Jerry Angelo: Competition the Name of the Game in Bears Backfield

Bears General Manager Jerry Angelo met with the media in Chicago today and his mantra of the day was competition. Whether talking about quarterbacks or running backs, he stressed the need for one player to stand out among many before the team names its starter for 2008. He began by discussing Rex Grossman's future with the team.

"We would like to have Rex back. Rex showed some good play, particularly when he was coming back off his little sabbatical. We'd like to have as much competition as we can there."

I realize he's being cute with the sabbatical comment, but Grossman wasn't off studying the indigenous quarterbacking styles of the Nile Delta. He was benched and the team suffered because Brian Griese wasn't able to do any better. Kyle Orton is a fine backup option but Griese doesn't fill any need for this team going forward. That means the team needs to bring in someone who can push Grossman, rather than be a fallback if he fails again.

Angelo seems open to that idea and is open to new faces at tailback as well.

"If something were to arise and there's a good back in the marketplace or in the draft that we feel can complement the backs or give us the kind of competition that we feel [is needed], then we're going to look at that as well."

I actually think the Bears are well stocked in backup running backs. Adrian Peterson is never going to set the world on fire but he's good enough at all the little things and does good work on special teams. Garrett Wolfe flashed some abilities as a third down type who could make plays in the passing game. The problem isn't with complementary players, then, but with the featured one.

Cedric Benson flopped in that role this year and while he'll be back in 2008, he may not be the man again. San Diego's Michael Turner is an intriguing option, especially since Angelo expressed an interest in a player who was a threat to break long gains. The best defense for Benson's poor performance would be the lack of consistent play from the offensive line but Angelo strangely characterized the unit as formidable in spite of the evidence to the contrary.

If the line play doesn't improve it won't make much difference who wins the competitions in the backfield.