Full Court Press

I think Rex Grossman will turn out to be the best QB in bears history. I know thats not saying much but he will be a great talent. Just remember he's 25 hasnt had a full year yet and has a gunslingers mentality. There might be a few headaches along his path to greatness. Will- North Bergen NJ

Oh boy - he finally did something! He actually tossed a TD pass!!! Let's get on line and reserve playoff tickets. Did he drive them 90 yds like Carson Palmer did against Green Bay? Nah. We have learned over the years to expect or demand very little from the QB position. This is the franchise that can't find a TE or know how to use one if he was on the roster. Sid Luckman is still our all time leader in passing yards and he still will be when we give up on The Gator aid kid. At least glassman made it through the preseason intact. But really, it is 1963 all over again - root for the defense and hope the offense doesn't lose it for them.

I think you guys are jumping the gun a little bit. I like Grossman. I like his talent. And I like his attitude. Remember how the offense looked last year before Rex stepped in and played. All we need is a fairly decent offense. We don't need an offense like the Bengals or Colts. And people shouldn't put so much stock in the preseason anyway. Remember last year how horrible Ben Roethlisberger looked in the preseason? He came back and performed really well. I really thought the fans were wrong for boing him in that game. Packers fans never booed Farve when he was young and struggling. Give the kid a chance.

I don't understand some of the media and fans,Remember last years playoff the defense let us down not the Rex led offense. Which put up 21 pts(who would've thought we could lose scoring 21)In only his 8th start give him a chance to get better!

I will go even further Allen. 5 of 8? Against Cleveland yet? That should make him a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame, Right?

I seem to remember that it is on long drives that he has a problem with getting into the end zone.

Of course we are told that he would have made the longer one if the receiver had hung onto the ball. I haven't seen the game yet, (They had the wrong time on the NFL Network schedule) but even so, I am not impressed.

Seems to me it might take more than one long drive to win some games in the regular season, and unfortunately, Cleveland won't be one of the teams they are trying to have long drives against.

Then there is the old "history repeating itself." Odd that the Bears would open two seasons in 3 years playing all 3 of their first 3 games against their Division rivals.

Only the order is changed from 2004.

Luckily in the second game, the Defense held GB to 10 points. Luckily also, T. Jones rushed for 72 yards, and a TD, on a 79 yard Drive. Finally, luckily, Mike Brown returned a fumble for a TD, because Grossman only managed one scoring drive in that game. In the 2nd quarter. The other 2 Division games he started, were lost.

Detroit, the first game.
PASSING
CP/AT YDS TD INT
R. Grossman 16/35 227 0 2

Vikings, last game
PASSING
CP/AT YDS TD INT
R. Grossman 21/31 248 0 0

Neat that he gets all those yards in games. Not so neat that, like the Preseason, they mean nothing.

It does not matter who the Bears name as their starter, in this town there will always be a QB controversy. It's been going on since Harbaugh and Tomczack were playing together. It does crack me up that a twenty yard TD drive was enough to shut up the media and build the fans confidence. Give the guy a chance to have a season and show some support. If you want something to gripe about take a look at our recievers and count the perfectly thrown dropped passes. You may have more faith in Grossman.

Grossman CANNOT play at the NFL level.....I'll keep saying it until U believe it. This guy is a scrub.

Meaningless question. He is going to start. The better question is: will he stay healthy?. What's in a name. Wrecks gross, Man!.

All you bandwagon jumpers make me sick! Just the other day you guys are calling for his head now it"grossman is the next big thing since sliced bread", give me a break.Grossman is the second best quarterback on our team and if with a little work from Orton on his game grossman is the third best.Quarterback controversies have been going on way longer than tomzcak and harbaugh in this town Jim but not quite like this one.Greise has constantly outperformed grossman yet the brass still thinks grossman "gives us the best chance to win".I know i know all people will say greise wasn't good enough to be the starter in tb but thats cuz simms is better then anybody the bears got and there was cap issues amongst other things, so your point is null and void. WE are blessed to have one of the best defenses in the history of the nfl(good blog topic later huh roman) and the offense can score at least 17 points a game we can go to the super bowl but saying that doesn't mean anything till it happens. So hold your breath bandwagoners while i hope grossman gets hurt or sucks it up bad enough to realize greise is the man chitown.

