Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2016 21:30:47 GMT -6
Bears Young Players to Watch – Offense
by Mike Flannery
With the Bears record at just 2-6 and already an extreme longshot to make the playoffs, the rest of the season should be focused on developing core players for the future on both sides of the ball. The Bears have had so many injuries this season, that they have been forced to put players on the field who are not necessarily ready for NFL action. The inexperience of many Bears players is a big reason their record is so poor this season, but the NFL snaps should speed up their learning curve and benefit the Bears in the near future.
The Bears should have some of their injured players returning to the lineup soon, but with the playoffs a pipe dream, the young players should still see plenty of snaps. You never know with John Fox, but hopefully he realizes that the rest of the 2016 season should be about player development.
I’ll break down the players to keep on eye on in the second half of the Bears 2016 season on offense below and then cover the defensive players in my next post. If there is anyone you think I missed, let me know in the comments.
Offensive players to watch
WR Cameron Meredith – The Bears future at the receiver position in uncertain with Alshon Jeffery a free agent and Kevin White’s inability to stay on the field. Meredith has already started to earn attention as a possible replacement with two 100+ yard receiving games after another Kevin White injury opened up a spot in the starting lineup.
The former Illinois St quarterback is in just his second season at the receiver position, but has proven to be a natural route runner with reliable hands. Meredith also has shown the ability to break tackles and make something happen after the catch, which we haven’t really seen from Jeffery or White the Bears other outside receiving threats.
Most of Meredith’s success has come with Brian Hoyer at QB, he was only targeted a couple of times in Jay Cutler’s first start back, so it’s yet to be seen if he will be a primary target in the second half. If Meredith can continue to play well through the rest of the season, it will give the Bears some leverage in negotiations with Jeffery and could possibly give the Bears one of the best receiving cores in the NFL with Jeffery, White, Royal, and Meredith in 2017.
G/C Cody Whitehair – Despite being bounced between guard and center his rookie year, Whitehair has been one of the most pleasant surprises on the Bears this season. He really struggled in the season opener at center, but in his defense he had only been moved to the position a few days before week one after the Bears signed G Josh Sitton.
Whitehair has gotten better every week with possibly his most impressive performance coming last week against the Vikings fierce d-line with two new starters at guard on either side of him. He was able to take over the calls at the line of scrimmage without Kyle Long or Sitton next to him and made some key blocks that helped RB Jordan Howard rush for 153 yards against one of the best run defenses in football.
Whitehair will be the Bears center for the rest of 2016, but with 2015 3rd round pick Hroniss Grasu expected back next year, Whitehair may be moved back to guard or even right tackle in 2017. Regardless of where he ends up, he’s proved he can handle NFL d-lineman and should be a key member of the Bears future offensive line.
LT Charles Leno Jr – It feels like he’s been around for awhile, but Leno Jr just turned 25 last month and is only in his 3rd NFL season. The 2014 7th round pick is now halfway through his 2nd season as the Bears starting left tackle but is still a developing player.
Leno had his ups and downs (more downs admittedly) in 2015, but he’s improved significantly this season. He still gets beat occasionally by elite rushers, but since playing NFC sack leader Ezekial Ansah to a draw in the last game of 2015, Leno has played with more confidence and skill. Coming out of the 2014 draft, Leno’s biggest weak spot was a lack of strength. After a couple of years in the league, Leno has had time to bulk off and combined with his quick feet he is looking like one of the steals of the 2014 draft.
Coming out of the 2014 draft, Leno’s biggest weak spot was a lack of strength. After a couple of years in the league, Leno has had time to bulk off and combined with his quick feet he is looking like one of the steals of the 2014 draft.
Going into next season, the Bears will have to decide whether they want to pick up Leno’s option year in 2018 and also if he is the left tackle of the future. He’s shown so much improvement in just a year and a half, but still needs to get better if he’s going to be in the future plans at a premier position. How Leno plays the 2nd half of this season will go a long way in determining whether left tackle is a position of need or not for the Bears in next year’s draft.
RB Jordan Howard – This one is pretty obvious, but of the Bears three young running backs, Howard is the only one that I think has the potential to be a three-down NFL back. In five games since Jeremy Langford’s injury, Howard has three 100+ yard rushing games and gained over 200 yards from scrimmage last week against an elite Vikings defense.
Despite his three impressive games, Howard has lost significant snaps to Ka’Deem Carey in two of the last five games. Whether it’s due to a couple of dropped passes, an ill-timed penalty in the red zone, minor injuries, or missed blocks in pass protection, it appears that HC John Fox isn’t 100% comfortable with Howard as an every-down RB.
Whether or not Howard can build on his impressive week eight performance or goes back to a time share with Carey and the now healthy Langford, will determine what the Bears plans are for the running back position in 2017. I think Howard has a legitimate shot to cement his position as the Bears primary running back of the future, but he will need to prove it in the 2nd half of the season.
