The Giants may be taking a roundhouse kick from the New York media (and deservedly so) but they can’t complain when they look at their depth chart at defensive end.  If there’s another team in the league, wait, forget it.  There simply isn’t another team in the league with three guys like Tuck, Umenyiori and Pierre-Paul on the edges.

That is why the Bears may consider their second preseason game more important than either their third or fourth – both of those coming against subpar defensive opponents in Tennessee and Cleveland.  The Bears understand their most glaring weakness is along the offensive line and also understand their most important task is developing that line into a cohesive unit by the time John Abraham & Friends arrive at Soldier Field on the eleventh of September.

They’ll be presented with no better opportunity than Monday night.  They’re back in the New Meadowlands, the Air Conditioner in the Swamp, where it all seemed to fall apart for the line a year ago.  They’re back in the stadium that allowed Bears fans their first look at the great Todd Collins in 2010.  They’ll also be on Monday Night Football, and based on the almost-ridiculous preseason ratings thus far, in front of a huge audience.  If the line falters triumphantly early, the criticism from the local media will spread to the national media quicker than an STD spread among the original Broadway cast of Hair.  If the edge blockers neutralize the Giants edge attack, hope and optimism will spring eternal from the murky depths of Mike Tice’s post-practice bath water.

It is only preseason, of course.  Any errors made Monday night can surely be rectified in the three weeks until the real games start.  But Monday night can and should serve as the litmus test.  Who’s ready?  Who’s not?  Who needs help?  Who’s helpless?  If Tice is having trouble figuring that out in practice, he’ll get proper assistance from Tuck, Umenyiora and Pierre-Paul.

I sat down to watch the Bears first preseason game expecting to be bored out of my mind.  Surprisingly, I was not.  I actually found the game quite entertaining and also very, very interesting.  Here are my rapid fire thoughts, in order of importance.

• Even elite, top of the first round left tackles struggle their first year at the position.  J’Marcus Webb clearly has the ability to succeed there but I have a feeling 2011 will be up-and-down.  I’d imagine the Bears will slide protection schemes in his direction to minimize damage.
• Roberto Garza’s center exchanges were solid and he, like the rest of the line, had a great push in the run game.  His pass protection?  Shaky.
• I was surprised to see the defense play with such speed and intensity this early in the preseason.  Three distinct standouts: Henry Melton, Major Wright, Tim Jennings.
• Amobi Okoye will have a terrific chance to make this roster, especially with Marcus Harrison looking like he spent the entirety of the lockout eating corned beef hash directly out of the can.
• Vernon Gholston played like Vernon Gholston but I was surprised to see the attention Rod Marinelli was giving him on the sideline.
• I may have overstated the importance of the Bears re-signing Corey Graham.  He looked in no way capable of playing corner for this team.
• Jay Cutler and Caleb Hanie give the Bears their best quarterback tandem since McMahon/Fuller.  It’s clear from just what the cameras captured that Jay Cutler is taking a more active role in leading this team.  (And Mel Kiper Jr. deserves credit for predicting Hanie would be a very successful pro.)
• Who the hell is Eddie Williams and can he go away now?
• Same for Josh Davis.  Even on a team with a subpar offensive line, #76 took the cake.
• Marion Barber and Kahlil Bell both looked like elite downhill runners.  I don’t know that the Bears will consider carrying four backs but I’d hate to see Bell drop to the practice squad and end up in the Lions or Packers backfield.  Chester Taylor’s days may truly be numbered.
• I liked what I saw from Brian Iwuh.
• I did not like what I saw from Chris Conte. He’s small and Steltz-like.
• Kris Adams is smallish but might be a player worth developing at wide receiver.  As most eyes were on Dane Sanzenbacher, it was Adams who stole the spotlight in the second half.
• Nathan Enderle displayed touch and poise throughout the second half.  He’s very raw but the tools are there.
• Here’s something I read in between the lines: I think the Bears are going to combat some protection woes with a dynamic screen game in 2011.  It was the most practiced play on the field Saturday night.

I hate the preseason, especially for the Chicago Bears.  Because it means we’ll have to endure a month of hearing how bad the defense is going to be before they have yet another terrific season.

Who to watch tonight?

1. Dane Sanzenbacher.  Can he make an impact while catching passes from second and third-string QBs?

2. Chris Conte.  Will he cement his role as the third safety on the roster?

3. Vernon Gholston and Amobi Okoye.  Will either of these former first-round retreads be able to work their way into the d-line rotation?

