Chicago Bears Team Report by Chris Smith
| Chi Projections (9/3) | Passing Stats | Rush Stats | Receiving Stats | Fantasy | |||||||||||
| Change | Name | Pos | Att | Comp | % | Yds | TD | Int | Att | Yds | TD | Rec | Yds | TD | Pts |
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#fname# #lname# | #pos# | #NumberFormat("#pts#", '__,_____')# | ||||||||||||
| Totals | #NumberFormat("#tot_patt#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_pcmp#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#evaluate(100*tot_pcmp/tot_patt)#", '_____._')#% | #NumberFormat("#tot_pyds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ptds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_int#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ratt#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ryds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_rtds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_rec#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_cyds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ctds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_pts#", '__,_____')# | ||
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Quarterbacks Starter - Jim Miller Backups - Chris Chandler, Henry Burris Starting Quarterback: Jim Miller has been officially named the starting quarterback in Chicago. No big surprise there but the chances are good that both he and Chandler will see significant playing time with the Bears in 2002. Miller isn't a great quarterback but does everything well in the Bears conservative passing attack. With great talent on offense, the Bears should try and open it up this year but Miller is more suited to the short passing attack the team favored last year. Miller won't hurt his team and is a wonderful leader on the field. However he also doesn't have a lot of value as a fantasy quarterback and even less with the capable Chandler breathing down his neck. Miller has been injury prone during his career, which is another concern. Backup Quarterback(s): Chandler is a wonderful addition to the Bears roster. He brings a ton of experience to the team and has proven over his career that he can get the job done on the field. He has been super the past five years while in Atlanta but has a really tough time staying healthy. He didn't get the nickname "Chandelier" for nothing. Himself and Jim Miller will likely split time this year, which hinders the value of both players. Neither is ranked higher than 32nd on our list so don't consider drafting either of them unless both fall near the bottom of the draft. Henry Burris is an interesting third-stringer for the Bears. I watched him in Canada (played with Saskatchewan) and he has a lot of talent much like Jeff Garcia. However he was a lot less experienced than Garcia though and should have stayed in the CFL for another season or two. He is not ready to play at the NFL level yet but he is an exciting prospect. Running Backs Starter - Anthony Thomas Backups - Leon Johnson, Rabih Abdullah, Adrian Peterson [r] Starting Running Back: Anthony Thomas had an outstanding rookie season and racked up a team-record 1183 rushing yards in only nine starts. He runs with both power and quickness and his style suits the Bears attack perfectly. He thrives on carrying the ball 20+ times per game and he'll likely get his chance for that and more this season. The Bears offensive line doesn't look at strong this year but it is still good enough to help Thomas become a legitimate first-string fantasy running back. We have him ranked 8th overall and he is projected to have 1365 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns. Backup Running Back(s): If something happens to Thomas, the Bears are in trouble. Leon Johnson is not an NFL starting running back and he would struggle to put up numbers in a full time capacity. Rabih Abdullah has some talent, but is better suited as a part-time running back as well. Adrian Peterson is a rookie who is not ready for the NFL yet. He'll likely see some time over in NFL Europe. I wouldn't waste a pick on any of the above players, even if I have Thomas on my squad. None of them are likely to put up fantasy points. Fullback(s): Daimon Shelton, Stanley Pritchett - Daimon Shelton is a blocking machine who is a very important piece of the puzzle in Chicago. He is wonderful at leading the way for Thomas and busting open holes for him to run through. He has zero fantasy worth though so you can erase him from your mind. He is also out for the first three games of the season for steroid abuse so Pritchett will be the starter until at least week four. Wide Receivers / Tight Ends Starters- Dez White, Marty Booker Backups - David Terrell, Marcus Robinson Starting Receiver(s): The Bears are very talented at the receiver position but don't utilize very well with the ultra-conservative offensive philosophy they incorporate. The team really has four starting receivers if Marcus Robinson can get healthy. For now, Dez White and Marty Booker are set to start with David Terrell coming in as the third receiver. Marty Booker is the perfect receiver in this attack. He runs the underneath routes to perfection and became the first Bears receiver to ever have 100 catches. However he doesn't even average 11 yards per catch. The continued development of White and Terrell will vulture some receptions from Booker and if Robinson regains even a hint of his former glory, Booker will suffer. We have Booker ranked 26th overall, which makes him a decent 2nd receiver and a great 3rd receiver on a fantasy roster. Both Dez White and David Terrell will end up with similar receiving numbers but neither will crack the top forty so they both are fantasy backups at best. There is simply too much talent in this core for such a conservative attack. If the Bears don't open up the passing game, it is unlikely that the team will get their money's worth from this group. The only viable starting receiver in fantasy football as it looks today is Marty Booker. Watch out for David Terrell and Marcus Robinson though as both could be nice surprises this year. Tight End(s): Fred Baxter, Luther Broughton - The tight end position is sorely neglected with the Bears and that will likely continue into this season. Baxter is a great blocking tight end with poor receiving skills. Broughton is a decent receiving tight end but isn't so strong in the blocking aspect of him game. Neither will get enough touches to be considered a fantasy tight end. Broughton is our highest ranked Bears tight end and he is way down at # 44 on our board. Completely ignore this unit. Place Kicker Paul Edinger: Without a doubt, Edinger has one of the most original kicking techniques of all time. However strange it looks though, it does work with surprising consistency. He is battling rookie Jon Hilbert for the place kicker position but he should win without too much difficulty. We have him pegged for an 80 % accuracy level and that makes him a good fantasy option. Defense The strong point of the Chicago Bears is defense. This aggressive group simply dominates the football game at times and is led by the best linebacker in the NFL. Brian Urlacher continues to get stronger and stronger and it is hard to believe this player was a part time safety while in college. He conjures up memories of Mike Singletary and Dick Butkus and is as talented as both of those Hall of Famers. It is almost impossible to run up the middle on the Bears due to the massive Ted Washington and Keith Traylor plugging up the middle. There is simply no way to move those two mountains out of the middle. There is some question marks at defensive back but the team has talent to replace the departed Tony Parrish and Walk Harris. Cornerback, Jerry Azumah will really need to step up to replace the talented Harris or the defense could struggle out of the gate. The Bears have the talent to be a top five-fantasy defense this year. Coaching Dick Jauron was coach of the year in 2001. Nobody expected the Bears to win thirteen games this year but they will be hard pressed to equal that success this year. Jauron will need to open up the passing game a little bit in order to take pressure off of the rushing attack or the team will struggle to win nine games. If he is indeed a great coach, he will not force the team to follow the same road they did last year and will make the necessary changes to help this team have long-term success. Intangibles Nobody expected this team to win thirteen games a year ago. The Bears will not sneak up on anyone this year and will need to elevate their place ever further if they want to make the next step in the team's development. The key will be opening up the offense a little to make sure defenses don't crowd the line of scrimmage. The Bears have the talent at receiver to keep teams honest and will have to use it or defenses in the NFL will figure out how to shut down the conservative passing attack. |