While Torry Holt was making his rounds at ESPN , getting ready for his eventual post-NFL career on NFL live and SportsCenter, an interesting proposition was made.

He is still a decent wide receiver, and with his former head coach working as the offensive coordinator, Holt should be given a serious look by the higher-ups in the Chicago Bears organization.

He still has good legs and runs some of the crispest routes in the business and has some solid hands, not to mention he can help the young receivers in Chicago learn Mike Martz's complex system.

The biggest issue that plagued the Bears last season and undoubtedly caused at least a few of Jay Cutler's 26 interceptions was route running, and that is the one thing that Holt prides himself on.

Having Holt there to teach the young receivers like Johnny Knox, Earl Bennet, and Devin Aromashodu the intricacies of route running could be invaluable to the future of the Chicago Bears.

But Holt isn't just a teacher, he still has the ability to be a viable option in the passing game.

ESPN said that his ceiling last season was around 500 yards, but he produced just over 700 yards despite not catching a single touchdown.

This isn't just fantasy talk though, Holt talked about the possibility of coming to Chicago on the Waddle and Silvy Show on ESPN radio recently, and he also talked about going to Chicago on SportsNation recently.

"This year I would again consider coming to Chicago and helping that football team out, helping Jay Cutler in terms of helping him get settled in that offense and give him a quality and consistent weapon play after play along with Hester and Aromashodu and Knox and Bennett and Forte and Olsen, I mean the list goes on and on with the talent that they have," Holt said. "I think I could fit in really well with that ball club and add a really good veteran presence."

There has been article after article asking the Bears to trade for Brandon Marshall or Anquan Boldin (although the Boldin ship has sailed), but adding the much cheaper receiver could be just as helpful.

The Bears would be foolish to not take a look at the 34-year-old veteran receiver.  Holt had eight straight 1,000-yard seasons under Mike Martz when he was with the Rams, and though a reunion likely won't offer the same statistics, it could be highly beneficial for all sides.

After spending big money early in free agency, adding a veteran for cheap could have effects lasting years, as he could help bring along the young receivers in the complex Martz system.

Will the Bears make this move?  Maybe or maybe not, but if they don't at least make contact with Holt's camp, they would be making a big mistake.

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And the Chicago Bulls are officially out of the playoffs...as of now.

With a Bulls' loss to the Utah Jazz Tuesday night and a Charlotte Bobcats' win over the Miami Heat, the Bulls have now fallen to the ninth seed, a half game behind both the Bobcats and the Heat and a game under .500.

Currently, nothing is going right for the Bulls.

The team has given up 100 or more points in eight straight games including 115 points per game during the five-game losing streak.

Also during the five-game losing streak, the Bulls have given up nearly 50 points per game in the paint and have been out-rebounded by 40.

The defense down low is simply not stopping anyone with Taj Gibson and Brad Miller.

Miller is far too soft to play the minutes he is being forced to play and the rookie Gibson cannot be expected to do all the rebounding and grunt defensive work.

Hakim Warrick can give you some work down low, but his body is not meant to be knocked around.

Chris Richard and James Johnson have the bodies to work down low defensively and on the glass, but are a complete crutch offensively. With the Bulls having no real outside shot, minus Derrick Rose and the banged up Luol Deng, the team needs at least a threat in the paint.

Unfortunately, the Bulls have no choice but to go with Miller in the starting position based on the fact he can score and won't completely get knocked around.

The next five games for the Bulls are against teams that are .500 or better including the Orlando Magic, Dallas Mavericks, and Cleveland Cavaliers, who are extremely better than .500.

With Joakim Noah out, things are going to get worse before they get better.  

The Bulls could very well lose every game in March because nothing is going to come easy without Noah.

The only teams under .500 the Bulls face in the remaining games in March are the Philadelphia 76ers, who have Elton Brand, the New Jersey Nets, who have Brook Lopez and the Detroit Pistons.