I can't believe all the negative comments about Grossman - remember he's basically a rookie (only 8 starts to his name). If I look back, there were guys named Elway, Montana, Aikman, Farve and Peyton Manning who all had pretty horrible rookie years. Last I checked three of those guys are in the Hall of Fame and the other two will be. Now I'm not saying that Rex is a Hall of Famer, but he does have talent (the best the Bears have seen in many years) and he needs to be given a chance to show what he can do. Eight games does not make a career.

He throws in double coverage, throws INT. in the Red Zone all the time, throws at WR's feet and has the coach give him the starting job. Forget about Griese should be starting ahesd of him, Orton has looked better than him. Orton is more mature than last year and maybe Turner would open the playbook more for him this year.

Where's the sense of urgency! I mean you have what could possibly be one of the best defenses since the '85 Bears and the front office does absolutely nothing to solidify the offense like picking up a first rate QB to move this team into the forefront of the NFL. Which stands "NOT FOR LONG" if Jerry Angelo's "REX-PERIMENT" goes a rye.

A lot of good NFL quarterbacks don't step in straight out of college and become impact players. The better quarterbacks get their seasoning on the sidelines over a three or four year period. Grossman has spent his time on the sideline, regardless of the reasons, and I believe he has the tools and the talent to be on of the league's better QBs.

Boohoo, a 20-yard "drive" (if you can call it that). Color me unimpressed and thoroughly unconvinced. You know why Grossman was pulled after only eight passes? Because Lovie Smith and Ron Turner knew Grossman's poor completion percentage would catch up to him if he's left in there any longer. Erik Kramer was a better QB than Grossman ever will be. The Bears aren't going anywhere with Grossman and his wild inaccuracy at the helm. Personality aside, Brian Griese, coupled with a truly dominant defense (think several notches above what the Bears currently have, one that can actually get off the field after third downs) could make a SuperBowl combination.

Just like the guy before me, the defense let us down. All it took was a couple of poorly coached DB's over-playing Steve Smith and the best player on defense (Brown) out for the season and it was game-over.

Just like the guy before me, the defense let us down. All it took was a couple of poorly coached DB's over-playing Steve Smith and the best player on defense (Brown) out for the season and it was game-over.

Rex will become a great QB for us. I cannot wait for the Green Bay game where he is going to tear up their D.
People need to keep in mind that our O has been trying new things and using the preseason as "Practice" which it is. The long, over the middle, pass to Desmond Clark should give us a better perspective on the plays the Bears are holding back until regular season. (Did you see the touch Rex put on that ball!! Sweet!)
If there is a concern for me, it is Rex's tendency to throw into trouble coverage when in the red zone. He did it again against the Browns but luckily it was tipped. It was the same mistake he made for his Int during the Cardinals game that he promised he would not make again.
His complettion percentage would be a lot better without the drops by our Wide Receivers. Currie should have caught the pass in the end zone and there were others dropped that were not Rex's fault. (BTW, it was a long drive that should have emded in a TD). I could have caught the pass that Currie dropped and he's supposed to be a professional. Bradley also dropped a big pass from Orton. Why isn't everyone bashing Orton?

Grossman is going to have a breakout year as long as our receivers can hold onto the ball.

PS Adrian Peterson looked really good against the Browns and too bad Runnels was hurt. We may have to go looking for Mark Edwards again this year. Thomas Jones is either sand-bagging or Benson is going to be the starter by half-time at the Green Bay game.

I think we should wait and see.Quick decisions seldom pan out,and perhaps we Bear fans should just be thankful that we have three quarterbacks who may be capable of taking the Bears, if not to the Super Bowl, at least into the play-offs.

Instead of hating on Rex we should all be happy that the Bears are probably in the best situation as far as QB's that they have ever been in! No more Burris, Hutchinson, Chandler...this list could get really long.

Please stop with all of this Rex is a rookie crap.
This is his 4th year in the NFL and should have reached some sort of level that gives you confidance that he can be a good QB in the NFL.
Kyle Orton was what a real rookie looks like and he has a lot more expierance and has acconmplished a lot more then good old Rex.
Let me know when Grossman actually does something in this league.

