Thomas Jones to participate in today's practice (1 Viewer)

[Colin Dowling]

' date='Aug 16 2006, 09:22 PM' post='5343940']

I'm saying Benson will be the starter.

It's calls like this that explain why your status line read "Moderator" and not "Staff"

Yeah, I have no idea what's up w/ that. Perhaps the needless bumping of the Bob Ferguson thread keeps me from "making the leap."

 

[joffer]

i hate RBBC situations where the team seems to be favoring one as the starter and i think the other one is more talented. :(

 

[SpaceCowboy]

"We know what Thomas can do," said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We know Thomas is a very good player. We've got to get him healthy. We've got to get him reps.

"He's got to get back in sync with the offense, get the timing of the offensive line and the running game and with Rex and the passing game and all that stuff. But we know Thomas is a warrior. We know he's a football player and he just needs to get out and go."

After declining to participate in the Bears' voluntary offseason program, Jones worked with the No. 2 offense during the team's mandatory minicamp in June. He would have opened training camp at the same spot on the depth chart had he not injured his hamstring.

chicagobears.com

Doesn't sound like the only reason Benson was the #1 was because TJ wasn't showing up.

 

[shadow2k]

"We know what Thomas can do," said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We know Thomas is a very good player. We've got to get him healthy. We've got to get him reps.

"He's got to get back in sync with the offense, get the timing of the offensive line and the running game and with Rex and the passing game and all that stuff. But we know Thomas is a warrior. We know he's a football player and he just needs to get out and go."

After declining to participate in the Bears' voluntary offseason program, Jones worked with the No. 2 offense during the team's mandatory minicamp in June. He would have opened training camp at the same spot on the depth chart had he not injured his hamstring.

chicagobears.com

Doesn't sound like the only reason Benson was the #1 was because TJ wasn't showing up.

I think you're reading something into this that isn't there.Benson was made #1 before they hit camp, because TJ hadn't shown up to minicamp. And then going into camp, TJ would have had to earn the #1 spot back. So yeah, he's going to enter camp as the #2, had nothing to do with anything Benson did.

 

[Otis]

"We know what Thomas can do," said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We know Thomas is a very good player. We've got to get him healthy. We've got to get him reps.

"He's got to get back in sync with the offense, get the timing of the offensive line and the running game and with Rex and the passing game and all that stuff. But we know Thomas is a warrior. We know he's a football player and he just needs to get out and go."

After declining to participate in the Bears' voluntary offseason program, Jones worked with the No. 2 offense during the team's mandatory minicamp in June. He would have opened training camp at the same spot on the depth chart had he not injured his hamstring.

chicagobears.com

Doesn't sound like the only reason Benson was the #1 was because TJ wasn't showing up.

Per a sportswriter's opinion.

 

[gocats]

Per a sportswriter's opinion.

Lovie isnt going to give Benson the starter spot when he hasnt won it, infact he'll have to earn the #2 spot, something he couldnt secure last season, see last season if you need confirmation on that.

 

[Bears_Man2]

"We know what Thomas can do," said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We know Thomas is a very good player. We've got to get him healthy. We've got to get him reps.

"He's got to get back in sync with the offense, get the timing of the offensive line and the running game and with Rex and the passing game and all that stuff. But we know Thomas is a warrior. We know he's a football player and he just needs to get out and go."

After declining to participate in the Bears' voluntary offseason program, Jones worked with the No. 2 offense during the team's mandatory minicamp in June. He would have opened training camp at the same spot on the depth chart had he not injured his hamstring.

chicagobears.com

Doesn't sound like the only reason Benson was the #1 was because TJ wasn't showing up.

Per a sportswriter's opinion.

It's not an opinion. The words came out of Lovie's mouth before training camp."As we go into training camp, our starting rotation will be exactly how it was as we finished OTAs (organized team activities). How is that?" Smith said.

That would mean Benson would line up with the first team. Both Jones and Pro Bowl linebacker Lance Briggs, who also skipped the voluntary drills, were demoted to second team during a mandatory minicamp.

http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?p=964906

 

[gocats]

Thats old news to get Jones to come back to camp

per suntimes.com

August 14, 2006

''There has been a lot said about the starting guy, whether it's Thomas or Cedric,'' running backs coach Tim Spencer said. ''It's going to come out. Both guys are hurt now, but eventually the best guy will be clear. It will be out in front of everybody.

