NEWS: Bears' Kyle Orton remains hopeful to play

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Bears' Kyle Orton remains hopeful to play

Ankle injury expected to keep QB out a month

By Vaughn McClure
Tribune reporter

10:11 PM CST, November 5, 2008


Kyle Orton, wearing a protective brace on his sprained right ankle, walked into the media room Wednesday optimistic he would return to the lineup sooner rather than later.

"I'm certainly not ruling out anything," Orton said. "I don't know exactly what the timetable is going to be, but I just feel like if I keep making improvement, I certainly can't rule out this week. And it's just going to go week to week."

But the reality is Orton is unlikely to play Sunday against Tennessee, and it is unlikely he will go against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 16.

After an MRI on Monday, Orton was told he could miss three to four weeks with a high ankle sprain, according to a source. Rex Grossman is expected to start Sunday's game against the undefeated Titans.

Orton did not participate in Wednesday's practice. He said the ankle felt better than it had Sunday, when he injured it scrambling against the Lions.

He was carted off the field after 295-pound defensive tackle Cory Redding tackled him and 273-pound Dewayne White pounced on him.

"Anytime you're riding off on the cart, it's not a good sign," Orton said. "I don't know how long it's going to be. I'm hoping I don't miss any time."

Orton was looking forward to a battle with the Titans, the league's top scoring defense. But it might be best for the Bears to give their quarterback a chance to heal for the final stretch of games, regardless of Orton's optimism.

"If I can take the pain, if I can get out there and perform and not hold the team back," he said, "then I'm going to try to get out there and play."

Injury update: Receiver Brandon Lloyd (knee) had full participation in practice, as did nickel back Danieal Manning (hamstring). Lloyd has missed three games and said he wouldn't return to the field until he was 100 percent.

Along with Orton (ankle), safety Mike Brown (calf) sat out Wednesday's practice. Defensive tackle Tommie Harris, cornerback Charles Tillman and receiver Marty Booker all rested. Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer was limited coming off thumb surgery.

Snap to it: Third-string quarterback Caleb Hanie isn't expecting extended reps with the first-team offense this week despite Orton's ankle injury.

"I'll get all the scout-team reps, which I have been splitting with Rex," Hanie said. "I might get one or two reps during some team periods.

"Knock on wood if Rex went down, I'd have to be in there. But I just need to get some timing routes down with the receivers.

'But we can do that without having to get reps in team stuff. Rex needs all the reps he can get so he can be fully prepared to go against the [Titans]."

Eyes on Forte: The Titans have the top rookie rusher in the league in Chris Johnson, but coach Jeff Fisher had his eye on another back before the draft: Matt Forte.

"He was not only on our radar, he was pretty high on our board," Fisher said of the Bears rookie. "We were very impressed with him as a college player, not only as a runner but also as a receiver.

"Obviously, we were right. I think he's leading [the Bears] in receptions right now."

Forte is sixth in the NFL in yards from scrimmage with 869, right below Johnson's 879.

vxmcclure@tribune.com





Don't rush to judgment on Bears-Titans

By David Haugh
Tribune reporter

10:44 PM CST, November 5, 2008


Tennessee leads the NFL in scoring defense at 12.9 points per game. But it might not be as bad a matchup for the Bears offense as other defenses have been, even if Rex Grossman fills in for the injured Kyle Orton, as expected. Here are three reasons why:

1. Teams have run the ball on the Titans—the Packers, Ravens and Texans have gone above 100 yards rushing—and the Bears are coming off a strong 154-yard effort on the ground against the Lions led by rookie Matt Forte.

2. The play-action passing game plays to Grossman's strength. If the running game doesn't work, Grossman could panic and be forced into mistakes. But if the Bears force the Titans to respect the run, it will help because Grossman has had more success throwing downfield after good play fakes — and he shouldn't be as rusty.

3. Tennessee's pass rush is based on strength, not necessarily scheme. Tennessee doesn't blitz a high percentage of the time, said Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner, and shouldn't confuse Grossman or the offensive line. The Titans get sacks from an overpowering front four, which could be without end Kyle Vanden Bosch and neutralized with maximum-protection schemes.

[DaDitka]

3. Tennessee's pass rush is based on strength, not necessarily scheme. Tennessee doesn't blitz a high percentage of the time, said Bears offensive coordinator Ron Turner, and shouldn't confuse Grossman or the offensive line. The Titans get sacks from an overpowering front four, which could be without end Kyle Vanden Bosch and neutralized with maximum-protection schemes.

I can't tell you how many times I've seen one of our linemen just standing there by himself at the LOS looking around wondering where 'his' guy is. It's been extremely frustrating.

On that note, Tim Ryan did the Bears game last week and said in his talks with Lovie and Turner that they are actually lean more towards replacing Tait then St. Clair with Williams. They said he's graded out for worse the St. Clair and only marginally better than Beakmen.
The more I think back to seeing lineman on their ass or standing alone, they’re probably right.

[wab]

Tait looks list out there, but I'm fairly pleased with Beekman so far. He's getting better...

On Orton - If he's healthy let him play...no matther how "bad" the injury looked.