Why do people in Chicago always cheer for the back-up QB? Listen, Rex Grossman has all the tools to be a succesfull QB in this league. He needs time. He doesn't need Chi-town back-up QB lovers screaming to yank him after 2 bad PRESEASON games! I mean it just sounds stupid! I live in South Carolina but I've been a Bears fan all my life. And Rex is the most Talented QB we've seen in a long time. You guys weren't screaming for his neck when he almost immediately sparked an offense that was doing absolutely nothing all season last year, but relying on the defense to set them up with good field position. You weren't screaming for his neck when he was lighting up Carolina's Defense in the second half of the Playoff game last year that we should've won if only the defense would've doubled Steve Smith! We need to jump on the wide reciever's case just as much, or more so than Grossman. Everytime you look one of them is hurt or dropping passes. I mean, this is the NFL, and you are supposed to be Professional WRs! Bernard Berrian, Mark Bradley,and we've never even seen this kid Airese Currie play yet because he is so "hurt". These guys have to step up even more so than Rex because they haven't done a thing yet but show flashes every once in a while.

jes said:"If I look back, there were guys named Elway, Montana, Aikman, Farve and Peyton Manning"

You gotta love how people throw stuff out here thinking we will all swallow it, hook, line and sinker.

Elway, Montana, Aikman and Favre,(Did not play as a Rookie) all played BEFORE the West Coast Offense. It is known as the Passer friendly Offense for a reason.

http://www.footballresearch.com/articles/frpage.cfm?topic=bucking

They also all played before the numerous Rule changes, like "Roughing the Passer." (automatically deducts an incomplete pass from the QB's rating)

As to Peyton Manning. You REALLY need to do some research...

575 Pass Attempts in his Rookie year and a rating of 71.2 puts him in the same category as Grossman?

Then there is the little fact that Grossman's Offense has not won a single game since his rookie year, while Orton's offense won several. (I am referring to the FACT that Defense or Special Teams have had to SCORE the winning points in both games that Grossman is getting credit for winning, 1 each in 2004 and 2005) Actually he is 2 for 7 for his 'entire career'.

Then there is the little known fact that Orton averaged a TD about every 174.83 yards in HIS first 7 games.

Grossman has managed a TD every 325.75 yards. :(

Spin that any way you like. It is a stat that is all up to the QB. Has nothing to do with the play of the Defense or ST. Just the individual QBs ability to get them into the end zone on his arm and ability.

Don't you just hate the facts? :)

The Bears have PLENTY of question marks beyond Grossman. Receivers - probably the worst set in the league. Linebackers - have a college level OLB (Hillenmeyer) starting. DBacks - see playoff game vs. Carolina. In a terrible division, they'll be luckly to go 9-7.

Hey guys Rex and the Bears will be fine when you say he is still a rookie you mean he has not seen 16 starts under his belt. that seems to be when the "LIGHT turns on" for young QBs. Rex has to show he gets it but give him at least 8 more full games. Rex will be fine

I'M VERY DISAPPOINTED IN THE NEGATIVE RESPONSE BY BEAR FANS TO REX GROSSMAN-WHO IS STILL A YOUNG AND DEVELOPING, INEXPERIENCE QB. ALL REX NEEDS IS TIME ON THE FIELD TO PROVE HIMSELF REGARDLESS OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED HIS PAST GAMES HE IS STILL A GROWING PLAYER AT HIS POSITION AND WILL PROVE W/TIME AND EXPERIENCE THAT HE IS THE RIGHT GUY FOR THE BEARS - JUST GIVE HIM THE CHANCE BEARS FANS. WE'LL BE GLAD WE DID DOWN THE ROAD.

If you were to look up the word "fickle" in the dictionary, the reaction fans are having in regards to Grossman would be in there. Are people really that short sighted?? It wasn't even 11 months ago when Rex came in against Atlanta and got 2 standing ovations. It was in January of this very year, in the last game he played in that matter, that he helped put up 20 plus points against a very good defense. Relax people. I speak from experience being a Bears fan, in that I know how it feels. Any glimmer of hope at the QB position, anytime someone comes in and plays well against people that were probably cut this weekend, fans think he is the one that will lead the Bears to the Super Bowl. Try and keep things in perspective. It's the preseason. In the end, Rex may or may not be the man. Maybe Griese will step in and lead the Bears deep into the playoffs, or maybe not. But try and do just one thing, give Rex a shot. I never understood why people boo their own players, especially in the preseason!! It's counter productive and silly. So, until there is actually one snap in the season, I'm sticking with Rex.

Damn, but you "fans" are pessimistic.

