The Bears are playing host today to two big name free agents, that being Chester Taylor Julius Peppers. The team though already reportedly has a free agent under terms, as reports say the team has inked free agent tight end Brandon Manumaleuna.

Even before he became a free agent, the Chicago Bears never tried to hide their interest in tight end Brandon Manumaleuna. So it’s no surprise that just hours after he became a free agent, Manumaleuna agreed to a deal with the Bears.

Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune reports that Manumaleuna will sign a five-year contract with the Bears today, pending a physical.

Manumaleuna arrived at O’Hare airport Friday morning and confirmed that he has joined the Bears and is excited about playing for coaches he already knows from his days with the St. Louis Rams.

“I played for Mike Martz and Lovie Smith was the defensive coordinator. It was a great situation,” Manumaleuna said. “This team has a chance to be real successful.”

Although the signing will raise more questions about tight end Greg Olsen’s role in Martz’s offense, the Tribune reports that the more immediate question is about tight end Desmond Clark, who has a $475,000 roster bonus due today.

He played the last four seasons with the Chargers, and last season he had 5 catches for 13 yards. He also played four years with the Rams from 2001 to 2006.

Julius Peppers isn’t the only name free agent that will be at Halas Hall on Friday, as running back Chester Taylor will visit the team also.

Running back Chester Taylor is expected to visit with the Bears Friday, according to a league source. Taylor would seem an ideal fit to complement Matt Forte in Mike Martz’s offense, which highlights the running back position. Taylor has served as a valuable backup to Adrian Peterson, particularly on third downs because of his ability to block, run and catch the ball.

To ink Taylor would also hurt the Vikings, which means it’s an even better move for the Bears, who would not only make their team better, but hurt the team that won the division as well.

The Bears have reportedly been hot to trot to try and land Panthers free agent DE Julius Peppers, and they have at the least landed a visit from Peppers, who will be in town Friday.

Defensive end Julius Peppers, the top agent on the market, has agreed to visit the Bears Friday, agent Carl Carey told the Tribune as free agency began Thursday night. No team was allowed to have contact with Peppers until the free-agent period officially began at 11:01 p.m., but Peppers had a strong interest in joining Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, and Tommie Harris on the Bears’ defense. The Bears were the first team to call Carey and extended a “substantial offer” that was good enough to get Peppers on the plane.

Peppers arrival could mean a shift in the Bears defense, as reports have been that Tommie Harris’ job could be at risk with the Bears spending so much on Peppers, who didn’t get the franchise tag again this year from the Panthers.

There are a couple teams that are in the running for former Cardinal safety Antrel Rolle, and now another NFC team is in the mix, as the NY Daily News reports that the Giants also have their eyes on Rolle.

The Giants got a jump on the free-agent market tonight by getting in the race for safety Antrel Rolle.

Rolle was released by the Arizona Cardinals Thursday, which freed the 27-year-old Pro Bowler to negotiate with teams even before the free-agent market opens at midnight. The Giants were one of the first to call, according to a source, joining a race that reportedly includes the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins and Cards.

The Bears, however, appear to be the prohibitive favorites. They are reportedly deep in negotiations with his agent and hadn’t balked at his enormous price tag, with some reports out of Chicago suggesting a deal could happen overnight.

Even if it doesn’t, the Giants are likely long shots because Rolle’s asking price is large. He has already turned down a reported six-year, $38.6 million offer from the Cards, who released him rather than pay him a $4 million roster bonus he’s due next week. Rolle, who was due $8.1 million in salary in 2010 and he’s rumored to be looking for $8 million per year.

Rolle had four picks last season, and while the article above mentions the Bears, the Cards themselves appear to be the front-runner to getting him back.

David Kaplan of The Chicago Tribune says that sources have told him the representative for premier free agent defensive end Julius Peppers met with the Bears over the weekend. To nab him, the Bears would have to offer one of the richest contracts in franchise history.

The defensive end is considered the hottest free agent on the market and is reportedly seeking a contract similar to what defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth received last offseason with the Washington Redskins.