C/G Eric Kush – When the Bears signed Kush he was more well known for showing off his tank top collection on Hard Knocks than his play on the field, but proved he could play a little in his first NFL start last week against the Vikings. Kush took over at right guard for Kyle Long and more than held his own. He’s a powerful run blocker and didn’t look overmatched at all against DT Linval Joseph, who is one of the best in the NFL at his position.
With both Kyle Long and Josh Sitton expected back soon, Kush may not have a spot in the lineup next week but he played well enough in his first start to be the first guard off the bench if one of the starters need a break. The Bears starting lineup appears to be set, but we’ve seen the last few years just how important o-line depth is. Kush was a center in college and if he can prove to be competent at guard as well, he could be a valuable, versatile reserve for the Bears in 2017.
TE Ben Braunecker – “Bronk” got a lot of attention when the Bears signed him as an undrafted free agent after this year’s draft, but a training camp injury has taken Braunecker off the radar. He was activated off the practice squad before the Bears week seven game and had his first NFL catch last week.
After Zach Miller, the Bears really don’t have an established receiving tight end, but Braunecker has that type of potential. I wrote about Braunecker at length in the preseason, but his combine stats were almost identical to Rob Gronkowski’s coming out of college, hence the nickname.
Braunecker has the potential to be the complete package at tight end. He has the size & strength to be an inline blocker with enough speed (4.73) to stretch the defense in the seam. Look for the Bears to get Braunecker on the field more often in the second half of the season and see if he can solidify the TE2 spot for the 2017 season.
TE Daniel Brown – The Bears just signed Brown a couple weeks ago off the Ravens practice squad. At 6’5, but just 225 pounds, Brown is a former undrafted wide receiver from James Madison whom the Ravens converted to tight end in 2015.
Brown has actually seen the field quite a bit for an undrafted player, appearing in eight games over the last season and a half. He has produced as well, with six catches for 64 yards in his rookie season. He’s a receiving-first tight end and could see the field quickly for the Bears as a red zone weapon.
In college Brown was a dangerous red zone threat with 15 touchdowns in his last two collegiate seasons. He runs very well for his size with 40-times as low as 4.50 and 4.52, has long arms (34 1/4″), big hands (9 7/8″), and has shown the ability to make catches in traffic in his limited NFL exposure. Brown has all the tools to be a Zach Miller type receiving TE and should compete with Braunecker for the TE2 role in 2017.
by Mike Flannery
With the Bears record at just 2-6 and already an extreme longshot to make the playoffs, the rest of the season should be focused on developing core players for the future on both sides of the ball. The Bears have had so many injuries this season, that they have been forced to put players on the field who are not necessarily ready for NFL action. The inexperience of many Bears players is a big reason their record is so poor this season, but the NFL snaps should speed up their learning curve and benefit the Bears in the near future.
The Bears should have some of their injured players returning to the lineup soon, but with the playoffs a pipe dream, the young players should still see plenty of snaps. You never know with John Fox, but hopefully he realizes that the rest of the 2016 season should be about player development.
I’ll break down the players to keep on eye on in the second half of the Bears 2016 season on offense below and then cover the defensive players in my next post. If there is anyone you think I missed, let me know in the comments.
Offensive players to watch
WR Cameron Meredith – The Bears future at the receiver position in uncertain with Alshon Jeffery a free agent and Kevin White’s inability to stay on the field. Meredith has already started to earn attention as a possible replacement with two 100+ yard receiving games after another Kevin White injury opened up a spot in the starting lineup.
The former Illinois St quarterback is in just his second season at the receiver position, but has proven to be a natural route runner with reliable hands. Meredith also has shown the ability to break tackles and make something happen after the catch, which we haven’t really seen from Jeffery or White the Bears other outside receiving threats.
Most of Meredith’s success has come with Brian Hoyer at QB, he was only targeted a couple of times in Jay Cutler’s first start back, so it’s yet to be seen if he will be a primary target in the second half. If Meredith can continue to play well through the rest of the season, it will give the Bears some leverage in negotiations with Jeffery and could possibly give the Bears one of the best receiving cores in the NFL with Jeffery, White, Royal, and Meredith in 2017.
G/C Cody Whitehair – Despite being bounced between guard and center his rookie year, Whitehair has been one of the most pleasant surprises on the Bears this season. He really struggled in the season opener at center, but in his defense he had only been moved to the position a few days before week one after the Bears signed G Josh Sitton.
Whitehair has gotten better every week with possibly his most impressive performance coming last week against the Vikings fierce d-line with two new starters at guard on either side of him. He was able to take over the calls at the line of scrimmage without Kyle Long or Sitton next to him and made some key blocks that helped RB Jordan Howard rush for 153 yards against one of the best run defenses in football.
