by Sam

No, this isn't going to be another story about instant replay for fair/foul balls and homers. Instead, this story is to address the much dreaded 'vacation umpire'....often a AAA umpire....that fills in when a MLB caliber umpire is on vacation.

I realized last night while watching the Cubs/Sox game that baseball needs to have a plan in place similar to what NBC does with the second half of the football season with 'flex scheduling.' That is, have the ability to get 'vacation umpires' as far away from critical games as possible by having 'flex umpiring' for critical/big games.

I know I probably come off as a sour grapes Cubs fan, but what happened last night could happen to any team...and that's why it's a problem.

However, if baseball had it set up to where it could 'reassign' an all veteran crew to a big series game....like the Cubs and Sox were this weekend....and reassign the crew with one or more fill-ins to a 'lesser game' then the problem would be much less glaring.

This past weekends' Sox/Cubs series was a battle of two first placed teams. Why should such a big series...which may or may not factor into the playoff races...have such shoddy umpiring?

Wouldn't it be better to send the lesser skilled umpires to a game with far less importance? To call a game with two teams....or at worst at least one team....without any playoff chance?

To me, last night just made MLB baseball look bad. Because the game was on national television and instead of putting it's best foot forward it chose to run out a sub par umpiring crew that got at least three calls wrong. Surely this isn't the way MLB wants itself portrayed, is it?

by mancunian

I received an e-mail from a fellow Bears fan this week telling me all about his amazing NFL trip that is planned for later this year.
From September, Adam will be touring the States as he takes in 35 NFL games (3 of which will be Bears games). To fund the trip Adam has left his job, sold his flat and will, in his own words, be leaving his beautiful girlfriend behind in London. During his 17 week trip Adam will be looking to meet up with NFL fans across the country; he'll be writing a blog during the course of the trip and on his return to the UK will be writing a book and putting a documentary together.

To find out more visit: Adams Football Trip

Adam would like to meet up with as many fans as possible so I'd urge you to drop Adam a line - I'm sure he'd appreciate it.

I can't tell you how envious I am as I would like to embark on a similiar trip, though heaven knows what the wife would think if she came home to find a for sale sign erected in the garden.

by mancunian

The Chicago Bears have signed Pro Bowl defensive tackle Tommie Harris to a 4 year extension. Harris was about to enter the final year of his contract but this ties up Harris til 2012 and give the Bears a sparkle of light in what has been, so far, a failry gloomy off season.

When I heard the news this morning, I had mixture of feelings; firstly was joy that the Bears had ties up an important member of the defence for the foreseeable future. Secondly was surprise. I knew the Bears would look to give Harris an extension but I hadn't expected it so soon.

The fall out of the Benson affair and the posturing of Brian Urlacher had hogged the news headlines for so much of the last two to three months the fact that Harris and Hester were after new deals was almost submerged and forgotten. The deal has been done without negotiations being conducted in the open or through the press, without recrimination or conforntation.

Maybe Brian Urlacher needs to look at this as an illuminating and enlightening experience for him on how to get a deal done. Urlacher was the one who decided to air his grievances and unhappiness with the offer, a move that the Bears reacted to with almost expected stubborness. A better course of action would have been to hold his own counsel and let things take their course, something thats perhaps already dawned on him evidenced by his participation in bot mandatory and voluntary practices.

Apart from the draft picks I still think Urlacher's deal will be done before the start of the season and will not be that much different to whats already in offer. After that the next important cog of the Bears machine that needs to be signed to an extension is Devin Hester.

The Hester deal is a hard one to call at the moment. Hester will be looking for a deal that is based on what a wide reciever would get (and potentially a number 1 wideout at that). The problem for Hester is that he has yet to prove himself as a wide reciever, explosive as he is a kick returner you don't pay big money contracts to a player who may only touch the ball a handful of times in a game.
If Hester can prove he is a number 1 wide reciever through his performance in pre-season and the early regular season games then I'd expect a deal to be done by the time Christmas comes around.

