Spare us the happy talk
So many questions plague Bears that Smith's vision of Super Bowl must be mirage
David Haugh
7:28 PM CDT, July 29, 2010
BOURBONNAIS — In the middle of what could have been Lovie Smith's last annual overly optimistic state-of-the-Bears address to open training camp Thursday, he was asked how the lessons of three straight playoff-less seasons may help prevent a fourth.
Good question. Odd answer.
"Those years you talked about, I have a hard time at 52 years old remembering what happens in the past,'' Smith said coyly. "I feel like I know what's going to happen in the future. We have a good football team right now. I'm not going to look to the past an awful lot.''
Forget about Smith's memory going at 52. After hearing him describe his seventh Bears team, I would be more concerned about his vision.
"We know what a Super Bowl football team looks like, so this part of the season, all teams can do is talk about the potential they have and see if there are any glaring weaknesses." Smith said. "We just don't see that.''
As you roll your eyes, remember Smith declared the Bears free of glaring weaknesses under the same gazebo on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University that he predicted greatness for Adam Archuleta in 2007. And declared Tommie Harris healthy in 2008. And dubbed Devin Hester a No. 1 wide receiver in 2009.
The point is, nothing Smith says on Day 1 means a thing.
He could have taken Thursday's opportunity to challenge his players publicly to change a culture of mediocrity and sound as fed up with the Bears treading water as the fan base is.
Or he could have used a corny "Monsters of the Midway,'' reference, invoked the Super Bowl XLI experience (again) and made visitors think they took a wrong turn amid all the cornfields and ended up in Colts camp in Anderson, Ind.
Smith chose the latter.
True, an NFL coach has to establish lofty goals and Smith isn't going to announce hopes to finish 8-8. But, at some point, the man most responsible for a 23-25 record since Super Bowl XLI must realize if he doesn't change the rhetoric, we have no reason to expect his team will change the results.
And given the Bears' recent failures, eventually it becomes fair to wonder if the same voice we routinely have started tuning out publicly resonates as much privately with players as it once did.
I asked Smith what gave him so much confidence in an offensive line that includes most of the same players responsible in 2009 for making Jay Cutler nostalgic for the Broncos and Ron Turner looking for work.
"I just like the potential of the group,'' he said, praising Chris Williams, Olin Kreutz and company.
Sorry, I don't.
Kreutz should bounce back at center because he's healthier after Achilles' surgery. But thinking essentially the same group of average guards and unproven tackles can provide different results may be a calculation Smith and Jerry Angelo will regret one day in January.
Cutler may be poised for a bounce-back year, running back Matt Forte may be motivated by the addition of Chester Taylor and the wide receivers may be as good as new offensive coordinator Mike Martz thinks. But none of it will matter if the line can't protect the quarterback or create running lanes.
Expecting Frank Omiyale to produce better results at right tackle than he did as a subpar left guard seems like moving a leaky tire from the front of your car to the rear and hoping it doesn't lose air. Smith cited terrific new offensive line coach Mike Tice when listing reasons why the line will improve. Forgive us in Chicago for not falling for the savior-assistant coach spiel. Blame Rod Marinelli and Cubs hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo for that.
The situation at right defensive end provides another problem glossed over by all the excitement over the addition of Julius Peppers, the return of Brian Urlacher and the annual health guarantee of Harris. I agree the Bears defense, if healthy, possesses enough star-caliber players — led by Lance Briggs — to make Sundays compelling.
But it's impossible to evaluate the Bears' front seven without lamenting the worst move of the offseason: releasing Alex Brown. It still makes no sense. No Bears defensive lineman played harder or more consistently last season. Brown also didn't make so much money that he had to be spared before a win-or-else season in which there's no salary cap.
Good luck waiting for Mark Anderson to duplicate his rookie production. The Bears are beginning Season 4 of that process.
As for the secondary, Chris Harris may play like the guy the Bears remember more than the guy who was facing a roster fight in Carolina. But if he doesn't, then what? Major Wright's a rookie and Danieal Manning is inconsistent enough that the Bears sought Harris and drafted Wright.
Those lingering questions — at offensive line, defensive end and safety — combine with the talent level to make it hard for me to see the Super Bowl contender Smith claims to see. I don't see a playoff team better than the Vikings or Packers either.
I see a defensive-driven, middle-of-the-pack team that will flirt with .500 again as it struggles to adjust to an offensive scheme liable to overwhelm it.
But maybe my eyes are as bad as Smith's memory.
Haugh: Spare us the happy talk
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