Desmond Clark

If Clark stays with the Bears this season, his fantasy upside will be very limited. He caught just 19 passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns last season in his role as Greg Olsen's backup, and he has the added hurdle this season of competing with newly-signed Brandon Manumaleuna for playing time.

Clark got passed on the depth chart by Greg Olsen last year and will continue to be the second option in Chicago. If anything were to happen to Olsen, Clark would immediately be a good option with Jay Cutler throwing his way. Clark is a decent receiver in his own right, but he lacks Olsen’s route-running ability and explosiveness.

The Bears increased their use of their tight ends in 2007, which was expected following the addition of first-round draft pick Greg Olsen. Clark and Olsen developed into a nice tandem, but the fantasy world hates things like tandems and platoons. Clark, who finished 12th among tight ends with 78.5 fantasy points, benefited from Olsen's inconsistent rookie year. However, the Bears are looking for Olsen to emerge as the primary tight end at some point this season. Clark's had a nice little roll the past five seasons, but the pendulum will swing toward Olsen in 2008.

Clark’s numbers in 2006, when he was second to Alge Crumpler with 13.91 yards per catch and had six touchdowns, set or tied career bests. However, the Bears drafted Miami’s Greg Olsen in the first round, and that will reduce Clark’s opportunities. The two will share the role in 2007, so expecting a repeat of last year’s production will only disappoint.

The Bears tied for 29th in the NFL with just 28 completions to their tight ends, and Clark led the way with 24 receptions for 229 yards (14.3 ypg) and two touchdowns. Bears coach Lovie Smith is bringing in other tight ends to compete, but this team just doesn’t use the position enough.

Clark’s 20-catch, 151-yard drop from 2003 was disappointing. Perhaps it was due to the league’s lowest-rated passing and scoring offense, but we don’t see where there will be a big improvement in 2005. Clark had more than 50 receiving yards in just one game last season.

Clark was hampered by a toe injury for much of the 2003 season but exceeded the threshold for minimal tight-end productivity nonetheless. In two of the last three seasons, Clark has posted solid TE numbers – with Denver in 2001 he had 51 catches for 566 yards and six touchdowns. The Bears lost Dez White in the offseason and did not add significantly to the wideout corps, so we expect Clark to continue to produce in Chicago. The one small caveat is the inexperience of second-year quarterback Rex Grossman.

The Bears signed Clark to a six-year, $12-million contract in the offseason. The Bears offense ranked 29th in the league last season, with just two receivers gaining more than 250 yards. Clark had a breakthrough year for Denver in 2001 (51, 566, 6), but broke his arm early in training camp and was released before being picked up by Miami. He played in two games for Miami, catching two passes for 42 yards. We still have to see how he interacts with new Chicago QB Kordell Stewart, but this should be a good situation for Clark, who has never held a No. 1 job with any regularity.