Comments on: Brian Urlacher’s future in Chicago unclear

By: lilmiddle78

lilmiddle78 — Sat, 19 Jan 2013 07:30:09 +0000

Past six years or so the use of cover two in Chicago has been steady to say the least!! Opposing QBs often stay away from the middle which is supposed to be the weakness of the cover two, is it not?????? So please tell me why if Urlacher is sooooooo average then why is it that NFL Quarterbacks are going away from the weakness of the defense to avoid such an old, slow & below average player?!?!?!

Guys don’t get to keep their job in the NFL just because of their name or because of what they did a few years ago!!! Ask Mr. Derek Brooks!!

By: larryboodry

larryboodry — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 21:10:38 +0000

filthymcnasty1 says: Jan 18, 2013 2:26 PM

“Urlacher deserves a shot at a championship, and that’s not going to happen in Chicago while they’re rebuilding.”

For once we agree.

By: vegagreenleaf

vegagreenleaf — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 20:28:54 +0000

Most overrated defensive player in the NFL, 13 years running.

By: queensnyvegas

queensnyvegas — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:28:42 +0000

when the nike uniforms came out he did say he liked the giants blue go giants 2013 nfc east champs book it

By: filthymcnasty1

filthymcnasty1 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:26:19 +0000

Urlacher deserves a shot at a championship, and that’s not going to happen in Chicago while they’re rebuilding.

By: spartan822

spartan822 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 19:18:28 +0000

The rest of the NFC North is hoping he stays with the Bears.

By: chitownjeff

chitownjeff — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:52:37 +0000

Love Urlacher.. mad respect for the man.. but when he returned the interception for a touchdown against the Titans he looked like an old slowed wounded Bear..

Pep is 33.. Briggs.. 33 this year.. can’t be sentimental.. we did that with the 85 crew and paid the price for it.. Phil E and Marc T have to be able to make the moves they see fit..

By: cosmicduster

cosmicduster — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:40:33 +0000

Brian will be a Bear if he chooses the contract offered vs. the money grab. I don’t blame him if he walks, but he can’t expect the Bears to overpay for him. That won’t change or tarnish his legacy as a Bear one bit. The face of the franchise for the better part of a decade and one of the Mount Rushmore of Bears linebackers.

By: shlort

shlort — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:20:45 +0000

Urlacher played at half speed all season and still looked good. He is an animal on the field.

Is he about done for his career? Yeah, he is past his prime and in decline. What he offers that is priceless is his leadership. The D rallies around him. I would keep him there if I were the Bears.

He will come cheap, as I doubt there will be much interest in him in FA. He could be a guy they put in for certain packages. They could get a couple more years of good production out of him if he shared duties. Imagine what he could do for a young guy, grooming that player to take the reigns.

It’d be a huge mistake to let him walk away from the team for a peanut contact somewhere else. That is my 2 cents as an Urlacher fan.

By: JSpicoli

JSpicoli — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:19:05 +0000

OAKlacher

By: moeman79

moeman79 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:14:55 +0000

Urlacher’s value is his knowledge of the cover 2 system, on the field shift on the D, pass coverage and tackles, he has never been used in the 3-4 ray lewis role. he can lose a step or two and still be usefull. he has been the face of the Bears so long it is hard to think about our D without him.

By: filthymcnasty1

filthymcnasty1 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 18:01:45 +0000

I wonder is Cutler has any trade value?

By: themidwaymonsters

themidwaymonsters — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:46:29 +0000

Urlacher’s departure or retirement will hinge on 2 things:
1. Type of Defense instilled next year.
2. If he is allowed to be retained.

I feel that he’ll stay IF given the option. And with an offense that should bring more points than last year, this team could authentically be a playoff contender, which might give him JUST enough hope to stay at least one more year.

By: pgh15212

pgh15212 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:45:01 +0000

The Steelers should sign him in an attempt to get younger.

By: toooverbearing

toooverbearing — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:39:28 +0000

I guess you have to factor in what the 2013 defensive scheme is going to be, what kind of money would be required to resign him, and what the opportunity cost would be in free agency… but all things being equal I’d bring him back.

First, he’s still a defensive quarterback out there. He does make plays, even with diminished skills. He’s still a good quarterback.

Second, it would help the coaching transition to have your captains in place this year. It could keep the locker room together. Losing Marinelli already puts the defensive cohesiveness at stake, so resigning Urlacher, even for a year, could be a boon.

