Hell, he was an assistant coach down in Tampa with Tony Dungy during the mid-to-late 1990s. Dungy never had a solid offense (which explains how Lovie Smith has been able to win with so little offense throughout his tenure in Chicago), but he had Mike Alstott to plow ahead into opposing defensive front sevens. Alstott was the key to Tampa Bay's offense during the Tony Dungy era. I believe Harvey Unga can be our Mike Alstott in Chicago should Lovie and Tice see fit to utilize him in such a way.

The way I envision this working would be this way. It's first and ten, and you want to get the ball rolling. What do you do? You run Unga off-tackle or on an ISO pattern up the gut for 2-4 yard gain. Second down? Pass the ball. Third down? Run Forte or, if you are in an inverted I-Formation, run a fullback trap play to occasionally catch the defense off guard. I remember watching old footage of some teams doing this, and it's great for ball control offenses. It also sets up play action passes beautifully, which I assume Tice is wanting to do. Ohio State back from 1968 through 1978 under Woody Hayes mainly used running backs to gain the bulk of the yards and the fullbacks to gain short yards inside the goal line or in short yardage situations. If we put in CWill at LG or use Louis at RG, plus we have good run blockers in Carimi and Webb, there's no way that this couldn't work at least part of the time. If they crowd the line, that's fine: just do a play fake and chuck it deep on them. One way or another, they will have to respect us.

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Originally Posted by Dagan81

This is a follow up to my last post, JABF99. Basically, I'm still enamored with the offensive system the Bears employed back thirty years ago under Mike Ditka when we slammed Walter Payton and Matt Suhey into the opposing defense. I don't know why this isn't a popular thing to do now, but it would keep opposing defensive lines on their toes considerably more if the threat of running the ball off-tackle and in isolation patterns became more real.

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You could do that today, and in fact it would be effective. Matt Suhey was a good receiver for a FB, as well as a GREAT blocker, and he was very decent as a runner when teams sold out to stop Payton. There were games where teams completely sold out to stopping Walter, and we would fake to him, and Matt would rip them for decent gains. Move the chains with first downs, or even get a pass popped out to him. You especially saw this in the playoff run in '85 and the Super Bowl.

It could be similar today with Clutts. And in the red zone, it's mighty nice to have a 260 pound (gifted) FB blocking for a 245 pound Bush. That's one heck of a weapon. And if teams key on that at the goal line we can just dink a pass to our tall WR's now, or 6'7" Davis.