Chicago Bears 4 downs: Left side of O-line still up in th

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08-25-2012, 09:31 AM
Riczaj01

Chicago Bears 4 downs: Left side of O-line still up in th

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports...,2932509.story

4 downs: Left side of O-line still up in the air

By Brad Biggs, Chicago Tribune reporter 11:51 p.m. CDT, August 24, 2012

1. Indecisive

If the Bears were hoping to find something decisive in their search for a starting left side of the offensive line Friday night, they might have to look long and hard at video over the weekend. Nothing was glaring. Left tackle candidates J'Marcus Webb and Chris Williams each had at least one play they would want back. Based solely on how offensive coordinator Mike Tice rotated them the last two games, the guess is Webb gets the job and Chris Spencer remains the left guard. But this has been a winding road the club has gone down and you're never certain where it is leading.

2. Tillman picked on

Any game the Bears play without middle linebacker Brian Urlacher is going to be a challenge. You expect that. What you don't expect is the opposition to target cornerback Charles Tillman time after time. That is what Eli Manning did, throwing to his left for most of the first half. Tillman wasn't asked to cover Hakeem Nicks, who is working his way back from foot surgery. Ramses Barden, battling for a roster spot, worked against him and got the better of it. The Bears will hope this was an aberration.

3. Quigley OK

If Adam Podlesh is going to miss time in the regular season with his left hip flexor injury, undrafted rookie Ryan Quigley at least deserves consideration and another week to show what he can do. The blocked punt in the second quarter was the result of a breakdown on the right side of the line. Quigley got solid hang time and the Giants were not able to do much of anything returning the ball against him. It wouldn't be surprising if the Bears scouted out other options but Quigley was impressive in the biggest job interview of his career.

4. Marshall plan

Brandon Marshall didn't do anything out of the ordinary but five receptions for 51 yards in the first half and the first possession of the third quarter are the kind of numbers that will translate to major production. He caught a 21-yard touchdown pass against shoddy Cover-2 execution. Marshall should be a major factor. The pass protection for Cutler held up as he wasn't sacked by a defense that led the NFL with 13 exhibition sacks through the first two weeks. The offense has a chance to be very productive.
08-25-2012, 09:56 AM
draw2anderson35

Both Webb and Williams didn't play a good game, but felt a little more comfortable with Webb at LT rather than the porch door that was Williams last night. Sadly I really hope Emery can find a diamond in the rough once teams start making cuts that might be able to stop the bleeding on our O-Line.
08-25-2012, 09:57 AM
soulman

OLine: OJust stop fiddle fuckin' around and get the 5 starters named and start working them as a unit. Leave "Shrek" (My new name for Webb) at LT simply not because he's earned it but simply because we don't have anyone who is any better. The Spencer thing I don't understand though. One article says he's struggling like mad and another says he's been steady. Which is it.

Tillman: Peanut has a bad game every once in a while. Wasn't it against the Saints last year that he played like he was sleep walking? But then along comes Detroit and he makes Megatron "his bitch". He always bounces back from bad games so good, he got one out of the way when it didn't count for anything except pride and my guess is that his was injured enough last night to turn that around.

Punting: Didn't watch the game but Quigley averaged 43.6 yds per on his punts and they didn't get off any big returns. Combine that with his holds and I don't think there's anywhere to find fault. Looks like we may be OK until Podlesh returns and when that happens the kids audition here may get him work somewhere else.

Marshall: Like I said in another post. When's the last time we ever saw a Bears QB able to drop a TD pass like that into a WR? Even on a night that was far from Cutler's best and as he says communication was lacking elsewhere he could still find "his guy" for a quick six. These two guys will produce at least a half dozen TDs this year we wouldn't have gotten otherwise.
08-25-2012, 10:03 AM
soulman

Quote:

Originally Posted by draw2anderson35

Both Webb and Williams didn't play a good game, but felt a little more comfortable with Webb at LT rather than the porch door that was Williams last night. Sadly I really hope Emery can find a diamond in the rough once teams start making cuts that might be able to stop the bleeding on our O-Line.

I'm with ya' on this one. IF he can find a decent OT to backup Webb/Carimi then it seems to me that just putting CWill back at LG where he's already proven he can play decent football would be the best thing Tice could do.

CWill struggles even more than Webb does at LT and Spencer is struggling more than CWill did at LG. It doesn't take a nuclear physicist to figure out that it's time to stop sacrificing the ability to play the top 5 guys by keeping CWill at OT and playing Spencer on the opposite side of the line from where he's most comfortable.

I thought my dumping Martz we'd finally be over the "square pegs" deal but here it is all over again with the line. We can't go into the season with only Brown as the reserve OT so from all that I can see finding a vet OT who can take that role is imperative if we want CWill back at LG.