DE Mark Anderson signed his one-year tender with the Bears today.

They gave him a second round tender meaning he will make about $1.75 million this season. The former 5th round pick in 2006 had 12 sacks his rookie season, but over the last three seasons has had only 9.5 sacks. His 12 sacks in 2006, were the most sacks by a Bears rookie and the most by a Bears player since Richard Dent had 13½ in 1993.

Defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli really liked what he saw from him during off-season meetings.

Handing Anderson the job might be a mistake. Mark Anderson took Alex Brown’s job in 2007, but Brown took it back over, now Brown is gone and it looks like Anderson has taken the job for good. Will just have to wait and see if he can bring his magical rookie season back.

It was reported when the Bears dumped Alex Brown that Israel Idonije and Mark Anderson would be in the mix for playing time opposite Julius Peppers. Since the Bears drafted Corey Wootton from Northwestern and are working last years picks Henry Melton and Jarron Gilbert into the mix at defensive end, Idonije might be the guy asked to move to defensive tackle.

Mark Anderson might want to have another 12 sack season if he wants to cash in next off-season and it might not be out of question with Julius Peppers opposite him and a healthy Tommie Harris on the inside.

Danieal Manning is the only Bear yet to sign his tender and the Bears are expected to tender him as a third rounder. Expect him to sign it very soon because the Bears want to see him as a nickel-back, since they re-acquired Chris Harris and drafted Major Wright. Manning will have a job on this team and nickel-back might be the spot he really excels at.

Desmond Clark, a veteran tight end whose spent the last six seasons in Chicago turned 33 yesterday. He is entering his last season under contract.

Clark is fighting for a spot on this team and here’s what he had to say about that:

“I am going in with the mindset that I am trying to start this year and that is how I am going to approach it, but I am quite sure there is going to be  a role for every tight end that is on this team.”

“You know what? The thing that I like about Mike Martz, he has shown in the past that it doesn’t matter – draft status, money or years in the league, all of that political stuff doesn’t matter. He is going to take the best guy and he is going to put him on the field and put guys in position to win. So, saying that I think when we go into training camp, we all are going to have to battle it out.

“Me, Greg, Kellen and plus Brandon, we all are going to battle it out for that position. Right now, I can’t tell you. Right now, we’re just running around in shorts and not even helmets. It will kind of start to sift itself out a little bit once we get into training camp. But me, I’m thinking that I am going to be right in the mix with everyone else.”

“I just have a belief in Martz that he’s creative enough to use four tight ends and who knows? It might only be three of us when it’s all said and done, heck, it might only be two of us. We don’t know that right now, but we’d like to think it will be four of us here because we know four of us, actually five of us with significant playing time in the NFL when you count Richard Angulo, so we have five tight ends that can get the job done.”

all quotes from chicagotribune.com

The Bears had the best depth at linebacker in the NFL with Lance Briggs, Brian Urlacher, Pisa Tinoisamoa, Hunter Hillenmeyer, Nick Roach, Jamar Williams and Tim Shaw, but not anymore. Jamar Williams was traded yesterday to Carolina for SS Chris Harris, who will be back for his second stint in the windy city.

The Bears still have backups in Hillenmeyer and Roach behind Briggs, Urlacher and Tinoisamoa, but they had to shed some salaries because the three linebackers behind them were making more than the average backup would. Jamar Williams was the guy the Bears thought was disposable.

Jamar Williams almost became a starter in 2007, when it was reported the Bears were going to trade Lance Briggs to Washington and Briggs was adamant that he would never play in Chicago again. That never happened and Williams spent four seasons in Chicago where he played in 51 games, starting three games.

Jamar Williams and Nick Roach were the promising young linebackers who were considered to be solid replacements for the crafty veterans.  I mean who knows how many more seasons Brian Urlacher has left and Lance Briggs isn’t get any younger.

On the other hand, I’m pumped that Chris Harris is back in the orange and blue, but some reports say the Panthers were ready to cut the starting safety. So, for the Panthers to get the versatile Williams in return is a pretty good deal for them. Williams is expected to be in the mix at weakside and middle linebacker positions in Carolina.

Williams had this to say after the trade was official:

“You know I’m looking forward to it,” Williams, who was traded to the Panthers for Chris Harris, told the Tribune Tuesday. “When you’re on a team and you never really get a chance to show what you can do, then you go somewhere else, you always want to show your former employer what you can do.”

“And as for Chicago, it was a great place for me to start my career. I was able to learn from Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs, two Hall-of-Fame linebackers. It was a lot of fun. But it was time for me to get on the field, and it was just hard for me to get on the field in Chicago. I’m just happy the Bears were able to get something done so both parties were happy.”

