Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton evenly split the first team snaps during minicamp and OTAs, and both of them looked good. Nothing will be decided in this competition until training camp/preseason.

The big news in the past month is obviously that RB Cedric Benson is now gone, having been waived on June 9th after his second alcohol-related arrest in five weeks. I believe that drafting Benson #4 overall in 2005 is by far the biggest mistake that GM Jerry Angelo has made in his tenure with the Bears, and I do not say that in hindsight. I told anyone who would listen at the time that the Bears should not take Benson because 1) he had character issues in college (two arrests while he attended the University of Texas) and 2) he just wasn’t that good (in my opinion). Coming out of college, most people lauded Benson for his durability, not his speed, agility, elusiveness, power, catching ability, etc. To me, he did not stand out in any of those areas, and of course his durability has been a weakness since his NFL career started. I would’ve either drafted Cadillac Williams or traded down. I know that Williams hasn’t exactly worked out for Tampa Bay since his great rookie season, but if he had come to Chicago, he would’ve shared carries with Thomas Jones (and had a better offensive line) instead of being overused like he was at times with the Bucs. Plus, Angelo wouldn’t have had to worry for a second about Williams’ character. As much as he didn’t want to waive Benson, I think Angelo is probably relieved that he doesn’t have to worry about him getting arrested again. The team doesn’t plan to sign a veteran free agent runningback at this time, and I doubt that anyone will be signed unless rookie Matt Forte struggles once training camp starts. I think the only free agent tailback on the market that might make sense for the team is former Lion Kevin Jones, who is coming off a torn right ACL but is still young (25), rehabbing well and has shown flashes of ability in the past. He also has expressed interest in signing with the Bears. However, Jones (if healthy) would likely want to start at some point, and the Bears may not want to impede Forte’s path to the starting job. The coaches are very high on Forte, and it looks as though they really want him to be their opening day starter at tailback.

The talk of minicamp and OTAs was Rashied Davis, who has taken his play up a notch with Bernard Berrian and Muhsin Muhammad gone. According to receivers coach Darryl Drake, Davis is "quicker, he’s faster, he’s stronger. He puts more fear in them – you go ask those guys on defense who puts fear inside them." Superstar return man Devin Hester has shown great improvement at receiver, and offensive coordinator Ron Turner said at the Bears Expo earlier this month that the team may triple his workload (even though he’ll still be the return man). "We’ve talked in the area of 30-35 plays a game," Turner said. "If we can get him that many plays and get the ball in his hands 5-7 times a game – whether it’s some quick passes or down the field or whatever – he’s going to make our offense much more productive." Hester’s agent and the Bears are continuing to negotiate a contract extension. Brandon Lloyd also has looked impressive since putting on a Bear uniform. The wide open wide receiver position will be one of the most interesting position battles going into training camp next month.

No news here.

DT Tommie Harris got his big payday late last week, signing a four-year, $40 million extension with $18 million guaranteed. Harris has been a great player on the field (when healthy) and a model citizen off of it, so this extension was well-deserved, especially considering the low-key way he went about getting it. No "I’ll never put this uniform on again" threats through the media. No skipping practices. Harris just waited patiently while his agent and the Bears negotiated behind closed doors. I hope more players out there learn from Harris’ example.

MLB Brian Urlacher made an appearance at minicamp and during one of the OTAs, but he is still waiting for an extension of his own. His agents and the Bears have had positive talks in the past few weeks, so there’s a decent chance that something will get done by training camp.

During OTAs, the Bears continued experimenting with Danieal Manning at cornerback, this time at the nickel corner position. Manning has mostly played free safety in his tenure with the Bears, but with Mike Brown healthy again and likely to fill that position, the team wants to take advantage of Manning’s great speed and athleticism somehow.

Free safety Mike Brown is healthy again and running with the first team defense. Hopefully one of the league’s good guys can finally stay healthy for a full season. Brandon McGowan has impressed the coaching staff while lining up next to Brown at strong safety. At the Bears Expo, defensive coordinator Bob Babich picked McGowan as the defensive player he thought might have a breakout season.

Coming next month: a training camp preview (camp begins on July 23rd)