| Concentrating on keeping their own in the early
stages of free agency, the Bears look like they could be the best team the new NFC North
has to offer in 2002. With more salary-cap room at their disposal than most teams in the
league, the Bears wasted no time re-signing two key contributors to their stunning
rags-to-riches campaign this past season — QB Jim Miller and C Olin Kreutz.
Miller, who signed a five-year, $12 million deal with a $2 million signing bonus, could
conceivably earn another $20 million in incentives. Bears GM Jerry Angelo kept insisting
that the re-signing of Miller was one of his top priorities, despite continued rumors that
the Bears were more than a little interested in the Patriots’ Drew Bledsoe, the
league’s most expensive backup QB by a wide margin.
While Bledsoe has more pure talent than Miller to go with the marquee status he earned
before suffering a ruptured blood vessel in his lungs in Week Two of last season — in
effect clearing the path to potential stardom for Tom Brady — Miller doesn’t do
anything special.
Except win — 11 of the 13 regular-season games he started last season, to be
exact.
There are plenty of quarterbacks around the league with better tools. But few with
Miller’s leadership skills. To a man, the Bears' players felt more confident with
Miller under center, and it was the right move for Angelo to reward that confidence.
As far as Kreutz is concerned, the Bears couldn’t feel more fortunate that the
young Pro Bowl center opted to stay put in Chicago, despite an offer from the Dolphins
that would have paid him an extra $3 million.
"I think it’s actually really refreshing," said Kreutz’s
Chicago-based agent, Mark Bartelstein. "You usually hear stories of players not
wanting to leave the last dollar on the table."
But Kreutz decided the almighty dollar couldn’t hold a candle to the terrific
chemistry that has developed among the Bears' players, many of whom went out of their way
late last week to coax him into staying in the Windy City.
It should be noted that while Kreutz did settle for less from the Bears, his $7 million
signing bonus was still the largest ever given to an NFL center. But this is a kid
who’s worth every penny, especially since, as is the case with Miller, Kreutz has
such rare leadership abilities.
With Miller and Kreutz signed, sealed and delivered, the Bears suddenly look like the
NFC North’s most stable team.
While the Bears are solidifying their character, the Packers are busy signing Terry
Glenn, one of the NFL’s most prominent head cases the last few seasons.
The Lions, by far the slowest team in the league last year, greatly overpaid for the
services of fleet-footed WR Az-Zahir Hakim, who was a dynamite No. 3 pass catcher for the
Rams but a very unproven commodity as a starter.
The Vikings, who had all kinds of problems on defense last season, have lost two of
their best defenders in free agency — S Robert Griffith (to Cleveland) and LB Kailee
Wong (to Houston). Adding DE Kenny Mixon from Miami should help — but not a lot.
And then there are the Bears, looking to go nowhere but up after an amazing 2001
season.
The only fly in the ointment — and it could be one helluva fly — is the fact
they will be playing 16 road games next season.
But that’s a subject for a later column. |
