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We're Black and Blue All Over: Here's a good news/bad news development for the Detroit Lions. The good news is their coaching staff will manage one of the two Senior Bowl teams for the second time in four seasons. The bad news? Well, it's the same...

After the Chicago Bears' 21-14 loss to the Minnesota Vikings, here are three issues that merit further examination: Quarterback Jay Cutler said during his ESPN 1000 radio show that his stiff neck shouldn't keep him out of next Sunday's game again...

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- For quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates it's probably natural to want some comeuppance from his former employer Sunday when his Chicago Bears face the Seattle Seahawks at Soldier Field. The offensive coordinator for Seattle in 201...

After the Chicago Bears' 13-7 victory over the Detroit Lions, here are three issues that merit further examination: I thought it was interesting to see defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli beef up his blitz packages against the Lions, who for the ...

In which we look ahead to NFC North preseason football over the next two days. (A separate post on the Green Bay Packers' Thursday night turn on ESPN is right here.) Chicago Bears Opponent: Denver Broncos Location: Soldier Field Day/Time: Thur...

We're Black and Blue All Over: Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Bill Musgrave comes across as your classic mild-mannered schemer, the kind whose brief and measured conversation suggests a man whose mind is always focused on the next play ca...

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Summer visitors to Olivet Nazarene University are greeted by navy blue banners promoting the Chicago Bears' training camp. Bears logos are plastered all around town. Marquees invite the hungry and thirsty to patronize local estab...

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- As in all walks of life, titles on an NFL coaching staff can be misleading. The Bears officially hired Jeremy Bates as their 'quarterbacks coach' in early February, 2012, but the impression early in training camp is that the well...

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- Let's roll through some thoughts and observations after watching the Chicago Bears' second training-camp practice: One of the prettiest plays in 1-on-1 drills came when receiver Earl Bennett hauled in a long pass down the ri...

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. -- It shouldn't be this difficult. Finding Mike Tice on a football field should be easy. Just look up and listen. Tice stands 6-foot-8 and has a deep voice he employs liberally during practices. It's hard to miss. So on the openi...

Three thoughts as training camps open around the NFL: One thing I'm certain of: Quarterback Jay Cutler will demonstrate that he is the Bears' quasi-offensive coordinator. And that's not a bad thing. After three years of surrounding him with ill...

We're Black and Blue All Over: Tom Pelissero of 1500ESPN.com culled an interesting nugget this week: Minnesota Vikings coaches have told third-year player Everson Griffen that he will be a linebacker when training camp opens later this month. I...

SportsCenter's divisional analysis moves to the NFC North on Tuesday night (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET). We've already discussed our most versatile players as well as potential breakout players, so let's give our television pals a pre-show primer on the bigge...

As promised, let's take a stab at answering the questions we posed earlier this week in advance of mandatory minicamps for three NFC North teams. (Original post here.) Chicago Bears: State of the offense and the progress of rookie defensive end Sh...

We're Black and Blue All Over: The Chicago Bears' re-creation of the Denver Broncos' 2008 offense includes the quarterback (Jay Cutler), the primary receiver (Brandon Marshall) and one of the key assistant coaches (Jeremy Bates). But who will play...

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Current San Diego Chargers receiver Eddie Royal set the precedent for what a slot receiver can accomplish in a Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall led offense. All three, plus Bears quarterbacks coach Jeremy Bates, were together...