''The places where I played and coached, it's always been the case where the best players play. That policy is no different here. To me, that's the only way you can win.''

It's a funny thing about position battles and quarterback controversies: They can't be created by the media, the coaching staff or a team's front office. They're dictated by performance. If somebody behind you is better, odds are they're eventually going to find their way onto the field.

 

[sanders2021]

Per a sportswriter's opinion.

Lovie isnt going to give Benson the starter spot when he hasnt won it, infact he'll have to earn the #2 spot, something he couldnt secure last season, see last season if you need confirmation on that.

Why are you under the impression that Benson wasn't the #2 back last season??

 

[gocats]

Per a sportswriter's opinion.

Lovie isnt going to give Benson the starter spot when he hasnt won it, infact he'll have to earn the #2 spot, something he couldnt secure last season, see last season if you need confirmation on that.

Why are you under the impression that Benson wasn't the #2 back last season??

Because he wasnt. He couldnt protect the QB so Peterson got the nod.

 

[shadow2k]

Thats old news to get Jones to come back to camp

per suntimes.com

August 14, 2006

''There has been a lot said about the starting guy, whether it's Thomas or Cedric,'' running backs coach Tim Spencer said. ''It's going to come out. Both guys are hurt now, but eventually the best guy will be clear. It will be out in front of everybody.

''The places where I played and coached, it's always been the case where the best players play. That policy is no different here. To me, that's the only way you can win.''

It's a funny thing about position battles and quarterback controversies: They can't be created by the media, the coaching staff or a team's front office. They're dictated by performance. If somebody behind you is better, odds are they're eventually going to find their way onto the field.

Uhhh...this is kind of the point. Best players play, dictated by performance. Benson was the only one of the two to do anything, because Jones skipped out on practice. So Benson became first team by default. You think Jones suddenly became first string again after he gets injured taking a physical? He hadn't even sniffed the field yet, and Benson had. That's why Benson was first string.That's not going to determine who ends up first string. But that's who was upon start of camp...Benson.

 

[Raider Nation]

Thomas Jones has had a couple solid years in a 7 year career, but if the Bears staff thinks Benson isn't just solid, but possibly spectacular he will be given at minimum 50% of the carries, likely a bit more.

Either way, if both are there it's a RBBC.

Then joffer wrote:

i hate RBBC situations where the team seems to be favoring one as the starter and i think the other one is more talented. :(

Try to find a quote anywhere in which Lovie says there will be a RBBC this season. You won't. He has never said that, and we have no reason to suspect there will be one. All he ever said is "a team NEEDS 2 or 3 good running backs over the course of a season".... then he referenced the Priest/LJ situation from last year. If Jones gets significant work, it'll be because Benson is wearing street clothes.

 

[traderkirk]

Gridiron,I'd love to hear your take on how this pans out. I believe that guessing right on the Chicago backfield could have just as much impact as guessing the Denver backfield correctly. I had hoped to acquire both if possible, in as many leagues as I can, but really think the price is currently too high, as they both will now require a minimum of a 6th round pick = a bit pricey.

Discuss this very likely possibility . . . they split the job. Is there any reason to think that Lovie Smith won't do that? Esp. since both have injury histories?And I'd think they would like to run the ball as much as possible with their shaky QB situation and excellent defense.If one or the other seized the job, they'd be very valuable. But right now, all things being equal, this situation looks like a fantasy quagmire.

 

[wraith5]

Thomas Jones has had a couple solid years in a 7 year career, but if the Bears staff thinks Benson isn't just solid, but possibly spectacular he will be given at minimum 50% of the carries, likely a bit more.

Either way, if both are there it's a RBBC.

Then joffer wrote:

i hate RBBC situations where the team seems to be favoring one as the starter and i think the other one is more talented. :(

Try to find a quote anywhere in which Lovie says there will be a RBBC this season. You won't. He has never said that, and we have no reason to suspect there will be one. All he ever said is "a team NEEDS 2 or 3 good running backs over the course of a season".... then he referenced the Priest/LJ situation from last year. If Jones Benson gets significant work, it'll be because Benson Jones is wearing street clothes.

