Injuries struck the Chicago Bears offensive line hard throughout the past month. Teven Jenkins, Lucas Patrick, Nate Davis, and Darnell Wright all missed practices and preseason games. Once backup center Doug Kramer also got hurt, GM Ryan Poles knew he had to find some help. He scoured the market for possible solutions. His scouts pinpointed veteran blocker Dan Feeney as a viable target. The guy had loads of starting experience, was still under 30, and had the athleticism necessary to fit their system. It was also clear his chances of sticking on the Miami Dolphins roster were thin.
So the Bears sent them a 6th round pick for the guy. Feeney has plenty of versatility, having played all three interior positions. Defensive tackle Justin Jones would know. He was teammates with Feeney in Los Angeles for a few years. Bears media asked him what the team is getting in the new blocker. True to form, Jones was honest.
“He’s a great guy. Loves football. Loves beer.”
You know that last part has to be 100% true if it’s one of the first things that came to mind for Jones. Cole Kmet soon backed him up. The tight end had a fateful encounter with Feeney at a golf outing a few years ago.
“I can definitely confirm the latter.”
Dan Feeney is definitely in the right city.
Chicago is considered one of the best beer towns in the continental United States. It’s rather interesting his three primary stops in the NFL have been Los Angeles, New York, and now Chicago. One must wonder if he’s quietly trying to conduct the most subtle bar crawl of all time. Jokes aside, it isn’t a surprise the Bears targeted him. Aside from his experience and scheme fit, he also has the personality Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus look for. He loves football and plays with intensity. The guy can be downright mean on Sundays.
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This isn’t the long-term savior people wanted. Dan Feeney is an emergency solution. He should be an immediate presence in the wide-zone running game and will help on screens thanks to his range. However, the Bears would be wise not to leave him one-on-one in straight passing drops too often. He doesn’t have the anchor or the hand technique to survive like that for long periods. Ideally, he will be the primary backup to Jenkins, Davis, and Cody Whitehair.
I 100% agree Scott brs. At some point Poles needs to show his guru colors on the line. Up to this point it honestly seems that is his worst area of roster building. I am sure Feeney is not viewed as a long term starter, but Poles could have done better here. But he is here, and let’s just hope he can hold his own until the starters get healthy.
Feeney isn’t good. He’s another bargain bin pickup. I was hoping we were about done with these types of moves. Yes, we have to have depth, but eventually we need starting caliber players. Davis is a no show and Jenkins is hurt again. Patrick is crap. Right now our best option at guard is Carter. For all the love Poles gets for being an offensive line genius you wouldn’t think it would be our most pressing need.
Hope Feeney works out as a legit backup.
But I gotta admit, it’s gonna take me some effort to judge him fairly, cuz I’m having a hard time getting past the mullet. 🤣
I am def very curious what the real story is with Davis. All around, it’s odd. Never really heard anything about an injury, but I also don’t buy the story about the note being put in his locker n shit.. but something is off here. My personal opinion us he was grossly overpaid when they signed him, and up to this point it looks even worse. But he’s on the team now so it is what it is. Just hoping he is out there week 1. I never heard anything about a poor work ethic in Tennessee, but I also… Read more »
Let’s hope pff graded Feeney unfairly last year. Because they graded him well below Sam Mustipher. And Mustipher had almost 10 times the number of snaps.
Let’s hope they were wrong.