Mel Tucker’s Future Remains Undecided and Other Bullets

Jan 03, 2014

TrestmanEmeryEdit — Pic via Peggy Kusinski on Twitter/@peggykusinski

I’m officially tired of winter, and it’s only January 3rd. That’s what having to shovel snow when the temperature is -10 will do for you, I suppose. Regardless, yesterday’s press conference ended up being a massive one, and while I focused yesterday on the obvious headlines (the new contract for Jay Cutler here, and the new deals for Tim Jennings and Matt Slauson here) Phil Emery and Marc Trestman touched on a wide variety of topics. (A lot of the conference is up at the Bears official website, if you’d like to watch it for yourself.) I’ll try to hit a couple of the more interesting points here.

I wrote the other day (back when I thought that the biggest news we might learn at yesterday’s press conference was Mel Tucker’s future) that if Emery and Trestman were anything other than completely behind Mel Tucker returning, it’d be fair to start to speculate. After reading Marc Trestman’s quotes on Tucker, I’m just not sure what to think. ESPN Chicago’s Jeff Dickerson collects them here, and includes this interesting bit: according to Emery yesterday, Trestman has final decision on assistants. Trestman is very cagey in his remarks on the topic, and he hides behind the notion that they’re still evaluating everyone, he has yet to speak to Tucker, and that he hopes no one jumps to any conclusions based on his non-committal stance at the press conference. On one hand, if he’s confident in Tucker returning but the decision is not 100% until they go through their entire process, it makes sense not to box yourself in with a definitive statement that he’s returning. On the other hand, if a reporter had asked if Aaron Kromer was returning, would the answer have been the same?

In any case, it’s hard to guess which way they’re leaning, especially if they truly aren’t leaning one way or the other. After the Green Bay game, I thought Tucker would be relieved of his duties, but now I sort of think they’ll keep him for another year, with a theoretically healthier and more talented defense. Trestman went out of his way to note that in the first three games of the year, before the injury plague, the defense looked good. Adam Jahns has those quotes for the Sun-Times, and he adds a few of Emery’s thoughts on the topic. The GM added that he was at fault for a lack of depth defensively that proved costly when injuries mounted. I’m not sure that Tucker is the right guy moving forward, but I definitely think that last season was a tough task for any defensive coach. Emery and Trestman are analytical enough to base their decision on factors beyond results, and it will be interesting to see what they decide to do.

If you haven’t seen/heard the press conference, this Jeff Dickerson post gives you a taste as to the long-windedness of Phil Emery. When asked about Shea McClellin’s lack of production, Emery launched into a monologue that compared Shea to other defensive ends who started slowly (including Jason Babin), and blamed himself for not putting Shea in a better position to succeed. He obviously said a lot more than that, but the gist is that he still thinks McClellin can produce in the right situation; that being one in which he’s used as a situational pass-rusher. While I agree that for Shea to be effective he’d have to be used differently, I’m not nearly as confident in his potential as Emery seems to be. While other defensive ends may have started poorly and then found new life, there are plenty of defensive ends who start poorly and never improve.

CBS Chicago’s Adam Hoge has a great summary of the day, including a section on whether the Bears would consider switching to a 3-4 defense. The topic came up, and it wasn’t ruled out by either Trestman or Emery. That’s a switch that would probably benefit McClellin, but I’m not sure who else is a natural fit for the scheme. Of course, considering the likely turnover on defense, if the Bears were going to switch this might be the offseason for it.

Hoge also mentions this Pro Football Talk article, which dives into the Cutler contract numbers. As was reported, the entire guaranteed portion will be paid over the first three seasons; that means the Bears will essentially have a team option every year for the final four years of the contract. The cap hit for next season is likely going to be $22.5 million, as that’s the base salary for 2014 (there was no signing bonus involved.) It falls for the seasons following next year, which makes sense; the Bears have a lot of cap room for 2014, so the bigger number upfront allows for lower amounts in the following years, when cap room might be a lot tighter. I like the deal, for both sides, and I think if Jay plays out the full seven years of the deal, that means things will have gone very, very well for the Bears.

Speaking of contract details, numbers for Tim Jennings began to leak this morning, and finally Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reported the exact figures: 4 years, $22.4 million, $11.815 million guaranteed. He notes that’s a good contract for a 30 year-old cornerback. I guess so, although the average base salary is only a slight bump from the $4.25 base salary he received in 2013; considering his performance, importance to the offseason plan, and the fact that the final two years of the deal look like they’re not guaranteed, I think it’s more than fair for the Bears as well.

