Bears Blitz

Published by Mihir Bhagat on March 5, 2010
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears

The Chicago Bears started off free agency with a boom by signing Julius Peppers, Chester Taylor, and Brandon Manumaleuna to multi-year contracts.

The monetary values of the deals are undisclosed, but Peppers will be coming for six years, Taylor for four, and Manumaleuna for five.

I expected the Bears to make some bold moves during free agency because they don’t have any high draft picks, and don’t have the ammunition to package a deal to add much-needed talent.

In my mind, these moves are a great first step to rejuvenating the franchise that went to the Super Bowl in ’06.

Peppers is a tremendous athlete and has been a very productive player in the NFL. He has 81 sacks in his eight years in the league. Moreover, he’s been selected to go to five Pro-Bowls and is a two-time All-Pro.

Peppers will bolster a defense that was already able to register 35 sacks last season (13th in the NFL). He joins Tommie Harris and Alex Brown on an already formidable unit. Together, they could be unstoppable.

Adding Taylor and Manumaleuna  may not seem like significant moves, but they will definitely make an impact.

We noticed that, after a phenomenal rookie campaign, Matt Forte endured a sophomore slump and wasn’t able to carry the load. Taylor will complement Forte very nicely and, due to his versatility, will provide assistance in both the running and passing game. Since he spent the last few seasons as a backup to Adrian Peterson, he still has fresh legs and some gas left in the tank, even at 31.

Manumaleuna is a great blocking tight end and will help, both, allow Cutler more time in the pocket, and, open up huge running lanes for their backs.

Looking at the big picture, the Bears are, now, undoubtedly a playoff contender, and if they can get their passing game together, who knows, they could possibly challenge the Vikings for the AFC North title. 

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