Chicago Bears’ Season-End Review, Part X: The Specialists
Published by Bryan Dietzler on March 11, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
The Bears have prided themselves in having good special teams play and it’s been an emphasis on the team ever since head coach Lovie Smith came to the Bears.
Under the direction of special teams coordinator Dave Toub, this unit has had some great moments and has helped lead the team to several wins.
You will hear Toub talk about the players that help make the Bears special teams truly special.
Some of those players include kick and punt return specialist Devin Hester, kicker Robbie Gould and special teams gunner Corey Graham.
These guys are just three players in a long line of special teams standouts that the Bears have produced over the past few years.
Although it’s not a big unit and we won’t go over everyone that played on special teams for the Bears last season (because there are so many) we will touch on some of the more significant players on the unit, take a look back at their statistics for the 2010 season, how things look for them this offseason and where they stand for the 2011 season.
Robbie Gould-K
Gould continues to be one of the most reliable kickers in the NFL and had another good season in 2010.
He played in all 16 games last season and made 25 out of 30 field goals for a percentage of 83.3.
His longest field goal was 54 yards. He did have one blocked. He made all of his extra point attempts (35) and averaged 64.5 yards on his kickoffs with 16 touchbacks on 77 kickoffs.
There is no doubt that Gould is one of the best kickers and knows how to kick in one of the toughest places to kick in the NFL, Soldier Field.
He’s accurate and kicks it off far, so there is no reason to think that the Bears will replace him.
He’s a lock to be on the roster in 2010.
Devin Hester-PR
After three years of going without a return for a touchdown, Hester finally lit things up and helped get the Bears special teams back to the way it played (and the impact that it made) in 2006.
All together, Hester returned 12 kicks for an average of 35.6 yards with a long of 79 and no touchdowns. He also returned 33 punts for an average of 17.1 yards per return with a long of 89 and three touchdowns.
The biggest question is whether or not the Bears are going to let Hester concentrate on special teams more next year.
They reduced his role on offense somewhat and allowed him to concentrate on special teams so we can see what happened when they did that. It made him better on special teams and made the Bears better as well.
The Bears won’t be letting Hester go anywhere this offseason and will make him an important part of their roster in 2011. He should see more time on special teams and should be able to produce and help the team there as a result.
Patrick Mannelly-LS
Mannelly remains a rock as the Bears long snapper and is yet another reason why the Bears have success on special teams.
He played in all 16 games for the Bears this season and didn’t have any errors or miscues.
The biggest question with Mannelly is just how long he’s going to be around before he retires.
It appears as if he may play a couple more seasons, but after that, it’s likely that he will retire.
Chicago would be left with a hole to fill, so it’s time that they started looking for some help at that position, but for now Mannelly is on the roster and should be there at least a couple more seasons.
Brad Maynard-P
There is something going on with the Bears and Maynard.
Not only did they bring in another punter to add some competition, but there is talk that they are interested in a collegiate punter.
Is this an indication that Maynard may have seen his last days as a Bear?
In 2010, Maynard played in all 16 games last season and had 83 punts averaging 40.1 yards per punt with a net average of 35.2.
His longest punt was 56 yards and he had 14 go out of bounds, 15 downed and 24 inside the 20 along with five that were touchbacks.
He didn’t have any punts blocked.
With the activity surrounding what the Bears have been doing at the position during the offseason, it’s likely that Maynard may not be in a Bears uniform.
If the Bears do bring in a second punter, it’s likely that Maynard could be off the team and most likely done with his career.
Consider his status for the 2011 season up in the air.
Richmond McGee-P
McGee was brought in to give Maynard some competition and it’s not out of the question to think that he may end up replacing Maynard if the Bears think that Maynard is on his “last legs.”
McGee does have a strong leg but he doesn’t have the experience that Maynard has, but the Bears may feel that it’s worth having him there instead of Maynard.
Corey Graham-CB
The Bears have this habit of producing some strong talent at the gunner position and have done it again with Graham.
Graham was the best coverage specialist on the team last year and made some critical stops on special teams.
On special teams, Graham had a total of 23 tackles with 22 solo and one assisted, which is excellent for a special teams player.
Graham doesn’t have a contract right now but the Bears have offered him one and it’s yet to be determined if he will sign it or not.
He has stated that he wants to remain in Chicago, and it’s likely that he will sign with Chicago and at least be there for one more season.
Look for Graham to remain with the Bears in 2011 and be just as much or more productive this year as he was last season.
While the Bears return units were strong last season, their coverage units did have some problems from time to time and the punt coverage units even allowed a return for touchdown, (Cowboys wide receiver Dez Bryant) which was unheard of in the previous seasons.
They have to get better covering kicks because they could have lost a game or two had their defense not stopped a couple teams after they had long returns.
Toub will continue to put together a solid special teams unit again next year and the Bears will find success there once again.
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