Written by Brett Solesky | 05 June 2010

So this is where the Chicago Bears find themselves as they become to come down the home stretch of the off-season and head towards training camp.  OTA workouts began this week with three completely VOLUNTARY workouts, that only allowed media access to one of the practices.  We know about the questions at safety, the offensive line, depth at corner, the health of Brian Urlacher and adjusting to Mike Martz’s offensive scheme.  However there is more to this team than just those weaknesses and question marks those are the obvious questions. 

We also can talk about the not so obvious questions the backup quarterback spot and Martz’s never ending talk about wanting to bring in a veteran backup ahead of Caleb Hanie.  The more I hear about this from Martz, (which seems to be a weekly conversation now) the more I think he is taking a shot at Hanie as a player.  The debate then moves to whether or not Hanie deserves a chance to be the backup QB? 

The answer to that question is one of the most puzzling answers to come by.  Hanie has done everything right since he signed on as an undrafted free agent two seasons ago.  Hanie has performed as well as could be expected in the pre-season games, even if it is just the pre-season.  Pre-season performance is also what catapulted Charlie Whitehurst to fame and $8-million-dollars over two years fortune, simply because of what he did for the Chargers behind Philip Rivers as a third string QB. 

Whitehurst hasn’t played in a single regular season game, but because of his overall talent level and what he showed in the pre-season he went in trade to the Seahawks  in a swap of second round picks and with the Seahawks sending a third round pick in 2011 to the Chargers. 

Decent value but the trade isn’t the talk so much as the fact that the Seahawks are essentially counting on an unproven commodity to be their starting QB in 2010.  Is there a storyline that has interest from Bears fans?  Sure there is a little interest given that the person who will be  in charge of grooming Whitehurst into a starting role was at the top of the wish list of Bears fans to be the new offensive coordinator.  Jeremy Bates will be the man in charge of developing Whitehurst into a franchise caliber QB capable of turning around the fortunes of not only the Seahawks, but also of Pete Carroll’s NFL coaching career. 

So the question would be is Hanie in the same mold as a Charlie Whitehurst?  Based on two years of pre-season production the answer should be a resounding yes.  Hanie has been very good in the pre-season  for two consecutive years and there hasn’t been many questions raised about his ability. 

Hanie’s overall package is that of a strong armed and fearless QB who isn’t afraid to take the shot down the field and has proven to be a leader of his offensive unit.  Hanie has led the Bears are solid scoring drives in the pre-season in the fourth quarter proving that he can perform at a high level under pressure. 

Yes it is only the pre-season, but it is positive to note that Hanie is performing at a high level against competition he is supposed to be at the same level as or arguably even a lower level considering Hanie’s acquisition status.  He is better than the competition he faces which is more than you can expect from your backup QB.  The only level of competition he can perform at a higher level against would be the starters in the NFL which means he would be starting QB material. 

While we hope there is never a reason to guage Hanie as a starter, the only way to know more about Hanie than we do right now is if Cutler is injured.  Cutler being injured is obviously a situation the Bears don’t want to face  no matter how good the backup QB is in the NFL. 

Here is the problem with a journeyman former starter who is appealing as a backup, he’s no longer a starter in the NFL for a very good reason.  There in lies the argument for leaving Hanie as the backup, because even with a so-called proven commodity, you’re dealing with an unproven commodity now, because if he was still capable of playing at a high level he would be a starter in a league starved for QB talent.  The fact of the matter is I can’t think of one former starter that I would want playing ahead of Hanie.  The experience factor is overrated if he can no longer be productive because the only way Hanie will ever get the needed experience is if he gets out there and plays. 

At the end of the debate one thing remains clear, the Bears are short on the options that Mike Martz desires in a backup QB but there is also too many unanswered questions even if there were legitimate options out there.  Hanie is right now a solid commodity whether Martz likes to admit it or not.  He has shown well throughout mini-camp the start of OTAs and will hopefully continue his success throughout training camp and into his third season in the NFL. 

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