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LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- The Chicago Bears signed veteran long snapper Chris Massey on Thursday to replace the injured Patrick Mannelly, who landed on injured reserve with a torn ACL.

Rookie long snapper/defensive end Jake Laptad, who was signed on Tuesday after impressing Bears special teams coach Dave Toub in the preseason, was waived in order to make room for Massey on the club's 53-man roster.

The Bears likely felt they needed an experienced long snapper down the stretch as the team attempts to reach the postseason. With starting quarterback Jay Cutler out indefinitely, the Bears cannot afford any breakdowns on special teams. Massey appeared in 135 games over nine seasons for the St. Louis Rams.St. Louis Rams

STREAKING

1. Roy Williams, WR: The receiver twirled his right hand quickly, index finger pointing out with the motion forming tiny circles. Williams explained that as the universal signal for “keep it coming.” Perhaps the fans can ask the same from the receiver, who hauled in a season-high five receptions against the San Diego Chargers after not registering one grab the week before against the Detroit Lions.

2. Johnny Knox, WR: That spinning 24-yard touchdown grab in the third quarter, that’s a catch most receivers won’t make. But somehow Knox did it on a day he averaged a whopping 32.3 yards per catch. It’s no secret the coaching staff has been extremely high on Knox in recent weeks, which is part of the reason Devin Hester is seeing less action on offense. After one-catch performances in back-to-back games, it was nice to see Knox showcase his explosive ability.

3. Jay Cutler, QB: As he’d done all season, Cutler bounced back from a rough outing in the win over Detroit to put on a quarterbacking clinic against the Chargers. What’s disappointing about Cutler’s pending absence is he seems to have perfected the art of threading the needle under duress, not to mention he’s performed a tad more consistently than he did in 2010.

SLUMPING

1. Edwin Williams, OG: “Slumping” is a strong word here, but it was clear Williams hadn’t spent enough time with the starters when he filled in at left guard against the San Diego Chargers. Williams held up well in pass protection, but as offensive line coach Mike Tice anticipated, he was somewhat shaky in situations that called for him blocking in space. Given a little more time with the starters, Williams will get up to speed.

2. Dane Sanzenbacher, WR: Opportunities continue to dwindle for the rookie, who hasn’t caught a ball in three consecutive games now. Going into the matchup with the Chargers, he ranked fourth in the NFL in drops (5) according to ESPN Stats & Info and that could play a role in the lack of looks from the quarterback. We’ve chalked up the recent struggles to hitting the rookie wall, but he’s got to snap out of it soon. Sanzenbacher has proven he can perform at this level, and the team will need him down the stretch.

3. Amobi Okoye, DT: It wasn’t too long ago that defensive coordinator Rod Marinelli indicated that Okoye could be pushing Henry Melton for the start at that under-tackle spot. But Okoye hasn’t been quite as disruptive recently as he was during a two-game stretch in Oct. in which the veteran registered a pair of sacks. Part of that is the fact Melton has performed better, which has taken away some of Okoye’s snaps.

On the day Brian Urlacher returns to practice with the team, the NFL Live crew breaks down why he is such an important factor in the Bears' defense .

ESPN.com senior fantasy writer Eric Karabell previews the fantasy options for the Chicago Bears.

NEW ORLEANS -- Cutler-gate swung wide open once again Tuesday during the coaches breakfast at the NFL owners meetings as Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith adamantly defended quarterback Jay Cutler regarding questions about his toughness.

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CHICAGO -- The Chicago Bears informed season tickets holders last month of the team's refund policy in the event games are lost in 2011 due to the lockout.

In a letter sent via e-mail from Bears team president and CEO Ted Phillips, season ticket holders were told, "in the event games are cancelled, you will be given the option between a refund or credit to future games. Refunds will be paid no later than 30 days after the final determination of how many games will be played during the 2011 NFL season."

The Bears won't be refunding interest, which would be a small sum. Season ticket holders would only start to accrue interest once a game is officially cancelled, and would then only earn interest for up to 30 days, since refunds are due to be received by ticket holders no later than 30 days following a final determination of the 2011 schedule.

