Good fit for both Sitton, Chicago Bears

Three-time Pro Bowl guard Josh Sitton knew there was a seller's market for his services when the Packers decided they could do without him.

So why did he drive down from Green Bay to sign with the Chicago Bears, the first team he talked to?

A knee-jerk reaction of wanting to make his old team pay for its insolence? Does Sitton crave deep-dish pizza and Italian beefs?

Turns out proximity, familiarity and the desire to get back to work as soon as possible played the biggest roles in his Sunday night signing.

"Honestly, it didn't have anything to do with sticking it to the Packers," said the 6-foot-4, 320-pound Sitton. "More (being) familiar with the division and close to where I was. I like the weather up here.

"We had a few other teams interested, (but) it's too (darn) hot in the south."

Sitton doesn't want to miss the season opener, and he knew missing even a day of practice would impede his ability to get coached up enough to play in Week 1.

"I wanted to get the decision made as quickly as I could," the ninth-year veteran said. "I wanted to get to where I was going and be able to learn the offense and be able to jump in this week. The longer it took, the harder it would have been to learn the offense.

"Chicago had me in first, and they got it done first. It was the closest place for me, so it was pretty easy. That was actually a factor."

The Bears also approached the negotiation with a sense of urgency.

"He's right up the road, (and) there's a lot of teams interested in him," Bears general manager Ryan Pace said. "Let's get on this right now and be aggressive and be decisive.

"The ability to be that way came with our preparation. That's a testament to our scouting department."

But the Bears also approached with some trepidation, wondering why the Packers would part with a player of Sitton's stature a week before the start of the regular season.

"That's the first thing that pops into your head," Pace admitted. "This guy is talented. We're watching every single game from last season and watching him play at an extremely high level. What's going on here, man? What are the reasons?

"That's when you do a ton of research; meeting the player, feeling his personality and getting the medical report. I have a lot of respect for that (Packers) organization.

"But we did all our research and, at the end of the day, we felt good about it."

Now it's up to the Bears' coaching staff to get Sitton up to speed in time to face the Texans in Houston on Sunday. The plan is for Sitton to start at left guard.

Rookie Cody Whitehair, who has been the left guard since training camp started, was at center with the first team during the portion of Monday's practice open to the media.

But veteran Ted Larsen has been the No. 1 center since Hroniss Grasu's season-ending knee injury on Aug. 8.

Best guess is that Larsen will anchor the middle early, until Whitehair is deemed ready to take over - sooner rather than later.

"Cody Whitehair was an extremely positive future with us moving forward," coach John Fox said. "Adding a guy that's got the experience that Josh has will be nothing but a huge help for Cody."

Whatever the configuration of the O-line, it's better with Sitton, who hasn't missed a start in four years and has missed just two games in the seven years since he moved into the Packers' starting lineup.

"The skins are on the wall," Pace said. "He's extremely strong and powerful in the run game; and pass pro(tection), he's one of those guys that just makes it look easy. You never see him stressed or exposed.

"He's in good position and a very intelligent player. That shows up when you meet with him, and all the research we did on him echoed that as well."

Like any player who already has played eight seasons in the league, Sitton comes with some wear and tear, specifically a back injury. But the Bears are not expecting that to be an issue.

"We went through all that (Sunday), and it was a thorough process," Pace said. "Obviously we wouldn't have signed him if there were major concerns, so at the end of the day we felt OK about it."

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