If the Bulls have any hope of making the playoffs, they will need to somehow find a change in the defense and keep their heads above water until Noah gets back for the final eight games in which the Bulls face the Bobcats (currently a half game back of) twice, the Toronto Raptors (currently two games back of) once, and the Milwaukee Bucks (currently three games back of) once.

Not even the Eastern Conference is bad enough to let a team in the playoffs that loses every game in March.

The Bulls need to find something.

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When the Chicago Bears signed DE Julius Peppers to a six-year, $91.5 million contract, they made a number of statements.

One, the Bears indicated to the rest of the NFL that with Peppers, Chester Taylor, and Brandon Manumaleuga, they're trying to win.

A franchise that had historically been referred to as "cheap" gave Peppers the highest total of guaranteed money in the history of the NFL ($42 million).

Two, the Bears showed their fans that, between Peppers and Jay Cutler, they want to sell jerseys. This is the second consecutive offseason that the Bears have made a significant move to improve their team in an overwhelming way.

The third statement the Bears made was subtle, but very direct. Bears' GM Jerry Angelo just made life hell for Bulls GM Gar Forman for the next six months.

Consider the professional sports landscape in Chicago for a moment.

The best thing going in the Windy City right now is the Blackhawks. This past summer, the Hawks spent big money to add a superstar in Marian Hossa, and then locked up their emerging young stars Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, and Patrick Kane with significant contracts.

The Bears not only traded for Cutler, but then gave him a substantial pay raise during the season. Between Cutler and Peppers, the Bears have spent more money in the past two seasons on two players than they had in the previous decade.

The Cubs and GM Jim Hendry have been huge spenders over the last few years. Alfonso Soriano and Carlos Zambrano lead a group of eight Cubs who will make more than $10 million each in 2010.

Even the notoriously frugal White Sox are spending money in ways they traditionally haven't. While their payroll is down nearly $30 million from 2009, the additions of Alex Rios ($9.7 million) and Jake Peavy ($15 million) are two contracts that the South Siders have not considered on the trade market in the past.

With the Sox adding a former Cy Young Award winner in Peavy, the Hawks locking up their young stars, and now the Bears signing the biggest free agent on the market, the Bulls are stuck between a rock the size of the Sears, I'm sorry...the Willis Tower and a hard place.

Why?

If you follow sports at all, you know that the coming summer's sports news will be dominated for a couple weeks by perhaps the greatest free agent class in the history of any professional sport hitting the NBA .

LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh , Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire, and Carlos Boozer are just a few of the marquee names with expiring contracts, and every NBA team was trying to cut payroll at the trade deadline this year in anticipation of spending like a Kardashian this summer.

The Bulls were among the teams dumping salaries at the deadline. John Salmons and Tyrus Thomas were unloaded for players with expiring contracts to open up enough space so the Bulls could be serious players for a megastar.

Contracts are a little different in every professional sport, and the NBA has its quirks. In the coming months, the phrase "max contract" will be thrown around a lot as analysts talk about which teams can spend how much on these big time players.

There isn't such a thing as a "max contract" in the NHL, NFL or MLB, but each league has some limitations on how much teams can spend (this statement excludes the New York Yankees).

The NBA has a "max contract" to level the playing field in free agency. The most money any team can offer LeBron James this summer is 25 percent of the salary cap, which would be roughly $136 million for six years starting next year. The same can be said for Bosh and Wade, based on their experience in the Association.

Any team can offer as many of the "max contracts" as they can afford, but still have to fill a roster. In the case of the Bulls, they can afford to offer one "max contract" but will have plenty of spending room to offer another star a fairly substantial payday as well.

Derrick Rose has become of the better young stars in the NBA, and was honored with a selection to this season's All Star Game in Dallas . Playing next to Rose is certainly attractive, and playing in the building where Michael Jordan won three of his six rings has a prestige that not many arenas in the league can offer.

