Lovie had to make QB move 
September, 25, 2007
09/25/07
7:17
PM ET
Lovie Smith had no choice but to change quarterbacks. With Tommie Harris, Nathan Vasher and Lance Briggs hurt and possibly missing games on defense, the Bears needed more out of the offense. They were getting less with Rex Grossman.
Grossman was making too many turnovers. The offense had 11 turnovers in three games. His quarterback rating was 45.2. The defense isn't going to be as dominating in the next few weeks because of the injuries. As thin as they are at defensive tackle with Harris out and Darwin Walker playing hurt, blockers are going to start getting to Brian Urlacher, taking away his effectiveness.
It was time for a change. The Bears were 30th on offense and were minus-six in the give-away, take-away ratio. Grossman had become horrible handling the blitz, and teams were finding ways to get him out of the game. Brian Griese can manage the game better and make better decisions as he moves around the pocket.
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John Clayton
John Clayton is a senior writer at ESPN.com. He brought his vast NFL knowledge -- and prodigious list of contacts -- to ESPN in 1995 after a long career covering the NFL as a newspaper reporter in Pittsburgh and Seattle. His presence across the network is ubiquitous, from ESPN.com and "SportsCenter" to ESPN Radio and ESPN The Magazine.
Clayton was inducted into the writers' wing of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2007. A 1976 graduate of Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, he was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 2001.
