http://www.yardbarker.com/content/team/50 Recent articles about the Chicago Bears en-us In just a few days, suburban Milwaukee will be home to the Rams.  The team will open training camp at Concordia University in Mequon next week, hoping to find an escape from the heat and humidity of western Illinois and central Missouri.  The Rams will be the third team to train in Wisconsin, joining the Packers and Kansas City Chiefs, who train in River Falls.  Previously, the New Orleans Saints and Chicago Bears also held their camps in Wisconsin. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 15:58:26 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/295079 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/295079 Thursday July 24, Noon Friday July 25, 3 PM Saturday July 26, 7 PM @ Ward Field (ONU Campus) Sunday July 27, 3 PM Monday July 28, 3 PM Tuesday July 29, 3 PM Wednesday July 30, 7 PM @ Ward Field Thursday July 31, 3 PM Friday August 1, 7 PM @ SOLDIER Field Saturday August 2 - OFF DAY Sunday August 3, Noon Monday [...] Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:41:06 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294961 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294961 One of the main villians of The Dark Knight appeared at the opening of Chicago Bears training camp to get things started, only he was black and his name is Lovie Smith. Fans have been wondering all week if Rex Grossman or Kyle Orton would be the quarterback to take snaps with the first team offense. Right up until the day before the opening of training camp, Lovie refused to reveal the top candidate and told reporters they would have to wait until Wednesday afternoon. The result? A coin flip. Coach Lovie Smith based his decision on a coin flip and told Rex Grossman that he won and would take snaps with the first team offense. Is this for real? Two-face flipped his coin and decided the fate of the Bears offense should go to chance rather than make a decision. I would like to know if it was one of those double-sided coins and this is all a big joke. I'm sure Kyle Orton would like to know if he represented the good side of the coin or the bad. It gives me that unsettled feeling that training camp is going to be a game of cat and mouse to declare the starting quarterback. Perhaps the coin flip at the beginning of each preseason game will serve a double purpose. We receive and Grossman starts, we kick off and Orton starts. I'm sure that would put opposing teams in a bind to prepare for two possible starting quarterbacks. Unfortunately, it also serves to put the Bears players at a disadvantage of wondering who is going to lead their offense. Lovie hasn't given any indication of how long the coin flip will stand or when Orton will have an opportunity to take snaps with the first team offense. We'll have to see if Grossman takes the bulk of the snaps again today. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 09:57:11 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294867 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294867 Second round pick Brandon Flowers has now signed his contract. Agreeing to terms on a four year deal with the Chiefs. Which is a real positive if Flowers is going to replace Ty Law he needs to get in there early and hit the ground running. Flowers has all the abilities and a lot of experts projected him in the first round. He just needs to get educated in the cover two. Then there was two. Glen Dorsey and Brandon Albert both have their agents negotiating at this time with the Chiefs to strike a deal before camp. Albert would be the player I would put my money on the Chiefs signing next. Chris Williams and the Bears got their contract worked out today. Williams was the 14th pick in the draft Albert was the 15th and they play the same position. That makes working this deal out a lot more likely. Since Albert would know what the ceiling is as far guaranteed dollars and bonus money. Dorsey still has a shot to make it into camp on time. He has said over and over again he does not want to be a hold out. His agent appears ready to wait until the sixth pick in the draft Vernon Gholston and the Jets finalize their deal to gauge Dorsey?s value. Carl will not blink first. He will wait for Glen and his agent to break and Carl will save his million dollars over five years or whatever the petty hold up will be. Smart money says Albert makes it in on time and Dorsey is the last to show. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 04:37:51 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294753 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294753 So how do we beat the RBBC conundrum? Knowledge! I know, I sound like a bad public service announcement but in fantasy football, knowledge really is power. And there's just not enough info out there on all the various committees. I applaud the few sites out there that have attacked the RBBC analysis...though I can't say I really blame the experts out there for not wanting to talk about them. But now it's time we face committees head on and do our best to take a gamble and figure out which guys might pull to the front of the committee battles. Trust me, some of those guys might even be a top 10 back by the time the season is over. With that being said, let's take a look at 3 under-discussed teams and their backfield situation heading into 2008: Thu, 24 Jul 2008 00:40:00 