DEFENSE BRINGS HEAT TO OPEN TRAINING CAMP

By: Gary Zahara and Mike Scott

July 30,2005

BOURBONNAIS- Gatorade and ice baths were valuable commodities during the first week of training camp when the heat index often soared over the 116-degree mark. Trainers and coaches kept a close watch over their charger, easing up on the intensity of workouts and mandating frequent water breaks. The strategy seemed to have worked. By the time tornados skirted the practice fields late Tuesday, all of the players appeared to be healthy and ready to go back to full bore play.

Who's looking good so far? Most of last year's MIA's are back in action, even if in some cases, only to a limited degree. Marc Colombo, Brian Urlacher, Mike Brown look ready to go, which is encouraging to say the least. Rex Grossman has assumed his place at the helm of the offense and is having a productive camp thus far.

One of the major surprises is in Chad Hutchinson who didn't seem to be much more than a journeyman backup last season. Hutchinson has said he's much more comfortable in Ron Turner's scheme, an approach that Hutchinson likens to the Stanford offense of several years ago. Chad may not be the go to guy every game but if, heaven forbid, something should happen to Rex, all is not lost. And if Chad returns to beachcomber status, the Bears might have the missing link.

There's a lot of positive buzz about Kyle Orton as well. Though obviously an unknown quantity at the professional level, Orton seems to be the real deal. Sure, he's raw right now, but there's a big upside on this steal from the 2005 draft. His teammates like him, the coaches like him, and why not? Orton is smart and savvy and can only get better with time. Better yet, Orton has a chip on his shoulder. He wanted to go much higher in this year’s draft and feels he has a lot to prove.

A surprising standout during Week One was WR Eddie Berlin, late of the Tennessee Titans. Berlin has been making some dramatic, athletic grabs and is the perfect target for Hutchinson's down field bombs. The fans at camp were impressed by Berlin's acrobatics and those at Soldier Field probably will be as well. Berlin hauled in a touchdown in the 2-minute drill to end Saturday's practice

Other previously dormant Bears beginning to stir once more: Bobby Wade, Kareem Kelly, Justin Gage and Carl Ford. Yes, there are too many WR's on the roster right now, but too many is always better than too few. Clearly, though Mushin Muhammad will be the anchor of the receiver corps but it's nice to have a backup group like this. Muhammad's battle with Charles Tillman will only prove positive as the third year cornerback looks to become the 'man' in the secondary thanks to the departure of deadweight R. W. McQuarters.

"I'm loving the battles. I think we are making each other better. I hope I can keep playing the way I'm playing once the season starts," Tillman said.

One more player to keep an eye on: Doug Brien. This seasoned kicker has been around for a while and knows the NFL inside and out. He may have blown a few when with other teams, but so far in camp, he’s spot on. His competition, Nick Novak, from the University of Maryland, is just a warm body. Novak badly missed during drills on Saturday. Let's hope Brien doesn't try to tackle anybody during runbacks. If he does, the Bears might have to find Kevin Butler. I kid, I kid.

No hitting during Saturday's 2-hour workout, but the defense certainly could have laid several receivers out as Grossman and Hutchinson's passes went awry most of the time.

"Last couple of nights, the defense has really picked it up. (Tillman) is playing at a high level. He's got size, ability and practices hard everyday. Both him and Mush are pushing the defense to the level of domination we want them to be at," Lovie Smith said.

One casualty from week one was punter Brad Maynard. Maynard injured his calf during special teams drills. Although Lovie downplays the injury and says that Maynard won't be out a significant amount of time, the Bears signed booter Gabe Lindstrom to a 2-year deal.

So it’s on to Week Two and this squad's first appearance at Soldier Field. They won't be exhibiting the polished product you'll see in September, but the potential is there. If everybody remains healthy, 2005 could be the first step out of the cellar and back into the playoff picture. Jerry Angelo certainly hopes so. So far he’s coasted through some bad decisions but, hey, everybody's been patient long enough. If the Bears finish as poorly as they did last January, this could be the year the axe falls on the GM.

HOME