The Bears have claimed fullback Jon Goldsberry off of waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Goldsberry was on the Bucs last season but he didn’t carry the ball even once. He will likely backup Obafemi Ayanbadejo for the Bears. The Bears needed some depth at fullback because of the injury to J.D. Runnels so that was the reason for this move. Goldsberry will also probably play on special teams with the Bears.

When Tank Johnson was pulled over for a possible DUI in Arizona last week that was the final straw for the Chicago Bears. Johnson was already suspended by the league for the first 8 games of the 2007 season and the Bears feel that he just wasn’t worth the hassle anymore and they’re right about that. Johnson played in 14 games last season and he made 26 tackles, had 3.5 sacks, defensed 1 pass and forced a fumble. That’s not much production for a player as highly touted as Johnson. In his 3 years with the Bears, Johnson has played 46 games and he’s made 63 tackles, had 9 sacks, defensed 3 passes and forced a fumble. Johnson’s foolish actions may have cost him a career with the way the new commissioner is planning to punish teams for employing thugs which is another reason why the Bears cut him loose.

The Chicago Bears don’t have a standout QB on the roster. Rex Grossman will be the starter for the Bears again this season and the team hopes he will be more consistent. At times, Grossman looks like one of the best QBs in the league and other times he looks like the absolute worst one. While it’s true that Grossman started every game on a team that went to the Super Bowl….it wasn’t because of his play on the field. Grossman started all 16 games last season for the Bears and he completed 262 of 480 (54.6%) passes for 3,193 yards with 23 TD passes and 20 interceptions (73.9 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 24 times for 2 yards (0.1 ypc). In his defense, most of his running plays were kneel downs at the end of wins. The thing that bothers a lot of people about Grossman is that he hasn’t improved over his career. He has know played in 24 games (23 starts) and he has completed 367 of 675 passes (54.4%) for 4,496 yards with 27 TD passes and 26 interceptions (72.4 QB Rating). He also has carried the football 38 times for 49 yards (1.3 ypc) with 1 TD run.

Brian Griese is still a starting caliber QB even though he didn’t prove it last season with the Bears. Griese has an edge on Grossman because he’s a smarter QB but he doesn’t have the physical skills that Grossman has. He also wasn’t a first round pick of the Bears and that has bought Grossman a lot of time. Griese played in 6 games (0 starts) for the Bears last season and he completed 18 of 32 passes (56.3%) for 220 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 interceptions (62.0 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 6 times for -5 yards (0.8 ypc). He has been a starter in the NFL in the past and he’s put up some pretty good numbers in the NFL and he will take Grossman’s place this season if Grossman doesn’t play better this season. Griese has played in 81 games (72 starts) in his NFL career and he’s completed 1,481 of 2,350 passes (63%) for 16,564 yards with 104 TD passes and 80 interceptions (84.5 QB Rating). He also has carried the ball 220 times for 555 yards (2.5 ypc) with 5 TD runs.

Kyle Orton is the #3 QB and he did a decent job for the Bears a couple of seasons ago when Grossman went down early in the season. Orton has played in 15 games (all starts) and he’s completed 190 of 368 passes (51.6%) for 1,869 yards with 9 TD passes and 13 interceptions (59.7 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 24 times for 44 yards (1.8 ypc).

The Bears have lost fullback J.D. Runnels for the season after he tore his ACL. Runnels only played in two games as a rookie last season and he didn’t catch or carry the football even one time. The Bears signing of Obafemi Ayanbadejo is looking better by the day.

The Bears needed to get younger in the offensive line and that was the reason for Brant’s selection. He has nice size at 6’6″, 321 pounds and he’s played against good competition at Iowa State. He has problems hitting targets in the open field and he isn’t the most aggressive player around. He has the look of a practice squad player for now and a backup in the future.

Trumaine McBride isn’t the biggest CB around at 5’10″, 180 pounds and he isn’t the fastest player (4.55 40) but he’s really tough. He backs down from no one and could really be a decent nickel or dime back for the Bears because of their system. He also should be able to help on special teams as he’s a sure tackler. In 47 games (34 starts) at Mississippi, McBride made 124 tackles, broke up 31 passes and intercepted 4 passes that he returned 101 yards.

Corey Graham wasn’t expected to get drafted by many of the “experts”. That’s because many forecast him to be way too soft to get on the field defensively in the pros. But he is an elite return man even though the Bears already have one in Devin Hester. Graham is 5’11″, 198 pounds and he’s really, really fast as he runs a 4.38 40. In 42 games at New Hampshire, Graham made 302 tackles, forced 4 fumbles, recovered 3 fumbles, defensed 31 passes and intercepted 12 passes (185 return yards, 2 TDs). Graham returned 65 kickoffs for 1,787 yards (27.5 avg) with 3 TDs. He also returned 12 punts for 128 yards (10.7 avg). It will be interesting to see how the Bears use Graham as his pick seems to be a reach.

Kevin Payne began his career at Louisiana-Monroe at running back before he shifted to safety as a junior. He has a lot to learn as a safety but he’s more than athletic enough to handle the position physically. He is 6’0″, 215 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40. Payne will do anything to get better and he proved that in college as he turned into a solid college safety in only 2 years. Payne played in 23 games (21 starts) the last two season at UL-Monroe and he made 185 tackles, broke up 4 passes, had 6 interceptions (56 return yards), forced 2 fumbles and recovered a fumble. Look for Payne to be a backup safety while he learns on the job and a good special teams player from Day #1.

The Bears were looking to get some depth in their offensive line and Beekman should provide that. He has played some center but he’s a better guard. He is a good pass blocker as he always seems to be in front of his man. He will need to develop a nasty mean streak to go with his effort which is 100% all of the time. He played in 50 games for Boston College and started 39 of them. He has nice size at 6’1″, 315 pounds and he should be an eventual starter at guard for the Bears.

The Bears have signed Obafemi Ayanbadejo to a 1-year contract. Ayanbadejo is the classic fullback as he’s more of a blocker than a runner and he will likely fit in well with the Bears because of that. He played in 14 games last season for the Cardinals and he carried the ball 9 times for 37 yards (4.1 ypc) and he caught 17 passes for 139 yards (8.2 avg). He has played 8 seasons in the NFL covering 101 games. In those games, Ayanbadejo has carried the football 123 times for 413 yards (3.4 ypc) with 5 TD runs. He also has caught 130 passes for 885 yards (6.8 avg) with 3 TD grabs.