Wondering about a player, a past game or another issue involving the Bears? Senior writer Larry Mayer answers a variety of questions from fans on ChicagoBears.com.
Which player do you think most helped his chances of making the Bears roster in Friday night's preseason game against the Giants?
Ryan D.
Waterloo, Iowa
I'd say cornerback Clifton Duck. He's an undrafted rookie who has been making plays on the ball in practice, but to carry it over into a game like he did Friday night against the Giants shows what he's capable of doing on a big stage. Duck's interception was a thing of beauty: the way he read the play, closed on the ball, made a diving catch and had the presence of mind to quickly get to his feet and try to score. He has a knack for getting his hands on the ball—he had 12 interceptions in 39 games over three seasons at Appalachian State—and will get more opportunities to show what he can do in the Bears' final two preseason games against the Colts and Titans.
I was a little surprised that rookie David Montgomery was among the players the Bears held out of their preseason game against the Giants. Does that mean that he's already earned a prominent role for this season?
Vince F.
Rock Island, Illinois
That's definitely the assumption I made. Not playing running back David Montgomery versus the Giants was a sign to me that the third-round draft pick has already proven what type of player he can be and the Bears want to preserve him for the regular season. I'm sure if it were up to Montgomery, he would be out on the field. But as Nagy said after a recent practice, he intended to "protect David from David."
What happened on the snap that got past quarterback Chase Daniel and rolled out of the end zone for a safety? It looked to me like a pretty good snap. Would you agree?
Dave C.
Niles, Michigan
The shotgun snap from undrafted rookie Sam Mustipher looked to me like it was pretty accurate, but maybe a bit too fast. Here's what quarterback Chase Daniel said about the play after the game: "It was obviously something that I could've handled a little bit better. I really didn't know that we had actually switched centers before that drive, but I've been working with Sam all summer and all these games. So yeah, I mean listen, I have to catch it. It was a little bit of a heater, but we talked through it, settled him down and we're good."
