Bears selected Unga, Supplemental Draft Options

[nfoligno]

More than FB, where I see Unga potentially adding the most is with short yardage running, which we have struggled with in the past. Sure, part of that is due to an OL that didn't get push, but part of that was also on Forte. Everyone has said that Forte runs too upright to consistently pickup that short yardage situation. If Unga can come in and pickup that yard or two on 3rd and 1 or 3rd and 2, he could prove very usefull.

I see a bit more top end speed than a 4.65 forty would indicate. He has good vision and good balance, enough to make one cut and go. I could see him as a RB for us but IMO he's more of a FB. In the FB role I really like him, as long as he can hit people. I think grabbing him with a 7th RD pick was a good move but his presence puts pressure not only on Wolfe and Bell but also on the TEs and FBs. I say TEs because awhile back there was a lot of talk about keeping 4 TEs with no FB and Manu filling in as our HB/FB. If Unga fills the FB role then it could mean we lose Dez Clark or Davis. Overall it's good we have added a player who is unique on the roster in his size/ability and our coaches have a lot of ways to get the best players on the roster and on the field.

I tend to think Wolfe has an advantage on the competition because of his special teams play but that all has to play out too. Other guys like Josh Moore, Iglesias, etc. fighting for playing time he might end up expendable there too. Do we keep Unga as RB or FB? Or practice squad? Let the competition begin!

[nfoligno]

Your right that it is far from a lock he makes the team. At the same time, I think there is reason to believe he makes the team. We showed a great amount on interest in him leading up to the Supp draft, far more than you usually see with a typical draft 7th round pick. Further, that we made the move at all may indicate a question about the players currently on the roster.

As I have said elsewhere, I am not sure if he is a RB or FB, but what I think he may have been drafted for was the short yardage role, which Forte has struggled with at times due to his upright running style.

Why is it assumed Unga makes the team??? I personally assume that anybody we draft in the 7th round is headed for the practice squad.

Not to mention a 7th round RB who is built and runs like a fullback. The blocking requires a great deal of physical & mental maturation . . . he'll need to develop.

Who was the last 7th round gem we drafted? I did like Trumaine McBride . . .

If Wolfe doesn't make the team it's not because of Unga.

[jason]

Going to start where you ended. As we made the choice to take him, would you not agree Martz was part of that decision? If that is the case, (a) I question why you say he would not even see much playing time and ( if we are looking to add another RB, might that not question how much Martz was/is planning to use Wolfe in anyway? If Martz is/was not planning to use Wolfe much, I am not sure I see the negative adding a RB he may in fact use.

I view this as a Lovie decision, not a Martz decision. The addition of a RB is not necessary in a Martz offense because we have two RBs that can get short yardage, and we will have a ton of quick pass plays to get short yardage. If Martz is running the offense, the FB will not see much playing time. That is a FACT.

Back to Wolfe specific,

He is not built like Sproles. Just because they have the similar height/weight does not mean they are the same. Several of our coaches have specifically said he is NOT built like Sproles. Very different lower body structure.

With that said, is it absolute Wolfe can't be a high level of workload. No, it isn't absolute, but come on. Sure, you can go through and pick out a name or two to show it is possible, but you are talking about the exceptions, not the rule. Sure, Wolfe could be another exception, but they are very rare and I just don't understand why you "expect" him to be the exception.

The thing I've mentioned NUMEROUS times on this board is that WE JUST DON'T KNOW. I'd say if he made it this far, dominated in high school despite being told he was too small, dominated in college despite being told he was too small, then MAYBE, he might be another exception. They are rare, but he's in the NFL. Period. But until he's given the chance, we'll never know.

Let me ask you this. As it stands now, when does Wolfe play? Lets assume for just a moment that we have the Forte we saw his rookie year, and Taylor basically lives up to expectation. When do you play Wolfe in favor of one of these two? Both are excellent receiving RBs, and far superior blockers to Wolfe, and thus I would not pull them for Wolfe on 3rd downs. Frankly, I can't really think of any down I would want to pull either in favor of Wolfe. Sure, Wolfe may have a bit more speed, but he isn't an all-purpose back, and thus he would either tip the play or be a liability.