Let's get some things straight here.. First of all, Grossman had a stellar college and high school career. Granted that doesn't make him a first-ballot hall-of-famer, but it bodes well for a team that hasn't started him an entire season yet.

Moreover, Grossman's two major leg injuries were freak accidents. How many players have we seen go down on turf without so much as a finger laid upon them? Doug Flutie didn't have an NFL frame, and he did just fine. And there's no way Peyton (or anyone else, for that matter) wouldn't have met with the same fate after getting his ankle rolled by a fat lineman. All this fragility talk is doomsay and nothing more.

As for production, yeah. It's still the preseason. That is exactly why you should all stop whining about his lack of touchdowns. How many games has he started? 7? He hasn't started even a half-season yet, and already you want to villify him as a has-been/never-was.

Years of crummy quarterbacking has giving Bears fans a bad taste in their collective mouth, but that doesn't mean you give up so soon on what could be a long, happy relationship with ol' mini-favre and his cannon arm.

You certainly can't blame him for the sheer number of drops stemming from plain old bad receiving. Against the Cardinals, I counted at least 4 solid passes (right between the numbers) that dropped to the grass, only to be blamed on the only guy doing his job right.

None of you are NFL scouts, much less experts on talent. Give him a shot. I guarantee that Lovie gives him a long leash this year. Even if it takes him till week 10 to figure it out, Rex will produce in a big way one day.

Stop all this childish bellyaching. If every team had this kind of reaction every time a player was learning the ropes, the draft would've been discontinued years ago in favor of one big free agent orgy. Get over it, kids; all he needs is experience.

Wow alot of so called fans. Since I have been a fan (around 1988) there have been alot of downs. But who boos there quarterback in a preseason game? Grossman didn't even have his running backs in the games you people are putting so much stock in. Ok Jones played a few plays in a couple of games. Next the play calls were just to get grossman some throws. The play calling will be much better in the regular season. Next how can you compare grieses play against #2 and 3 guys playing basic defenses to grossmans play? gresie is a vetran we know he can play, but he is not our 25 year old number 1 pick, he's not the bears future he is their insurance. Next alot of guys have been dropping the ball on grossman, not meaningless plays either, big firsdown and better plays. Booing a guy and hurting his confidence is just bitting off you nose to spite your face. I mean this is the best the team has looked since I can remember, the offense is going to be outstanding this year and all you nay sayers will have to eat your words. Or do what guys like you always do take all the glory but never stick with the team when it's rough. The Bears will be very hard to beat this year, they will walk through the dividion, and everyone will say it's because it's a weak division, they'll win there playoff games, and make a serious push at the super bowl. By the way rooting for Grossman is not jumping on a banwagon it's supporting your teams quaterback and having faith that the coach of the year who has totally turned the team around knows a little more than you do

I just cannot figure out this support that everyone shows Rex. I do not feel he has earned the right to be handed the QB job. Chad Pennington competed for his job and he has had more success in this league than Grossman. If Rex earns the job...fine. But for Greise to come in knowing that it is "Rex's Job" is insane. I am not rooting for the underdog, but to me Rex hasn't proven to be the best option yet.

Wow Rebecka! You actually took the time to dig up Stats to prove Rex Grossman's Futility @ QB. Yall hate Grossman so much that you would rather Kyle Orton run a watered down offense so he can hand off 2 times and then overthrow the reciever on 3rd down for maybe the entire game except for one good drive? Do you really believe Kyle Orton would run the offense better than Rex Grossman? Although we won 10 games with Kyle running the 'O' last year, the defense won every last one of those games. Kyle led the offense on maybe 1 good drive per game (except for the Lion's game early in the season). And I don't need stats to prove that! I saw every game last year, and when the offense got on the field, I expected them to go 3 and out. We need at least some one that we can rely on that can put at least 17 points on the board every game. We don't know how good the 'd' will be this year. I just don't believe Brian Griese (dispite his great Preseason performance) nor Kyle orton is as good as a talent than Rex Grossman. My focus is on those sorry WRs we have. "Oh Im so hurt" Benard Berrian, "Ouch my knee, my hip, and my back" Mark Bradley, and "I think I'll sit home and collect a 6 figure salary" Airese Curie! These are the guys that needs to catch hell. Not the QB's.

Wow Lanny! they were saying the same thing about the buccaneers in 2004. New QB came in and
they started hanging onto the ball. or did it just get to WHERE they could hang on to it.

