CEDRIC TAKES CHICAGO
by Jim Ludes


Benson gets his chance to be the feature back in '07, and Chicago's O
may only go as far as he carries it

The Chicago Bears are coming off their most successful season in two decades. However, like 30 other teams, they fell short of the ultimate goal. That goal, of course, is to hoist the Lombardi Trophy at season’s end -- not watch Peyton Manning do it. This season’s Bears look to be very similar to the team that took to Soldier Field’s turf a year ago.

The Bears are favored by many to be among the NFC’s top-contending teams this season as well, and rightfully so. They have inked up Nathan Vasher and Charles “Peanut” Tillman at the cornerback spots for the foreseeable future and have franchise-tagged Lance Briggs in at linebacker with the promise to not give him the same designation next offseason if he plays 75 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. Add a healthy Tommie Harris, Brian Urlacher and the rest of the supporting cast and you have one of, if not the, best defenses in the whole league.

Offense will be the biggest question mark for the team, like a year ago. The first, biggest and most consistent question will be about quarterback Rex Grossman. When Rex is on, he’s a cannon-armed young star of the league. When he’s not, he’s as woefully bad as you’ve ever seen playing professionally. The Bears need him to be consistent more often than not, and preferably just more often. Cedric Benson was given the job as the team’s No.1 back by default when the team traded away Thomas Jones to the Jets.

Special Teams, often an overlooked facet of football, will be another bright spot for Chicago this season. Robbie Gould and Brad Maynard are among the league’s most reliable kickers and punters, respectively. Last year’s surprise phenom, Devin Hester, will be back returning kicks and punts. It’s highly doubtful that he will take six to the house again, but his mere presence will aid the Bears greatly in field position battles. Hester also has been working this offseason with the offense, hoping to add that “big-play” guy to stretch the field.

Playing in the weak NFC North helps pad Chicago’s schedule, but the other four teams should be slightly tougher foes than a year ago. They can count only the horrific Raiders as a gimme in their battles versus the AFC West, as the other three teams should be hard-fought wins, at best. At home, they’ll battle Dallas and have a conference championship rematch with the Saints. On the road the Bears head to Seattle and Philly, two difficult places for any road team.

BEST-CASE SCENARIO:
13-3 seems like a bit of a longshot but the Bears should have a relatively easy go of winning their division again even with a record of 10-6 or 11-5. With a seemingly tougher out-of-division schedule, the Bears will need to take care of business in the North.

WORST-CASE SCENARIO:
The Bears showed a year ago that they can successfully play through injuries to Harris and safety Mike Brown. If Harris, Urlacher and Benson (or other key cogs) miss significant time, Chicago could join the growing trend of Super Bowl losers who fail to make the playoffs the following season.