Bears sack Grossman, promote Griese
September 25, 2007
The Bears are making the switch that countless fans have demanded. Brian Griese will start at quarterback Sunday against the Detroit Lions, replacing Rex Grossman, a source told the Chicago Sun-Times.
The final straw in Grossman’s demotion was his three-interception performance in Sunday’s 34-10 loss to the Dallas Cowboys. During the game, the Soldier Field crowd began to chant “Griese, Griese …”
Coach Lovie Smith has been a staunch supporter of Grossman, who was wildly inconsistent last season despite helping lead the Bears to Super Bowl XLI. Whenever asked about Grossman, Smith would say: “Rex is our quarterback.” But that phrase was absent during Smith’s news conference on Monday.

Breaking News!!!!!

It's about time. Expect to see David Carr in a Bears uniform this time next season.

What's the emoticon for "gun-in-mouth" They'll draft, I'd think.

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Fire Phil Emery

I was thinking the same thing. Hes the last guy you guys want. If they draft they are kind of admitting that the window for a championship is closed, unless they get a once in a generation guy that is great as a rookie. They can only hope Griese can get it done, or Mcnabb and the Eagles struggle alot this year and they get Mcnabb next year.

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Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

Rumor only until the Bears announce it. Once they make the move, I'm throwing in the towel for the season. Griese will be a placeholder, nothing more.

You mean like Mark Buehrle's deal was "likely" done? Took them three weeks for it to get done from the first reported story of it being "done."

The Sun Times I dismiss immediately, as if it doesn't happen today, they'll spin it as someone has a grudge on the coaching staff when it comes to players with bushy eyebrows or some other stupid moronic thing (Like the Bears management being racist in their contract talks with Lovie.)

NFL.com can be running with the story from the Tribune or the Times or the AP.

Like I said, I'll believe it when Lovie says it.

And then I'll kiss the season goodbye, as Griese can't make Moose run routes out, nor can he get Fred Miller to stop turnstyling defensive linemen into the pocket. Berrian is only effective when he can out race his defender; and Greise is a short to medium range QB.

Simply put, the Bears did nothing to improve this team on offense, save Greg Olsen, who is already damaged goods.

The sky is falling, the sky is falling!

The Bears just benched the last guy I want to see...David Carr would be a welcome addition to the team for next off-season quarterback competition. How's Jeff George doin these days?

David Carr?
why not Byron Leftwich or some other slow QB that'll work great with our O-line being so stout.

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@audioidkid

Get Peter-Tom Willis out of retirement.

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It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

http://www.TheCommittedIndian.com/

official

Bears should trade or release Rex now as they all but said your future is not here. I rather see Orton play the year out if the QB spot is up for grabs next year anyway.

Griese is a stop gap and with our aging OL they better find a mover and shaker to take the snaps next fall.

Now when griese falls for all the same reasons Rex did maybe they will look deeper than just #8. Those Angelo 1st round picks look really impressive now!

I too would rather see Orton. This season is pretty much a failure, might as well try to see what by-cracky can do.

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"It's not exactly a rocket surgery." D.J.

I want to see Chris Leak throwing to Mike Hass.

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It's a bird, it's a plane, it's a goddamn shame.

http://www.TheCommittedIndian.com/

Buy NCAA footbal '08 for your playstation.

Its Official! Brian Griese will start for the Chicago Bears on Sunday

Lovie Smith has just announced at a 12pm press conference that Rex Grossman has been demoted to the #2 quarterback position behind new starting quarterback Brian Griese. Kyle Orton will remain the team's #3 quarterback, effective this Sunday against the Detroit Lions.

Stay tuned to 670 The Score and 670thescore.com for more updates!

...or Arena League Football '09.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

Brian Brohm, Louisville (7/30)
Height: 6-4. Weight: 226.
40 Time: 4.74.
Projected Round: Top 5 Pick.
Could Brian Brohm be playing for his former coach, Bobby Petrino, in 2008? With Michael Vick in court and Joey Harrington on the field, the Falcons could have an inside track on a top-five pick.

Top-three prospect as of late April. Has thrown 35 TDs to just 10 INTs the past two seasons. Never completed less than 63 percent of his passes while at Louisville.


Andre Woodson, Kentucky (9/1)
Height: 6-5. Weight: 230.
40 Time: 4.72.
Projected Round: Top 10 Pick.
Andre' Woodson was 20-of-29 for 250 yards and three touchdowns, still very accurate, showing last season wasn't a fluke. However, he did a few things that bothered me. He still held on to the football too long a few times instead of throwing it away. I thought he would improve on this, one of his biggest weaknesses. He missed one throw high to Keenan Burton on an out route. When he misses throws, he missses them high. I think an NFL coach might be able to fix this. -- Matt McGuire.

Looks like a lot of people are hopping aboard the Woodson bandwagon. I moved him up to No. 2 on my quarterback rankings.

Very underrated. No one knows who he is, yet he led the SEC in passing yards. Threw 31 TDs and just 7 INTs, completing 63 percent of his passes in the process. Was 26-of-37 for 210 yards and a touchdown at Florida.


