[CBFF] Scout.com: Bears Inside Slant: March 1st

[Tom Shannon]

Has anyone else noticed that Grossman still hasn't commented since
signing his contract?  At least I don't think he has.  Pulling an
Urlacher?

Tom S.
--
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Bears Inside Slant: March 1st ________________________________

Scout.com
 BearReport.comMar 1, 2008

Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton may have put their name on the dotted line
recently, but that doesn't mean general manager Jerry Angelo has
solved the quarterback dilemma for the Chicago Bears. And he knows it.
Get the Inside Slant from the NFL experts at Scout.com.



Everyone loves a quarterback controversy – except maybe the two
players competing for the job, who can find it uncomfortable at best.
But Kyle Orton, armed with a contract extension that puts him on equal
footing with Rex Grossman, is looking forward to the opportunity. "I'm
just excited to finally get a chance to get a lot of reps in practice
and compete for a job and get better," said Orton, who sat idle for
two years before starting the final three games last season. "I'm more
excited about the reps I'm going to be getting and just the
opportunity."

 The Bears have assured Orton that he will have the same chance to win
the No. 1 job as Grossman, and they backed that up Monday with a
one-year extension similar to what Grossman got in a one-year deal
late last week.

 Orton gets a $1.4 million signing bonus and a $100,000 workout bonus
this year, and the Bears boosted his base salary from $520,000 to $1.3
million. Orton will earn $620,000 in base pay in 2009 plus another
$100,000 workout bonus. Grossman got a $1.5 million signing bonus, a
$1.5 million base salary for 2008 and a chance to earn another $1.5
million in incentives.

 Over the past three years, since he was drafted in the fourth round
in 2005, Orton has played only when Grossman was injured. It will be a
different relationship, though, when the Bears' offseason program
begins and then during training camp. Orton believes their
relationship will be fine.

 "Rex and I have been around each other for quite a while now, and I
think we've got a good relationship and we're comfortable around each
other," Orton said. "I expect it to be a stiff competition. I think
that's how both of us want it. I know that's how I want it, and I'm
just looking forward to it."

 Orton went 10-5 as a starter his rookie year running a scaled-down
offense, helping the Bears to the playoffs. He didn't play again until
last Dec. 17, when he helped the Bears win two of their final three
games.

 "Kyle finished strong this past season with the last couple of
games," Bears head coach Lovie Smith said. "He has played well every
time he's gotten an opportunity to play."

 Orton's passer rating last season was 73.9 compared to Grossman's
66.4, which he said helped him heading into this year's competition.

 "It made the offseason a lot easier and just left a little bit better
taste in my mouth and [helped] my attitude," Orton said. "I'm
obviously ready to get back to work and excited to compete."



NEWS & NOTES
 By giving Rex Grossman a one-year contract and Kyle Orton a one-year
extension, general manager Jerry Angelo knows the Bears are still a
long way from the solution to their quarterback dilemma.

QB Joe Facco
Pamela Key Schmalenberger/AP Images "We haven't solved it," Angelo
admitted. "With one-year deals, you're not solving anything. You're
still in the hunt so to speak. We certainly feel good about the people
that are contending at the position, but it's not solved yet."

 That means the Bears, who draft 14th, will be on the lookout for a
quarterback in the draft, maybe as early as the second round.
Michigan's Chad Henne, Delaware's Joe Flacco and Kentucky's Andre
Woodson could be available from the mid-second until the mid-third
round.

 "We're still going to look at that position," Angelo said. "We always
look at that position every year. We've talked about four
[quarterbacks this year]. We're really going to look at the
quarterback position as hard as we look at any position. We've got to
get the quarterback position stabilized. You can never have enough
good quarterbacks." …

 The Bears have far fewer holes to fill on defense than offense, but
safety is a concern along with depth on the defensive line and at
linebacker.

 "Maybe there's a little bit more concern [at safety] because you have
younger players," Angelo said. "You have Brandon McGowan (24 years
old), you have Kevin Payne (24) back there, and obviously Mike Brown's
still under contract. We feel good about Danieal Manning (25)."

 McGowan finally stayed healthy for the first time in three seasons
and started nine games last year, finishing sixth on the team with 80
tackles. Payne missed most of his rookie season with a fractured arm
but showed flashes of talent before his injury. Manning started 15
games but was pressed into duty at cornerback for two games because of
injuries, which seemed to hurt his development at safety.

 Brown, an eight-year veteran and a Pro Bowl pick in 2005, has missed
43 games over the past four seasons with a variety of injuries.

 "Mike played exemplary football and never missed anything [his first
four seasons]," Angelo said. "We gave him a new contract. It's hard
for Mike to get out of bed in the morning and show up [so] we can
count on him. But we feel good about the players that we have there,
and we feel that we can win with these players even if we didn't do
anything outside of what we have on the present roster."

 The Bears aren't expecting much help from the college ranks, since
safety is arguably the weakest position in this year's draft. There
may not be any safeties drafted in the first round and perhaps just
two or three taken on the first day.

 "The safety position I think is anemic," Angelo said. …

 With a just-signed two-year contract extension through 2010, veteran
tight end Desmond Clark will remain a factor in the passing game, even
though it remains to be seen who will be quarterbacking the offense.

 "I always try to focus on the tight end position," Clark said. "We
really can't be focused in on what the quarterback situation is doing
because it's going to take away from my production."

 With either Grossman or Orton in charge, there is a level of
familiarity, but that's just a start, Clark said.

 "Just being familiar is not good enough," the nine-year veteran said.
"We've got to get past that word because, if we just rely on that,
then we're going to be in the same position that we ended up last
year. Everybody has to step up. From the quarterback position all the
way through the offense, the defense and the special teams."

 The Bears' offense was 30th in total yards last season. …

 Unrestricted free agent WR Bernard Berrian has made no secret of his
affinity for working with Grossman. But the Bears' re-signing of the
quarterback isn't enough by itself to get Berrian back, although it
could help.

 "I'm hoping it bodes well and makes it easier for Bernard to want to
come back to us," Angelo said. "But we signed Rex because we wanted
Rex. We want to sign Bernard because we want Bernard. If it works out
that that facilitated Bernard wanting to be back even more, that's
great."

 Berrian's two longest receptions last season were delivered by
Grossman, but all five of his receptions of 24-39 yards came from
Brian Griese. …

 According to one Bears source, getting three-time Pro Bowl defensive
tackle Tommie Harris signed to a contract extension is a higher
priority than re-signing Berrian, Lance Briggs or Brendon Ayanbadejo,
their three highest-profile unrestricted free agents. Harris has one
year left on his original contract.



QUOTE TO NOTE
 "That is our priority. The only time we deviate from that priority is
when we have a real need that has to be addressed. In years past we
have done that at certain positions, but right now this year we want
to stick to what we consider to be our philosophy to re-sign and
reward our own." – Bears GM Jerry Angelo on re-signing his own players
before they become unrestricted free agents.

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