Line Backer Analysis

# NAME POS Ht Wt Age Exp College
52 Howard, Bobbie LB 5-10 230 25 2 Notre Dame
49 Cerqua, Marq LB 6-2 223 25 1 Carson-Newman
55 Caldwell, Mike LB 6-2 235 31 10 Middle Tennessee State
90 Knight, Bryan LB 6-2 240 24 R Pittsburgh
54 Urlacher, Brian LB 6-3 251 24 3 New Mexico
53 Holdman, Warrick LB 6-1 230 27 4 Texas A&M

All above information taken directly from www.chicagobears.com

Starters

SLB - Knight, Bryan , well replacing Colvin is no easy task.  Knight however is very similar to Colvin in many ways.  Both undersized DE in college.  Both Moved by the Bears to SAM.  He has good speed and range.  I don't think he will be used the same way as a DE and LB like Colvin was.  They might but I think they will leave Brown at RE instead of taking him out.  So in nickel situations Knight probably will be on the sidelines.  He played a little bit last year.  Good against the run, needs some work in coverage of coarse.  Grade C.

MLB - Urlacher, Brian , Well everyone knows this guy.  Only thing you can say against him is he isn't the best at shedding blocks.  Witch he improved at last year.  Just keeps getting better.  Can't say much bad about this guy.  Grade A.

WLB - Holdman, Warrick , Holdman went down with a knee injury last year.  When healthy Holdman in my mind is better then Colvin.  He is a more complete LB.  Good range, closing speed, good in coverage, and can blitz gaps well.  But his knees are not the best in the world either.  When healthy Holdman is very good.  But kind of worries me with his injury last year.  Grade B.

Second String

SLB - Caldwell, Mike , A free agent signing from last year.  He didn't play well.  He is suppose to be better then what he showed.  Disappointed me.  Not near as fast as I though, not nearly as good in coverage as I thought.  But a decent back up.  Grade C-

MLB - Howard, Bobbie , Well he is small, not suited for MLB.  You would probably see him play SAM or WILL before MLB.  But he is Urlacher's back up.  He is quick, and has decent range.  Alright in coverage not a huge run stuffer. Grade  C-

WLB - Cerqua, Marq , Yah I know absolutely nothing about this guy.  I believe he has been on our practice squad for two years, and last year he got moved up to the roster because of injuries.  Grade F

Thoughts - Our Line backing core is solid.  I wish we had a little bit better back ups.  Knight bothers me a little bit, but I do feel if he struggles Howard, or Caldwell can step in and do a decent job.  I would like to see us sign some depth.  Or draft a pick in the later rounds.  A guy who will probably go un-drafted in Chris Brown I think could be worth a look.  I like his size and speed. 

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