SB Nation User Blog: MuleTrain

How Awesome is Singletary

MuleTrain — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 19:40:35 -0000

Kind of wish we had this kind of intensity on our sideline sometimes.

Make sure to view the video too. If he doesn't get a fat extension from the 49ers, he will get a nice deal from someone else. Too bad it won't be in Chicago. There are a few prima donna's on the Bears's that could use the Vernon Davis treatment.

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Dr. Z Rank down to 19

MuleTrain — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:44:46 -0000

I really don't like SI's Dr. Z, in fact I kind of hate him. But he had something to say about the Bears that makes a lot of sense.

"Chicken football, by way of a squib kick, did them in. Jerious Norwood ranked 18th in the league in kick returns, going in. I mean we're not talking about Gale Sayers here. OK, he broke one against you the time before, so you get your special teamers on the sideline and grab 'em by the throat and say, "Cover, dammit. This is the ballgame." Instead, with 11 seconds left, you played puss in boots and set the Falcons up at the 44, which required one 26-yard pass to move them into field goal range and end the contest. You were playing on the road, so you know what the clock was going to be like. Having only five seconds run off, counting return, etc., and then only five more after the pass, never would have happened in Chicago, but...ah, why go on? No more short kickoffs, OK? If you're going to go down, go down like men!"

Philly injury woes

MuleTrain — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:28:39 -0000

My expectations are that they'll both play, but at least now I have a little hope.

Donovan McNabb:

News: Eagles QB Donovan McNabb did not practice Wednesday in preparation for the team's Week 4 game at Chicago. McNabb suffered a chest contusion that sidelined him for part of his Week 3 game vs. the Steelers. McNabb said Wednesday that he hasn't thrown since the game and has soreness and tightness in his chest, adding that it was worse Wednesday than it was during the game. Analysis: Suddenly, McNabb isn't a lock to take on his hometown team (a team that he has lost to only once but not posted big stats against). We'll continue to monitor his status every day and deliver the latest news. For now, make sure you have an adequate backup quarterback in case McNabb, a No. 1 QB when healthy, can't go up against a Bears defense that yielded 407 passing yards at home last week. Kevin Kolb would start for Philly if McNabb couldn't go, by the way.

Westbrook: News: Eagles RB Brian Westbrook did not practice Wednesday in preparation for the team's Week 4 game at Chicago. Westbrook sprained his ankle against the Steelers early in Week 3 and is considered day-to-day. Head coach Andy Reid said Westbrook is walking better and has made improvement but called it a "race" to get him ready for the Bears game. Reid added that Westbrook did not have a high-ankle sprain. "He had a high-ankle sprain there before," Reid said. "When you have those and then you have another ankle sprain, it shows signs of that. Right now, the symptoms are leaning less to the high-ankle sprain than it is to the high-ankle sprain." Analysis: The good news here is that Westbrook doesn't have a high-ankle sprain, which is known to limit running backs for weeks. The bad news is that the Eagles aren't saying that Westbrook will be OK to play on Sunday night. We're going to monitor Westbrook's movements every day and let you know what his status is. If he doesn't play, then Correll Buckhalter is expected to get the majority of his reps, with a few going to Lorenzo Booker. Of course, if he does play he should be expected to post quality stats as he's done before while playing hurt. We'll keep you posted.

Offensive strategy

MuleTrain — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:44:59 -0000

What strategy?

I was thinking about the sad state of our offense, especially the wr's, when I thought of something to give us maybe a little optimism. Not saying we're gonna roll, but maybe achieve mediocrity!

Our strength on offense is obviously our tight ends. We have 3 capable of making plays. Tight ends need some room in the middle of the field to be really effective. In order to achieve this, I'm thinking we are going to see a steady stream of wr's going deep. We have a wr by committee thing going on, and most of these guys can run. Booker cannot obviously. By rotating guys in and out, we won't see tired legs so much. Randy Moss dogs it, so don't think other wr's out there don't dog it when their decoy fly pattern is called. We have 5 #3 receivers, so any dogging will lead one to the bench I imagine.

Also, the cover 2 scheme is quite popular throughout the league. When a receiver goes deep a safety will be vacated from covering the deep middle, thus creating some space for the TE. Most teams don't have an Urlacher that can effectively and consistently cover the deep middle. For other defensive schemes, teams are still loathe to give up big plays. Any wr going deep will probably encounter safety help, thus creating room as well.

Of course all this is moot, if Orton is on his butt every time he drops back. Or if the line can't make any holes for Forte and Jones to find. But, I was looking for something/anything to grasp on to as a sign of hope.

2008 Draft Pick Evaluations

MuleTrain — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 13:26:33 -0000

I'd like to get people's opinions about this year's draft class.

1st: Chris Williams-who know at this point?

2nd: Forte-looks real good, starter.

3rd: Earl Bennett-looks OK, nice catch last night, how come he can't get higher on this sorry WR depth chart?

3rd: Marcus Harrison-also good, will be in tackle rotation.

4th: Craig Steltz-eh, doesn't look like he'll see the field all that much. Has he done much on special teams?

5th: Zack Bowman-looked pretty good last night, probably 5th CB on the roster, won't see the field all that much unless injuries hit. Anyone else see anything here?

5th: Kellen Davis-nice pick. Looks pretty good, will be 3rd tight end.

7th: Ervin Baldwin-saw him on the field, no real impact. Scout team probably?

7th: Chester Adams-don't know?

7th: Joey Laroque-we got lots of LB's, practice squad I guess?

7th: Kirk Barton-I've heard good things, anyone else know of anything solid on him? If Fred Miller signs, will this mean he loses a roster spot?

7th: Marcus Monk-cut and signed by NY Giants.

Peyton Manning out 6 weeks

MuleTrain — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 12:02:28 -0000

Peyton had an infected bursa sack removed from his knee. Will be out 4-6 weeks. He'll play against da Bears, but might not be 100%. Some REAL news! If his mobility (what little he had) is afffected, then the Bears pass rush could get after him and cause trouble. Now, all we need is for Dwight Freeney to stay on the shelf and Bob Sanders to go down in the preseason and we'll have a chance....maybe.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3487657

Here we go again...Benson arrested for DWI

MuleTrain — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 15:55:24 -0000

Just saw on ESPN, that Benson failed a field sobriety test and was arrested in Austin.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3430752

I think this definitely spells the end of his time with the Bears. They can't possibly keep him now.

75 words...75 words..75 words...75 words..75 words...75 words...75 words..75 words...75 words...75 words..75 words...75 words...75 words..75 words...75 words.

Cedric Benson contract status

MuleTrain — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 15:00:49 -0000

Any chance that after the draft, and da Bears pick a rb, that Benson could be a post-June 1st cut? He missed out on some contract escalators which keeps his contract pretty low this year; and therefore his bonus could be pro-rated over 4 years after June 1st. What would the salary cap hit be? With the cap room the Bears have, is this something that might happen? I don't see the Bears keeping 4 tailbacks on the roster. Adrian Peterson is a valuable backup and great special teamer. Wolfe might also be at risk, but he was just drafted last year and figures to be a 3rd down back. What do you guys think?