Fixed.

 

[lebowski]

looks like a fantasy quagmire.

gigity-gigity-goo

 

[Spiderman]

Cedric Benson opened training camp as the #1 RB on the Chicago Bears depth chart.

There were a number of reasons for that, and, IMO, Thomas Jones invited the Bears to make this decision easy. Based on last season's performance, Jones wasn't going to lose his starting job, but when he began to show contempt for his contractual situation, and didn't attend OTA's, plus hinted he was open to a trade, he left the door open for Chicago to insert Benson into the starting lineup.

Jones had absolutely no leverage - he hired Rosenhaus, but he was under contract, and with Benson behind him, had a highly paid backup whom the Bears were itching to get more playing time to justify their selection.

When the Bears selected Benson with the #4 overall pick, they believed, and still do, that he will be a special RB. They want to get him on the field, and let him show that big contract ($17 million guaranteed) was worthy, and Jones gave them the bullets to make this happen.

Now, as we move along in camp, it seems that Jones' teammates, who view him as a leader of the team, aren't exactly behind the demotion, and Benson may have received, according to various news reports, a few extra shots in practice as they want him to show he can handle his RB standing on the team. Benson, of couse, suffered the shoulder injury on an awkward (but not dirty) hit in camp, and Jones has been out since Day 1 with the hamstring injury.

Jones has returned to practice, and Benson should shortly follow, but neither will play in the 2nd game this Friday on CBS vs the Chargers.

Either way, since Lovie Smith has awarded Benson the job, and Jones hasn't taken it away, I expect, barring the Benson injury keeping him out longer than expected, to be in the starting lineup in Week 1 vs. GB since Benson/Jones really only will have game left (starters won't play more than a few snaps in Week 4 pre-season) to make their case.

I don't expect Benson (or Jones) to get a large majority of the handoffs, and I wouldn't be surprised early on in the season if we see a lot of alternating between series, possibly with Benson getting a small majority of the work in the 1st 3 quarters of games, and then the hot hand getting the majority of the work in the 4th quarter.

I also expect one of those two players, whether it be by injuries or performance, to eventually step forward, and take the job. Going into the season, though, Benson is the favorite, and the Bears management believes that while Jones is a good player, Benson has a chance to be great. Obviously, time will tell with that belief.

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

The funniest thing about this thread is that you ungrateful bastages never thanked me for my timely acumen.

The other funny thing is the fact that some people are saying Jones is the starter.... some people are saying that Benson's the starter - guess what guys, right now:

ADRIAN PETERSON IS THE STARTER!!!!

I follow this stuff pretty closely... Lovie Smith doesn't even know who the starter is going to be for Game One, so I fail to understand how any of you jabronis know who the starter is going to be.

 

[Spiderman]

The funniest thing about this thread is that you ungrateful bastages never thanked me for my timely acumen.The other funny thing is the fact that some people are saying Jones is the starter.... some people are saying that Benson's the starter - guess what guys, right now:ADRIAN PETERSON IS THE STARTER!!!!I follow this stuff pretty closely... Lovie Smith doesn't even know who the starter is going to be for Game One, so I fail to understand how any of you jabronis know who the starter is going to be.

GRID - Peterson is the starter in a pre-season game. If he is starting in Week 1 vs. GB, that is because Benson and Jones are injured.Peterson would be a #2 RB on a large number of NFL teams, and, on some, could probably compete for a job, but in Chicago, he's a very good special teams player, and a nice player to bring into a ballgame for a few carries.I do agree that there isn't a clear cut starter at RB for the regular season opener because of the injuries to Jones and Benson.

 

[GRIDIRON ASSASSIN]

The funniest thing about this thread is that you ungrateful bastages never thanked me for my timely acumen.The other funny thing is the fact that some people are saying Jones is the starter.... some people are saying that Benson's the starter - guess what guys, right now:ADRIAN PETERSON IS THE STARTER!!!!I follow this stuff pretty closely... Lovie Smith doesn't even know who the starter is going to be for Game One, so I fail to understand how any of you jabronis know who the starter is going to be.

