Bears running back Chester Taylor doesn’t seem to feel at home with a new team until he gets in a fight.
In Baltimore, he reportedly threw a chair at tackle Orlando Brown. In Minnesota, a fight with defensive end Erasumus James ended with tackle Bryant McKinnie getting stitches for getting in the mix.
Taylor dusted off his gloves at Bears practice Thursday for a fight with fellow running back Kahlil Bell, according to Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune. Practice fights are not huge deal, although Biggs indicates “something had been brewing” between the two guys for a while.
The Vikings have bemoaned losing Taylor more than once this year, but he hasn’t made a huge impact in Chicago. He’s averaging 2.6 yards-per-carry and has only 14 catches on the season. Many folks expected a split backfield with Matt Forte, but Forte has more than doubled Taylor’s touches and proven far more effective.
Ches is a bum…he did get paid by Chi-town though…
Taylor didn’t look good running in the Philly game, but prior to that he’s looked pretty decent.
And he makes a better option on short yardage/goal-line scenarios.
I don’t care if his production hasn’t been great–he’s a great addition for the sake of insurance/peace of mind. It’s comforting knowing there’s a back-up of that caliber waiting in the wings.
Everyone knows you need to 2 backs to get by in this league–eventually, Taylor will have to shoulder a greater load, and he’ll rise to the occasion.
As for the fight–as long as there’s no lingering schism in the locker room or affecting attitudes on game day, it’s no big deal.
Plus, it’s 2 vs. 3–if this were Forte and Taylor going at it, I’d be a bit more concerned.
And where has Kahlil Bell been since that 72 yard run (or whatever) against Philly the year before? He’s no slouch–given an opportunity, I bet he could be a viable starting RB in this league.
That’s because Forte is the started and Taylor is his backup. This isn’t a two headed monster, or RB by committee approach.
So long as the holes up the middle remain few and far between (poor run blocking) Taylor will be unable to ground and pound like he did in Minnesota. He still is our short yardage and goal line back, and gets featured on at least a drive a game. However, he is not as fast or elusive as Forte and even though both get going in the screen game, the run plays the Bears are calling are more suited to the silky smooth runner with acceleration.
By the way, your 2.6 yards rushing doesn’t account for 14 of his touches on screen passes, a key element of Mike Martz’ offense. If you add in those 100 yards on 14 catches Taylor averages
3.3 yards per touch.
Forte gains 4.2 yards per carrys and 5.2 yards per touch.
@therealmatador,
a “bum”?
What are you, a bitter Queen-bean, playing that jilted, scorned pyscho ex-girlfriend card?
(With all Vikes fans have to be truly bitter/dejected about, should Taylor really be a concern at this point?)
Aside from maybe Thomas Jones, or Jonathan Stewart–name some other #2 RBs you’d rather have, who have as complete a skill set (rushing, short yardage situations, catching out of the backfield, pass protection, etc.) AND a proven track record as CT does?
Taylor’d probably take the starting spot on over half the teams in the league…
Chester Taylor fought who? lol
He’s ticked because he signed with a team that already had a starting RB with the same skill set, after spending a couple years before behind an All-Pro RB. Since he has even less to do this year than the past 2 years, he must have taken up MMA.
dewey i would rather have ricky williams than chester taylor.
@ryan
Fair enough, except Ricky’s more of a starter–in more of a timeshare role (1a to Ronnie Brown’s 1b) than being a true #2/back up.
And there are some committees/combos involving young–but unproven–guys:
Jackson/Spiller
Tomlinson/Greene
Matthews/Tolbert
But whoever is deemed #2, I would argue, would still not be as complete a back as CT is.
Imagine 3rd and goal in a playoff game–would you trust any of those guys (except Jackson & Tomlinson–both starters) with the ball as much as you would CT?
I like how @deweyaxewound is making all of the Bear’s RBs out to be pro-bowl caliber. Stating that Bell and Taylor are elite or something. Typical Bear delusions. Its not as bad as Viking fans though.
On a different note, Chester has made a great career and a lot of money being a high priced backup. He backed up Jamal Lewis, then started for a second in MN after being paid hansomly, then AP stole that starting spot away, and now he got another huge contract to back up another good RB. He has made a lot as a back up. Teams keep overpaying this guy. He is valuable, but not for starters money…