In Unga, we have added a power runner, which is frankly something we lacked. Forte runs too upright, even as a rookie when he ran well, to be considered a power guy, and while Taylor is an upgrade in that regard, he is not a power runner either. So often we have struggled to pickup those tough yards, and we may now have a runner capable of doing this.

So in Unga, I see a player who adds something different to what we currently have, while with Wolfe, I see little that he brings to the table, with the exception of special teams, which is significant, but may not be enough.

When does Wolfe run? In the very rare downs that Unga would spell Forte and Taylor. To be quite honest, I don't see the reason for a third back with such a great 1-2 punch. But if there is a third, Wolfe adds more than Unga, IMHO. And this garbage about an all-purpose back...can it stop please. Aside from the run up the gut against the #1 rushing defense in the NFL, a play that didn't work with any RB behind the Bears OL against ANY defense the last couple years, he's done well when given the shot. I can't recall the game, but I remember Wolfe picking up the blitz fairly well a few times. The one that gets blown out of proportion, however, was when someone hurdled him in a freakish display of athleticism. He's less a liability than common misconception would have us believe.

With Unga in, the Bears would be just as predictable as if Wolfe were in there. Guess what the play is! FB DIVE. Oh no, not this shit again. If you think Unga adds a more unique aspect to the offense then Wolfe, then I don't think you remember Wolfe in the open field. Whenever uniqueness Unga adds, Wolfe adds just as much. In my opinion, more. ESPECIALLY in a Martz offense where the field is spread so much.

[defiantgiant]

I like the pick. Worst-case scenario, he goes to the practice squad and we see if we have anything. Best-case scenario, I think he can be sort of a poor man's TJ Duckett and make the roster as a goal-line and short-yardage back. That hinges, of course, on whether he can play special teams. As much as I think Garrett Wolfe will never be a successful NFL running back, he is a very good special teams player, and Unga's going to have to prove that he's at least as valuable there.

If he can play the Duckett role and do it effectively, it could really make a big difference for the Bears' offense, especially Cutler. I think a big part of the reason that Cutler had so many red-zone picks last season (apart from the decision-making factor, which is on him) was that defenses knew we couldn't punch it in on the ground. So Cutler would drive down to the 10 or the 5, and then he'd be dealing with a short field and a defense that knew the pass was coming. With (hopefully) better blocking from the o-line under Tice and a potential short-yardage back in Unga, the Bears might be able to trade some of those red-zone turnovers for touchdowns.

[jason]

I like the pick. Worst-case scenario, he goes to the practice squad and we see if we have anything. Best-case scenario, I think he can be sort of a poor man's TJ Duckett and make the roster as a goal-line and short-yardage back. That hinges, of course, on whether he can play special teams. As much as I think Garrett Wolfe will never be a successful NFL running back, he is a very good special teams player, and Unga's going to have to prove that he's at least as valuable there.

If he can play the Duckett role and do it effectively, it could really make a big difference for the Bears' offense, especially Cutler. I think a big part of the reason that Cutler had so many red-zone picks last season (apart from the decision-making factor, which is on him) was that defenses knew we couldn't punch it in on the ground. So Cutler would drive down to the 10 or the 5, and then he'd be dealing with a short field and a defense that knew the pass was coming. With (hopefully) better blocking from the o-line under Tice and a potential short-yardage back in Unga, the Bears might be able to trade some of those red-zone turnovers for touchdowns.

I hope you're right. But what I see is a bigger, slower RB behind an OL that is not good at blocking, and worse at drive blocking. All the Unga pick does in a play like that is make the collision sound better as he's continually stuffed for no gain.

[nfoligno]

We simply disagree.

I say he adds more because, while Wolfe has skill sets, they overlap too much with what we already have.