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294709 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294709 Bears training camp has opened and the electrifying Devin Hester is a no show. Hester is still under his rookie contract where he is only averaging $500,000 over the remaining 2 years. Devin was supposed to enter camp as not only the ultimate return man but as a starting wide receiver. Without [...] Wed, 23 Jul 2008 23:19:52 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294693 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294693 Williams Delivers An Excitement & Eagerness for Start of Camp: While catching the "Breaking News" on one of our favorite contributing sites, ChicagoBears.com, the signing update of 1st round pick and franchise left tackle Chris Williams, an enthusiastic joy and thrill began to hit me, a sense of relief fell upon me for a short [...] Wed, 23 Jul 2008 23:19:50 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294692 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294692 The Chicago Bears started training camp fresh off Brian Urlacher's contract extension and Chris Williams signing and hoping for good karma going into the season. Instead, they had the rug pulled out from under them when Devin Hester didn't show up to training camp and announced he was holding out for a better contract. Hester has been negotiating with the Bears all summer and both sides appeared to be slowly reaching an inevitable agreement. Today's announcement came as a shock to coach Lovie Smith and GM Jerry Angelo, who thought everything was going well. Hester was quoted as saying that he needs to hold out from training camp to make a statement. Undoubtable it was heard and the team is now send scrambling to try to get a contract together for their top kick returner and possibly top receiver threat. Hester will make $445,000 this season and he will be fined $15,000 for every day that he doesn't show up to training camp. Both numbers figure to be miniscule compared to the dollar amount he is due in a new contract. The hardest part of signing Hester is due to him just being Hester. Teams usually rely on comparing players to similar players in the league at the same position and reaching a fair dollar amount based on their position value. Comparing Hester to other return men in the league would be laughable and unfair considering his level of talent. Just by stepping onto the field he changes the dimension of the game. Hester will want money unprecedented for a return man and will want to incorporate his added duties as top receiver. He is going to demand top dollar from the Bears and the team is going to struggle to talk him back down to a reasonable number. No matter how you shape it, Hester is likely to be rewarded with a huge contract and become the richest return man in the league. It just remains to be seen how long he has to hold out of camp before both sides reach an agreement. Hester is using the same agent that Cedric Benson used and Benson was handsomely rewarded as a rookie with huge money. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:30:23 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294637 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294637 The Chicago Bears opened the first day of training camp by putting to rest any worries about first round draft pick Chris Williams holding out. Not only did Williams show up, he signed a deal with the team for 5-years, $16 million, with $10 million guaranteed. Not a bad deal for a guy anticipated to be the starting left tackle on the offensive line. On the first day of training camp Williams took snaps with the second and third team offense but there is little doubt he will quickly climb the depth chart. The Bears drafted Williams with high expectations and he should deliver. Even if he doesn't show flashes of brilliance, the Bears are thin at the tackle position and barring an injury he will be the starter on opening day. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:30:24 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294638 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294638 Could this be true at all? I don't know what the logic behind this is at all but whatever! Wed, 23 Jul 2008 20:25:53 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294636 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294636 OT Chris Williams has signed with the Bears. Given his position and where he was selected, this is a huge development as far as getting Branden Albert signed before camp goes. - Wincy City Gridiron The Chargers have cut Eric Parker. I have always liked Parker as a complimentary receiver. Plus, ... Wed, 23 Jul 2008 19:15:03 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294615 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294615 Devin hester is holding of training camp with a contract dispute. He has two years left on his contract that he signed as a rookie where he was selected in the second round. He feels that he has out played his contract and most would agree with his 14 touchdowns since entering the league . While technically being a defense of player, he is leading all players on his team in touchdowns, mostly accomplished in his spectacular return game. SO if you were the Bears, would you reward Mr. Hester because he has without question out played his contract? or are you taking the stand, that he signed the contract so deal with it? Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:51:12 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294604 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294604 Tony Dungy is putting to rest any concern about the knee of franchise QB Peyton Manning, saying that the QB will be ready to go opening day vs the Bears at new Lucas Oil Stadium. Dungy even went so far to say that Manning very well may take some snaps during the preseason. Manning had [...] Wed, 23 Jul 2008 18:32:02 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294589 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294589 Are You Ready For Some Football? It's late July and that means that one by one training camps around the league will open up and the buzz of the upcoming season will fill the air. Teams will hit the weight room, attend meetings, play in scrimmages and probably take on some two-a-days. Multiple daily practices in the mid-summer heat are the worst part of the year for the players, but it's one of the best times of the year for fantasy players. For the next several weeks, we can sit back and consume every morsel of goodness that is training camp news. What rookie has a shot at starting? What vet seems to be losing his skills? What QB will start for Chicago? Ok, so no one besides Rex and Kyle's moms really cares about that last question, but the fact remains that training camps go a long way in shaping the NFL Season, as we know it. The 2 big trades that we've seen in the last week will start to take effect as camp begins. In Washington, Daniel Snyder wasted no time in acquiring Jason Taylor after being hit with the injury bug early in practice. Taylor appears to be ready to play at least 2 more years after originally telling Miami that this would be his final year. Taylor will make an instant impact on a team that had only one player record more than 5 sacks last year. Taylor has averaged 10.5 sacks a year throughout his 11-year career. Jeremy Shockey also changed addresses this week as he was traded to the New Orleans Saints for draft picks. Shockey immediately boosts the Saints offense by giving Drew Brees another weapon. Last year, the Saints sent out a platoon of Eric Johnson and Billy Miller, so obviously Shockey is a major upgrade. Kevin Jones wasn't traded but he has found a new home after spending much of the off-season without a job. The Chicago Bears added the former Virginia Tech RB to compete for the starting tailback job left vacant by Cedric Benson. Jones joins Matt Forte, Garrett Wolfe and the other Adrian Peterson in the crowded Chicago backfield. Jones has more experience, but he's also recovering from a torn ACL. You may have also heard that Brett Favre is re-thinking retirement. In a story that you can't get away from no matter how hard you try, Favre appears to be intent on forcing the Packers to make a move. If the phone calls to Vikings coaches are any indication, Brett would love to follow Darren Sharper and Ryan Longwell and trade in his green jersey for purple. It's too bad for Brett that there is no chance of that happening. Green Bay is ready to move on with the Aaron Rodgers era and in doing so, must decide what to do with #4. They certainly can't release him and risk him going to Minnesota where they would face him at least twice during the year and they can't bring him in to back up Rodgers. Favre's selfishness will ultimately end in a trade, possibly to Tampa Bay, where Jeff Garcia is in the doghouse. Coach Gruden has a history with Favre and likes older quarterbacks. We will continue to follow training camp battles in the weeks to come, but right now we just have to be on the look out for who shows up and who holds out. The All American Touchdown Derby www.passitdeep.com Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:16:38 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294542 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294542 Just recently, it has been reported that WR/KR for the Chicago Bears, Devin Hester, is holding out of training camp. Devin Hester wants his money and he wants it now. Personally i saw this coming way before last season ended. This man is on the verge of being something special. Do you think he deserves his money? I sure do, but what do you give to the man. He has to prove anything at receiver and we all know his ability at KR. You don't want to overpay Devin Hester, it could be a huge mistake. I understand where the University of Miami alum is coming from. The Chicago Bears signed many players on the team to long contracts this off-season, including: DT, Tommie Harris, LB Lance Briggs, K Robbie Gould, LB Brian Urlacher and WR Rashied Davis. He wants money and he will be willing to sit out of precious training camp time for it. The report from ESPN said he will lose 15,000 dollars each day he holds out of training camp. He is scheduled to make $445,000 this season and $530,000 in 2009. He signed a four-year, $2.61 million contract in 2006 after he was the 57th overall pick in the second round. This could turn out ugly, but I believe the Chicago Bears will do the right thing and give Devin Hester his money. The Chicago Bears know that the 31 other teams in the league would love to have this dynamic return man, soon to be star receiver, according to many players, coaches and fans. Wed, 23 Jul 2008 17:07:47 -0500 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294536 http://www.yardbarker.com/author/article/294536