Matt Ryan, Boston College (9/8)
Height: 6-5. Weight: 218.
40 Time: 4.89.
Projected Round: Top 20 Pick.
After going 32-of-52 for 408 yards, five touchdowns and two picks against Wake Forest, Matt Ryan was plagued by dropped passes, finishing 15-of-34 for 141 yards, one score and one interception. Still, the Eagles beat N.C. State, 37-17. Ryan, who sprained his ankle and broke his foot last year, definitely looks like a first-round prospect.

Tough. Played with an injured foot for most of the 2006 season and still threw for 2,942 yards and 15 TDs. Can't wait to see what he does when healthy.


John David Booty, USC
Height: 6-3. Weight: 210.
40 Time: 4.73.
Projected Round: Top 25 Pick.
With a solid season, could make it into the top 15. Definitely will miss Steve Smith and Dwayne Jarrett. In his first year, compiled 29 TDs and only 9 INTs.


Erik Ainge, Tennessee (9/1)
Height: 6-6. Weight: 220.
40 Time: 4.82.
Projected Round: 2-3.
No one was sure how well Erik Ainge would play in the wake of breaking his pinky prior to the California game. The Vols couldn't win, but Ainge was 32-of-47 for 271 yards and three touchdowns. No one will ever question his toughness again.

Has the size you want in an NFL quarterback. Threw 19 touchdowns and just 9 interceptions in 2006.


Colton Brennan, Hawaii
Height: 6-3. Weight: 196.
40 Time: 4.84.
Projected Round: 2-3.
Needs to prove he's not a system quarterback. Struggled to throw in the wind vs. Oregon State. Compiled a mind-boggling 58 TDs in 2006. A bit small for an NFL quarterback. Will be 25 years old before the 2008 season even starts.


Chad Henne, Michigan (9/8)
Height: 6-2. Weight: 224.
40 Time: 4.76.
Projected Round: 3.
More often than not, players come out too early. Occasionally, someone stays in college way too long. The latter can be said about Chad Henne, who may have dropped himself out of first-day contention in terms of the 2008 Draft. Henne was benched after getting banged up in the first half and completing 11-of-22 passes for 167 yards, one touchdown and one pick. Henne's interception was a horrible throw into triple coverage.

Chad Henne's draft stock took a major hit the first week of the collegiate season. While Henne put the Wolverines in position for a game-winning field goal, no one will forget that he barely completed 50 percent of his passes in a losing effort to Appalachian State. John David Booty and Matt Ryan have both moved ahead of him.

Winless (0-3) vs. Ohio State. Has thrown 45 touchdowns to just 16 interceptions in 2005 and 2006. Heavily criticized at Michigan early on, but showed poise and weathered the storm.

Imagine Uncle Fuzzy on the draft show if the Bears somehow get their hands on this guy.

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"It's not exactly a rocket surgery." D.J.

Not a chance. Even if we suck royally and finish 7-9, he'll be long gone by the time we draft. And since Angelo will never trade up, we can all save our breath on the Brian Brohm debate.

ok kerry wood, start throwing towels..


LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Rex Grossman’s streak of 19 straight regular season starts will end Sunday when the Bears visit the Detroit Lions. Coach Lovie Smith made it official Wednesday, anointing veteran Brian Griese as the team’s starting quarterback.

Grossman was benched after struggling in the first three games of the season. The 2003 first-round pick completed just 52.8 percent of his passes for 500 yards with 1 touchdown, 6 interceptions and a 45.2 passer rating that ranks 33rd out of 34 qualifiers in the NFL.

The most scrutinized athlete in recent Chicago sports history, Grossman failed to revert to the form he displayed last September when he was named NFC Offensive Player of the Month. Instead, the former Florida star failed to generate points or protect the football.

In three games this season, Grossman directed an offense that scored just two touchdowns while committing 10 turnovers on 37 possessions. In his last 16 regular season starts dating back to Week 3 of last year, he threw 25 interceptions and lost five fumbles.

Griese, meanwhile, will make his first start since Oct. 16, 2005 when he played for the Buccaneers. He led Tampa Bay to a 5-1 start before tearing the ACL and MCL in his left knee in a 27-13 victory over the Miami Dolphins.

The former Michigan star signed with the Bears in 2006 after completing 1,463 of 2,318 passes for 16,344 yards with 103 TDs, 78 interceptions and an 84.8 passer rating in eight NFL seasons with the Denver Broncos (1998-2002), Dolphins (2003) and Buccaneers (2004-05).

Griese’s best season came in 2000 when he was voted to the Pro Bowl after leading the NFL and setting a Broncos record with a 102.9 passer rating while recording the second best touchdown-to-interception ratio (19-4) in league history.

Griese has compiled a 39-33 career record as a starter. In 81 games, he has passed for more yards (16,564) and has a better passer rating (84.5) than any player in Bears history. Hall of Famer Sid Luckman (14,686 yards) and Erik Kramer (80.7 passer rating) hold those club records.

Griese saw only mop-up duty in his first season with the Bears in 2006, completing 18 of 32 passes for 220 yards with 1 TD, 2 interceptions and a 62.0 passer rating in six games.