4. Chester Taylor.  Does he need a good preseason to keep Marion Barber from thieving away all his touches?

5. The Offensive Line.  All of em.

Here is the report on last night’s preseason openers from PFT:

With the kickoff point moving from the 30 back to the 35, the NFL hopes to reduce injuries during kickoff returns by reducing the raw number of kickoff returns.

And while it’s too early to make a reliable comparison to pre-2011 stats, the ball seems to be flying deep into the end zone, and beyond.

In the Ravens-Eagles game, five kickoffs resulted in touchbacks.  In the Jaguars-Pats game, there were two touchbacks (even though 59 points were scored).  The Broncos-Cowboys game has featured five touchbacks as of this posting.  In Seahawks-Chargers, there has been two touchbacks as of this posting.

But perhaps the most glaring example of the new rule came on the first play of the Cardinals-Raiders game, when kicker Sebastian Janikowski boomed the ball out of the end zone — and possibly through the uprights.

Over time, the rule undoubtedly will result in more touchbacks.  In turn, that will result in fewer points.  And so this rule will have been one of the few changes over the years that will, over time, reduce scoring.

I continue to maintain that this rule change will have a more drastic impact on the Chicago Bears than any other franchise in the sport.  If kickers are able to kick the ball square out of the end zone, it will eliminate the most exciting weapon the Bears possess: Devin Hester.

Outside of conditions (field doesn’t work, lights don’t work) prohibiting the Bears from actually practicing in a normal way, this has been a relatively unexciting training camp from a roster perspective.

KNOX NOT READY IN 2010?

Here is the quote from Mike Martz regarding Johnny Knox not being on the field as a starter right now:

“He just has to get better. He has to play better,” Martz told the Tribune on Wednesday. “That’s all. It’s just like when Johnny came in, Earl (Bennett) was the starter. We pushed Earl aside for Johnny because of the speed. We kind of gave that job to Johnny. That wasn’t really earned. And once you get in this league, you should earn.

“He just was not ready, not because he can’t do it or he’s not talented. The preparation, the consistency that’s required … he does a lot of good things, but they have to be good all the time. That’s what Roy is.

It’s very interesting to hear the Bears tell us they were fielding a player at the starting x receiver position a year ago who they did not feel had earned the right to be a starting receiver.  Wasn’t this what the media wrote and fans argued and was constantly bashed by the coaching staff and front office?  So they’re admitting to lying about “liking their wide receivers”?

WATCH SANZENBACHER, CONTE SATURDAY NIGHT

Dane Sanzenbacher and Chris Conte are the focal points of this camp wrap-up in the Sun-Times and they’ll be the focal points for coaches and fans Saturday night.  Sanzenbacher finds himself behind Roy, Devin, Knox, Earl and Hurd at WR but a solid preseason might enable him to leap into a consistent role in the slot.  Safety remains a position where the Bears have zero depth and Conte may be called upon for real action if injuries attack Major Wright or Chris Harris.  Conte needs solid showings this summer, staring against Buffalo Saturday night.

TICE SETS HIS O-LINE…REALLY?

Apparently Roberto Garza’s leadership and performance at the center position, couple with Lance Louis taking strides at right guard, has caused Mike Tice to anoint Webb-Williams-Garza-Louis-Carimi as his starting offensive line.  That is, of course, unless they falter.  Another word for falter?  Stink.  The line has performed well early in camp, especially in the run department, but I don’t believe the front office brought Chris Spencer in here to ride the pine and I also don’t believe in a magical turnaround for Chris Williams.  I see one more change coming.

A FINAL NOTE ON HAYDEN, TATUPU

If you follow DaBearsBlog on Twitter (@dabearsblog) you’d know I’m quite obsessed on a moment-to-moment basis with the availability of both Kelvin Hayden and Lofa Tatupu.  Hayden would immediately become the starter opposite Peanut and allow the Bears to use Bowman, Jennings for depth at the corner position.  He has half a career’s worth experience playing in the exact same system.  Tatupu would not just battle and beat Nick Roach for the starting linebacker spot but also provide the Bears with their first true backup to Brian Urlacher since Urlacher lit the city ablaze with his raw skills a decade ago.  This means do not even seem interesting to me.  They seem obvious.  And a championship club makes them.