I keep hearing about Desmond Clark and what a rotten TE he is. Funny, he had the best season of his career with a little known QB called Brian Griese. ;)

I think every team has question marks.No one is perfect and that is just what the NFL needs.Other than Patriots no team has been a powerhouse.But even the Pats have a little drama going on in their house.Now that they've been successful guys want their piece of the pie.(Branch).they've let some mainstays go and that causes division.Let me know how their season turn out.I think Grossman is feeling the pressure from everyone and it cause him to make mistakes.Favre is still making asinine throws either off the mark or into double coverage and until his team was decimated by injuries everyone laughed it off.Grossman has that same gunslinger mentality ,like Favre and until he stay healthy and put some Ws in the necessary column people will question him.More so in this town where everyone question everything because they always think they can do better.A lot of teams look bad in preseason.And some guys aren't very good practice players.They bring a certain energy to the real games when things are on the line like Grossman did in his first game he played in last season.He'll be Okay.And if he's not we have two capable back-ups in Greise and Orton.I think the guy needs to feel wanted to build that necessary confidence.I think so many people lump Grossman in with the Cub's Prior and Wood that they can't separate the sports.All they see is some hotshot young savior who is letting down their hopes and spirits ,yet again.Chicago sportsfans demand their heroes to play hurt.Suck it up and leave every ounce of themselves on their battle fields. That's why we love The Rodmans and the Jordans scoring 50 points with the flu.JUST MAN UP.We love to see that effort.Even when McMahon left for good no one was sick over him leaving.Nor missed him because he hadn't done much for us in some time.All we remembered, after a while was that he was always hurt.So Grossman will get those boos and those jeers until he does what WE really want him to do.Just Win!!!!!

No matter who the quarterback is, Ron Turner and a Ron Turner offense can not win. History speaks for itself and thank God the NFL has a draft and not a player recruitment system.

Fellow Bears fans you kill me, always so downtrodden on your own guys. Just look at Rex as he matures into an NFL QB. He may have the quickest release in the game, with impressive velocity. His numbers would be better sans drops. I think Rex has the poise and arm to be an outstanding NFL quarterback and I can't wait for all of you naysayers to eat your words, at which point you will be trying to jump onto his bandwagon! The fans of Chicago follow the media negativity WAY TO MUCH!!

As we approach the season debut against the Packers, my patience with the QB situation has already expired. Simply put; I'm done cutting Grossman any slack. Either he steps up and shows me he's a bona fide NFL caliber gun slinger, or he can take a seat for the remainder of the year. Before the has even begun, this has become not only a must win game for Rex, this has also become a game in which he must do so convincingly. A struggling 10-7 win won't cut it as far as I'm concerned, especially if he finishes the game with a 48 passer rating and a few interceptions. At this point I'm only willing to give him the first 30 minutes to get things going, and if the game is already out of hand I wouldn't hesitate to give him the hook him even sooner.

I have the least concern of QB position. I agree with early post that we should concern most of WR position. It's Angelo faults. Give Rex receivers who can catch the ball consistently and he will be fine.

As a long time Bears fan, I observe that Bears fans are too quick to give up QB and cry to get back-up QB on the field.

Don't think Grossman is the answer for the bears and he will not last more than a few games before he get hurt

Rex is the incumbent starter. Smith made it clear that he wasn't evaluating who the starter would be. The receiving corps has been riddled with injuries. In fact, dare I say that even if they were healthy, there is only one receiver who would start on any other NFL team. The problem is not the QB. Get him some receivers and the starting RB's and then let him play. If he can't do it then, we make the change then.
Listen to Brian Griese. you can't evaluate a QB who is playing against back ups. Remember Kyle Orton was the top rated preseason passer last year.

Are you kidding me?? I don't get it. Did anyone watch Rex play at the end of the season last year? He jump started the offense in the Atlanta game. He led the offense to 28 pts against Green Bay and 21 pts against Carolina. A couple preseason games mean more than his last regular season and playoff starts? Preseason is basically practice. There is virtually no game planning. That's why it's meaningless!

I just read an SI article by Peter King picking the Bears to go 9-7... with Detroit (don't laugh) winning the division. Are these writers for SI serious? His reasonings are from these exact concerns; Who is the starting QB? Who will start at RB? And where are the offensive weapons"?In a sense he is right. The Bears has a lot of question marks on offense...especiall