Green has been a strong safety most of his career. Its only this offseason that they moved him to free safety.
Bears' rookie gets the Green light
BY K.C. JOHNSON
Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO - (KRT) - Their lockers are next to each other at Halas Hall, but the current fortunes of veteran Mike Green and rookie Chris Harris couldn't be further apart.
A quickly forged friendship off the field also involves a competition on it and Harris took the upper hand Wednesday after coach Lovie Smith said he would replace Green as the starting free safety in Sunday's home opener against Detroit.
The move is another example of this Bears' regime not hesitating to play youth and leaves Green - who has started 42 of his 65 games in five seasons - as a very expensive special teams player with an uncertain future.
"I don't think I deserved it," Green said.
Green, who signed a five-year, $10 million extension in 2003, committed a costly pass interference penalty in the opening loss to Washington that negated a Nathan Vasher interception.
The soft-spoken Green calmly expressed his frustration with not only losing his starting job, but also with being benched for the entire second half against the Commanders.
"They didn't communicate with me," Green said. "I thought I was just out for a series or two. But they ended up keeping me out the whole game. The communication wasn't good at that time.
"Since then, I've had a chance to talk to Lovie, (defensive coordinator Ron Rivera) and (defensive backs coach) Perry Fewell. We kind of got everything squared away."
When Green signed his extension, several teams expressed disappointment that he didn't visit free agency.
Until the Bears see if Harris can hold the job, no decision on Green's future can be made. But Green clearly re-signed to play, not sit, especially at his price.
"We're always thinking team-first," general manager Jerry Angelo said when asked about trading Green. "And whatever is in the best interest of the team we're going to do."
Seeking more consistency, big plays and size_Harris, at 205 pounds, is 10 pounds heavier than Green_the coaching staff promoted the rookie in a manner similar to what it did with playing Kyle Orton over Chad Hutchinson and Mark Bradley playing in three-receiver sets over Justin Gage.
Vasher and Tommie Harris contributed as rookies last season, each playing all 16 games.
"When you draft somebody you have to have a conviction about them and if you have a conviction about them, you have to play them," Angelo said. "They have to show it in preseason and show the maturity, but these kids have that."
The 12 snaps on which Harris played against Washington served to further the coaching staff's belief he's a strong tackler who can only get better.
Harris brought down Clinton Portis in the open field and also contributed on special teams, refusing to be fazed by the large crowd.
"He doesn't have any fear," Fewell said.
"In the preseason, he made plays on the ball that were veteran-type plays. We've been holding him back and saying he's making progress.
"But we need new energy, some excitement. He's not afraid. And we're not afraid."
Harris, a true free safety, is just plain excited. A sixth-round pick out of Division I-A Louisiana-Monroe, Harris only played one year of high school football.
He said a consistent non-conference schedule against SEC teams prepared him for tough competition.
"Those usually were my best games," Harris said. "I feel I'm supposed to be here. And I feel very fortunate to get those snaps (against Washington) to get more comfortable. The whole speed of the game is faster than preseason."
Harris has leaned on Green and fellow veteran safety Mike Brown throughout training camp, consistently picking their brains for pointers.
Though Harris tied for the nation's lead with seven interceptions last season, the Bears see him more as a hitter, which is fine by Brown.
"I don't like those ball-hawking kind of guys," he said. "I like guys who are hitters. You hit guys and in the fourth quarter, that's when they start dropping balls."
Smith downplayed Green's transition from strong to free safety as a factor in his demotion, saying the positions are relatively interchangeable in the Bears' scheme.
But Green addressed the change as he also detailed his lack of surprise over the move, which he said he saw coming as early as the first week in Bourbonnais.
"Last year, I was closer to the line and I was able to make a lot of plays on the line," Green said. "This year, I'm back deep. You have to wait for things to happen.
"I wasn't really No. 1 through the whole camp. I was told I was, but I wasn't. Other guys filled in for that role. It was kind of like something was going to happen. As a guy who has played football my whole life, you have to stay positive. So my role now is to continue working hard, help Chris learn the defense and to be productive on special teams."
Smith said Todd Johnson would continue to see action against run formations.
It's unclear how much, if at all, Green will play, one half of one game after finishing second with 132 tackles last season.
"This is not an indictment of Mike Green," Angelo said. "We like Mike Green. But we want to take a look at Chris and we'll see where it goes from there."
