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Don't expect to see Chicago's top stars on the field for Thursday's final preseason game against Cleveland.
Cutler spread the ball around, with Alshon Jeffery finishing with seven receptions for 77 yards, after all five passes went Marshall's way in the Chargers game.
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (AP) — The Chicago Bears got the balance they sought on offense last week. Now,Anthony DeSclafani Jersey, their starters are getting a breather.
The Browns believe they are finally headed in the right direction after five straight seasons with at least 11 losses, that they're poised to take a big step forward.
They looked like a team that needed more work,cheap nfl jerseys sale, and they might get it on Thursday.
The game could be an important one for offensive lineman J'Marcus Webb. After starting 44 games the past three seasons, he could be on the outside looking in after losing the starting right tackle spot to rookie Jordan Mills. Webb didn't help himself against Oakland last week, getting called for holding in the third quarter and committing a false start in the fourth.
Whatever work he gets between now and the opener will almost certainly come in practices and workouts,NFL Jerseys China, after coach Marc Trestman said this week he plans to rest most — if not all — the starters against Cleveland (2-1 in preseason).
So don't expect to see Cutler anywhere but on the sideline, assuming he's in the stadium. He and every other star player will likely sit this one out, along with backup quarterback Josh McCown. Trestman said Jordan Palmer will start behind center, with Trent Edwards expected to relieve him.
The Bears have indicated they will go with eight offensive lineman, and if Jonathan Scott is over his knee injury, he could be the swing tackle. That would leave Webb fighting for a roster spot with Eben Britton.
The Bears (2-1) are holding to it. But their coach also acknowledged a possible benefit to giving the starters some snaps in a fourth preseason game.
They lost running back Dion Lewis to a broken leg. He went down against Detroit on Aug. 15 and was placed on injured reserve,A.J. Klein Jersey, a blow to their backfield. He was expected to play on third down and as a change of pace for starter Trent Richardson.
They hired Rob Chudzinski and Norv Turner as offensive coordinator. They inherited a team with a second-year quarterback in Weeden who has all the tools to succeed,NCAA Jerseys Wholesale, but it hasn't been the smoothest run so far.
"If that's what (coach Rob Chudzinski) wants to do, absolutely," Weeden said. "I'm a creature of habit and I like to prepare and I like to not take a ton of time off and skip anything that I normally do,Cheap Shoes Australia Free Shipping, but if that's what he wants to do then absolutely, I'm all for it."
"We're going to work hard this week as if it's training camp to work them and then we're going to rest them and get them focused on Game 1," said Trestman, in his first season as the Bears' coach after spending the past five leading the CFL's Montreal Alouettes. "That's the way we did it when I was up north and the places that I've been. I haven't experienced a lot of different ways of doing it, and it seems to have worked well. The question has a good answer. There would be some to say why not give them a half the week before and get their conditioning up. So I don't know if there's a right or wrong, just the direction we've gone here and a lot of teams go around the league."
For the Browns, the top players might get a few snaps, and that would be just fine with quarterback Brandon Weeden.
Teams typically play their starters a half if not more in the third preseason game, then sit them in the finale to avoid unnecessary injuries and give bubble players a chance to solidify roster spots. Chudzinski is bucking that trend, to a degree.
That's hardly unusual.
That eased some of the anxiety of the Bears' fans, even though the game was ultimately meaningless. It wasn't exactly soothing for Marshall, with the Pro Bowl receiver saying he isn't where he needs to be physically after having offseason hip surgery.
The Bears' starters looked like they were ready, dominating Oakland in the first half after struggling the previous week against San Diego.
Meanwhile, Weeden and the first-team offense struggled in last week's loss to Cleveland, raising anxiety among fans with the opener against Miami approaching. Weeden was off target after impressive showings in the first two weeks, missing easy throws and forcing passes.
"There's still competition for positions on the team and there's competition for positions in this league. There's great value in this game on multiple levels," Trestman said.
There were drops, critical penalties and a failure by the Browns to score on their first seven possessions.
Their dress rehearsal for the opener against Cincinnati on Sept. 8 came last week, when they dominated Oakland in the first half. Now, Jay Cutler gets a breather. So does Brandon Marshall and Matt Forte along with every other star on both sides of the ball. |
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