Peppers will not be getting the franchise tag from the Panthers, which means he is free to go to any team he chooses. He would right away upgrade the Bears defense, a defense that has struggled greatly over the past few seasons. It would be a huge free agency splash for the Bears to land Peppers.

Bears tight end Greg Olsen being on the trade block was apparently the most talked-about rumor at the combine this week, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel’s Greg Bedard. The Bears recently hired Mike Martz to be their new offensive coordinator, and Martz has never asked his tight ends to run many passing routes, nullifying Olsen’s talent in Chicago. Plenty of team’s will be interested in Olsen, so it will come down to just how much the Bears want for him in return

In a move that does not come as much of a shock considering how he played last season, a report from Pro Football Weekly states that the team is releasing offensive lineman Orlando Pace:

Pro Football Weekly has learned from league sources that the Bears terminated the contract late Monday of seven-time Pro Bowl OT Orlando Pace. The 13-year veteran’s release has yet to be officially confirmed by the team. Pace had two years left on the three-year, $15 million deal he signed with the Bears before the 2009 season and was scheduled to make a base salary of $3.75 million in 2010 to go with a $250,000 workout bonus.

Pace, who has been contemplating retirement since mid-December, was replaced as the starting left tackle by former first-round draft pick Chris Williams with five games remaining this past season. Despite allowing only three sacks in 11 starts, it was clear he was nowhere near the dominant force he once was.

Okay, a quick review – here are the first 2 steps of my 3-step Chicago Bear pre-Draft player makeover:

1. Trade Lance Briggs for a 2010 1^st round draft pick.
2. Pass on Peppers, sign DE Aaron Kampman.

I was going to tell you move #3 should be signing the Vikings’ Chester Taylor. I had a nice post written about how Taylor would be the perfect complement to (and potential replacement for) Matt Forte…and how he has significantly less wear-and-tear than any of the other 30-something-year-old RBs on the market (Tomlinson, Westbrook). And then a cold dose of reality slapped me upside the facial region.

Here’s why I DON’T think the Bears should pursue Chester:

1. His asking price will be too high, and we have other more pressing needs to address (DE, S) before overspending for a backup RB.
2. If we keep Kevin Jones or AP (notice I did NOT mention Wolfe), we could address RB in the middle of the draft. Here are 3 names I like: Kendall Hunter of Okie State; Stafon Johnson of USC and Charles Scott of LSU.

So since I talked myself out of signing Taylor, I came up with 4 other subtle (and not-so-subtle) roster maneuvers that will help Mike Martz get the most out of his potential one-year coaching audition:

1. Trade Greg Olsen. G-Reg has been a stand-up guy, but he doesn’t fit Martz’s prototypical block first, catch second TE. Martz said it best himself when asked about Olsen – “To…say ‘OK, he’s a terrific receiver,’ well then you may as well just put another wide receiver in there.” Rumors surfaced over the weekend that the Bears could be interested in the Chargers’ Brandon Manumaleuna, who was part of the Greatest Show on Turf. Signing him would give us 5 TEs on the roster. While I don’t think we’d get a first rounder for Olsen (because every team in the league knows he’s not a fit for the new offense), if we could swing a 2 or a 3 and a mid-rounder in return, I say ‘go for it.’ Some potential trade partners? How about the Browns, Dolphins or Bengals.
2. Leave the O-line alone. With Omiyale at guard, Schaeffer at right tackle and Williams on Cutler’s blindside, the unit started to gel late in the year vs. the Vikes and Lions. Let’s keep Frank focused on guard so he doesn’t become the offense’s equivalent of Daniel Manning – an athletic guy whose talent is wasted because he gets flip-flopped between positions. With Martz’s penchant for calling on his QB to take 7-step drops, I like the steady presence of the veteran Schaeffer manning one side of the line and Frank the Tank eating up space in the middle. And if Mike Tice is as good an O-line coach as advertised, he should be able to get the most out of these big uglies.
3. Cut the umbilical cord attached to Garrett Wolfe. After 3 years, the Bears should finally realize what the rest of the free world already knows about the former 3^rd round pick – he’s a small guy who doesn’t have the durability to be a regular contributor. And the Bears could find a dude off the street to match what Wolfe contributes on special teams.
4. Do not sign an experienced WR like Torry Holt or TO. There’s no use stunting one of our younger, more talented player’s development by keeping him on the sideline (see Earl Bennett’s ‘redshirt’ year in 2008). Let them jump right in and learn Martz’s complicated offense through a little on-the-job training. If one of the young guns doesn’t look like he’s ‘getting it’ after OTAs, mini-camps and training camp, then see if there’s a deal or cut that could deliver a seasoned vet.