You say Wolfe is a better blocker than I give credit, but better than Forte/Taylor? Is he a better receiver? He can run outside, but I am not sure he can even due that better? I simply struggle to find a time when I would rather him in there over Forte/Taylor.

On the other hand, I think Unga does have a chance to add something. You say we can already pickup short yardage with what we have, but I am not sure I agree. One of the top knocks on Forte, even when he was running strong his first year, was his upright running style that hinders his ability to convert 3rd and short. Yes, the OL is a big factor, but so too is the RB we use.

I know you think it is all about the OL, but the RB is a part of this too. Having a power RB may not have a big payoff, but even if the OL doesn't open up big holes, often a power back can push through the tackle enough for a short gain.

If Benson, or another power back, was our top runner, I would love to have Wolfe, but with both our 1 and 2 backs being quicker backs, I like the idea of a power back in the fold.

I hope you're right. But what I see is a bigger, slower RB behind an OL that is not good at blocking, and worse at drive blocking. All the Unga pick does in a play like that is make the collision sound better as he's continually stuffed for no gain.

[jason]

We simply disagree.

I say he adds more because, while Wolfe has skill sets, they overlap too much with what we already have.

You say Wolfe is a better blocker than I give credit, but better than Forte/Taylor? Is he a better receiver? He can run outside, but I am not sure he can even due that better? I simply struggle to find a time when I would rather him in there over Forte/Taylor.

On the other hand, I think Unga does have a chance to add something. You say we can already pickup short yardage with what we have, but I am not sure I agree. One of the top knocks on Forte, even when he was running strong his first year, was his upright running style that hinders his ability to convert 3rd and short. Yes, the OL is a big factor, but so too is the RB we use.

I know you think it is all about the OL, but the RB is a part of this too. Having a power RB may not have a big payoff, but even if the OL doesn't open up big holes, often a power back can push through the tackle enough for a short gain.

If Benson, or another power back, was our top runner, I would love to have Wolfe, but with both our 1 and 2 backs being quicker backs, I like the idea of a power back in the fold.

What I don't get is why you think Unga has some sort of unique skill set that doesn't overlap with Forte or Taylor, when the dude didn't even get drafted. Hell, if his skill set was that good, that unique, he more than likely would have been drafted...LIKE WOLFE.

Also, it's not all about the OL...I don't believe that. But it sure as hell has a lot to do with it. And as long as the Bears' OL sucks, the RBs will not produce to their capacity.

[GrizzlyBear]

I hope you're right. But what I see is a bigger, slower RB behind an OL that is not good at blocking, and worse at drive blocking. All the Unga pick does in a play like that is make the collision sound better as he's continually stuffed for no gain.

Drive Blocking is why Tice was brought in. Its probably going to be the biggest improvement in camp this year. The line play on both sides of the ball. But more noticable from O line. If things pan out like I hope you will see holes big enough to drive a truck through.

[Mongo3451]

Drive Blocking is why Tice was brought in. Its probably going to be the biggest improvement in camp this year. The line play on both sides of the ball. But more noticable from O line. If things pan out like I hope you will see holes big enough to drive a truck through.

My issue with that optimism is that Omiyale is the only drive blocking type of starter we have on the OL. Garza, Kruetz and Beekam are all undersized for the dfirve blocking task. My only optimism is that Hiestand is NOT the OL coach and that Williams and Omiyale will move toward their upside.

[flea]

another viewpoint

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bears

Q: Jeff, I was thinking about the Bears taking Harvey Unga in the NFL supplemental draft, and how that changes the dynamic in the backfield. I'm stuck on this: who is the better running back, Garrett Wolfe or Kahlil Bell? I haven't seen much from Wolfe since he was drafted, and Bell only joined the Bears last year. Help. -- Christoper, Kansas

