Dan Pompei

Drafting well really doesn't matter if a team fails to develop the players it drafted. The Bears are taking a step towards developing some of their players this year.

You might call it rebuilding, but they don't. They call it opportunity for Kyle Orton at quarterback, for Devin Hester and Mark Bradley at wide receiver, Chris Williams and Josh Beekman on the O-line, Matt Forte at tailback and Brandon McGowan and Kevin Payne at safety.

Whatever you call it, it seems odd that the Bears — the NFC champions of the 2006 season — have turned over so quickly. It happened because some players got old (Fred Miller, Ruben Brown, Muhsin Muhammad), some got lost (Thomas Jones, Chris Harris, Tank Johnson, Bernard Berrian), some got hurt (Mike Brown) and some never got with it (Cedric Benson, Rex Grossman).

So now the Bears are trying to get back to where they were with a younger, hungrier bunch. Since Lovie Smith has got his program going, the Super Bowl never has seemed more distant.

Hot Seat
This surely is Grossman's last chance to prove himself as starter of the Bears. Isn't it? Ok, so we've said this a few times before. But this is different.

For the first time, the Bears are not handing the job to Grossman. They are saying he has to win the job in a competition with Orton. In the offseason Grossman was a free agent, but he re-signed with the team at a bargain price in part because the Bears afforded him the best opportunity.

Grossman is motivated. He is experienced. He is out of excuses.

Overheard at camp
The Bears approached training camp in 2007 with the potential distraction of having a linebacker who was unhappy with his contract situation. They are approaching training camp in 2008 with the potential distraction of having a linebacker who is unhappy with his contract situation.

Last year, it was Lance Briggs. He's not a problem anymore. This year, it's Brian Urlacher.

The middle linebacker signed a nine-year, $57 million deal through 2011 and received a $19 million signing bonus, but he wants another bite of the apple. The Bears have offered a $5 million signing bonus and an additional $1 million per year with a one-year extension. That won't cut it with Urlacher.

He stayed away from some offseason activities to make his displeasure known, but he is expected to be present for the start of training camp.

Coming and going
The Bears lost two starting wide receivers (Berrian and Muhammad), two starting offensive linemen (Miller and Brown) and a starting tailback (Benson). All but Berrian were shown the door, so they are counting on addition by subtraction.

They are replacing Muhammad with Marty Booker, a former Bear who should be an upgrade in some respects. Replacing Berrian will prove more difficult unless Hester is ready to catch passes as well as he returns kicks, or unless Bradley is able to stay on the field and follow his assignments.

On the offensive line, first round pick Williams is expected to take over at left tackle, with John Tait moving to the right side where Miller played. And Brown's left guard spot will go to either Beekman or John St. Clair.

The combination of playing below expectations and showing a lack of maturity off the field cost Benson his roster spot. The Bears cut him after two offseason arrests. In his place is Forte, who has yet to rush for a single yard in the NFL.

Prediction
The Bears might be better than a lot of people think if their young players can perform up to their capabilities. But they have a lot of inexperience and a lot of unknowns. That means the Bears can't be counted on.

It might be easy to justify having Orton take over at quarterback if he had proven wide receivers to throw to and a solid running game to lean on. But the Bears have unproven wide receivers and a questionable running game.

The defense should be solid, as should the special teams. But as usual, the offense is the issue in Chicago.

It adds up to a team that is not expected to win as many as it loses.

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