Final Thoughts:

We never really saw what Jamar Williams really could have been. He showed flashes last year in his 19 tackle game against St. Louis, but he was really nothing more than a special teams player here in Chicago.

Good luck to you Jamar I hope to see you succeed in Carolina, but I just hope we didn’t trade a possible replacement for our aging veterans. October 10th we will see what you are as a starter in Carolina.

all quotes from www.chicagotribune.com

Former Bears safety Chris Harris has spent the last three years with the Carolina Panthers, but he is a Panther no more.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Harris is on his way to Chicago for a veteran linebacker. The linebacker who is reportedly in the deal is Jamar Williams.

This is great move by the Bears they immediatly regretted trading Harris to Carolina so they can start Adam Archuleta. Harris will likely step right into the lineup.

Major Wright or Danieal Manning will most likely be paired with him. Kevin Payne, Josh Bullocks, Al Afalava and Craig Steltz all better watch out, some will be released.

The Bears defense will be much improved with a familiar face back in the mix. Chris Harris is a real play maker. He’s had 12 forced fumble, five interceptions and 227 tackles in his three seasons in Carolina (2007-2009).

The Bears got a big offensive tackle in the 7th round at #218, his name is J’Marcus Webb.

The Bears biggest needs coming into this draft were at safety, cornerback, offensive line and wide receiver. They filled three of the needs, but fans think they waited too long for a offensive linemen.

J’Marcus Webb is a 6-8, 328 pound offensive tackle out of West Texas A&M. Webb played Division II football, so it might take him some while to develop. He began his college career at the University of Texas where he started 12 games as a true freshman.

He played in the Texas vs. the Nation game, and showed he can compete against better competition. Webb’s best asset is probably his size. Webb wears a size 19 shoe. He is pretty athletic, given his frame. He played left tackle in college but might be best at right tackle in the NFL.

Webb talked about many things, here’s what he said:

all quotes from chicagotribune.com

In the sixth round at #181 the Bears picked offense this time. At a position that already has Jay Cutler and Caleb Hanie the Bears decided to draft a quarterback.

Dan LeFevour a 6’3″ 230 lbs quarterback from Central Michigan was one of the best quarterbacks in this draft class and I’m really surprised he fell to the sixth round.

In my mind he is a steal for the Bears. He could easily turn out to be one of the best quarterbacks from this years NFL Draft.

LeFovour was rated ahead of Florida’s Tim Tebow by some experts and as a sophomore he joined Texas’ Vince Young as the only quarterbacks in NCAA history to pass for 3,000 yards and rush for more than 1,000 in the same season. LeFovour has the most total touchdowns in NCAA history.

He doesn’t have the greatest arm and he played a spread offense at Central Michigan which are two negatives. But some positives are he can feel the pressure and he can run the ball very well.

Here are his stats from his four years at Central Michigan:

NFL.com highlights LeFevour’s strengths and weaknesses:

LeFovour is a native of Downers Grove, Illinois so I’m sure he excited to be picked by the Bears. Lets just hope he doesn’t turn out like the last player the Bears drafted from Central Michigan, Dan Bazuin. LeFovour should be able to learn under Jay Cutler and Mike Martz and possibly compete Caleb Hanie for the backup QB job.

In the fifth round at #141 the Bears picked CB Joshua Moore from Kansas State. Moore was the second pick the Bears made today.

Moore was an excellent value pick for the fifth round. Three scouts from other teams said he was a third -round value.

At 5-11, 188, Moore has solid height for a corner but isn’t the strongest out there. He has more man-to-man ability and isn’t as solid a tackler which is unlike most of the Bears corners on the roster.

At Kansas State he intercepted six passes over three seasons. He made 175 tackles, one sack and forced one fumble. His stats aren’t too impressive because he is more of a cover corner. He will most likely be in the mix at nickelback, but will wind up playing special teams this season.

NFL.com highlights Moore’s strengths and weaknesses:

With the 109th pick in the fourth round the Bears selected DE Corey Wootton from Northwestern.

First off many Bears fans might be upset that Angelo and Co. used a fourth round pick on a DE, considering they signed Julius Peppers and released veteran Alex Brown all in one off-season. But Wootton has a lot of talent and he was expected to go in the third round.

The 6-6, 270 lbs Wootton started 49 of 53 games at Northwestern, as the fifth-year senior recorded 156 tackles (94 solos) with 19.5 sacks for minus 105 yards, 38 tackles for losses totaling 162 yards and 15 quarterback pressures. He caused and recovered three fumbles, as he also blocked four kicks, intercepted four passes for 11 yards in returns and deflected eight other tosses. He ranks third in school history with 19.5 sacks.

