Bears receivers short on size, muscle

The Bears have plenty of big-play ability at wide receiver with speedsters Devin Hester and Johnny Knox, but Earl Bennett is the only proven member of the cast with any size, assuming that inconsistent, 6-foot-2, 201-pound free agent Devin Aromashodu doesn’t return.

Bennett is a solid and reliable possession guy. He is unafraid to work the middle of the field, and QB Jay Cutler has confidence in him and his steady hands. But, at 6-feet even and 204 pounds, Bennett is by far the biggest and strongest of the Bears’ established receivers, and there remains a need for a big, physical player who can win jump balls, especially deep down the field.

The Bears thought Aromashodu would be that guy when the 2010 season started, but he displayed an aversion to contact, had some drops in the opener and spent the rest of the season in the doghouse. After catching 5 passes for 71 yards in the first game, he had 5 catches for 78 yards in the final 15.

The Bears brought in 6-foot-4, 220-pound Canadian Football League import Andy Fantuz in the off-season and, while he brings great size, he is not the field-stretching type.

Knox (51 receptions, 960 yards, 5 TDs), Bennett (46, 561, 3) and Hester (40, 475, 4) are expected to be the Bears’ big three again. The 6-foot, 185-pound Knox took another huge step toward becoming a No. 1 receiver last year, after a 45-catch 527-yard rookie season. But, even as he regained his old kick-return magic, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound Hester seemed to regress as a receiver. He caught 17 fewer passes for 282 fewer yards than he did in ’09, when he had 57 receptions for 757 yards and appeared at times to be the Bears’ No. 1 receiver of the future.

Another undersized wideout, 5-foot-9, 187-pound Rashied Davis, is also a free agent. But he has a better chance of returning than Aromashodu, given his huge contributions on special teams. Davis was phased out of the offense last year and caught only 9 passes for 84 yards, but he stepped up in the season finale, when Bennett was hurt, and caught 7 passes for 63 yards, proving he can still be a complementary receiver.

Need: 6 (On a scale with 10 representing a dire need and 1 representing no need at all.)