A: This is an interesting debate because the Bears probably won't be able to keep both Wolfe and Bell on the active roster. After Wolfe was placed on injured reserve midway though last season, Bell did a decent job, rushing 40 times for 220 yards, including a 72-yard run on his first NFL carry. Bell is also roughly four inches taller and 25 pounds heavier than Wolfe, and posses a more traditional frame for an NFL running back. Taking that all into account, I still believe Wolfe is a better all-around player, and therefore more deserving of a roster spot between the two. Facts are facts -- Wolfe hasn't done much on offense since being taken in the third round in 2007. We know Wolfe isn't a between-the-tackles runner, but in the right offense, he could be a dangerous option on third down. At least that's the hope. But with Matt Forte and Chester Taylor firmly entrenched at the top of the Bears' depth chart, Wolfe doesn't get the nod over Bell just because of his potential on third down. Wolfe is on my 53-man roster, because despite being 5-foot-7, he's surprisingly tough, recording 30 special teams tackles in his last 21 games. I tend to prefer players who value substance over style. Wolfe has the reputation in the locker room as somebody who just loves to play football, and who values winning over individual accomplishment. Maybe that doesn't matter to some people, but I like Wolfe having a spot on the Bears if possible. Now, if Unga blows us away in training camp, Wolfe may be in trouble. He's certainly not guaranteed a roster spot, but I think it would be a mistake to write him off prematurely.

[flea]

What I don't get is why you think Unga has some sort of unique skill set that doesn't overlap with Forte or Taylor, when the dude didn't even get drafted. Hell, if his skill set was that good, that unique, he more than likely would have been drafted...LIKE WOLFE.

Also, it's not all about the OL...I don't believe that. But it sure as hell has a lot to do with it. And as long as the Bears' OL sucks, the RBs will not produce to their capacity.

I may be wrong Jason but wasn't he kicked off BYU after the draft?

[MadLithuanian]

Thanks for the post!

[GrizzlyBear]

I may be wrong Jason but wasn't he kicked off BYU after the draft?

Yeah he was , But it was for Porking his fiance while not married.

[defiantgiant]

What I don't get is why you think Unga has some sort of unique skill set that doesn't overlap with Forte or Taylor, when the dude didn't even get drafted. Hell, if his skill set was that good, that unique, he more than likely would have been drafted...LIKE WOLFE.

Umm...he got drafted. The Bears just took him in the supplemental draft. The supplemental draft is for guys who stay for their senior years but then get kicked out or lose their eligibility - it's not a second chance for guys who didn't get drafted the first time around. Unga got kicked out of BYU after he admitted to the administration that he had premarital sex with his fiancee (now wife.) He's basically the ideal supplemental draft guy - a lot of them are guys who got caught cheating or got arrested and kicked out.

Also, I don't know if you should point to Wolfe's draft status as evidence of his skill set. Think about how many drafted (even highly-drafted) players each year turn out to absolutely suck. I've watched Wolfe play, and I don't see much in the way of a "unique" skill set: he doesn't have breakaway speed in the open field, he can't break tackles, and the juke move that worked so well in college hasn't been making anybody miss in the NFL. He catches the ball well out of the backfield, but so do Forte and Taylor.

Look, last season was Wolfe's best year by far, and if you take away the one long gain on a gadget special teams play (where they direct-snapped it to him on a fake punt) and only look at the plays where he actually had to take a handoff, he rang up 84 yards on 21 carries. 4 yards a carry isn't a bad mark for a workhorse back who shoulders the load, but Wolfe is supposed to be playing the Leon Washington/Darren Sproles scatback role. You need a scatback to break long runs, not get marginally better yardage than your main back. Both Washington and Sproles are threats to take one to the house, that's what makes them effective. Wolfe might be small like those two, but he's score ONE touchdown in his NFL career.

You keep saying that Wolfe needs to be used more, but looking at what he's done with the carries he's gotten, I just can't see how they could justify it. He's a one-dimensional player and he's not good enough at that one dimension to make it worthwhile to give him the ball. He's good on special teams, and I'm fine with him playing there, but I don't want him taking snaps away from other backs on offense.

