BearFan PHX

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.

yeah I was thinking Carolina, but more than that, Im hoping Fields rises to the occasion, Carolina sinks, and for us to be able to snag Marvin Harrison Jr as the first non QB taken with Carolina's pick BUT If Carolina has the second or 3rd pick, and Fields was awful and we have the 4th or 5th pick, I think those two together would get you the #1 pick.

It's an amazing tribute to Poles, but looking at the roster, one of our weakest positions now is QB. That's a great place for Fields to be. He isnt being held back by a bad Ol or covered WRs any more. He should have every chance to succeed. And if he does, watch out. And if he doesnt, we are in the Caleb Williams lottery with 2 first rounders. I wanna see Fields ball out and use those picks on Harrison Jr and a top edge rusher.

I agree, I think the long term "floor" is Dexter at 1T and Pickens (or whoever) at 3T, BUT Dexter has such a high ceiling, if he turns into a monster, he could play either DT spot. That said, if we find (or develop) another 3T monster, and Dexter plays at NT, that would be amazing because he has pass rush abilities from the nose, and that means there is nowhere for a QB to hide. Dexter is a great chess piece and will help us a lot from either DT position. I'm with you 100% - we need edge rushers now.

If we play a run heavy physical team, I could see both Dexter and Billings in on first down. Move that!

I think Dexter has the tools to be a real monster in a few years - who knows maybe the lightbulb will come on sooner, but i expect him to be really good in a few years. He will definitely be a starter at NT, probably before this year is over, and he may stay there. Itd be great to have a NT who can bring pressure, you hardly ever see that, and teamed with a real and good 3T, the push from the middle could be unprecedented. But he also could turn into an All Pro 3T in time, so I cant say where he will end up. I hope we see flashes of it this year. I read he isnt done growing too and could add more size and muscle to his already huge frame. I'll be rooting for him to evolve into a star for us. Id love to see it right away, but i suspect it will take a while. Maybe he will turn into a major force in the middle of 2024 right as we are opening our superbowl window. I think all of this is possible, and I also think he will make mistakes this year too. He has the brute strength to recover from some of those mistakes, but i think we will see flashes rather than consistent dominance from him this year. All this to say i am excited about him, and I wont get too down on him or any of our rookies as they acclimate to the NFL. Just look at Brisker and Gordon last year. We started them before they were complete, and they had growing pains, but now they are solid. Ditto CB Stevenson. Oh and Wright? He's gonna be a stud from the word go.

the only guy in the former office(s) who was good, and he is great, so glad hes back.

I saw the same film. I saw plenty of examples where he wasnt late out of his stance from 2021, and youre right his strength is incredible. Im feeling a lot better about this draft now that I see Dexter's upside. I wonder if Dexter can be sudden enough to be a monster 3T. He looks like he will be fine at NT, but if he can be huge and strong and shoot the gap and be disruptive, this could be something really special. And as long as Im drunk on Kool Aid - wouldnt it be cool if Dexter turns out to be a Pro Bowl 3T and Carter doesnt? We could have a Poles parade.

I just hope the Panthers lose more games next year than the Packers do. Even if we have to draft Caleb Williams and trade him, I do NOT want to see the packers get another 15 year all pro first ballot HOF QB. They NEED to suffer like the everyone else for a generation. Of course if we should be so lucky as to have the #1 pick, we will trade out of it like we did this year, to someone who would draft Williams ahead of the Pack. But no matter what I dont want the Packers to lose more than 11 games this season. 7-10 would be great.

see, this is why this board is better than any of the hometown newspapers. you gonna hear this in the sun Times or the Trib? No way. Great info, AZ.