The Chicago Bears missed out on the playoffs for the fourth-straight year after losing their last two games last season. It’s back to the drawing board for general manager Phil Emery and head coach Marc Trestman as they map out the Bears’ strategy for next season. With the Bears’ training camp starting this Friday, we’ve prepared a list of five key developments in the Bears’ camp that fans should know about as we count down the days until the start of the NFL season on September 4.
Check out our complete preview of the 2014 Bears season as well as their division-mates the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings, and read on to start getting jacked for the 2014 NFL season.
[sc:Football ]Five Things Chicago Bears Fans Need to Know Before the 2014 NFL Season
1. Will Jay Cutler live up to his multi-million dollar contract?
[sc:NFL240banner ]Based on his performance last season, there is reason to be optimistic that Jay Cut can live up to his huge $126.7 million contract. Before being sidelined by injuries yet again, Cutler had a fantastic season for the Bears, racking up 90+ passer ratings in his first three games. Though he only played in 11 games, Cutler was still able to post numbers of 2,621 yards, 19 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, and a career-high 89.2 passer rating.
Ultimately, it will be Cutler’s ability to get the Bears back to the playoffs and to the Super Bowl which will be the main factor in his valuation. The Bears’ last playoff appearance was way back in 2010 when they lost the conference championship to the Packers.
2. Who will be Jay Cutler’s back-up?
Last season, Josh McCown was a more than capable backup to Jay Cutler. While Cutler was out due to injuries, McCown had a season to remember, throwing for 1,829 yards with 13 touchdowns and just one interception in the five games that he started (eight games total).
The Bears were 3-2 SU in the games that he started and his stellar play helped the Bears stay in the playoff hunt while Cutler was out. Some say it was Trestman’s system that did wonders for McCown but no question McCown was amazing for the Bears last season. He signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason where he will reunite with former Bears coach Lovie Smith.
The question now for the Bears is who will be their Josh McCown this year? Given that Cutler will likely miss at least a couple games, this could be a critical issue for Chicago. The contenders for the backup quarterback position are Jordan Palmer and Jimmy Clausen. Palmer was given the first crack on the position but he missed a portion of the OTA’s with a right shoulder strain. That opened the door for former Panthers QB Clausen who has impressed the Bears’ staff thus far.
The only sure thing here is that whoever wins the backup quarterback position needs to be ready since Cutler has only played in all 16 games just once since arriving here in 2009.
3. Who will be the Bears’ safety this season?
Chris Conte and Major Wright were just downright horrible for the Bears at safety in 2013, as shown by their terrible grades from Pro Football Focus last season. Conte had a rating of -15.8 while Wright had a grade of -27.4, the worst among all NFL safeties.
The Bears decided that that wasn’t good enough and signed Ryan Mundy and M.D. Jennings on the free agency market. They also drafted Brock Vereen in the fourth round of this year’s draft to further boost the defense.
Mundy has been a spot starter during his five-year NFL career and set a career-high for starts in a season at nine with the Giants last year. His best asset is his durability. He’s played in 80 of a possible 80 games since entering the NFL. His stats however are underwhelming. Mundy has just two interceptions, 10 defended passes and a sack during his five-year career.
Vereen recorded 59 tackles, one forced fumble, an interception and six pass break-ups as he was named first-team All-Big Ten in his last year with University of Minnesota.
He and Mundy have surprised during offseason practices. Mundy figures to be a lock to start at strong safety with his understanding of angles and technique. He’ll be a huge asset that Marc Trestman can rely on as he looks to retool a defense that was the league worst last year in opposing rushing yards.
4. Who will be the Bears’ kick returner?
Bears general manager Phil Emery already knew last season that it would be difficult to keep Devin Hester in the offseason. Hester signed with the Falcons but Emery had already signed his preferred replacement in ex-Canadian Football League kick return star Chris Williams.
Williams is a speed demon and was the CFL’s special teams Player of the Year in 2012 when he had five punt return touchdowns. He was also a capable wide receiver as he caught 17 touchdowns for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats during his two seasons in the Canadian Football League.
The only question now is can his game translate to the NFL. Phil Emery signed kick return specialists Armanti Edwards and Michael Spurlock just to have some competition in this position, but it is Williams’ to lose.
5. Can Shea McClellin finally flourish as a linebacker this season?
Shea McClellin showed up at the Bears’ OTAs looking fit and ready to kickstart his career after struggling to meet expectations as the team’s defensive end in 2012 and 2013. He went on a 12-week training program with performance coach Scot Prohaska and dropped 11 pounds and 8 percent body fat in anticipation of his expected move from defensive end to being a linebacker.
McClellin was a surprise pick in the first round in 2012 and since then Bears fans have picked on him especially as his poor performances started to pile up. He recorded just 6.5 total sacks in 2012 and 2013 and Emery hopes that McClellin will now show his true strength now in his preferred linebacker position. Also it gives the Bears defense a more hybrid look with a more athletic McClellin now patrolling the defensive end.
Football is almost here, Bears fans. Create a betting account now and see if you can predict who will win the Super Bowl this year with the Bears listed at +1,600.
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