GRID - Peterson is the starter in a pre-season game. If he is starting in Week 1 vs. GB, that is because Benson and Jones are injured.Peterson would be a #2 RB on a large number of NFL teams, and, on some, could probably compete for a job, but in Chicago, he's a very good special teams player, and a nice player to bring into a ballgame for a few carries.I do agree that there isn't a clear cut starter at RB for the regular season opener because of the injuries to Jones and Benson.

What the hell do you think I'm saying? Right now the recovering Jones or Benson wouldn't be the starters, as Adrian Peterson is. Lovie doesn't know who the hell is going to start in Week One.I think when all is said and done, Thomas Jones will have the most yardage, Benson will have the most TDs and Adrian Peterson will get a start.

 

[Spiderman]

The funniest thing about this thread is that you ungrateful bastages never thanked me for my timely acumen.The other funny thing is the fact that some people are saying Jones is the starter.... some people are saying that Benson's the starter - guess what guys, right now:ADRIAN PETERSON IS THE STARTER!!!!I follow this stuff pretty closely... Lovie Smith doesn't even know who the starter is going to be for Game One, so I fail to understand how any of you jabronis know who the starter is going to be.

GRID - Peterson is the starter in a pre-season game. If he is starting in Week 1 vs. GB, that is because Benson and Jones are injured.Peterson would be a #2 RB on a large number of NFL teams, and, on some, could probably compete for a job, but in Chicago, he's a very good special teams player, and a nice player to bring into a ballgame for a few carries.I do agree that there isn't a clear cut starter at RB for the regular season opener because of the injuries to Jones and Benson.

What the hell do you think I'm saying? Right now the recovering Jones or Benson wouldn't be the starters, as Adrian Peterson is. Lovie doesn't know who the hell is going to start in Week One.I think when all is said and done, Thomas Jones will have the most yardage, Benson will have the most TDs and Adrian Peterson will get a start.

I think you made an argument that Adrian Peterson has a chance to be the starter in the regular season, and we both know that isn't happening unless injuries to both Benson and Jones keep them out of the game or limited.Lovie may not know who the Week 1 starter is going to be, but I also know they aren't going to rush Benson/Jones back in training camp because they want them to be ready for the regular season.We'll see what happens with your projections - personally, I think one of those two is going to break away, and be the clear-cut starter, but the lack of practice for them in the pre-season is making it difficult for me to imagine that we won't see some split carries early on.

 

[gocats]

Thomas Jones has had a couple solid years in a 7 year career, but if the Bears staff thinks Benson isn't just solid, but possibly spectacular he will be given at minimum 50% of the carries, likely a bit more.

Either way, if both are there it's a RBBC.

Then joffer wrote:

i hate RBBC situations where the team seems to be favoring one as the starter and i think the other one is more talented. :(

Try to find a quote anywhere in which Lovie says there will be a RBBC this season. You won't. He has never said that, and we have no reason to suspect there will be one. All he ever said is "a team NEEDS 2 or 3 good running backs over the course of a season".... then he referenced the Priest/LJ situation from last year. If Jones gets significant work, it'll be because Benson is wearing street clothes.

You flip flop on your opinions like crazy

 

[Spiderman]

Here's the latest on the Bears RB situation, courtesy of the Chicago Tribune:

With just more than three weeks until the Sept. 10 regular-season opener in Green Bay, OC Ron Turner said the injuries might force the coaching staff to evaluate Jones and Benson off last season.

"To a certain point," he said. "We know what Thomas can do. We know Thomas is a very good player. We have to get him healthy. We have to get him reps. He has to get back in sync with the offense and the timing with the offensive line and with Rex in the passing game. But we know Thomas is a warrior."

Nobody revealed the plan for when Benson and Jones both are healthy.

"If both of those guys are in there, you would have a better evaluation because we would have tried to get both those guys the same amount of reps and same type of plays," running backs coach Tim Spencer said. "But that didn't happen. We're going to evaluate Thomas on Thomas and not anything else. Thomas will be fine for us. When Ced gets back, we'll work them both in there and see how it goes."

