BearFan PHX

I agree with why we'd want to keep him as depth, but he will get offered a chance to start somewhere else. And we are not going to get into a bidding war for him, so I expect him not to be here next year. I love your description of having a talent pipeline with depth thats actually growing to be impact starters in a few years, that is for sure a great plan if you can prime the pump and get the cycle started. The Bears have never looked that far ahead before, it's nice to see an actual plan developing. Time will tell what happens, but we do agree that when he's healthy Jenkins is a pretty good player. I think we just disagree on what to do with him, or what the Bears plan will be, and that's all just future guesses for all of us, so cool. We mostly agree.

youre right I did misunderstand. Of course i want to see us draft OL, and there will be free agents too. I had misread you to mean that you want to draft two other players for RG, LT or OC, and also keep Jenkins as a starter. Im just saying that Jenkins' contract ends this year, and if you think he's your real starter for the future, then of course you pay him, but if you dont, I dont think paying him less and keeping him around is as advantageous as it sounds, since you know he's going to get injured again. (saying if you think he wont get inured again then by all means you pay him and keep him) And also I think another team will offer him a starting job, and I dont think we will or really can? But yes, youre point about drafting a starting quality player is well taken, I completely agree.

if he can stay healthy, then I agree hes good, but I dont think having a guy who gets injured a lot is a bargain at a lower price, and I dont think that having a backup in the wings is as good as having a good player you can just count on?

I totally agree about Braxton becoming depth, but i think Jenkins needs a new deal after this year, and someone will offer him a starting job somewhere? EDIT - yes he is a free agent after this year. Someone will offer him more than we should. Maybe we will get compensatory picks for losing him?

so i think when setting a price for him, and seeing the value etc, what youre saying is good analysis, but for me the problem is that if you think a guy is gonna be hit and miss, playing sometimes and not other times, then youre getting a backup there a bunch of the time, and continuity is lost. It's almost like you got what you paid for, but instead of a mediocre player, you get a pretty good player but only some of the time. My personal guess is that Poles will look for a new starter there for next year, and let Jenkins go. It wouldnt be fair to demote Jenkins to a swing player, someone will give him a starting job, and possibly regret it when he misses time. I wouldn't be shocked to see at least 3 new starters on the OL next year that arent currently on the roster. Basically an overhaul. Maybe Murray will ascend, or Bates will play well and that will only be 2 players, but Braxton's days are numbered, and Pryor is doing well filling in, but a real right guard will be necessary. And unless Bates is great, you can add center to the list. It could be 4 new guys. Only Wright is safe to my mind.

No doubt Jenkins is pretty good when healthy. I have seen him make some mistakes too of course, same with Wright, but overall, id call them keepers if it wasnt for Jenkins' history with injuries. It's about rolling the dice i guess, because you're right, when healthy he's a damn good player. But i think at this point, you can't really bank on him, no matter how cap friendly the price? But it's just my read on the gamble. There is no medical condition that i am aware of that says he is more likely to be injured again, but his history means that to me, I would move on from him. But you're right too that he's a good player, and there is no guarantee he will be injured again.

Mahomes is the reason they win, despite how his stats look. Another case of how stats dont really tell the story,

I dont see Jenkins coming back. He is talented, but he has too many injury problems. I expect to see a number of new faces on the OL next year. The only one who is safe right now is Wright. He will come around I think based on his rookie year film.

I think the dead cap hit on Garrett is like 45 million. They cant really trade him this year.

The games in the back half of the schedule are gonna be tough, but iron sharpens iron. We need to get beat up a couple times to know how to be tough enough to win. It's gonna be difficult, but the schedule gods gave us this first half of the season for Caleb to learn. Then we will see where we are in the second half. I predict we will give them some tough games, pull a few out and still also get spanked a few times. Maybe a playoff berth, but even so, likely to bow out early. ANd that sets the stage for a real football team to begin work next year, knowing what it takes, hungry and committed. And as Ive said all year, with this roster, I dont want to put any ceilings on who they are in december, so they could get ahead early on my prediction and make more noise in post season than Im "expecting" In an case, it's all really good for us long term.

everything matters, but in the end, its all about the QB. He's got 6TDs, 8 INTs, and they are 6-0.

LOL perfect example. the stats are totally one sided, but then again, if you watch the film (and in this case, it doesnt have to be the all 22! lol) you discover that he went out injured in the first quarter. A lot of people have said hes too slight to take the hits, and they may be right. I tried to avoid that criticism and just look at his skills as a pocket passer. But the people who worried about injuries are already getting their argument somewhat validated apparently.

yeah there are lots of articles to read, and narratives to follow. But there really is no substitute for watching the game on the all 22, otherwise you never know whats real and whats a narrative. Most people dont do that, so theres lots of people walking around repeating opinions they read, but the film itself is really the only truth. For example, I have my opinions about Jayden Daniels. I watched some college tape on him, and Ive seen some highlights of him in the NFL. But the truth is I dont really know, because i didnt watch the all 22.

I totally agree!

yup - without context, stats are lies thats why you gotta watch the game, and really you gotta watch the all 22, preferably each play 3 or 4 times to see the line, and understand the play that was called.

I would imagine Crosby would command a first, a third AND a player like Herbert or even Booker. Think about the Khalil Mack trade. For me, that might be too steep a price to pay. Then again, it's a championship defense. If we could move a 2nd and a 3rd and a player, id do it in a heartbeat. I just really want that #1 pick on the OL. But if theres a young talented free agent LOT out there, then maybe i could be persuaded. Its a hell of a price, but it'd be a hell of a defensive front too.

yikes. that is scary. I am SO glad that isnt us.

that's as good a read as any. if we see them sign one, then it will be a signal to think about. of course, if the right price or player comes available, you might rush to grab a RB for the practice squad at that point. But your point does seem to indicate it isnt imminent, or part of the general plan right now, so good read.

As we are all learning (later than most maybe) the NFL is ALL about the QB. And there are almost none that actually GOOD. I think we have one The next 10 - 15 years are going to be amazing to watch. And we all watched this story for so many years, when it finally pays off, it's gonna feel So good.

we either got really lucky with the schedule, or the league wanted to give us time to build. I suppose another explanation would be to delay divisional games so more teams stay mathematically alive longer to prolong interest.

you can only play who they put in front of you - but Caleb has been under pressure, and he's beaten the blitz enough to make teams play him honestly, and things like looking off of safeties and getting through your progressions are big time no matter who you're playing. But yeah, I am very much looking forward to seeing him against better teams, both to see where hes at and to continue growing.

its amazing to see him growing. He's already a pretty good QB, in the last 3 weeks hes in the top 5, but you can see that he has a long way to go before he reaches a ceiling. how good can he get? This is gonna be fun to watch!

I think the thinking is that Swift is better than Herbert at everything Herbert does well, and Roschon is a power runner who doesnt have the homerun capability of Swift (and maybe Herbert?) but can grind out tough yards where Herbert is usually stopped by first contact? So the role Herbert would fill, and can fill, which is why he has trade value, is filled better by Swift, while Roschomn offers a totally different set of complementary skills?

Dude, I love the constant stats - this board is my favorite newspaper for following the Bears! Your stats are timely, interesting, and often not the usual completion percentage kind of stuff. Love it.

So Im starting to look into Cam Robinson, and I was thinking "where can I find a rating that I respect more than the PFF rating" and as I googled his Madden ratings came up. Now I know that Madden is a video game, and that people are often offended at the ratings they give players as too high or too low, but I chuckled and thought "I wonder if Madden ratings are more reliable than PFF" LOL