Congrats to the one of the greats.

TURF WOE

I usually don’t like Steve Rosenbloom’s useless negativity blog but today he’s nailed the Park District for their failure water the field:

Hey, people, go easy on the Chicago Park District. It’s not easy to grow decent grass in the middle of a Chicago wint… oh, wait.  I believe this is the earliest point in a football season that the Park District has ever embarrassed itself.

So they really just didn’t water the grass?  Is it possible the Park District is that incompetent?

 KNOX ON KICKOFFS?

It looks like I’ll have my opportunities to complain once again as Johnny Knox is being targeted as a return man on kickoffs.  I maintain that anytime a Bear not named Devin Hester touches the football on a return it is a gross error in the coaching department.  Hester is the greatest return man in the history of the sport and the most exciting player currently in the game.  Let him return the damn ball.

NFL TO TEST FOR HGH…

…and Congress love it!  You know what?  I don’t.  I don’t bemoan anything football players put into their bodies to survive the grueling physical toll of an NFL season.  If they have to bite the heads off live seals in order to keep their spinal cords from shattering the year after they retire so be it.

With news now officially circulating that the NFLPA will approve the new CBA, it appears all these hundreds upon hundreds of new team signings will finally be able to practice with their new teams.  So what is worth following in Bourbonnais as the Bears start training camp for real.

#1 ‘YOUR BOY’ ROY WILLIAMS

Based on Mike Martz predicting 70-80 catches and a million yards for Roy, we can all assume he’ll be lined up as the top receiver on the phantom depth chart.  Monitoring his chemistry with Cutler and his impact on Hester, Knox and Bennett will be keeping the Twitter accounts of Biggs, Jensen and the ESPN Chicago boys turned up to eleven.

#2 THE OFFENSIVE LINE: WHO IS WHERE AND WHEN

Assuming Chris Spencer steps into the middle of the line, sliding Garza back to right guard, the Bears will certainly spend the next few days experimenting with different combinations across the line.  (My bet is they’ll settle in Webb at LT and Carimi at RT in short order.)  I will not be surprised, however, if a player like Lance Louis bounces Chris Williams out of a job.

#3 WHO LINES UP OPPOSITE PEANUT?

Bowman?  Jennings?  Graham?  The Bears do not have an established starter to line up opposite Charles Tillman.  They’ll need one soon.  (Side note: How much are we going to all miss Peanut when he decides to move on?  He’s quickly becoming an all-time Bear.)

#4 THE RECLAMATION PROJECTS

Is there any chance Vernon Gholston or Amobi Okoye can fulfill the promise of their lofty draft-day expectations?  Can Rod Marinelli insert them into the rotation regularly and being to pull from them what the Bears seem to have begun pulling from Henry Melton and Corey Wootton?

It’s going to be a fun camp.

CBS CHICAGO BLOGGER AWARDS

CBS Chicago is giving out awards for local bloggers and it’d be fun to see if we can crush the competition and get DaBearsBlog to the top of the heap.  It would also be a nice promotional tool for us and the network.  If you like it here and feel like voting, click this link.

STILL AVAILABLE ON THE FREE AGENT MARKET?

There are still several game-changing type players on the market.  The most promising addition looks to be the reported mutual interest between former Seahawks linebacker Lofa Tatupu and the Bears.  Tatupu would step directly into the starting lineup, replacing Pisa Tinoisamoa.  (Pisa MAY and SHOULD re-sign with the Bears.)  A linebacking corps of Urlacher, Briggs, Roach, Tatupu, Pisa would be as talented and deep as the Bears have had in years.

Also available: WRS Braylon Edwards and Malcolm Floyd are out there but not logical targets for the Bears.  CB Kelvin Hayden, who ripped the soul from Chicago in the Super Bowl, should be a target.  You can never have too many corners in this system.

EARLY REPORTS FROM CAMP VIA TWITTER

So if you’re not on Twitter, here’s how it works.  During camp practices, every single reporter covering the Chicago Bears Tweets every single play.  Based on all these Tweets (and they can get very obnoxious) there are three guys making an early “surprise” impact: Lance Louis, Major Wright and Dane Sanzenbacher.  The latter two mean little but many analysts have predicted Lance Louis will find his way into this starting lineup and I have predicted he’ll end up being a better options at LG than Chris Williams.