The party line at Halas Hall is that, for the most part, the Bears' defensive line has made a quantum leap under the direction of new D-line coach Rod Marinelli, who we hear is also more than earning his salary as Lovie Smith's assistant head coach.

That certainly appears to be the case on the edges, where DLE Adewale Ogunleye, who is in his contract year, is playing at what many daily team observers believe is a Pro Bowl level, and DRE Alex Brown is on pace to surpass his career-high total of seven sacks. in addition to being in a three-way tie for the team lead with four tackles for loss entering Week Six.

The DE position was further fortified when the Bears pulled the trigger on a trade with Tampa Bay Friday night for former first-round draft pick Gaines Adams, a player Marinelli has long coveted.

On the nose, the perpetually underrated Anthony Adams continues to get the job done with flying colors. "There's a perception that he's an older guy, but he's only 29 and actually could be just approaching his peak," said one team source.

Each of them has gone out of his way to sing the praises of Marinelli, who won't stand for anything less than their best efforts.

"It's his attention to detail that they all talk about the most," the source said of Marinelli. "The way he coaches and explains things really gets through to them. He emphasizes the small details, the minutiae, stuff like hand placement and making the proper stance. "It's stuff that they all worked on before, but Marinelli really explains to them why it's so important."

Another strong point is Marinelli's emphasis on rushing the passer, which is perfectly in line with Smith's increased usage of blitzes this season.

"With more blitzes, it has put the linemen in more one-on-one pass-rushing situations," the source said. "And Marinelli demands that they win those battles."

The one player on the line who hasn't shown a dramatic improvement under Marinelli is starting DT Tommie Harris, who is expected to be the D-line's centerpiece but has been clearly outplayed by Adams.

"Nobody's complaining, but he just hasn't done the job expected of him," the source said of Harris. "He came into training camp overweight, and he's underachieved for the most part ever since."

PFW has launched its brand-new NFL Draft Newsletter series, with the first issue now ready for mailing. Produced by PFW's player personnel department under the direction of Nolan Nawrocki, the series consists of four information-packed issues. For more info or to subscribe — click here for PDF e-pub or here for print format.