BearFan PHX

I think we can go to the playoffs this year, Im saying the roster is more than one offseason away from being a true SB contender.

Ive been thinking for a while that as much as NO one wants to hear it right now, we are probably 2 offseasons away from being a true SB contender. So Im glad you said it. And when I said leadership I was thinking of the coaching staff, but we need it on the line from players too. I wish I was in a position to take a side on this player. I saw about 5 minutes of film on him and he looks like a beast. But I havent seen anyone else, and im just not ready to have any kind of informed opinion yet - and probably wont be for many weeks. One thing is certain - we need to give Caleb a line to stand behind and read defenses, or there will be no growth. And if they open up the running game, that helps all that too. And thank god we have a coach and playcaller that finally understands that, instead of another group determined to rediscover the bubble screen without having realized we've been bleeding from it for decades over many coaching staffs.

everything matters, but youre right it ALL starts with leadership.

agree with all of that. Im not 100% sold on Campbell at OT, but Im glad we both see the aggression. Im not NOT sold on him either, I just havent really done any homework at all yet, so I dont have any kind of real opinion.

totally agree. If we look at the Lions (and I admit that Johnson has already said he wont be running the exact same offense here) they have a powerful line, and rather than having an offensive running scheme like most teams, they ran versions of all schemes at different times. And that surely included the power game. Like you said, the power game gives the DL less time, and it also threatens a defense that insists on running 2 deep safeties, so it opens up the passing game too. I think Matt Eberflus has an immature idea at best of how an offense works, and Shane Waldron was an idiot. This video game football, the same we saw with Nagy, of all the pulling and exclusively outside zone running concepts, and bubble screens is a joke. Sure all those things have their place, and we will do them, but I agree that our line will be stronger at the point of attack than we've been in many years. By scheme, by players and by conditioning. We should not be emulating the 2022 Rams in our running game. As you say, Fangio already decoded that in Denver, dropping safeties in cover 2, and cover 4, and you saw what he did to the Chiefs too. Every defense has seen that pulling man coming across the formation. it may threaten the edges, but it doesnt influence safeties back into the box. And Im not saying we wont do it, but it wont be ALL we do. And power running is going to be a part of what we do. This may be unpopular, but i wonder what this might do to rehabilitate Roschon Johnson. Imagine if we'd done this already a few years ago with Montgomery...

I see the short arms thing, and the projection to guard thing. One major difference is Skoronski was a "catcher" while Campbell is a first striker. Campbell may still end up an interior player due to his arm length, but I don't think Skoronski is a complete comp, because Campbell is more aggressive.

For sure, but it's a balance. Some programs develop more strength at the cost of flexibility, and vice versa. Where to strike that balance is the question. For Billings it was muscular, Davis too (although he may just be a pussy that doesnt want to play). I agree that the concussions are up around the league because of increased protocol around them, and ankles are probably not a result of conditioning either. Still, I am optimistic that the new S&C coach could be an improvement for us? From what we read, under Eberflus, the linemen werent really pushing themselves in the weight room, so that alone might make an improvement too?

Im not projecting Kiran at all - too chaotic for any kind of crystal ball on him from my point of view, but i also think it's hard to judge him on his performance last year since he was injured, got zero reps or practice and then just got thrown into games. He will be different with a proper start and camp development etc. But just as i say that I cant judge him last year, I am also saying I cant really judge him at all, so I dont predict him either way right now. That said, if you get a shot at a LT you CAN predict to be excellent, you absolutely take it. i agree.

Rusty Jones was the Bears' strength and conditioning coach from 2007 to 2012 after having been a "secret weapon" (according to Marv Levy) for the Buffalo Bills for 20 years. He retired after the 2012 season, and I remember how he emphasized flexibility and individual nutrition programs. I remember that we had fewer injuries back then, and I remember writing a post to this board back in 2013 saying that he was an unsung hero and we would miss him. here it is - I found it And surely, the Bears have been bitten by injury bugs over the years since. Pierre Ngo has been an assistant of strength and conditioning with the bears for two stints.from 2015 to 2021, and again for the last two years. Of course as assistant, he wasnt the one to make the calls about what we would do as our program. He worked under Jim Arthur, who comes from the Rusty Jones tree. Apparently his interview with Ben Johnson was enough to convince him to promote him rather than look elsewhere. Of course we did have injures under Arthur, so I dont know how strong the Rusty Jones connection is, or what it means, but if he is a devotee of Jones' philosophy, then this could be very important and good news for us. I do recall reading a lot about what we were losing when Jones retired, and writing that post here. And I did notice over the next years how much more injury prone we were than i had ever remembered, as we switched from flexibility based to raw strength based training. I cant say anything for sure about this, but I am hopeful that this is a big move.

