Article:With Bensons Gone Who's The Bears Starting Running Back?

Wouldn't it be ironic if Ricky Williams V 1.0 replaces Ricky Williams Jr. (A.K.A. Cedric Benson.)

Honestly Bears fans, Benson's release is a blessing in disguise. Besides being a drunk Benson, has never performed on the field. What's the point of keeping him on the roster?

So where do the Bears go from here? Well the good news is that they have a lot of options.

Option A: Stay In House

Matt Forte/Adrian Peterson/Garret Wolfe

This is the most likely option but I'm not sure if it's the best one. Forte, a second round draft pick this year, had an insanely productive college career. However, he's a tweener (RB-FB) and is a lot more Brian Leonard than anything else. He's a good guy to have on your team, as an everyone down back however I'm not sure how he grades out.

Behind him you have Peterson and Wolfe. Peterson is the definition of "eh." Again he's a valuable backup because he can carry the ball 20+ times a game if need be but, you also don't want him carrying the ball 20+ times a game. Wolfe is the wildcard of the group. He's guy I liked a whole lot coming out of college. He brings an explosive dimension to the running game that neither Forte or Peterson can. He has an extremely small frame and given more than 10 carries a game he might break down.

Odds: 80%

Option B: Free Agent Market

The Free Agent Market is usually barren this time of year...this year is an exception. There are several big name backs available.

1) Shaun Alexander

Does Alexander have anything left in the tank? He hasn't garnered any interest on the open market. Generally that's not a good sign.

Odds 10%

2) Travis Henry

Another talented running back, however this one comes with as many red flags as Mr. Benson.

Odds >0%

3) Kevin Jones

Of all the free agent running backs, Jones, is the most appealing. He's constantly dealt with injuries but you can't deny how effective he has been when healthy. The injury concerns have scared off most teams and I can't imagine he has a very high price tag.

I like this option for the Bears.

Odds: 35%

Option C: Trade Market

Trades in the NFL use to be a rare occurrence but they have been occurring more frequently as of late. There are a lot of teams in the NFL that are very deep at Running Back and certainly could afford to deal one.

Giants - Derrick Ward

Brandon Jacobs/Ahmad Bradshaw/Derrick Ward/Ruben Droughns.

The definition of depth. Of all these RB's, Ward is the most expendable (Droughns can play full back in a pinch as well as in short yardage situations.) As we saw last year behind a solid O-Line Derrick Ward could be a starting caliber NFL running back. If your the Giants and the Bears offer a 5th round pick, you would have to take it right?

Vikings - Chester Taylor

Taylor, though a backup is still a very good running back. I think the Bears would find it too pricey (2nd round pick?) to acquire Taylor.

Falcons - Jerious Norwood

This is one I find intriguing. For whatever reason Norwood has never found a home as an NFL starter (this despite averaging over 6.0 YPC in his young NFL career.) This off-season the Falcons added Michael Turner again forcing Norwood into a backup role. I would assume the Falcons would request at least a third round pick for Norwood in a trade. If I was the Bears GM that would be something I definitely would have to consider.

Raiders - Justin Fargas/Lamont Jordan

They could just wait till inevitably Jordan is released. I doubt Fargas would be traded, as he just signed a new contract, though with the addition of McFadden one of the two is certainly expendable.

and finally we come back to the start...

Miami Dolphins - Ricky Williams

Williams story has been documented ad nauseam so I'll spare you the rehasing.

What you might not know is that Williams is in tip-top shape this off-season and in fact has looked great at mini-camp.

Is it worth taking a flier on Ricky? It's tough to say. After the Benson public relations fallout it'd be a risk to add someone of Williams character. With that being said, no running back on this list has the upside that Ricky does.

Who blinks first if the Bears offer a third round pick for Ricky?

It might not happen, but it's certainly fun to think about.