 

[gocats]

Its a no brainer that Jones is the guy this year

 

[Raider Nation]

Its a no brainer that Jones is the guy this year

 

[The Mollusk]

http://www.chicagobears.com/news/newsDetail.jsp?id=16578

Jones returns to practice on final day of training camp

By Larry Mayer

August 16, 2006

BOURBONNAIS, Ill. - The Bears headed home after breaking training camp Wednesday in Bourbonnais, but not before running back Thomas Jones returned to the practice field.

The seventh-year pro had missed all of training camp after straining his hamstring during the running portion of his physical exam July 27, the first official day of camp.

"It felt good to get back out there and run around a little bit," Jones said. "I was excited about it."

Veteran running back Thomas Jones returned to practice Wednesday before the Bears broke camp in Bourbonnais.

Wearing a helmet, shoulder pads and shorts like the rest of his teammates, Jones began Wednesday's two-hour practice by catching passes during individual drills.

Jones then worked exclusively on the scout team with quarterback B.J. Symons, fullback Keith Belton and other unproven players to help prepare the No. 1 defense for Friday night's preseason game against the San Diego Chargers at Soldier Field.

"We got Thomas Jones a few reps, just trying to ease him into the flow of things," said coach Lovie Smith. "Hopefully the start of next week he'll be ready to pick up the pace and get a few more. It's a step at a time and he's missed a lot of time, but we like where he's at right now."

Jones ran fluidly during practice, showing no ill effects from the hamstring injury.

"It felt good," said Jones, who rushed for a career-high 1,335 yards last season, the most by any Bears player other than Walter Payton.

"I didn't really push it 100 percent. But I felt good enough to burst and cut and do the things I needed to do. They really didn't want me doing too much today because it's the first day."

"I don't think he had any trouble," Smith said. "It wasn't full speed work. We wanted to ease him in that way. We'll pick up the tempo a little bit more, but it's what we've asked him to do and we feel good about where he is right now."

Jones strongly believes that the time he missed due to the injury won't adversely affect him and could even end up benefiting him in the long run.

"It's not a setback at all," he said. "It's my seventh year in the league. I'm a veteran guy. I know the offense. I've been in the league for a while. It's not a setback. If anything, I helped my legs for the season."

Jones will not play Friday night against the Chargers and isn't sure whether he'll participate in the Bears' final two preseason games Aug. 25 against Arizona or Aug. 31 at Cleveland.

"I don't know," he said. "It's up to the coaches and trainers. They know more. I just do what they ask me to do."

Many teammates didn't realize that Jones was going to practice until they saw him on the field.

"It's always a boost," said Pro Bowl center Olin Kreutz. "Thomas is a veteran. He's one of our emotional leaders. We're happy to see him back. He's one of the best backs in the NFL."

"It's great to see him out there practicing," said quarterback Rex Grossman. "Knowing that he's going to be healthy and ready to go is a big boost to the offense."

"He looked good," said guard Roberto Garza. "It's Thomas Jones. Anytime he steps on the field, he's going to boost the team up. Obviously we have great depth at the position and all those guys will be ready to go."

Thomas Jones spent most of training camp as a spectator while recovering from a hamstring injury.

One of the Bears' most respected veterans, Jones has nothing to prove to coaches or teammates.

"We know what Thomas can do," said offensive coordinator Ron Turner. "We know Thomas is a very good player. We've got to get him healthy. We've got to get him reps.

"He's got to get back in sync with the offense, get the timing of the offensive line and the running game and with Rex and the passing game. But we know Thomas is a warrior. We know he's a football player and he just needs to get out and go."

After declining to participate in the Bears' voluntary offseason program, Jones worked with the No. 2 offense during the team's mandatory minicamp in June. He would have opened training camp at the same spot on the depth chart had he not injured his hamstring.

Second-year running back Cedric Benson, who had been practicing with the first team, remains sidelined with a shoulder injury he suffered in practice Aug. 4 when hit in rapid succession by Brian Urlacher and Mike Brown during team drills.

When asked who he expects to be the Bears' starting running back this season, Turner was as elusive as Jones and Benson in the open field.

"I have no idea," said the offensive coordinator. "That'll sort itself out, I really think it will. They're both very good players. We believe in both of them. We're going to put them both out there and hand them the ball and let them go."

After hosting the Chargers Friday night, the Bears will return to Halas Hall to continue preparations for the 2006 season. Workouts in Lake Forest are closed to the public.