Chicago Bears

HISTORY
Founded as the Decatur Staleys of the APFA in 1920, then played one year as the Chicago Staleys in 1921. Joined the NFL and changed name to Bears in 1922.

CHAMPIONSHIP SUMMARY
League Championships: 9 - 1921 (AFPA), 1932 (NFL), 1933 (NFL), 1940 (NFL), 1941 (NFL), 1943 (NFL), 1946 (NFL), 1963 (NFL), 1985 (Super Bowl)

Conference Championships: 3 - 1956 (WFC), 1963 (WFC), 1985 (NFC)

Division Championships: 16 - 1933 (NFL West), 1934 (NFL West), 1937 (NFL West), 1940 (NFL West), 1941 (NFL West), 1942 (NFL West), 1943 (NFL West), 1946 (NFL West), 1984 (NFC Central), 1985 (NFC Central), 1986 (NFC Central), 1987 (NFC Central), 1988 (NFC Central), 1990 (NFC Central), 2001 (NFC Central), 2005 (NFC North)

Playoff Appearances: 24 - 1932, 1933, 1934, 1937, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1946, 1950, 1956, 1963, 1977, 1979, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1994, 2001, 2005

2005 Finish: 11-5, 1 st Place NFC North

Recent Records:

2004: 5-11 2005: 11-5 2006: 13-3

2008 NFL DRAFT GRADES

Chicago Bears: B+

First of all, the Panthers got one of the more talented offensive linemen in the draft when they selected Chris Williams with the 14th pick. Williams should be a cornerstone left tackle for a team that really struggled to protect the quarterback and run with any sort of consistency. A very good athlete for his size. Good pick.

Matt Forte (pronounced for-tay, not FORT) was a great college running back, has great 20+ carry size, and solid speed. Every single week Matt was the guy opposing defenses tried to stop when he suited up for Tulane, and he still put up astronomical numbers. In a great running back class, Forte is probably the biggest sure thing to start from day 1.

Earl Bennett was originally seen as one of the guys Jay Cutler threw the ball to, and many thought Cutler didn’t have the personnel to have great college numbers. Then, when Cutler was gone, Bennett kept putting out great seasons. He had three years of 75+ catches, and his size gives him a strength advantage against most corners. For a team with no veteran receivers, Bennett should help out immediately.

Marcus Harrison, the big DT from Arkansas, as the Bears second 3rd round pick. Harrison fought injuries and off-the-field issues during his tenure at Arkansas, but the Bears may have hit it big on yet another talented defensive lineman.

Craig Steltz is an old-school player who will pop you. He’s not really big, but his size won’t be a problem. He was the leader of a very good LSU defense, and will be a great special teams player right out of the gates.

Zackery Bowman transferred to Nebraska and then found himself in the middle of a terrible Cornhusker team. However, Bowman played well at Nebraska, and would have been a higher pick if not for his injury history. The Bears could use his help in the secondary.

Kellen Davis is an interesting prospect because he proved himself to be a talented pass rusher as well as pass catcher in college. His speed is solid (just under 4.6 in the 40) and shows good hands, but he is raw at both positions (TE and DE). It will be interesting to see what the Bears do with him. I like this pick in Round 5.

With 5 picks in the 7th round, the Bears grabbed Ervin Baldwin (DE/OLB Michigan State), Chester Adams (OG Georgia), Joey LaRocque (OLB), Kirk Barton (OT), and Marcus Monk (WR). All of these players are limited by size or ability. Marcus Monk may be a wild card, as it is very possible that his struggles at Arkansas were because of the poor quarterback play during his tenure.

The only thing that dropped the Bears a couple half grades was the fact that they ignored the quarterback position. I understand that Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton have both won football games, but neither is a game changer, and both have been tabbed as a liability. With players like Erik Ainge, John David Booty, Dennis Dixon, Josh Johnson, and Andre Woodson all being picked in the 5th round or later, it would have been beneficial for Chicago to take a chance there.

2007 Chicago Bears

The Bears finished a win a way from a Championship, one of the toughest places to finish in sports. Year and year again, this spot has proven for a tough repeat performance, well since Buffalo did it 4 times in a row, anyway. All in all, the Bears played much better offensively than they will get credit for, and much worse defensively than most believe them to be. Rex Grossman, despite the world wide hatred that surrounded him after the Cardinal debacle, had one hell of a season in his first full year as a starter. He’ll grow, and like Lovie Smith has said, he’ll get much better. Thomas Jones (not with the team anymore) had a very solid year for the Bears, while Cedric Benson also came on late as a force to be reckoned with. Brian Urlacher quite possibly had his best season, while Lance Briggs had another dominating season. But defensively, the Bears weren’t close to the same team after defensive line disrupter Tommie Harris went down for the year with a knee injury. Look for the Bears to, with one of their early selections (2 picks in the first 37) take another defensive force on the line. Overall, it looks as though the Bears have a strong base set in place that should help them stay very competitive in an improving NFC. Lovie Smith’s signing, to a new long contract, should keep the Bears on the fast track to success. The job he’s done in Chicago has been amazing.

2007 Off-Season Plans:

The Bears went into free agency with two goals, trying to keep their Super Bowl caliber squad in tact, and look to build through the draft. Right off the bat, they made an enemy out of Lance Briggs, by franchising him. Lance has recently said he will do everything in his power to never play for the Bears again. Should be interesting to see how this problem turns out. As for the other problem, the Bears traded one of their stud running backs (Thomas Jones) to switch from the 62nd to 37th selection in the 2nd round, and while most will belittle this move, that big of a disparity in draft picks is the difference between first and second round talent. The Bears will get some much needed defensive help with that selection. The Bears will make nice moves in the draft, Lovie Smith is a superb talent scout, and the Bears have always been great at plucking diamonds from the draft. Expect a player like Reggie Nelson to possibly fall to them, his stock has dropped of late, and with their luck, he’ll be waiting with the 2nd to last pick of round 1. Right now, I have the Bears taking a big and athletice offensive lineman in Round 1, but I’ll have to wait and see what happens with Mr. Briggs. Until then, I’ll ignore Briggs’ comments, and expect him to be back in a Bear Uni this fall.

See the Bears draft situation at Lucky’s Mock Draft!

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