In the penultimate contest of the regular season last Dec. 24 in Detroit, he completed 6 of 9 passes for 51 yards while leading the Bears to field goals on their final two drives, turning a 21-20 deficit into a 26-21 victory over the Lions.

The Bears rested several starters in the second half of that game, having already clinched home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs.

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I'm most interested to see if this is permanent or a 1 game tryout....what happens if Griese has a Rex like game (14-30, 2 picks under 200 yards)? Does he go back to Rex or does he stay with Griese?

Somebody asked that question at the press conference. Lovie didn't specifically say of course but based on what he said I'd assume Griese will be given a few games at least. Likely the rest of the season based on Rex's contract situation.

I think this still qualifies for this thread . . . .
I have to agree w/ B+B today. This is not a happy day. Basically we're back to square 1 @ QB. We might have been in denial about not being @ square 1 for the past 10 games, but now we're facing it, and it's sad and frustrating.

The bears are now going to see 10 men in the box, because the 10th guy previously was bracketing Berrian. Hopefully Griese can make the TE a threat early, because otherwise, this could be the end of the era at QB and RB.

Who can the bears trade so they can get both McFadden from ARK and Woodson from KY in next year's draft?

B&B are just sad because they acted like anyone who wanted Grossman benched and to see what Griese had to offer last year was an idiot. I wouldn't take anything they have to say about Grossman/Griese seriously anymore.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

You mean besides like Urlacher or Hester?

Nothing. The Bears have put themselves over a barrel with holding onto Rex as the starter for so long.

B&B is right. Today wasn't "Ok, now the Bears are improved" its "Ok, the Bears need to stay afloat, and hopefully can get better in the future."

I really don't understand what would have been an optimum situation in everyone's eyes. Almost any NFL team needs high-level play from the QB position. There are exceptions, but they are rare. Brian Griese will not be that starter for the Bears; I haven't heard anyone dispute that, ever. He might be the best option, but he's not that player. Whenever you have a player at the QB position who is relatively young and has gone to the Super Bowl starting at that position, you need to at least consider that he could be that guy. Three games after the Super Bowl, the coach/GM have made that determination that he is not. When did you want the determination made? When Griese was throwing INTs in training camp? Halftime vs. San Diego? The 4th quarter of the Super Bowl?

So what other options are there? You could have signed Byron Leftwich, but another team with questions at QB obviously felt that he wasn't good enough. So why start collecting other teams' refuse? Draft someone this year? Who? Everyone on this board hates Brady Quinn for some reason, and he was the last of the top-flight QB prospects taken. Would you feel better with Kevin Kolb or Trent Edwards right now? Really? And even if you do like them, or John Beck, would they really be better this year than Griese or Grossman? Or would you have signed one of those top-flight QBs who were free agents last year. Remind me, who were those QBs again?

So this year, you'll need to sign a free agent or draft someone. Have you seen the list of QB free agents? It's bad. Tony Romo will be resigned, and Marc Bulger was already resigned. The rest of the list is a series of career backups.

So you'll need to draft, which is exactly the same position you'd be in regardless of whatever Lovie or Angelo would have done previous to this year. It's just that simple. You might be angry that this is the state of affairs, but it doesn't change them. There are a finite number of quality starting QBs in the NFL, and they are hard to come by. If there's a possibility you have one, you follow through that plan regardless of what the largely ignorant fan base is saying (and before you jump on me for saying that, don't forget that every other post in the B&B section and a lot of other sections is about stupid callers and "meatballs.") So what should have been done. Note: "start Griese last year" is not an acceptable answer, as along with the possiblity that the Bears would have won the Super Bowl you must also accept the possibility that they wouldn't have made the Super Bowl in the first place.

When there's a plan in place, especially in a salary cap league like the NFL, you must follow that plan through to its logical conclusion. See the Washington Redskins as the example of what happens when you don't.

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Fire Phil Emery

Starting Griese in the St. Louis game is an acceptable answer as it would have done two things. First, you would have seen if Griese was good or not. He would basically have a 2 game tryout and you go back to Rex if Griese falters. Griese gets cut in the offseason and you bring in a free agent QB or trade for one. Matt Schaub was available. You could trade for him and have Rex back him up for the season. Kyle Orton as the backup after that if you don't resign Rex.

Rex may have even benefited from not playing for a game or two and getting some of the pressure off of his shoulder. If he gets benched and then put back in, we know that he is the best guy for the job. This year you let him compete with whoever else is brought in.

Now we are in a situation where we know that Rex can't handle the job. We don't know if our backup can, and our third string QB hasn't played a meaningful snap since his rookie year. We have two unknown QB's, and one known QB where we don't like the answer.

By the way, before anyone says hindsight is 20/20, I thought that Rex should have been benched for the St. Louis game.

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You do not talk to me like that! I work too hard to deal with this stuff! I work too hard! I'm an important member of the CSFMB! I drive a Dodge Stratus!

He can be, but 32 is usually the wrong side of the hill for NFL QBs, plus there's not really anything in his track record to suggest that he is capable of being that guy. He's also been injury-prone, which is a red flag. Chances are, he's not the long-term answer.

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Fire Phil Emery