Urlacher answers questions from fans on conference call LAKE FOREST, Ill. – It’s not every day that John Mackowiak of Frankfurt, Ill., gets an opportunity to chat with star middle linebacker Brian Urlacher on the telephone.
But that’s exactly what transpired Monday evening when the Bears hosted an interactive conference call featuring the six-time Pro Bowler exclusively for their season ticket holders.
Brian Urlacher was selected the NFL defensive player of the year in 2005.
“As a Bears fan, it’s good to relate to the guys without intruding on their personal space,” Mackowiak said. “It was very gratifying to compliment Brian on doing a great job and being a future Hall of Famer.”
Mackowiak, a season ticket holder for 30 years, asked Urlacher about returning to action after missing most of last season with a dislocated wrist he suffered in the opener against the Packers.
“I don’t like being on the sideline,” Urlacher said. “It was horrible. It was very frustrating. After the offseason I had last year, I felt great coming into the season. To get hurt in the first game like that was very disappointing.
“I’m champing at the bit to get back out there on the field. When something’s taken from you, you realize how much you love it. Football to me right now is as exciting as heck. I feel like a kid again being out there with my teammates and flying around.”
The hour-long conference call—the first of its kind by the Bears—was moderated by radio play-by-play announcer Jeff Joniak.
Asked how the defense has looked in OTA practices after adding end Julius Peppers in free agency and safety Chris Harris via a trade, Urlacher said: “I love what I see. We’re a fast football team. It’s exciting.
“Chris being back helps a lot. ‘Pep’ in there is awesome. If you add a good player like that, it’s going to help your defense right away. We’ve got a lot of guys that can run. We get to the football.”
Urlacher revealed that facing coordinator Mike Martz’s offense in practice has been a major challenge.
“Offensively, they do a lot of stuff,” Urlacher said. “It’s confusing for our defense. We’re not going to see anything that’s harder than what we see in practice, which is good for us.”
Urlacher is somewhat familiar with the offense having played against it when Martz operated the system with the St. Louis Rams, Detroit Lions and San Francisco 49ers.
“You can’t prepare for the speed of it,” said the middle linebacker. “You can practice all you want, but when you get to the games it happens so fast. There are so many different things they do. They’ve got unbalanced lines. They’ve got formations you’ve never seen before.”
In response to a question from Randy of Roscoe, Ill., Urlacher defended the cover-two defense.
“The second year we ran it [in 2005], I was defensive player of the year,” Urlacher said. “If you do it right, it works. There’s no doubt about that. We’ve changed it a little bit. We’ve tweaked it. When you do it right, when you play hard and when you have the right players at the right positions, you’re going to be successful in this defense.
“It’s all predicated on pressure on the quarterback, and we went out and got a great defensive end, and our defensive linemen are going to have to [generate a consistent pass rush].”
Asked about Jay Cutler, Urlacher indicated that he has high expectations for the Bears quarterback.
“Jay’s awesome,” Urlacher said. “He throws the ball as well as any quarterback in the NFL. If we can protect him—which I think we will do—I think he’s going to have a great year.”
Urlacher told the season ticket holders that he has enjoyed working with Rod Marinelli, a long-time defensive line coach who was elevated to defensive coordinator this year.
“He’s great,” Urlacher said. “He gives us a couple coaching points every day in our defensive meeting, and he doesn’t put up with anything. When he’s talking, you listen and you do what he says.
“I have a lot of respect for coach Marinelli. I think every guy on our defense and our team does too. Just talking to him for any amount of time you can see how much he loves football and how much he loves being around here.”
In response to another question, Urlacher said that he feels the Bears are a hungry team.
“The OTAs have not been this much fun for me since I’ve been here,” he said. “I think it’s because we’re anxious to get back on the field. We’re all excited about what we have on our team and we want to show people what we have. We’re excited to have this group of guys together.”
