Two years ago, I'd have never thought I'd ever use the phrase 'spoiled fucking little bitch' in reference to Brian Urlacher.

But there you have it.

Two years ago, he was dominant. Effective. Terrifying. He looked like he'd rip your leg off and take a bite out of it after he tackled you. Then he'd run up your credit cards while screwing your girlfriend, then he'd key your car and hit you upside the head with a signpost. He was rapidly making a name for himself as one of the premier defensive backs in the league, if not in league history.

And now, he's making a name for himself as a spoiled whiny pain in the ass.

For those living under a sports rock, Urlacher got his contract restructured recently. In essence, he got a huge signing bonus and an escalating per-year amount -- an additional million a year for the next five years (I believe), with a 'practice bonus' of half a million (five hundred grand just for showing up to practice, I'm in the wrong fucking line of work).

Maybe I'm being simplistic here, but didn't he sign a contract a few years ago? A really long-term one? One that was the biggest in Bears history, and was huge even by star linebacker standards? The man signed a CONTRACT. A legally binding document that says, "I promise to abide by what is written here, this thing that I've put my signature on." Which he then broke when the contract no longer suited him.

Those that will argue with me will say that a player should go for all the dollars he can, that a team can terminate a contract at any time and he has to go for the big money while he can. All of which is true. But my counter-arguments are:

- If you want to get a new contract, you have to re-negotiate. Holding out and whining in the press... that's loser territory and it makes the fans hate you.

- If you want to re-negotiate, you have to be... and stay with me here, Brian... you have to be WORTH WHAT YOU'RE ASKING FOR. If you want big money, you have to play like you're worth big money. And frankly, lately, you're not. You're injured, you have a bum back, and you're not playing like a Pro Bowler anymore. I'm sorry, it's not your fault, it's injuries, but it's still realistic. If the Bears can take the money they gave you and invest it somewhere else... say, a younger MLB and maybe, I dunno, a QUARTERBACK, we'd see a lot more in return. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

I pray to be proven wrong here and that Urlacher re-establishes himself as a stud linebacker and that he personally ends up picking Peyton Manning out of his teeth for the next five years. But I have a nagging suspicion that the Bears will end up rueing this decision for a long time to come.