Free Agent Possibilities For the Chicago Bears
Published by Bryan Dietzler on March 3, 2010
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
The 2010 NFL Free Agency period is about to start and there have been many rumors going around that have the Bears interested in several players who are going to be free agents this Thursday.
Let’s take a look at a few of those guys that the Bears have been rumored to be interested in as well as a few more that they should take a long look at in free agency.
Julius Peppers
Peppers will probably be the most sought after free agent of the free agent group this offseason and the Bears have let everyone know that they will be going after Peppers. They have the money to go after him but do they have the wherewithal to go after a guy like Peppers? Would he like the Bears defensive scheme? Will he have a favorable view to all of the things that have happened to the Bears this offseason?
Peppers would be a wise choice (for the Bears) and he would give them the kind of pass rush that they have been looking for during the last few seasons and could make the defense much more formidable. The only problem Peppers has had is staying motivated and hopefully he will come to Chicago plenty motivated with all of that money in his pocket.
Antrell Rolle
There is a chance that Rolle may not see free agency but if he does hit the market the Bears should take a long look at him as a solution to their problems at safety. Rolle, a converted cornerback, has the size and ideal speed that would fit well in Lovie Smith’s cover two defense so if the Bears can afford him, which they can, then they should try to get him to Chicago.
However, it might be a little bit difficult getting him to Chicago as he has expressed some interest in going to Miami where he went to school and perhaps he may like the warmer weather than the cold windy winters that Chicago has to offer. Believe it or not, that is a big selling point. He may also not like the defense that the Bears run. So it might be a little difficult to get him to come to Chicago.
LaDanlian Tomlinson
Despite being one of the older running backs available, Tomlinson still has a lot left in the tank and he could come into Chicago and play a role similar to what Marshall Faulk did for the Rams (when offensive coordinator Mike Martz was there). He should come at the right price and could help make Chicago’s offense a much better one.
Westbrook was let go from the Eagles for a couple of reasons. The first is age which helped lead to his release from Philadelphia but the other reason was health. Westbrook has suffered concussions and may not be able to stand up the pounding that a player gets during a full NFL season so there will be many teams that are wary of taking him.
But even if he doesn’t see a lot of action, he could still be a valuable asset and the Bears should really consider taking a look at him.
Darren Sharper
Sharper is another player that might interest the Bears and they could use someone like him at the safety position even if would only be for a year or two. The question with Sharper is would he want to play in the Bear’s defensive scheme?
Some say that he wouldn’t like it while others, including Sharper himself say that he would like playing with the Bears in their scheme and think that he could thrive in it. Money will most certainly matter and if the Bears can give him the right price he could end up joining the team.
Thomas Jones
This former Bear may be someone that Chicago wants to take a look at to come in and play in a two back system that would make the Bear’s offense that much better. He knows the town, he knows the team and he knows the coaching staff (at least what’s left of it) so he might be an ideal fit in Chicago. Granted, he doesn’t have much mileage left but he could at least help out a stagnant Bear’s offense.
The Bears will help themselves out a lot if they take advantage of some of the free agents that will be available when the free agency period starts at the end of this week. Since they don’t have a lot of draft picks, they are going to have to use free agency to find the players that they need to help fill the holes that they have and if they aren’t active they won’t be seeing the playoffs again next season.
So taking advantage of what there is out there this year could really help push them towards the playoffs.
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