Dave Toub: Danieal Manning will be kick returner in 09'

When Dave Toub was asked if Danieal Manning would be the kick retuner next season, he replied with this answer:

Yes, he will. He finished No. 1 in the NFL. He’s going to be our kickoff returner and Devin [Hester] is going to be our punt returner

Mike Brown Probably Not in Bears Plans for 09'

Jerry Angelo had this to say about Mike Brown:

"I don't see that right now, given how it affects Danieal [Manning], allocation of money comes into play, too, in what we want to do at other positions.

"There could be a case where we want Mike back, but we can't afford to do it given what we want to do in other areas."

Mike Brown, a second-round pick in the 2000 draft, took a cut in pay to play this past season after suffering a season-ending ACL tear at the start of the 2007 campaign.

Brown returned to play 15 games in ’08 before a hamstring injury put him on injured reserve two days before the season finale at Houston.

A series of injuries kept Brown from playing a full 16 games in each of the last five seasons.

Brown is due to become a free-agent in February.

Brian Urlacher said this about Mike Brown after the season came to an end for the Bears:

"I really hope he’s back next year, I can’t say much because I don’t make the personnel decisions. But he started 15 games for us this season. I don’t see that being an injury problem. He probably could have played the last game.

"If Mike Brown is healthy, I see him coming back. And I see no reason for him not to be healthy."

Video of Mike Brown

What do I think?

I think this would be a bad move, because what I saw out of Danieal Manning at nickelback was pretty good, but safety not so good.

Danieal really screwed up in Super Bowl XLI.

Letting Danieal take over for a proven guy like Mike Brown is dumb, Brown played 15 games last season and still has a lot of games ahead of him.

If you commit to Mike Brown, you still have to bring in help at Safety either through the draft or free agency.

Craig Steltz and Brandon McGowan (if he comes back) is not enough help.

Don't even get me started on Kevin Payne.

Good as Gould Again

My first Soldier Field experience turned out to be a success.

Not only was it the coldest (-2) Bears game in history at kickoff, but they also defeated their most hated rival the Green Bay Packers 20-17.

The Bears were trailing 14-3 at half to the 5-9 Packers and basically did nothing offensively.

They adjusted at half, just like me.

My hands were pretty much frozen, so I put multiple hand warmers in my gloves.

That saved me, and the Bears.


Three reasons how they won:

1. Special Teams- Robbie Gould, Danieal Manning and Alex Brown had huge plays.

2. Matt Forte- He came up big late in the game.

3. The fans- they play a huge role in this one.


If they lost, I would have wasted my time freezing my hands.

Thank goodness they won.

Now they play a 7-8 Houston Texans team in Houston, a must win game to even have a shot at the playoffs.

They need Minnesota to lose to the Giants in Minnesota and the Cowboys and Bucs both to lose.

If Minnesota loses and we win were NFC North champs, and if Dallas and Tampa Bay lose and we win we clinch a wild card spot.

What a great weekend for me.

Not only do the the Chicago Bulls win Saturday night, but all the teams the Bears needed to lose lost and they pick up a huge win.


Just a few notes:

S Mike Brown injured his calf late in the second quarter and did not return.

Brad Maynard’s third quarter punt hit Green Bay’s Jarrett Bush, who was blocking on the play, and the Bears’ Jason Davis recovered at the 27.

The 4th and one, when it was 17-10 was converted by only an inch.

Matt Forte played through an injured toe to keep the Bears playoffs hopes alive.

The coin toss in OT went off of Brian Urlacher's Helmet.


Alex Brown had this to say about his blocked field goal to save the day:

We got a great push from a lot of different people. I was just the one who got my hand on it, we were saying on the sidelines that we have to block it. I got through pretty good but I didn’t really think that was going to happen. You just go as hard as you can and see if you can get a hand up and hopefully you can get it.”

Orton had this to say after the game:

“Everything fell right, gave us a lot of momentum and energy coming into this game. We just had to carry it all the way through."

Lovie on team win:

"I don't know if I've ever been prouder of a team."

