Fear factor motivates Bears brass to make moves
It's a simple formula.
Fail miserably, and go for help in free agency.
Show complete incompetence, and go wild in free agency.
Fear for your job after failing miserably and showing complete incompetence, and go "hog wild" in free agency.
Welcome to your 2010 Chicago Bears.
Ain't it grand?
Bears fans went for a hog-wild ride Friday, as management purchased some love after several months as an NFL punch line.
It's somewhat reminiscent of last year when fans were outraged until the Bears traded for Jay Cutler, and all was forgiven.
That cost them a QB and some very important draft picks, but all Friday's fun cost them was money, and in an uncapped year, there seems very little downside.
So for a change, and unlike most Bears news conferences, nothing bad happened Friday.
There wasn't even a Ted Phillips sighting, which hopefully is an indication of the younger McCaskeys taking more ownership in team business.
It was Phillips who recently said the team wouldn't go "hog wild" in free agency, so perhaps he was out of the loop, or maybe just benched after his last couple disastrous news conferences.
After all, the definition of "hog wild" is "excited to a stupid or irrational extent," which a year or two from now - in a capped system - may be how Friday is viewed, after the Bears made pigs of themselves at the free-agent trough.
And all things considered, the Bears did well, not that writing checks is a skill. Then again, when you've been bad at drafting, trading, coaching and developing, you write checks out of fear.
Rarely does anything good happen when someone reacts to a situation out of sheer terror, because generally it's an overreaction and huge mistakes are made.
You don't have to look far to find some local teams who have spent unwisely right out of the free-agent box, giving too many years and too much money to some highly overrated players.
But the Bears needed their fan base to not hate them quite so much, so they spent like drunken Steinbrenners and temporarily won back some affection.
For all the legitimate concerns about what they did Friday - and there are some - the Bears are better than they were Thursday, and if there's anything to worry about, it's what may happen if they pick up several more wins and therefore a playoff spot.
Yes, it's possible that Phillips, Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith may save their jobs in 2010, because Julius Peppers is so good he's capable of winning five games entirely on his own.
Outside of the Three Stooges possibly staying on board, there's no reason not to enjoy this free-agent frenzy and the signings of Peppers, Chester Taylor and Brandon Manumaleuna.
The Bears have been pocketing huge profits since Chicago built them a stadium, and up until now they felt no need to spend a lot of that operating profit.
Add up all that occurred Friday in an uncapped system and it's just McCaskey family proceeds being flushed if none of it works.
Of course, there are no guarantees any of it will work, what with a new offense installed, the Bears' history of mismanaging their assets, their inability to coach, and the continuing need for a couple offensive linemen and a couple defensive backs.
But they got a dynamite defensive end who can dominate games when he feels like showing up, a new starting running back who fits the Mike Martz offense, and an offensive lineman dressed in a tight end's uniform, brought here to start and play a lot while keeping Jay Cutler from getting killed.
It all reminds me of how my grandfather wore his socks inside-out for luck, and when I asked him if he truly believed it would help, he said, "Not really, but it can't hurt."
So does signing these guys guarantee the Bears will get to the Super Bowl next year?
Not really, but it can't hurt.
brozner@dailyherald.com