BearFan PHX

So true! I was just saying what Swifty said in the video. I wouldnt hesitate to add a stud pass rusher to our roster just because it might cost Lewis some reps.

Swifty also makes the point that if (when?) we sign a free agent DE, that will force this guys like Terrell Lewis and D'Anthony Jones out to the margins. It may well be that Poles wants to see these guys and get them some reps before he does that?

This is what i keep thinking about every time I load this page during the day. I keep hoping to see the news that we signed someone at DE. I think it's just a matter of patience though. Something is coming, it's just no fun to wait for it. Hunter would be a great addition, but it may be a surprise from left field too.

for yards, yes, but for carries we would just need a feature back that got 23 carries a game and didnt get injured, and TDs is wide open.

Yeah the rushing yards recdord is gonna be there for quite a while. The rest are all possible to break. Youre right tho with a strong rotation, the attempts wont fall either, but it would only take 23 carries a game for 17 games to break it. If Roschon becomes a feature back, who knows what 2024 looks like. Biggest threat to 23 x 17 is injuries.

it's a great connection you made

hahaha youre right! I remember him now too! what black magic did Carolina do?!

PFF is random. sometimes they will get it "right" - so despite PFF, I DO think Davis is extremely underrated. I think Wright is going to be a monster. I hope Jenkins does well on the left side too. I figure Whitehair is an average starter, so 11th, 15th whatever. He will get the calls right, and hopefully he will execute his blocks. I do trust him to get protections right, but I dont think he is a dominant physical presence the way Davis and Wright are going to be.

I see where Davis is practicing with the team now - good sign. I think the right side of our OL is going to be 90s Cowboy-like. Cant wait to see it. You could probably use Davis and Wright instead of bulldozers for the new stadium construction, wherever that's going to be.

I do think this is a real problem, and while you dont want to get a QB thinking too much about his mechanics, it does add to a long release and give defensive players a tell. Its definitely a real problem.

yup, all of that. JJ is not worth a top tier contract, and if someone wants to overpay him, and give us meaningful draft picks to do it, I'm all for it.

I saw him make quick decisions in college, so hes not gun shy. What Id say about the Fields of the past two years, is that while he holds the ball too long, he DOESNT throw interceptions. I think that's why hes holding it. And that could just be because guys werent open. Now a naysayer might say that NFL open is tighter than college open, and he needs to adjust to the pro game, but I looked at film and I saw a lot of guys who just werent open. Now sure you can always find some backdoor guy who was open when you were reading the other side of the field, but in terms of what seems to be his progressions, guys werent open in rhythm when they were supposed to be. I think that's gonna change a lot with Moore. So I think Fields has probably been being a better QB than we realize, by not throwing interceptions, and this year could show much improved passing stats.

some smartest guy in the room types (Pace) take pure athletes to coach up, but forget to make sure they are athletes who love the game i.e. football players. thats the main difference I see. But youre right, we trust them so far because theyve made moves we agree with. So now lets see Flus and the guys coach em up.

I think a lot of previous Bears GMs and coaches thought something similar. We reached on athletes who werent football players and assumed wed coach them up. But this is different, because the word "heart" is on the list, and the culture is an authentic one. If you look for "speed, length and production" you cant go wrong. But there are only so many of those players to go around. By the bottom of the first round, youre taking players with some attributes who lack another. To authentically add "heart" in place of "production" is a really smart way to do this. We definitely executed the plan in the draft, now let's see how Eberflus and this staff coach em up. So far, we are hitting every benchmark. Flus, youre up.

Exactly. I love the Rudys. And I'll also take a monster with a ton of talent instead all day long. But like you said, you need both to fill out a roster, and these kind of effort and attitude guys on special teams, strong side LB and slot WR type positions can be really fun. I'm thinking of Tom Waddle right now too. And as we are talking about this, Poles seems to be looking for this kind of attitude in all his acquisitions and draft choices, even if they are also high RAS and production. Building a team with character. I have a feeling that as the talent level on our roster increases, we will start to appreciate Eberflus' HITS culture even more too. This is so much fun to watch.

I loved Monty's heart, the way he finishes runs always impressed me. But the era of mediocre but loveable players is ending in Chicago, and Im ready for us to become a real football team.

yeah, good to hear. He definitely does sound right. Thanks for sharing it, AZ. I was questioning him, but maybe he really has figured it out. Cool. He can sure be nasty when he's on.

yup. when your roster sucks there is no good reason to try to keep as many players who are decent but not great, or decent but not great in your scheme.

right. the way to sustainability is to be constantly drafting replacement players, and only sign the very best of the core guys you have to big contracts. Soon we will see the Bears trading GOOD players in the last year of their deals, like the Patriots did. We will probably whine about it "why not resign X, hes been so good" players on the level of Akeim Hicks when the Patriots didnt keep him etc. But when that happens, know that the Bears will have arrived as a true top 5 franchise in the league. Long way to say that you dont need to be awful to not get resigned anymore, and if you're not a key core player, you are expendable.

Im saying they will draft Jenkins' replacement next year, so he wont get a long term deal, and so you gotta be prepared for the idea that he may hold out or something in 2024. Perhaps he starts opening day 2024, but I dont see him finishing the season as the starter.

I think he plays for us this year, but i don't think he will be the starter at LG in 2024. I could be wrong, he could play well and get his head right, but I think our staff doesnt want to take the chance that his head gets unscrewed later. Not for a LG.

explaining it to him is what his agent is for!

for sure

That would be great, but where would he play? RT is locked down for the next decade, and Jones is ascending at LT. If Leatherwood turned into an All Pro LT, then great, but it's unlikely that he could unseat Jones with anything less than that, and I dont see him really getting the chance to develop like that on the current depth chart? Maybe he would replace Jenkins at OG? Jenkins has physical tools, but hes been a bit of a head case, so who knows? I just dont see the opening for Leatherwood even if he does progress.

that sounds right - sure hope they tank this year.