Whitehair will be the Bears center for the rest of 2016, but with 2015 3rd round pick Hroniss Grasu expected back next year, Whitehair may be moved back to guard or even right tackle in 2017. Regardless of where he ends up, he’s proved he can handle NFL d-lineman and should be a key member of the Bears future offensive line.
LT Charles Leno Jr – It feels like he’s been around for awhile, but Leno Jr just turned 25 last month and is only in his 3rd NFL season. The 2014 7th round pick is now halfway through his 2nd season as the Bears starting left tackle but is still a developing player.
Leno had his ups and downs (more downs admittedly) in 2015, but he’s improved significantly this season. He still gets beat occasionally by elite rushers, but since playing NFC sack leader Ezekial Ansah to a draw in the last game of 2015, Leno has played with more confidence and skill. Coming out of the 2014 draft, Leno’s biggest weak spot was a lack of strength. After a couple of years in the league, Leno has had time to bulk off and combined with his quick feet he is looking like one of the steals of the 2014 draft.
Coming out of the 2014 draft, Leno’s biggest weak spot was a lack of strength. After a couple of years in the league, Leno has had time to bulk off and combined with his quick feet he is looking like one of the steals of the 2014 draft.
Going into next season, the Bears will have to decide whether they want to pick up Leno’s option year in 2018 and also if he is the left tackle of the future. He’s shown so much improvement in just a year and a half, but still needs to get better if he’s going to be in the future plans at a premier position. How Leno plays the 2nd half of this season will go a long way in determining whether left tackle is a position of need or not for the Bears in next year’s draft.
RB Jordan Howard – This one is pretty obvious, but of the Bears three young running backs, Howard is the only one that I think has the potential to be a three-down NFL back. In five games since Jeremy Langford’s injury, Howard has three 100+ yard rushing games and gained over 200 yards from scrimmage last week against an elite Vikings defense.
Despite his three impressive games, Howard has lost significant snaps to Ka’Deem Carey in two of the last five games. Whether it’s due to a couple of dropped passes, an ill-timed penalty in the red zone, minor injuries, or missed blocks in pass protection, it appears that HC John Fox isn’t 100% comfortable with Howard as an every-down RB.
Whether or not Howard can build on his impressive week eight performance or goes back to a time share with Carey and the now healthy Langford, will determine what the Bears plans are for the running back position in 2017. I think Howard has a legitimate shot to cement his position as the Bears primary running back of the future, but he will need to prove it in the 2nd half of the season.
C/G Eric Kush – When the Bears signed Kush he was more well known for showing off his tank top collection on Hard Knocks than his play on the field, but proved he could play a little in his first NFL start last week against the Vikings. Kush took over at right guard for Kyle Long and more than held his own. He’s a powerful run blocker and didn’t look overmatched at all against DT Linval Joseph, who is one of the best in the NFL at his position.
With both Kyle Long and Josh Sitton expected back soon, Kush may not have a spot in the lineup next week but he played well enough in his first start to be the first guard off the bench if one of the starters need a break. The Bears starting lineup appears to be set, but we’ve seen the last few years just how important o-line depth is. Kush was a center in college and if he can prove to be competent at guard as well, he could be a valuable, versatile reserve for the Bears in 2017.
TE Ben Braunecker – “Bronk” got a lot of attention when the Bears signed him as an undrafted free agent after this year’s draft, but a training camp injury has taken Braunecker off the radar. He was activated off the practice squad before the Bears week seven game and had his first NFL catch last week.
After Zach Miller, the Bears really don’t have an established receiving tight end, but Braunecker has that type of potential. I wrote about Braunecker at length in the preseason, but his combine stats were almost identical to Rob Gronkowski’s coming out of college, hence the nickname.
Braunecker has the potential to be the complete package at tight end. He has the size & strength to be an inline blocker with enough speed (4.73) to stretch the defense in the seam. Look for the Bears to get Braunecker on the field more often in the second half of the season and see if he can solidify the TE2 spot for the 2017 season.
TE Daniel Brown – The Bears just signed Brown a couple weeks ago off the Ravens practice squad. At 6’5, but just 225 pounds, Brown is a former undrafted wide receiver from James Madison whom the Ravens converted to tight end in 2015.
Brown has actually seen the field quite a bit for an undrafted player, appearing in eight games over the last season and a half. He has produced as well, with six catches for 64 yards in his rookie season. He’s a receiving-first tight end and could see the field quickly for the Bears as a red zone weapon.
In college Brown was a dangerous red zone threat with 15 touchdowns in his last two collegiate seasons. He runs very well for his size with 40-times as low as 4.50 and 4.52, has long arms (34 1/4″), big hands (9 7/8″), and has shown the ability to make catches in traffic in his limited NFL exposure. Brown has all the tools to be a Zach Miller type receiving TE and should compete with Braunecker for the TE2 role in 2017.