Lovie Smith was officially hired as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It will be interesting to see how many free-agent Bears find their way to Tampa. I tend to think that sort of thing is overblown, but one or two veterans wouldn’t surprise me. (Devin Hester was my guess for most likely, due to his contract status and roots in Florida, along with his obvious affection for Smith.) I think Lovie is a solid hire for the Bucs; he’s as far from Greg Schiano as you can possibly get, which is certainly a good thing. The defense is talented, and I don’t doubt that they’ll play hard. As always with Lovie, the offensive side of the ball is the challenge; this time, he’s brought in longtime Cal coach Jeff Tedford as his offensive coordinator. That echoes his decision to hire former Illinois coach Ron Turner as coordinator when he took over in Chicago. Anyway, Lovie had an impressive run for the Bears, and I wish him well. But he’s now the coach for another team, so hopefully people can move on. I’m very happy with the direction the Bears decided to go.

written by

Brett Taylor

Brett Taylor is the Lead Cubs Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @BleacherNation and on LinkedIn here. Brett is also the founder of Bleacher Nation, which opened up shop in 2008 as an independent blog about the Chicago Cubs. Later growing to incorporate coverage of other Chicago sports, Bleacher Nation is now one of the largest regional sports blogs on the web.

more bears news

Chicago Bears

Chicago Bears 2024 NFL Draft Fits: Defensive Linemen

The 2024 NFL Draft begins Thursday. Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles, Assistant GM Ian Cunningham, Head Coach Matt Eberflus, and others will put their heads together to come up with a winning plan for the team’s four picks (Nos....

Luis C. Medina

Apr 24, 2024

Chicago Bears

And Now Penei Sewell Has Signed a MASSIVE Extension With The Lions

Detroit Lions general manager Brad Holmes is hard at work today! It's fitting that just a day before the 2024 NFL Draft kicks off in Detroit, the Lions have locked up two franchise, homegrown cornerstones just hours apart. This morning,...

Matt Rooney

Apr 24, 2024

Chicago Bears

Take a Look at the New Chicago Bears Stadium Renderings

The Chicago Bears unveiled plans for their downtown lakefront stadium proposal on Wednesday. And as you might expect, it is very kind on the eyes: https://twitter.com/ChicagoBears/status/1783185834490888461 The Bears even gave the project a code name — The Burnham Park Project: The...

Luis C. Medina

Apr 24, 2024

Chicago Bears

Amon-Ra St. Brown Signs MASSIVE Extention With Lions

We have a new highest-paid wide receiver in the NFL! According to a report from NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport, the Lions have made Amon-Ra St. Brown the richest wideout in the NFL with a four-year, $120 million contract extension...

Matt Rooney

Apr 24, 2024

Joe alt notre dame bears offensive line target NFL Draft

Chicago Bears

We’re just over 24 hours from the NFL Draft, and all I can say is finally. Finally, we’re done with the speculation. I’ll never forget the Bears Twitter Civil War of 2024 centered around the Caleb Williams vs. Justin Fields...

Patrick K. Flowers

Apr 24, 2024

Picks

Brewers vs. Pirates Probable Starting Pitchers – April 25

The Milwaukee Brewers (15-8) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (13-12) square off in Pittsburgh on Thursday. First pitch is at 12:35 PM ET at PNC Park.The Brewers will call on Freddy Peralta (2-0) against the Pirates and Mitch Keller (2-2).Brewers vs....

The desert heat is rising in Las Vegas, and so are the expectations for the Raiders. The 2024 NFL Draft is rapidly approaching, and the Silver and Black hold the 13th overall pick. Will they prioritize shoring up the offensive...

Brian Twining

Apr 24, 2024

How to Watch

Twins vs. White Sox: Free Live Stream, TV Channel, How to Watch

The Minnesota Twins (10-13), led by Ryan Jeffers and aiming for a series sweep, host Gavin Sheets and the Chicago White Sox (3-21) at 1:10 PM ET on Thursday.See how to watch the Minnesota-Chicago matchup below.When is Twins vs. White...

Data Skrive

Apr 24, 2024

How to Watch

Astros vs. Cubs: Free Live Stream, TV Channel, How to Watch

On Thursday, trying to prevent a series sweep, Justin Verlander takes the mound for the Houston Astros (7-18) against Javier Assad and the Chicago Cubs (15-9), with first pitch scheduled for 2:20 PM ET.Find out how to watch the Houston-Chicago...

Data Skrive

Apr 24, 2024

How to Watch

Royals vs. Blue Jays: Free Live Stream, TV Channel, How to Watch

The Kansas City Royals (15-10), led by Salvador Perez, host Daulton Varsho and the Toronto Blue Jays (13-12) on Thursday at 2:10 PM ET.The article below will provide you with everything you need to watch Kansas City play Toronto.When is...

Data Skrive

Apr 24, 2024

Mel Tucker’s Future Remains Undecided and Other Bullets

Read More

more bears news

Latest News

more bears news

Most Popular

Most Popular

Latest News

Most Popular

Most Popular