The Bears do have the right strategy in that they look to build through the draft and sign their own players to deals rather than chase expensive free agents. This started last year when the corneback duo of Vasher and Tillman signed extensions (and for a lot less than Samuel and Hall got) and has continued this year with Robbie Gould,Desmond Clark, Alex Brown, Orton, Grossman and Briggs. I'd like to add Hester to that list - but only time will tell.

by mancunian

Darren McFadden has signed a 6 year $60million odd deal. He was the number four pick in this years draft. The number 3 pick Matt Ryan got a deal that was pretty similiar in terms of headline figures.

What makes me scratch my head though is these guys have yet to play a down in the NFL. The big money goes to players who have yet to make a meaningful contribution to the team that drafted them whilst experienced players who have a track record rarely get the same level of deal.

What happens if these players turn out to be busts? The team will find themselves in cap hell - especially the Raiders if there last two first round picks don't pan out.

I like what they do in the NBA where rookie salaries are banded dependant on where they are drafted. I would like the NFL to adopt a similiar idea (though it won't happen whilst Upshaw is in charge of the players union). It could be 1st and 2nd round picks get 4 years, 3rd round 3, 4th and 5th rounders 2 and the 6th and 7th rounders get 1year deals.

Teams would then be able to use the money to invest in the players they drafted who have shown they can handle the rigours of the NFL.

If a player then proves his worth in his first season the club could then re-negotiate his deal.

by mancunian

Well the 2008 Draft is finally over and when the dust settles what will the judgement on your team be? Sure there are winners and losers on draft day and all you can hope for is that the Front Office doesn't make any decisions that will come back to haunt them in the future. For every Payton Manning there's a Ryan Leaf. For every LaDainian Tomlinson there's a Cedric Benson. Sorry couldn't resist. Actually I'm not typically a Benson basher and still think he can contribute to the Chicago Bears - but he is in the last chance saloon.

The Chicago Bears had holes, mostly on the offense and the draft did go some way to plugging them. Jerry Angelo and the rest of the Bears hierarchy do seem to like defensive players and couldn't resist drafting some more. We all know the Bears history is built and defense and running the ball but sometimes you do need to do something different.

How did the Bears fair? If you ask me, I'd say they did pretty well; not perfect but pretty well. If I was to grade the draft they would get a B+ and the only thing stopping them getting an A is that they didnÂ’t draft a Quarterback. The Bears had their chances and the picks of Bowman and Davis would have been better spent on either a signal caller or depth on the o-line.

I'm getting ahead of myself though, starting with the downside when in reality I should be praising the Chicago Bears for the work they did in the first 4 rounds.

Day 1 was an A grade day. The Chicago Bears drafted the franchise Left Tackle in Chris Williams who, if all goes to plan, can anchor the left side of the line for the next decade. He allowed just 2 sacks in 2 years in college, though it will obviously be much harder in the NFL. His acquisition will move John Tait to right tackle and improves 2 positions in one fell swoop. With Garza and Kreutz pencilled in at Guard and center it leaves only one Guard spot up for grabs in the starting line up.

The second round saw the Bears draft Matt Forte, a Running Back who will compete with Benson and has the capability of being a starter. Benson seems to perform better when he has competition (remember Thomas Jones.) The tricky decision now is in how many backs will they keep? Factor in Wolfe and Peterson and the Bears have decisions to make.

Earl Bennett is a receiver for the future; if he contributes in the coming season then so much the better. He had a productive college career and is an ideal player for the slot on 3rd down. There will be competition at Wide Receiver in camp and whilst I expect Marty Booker to make the final roster, the same canÂ’t be said for our other free agent receiver Brandon Lloyd. With Davis, Bradley and Hester in the picture Lloyd may find his stay in Chicago very brief.

The Bears had 2 third round picks, the other being DT Marcus Harrison a player described as having first round talent but seventh round issues. The guy is young and I am sure we all did daft things when we were around his age. If he can get his s*** together he could form a brutal partnership with Tommy Harris in the middle of the line.