I can’t wait till this Thursday at midnight when the free agent frenzy officially begins. We should have a lot to lament, criticize and perhaps even praise between then and the draft.

The 2010 offseason has caused Grabowskies across Bears nation to choose sides. On one side are those hoping for aggressive offseason player acquisitions to get the Bears back in the playoff picture. The other side includes those rooting for the folks at Halas Hall to maintain the status quo in 2010 so we can say “sayonara” to Lovie and staff at the end of the season.

After 3 straight playoff-less seasons, I’ve firmly entrenched myself on the first side. So if we’re going for broke this year, here’s the first of 3 moves I think Angelo and crew must make to put the Bears back in Super Bowl contention next year…

Trade 5-time Pro Bowl LB Lance Briggs.

Hear me out on this one. Briggs is the only player, besides Cutler, that the Bears could trade straight up for a 1st round pick (and maybe a mid-rounder too). So if that pick turns into a talented young defensive end or play-making safety, I think we green-light this baby.

And in Jamar Williams, we already have a big talent ready to step in and replace Briggs. He’s a restricted free agent and it wouldn’t cost the Bears a mint to extend him. Williams has proven himself in the playing time he’s had – remember the 20-tackle performance vs. the Rams?

With a healthy Urlacher in the middle, Pisa or Roach on the strongside, and speedy Williams roving the weakside, the Bears would still have a formidable LB corps. And let’s face it – in Lovie’s Cover 2 scheme, an outside LB is probably the 5th most important position on the field after a pass-rushing D-end, cover-capable middle LB, ball-hawking safety and disruptive D-tackle…and you could argue we don’t currently have any of those on the roster now. But a Briggs trade could deliver one over the short and long-term.

Or consider for a minute that we hold onto Briggs and the season goes in the tank – as many folks expect and wish – and Lovie gets fired. Then assume we bring in Cowher, who runs a 3-4 defense. How would Briggs’ skills – honed by playing off the ball in open space – translate as a LB in a 3-4 scheme, where he’d either be asked to play in the middle of the action or take on an O-lineman rushing from the outside? Sounds like trade bait in 2011 to me…

There’s no doubt parting with Lance would be hard…especially for Urlacher, who would be thrust into an even larger leadership role (along with Alex Brown). And I understand the risk of trading a proven performer for a draft pick that may or may not materialize.

Since leaving his Lamborghini abandoned on the side of a Chi-town expressway in the middle of the night in 2007, Briggs has been one of the most outspoken, stand-up players on the squad. But in this win or get canned year for Lovie and staff, I think the Bears have to shake things up rather than settle for more of the same thing.

Watch for the 2nd and 3rd moves of my offseason makeover in the next couple of days. Until then, I’ll enjoy hearing you tell me how crazy I am…

The sad circumstances of Gaines Adams’ sudden death have been released, and there are more disturbing trends around it. A toxicology report shows that the defensive end had marijuana and alcohol in his system when he died. But Greenwood County Coroner Jim Coursey says nothing found in the report contributed to Adams’ death.

The report showed Adams had a blood-alcohol level of 0.021 percent. That’s well below the 0.08 percent at which South Carolina drivers are considered intoxicated.

The toxicology report was obtained by The Index-Journal of Greenwood through a Freedom of Information Act request and the results were published in Saturday’s newspaper.

The 26-year-old former Clemson standout died January 17th in Greenwood. An autopsy showed the cause of death to be a heart attack caused by an enlarged heart. Coursey has repeatedly said nothing found in the toxicology report contributed to Adams’ death.