[CBFF] Angelo's Song

[Steve Behrens]

(((Man, I really like this guy's analysis and writing style.  I think he
goes just slightly too far in his criticism of Angelo at the end of the
article (if things go badly) trying to put a bow on the story, but
otherwise, a *VERY* enjoyable read.   Again, From Chicago Sports Review)))


 Angelo's Song

BY Dustin Beutin


If you were to take a poll of national sports and media writers, you might
be surprised to find that the 2007
Bears<http://www.serioussportsnewsnetwork.com/labels/Bears.html>are
thought of as a group of bungling, smelly fur rugs ready to be trod
upon
the moment they start the season. Any possible success this current team
will achieve this year has already been written off as the accidental
consequence of playing in a division unfit to wipe the behinds of the AFC
West.

To put it bluntly, according to the national media, the Bears will be the
worst NFL <http://www.serioussportsnewsnetwork.com/labels/NFL.html> team of
all time… to win a Division.

And while it's amusing to think what that opinion means about the Vikings,
Packers and Lions, it really is somewhat insulting when you consider that
the 2007 Bears will return everyone from their Super Bowl XLI run except
three defensive tackles, a safety and a backup's backup cornerback. Maybe
there is something to the curse of the Super Bowl loser - after all, we know
a lot about curses in Chicago - but it seems hardly fair to immediately
write off the Bears as mediocre simply because they lost to the Colts while
fielding essentially a rookie QB and a defense missing two pro-bowlers.

Part of the misconception stems from the difficulty the media outside of
Chicago has understanding this team. The Bears are the opposite of the NFL
standard in virtually every way: they are built with unknown college
players, set-up to win on defense and (now that a certain criminal offender
has been released) have no players or coaches who lend themselves to the
stage-light of national media.

And so, somehow, someway, the Bears enter the 2007 season as an underdog. A
good thing if you ask me, since Chicago fans and teams take to the roll of
the underdog like grilled onions take to a polish sausage.

That said, the real story of the 2007 Bears' season will have only a little
to do with Rex, Urlacher and Lovie - it will have everything to do with
Jerry Angelo.

A few days ago, Jerry Angelo pulled the trigger on a trade that sent Chris
Harris to the Carolina Panthers. In terms of NFL events, the move was a
bland, vanilla trade that sent a productive, though unspectacular safety to
the Carolina Panthers for a second-day draft pick. Really, the equivalent of
a mouse farting in a cheese shop as far as the NFL was concerned.

But the move highlighted something very, very telling: this year is the Year
of the Jerry.

The players, methods and visage of the McCaskey and Mark Hatley eras have
disappeared with the exception of a couple of high-caliber stars who
continue to benefit the Bears greatly.

The Bears are now loaded with - and thus completely dependent on - young
draftees who bear the mark of Jerry Angelo's selection process.

The off-season was marked entirely by Jerry Angelo's ability to prune and
sculpt the Bears for another run. The trade of Thomas Jones was a
historically gutsy move for a team whose next option is a yet-unproven,
possibly fragile, young running back. The standoff with Briggs was
considerably arrogant in the face of the drama, effort and distraction it
tolled on the Bears. The trade of second-day draft picks for Darwin Walker
and Adam Archuleta have banked the future on the now. And let's not forget
how the off-season began: Angelo trying to find a way to keep his Super
Bowl-quality head coach from becoming a lame duck

But look at each of these issues further.

The Thomas Jones trade resulted in three draft picks when everything was
said and done and, if history bears true on Angelo's ability to find talent
outside of round 1 (Hester, Orton, Anderson, Tillman, Vasher, Briggs, D.
Manning and Berrian, to name a few) the trade of last season's leading
rusher may be brilliant; provided Benson holds up and proves worthy of a
fourth-overall pick.

The standoff with Briggs, despite all the ups and downs for fans, resulted
in a pro-bowl linebacker returning to the Bears for this season, and
essentially on time for the start of training camp.

Trades for Darwin Walker and Archuleta added quality, veteran depth to the
two positions of fragility on the defense, allowing Angelo to ship Chris
Harris (and probably, ultimately, Dante Wesley) for future draft picks and
reload after an exciting off-season.