Chicago's 4th round pick went on a Safety, to join the stable we already have. Craig Steltz has been compared to Bears favourite Gary Fencik which will endear him to older members of Bears fandom. Steltz may well turn into a starter, not this year, but he does put pressure on some of the incumbents. You have to figure Mike Brown will be a fixture at FS and Mr D Manning's versatility and ability to play corner will keep him around. Kevin Payne was drafted last year and I don't think the Bears will give up on him after just one season where he ended on IR. Brandon McGowan is a special teams player who has some upside. That leaves you Adam Archuleta. From where I'm sat the writing is not yet on the wall but the Bears have their spray cans at the ready.

The last 2 seasons the Chicago Bears have drafted well in the 5th round adding Mark Anderson and Kevin Payne respectively. Not so this year. Where the Bears required a QB and some depth on the line they drafted an injury plagued Cornerback and a Tight End with issues.

Zack Bowman has the talent at Cornerback but he's never seemed to stay healthy, and why the Bears thought they needed another Corner I'm not so sure. We have the best CB duo in the league in Vasher and Tillman, the Manning duo, Corey Graham and Trumaine McBride who was superb last year despite being a late round draft pick. I think the Bears should have taken a QB, though without looking I'm not certain who was available.

Kellen Davis was the other 5th round pick, and sure the Bears could use a 3rd TE behind Clarke and Olsen I'm not sure it was a must to do that here. The Bears could have picked up a late round pick or waited to sign an undrafted FA. The 3rd TE is primarily used on special teams and for blocking. The other side to Davis is that he has also played DE and a decision would have to be taken on whether he will play on offence or defence.

The Bears had 5, yes 5 picks in the 7th. Two were spent of defence, two on the o-line and one wide receiver.

Ervin Baldwin played defensive end in college but at just over 250 pounds might be a bit light for an NFL end and perhaps is more suited to OLB. The Bears seem to have depth at DE with Anderson, Brown, Ogunleye and Bazuin already on the roster. IÂ’d be surprised if any of the first 3 were displaced.

Joey LaRocque is an OLB but more suited for the inside in the NFL.

At over 330 pounds Chester Adams has the bulk to play at guard but may struggle with the speedier defensive linemen.

Kirk Barton is an outside shot at making the roster at tackle.

The final Bears pick was Marcus Monk, who at 6'4" has the size to cause problems. If he was 30 pounds heavier than his 222 he could possibly have been a TE but still could cause mismatches from a wide receiver position.


The Chicago Bears though, were in a no win situation with this draft. Take a Running Back in the first followed by a QB in the second round and the Bears would have been slaughtered for not drafting to repair the offensive line.
Take a Running Back like ReShard Mendenhall in the first and reach for an o-line player in the second or draft as we did then the Bears will be crucified by some for not taking a QB. Orton and Grossman have talent and I would love it if they could prove all the doubters wrong and the Bears front office right by leading the Bears to a winning season.
Perhaps the Bears are looking to trade or sign a veteran in the coming months. The June 1st cuts are just around the corner and there will be an option or two on the streets. Chris Simms and Bruce Gradkowski in Tampa for example (well they do have 6 QBs on the roster!). Daunte Culpepper is still a Free Agent, I don't rate him but he is a veteran who could, itÂ’s argued help the team; I am not so convinced.
The Texans have been shopping Sage Rosenfels but for me he's another Grossman or Orton. He did ok for the Texans in relief of Schaub but could he get results over a season?
If we are looking to trade what will we give up? Draft picks for next year? Maybe a player such as Ricky Manning Jr. could end up on the trade block.

Overall I am pretty content with the Bears draft. Sure those 5th round picks could have been better utilised and the drafting of DE in the 7th made no sense to me either. But that means 9 picks from 12 have been spot on. It has produced competition is spots that required it and IÂ’m sure the fans, quarterback apart are happy with the results.