Thread: Bears Look to Upgrage TE Position..............

Ooops that title should be Upgrade or maybe Upgarage, Upgarge isn't a worg. LOL

Bears look to upgrade at tight end

New assistants have experience working with position

Kellen Davis was the Bears' leading tight end last season with only 19 catches. (Nuccio DiNuzzo/Tribune photo) (February 14, 2013) (Photographed here on one of his 30 drops.)

6:21 p.m. CST, February 14, 2013



The Chicago Bears have had the fewest receptions by tight ends in the NFL for two seasons running, so it stands to figure they would like an upgrade when the offensive coordinator worked with Jimmy Graham the past two seasons.

Aaron Kromer comes from the New Orleans Saints where Graham has been one of the most dangerous middle of the field receivers in the game. Of course, head coach Marc Trestman will be calling the plays and he returns to the NFL from Canada where the tight end pretty much doesn’t exist.

“We’ve utilized the tight end in this offense quite often,” Kromer said. “We’d surely like to be able to throw the football to them. We’d like them to be able to block somewhat in the running game. They’re not going to be an offensive lineman blocking but definitely the more weapons you have the better off you are.”

Tight ends coach Andy Bischoff came with Trestman from the Montreal Alouettes. He’s been on the job a few weeks and has spent time reviewing what the Bears have at the position.

“I think it is hard to compare the systems,” Bischoff said. “What we see very clearly on film is effort and you can work with effort. So, then you have to spend more time in the evaluation process and truly see if those skills match what our skill set needs to be but it’s early for that. The exciting part is you see effort.” (That's funny, the only effort is see is the failed effort not to drop a ball that hits you right in the hands.)

So, Bischoff was asked point blank if the Bears need a pass-catching tight end after Kellen Davis led the team with 19 receptions this past season.

“We need a tight end that can threaten the defense,” he said. “We need a tight end that can create stress in the middle of the field, or wherever we place him, because we’re going to line him up next to the tackle and we’re going to line him up outside the numbers and we’re going to line him up in the backfield and we’re going to expect the defense to figure it out. (Davis in the backfield or flanked out wide would be a joke and you can't threaten the middle of the field with a guy who can't catch 90% of the catchable balls thrown to him.)

“And so we need a receiver who can catch the ball and we need a receiver who can block enough to be lined up in the backfield if we put him in there. In answering your question, yeah, absolutely we need a tight end that can catch the ball. The days of the tight end that blocked and ran flat routes in this league are coming to an end. The guys that just run three-yard flat routes, that is not going to do anything for you.” (Good bye Kellen Davis and ERod gets moved back to TE I betcha')

bmbiggs@tribune.com

Twitter @BradBiggs