5. Chicago Bears
As quarterback Rick Mirer struggled to learn the offense this summer, there was grumbling among the coaches and the players that Mirer—the son of a high school football coach, the former star at Notre Dame, the No. 2 pick in the 1993 draft by the Seahawks, the player Chicago traded its '97 first-round selection for last February—wasn't nearly as effective as Erik Kramer, Chicago's incumbent, who is returning from two herniated cervical disks, which sidelined him for all but four games last year. Even late in the preseason one of the Bears said he was amazed that Mirer, given his football pedigree, was so slow to master the offense.
But coach Dave Wannstedt and the front office have to share in the blame. They could have made virtually the same deal for Mirer last October, at the 1996 trading deadline, and while Mirer wouldn't have made much difference in Chicago's injury-ravaged 7-9 season, he at least could have used that time to learn the offense. Then when new offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh hit town in January, Mirer could have devoted more time to the 25% of the playbook that was rewritten.
As it was, Mirer didn't begin learning the offense until March, and though he was diligent about it, he was way behind Kramer, who looked far more polished and game-ready than Mirer at off-season minicamps.
The Bears went down to the wire before choosing a quarterback to start the '97 season, picking Kramer less than two weeks before the Monday-night opener against the Packers. But success won't come easily for Kramer—or Mirer if he gets a shot—early in the season. Wideout Curtis Conway, who led Chicago in receiving last season with 81 catches for 1,049 yards and seven touchdowns, is out for at least the first month after breaking his collarbone in a preseason game against the Cardinals. Journeyman Ricky Proehl, who caught 23 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns with the Seahawks last year, moves into the starting lineup.
With a 32-32 record over four seasons in Chicago, Wannstedt was already under the gun before Conway went down. In May club president Mike McCaskey relieved the coach of some of his authority when he hired the Chiefs' Mark Hatley as vice president of player personnel. "We don't have enough talent," Hatley said this summer, and you can be sure that what remains of Wannstedt's job will be in jeopardy if what talent he has doesn't generate nine wins. That's all the more reason the coach needs one of his quarterbacks to emerge.
Late in the preseason Mirer seemed surprised, and a bit hurt, when it was suggested that he was slow to grasp an offense that no one will ever confuse with the complex systems used by San Francisco and Green Bay. "Untrue," he said. "I've come a long way, being a rookie in this system. I came here with the idea of making improvements in my game and being the starter, but stuff doesn't happen overnight. I never looked at this as a quick-fix career move. I knew it might take time, and I'm learning a huge amount in a short time. I'm here for the long haul."
Mirer won't rip the coaching he received in Seattle, where he completed just 53.3% of his passes and had a quarterback rating of 65.2 over four seasons, but apparently he was pretty much starting from scratch in Chicago. "Matt is working with me on things I have never even heard of before," Mirer says. "In terms of the drops, for example, he goes over exactly where your feet should be, how big the steps should be—all the itty-bitty details that it takes to be precise."
No matter who's barking signals, the Bears must also have a strong ground game to be formidable. They ran on only 45% of their offensive plays last year and ranked 16th in the league in rushing offense, but Wannstedt hopes the sturdy backfield tandem of Rashaan Salaam (496 yards on 143 carries in '96) and Raymont Harris (748 on 194) can control the clock. Without Conway, the Bears will need to win a lot of low-scoring games early to remain in the playoff hunt.
"I still remember going into Denver and Kansas City last season all beat up, and we should have won both games," Wannstedt says of the two close calls. "So we're not that far off.—Peter King
SCHEDULE SKINNY
Pity the Bears. In the first five weeks they play at Green Bay, at New England and at Dallas. Then they come home for emotional games against Mike Ditka's Saints and the rival Packers. With consecutive games against the Dolphins (Oct. 26) and the Redskins (Nov. 2) looming after that, Chicago could be out of the wild-card race before the schedule eases up.
STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE
NFL rank: 22 (tie)
Opponents' 1996 winning percentage: .484
Games against playoff teams: 7
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