The Bears' assistant coaches spent the noon hour Monday departing from Halas Hall after apparently being allowed to leave for the day while high-level meetings take place.
Coach Lovie Smith is meeting with general manager Jerry Angelo and perhaps other high-ranking club officials, including team president Ted Phillips. The team said to expect a news conference at the facility Tuesday or Wednesday, at which time Smith, Angelo and upper management presumably will be made available.
But with the players having cleared out of the building and the assistants following on their heels, there is no word on the fate of Smith or his staff, including offensive coordinator Ron Turner.
Photo: Bears linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer clears gear out of the locker room Monday. (Chris Walker/Tribune)
Smith conducted a brief meeting with the entire team Monday morning. He talked about building for the future, but did not address his status or the status of any other coaches.
"I had no idea, but it was just like any other meeting,'' linebacker Hunter Hillenmeyer said. "Lovie talked to us like we expect everything to be the same next year, like what our goals need to be for 2010 and what we need to do in the offseason to get there.
"I think that he always does a good job of sort of seeing the big picture and not sort of over-examining every day what his status is, who's going to stay, who's going to go, all that kind of stuff. I know that across the locker room you've heard it from a lot of guys, that we think that he should be here. I'm under the impression that he will be. I certainly hope he will be, and that's the way he talked to us today."
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The Bears need to clean house with the coaching staff. There are two major issues. The ability to game plan week in and week out. And the other is the ability to evaluate talent, and play the players that should be playing! Examples Devin Aromashadu, Cutler wanted him to be playing out of training camp, but no one else did. Ron Turner and Lovie are both idiots for not playing him by week 3. Instead it takes Hester getting injured to see what he can do. How many other players like this should be playing? Another example is Jamar Williams, Plays for injured Briggs and has 16 tackles in Briggs spot. Well Briggs comes back and instead of benching Nick Roach, and having Williams play they sit Williams after he plays out of his mind and deserves a shot! I honestly think the talent is their if we actually had average coaching!! Anyways GO BEARS!!!!!!!!!
Mike Ditka.
...end of story.
I'm not complaining or any thing but did they (NFL) make it a rule you couldn't run around the end over two or three times a game. Because I seen our runing backs run into a very bad offenseive line way too many times. They couldn't open a hole for the offensive backs with a truck. Please bring back Rivera for the defense or maybe just bring back Rivera and let him pick his own coaches. Just saying. Butch
Guys, it's terrible to think that the organization isn't gonna make wholesale changes.... But that's likely. It's been shown to us, in the last three seasons that this staff and management can't game plan or evaluate talent... But $ is the driving force, and 11+ million, is too much to lose... Even at Our(Fans) expense... Do I want them to buck up, YES! Do I think they will, NO! We Support a wretched product, and I for 1Thai, believe that we will be back again to 500. Ball! I don't believe Upper Management will make changes till after next season, with the cba and no early draft pics, who would want the jobs?....
Someone with zero NFL coaching experience could have done a better job than Lovie Smith and most of his coaches (with the possible exception of special teams coach). You can LEARN football; apparently, common sense cannot be learned, if you take a look at Lovie Smith's performance. Year after year, game after game, we saw the same inept handling of talent, the same indefensible musical chairs, the lack of preparedness, no communication on the field or off, the inability to manage the clock. The guy never improved...and I guess the players liked it just fine that they weren't being held accountable for honing their skills, keeping themselves conditioned and LEARNING THE DAMN PLAYBOOK.
Pro Football Weekly rated Lovie as the 22nd best defensive coordinator in the league. They said some of his decisions were "so stupid that it looked like he wanted to get fired". I cannot believe Bear management is so inept as to bring this pathetic excuse back for another horrible year.
I fail to understand the logic in pinning this all on Ron Turner. The number one problem on the Bears is their DEFENSE. This was the worst defense the Bears have ever had. They didn't stop anybody. Remember during the Rivera era when we expected to hold a team to under 10 points? We'd be in the playoffs if we had a defense.
The number two problem is the offensive line. The third problem is inexperienced receivers and 26 interceptions. Turner doesn't throw the ball, last time I checked.
Doug R.
You forgot to add a "Free Nobel peace prize" with each admission, for your 2010 promotions.
Angleo is a trainee and since the Super Bowl game he has failed to improve the talent. He has repeatedly missed on draft choices and free agents.
The other trainee Lovie can not evaluate or develop talent.
It appears that Lovie can not evaluate coaches either. Why should anyone trust Lovie, he is over his head!
Both of these trainees should be fired but that is unlikely. I weil settle for Lovie getting the axe!
There's only 3 realistic possibilities here:
1) Lovie and crew return as they did this year, but Lovie hands over defensive play calling to Marinelli or somebody else. Staff is given ultimatum of making playoffs or else.
- OR -
2) Ron Turner and co. are replaced. Lovie hands over defensive play calling duties to Marinelli.
- OR -
3) Entire staff is replaced.