Wade's in Miami . On South Beach. With no state income tax. Yes, he's a Chicago kid, but coming home might not be the best move for him or his family.

Bosh plays in Canada, so he's fair game. He has already told Toronto he's not going back, and will entertain offers from all over the NBA.

He's a good, young power forward that produces and runs the floor well, so the Bulls wouldn't be the only team throwing a lot of money at his feet.

LeBron was born and raised in Ohio. Whether or not he would leave his hometown, despite it being Cleveland , is a huge question mark, and the prospect of playing at Madison Square Garden and resurrecting the Knicks might be too much for the Bulls to outbid.

There are going to be a lot of options for all of these guys this summer.

But look around Chicago. The Bears are spending money on big names. The Cubs and Sox have added some expensive players recently. And the Blackhawks are one of the best teams in the NHL and might win a Stanley Cup.

Now, the Bulls aren't only competing with other NBA teams for the attention of these players, but now they're competing with every other team in Chicago for the fans' hard earned dollars.

Six months ago, nobody figured the Bears would land the biggest free agent on the market (or guarantee him $42 million). But they did.

Forman and the Bulls now cannot afford to not land a big-time player this summer. They have an emerging superstar in Rose, but they need to keep up with the rest of the city.

Good luck, Bulls. Go get us a winner!

For more great coverage of Chicago sports, check out Tab's blog on ChicagoNow: the Daily Chicago Sports Tab!

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The Chicago Bears have been linked to several prominent free agents this offseason, including a few big-name running backs.

However, the best possible free agent running back that the Chicago Bears need to be pursuing is not Brian Westbrook, or LT, or even Darren Sproles.

The Bears' best option is actually a former Bear...Thomas Jones, who will be released by the New York Jets as free agency begins on Friday, March 5.

Before everyone calls me crazy, hear me out.

First off, in regards to the other options...

Westbrook is a good player. He still has some explosiveness and quick moves, but his concussion problem is something that should steer Chicago away from him.

Tomlinson has fallen off. There is generally a rule of thumb with running backs that once they start declining, generally that decline is steep. He would still be a solid option for a change of pace back or for veteran leadership, but his price tag might be a little too high for his recent lack of production.

Of the main three, Sproles might be the most ideal, as he is without a doubt the best pass catcher of the group and quite possibly the most electric receiver coming out of the backfield we have seen in the entire decade. But odds are he can find a home (like back in San Diego) where he will get more touches, more money, and more of a chance to be an every-down back.

But Thomas Jones...I realize that the Bears and he parted ways on not so good of terms, but he is the ideal running back.

Bringing him in will give that offense another solid option in the backfield. Jones was at his best with Chicago when they ran dual backs with him and Cedric Benson. Team him with Matt Forte and there would be little drop-off between the two.

The only downside would be that there would not be a change of pace. Both backs have a similar style of running. But it would mean that we have a high-caliber player in the backfield at all times.

Last season with the New York Jets, Jones rushed for 1,402 yards and 14 touchdowns—and the Jets are releasing him! While I know Jones rushed behind one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, he also played with a quarterback that was usually instructed to NOT lose the game (remind Bear fans of anyone else?), and defenses were teed up against the run every game.

Adding Jones would also allow the Bears to part ways with two other backups: Garrett Wolfe, who has not done a whole lot in three seasons, and longtime backup and special teams ace Adrian Peterson. This would also give Kahlil Bell a veteran back from whom he can learn.

The most important thing that T.J. can teach Forte and Bell is hard work. The man is a machine. He is the definition of a gym rat. Jeff Joniak and Tom Thayer used to praise Jones for his work ethic. He works out hard, keeps his body fit, and never stops trying to get better. What more could you ask for out of your running back? 

I understand that this is a long shot considering the terms he and the Bears left on, but Thomas Jones should be the best fit at the best price for a position that needs some leadership.

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