Thanks for all the names - it's a good place for me to start my investigations. The one thing I'd say about bringing players back is that they are basically free agents just like free agents that werent on our team last year. Since the staff and scheme are all changing, there's no particular reason to keep them over someone else - they just have to be a better choice than whoever else is available at that price etc. So all things being equal, I'd expect it's as likely as not that we see a lot of new faces. Even among the backups and less talented guys at the bottom of the roster?

obviously losing Brisker was a big hit too. It doesnt just have to be one player, I agree. If I had to have lost just one of the two of them, I would have chosen to lose Brisker and keep Billings though. I hope they are both healthy this year, that's the best outcome.

I think the biggest loss to our defense that really caused us to drop off was Billings.

I suspect we will sign some IOL starters in free agency, and draft talent at those positions to develop, and have a year to build muscle in the weight room. If that IS the plan, then trading down makes sense because you dont need to draft players higher to pay for the extra value of being more ready to start right away?

Ok so just being clear - Im keeping Kmet this year too. Im just saying, if someone offered a good value in trade, that I could use, say to help the OL, and if johnson was saying Kmet didnt have the skill set he needed, that youd have to look at it. But yes, my money is on that Kmet will be a Bear this year, but maybe not next year depending on his performance in 2025.

totally agree. thats where Im at too. I just think you gotta think about what else you could get for $10M in cap space plus whatever value youd get in trade.

well first off I wasnt saying he should be cut, but it is worth noting that you save $10M off the cap if you trade him - thats a lot of money. But what I said was they will probably keep him this year to see what they can get out of him before they make that decision. I dont know what skill set BJ requires in a TE, so it was worth noting. Im not saying Kmet is bad, but $10M plus a decent trade offer is worth considering, because Im not sure his worth is equivalent to all of that? But again, I predict we keep him this year, but he might be ont he block next year depending on how he plays for us this year with targets.

just a finer point - to save that $10M, the trade (or cut) must be designated as a post June 1st move. For anyone researching the cap situation. Still feel the same though. He gets a year tryout with BJ. Probably. If someone offers enough in trade, or BJ doesnt think he has the skills he needs, then it could go the other way. But my money is on him being here at least this year.

I agree. This is why i think they give him one more year to prove himself before thinking about that $10M. I could be wrong, but that's my guess. But the way his contract is set up, they can cut him any year now and gain $10M in cap space.

He is assisting Jason McKie coaching high school football I guess. I think that story is still being written, I wouldnt be surprised if he does get more into coaching.

I dont think we will make a big splash in free agency for a WR either, but I do think there are questions about Kmet. We can cut him any year int he next three and instantly save $10M off of the cap. I dont think Kmet sucks, but I dont think he is worth $10M. That said, they may give him a year under Johnson and see what they can make of him. Certainly he wasnt targeted much last year at all, so it's hard to judge if he is a $5M TE, a $10M Te or a $15M TE. My guess is you could replace him with someone better for the money at $10M, but I also think he will get a prove it year this year. But until he does prove it, I dont know if you can count on him to be a top 3 receiver for us? I do expect us to find a speedy slot type guy though, but probably not the most expensive one.

exactly, one of the points Olin made (regarding Davis) was that if you pay a vet big money, you expect more than just production on the field, you gotta sign someone who will be a leader in the locker room too. And of course Davis was neither.

Olin Kreutz was on TTNL tonight, and said some really good things about Roushar, and what it takes to make an OL work in general. In short, Kreutz has some connection to Roushar, I think he played under him somewhere, and he said he was very similar in approach and temperament to Harry Heistand, which I think is a very good thing. Seems like we are going to be looking for players on the OL that have attitude. Finally.

so you dont need to trade for free agents, you just need to (over) pay for them?

hahahaha perfect

I read an article that the director of pro personnel would likely be elevated to asst GM.