QB Leak stands tall at camp



LAKE FOREST – For a second consecutive day, a University of Florida product was showing what he can do at the quarterback position for the Bears. But Rex Grossman was nowhere in sight.

Chris Leak , the starting quarterback for the 2006 Gators team that won the BCS national championship, was in his second day of the Bears’ rookie mini-camp Saturday.

Despite passing for 88 touchdowns, throwing for 11,213 yards and establishing Florida records for passing yardage, completions and attempts, Chris Leak was not drafted last weekend. But the Bears offered him a free-agent contract.

“I wanted to be a part of the Bears organization,” Chris Leak said.

Chris Leak was strong Saturday on short passes, making crisp throws on different routes to a variety of receivers, including the team’s first-round draft choice, tight end Greg Olsen.

The longer throws presented more of a challenge as he overthrew his receivers occasionally and some passes tended to wobble. Also, he slipped once in the pocket and fumbled the center exchange another time.

Saturday’s session is part of any normal growing process for any rookie, including Chris Leak , who hopes to compete with Kyle Orton for the No. 3 quarterback job on the roster.

“Timing is big to be successful at the next level, so everybody is getting each other’s timing down,” Chris Leak said. “As we get more comfortable with each other, things will get a lot smoother.”

The man whose opinion matters most is coach Lovie Smith. He liked what he saw out of Chris Leak on Saturday, citing an improvement over Friday.

“He has led his team to a national championship, so you know he is a good leader,” Smith said. “He has thrown a lot of passes and started a lot of games for Florida, so that tells you a lot. We’ve been able to see some of that. He does have a good arm and he picks it up fairly quick.”

One of the knocks on Chris Leak is his size. He officially listed at just under 6-feet. Smith said Chris Leak ’s height has not been a burden before, and he does not expect it be a problem in a Bears uniform.

“He has been the same height for all his career and he got a scholarship and won a national championship at that same height,” he said. “You can see by our quarterbacks and by our football team, height never has been a big deal for me.”

Chris Leak said he has not spoken with Grossman recently, he did know him in Gainesville and looking forward to catching up with later this month at the team’s mini-camp for all players.

“You always admire and respect the Gator greats,” Chris Leak said. “It is pleasure to be here and learn from a veteran quarterback like him. I learned how to play SEC football from him.”

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