Considering he had 10 sacks and 42 tackles in his junior season at Northwestern he was one of the best defensive ends and was named first-team All-Big Ten Conference. But he suffered an ACL, MCL and meniscus injury in the Alamo Bowl that year. He will reunite with his defensive line coach at Northwestern Eric Washington, who the Bears hired to replace Rod Marinelli.

Wootton had this to say about getting picked by the Bears:

“Everything happens for a reason, I wanted to come back [to school] to get smarter, a year stronger. I’m just lucky to have an opportunity to play for a great team, the Bears. I feel like I’m 90-95 percent [healthy], somewhere around there.”

“It was tough, I didn’t have the leg strength after the prior year. But it made me appreciate the game that much more; [it] made me more of a film studier. I’m very familiar with Chicago being where everybody’s a Bears fan. It’s a program I wanted to play for. It’s a good fit for me, and I can’t wait for minicamp and all that.”

If Wootten can get back from his injury fast and prove his worth with the Bears he could earn some playing time quickly. Julius Peppers is set in stone at the right side, Israel Idonije and Mark Anderson are going to split the reps at the left side and Henry Melton and Jarron Gilbert are in the rotation. Wootten could easily out shine Gilbert or Melton, will have to wait and see. It was a good pick not filling the Bears biggest need, but when a player with this talent falls to you in the fourth round you can’t pass it up.

all quotes from ESPNChicago.com

The Bears got what I consider their biggest need at the #75 selection in the third round with FS Major Wright from the University of Florida. Wright is the right choice at #75 considering how many cornerbacks and safeties were picked in front of him.

These four players where picked in front of Wright in the third round:

South Florida cornerback Jerome Murphy — St. Louis, No. 65
Iowa cornerback Amari Spievey — Detroit, No. 66
Vanderbilt cornerback Myron Lewis — Tampa, No. 67
Georgia Tech safety Morgan Burnett — Packers, No. 71

Wright, 5-11, 206, has decent speed. Wright ran a 4.48 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine. He was part of a three safety rotation at Florida. Wright appeared in all 41 games in his three year career, with 33 career starts at free safety…Collected 165 tackles in his career, eight interceptions, ten pass breakups, four forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.

NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock called Wright, who entered the draft following his junior season, “an undervalued safety who is physical, makes plays and may be a better pro than collegian.”

NFL.com analyzes his strengths and weaknesses. Here’s what they had to say:

Negatives: “He only has average coverage skills, shouldn’t be relied upon to often in man, and may struggle to contain receivers over the middle or athletic tight ends. Doesn’t have the agility.”

Wright figures to challenge Josh Bullocks and Craig Steltz for the free safety spot. He might actually win the starting job considering he played for the Gators where the players are more ready for the NFL then other schools.

Wright is no Nate Allen (USF) or no Taylor Mays (USC), but he may be the player the Bears desperately needed. His play sounds alot like Mike Brown and they are almost the same height and weight. Mike Brown is 5’10″207 lbs while Major Wright is 5’11″ 206 lbs. He is a more natural free safety then Craig Steltz or Josh Bullocks so that could give him the advantage.

all quotes from nfl.com

Did you know that the Bears fifth round pick from last year LB Marcus Freeman was forced to retire? You probably didn’t. I didn’t until today.

The 6’1″, 239 pound linebacker Freeman was diagnosed with an enlarged heart this off-season.

Freeman saw action in all four preseason games with the Bears, but was released before the start of the regular season. He was later signed to the Buffalo Bills practice squad and ended up finishing the season on the Houston Texans practice squad.

The former Ohio State star linebacker drew some interest from teams in the NFL after the season ended, but decided to sign with the Indianapolis Colts. A Colts team physician told him he had a enlarged heart valve after he had a physical in February. He realized from this news that he would never be able to play football again.

Freeman had this to say about the situation he was in: “It was hard to hear that football was being taken away, but life is much bigger than that for me, sooner or later you’re going to be done. I have enjoyed playing the game since I was six years old. Even though I can’t play anymore I still have a love and a passion for it. I’ll just turn the page to the next chapter in my life.”

“I think you have to find the positive in everything, God has a plan for everybody and this was his plan for me. You can’t have football as the head of your life because that can be taken away at any moment. My family and religion definitely comes first in my life. I can still be successful without playing the game. I’m excited and motivated about starting my new life.”

Freeman is three classes away from obtaining his master’s degree in sports management and has no regrets. He is going to work as an undergraduate assistant on the Buckeyes football coaching staff this season with Jim Tressel.

Although Freeman wasn’t a Bear for very long you still have to feel for the guy. It’s a bad break. You hate to say young guys have short careers in the NFL over medical problems. Look at Eddy Curry from the Chicago Bulls of the NBA, once he learned he had a enlarged heart his playing time went down and he’ll never be the same player he used to be.

all quotes from daytondailynews.com