All quotes from Yahoosports.com

Danieal Manning Named NFC special teams player of the week

According to NFL.com, Bears safety Danieal Manning was named NFC special teams player of the week after returning five kickoffs for 179 yards, including the opening kickoff 83 yards for a touchdown last Thursday night against New Orleans.

Danieal Manning leads the NFL this season with 29.5 yards per kickoff return (26 returns, 766 yards).

The last time a Bear returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown, was in Super Bowl XLI, by a guy named Devin Hester.

Good job Danieal Manning, we need you to return some long ones in the future.

Bears win 23-10 against struggling Jags

The Bears made sure they won this game, by coming out early and setting the tempo.

Kyle Orton looked solid with a 85.3 passer rating, 219 yards and two touchdown passes to Dez Clark and Greg Olsen.

His one mistake came when he under threw Devin Hester, who finished the game with five catches and 80 yards.

Danieal Manning, who moved to nickel back this season, picked off David Garrard on the Jag's first drive.

Manning returned it to the five where he fumbled out of bounds.

It was initially called a touch back, but Lovie Smith threw the challenge flag and the Bears scored on a Dez Clark catch.

They looked solid in the first half, but they were very conservative in the second half.

They knew they had it in the bag.

They allowed only 159 yards threw the air and the defensive line helped out with three sacks.

The defense had about 11 tipped passes in this game and it seemed like they were going to pick off Garrard more than just once.


The defensive stars:

Anthony Adams, Israel Idonije, and Daniel Manning led the defense for most of the day.

Adams, who is filling in for the injured Dusty Dvoraceck had eight tackles and really looked good.

Israel Idonije, had 1.5 sacks and a couple of deflected passes on some big plays.

Danieal Manning looked like a first round pick.

Manning not only had an interception, three tackles and two deflected passes, but he also had some decent kick returns.


The offensive stars:

Kyle Orton looked good with his 2 touchdowns and 85.3 passer rating.

Devin Hester had a big day receiving, but he also seems to know what he is doing returning punts now.

Hester was close to taking a punt to the house in the second half, this made the Jaguars punt out of bounds multiple times.

The tight ends looked really good, with Greg Olsen's 52 yards and a score and Dez Clark's touchdown catch.

Matt Forte, who is a rookie, but plays like a veteran, finished with 69 yards rushing and 37 yards receiving.


Notes from the game:

Garrett Wolfe left the game on the opening kickoff with a hamstring injury.

Mark Anderson recorded on his first sack of the season, when he beat tackle Tony Pashos with a spin move.

Adewale Ogunleye, who was on the injury report, helped Israel Idonije bring down David Garrard late in the game.

This victory gives the Bears 700 wins, an NFL record.

Adrian Peterson, finished the game with 19 yards on three carries, but he really looked like a solid backup running back.


Disappointments from the game:

Besides Devin Hester the wide receivers looked pathetic.

Marty Booker, Rashied Davis, and Brandon Lloyd combined for 5 catches.

Lloyd didn't catch a ball and looks almost invisible lately.

Booker was banged up late in the game and Rashied Davis just has no hands.

None of these guys should be starters in the NFL.

I don't understand why Earl Bennett and Brandon Rideau don't get any playing time.

Lance Briggs missed a tackle on the little, but powerful Maurice Jones-Drew four yard touchdown.


What's Next?

The Bears face the 7-6 New Orleans Saints on Thursday night.

Both teams need this win.

The Lions played the Vikings tough, but the Vikings came away with the victory to stay one game ahead of the Bears.

The Packers lost their eighth game of the season and are eliminated from the playoffs.

Vasher done for the year

The Bears placed Nathan Vasher on injured reserve Saturday with a broken right hand, ending the defensive back’s season.

He recorded only 29 tackles with one interception and three pass breakups.

He has 18 career interceptions, but only two in the last two seasons.

Nathan Vasher had surgery on his wrist earlier this season but re-aggravated the injury after sustaining the break against the Rams.

This is the second consecutive season Vasher has been placed on IR.

A partially torn groin muscle ended his 2007 season.

Corey Graham will take over Vasher's role in the starting lineup.

Trumaine McBride and Danieal Manning will be the other active corners looking for some playing time.

