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McManis exceeding Toub’s expectations

Until Devin Hester returns a punt or a kickoff for a touchdown, Sherrick McManis’ blocked punt in last Sunday’s 51-20 rout of the Titans will stand as the Bears’ top special teams play of the season.

McManis bolted in off right end and blocked the punt that fellow Northwestern product Corey Wootten returned five yards for a touchdown. McManis also recorded two tackles while covering kickoffs and was named NFC special teams player of the week.

“I really like Sherrick,” said special teams coordinator Dave Toub. “It’s good to see him make a play for us. He’s got the quickness. He’s got great get-off. He used really good technique on that. It’s really hard to get a block in the NFL. There are a lot of things that have to go right, and they did on that play.”

When it was clear that fullback Tyler Clutts would not earn a spot on the Bears’ 53-man roster, they traded him to the Texans in exchange for McManis, a third-year pro.

“He’s exceeded our expectations,” Toub said. “We saw him on tape and we saw that he was a good gunner and he filled a need there for us. That’s really what we expected. But once we got him we started realizing what kind of get-off he has and we felt we could use him as a rusher.”