If you’re a Bears fan you know there’s a lot to be done and a lot to be tested this year. So let’s start from the beginning where questions always begin for the Bears: Is Orton the man for the job? Every year the Bears face high hopes for a quarterback and ultimately are disappointed with the results (look to Rex Grossman for the most recent disappointment). But Orton, who led the Bears to an 11-5 season a few years ago, may be able to run the Bears offense. Orton does not seem to want to force the ball, and he is fairly stingy with turnovers. This will work well for the Bears since they suffered heavily from turnover points last year. Secondly, Orton has improved…a lot. His accuracy and arm (as well as height) make him a superior choice to Grossman on paper.

But the quarterback can’t do anything productive without protection; an area that seems to have imploded as of lately. The Bears’ offenseive line needs to tighten up and give Orton time to act, otherwise, they may as well punt on first down and leave their defense the job of scoring points.

The Defense! A huge question mark. What happened to the stifling defense of two years ago? Last year they looked terribly average. Even in the preseason they looked somewhat unsatisfactory. But, now that the middle is in great shape with a healthy Urlacher, a healthy Mike Brown, and a healthy Tommie Harris, the Bears just need that spark to get back into that Super Bowl mindset.

A spark that hopefully Devin Hester and Rashied Davis can provide. Hester’s dazzling performances need to continue on special teams, and his move to wide receiver may prove to be a big boon to the offense. Rashied Davis, 4th year Bear, looked extremely impressive in preseason and hopefully he can carry that into the regular season without any injuries.

If all these areas click then the Bears have great potential this year. However, all Bears fans know (myself included) that in the end, The Bears can always find a way to disappoint, even if they have all the talent in the world.

Maybe the legendary and invincible Brett Favre is finally starting to act his age. In training camp this past Wednesday (8/13), Favre’s body may have finally caught up with his mind. “I felt 38 today,” said Favre after a NY Jets morning practice.

Favre’s renowned, right-arm rocket failed him more than once during practice. One play he over shot a receiver by five yards. Shortly after, he shorted another. All-in-all, he was inconsistent.

Favre states that while he really feels no pain, there is a great sense of fatigue in his arm. This from the man who has consistently rocketed passes down the turf for nearly two decades. A man who has had receivers complain that his passes were too hard.

Perhaps it is a passing thing. After all, Favre joined mini-camps very late and has not had as much pre-preseason practice time as he has in his prior 17 NFL seasons. Or maybe, like Samson, whose strength lies in his hair, Favre’s strength lies with the Pack.

Favre will make his first preseason appearance this Saturday against the Washington Redskins where the Jets will have a true look at how good their trade was.

As the 2008 NFL season is about to begin, the race to pick key players by some teams are still on and the latest addition to the Buffalo Bills football team is the defensive end Derrick Jones. The former Atlanta Falcons player was signed by the Bills last Thursday and is expected to compete for a spot in the team with the likes of Chris Kelsay and Aaron Schobel. Jones is happy to be in the Bills camp and is hoping that he will get an opportunity pretty soon to showcase his football talents. The tickets to most of the NFL first round games are currently on sale.

The Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Marvin Harrison might not get a chance to play in the Sunday’s preseason Hall of Fame game against the Washington Redskins in spite of his recovery from the surgeries he had on his two knees. Harrison will be making the trip to Ohio, but will need the doctors consent to play in the game. This 13 year old NFL veteran has missed 11 games last season due to an injury on his left knee. Marvin Harrison has been practicing with his team for one week now, but whether he will be capable of handling match situations will only be deiced by the doctor. The fans who had bought tickets to watch Harrison play are a bit disappointed on hearing the news.

The New York Giants players are having a bad time lately as most of their key players have been sidelined by tender injuries that are keeping them out of the team’s practice sessions.
Amani Toomer the veteran wide receiver of the Giants, is the latest player to sit out of the practice session this week owing to swollen left leg. Steve Smith, another prolific wide receiver, has also skipped the practice sessions due to general soreness. The other receiver Plaxico Burress is suffering from a more serious right ankle injury. The Giants fans are hoping that their star players get well very soon and practice for the NFL season which is just round the corner. The tickets to some of the Giants games are still being sold at the match venues and online.