'Swamp Monster' of the Midway

Week 4 of the NFL preseason, games that mean 'nothing' to outsiders, and everything to the men given one last opportunity to prove themselves. For an injury riddled Chicago Bears team, the final 'audition' of the 2015 preseason had a ton of meaning. Many players on defence stood out, making their case to be on the list of 53. Eddie Goldman's concussion may cause him to miss the start of the 2015 season, creating a huge (335Lb) hole the Bears weren't prepared to fill. However, Thursday night, the Bears may have found a solution to their latest problem in NT Terry 'The Swamp Monster' Williams.

Williams played four seasons at East Carolina University, where he began his NCAA career as a linebacker. The following three seasons Williams would make the shift to the defensive line, starting as a defensive tackle, going on to play his final two seasons at nose. Williams showed great flashes in college, ability to disrupt the backfield resulted in close to 15% of his tackles resulting in losses for the opposition. Williams showed great skill in tackling, along with a knack for being in the opposing quarterbacks' face. Williams would finish his college career with a solid stat line, proving had the tools to play nose at a higher level (41 Solo, 84 Ast, 125 Total, 3 Sack, 4 FF, 5 PDef) Coming into the NFL as an undrafted free agent is hard enough, having one game to earn a roster spot, is nearly impossible.

The Bears defence impressed in the final preseason game, posting a shutout in the teams 24-0 victory over the Cleveland Browns, Terry 'the swamp monster' Williams had a lot to do with that. The 353Lb nose tackle was a headache for the Browns offence all night, causing disruptions all over the field. Williams was able to make his presence felt both on and off the scoresheet, finishing the game with an impressive 7 tackles. In a preseason that forced Chicago to adapt a 'next man up' approach, Terry Williams stepped up in a big way.

With the injury to rookie Eddie Goldman, and the regular season approaching, Chicago needed a backup plan at nose heading into week one. In his one game 'prove-it' audition Terry Williams was electric, and may very well have played his way into the role of week one starter for the Chicago Bears.

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References;

Photo sourced from: http://peachstatecollegesports.com/pscsarticles/terry-the-swamp-monster-williams/

Thrilled for the Bills

Hiring of a defence first head coach, who inherits an already elite NFL defence is cause for great optimism. However, in the NFL, having a great defence is only one third of the battle. Although the Buffalo Bills can boast about their defense, its time for the offence to pick up some slack. The announcement Tyrod Taylor would be taking over the Bills offence in 2015, may have been the beginning of the end in a 15 year playoff drought in Buffalo.

Wherever Taylor has been given the chance to lead, he has succeeded. As far back as his high school career he has been able to put up huge numbers when given the chance to lead. At Hampton High in his home state of Virgina he led the team to a 34-4 record, along with his shining stat line (5144 Pass Yds , 44 Pass TDs, 2,546 Rush Yds , 56 Rush TDs) Taylor would graduate as the number one ranked 'dual-threat' QB in the country. Making the leap to college, Tyrod would once again prove leadership was the key to unlocking his potential.  

The 'hybrid' QB would split time as the teams starter his freshman year. In week two of the Hokies '07 season, in a game against the LSU Tigers, Taylor gave Virgina Tech fans their first look at his productivity when given the chance to lead. Entering the game late in the first half, leading the team on its only scoring drive of the night. From that point on Taylor never looked back, earning himself the starting position as the Hokies QB for the remainder of his NCAA career. The Virgina native would continue to dazzle Hokies fans for two seasons as the full-time starter before finishing his college career in 2010. During his time at Virgina Tech, Taylor would break multiple records and finish with stats worthy of a look on NFL draft day (50 GP, 7,017 Pass Yds, 44 Pass TDs, 1,943 Rush Yds, 23 TDs) Being drafted by Baltimore, who already had a starting QB, Taylor would either have to switch positions, or move on to the NFL without his most powerful quarterbacking weapon, a chance to start.

Many teams expected Taylor to play his NFL career as a receiver, however, when the Baltimore Ravens drafted him they kept him at his natural position. His time as the backup in Baltimore proved invaluable, allowing him to show flashes of potential in the preseason, and earning him a Super Bowl ring in 2013. On March 12, 2015 Taylor would make a career changing move, signing with the Buffalo Bills, one the NFLs most notorious for having a quarterback carousel. With the Bills adding free agent QB Matt Cassel, along with 2013 16th overall pick EJ Manuel, Taylor would have an uphill battle, competing against two quarterbacks who had more starting experience. After earning Rex Ryan's trust giving the head coach the 'magic' he had asked for, Taylor was named the teams starting QB for the 2015 season. The fifth year QB may not bring with him the excitement of a first round draft pick, or the signing of a high profile free agent quarterback, however, the combination of his 'dual-threat' ability and track record as a starter could be exactly what the Bills offence needs.

Having had a silent NFL career up to this point, uniting with the NFL's loudest coach may have returned Taylor's most powerful weapon, the title of starter, and ultimately, a long awaited playoff birth for the city of Buffalo.


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References; Photos sourced from: http://espn.go.com/espn/page2/index?id=5550771, http://www.buffalobills.com/news/article-2/Help-us-create-“An-Ode-to-the-Fans”-/bc74d1ee-dbc0-4688-9b95-43fb60c7ac2d

Creating a Monster

For the modern sports fan the word ‘rebuild’ brings mixed emotions. Immediately thoughts of finishing last, cutting ties with veteran fan favourites and ‘cheering’ for a high draft pick instead of a playoff birth come to mind. Heading into the 2015 season, Chicago Bears fans are split; some say the team is destined for a playoff birth due to the offseason overhaul and the hiring of a head coach and coordinators with proven track records. While others are expecting a season worthy of a top 3 pick in next year's draft, due to the early season injury bug as well as the lack of talent on defence. While fans struggle to figure out exactly what Chicago will be in 2015, it's important to take a look at some blueprints used by NFL teams faced with the task of retooling to achieve future success.

