After Tom Waddle`s electrifying fourth-quarter touchdown run Monday night against New Orleans, the Bears are hoping for many more happy punt returns.
Waddle, Lemuel Stinson and Anthony Morgan returned punts against the Saints. Coach Mike Ditka plans to look at other punt-return candidates Saturday night against Phoenix, including rookie free agent Gene Thomas, who has missed some workouts this week with a sore hamstring.
”I want to look at Gene Thomas, who should be ready,” Ditka said. ”And I want to look at Donnell Woolford back there some. Those are the two main guys I want to look at outside of the other guys we have had back there.
”I doubt that we`ll put Dennis Gentry back there this week. We talked about it, but we`ll probably wait.”
Johnny Bailey, an erratic punt returner whom Ditka repeatedly defended against the media in past years, now performs those duties for the Cardinals. ”I hope we tackle him, because I think it would be the greatest thing in the world if he returned one,” Ditka said. ”I don`t know what you (media)
people would say then.”
Helping hand: Offensive lineman Mark Bortz would like to help the younger linemen, such as Troy Auzenne and Stan Thomas, but . . .
”It is kind of hard to go out there and coach guys,” Bortz said.
”Maybe in the preseason we should do it a little more. But you don`t want to sit there and talk about the other guy and then forget about your job. That happens a lot. Sooner or later it comes around to make you not concentrate.” Passing fancy: Bears fans can watch quarterback Jim Harbaugh win the accuracy test in the NFL Quarterback Challenge, Saturday and Sunday on NBC. Among his competition was the Bills` Jim Kelly and the Eagles` Randall Cunningham. The taped event will air each day as part of NBC`s ”Sportsworld” at 3 p.m.
