The Bears have re-signed 31-year old DT Anthony Adams.  Adams played in all 16 games for the Bears last year and he had 37 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and 1 pass defensed.  He has now played in 52 games in his first four years with the Bears and he has 128 tackles, 12 tackles for a loss, 4.5 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 2 passes defensed.  It was a smart move to bring Adams back as he has been a solid player for the Bears.

The Bears have signed 26-year old WR Sam Hurd.  Hurd played in 15 games (0 starts) for the Cowboys last year and he had 14 catchers for 120 yards (8.6 avg).  He has now played in 65 games (5 starts) in his first five years in the NFL and he has caught 45 passes for 630 yards (14.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Hurd could be a nice late bloomer as he was buried on the depth chart in Dallas.

The Bears have signed 29-year old WR Roy Williams.  Williams played in 15 games (9 starts) for the Cowboys last year and he caught 37 passes for 530 yards (14.3 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  He has now played in 100 games (85 starts) in his first 7 years in the NFL and he has caught 356 passes for 5,208 yards (14.6 avg) with 42 TD grabs.  Williams made it to the Pro Bowl one time in his NFL career  (2006 with the Lions) and Mike Martz was the offensive co-ordinator in Detroit that year.  This signing seems like a perfect fit for me as Williams might ascend back to being a true #1 WR with the Bears.

The Bears have dealt 26-year old TE Greg Olsen to the Panthers for a 3rd round pick in 2012.  Olsen played in 16 games (13 starts) for the Bears last year and he had 41 grabs for 404 yards (9.9 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Olsen played in 62 games (39 starts) in his four years with the Bears and he caught 194 passes for 1,981 yards (10.2 avg) with 20 TD grabs.  Offensive c0-ordinator Mike Martz doesn’t value the TE much in his offense which likely led to this deal.  I don’t think the Bears got fair value in return for Olsen.

The Bears have released 31-year old TE Brandon Manumaleuna.  Manumaleuna played in all 16 games for the Bears last year and he caught 5 passes for 43 yards (8.6 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 158 games in his first 10 years in the NFL and he has caught 115 passes for 1,008 yards (8.8 avg) with 13 TD grabs.  The Bears just couldn’t pay Manumaleuna the money he was set to earn in 2011, as they will use that cash to fill other needs.

The Bears have signed 27-year old TE Matt Spaeth.  Spaeth played in 14 games for the Steelers last year and he caught 9 passes for 80 yards (8.9 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He has now played in 60 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has caught 36 passes for 275 yards (7.6 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Spaeth’s game is run blocking and catching jump balls in the end zone as he is 6’7″.  He will replace Brandon Manumaleuna (he has been released).

The Bears have signed 27-year old punter Adam Podlesh to a 5-year deal.  Podlesh played in all 16 games for the Jaguars last year and he punted the ball 57 times for 2,496 yards (43.8 avg).  He only had 7 touchbacks (12.3%) and he pinned the opposing team inside their own 20-yard line 26 times (45.6%) which is outstanding!  Podlesh has now played in 59 games in his first four years in the NFL and he has punted the ball 229 times for 9,751 yards (42.6 avg).  He has also pinned the opposition inside their own 20-yard line 75 times (32.8%) and he has 19 touchbacks (8.3%) in his career.  Podlesh could be the Bears’ secret weapon when the winds start swirling at Soldier Field.

Walter “Sweetness” Payton was one of the best football players I have ever seen, period.  He could literally do it all as he was an outstanding runner and receiver for the Bears.  He even started one game at QB when all of the other QBs on the roster were hurt and he led the Bears to a win that day.  His best season came in 1977 when he played in 14 games (all starts) for the Bears in which he carried the ball 339 times for 1,852 yards (5.5 ypc) with 14 TD runs.  He also caught 27 passes for 269 yards (10.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs in 1977.  Payton only led the NFL in rushing one time in his NFL career and that was in 1977.  Payton played in 190 games in his 13 years with the Bears and he carried the ball 3,838 times for 16,726 yards (4.4 ypc) with 110 TD runs.  He also caught 492 passes for 4,538 yards (9.2 avg) with 15 TD grabs for the Bears.  Payton also completed 11 of 34 passes (32.4%) for 331 yards with 8 TD passes and 6 INTs (69.6 QB Rating) for the Bears.  Payton is the Bears’ all-time leader in rushing yards (16,726), rushing TDs (110) and receptions (492).  He is also #3 in receiving yards (4,538) and he’s tied for 21st in TD receptions with 15 of them.  Payton was the all-time rushing leader in the NFL for a long time but he’s now #2 on the list behind only Emmitt Smith.   Payton is also #4 in rushing TDs in NFL history.  Payton had 10 seasons in which he rushed for at least 1,222 yards in a season and he had at least 11 TD runs in five seasons.  He was elected into Pro Football’s Hall of Fame in 1993 and he made it to 9 Pro Bowls in his NFL career.  The only thing that Payton didn’t do in his NFL career was score a TD in the Super Bowl.  In the Bears 46-10 win over the Patriots in Super Bowl XX, William Refrigerator Perry scored a rushing TD but not Payton.  Payton died on November 1st, 1999 of cancer.  Sweetness might be gone but he will never be forgotten by the Bears, it’s fans and anyone who saw him play football.