‘More Money, More Problems’

No better example comes to mind than the 2011 Philadelphia Eagles. Coming off the NFL lockout, the Eagles took their shot at a quick team rebuild, throwing money at high profile free agents such as Nnamdi Asomugha, Jason Babin and Cullen Jenkins, to name a few. Much to the delight of many NFL fans, this plan blew up in the team's face, and caused them to miss the playoffs for the first time since 2007. Other teams that fall under this category are the Washington Redskins, Cleveland Browns and Oakland Raiders; three teams who typically come in well under the cap, and try to speed up rebuilds by throwing money at higher profile, aging free agents.  It should be noted that there is are positive signs the Raiders are bucking this trend and moving to a more draft focused approach. The fact remains, since 2010 these three teams have an average ranking of 25th in the league and one playoff appearance between them, is proof that money can’t fix everything in the NFL.

‘Draft Day Saviour’

Many teams who find themselves in a franchise rebuild bank on the idea that one special player whose name they call on draft day, will come in and save their entire organization. The most common blueprint used by general managers when rebuilding, often times it involves teams ‘reaching’ for a player early in the draft, or worse, dealing high draft picks in an attempt to move up and select their saviour. This plan can either lead to instant success or a major franchise setback. In the best case scenario for this strategy the 2011 Indianapolis Colts lead the way. Their dismal 2011 season led to the drafting of Andrew Luck, the prototypical franchise ‘saviour’ all rebuilding teams aspire to draft. An honourable mention goes to the Minnesota Vikings who selected Teddy Bridgewater in last years draft. Bridgewater has been a perfect great fit for Vikings, and has shown flashes of franchise QB potential. Unfortunately for GMs, players like Andrew Luck don’t come around every draft day. At the other end of this strategy, we have a number of cases where this strategy doesn't pan out. The most notable failure when a general manager reached on a QB came back in 1998, when Ryan Leaf was selected 2nd overall by the San Diego Chargers. The Colts dodged a real bullet as they chose Peyton Manning 1st overall, after Leaf made his strong dislike of Indianapolis public. Leaf would be out of the league by 2002. In recent memory, the Jacksonville Jaguars set themselves back a few years when they reached on picking Blaine Gabbert in the first round of the 2011 draft. Fans sat through two and a half painful seasons with the former Missouri QB at the helm. The sudden fall of Robert Griffin III in Washington has provided a perfect example of how hedging all your bets and giving up a ton of future draft picks, for a single player can dramatically backfire. The RGIII saga has set the franchise back a few years, and left Redskins fans frustrated, with any thoughts of post season play even further away, while the St. Louis Rams have (almost) entirely rebuilt their defence as a result of the trade. With many cases against this style of rebuild, it will be interesting to see how recent ‘saviour’ picks Jameis Winston (Tampa Bay) and Marcus Mariota (Tennessee) fair in the NFL.

‘Slow and Steady’

On one end of the spectrum you have teams who try and rebuild rapidly, either through spending money on free agents or attempting to retool through a single year's draft class. Two NFC North teams come to mind with this approach. Firstly, the Green Bay Packers created the mould for building through the draft (as credited by Bears GM Ryan Pace), never making big free agent splashes and trying to build from within. Its no coincidence, the second team noted for using this strategy also calls the NFC North home. In a rebuild that ultimately began in 2007 with the drafting of Calvin Johnson, the Lions would steadily build a core group of players through the draft (Stafford ’09, Suh ’10, Fairley ’11 etc.) which has led them from NFC North basement, to a yearly contender for the division title in the past two seasons.  Heading into 2015 only time will tell if the Lions have damaged their successful rebuilding tactic by choosing to make a ‘big splash’ trade with Baltimore for defensive lineman Hoaloti Ngata, in favour of retaining ‘home grown’ talents Ndamokung Suh (Miami) and Nick Fairley (St. Louis). An honourable mention in this category goes to the St. Louis Rams. One could argue the Rams have been building a powerhouse defence since the 2008 draft when they selected Chris Long in the first round. In the following years St. Louis would continue a defence first draft approach making notable selections each year; Robert Quinn (’10) Michael Brockers (’11), Janoris Jenkins (’11), Alec Ogeltree (12’) and Aaron Donald (13’). With the addition of Nick Fairley the 2015 Rams defence could be atop the NFL by season's end. However, where the team ends up in the standings remains a question, as there are many holes to fill on the offensive side of the ball.

There is more than one way NFL teams can approach a retooling, these are only a few of them. Each has examples of failure and success. Could the Bears follow in the footsteps of their divisional rivals to once again become a contender.

Having not seen playoff football since the 2010 NFC conference championship, Bears fans have been wanting the team to establish a direction. With the 2015 offseason bringing front office changes, a revamped coaching staff and an organizational desire to return to traditional Bears football, a retooling in Chicago is necessary. There will be tough times ahead, however the right people are in place, laying the ground work for an eventual return of the Monsters of the Midway.

It's your turn Bears fans; what is your take on the current state of the franchise? Leave your thoughts in the comment section below…BearDown.

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Photos sourced from: http://eatdrnkslpsprtz.com/2013/03/11/nfl-free-agency-its-how-you-spend-not-how-much-you-spend-that-makes-the-difference, http://www.fantasyfootballchick.com/video-robert-griffin-iii-helps-student-with-touching-prom-proposal-sportsnaut-com/, http://fameology.net/2013/02/26/walter-payton-chicagos-enduring-football-legend/