[jason]

Umm...he got drafted. The Bears just took him in the supplemental draft. The supplemental draft is for guys who stay for their senior years but then get kicked out or lose their eligibility - it's not a second chance for guys who didn't get drafted the first time around. Unga got kicked out of BYU after he admitted to the administration that he had premarital sex with his fiancee (now wife.) He's basically the ideal supplemental draft guy - a lot of them are guys who got caught cheating or got arrested and kicked out.

Also, I don't know if you should point to Wolfe's draft status as evidence of his skill set. Think about how many drafted (even highly-drafted) players each year turn out to absolutely suck. I've watched Wolfe play, and I don't see much in the way of a "unique" skill set: he doesn't have breakaway speed in the open field, he can't break tackles, and the juke move that worked so well in college hasn't been making anybody miss in the NFL. He catches the ball well out of the backfield, but so do Forte and Taylor.

Look, last season was Wolfe's best year by far, and if you take away the one long gain on a gadget special teams play (where they direct-snapped it to him on a fake punt) and only look at the plays where he actually had to take a handoff, he rang up 84 yards on 21 carries. 4 yards a carry isn't a bad mark for a workhorse back who shoulders the load, but Wolfe is supposed to be playing the Leon Washington/Darren Sproles scatback role. You need a scatback to break long runs, not get marginally better yardage than your main back. Both Washington and Sproles are threats to take one to the house, that's what makes them effective. Wolfe might be small like those two, but he's score ONE touchdown in his NFL career.

You keep saying that Wolfe needs to be used more, but looking at what he's done with the carries he's gotten, I just can't see how they could justify it. He's a one-dimensional player and he's not good enough at that one dimension to make it worthwhile to give him the ball. He's good on special teams, and I'm fine with him playing there, but I don't want him taking snaps away from other backs on offense.

If you believe what you have put, you're high. When Wolfe has been given a chance, he's produced fairly well. The problem is, he has only been given a handful of opportunities.

I don't know where you are getting your stats, but here's his profootballreference page:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WolfGa00.htm

Odd, but the juke move seemed to work here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBQnOF0Phns

And here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBfCZf8375o

And here he is breaking tackles:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrAxuCxIgk8

Look at his VERY limited opportunities. Then look at the number of big plays he's made. There are several, and that is fairly uncommon for a guy who almost never gets carries. Hell, he probably should have received a portion of Forte's carries last year since Forte stunk up the joint (which led to the acquisition of Taylor).

[defiantgiant]

If you believe what you have put, you're high. When Wolfe has been given a chance, he's produced fairly well. The problem is, he has only been given a handful of opportunities.

I don't know where you are getting your stats, but here's his profootballreference page:
http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WolfGa00.htm

I got them from NFL.com. They're the same as the ones on the site you've linked do. He ran for 120 yards on 22 carries last season. 36 of those yards came on the gadget fake punt. So if you look at the remaining yards/carries (i.e. the plays where he took a handoff on offense,) it's 84 yards on 21 carries. The reason I discount the fake punt is that it's not a good indicator of how he's performed on the plays you're saying he should get more of. If you were saying he should get more special teams snaps, I'd be all for it.

Look at his VERY limited opportunities. Then look at the number of big plays he's made. There are several, and that is fairly uncommon for a guy who almost never gets carries. Hell, he probably should have received a portion of Forte's carries last year since Forte stunk up the joint (which led to the acquisition of Taylor).

There are several, that's exactly the problem. There should be a lot more than "several," even on the limited touches he's had. On his 68 carries over three seasons, Wolfe has broken a run longer than 20 yards TWICE. He's only had SIX runs of 10 yards or more. Any fewer and you could literally count his big plays on one hand.

I'll readily admit that Wolfe's had limited opportunities, but let's put him next to some actually productive scatbacks on about the same number of attempts:

Garrett Wolfe (career) 68 carries, 274 yards (4.0 YPC), 1 TD
Darren Sproles (2008) 61 carries, 330 yards (5.4 YPC), 1 TD
Leon Washington (2007) 71 carries, 353 yards (5.0 YPC), 3 TD

And those numbers are including the fake punt that inflated Wolfe's stats last season. If you take it out, he's at 3.5 YPC for his career. I'm sorry, but the guy just doesn't measure up. I mean, he got the most touches of his career as a rookie, and he didn't even get 3 yards a tote. That's not a guy who needs more carries, it's a guy who needs to play special teams.