NFC North rival Detroit took a slightly different approach on the matter. Lions team president Tom Lewand told Detroit season ticket holders in a similar letter, "we will provide you with a full refund, with simple interest, for any cancelled preseason or regular-season home games."

"We all want football without interruption while ensuring the game is sound and strong well into the future," Phillips wrote. "We have no doubt an agreement will be reached with the union. As Commissioner Roger Goodell recently stated, "These are not easy negotiations, but the outcome can be positive. If both sides give a little, everyone, including fans, will get a lot and the game will improve through innovation."

The due date for Bears fans to renew their season tickets is April 7, 2011.

Not only does Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith believe Jay Cutler is tougher than some perceived after his early exit from the NFC Championship Game, but Smith believes Cutler actually is a great leader.


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Chicago Bears great Richard Dent, who was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, said Monday that he's down to two candidates to present him into the Hall.

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Seattle Seahawks defensive end Raheem Brock didn't apologize for calling Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler a "sissy" via Twitter, but Brock did admit he might have edited himself if he had all the facts.

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DALLAS -- Chicago Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris, whose future with the team is uncertain, said he won't become a distraction like Albert Haynesworth.

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Response to a report that Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler underwent a painkillingshot for his injured left knee during halftime of the NFC Championship Game was basically a collective shrug of the shoulders by a couple of NFL veterans.

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DALLAS -- Chicago Bears general manager Jerry Angelo praised the play of backup quarterback Caleb Hanie the day after the NFC Championship Game.

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FORT WORTH, Texas -- Mike Wallace thought he was headed to Chicago.

After a standout collegiate career at Ole Miss, the speedy receiver attracted plenty of attention leading up to the 2009 NFL Draft from the Chicago Bears, who needed help at the position.

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ARLINGTON, Texas. -- Mike Trgovac is a certified expert on the topic of Julius Peppers.

Trgovac, the Green Bay Packers current defensive line coach, spent seven years with Peppers in Carolina as both defensive line coach (2002) and defensive coordinator (2003-08). Over that span, Peppers made five Pro Bowls and recorded double-digit sacks in six separate seasons.

However, after all the success in Carolina, Peppers arrived in Chicago with the reputation of occasionally taking plays off.

"He had it [the reputation] coming out of college," Trgovac said Tuesday at Super Bowl media day. "I always attribute it to [the fact] he's so smooth and natural. I was his position coach his rookie year, and he was rookie of the year by the way, and he only played 12 games. I did every [college] game on him because we had just been hired there in Carolina and Houston already said they were going to take quarterback David Carr, so we had to choose between Julius and Joey Harrington.

"People always talked about him taking plays off and doing this, but he's just so smooth and natural that he does things so easy that people think he's being lazy. But Julius plays hard. That reputation has always followed him, and maybe will always follow him for his whole career. I don't know, I hope not, because he is a really good guy. He commands a lot of attention. What was really impressive for us [in Carolina] was his work ethic in practice. He busts his butt in practice and I don't think the kid ever got enough credit for that."

Besides providing background on Peppers, Trgovac shed light on the Packers defensive mind set during the NFC Championship Game in the aftermath of the Jay Cutler injury.

"Let me tell you, I've played against Jay Cutler a bunch of times and he is a tough kid," Trgovac said. "We were talking about it on the sidelines as coaches. You could see Collins warming up and one of our coaches even commented that if Cutler could play, he's a tough guy, he'll play, and to just keep your guys focused on the rush lanes.

"When Jay was in there, we respect his running ability. He's had some runs on us in the past so we really respect his running ability. When Todd came in there, Todd isn't that mobile, so we changed up a couple things on our rush lanes. When [Caleb] Hanie came in, we knew he could run a little bit. I mean, Cutler and Hanie aren't Michael Vick, but they both have escapability, so we had to make a quick change. It was one of those deals where the players were over there by the heaters, and I saw what was coming on, so Kevin [Greene] and I grabbed our guys really fast, we were knocking guys out of the way, to tell them [the Bears] are bringing [Hanie] into the game. We told them to keep your rush lanes and be conscience of stuff like that."