Rob Grabowski-US PRESSWIRE
With the Chicago Bears benching Left Guard Chris Spencer for Chilo Rachal earlier this week, here are other potential depth chart moves the Bears could make some time this season.
- Kellen Davis being benched for Kyle Adams
“He can do anything the good tight ends in this league can do,”
Through two weeks of the regular season, Davis hasn’t lived up to head coach Lovie Smith praise. So far this season, Davis has one catch for 21 yards and one touchdown. The great part about Davis is that he’s 6-7 267 pounds; the problem however is that his size affects his route running, and he doesn’t have enough speed to gain separation.
Adams only has one catch so far this season, but he showed more in that one catch that I’ve seen in Davis career. At 6-4 255 pounds, Adams is the more fluid route runner of the two and knows how to get separation from opposing LB’s.
If Davis keeps underperforming, don’t be surprise if he starts losing playing time to Adams.
- J’Marcus Webb being benched for Gabe Carimi
What more can you say about Webb? The third year left tackle hasn’t showed much improvement, and it has cause quarterback Jay Cutler to take a week-to-week beating by opposing team’s best pass rushers. In the next three weeks, Webb will face pass rushers’ Chris Long, Demarcus Ware, and rookie Andre Branch.
If Webb struggles continues going into the bye week, the Bears will more than likely make a change. Most fans assume it will be Chris Williams, but the guy that could possibly get a shot is right tackle Carimi. Carimi is not new to the position having played it his entire college career.
In this scenario, Carimi and Williams would be your new starting offensive tackles coming out the bye week.
- Devin Hester being benched for Alshon Jeffery
This process is already happening, as Hester is losing a significant amount of snaps to the rookie each week. General Manager Phil Emery used two draft picks on Jeffery, and the Bears are making a strong effort to get him involved in the passing offense as much as possible.
With a lot of attention being paid to Brandon Marshall, Hester hasn’t done enough to capitalize on the one-on-one coverage he’s seeing consistently and the coaches are starting to take notice. It’s not going to be too long until Jeffery is starting full-time at the flanker position.
- Israel Idonije being benched for Corey Wootton
Idonije hasn’t made much noise on the defensive line, specifically as a pass rusher. The young guys Wootton and rookie Shea McClellin though have.
McClellin is still developing as a full-time defensive end, but Wootton is already at that stage. His ability to be a decent run defender combine with being a legit threat as a pass rusher could open the door for him to take Idonije starting job.
You also have to factor in that Idonije was brought back on a one-year deal, while Wootton is in a contract year. Emery and the coaches could possibly want to see more from Wootton in order to determine if he’s worth offering a second contract to.
