Bears Doomed, er, I mean - Bears Sign Grossman
I don't understand all the gloom and doom on the Grossman extension. Was Rex my first choice for starting QB next season? No. But I think it's a successful step one in a four-step plan.
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Sign Grossman on the cheap. They did, one year, 3 million. Only 1.5 million guaranteed. That's third string QB money, folks. Nothing to worry about.
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Cut Brian Griese.
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Let Kyle Orton compete for the starting job in 2008.
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Draft a QB for the future.
A lot of people are convinced that Grossman will never amount to nothing. They point to his happy feet and reckless handling of the football. The point to the botched Super Bowl, where even a hint of competence might have won a championship. They may be right, but I still think he should be in the mix for one more chance. He's not some David Carr reject that's had eighty games with nary a hint of long-term value. Rex has started 30 games, he's thrown 24 TDs in a season, and he was a solid starting QB on a team that went to the Super Bowl. That's a lot more than any of the last thirty QBs for the Bears can say, and a resume a lot of guys would be proud of. Sure, he's mind-boggling awful at times, but what if he grows out of it? Isn't he worth at least one more look? I just want him to compete with and/or back up Kyle Orton for one season. Is that so wrong?
Note that I'm doing everything in my power to avoid all comparisons to Eli Manning. It's Angelo's crutch for the signing, I'm sure. Look at how the Giants patience was rewarded this year! Yeah, yeah. I get it. But I'm not drinking the Kool Aid.
So long as Orton gets a fair shake in the preseason, this is a good deal. Brian Griese is not the answer, and Rex still has a shred of upside. Some people want to gut the farm and bring in three unknowns. There are no free agent QBs worth a nickel, so you'd have to do it through the draft. That's fine if you want to concede all championship talk in February, but you need a bit of stability under center to win a title. Rookies, with rare exception, never do. I'd still draft a QB, but I wouldn't ask him to do anything till 2009 at the earliest.
And that's how you go into the season with three guys with upside and not concede a championship before the season starts. Decent, low-risk gamble.