Speaking on 670 The Score (WSCR-AM) in Chicago, new Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz praised TE Greg Olsen for his versatility but also said that a primary duty will be blocking. "He's a different tight end than I've had in the past, but all tight ends, their first responsibility, they have to put their hand down on the line of scrimmage and be a successful blocker. They have to be able to do that job and do it well, and then they move into receiving," Martz said. "To just skip by that and say, 'Okay, he's a terrific receiver,' then you may as well just put another wide receiver in there. And he can do these things, and that's where [defenses] have a really difficult time with a tight end that is as well-rounded as he is, that can move around and get isolated on 'backers, can put his hand on the ground and block a defensive end yet get down the field and stretch the defense." Source: CBS Sports
Martz had Vernon Davis and under-utilized him. He doesn't know what to do with a good receiving TE. He should be trying to find as many weapons for Cutler as he can...cuz Cutler's gonna need them. Martz's quarterbacks spend A LOT of time getting hit!
Martz is dead on with that but he's also shed the light on Olsen's biggest weakness. Turning him into a good blocking TE is going to require a lot of fundamental practice & a lot of weight room work. As it is, Olsen's not fooling anyone into believing he's not a pass first option when he's out there due to his piss poor blocking. Hopefully Martz's comments are a calculated shot across Olsen's bow to kick his butt into gear. We need blocking first from our TE position no matter what kind of receiving it brings.
Ya a TE needs to block, but a guy like Olsen needs to focus on his ability to jump and catch the ball. This is just another reason why i love the martz hire.... another year of cutler dooom.... haha
When he was with the Rams we never had a solid receiving TE, as proven when we had blocking guys like Ernie Conwell, Cameron Cleeland and Brandon Manumaleuna. Greg Olsen is far from being a blocking TE, and I really cannot see how Martz can get success from him in that department.