Lovie Smith was brought into the fold for years to come, adding quality and
stability in coaching the likes of which the Bears haven't known for more
than a decade.

At every position this season, the Bears are dependent on Angelo's wisdom
for success.

The defensive line will see if second-year starter Mark Anderson - one of
Jerry's gems from last year's drafts - can truly live-up to the hype of his
10-sack season in 2006. It will watch with baited breath to see if Tommie
Harris becomes a perennial injury problem and another Angelo first-round
bust, or if returns to the dominance the Bears need on the inside. Brown and
Ogunleye - both capable starters on any other team - will fight for one
position; and one of Angelo's trades (Darwin Walker) and one of his draftees
(Dusty Dvoracek) will look to fill the hole after Angelo's attempts to work
with Tank Johnson<http://www.serioussportsnewsnetwork.com/labels/Tank%20Johnson.html>failed.

At linebacker, the story is less one of competition than of how Angelo
handles the position in the long term. Urlacher is underpaid by current
league salary standards and Angelo must know he has to do something to
rectify that situation. Hillenmeyer is bound to start getting impatient for
more money if he continues to perform on the strong side. And Briggs - well,
enough has been said about him to fill a small novel.

In the secondary, Tillman and Vasher will be the running advertisement for
Angelo's stated ideology of rewarding the players currently on the Bears.
Mike Brown is being given a final, un-NFL-like third chance to prove he is
durable enough and Adam Archuleta is being given a chance to prove he isn't
as bad as he looked getting benched in Washington. Behind them? Rickie
Manning - a Bear with legal troubles - and several draftees from small
college programs, a testament to Angelo's willingness to take risks.

On the other side of the ball, everything starts with the line. The veteran
group is absolutely in its last days of NFL glory. Tait is the free agent
who required big money to bring in, but who has no real replacement should
he go down; a Vegas-sized roll of the dice by Angelo. Miller and Ruben Brown
are pro-bowl players in their twilight, who at any moment could succumb to
the ravages of a long NFL career. Olin Kreutz is the best center in the NFL,
and there is no replacement for him to be found anywhere this side of the
Hall of Fame, be he's no spring chicken either. Left guard continues to be
the weak link in Roberto Garza. And depth? Again, un-proven draftees and
mediocre "swing tackles" who may or may not bring Angelo glory.

The receiving corps is a cross-section of how Angelo does business:
unheralded draftees (Berrian, Bradley); slowing down, veteran free agents
(Muhammad); reclamations (Rashied Davis); and unconventional draft picks
(Hester). The ability of this group to succeed or fail this season will in
many ways define more than any other if Angelo's tactics work.

The running back situation will sharpen the praise or criticism of Angelo.
If Benson proves to be a bruiser of a first-round pick, Peterson proves to
be a great number two and Wolfe shows the burst he had at NIU, everything is
fine. If Benson goes down early in the season with another leg problem,
Peterson proves too mediocre for starting duty and Wolfe too small for the
NFL, well… look out.

And finally, that silly QB position. Rex is in the final year of his
contract. Most teams would be crazy if they didn't wrap-up a quarterback who
led them to the Super Bowl, but nobody would fault the Bears. Angelo is
handling the situation like a steely-eyed missile man, waiting to see if Rex
can pull through and become a rare first-round success or if he will be
another bust. In the wings are Griese - a proven, yet aging and erratic,
veteran; and Orton, the kid who won 10 games two years ago when all seemed
lost. If Rex goes down or melts down, it will be the maligned vet or the
criticized kid who steps in to take the heat.

When you add it up, the picture for 2007 is rather clear: if this season is
a rousing success and culminates in another Super Bowl run, the credit goes
to Jerry for building a team with quality depth, unconventional wisdom and
timely trades. If it turns out to be a dud of a season, marked by the
inability of players to carry over their success from one season to the
next, the blame will rightly land on Jerry for playing games and being
gimmicky.

This year marks the turning point in the Bears under Angelo. Is his regime
one of steady, constant success with wily draft picks, sage veteran
acquisitions and solid cap management? Or is it a continued litany of
first-round draft busts, strange trades of successful players and arrogance
in rewarding pro-bowlers?

We'll soon find out who's laughing: Jerry Angelo or the rest of the league.