[LT2_3]

I like both guys.

Unga is a prototypical short yardage back that can learn to lead block and be a FB that you can actually use to run and catch the ball.

Wolfe is a pretty good scatback that was horribly misused in Turner's offense. DG - You talk about what he did with the opportunities he was given, but many of them were running up the middle. What kind of moron runs a scatback up the middle with an offensive line that isn't opening huge holes? I'm impressed that he actually had a 4.0 ypc under those circumstances.

[Mongo3451]

I like both guys.

Unga is a prototypical short yardage back that can learn to lead block and be a FB that you can actually use to run and catch the ball.

Wolfe is a pretty good scatback that was horribly misused in Turner's offense. DG - You talk about what he did with the opportunities he was given, but many of them were running up the middle. What kind of moron runs a scatback up the middle with an offensive line that isn't opening huge holes? I'm impressed that he actually had a 4.0 ypc under those circumstances.

This season, the middle should be open for the backs. There will be no more stacking the box as it was in the past. We may finally get to see the the versatility of Wolfe. And yes, I'd run him up the gut on draws and traps. I think he can be a weapon in this new offense.

[jason]

I'll readily admit that Wolfe's had limited opportunities, but let's put him next to some actually productive scatbacks on about the same number of attempts:

Garrett Wolfe (career) 68 carries, 274 yards (4.0 YPC), 1 TD
Darren Sproles (2008) 61 carries, 330 yards (5.4 YPC), 1 TD
Leon Washington (2007) 71 carries, 353 yards (5.0 YPC), 3 TD

And those numbers are including the fake punt that inflated Wolfe's stats last season. If you take it out, he's at 3.5 YPC for his career. I'm sorry, but the guy just doesn't measure up. I mean, he got the most touches of his career as a rookie, and he didn't even get 3 yards a tote. That's not a guy who needs more carries, it's a guy who needs to play special teams.

That's one of the most unfair comparisons I've ever seen.

Darren Sproles is on SD, who have a great OL.
Leon Washington is on NYJ, who have a great OL.
Garrett Wolfe on CHI, how have a horrible OL. One of the worst in the league.

A better comparison is between him and Forte, a guy who had the rock ALL year.

Runs of over 20 yards
Forte ALSO only runs of over 20 yards TWICE, but the difference is he did it in 258 carries. That's 1 big carry for every 129, or thought of another way, it's 2 per season. Wow. Wolfe by comparison has 1 big carry every 34 carries.

Runs of over 10 yards
Forte had 11 or 12 runs of over 10 yards last year. Once again, in 258 carries. That's one 10+ carry for every 21-23 carries. By comparison, Wolfe had 6 for 68, which is a run of 10+ yards every 11 carries.

I can understand if he doesn't get the carries this year because the Bears just got Taylor, and Forte is supposed to be somewhere near his rookie year. And before you bring it up, in Forte's rookie year...

Five runs of over 20 yards...in 316 carries...that's 1 big carry every 63 carries.
Fourteen or Fifteen runs of 10 or more yards...which is about 1:20 carries, when he was at his best.

[Pixote]

From this clip from an article on the Tribune site it makes it sound as if Unga will probably make the 53 man cut so we will certainly have to wait and see who gets cut. Maybe he will be put at FB but the article also says he has never been put in that role so it would be a project.

But because the Bears used a supplemental pick on Unga, something that cost them their seventh-round pick in the April 2011 draft, he is probably expected to make the 53-man roster.

Waiving Unga for the purpose of sliding him to the practice squad would expose him to the other 31 teams. Scouts consistently said he would have a mid-round grade in the regular April draft, so the Bears will likely want to protect their investment, one they believe was a value selection.