If all things aren’t equal and the Bears promote Hoke as DC and keep the cover-2, then I think it becomes that much more important to keep him since he’s so good in covering the deep middle. Or, if we get a 3-4 DC where we have to retool personnel completely, he may be more expendable.

By: damadgreek

damadgreek — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:35:00 +0000

First off, Cutler has a year on his contract. Urlacher is a free agent. “IF” Emery wanted to go in a different direction it wouldn’t be prudent for the new coach to say he can’t wait to get his hands on the hall of fame linebacker (despite risking injury for saying such a thing)

Although Urlacher wasn’t up to his own standards this year, he was still better than a large majority of linebackers in the NFL. As far as I’m concerned—He is a Bear as long as he wants, he has earned it.

I only wished the bears would have given him a championship like he deserved. A waste of a career. Thanks Dick and Lovie—nice offenses you gave him.

By: stellarperformance

stellarperformance — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:32:55 +0000

jqsmooth says:
Jan 18, 2013 12:05 PM
The 49ers are Gold, the Fighting Irish is Gold. The Packers are NOT gold. It is hi-yellow, for as “smart” as Packers fans think they are, they still can’t get one simple thing right.
================================

For the record and by all standardizations, the official Packer colors are 5535C Green and 1235C Gold.

I would describe the San Francisco version of gold more of a “metallic beige,” kind of like my grandmothers 1968 Buick.

By: flapjackdaddy

flapjackdaddy — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:08:53 +0000

Retire if you’re let go. What do you have left to prove?

By: jqsmooth

jqsmooth — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:05:16 +0000

Green & Gold would fit him well, he may be over the hill but he’s still better than hawk

——————————————–
The 49ers are Gold, the Fighting Irish is Gold. The Packers are NOT gold. It is hi-yellow, for as “smart” as Packers fans think they are, they still can’t get one simple thing right.

By: jutts

jutts — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 17:04:10 +0000

It’s all about the money. Urlacher has clearly lost a step or two, but still a great leader. The guy wants to be paid like he was 25 not 35.

By: FinFan68

FinFan68 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:59:37 +0000

I think it’s pretty clear he believes that Urlacher will NOT be a Bear next season. He said “has meant” rather than means. Sad to see but it seems Brian Urlacher will be playing football for another team or retiring this year.

By: mjzaky

mjzaky — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:59:32 +0000

I wonder how Urlacher would do running Perry Fewell’s defense in East Rutherford? Chase Blackburn is not a starter in this league, and Herzlich was not ready as of the end of this season. Who better to teach him and transition the Giants into the Herzlich era than Urlacher?

By: gregalynch

gregalynch — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:56:48 +0000

This seems like jumping to conclusions a little. There’s a key difference between Urlacher and Cutler that would explain why he’s willing to talk about coaching the one and not the other — Cutler is under contract for next season and Urlacher isn’t.

By: canesfan56

canesfan56 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:56:47 +0000

I have always been a fan of Brian’s. Unfortunately nobody can outrun father time.

By: bfatconservative

bfatconservative — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:55:54 +0000

The Dude needs to retire and make the same amount of money doing commercials in the Chicago area.

By: jgava19

jgava19 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:54:38 +0000

Reading articles that Colts may be very much interested in him.

By: leovsmith

leovsmith — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:53:29 +0000

As a Packers Fan/Owner it has been good to see Brian’s playing days decrease due to injury and age. I would just as soon da bears keep him.

By: randolph32

randolph32 — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:53:29 +0000

You don’t think Phil is making the call on Urlacher? With help from whomever is hired for DC?

By: jphavig

jphavig — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:40:09 +0000

Come to Oakland (at the right price).

By: blackandbluedivision

blackandbluedivision — Fri, 18 Jan 2013 16:35:52 +0000

tylerchristopher says:
Jan 18, 2013 11:26 AM
An aging and slow Urlacher is still an above average MLB. He’s also the leader of a top 5 defense. Bringing him back in no way hurts the team.
_____________________________

Not really. He’s not above average. He’s in all reality playing average. If you ever watch a game. You saw guys like Lynch and A. Foster avoid running to the outside and run straight up the middle, towards Urlacher and get big gains. I’ve seen Urlacher get out of position more times than he’s made tackles.

If he wants to lead, he can be a linebackers coach. But, we need an upgrade at the position. I’ve seen him get blocked too many times and be a liability in coverage.

You’re letting his reputation cloud your judgement.