Danieal Manning: Double duty

Danieal Manning is a stud. No two ways about it. He's the most athletic member of the Bears secondary. He's a terror as a return man. And he's being counted on heavily as training camp gets underway, lining up as the starting free safety and moving to the nickel back position in passing situations (Craig Stetz will come in at free safety when Manning moves to nickel in passing situations).

Manning played well at the nickel last season. He has not played tremendously well at free safety. He was moved from free safety to nickel after starting there his rookie year and showing a penchant for giving up the big play (see Super Bowl XLI). It was said he lacked the football instincts to man the safety position.

Maybe Manning has seen enough in the NFL now that his knowledge of the pro game makes up for his lack of natural football instincts. And, no doubt, Manning has the best physical skill set to play that center field position. But the arrangement with Steltz seems almost backwards to me.

Manning, while by no means slight of build, has never been noted as much of a force in the run defense. His speed has always been his greatest asset. Steltz, on the other hand, is lauded for his in-the-box abilities, and is considered a more natural strong safety because of his lack of range in the passing defense. Instincts and stopping the run are supposed to be Steltz's strong points.

So why is Steltz only coming into the game for passing downs? And if Manning is the guy you want back there because of his speed and ability to cover, why are you letting him play free safety on running downs? Don't you want that speed at center field in passing situations?

And, as a postscript, what about Manning's contributions as a return man? If he's going to play every down on defense, you have to imagine his kickoff return totals will be diminished, much like Devin Hester's when he assumed more responsibility on the offense.

I'm surprised we're not hearing more about Josh Bullocks being in the mix at free safety. He struggled in the New Orleans defensive scheme, but the Bears defense was supposed to be a better fit for him.