Mike Brown, Kyle Orton sit out Wednesday's practice

Safety Mike Brown (calf) joined quarterback Kyle Orton (ankle) on the sideline Wednesday, sitting out practice.

Also out were receiver Marty Booker, cornerback Charles Tillman and defensive lineman Tommie Harris.

I don't think Charles Tillman was healthy enough to play last week, but we really need him this week.

Linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer (thumb) was limited.

Luckily, Receiver Brandon Lloyd (knee) and nickel back Danieal Manning (hamstring) had full participation.

Bears' Hillenmeyer could miss Lions game with a hand injury

• A Chicago Bears Source says LB Hillenmeyer had surgery and CB Vasher is still day-to-day.

Bears cornerback Nathan Vasher remained sidelined Monday, nearly four weeks after surgery on his right wrist, and now strong-side linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer is out with a hand injury.

Vasher sat out during a short workout at Halas Hall, as did Hillenmeyer, who had surgery last week on his thumb, a source close to the player said.

There is no timetable for his return, and he has not been ruled out for Sunday's game against Detroit.

Vasher how you doin?

''I'm doing good, still just going day-to-day, and hopefully by the end of the week I'll be able to see.''

Lovie Smith had this to say about Vasher's starting job:

''Each snap you're earning a job, you have to do something to say that you deserve to be out on the field. Nathan Vasher is a good player. A lot has been said about him and is he starting and all of this. Nate's one of our guys. He's going to help us win a lot of games around here.''

Vasher seems upset at reporters:

''Are you guys starting something?" "Oh, my gosh. It's the middle of the season. I don't know what you guys are talking about. You tell me. I'm always content with whatever my role is on the team. I just want the team to win.''

Since Hillenmeyer might not play, Nick Roach and Jamar Williams practiced with the first team and worked with coach Lloyd Lee worked for 20 minutes after practice.

Hey Brandon Lloyd you gonna play this weekend?

''I don't know. I'm not going to play unless I am 100 percent.''

Other important injury updates:

Nickel back Danieal Manning (hamstring) returned to practice after sitting out two weeks. Cornerback Charles Tillman (shoulders), wide receiver Marty Booker and defensive tackle Tommie Harris (left knee) sat out.

Kevin Payne Named Starting Strong Safety

Bears safety Kevin Payne has been named the starting strong safety for the team, ahead of safety Brandon McGowan.

"I'm just happy I got an opportunity to go out there and show what I can do," Payne said.

"Now I am just ready to go out and help the team. It's a blessing to be able to start."

Brandon McGowan will probably move over to nickel back, in front of Danieal Manning.

Ricky Manning Jr: Most Likely Chicago Bear to Be Traded

Do you think the Chicago Bears will trade Ricky Manning Jr?

Yes, it sure seems like he is the odd man out.

Ricky Manning Jr. signed with the Chicago Bears in 2006, he set a career high, and he tied for the team lead and tied for 10th in the NFL with five INTs

In the postseason he had a big INT against the Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Playoff.

Became first Bears defensive back since Jerry Azumah (12/30/01) to record 2 sacks in one game (12/17/06 vs. TB Bucs).

Last season, Ricky Manning Jr. played in every regular season game, but failed to record an interception. He was the starting nickel back for the whole season.

The Chicago Bears are looking to use former first round pick Danieal Manning at nickelback because of the emergence of Brandon McGowan and Mike Brown coming back.

Besides the obvious starters Charles Tillman and Nathan Vasher, the Bears have two second year pros in Corey Graham and Trumaine McBride. Don't forget this years fifth round pick Zackary Bowman.

If they do move Ricky Manning Jr, it might work out like Chris Harris in last years training camp.

Chris Harris started 15 games with the Panthers last season, recorded one INT and eight forced fumbles.

All the Chicago Bears got in that trade was a fifth round pick.

I still am upset at that trade.

So, if they move Ricky Manning Jr. it could turn out the same as Chris Harris's last year in training camp.

It never hurts to have to many bodies and we all the know the Chicago Bears get alot of injuries.

It looks Ricky Manning Jr. who is signed through 2010, might get sent packing sooner than later.