Bears likely to bide time in free-agent market
While their own marquee players -- linebacker Lance Briggs and wide receiver Bernard Berrian -- will be two of the most popular targets in the opening days of unrestricted free agency, the Bears are not expected to cause an early commotion in the marketplace.
The bidding officially opened Thursday at 11:01 p.m., and it wasn't expected to take long for Briggs and Berrian to receive offers lucrative enough to end their stays in Chicago.
The San Francisco 49ers, who as recently as a week ago were nearly $30 million under the $116 million salary cap, were believed to be interested in both Bears, especially Briggs, who instantly would upgrade their 25th-ranked defense.
But the Niners may have an even more urgent need at wide receiver, where new offensive coordinator Mike Martz is seeking playmakers for a unit that was last in the league in total yards and passing yards in 2007.
Berrian, a California native who played his college ball at Fresno State, has said in the past he'd enjoy returning to the West Coast, also is expected to attract attention from the other side of the Bay.
The Oakland Raiders are desperate to add big-play weapons for their quarterback of the future, Jamarcus Russell. The Raiders were 31st in passing yards last season.
The Minnesota Vikings and the St. Louis Rams also are logical destinations for Berrian, who put up career bests of 71 catches and 951 yards last season.
Other suitors for Briggs figure to be the Buffalo Bills and the Rams.
Bills coach Dick Jauron was the Bears' head coach in 2003 when Briggs won a starting job three games into his rookie season. The Bills were 31st in total yards allowed last season after losing linebackers Takeo Spikes and London Fletcher in free agency.
The Bears' front office doesn't admit it is in a rebuilding phase, but the team needs major upgrades on the offensive line and at wide receiver at the very least to be a playoff contender in 2008.
General manager Jerry Angelo hasn't given up on re-signing Berrian, but once the speedy receiver has seen the bright lights and big bucks of free agency, he's unlikely to return.
"It's certainly going to leave some holes in terms of having the experienced people back there," Angelo said of the Bears' wide receiver corps, which also lost Muhsin Muhammad, who was released last week and signed with his old team, the Carolina Panthers.
"We do have younger players, obviously without the experience. If things don't work out (with Berrian) we have a Plan B that we can go to."
Other than Berrian and Randy Moss, there isn't a whole lot to choose from in this year's free-agent crop. Jacksonville's Ernest Wilford, Seattle's D.J. Hackett, Arizona's Bryant Johnson and Oakland's Jerry Porter are the best of the rest.
They may never be legitimate No. 1 receivers, but they could all help the Bears, and they all have very good size.
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound Porter, who has been in and out of the doghouse in Oakland, had 44 catches for 705 yards last season.
Wilford, who has great size at 6-4 and 218, led the Jaguars with 45 catches and was second with 518 yards, but the four-year veteran is 29.
Hackett (6-2, 208) had 32 catches for 384 yards in an injury-plagued campaign in which he missed six games with ankle sprains. Johnson (6-3, 216) caught 46 passes for 528 yards.
On the offensive line, Pittsburgh Steelers guard Alan Faneca is the prize, and he's certain to get a multiyear deal for at least $7 million per. That appears more than the Bears want to spend on a 31-year-old player, even though they could fit the perennial Pro Bowler under the salary cap.
At tackle, there isn't much to get excited about, particularly after Dallas re-signed 6-foot-7, 340-pound Flozell Adams on Thursday to what the Cowboys called "a long-term agreement."
But there are some second-tier guards who would be an upgrade for the Bears on the left side, including Indianapolis' Jake Scott, Detroit's Damien Woody and San Francisco's Justin Smiley.