Unfortunately, I don't see Jerry Angelo getting fired under any circumstance as it would leave the Bears in the position of not having any football knowledge in the organization to handle GM type duties. I don't see Ted Phillips getting re-assigned duties either. Any organization that gives Death Spiral Dave Wannstedt two consecutive 4-12 seasons before pulling the plug isn't going to be very pro-active in these matters.
most likely, Lovie returns, but the offense may get an overhaul. which is too bad because what they really need is a Mike Holmgren type to clean house.
Joe Lovie doesn't have much to do with the offense he says it himself all the time. He may ask Turner to run the ball more, or not have Cutler role out but he doesn't scheme it at all.
lrn2footballnubs on January 4, 2010 2:51 PM
"Greg Blache!" Blache is a solid coach but he does not fit the Tampa 2 the Bears run. Blache runs a two gap scheme, the Bears run a one gap scheme.
My guess is Lovie is back maybe even Turner, but I am 50/50 on Turner. Marinelli will probably be the new DC. If Turner gets fired it will be Martz, as soon as Haugh wrote that piece on how awsome it would be to have Martz I new something was up. Haugh is a Lovie/Angelo mouth piece. For me this is a huge mistake as Martz has been fired from 3 coaching jobs, but is a good friend of Lovies. Not to mention putting Cutler in his 3rd system in 3 years is just bad. I am not a Turner fan, but eventually Lovie and Crew will be fired and yet another new OC comes in. Right now I would just be happy with a good QB coach and O-Line coach.
Dark Horse candidate for Defensive Coordinator:
Greg Blache!
He got axed today from Washington. He left the Bears on good terms I think? And had their DEF on the rise when he bailed to WAS. You gotta admit that this would be standard Bears operating procedure to do something like this, especially if its a one and done season without marked improvement.
You heard it here first!
lrn2footballnubs
DougR @ 1:05
This is one of the best posts ever - I'm still laughing!
The Bears OL and running game were so lousy it turned Cutler
into a "do-it-all" QB, which never works and only results in interceptions and bad performances.
The other recent edition of this is Favre over the past 3 years, where he was almost throwing as many interceptions as TD's. Until this year, where with an OL and a RB, he's up for league MVP.
Cutler is the real deal, he just has no supporting staff.
That said, I don't see what Smith could have done any differently. Obviously with Urlacher out, the defense tanked. Add the lack of time the offense held the ball and it makes the defense look even worse.
Instead of Smith, I'd take a hard look at the players the GM has brought in over the past few years.
I don't know why all the "pomp and circumstance" here but there is not much to be done. The only thing that needs to be done is.
-Fire Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner and the entire...GET THAT THE ENTIRE OFFENSIVE COACHING STAFF.
I just listened to WSCR-670 AM and the Bears reporter talked all kinds of garbage but he won't get to the point about "when offensive coordinator Ron Turner will be fired". I don't give a rat's behind about anything else. I just want Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner out of here because he is the negative cog in this entire organization.
If the Bears won't get rid of Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner than the entire organization from Ted Phillips to Angelo to Smith should all be fired.
It doesn't take a rocket scincetist to realize that firing Offensive Coordinator Ron Turner will solve 90% of the Bears problems.
Terminate the staff from GM down with extreme prejudice. Get the gunboat and Sheen if Virginia can't do it. Salvage what might be left of Cutler and Olsen while we have a chance.
bill cowher
The Bears need accountability for all things football related, period. You can take away the defensive coordinator title from Lovie and bring in someone like Perry Fewell, but there must be accountability from the coaches to the players. Does Lovie deserve to be let go entirely? Well I am not one to say, I have no idea what kind of conversations are being held behind closed doors. What I know is he has got to find a way to get the players WANTING to play every game.
I do not understand why there isn't more pressure on Jerry Angelo. Here is a guy that has not made an impact 1st or 2nd round draft pick since he has been here (Cedric Bensen figured out how to play after he left). Greg Olsen might be an impact player, if he stops short arming catches and routes.
Accountability in an organization starts at the top of the chain, if those people are not holding their people accountable, well then their subordinates will not do the same with the people they are responsible for. What should be done this offseason is a complete overhaul. Jerry Angelo should be removed from his position, Lovie should also be removed, as well as most if not all of his coaches. Ted Phillips should be more involved in football decisions and activities. There should be a long search for a new GM, as well as head coach. Whoever comes here should stay away from a Mike Martz as an offensive coordinator, as he has no idea how to balance an offense with a running game and Chicago needs to have a running game unless someone intends on putting a dome on top of Solider Field.
Potential 2010 promotions:
1. Free Prozac with each season ticket purchase
2. Night shades available for home games
3. Tinted glass - change colors of oppontents to Bears and Bears to opponents
There are rumblings that Lovie will be asked to give up control of the offensive and defensive game plans to new coordinators on both sides of the ball. That would basically put him in the same position as Jim Zorn this year, where he is just riding out his contract.
If we can convince Perry Fewell to take over the defensive coordinator job, and get someone other than Mike Martz to coach the offense, we might have a chance to improve. One more year of Marinelli, Babich, and Lovie on defense will put us at the bottom of the league in total defense, and giving Lovie control over the offensive game plan would spell disaster on that side of the ball as well.
Hopefully, we will get good news tomorrow, which means a staff shakeup. Standing pat would be not only irresponsible, but bordering on negligent from ownership...