AZ54

With the way our Oline and offense in general was playing early on in the season they'd have said that's why he lasted until the 4th Rd. You should be able to fill in the blanks on that one. I certainly think he's done well as a rookie but there are limitations to his game that are hidden by that Oline and running game. I said during the draft that I liked his honesty on what he had to work on improving, and his work ethic to get it done. I do like his long term prospects but I'm not 100% convinced he's a long term answer for them. As 4th Rd QB picks go that's pretty good. Passing yards the last few games (195, 139, and 165) are a bit of a red flag and we'll see how things end up this last part of the season. Regardless Romo is gone from his view in a couple months and then the pressure really changes.

Though choice but I'll go with the defense just because I enjoy watching a great defense play. Then I'll spend my money in FA on offense. I think you have Kpassagnon going too early but if we take him can we just call him Kpassa? We've already argued this point of taking another RB, but if we went with your all-offense I'd replace Chad Kelly with Nick Chubb. Yes, Howard is the starter but this will be a nice change of pace. Keep Langford too and say goodbye to Carey. We would either have a rookie QB, Barkley, Hoyer, or some other retread like Cutler handing off. Anyway you look at it having a very good and durable running game is important given our QB situation. You need a 1a and 1b to pull it off for 16 games.

Peppers will go high simply because of the name recognition and he's a very good in-the-box safety. Unfortunately this is now a passing league. Guys like Tyrann Mathieu who he gets compared to can actually cover well, at least one 2nd or 3rd options. I don't see that in Peppers game although he has the quickness and speed to improve in this area. I just hate projecting that when you're talking about a top 10 pick. I haven't even watched him play yet but I still prefer the safety out of LSU ahead of Peppers.

If we're going Alabama then this needs to be our pick: Marlon Humphrey CB Fangio wants bigger CBs who can reroute a WR, then watch this kid play. Those smack downs on WR bubble screens would be nice to have too. http://draftbreakdown.com/video/marlon-hum...-texas-am-2016/ He's listed 5th overall among draft prospects by NFLDraftScout.com. CB is need 1A behind QB so where we pick he's not even a reach. Given the status of our defense (Dline is far ahead of the DBs in capability) he could be a better pick than Allen should both be on the board. Personally I prefer the sack over the pass knocked down so I'd take Allen but I wouldn't argue if we took Humphrey given the huge need. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospec...&school=All

When did Prescott become a great QB? This had to happen somewhere between the end of that Sunday Night game and Monday afternoon.

Massie isn't going anywhere. He's played the second half of the season and we're in no position to take a huge risk cutting him. He's only making $4.2mil in 2017 well within the norms for an average starting RT in the league. Adams just went down with a back injury. Zach Miller will be back for the exact same reason. Who else ya' got? Porter? Who else is out there among our DBs and the typical FA CB salary last year was about $8-10mil. Leno? Our Oline has done well this year IMO with the backups. Leno might not be world class LT but he's more than serviceable. We should sign Leno to an extension, which will be reasonable, and secure him for the few years it will take to find a replacement. Would I like to have an upgrade? Sure. Is there on in this draft? With the possible exception of the OT from Alabama who has questions about his fit at LT, no. Is there one in FA? No. Houston is interesting. McPhee will go into next year with question marks around his knee. He'll still be a good player for us but might not ever return to full time starter. I'm keeping Houston around for now but my money is still on Roy Robertson-Harris to take his roster spot. I see a late cut but if we need his $5mil in cap space earlier I could see us negotiating an injury settlement. There's no way he gets to the $9mil salary in 2018. Royal is a legit cut IMO. I see no reason he'll be able to stay healthy next year and we have Braverman and Meredith in the wings. Wilson is a FA. At best he'll get a small signing bonus on a 1yr deal. From his perspective his best shot to show he deserves a multi-year contract might be to stay in the offense he knows for another season. If the price is low why not bring him back? We'll be drafting a WR somewhere in this draft, or we'll use Royal's money to sign a FA in the 2nd-wave to fill out the roster. Alshon only sticks around if he's willing to sign the deal he had on the table last year.

I agree with much of what Gabriel says about Barkley's strengths/weaknesses but it's just stupid for him to say he's not very good when he doesn't practice. I wonder for how many other players in the NFL, especially 3rd string QBs, we can say the same? Gabriel and I differ on Hoyer vs. Barkley. For all his experience Hoyer was unable to hit guys in tight windows on intermediate passes. Barkley might not have great arm strength but so far I see him better able to place the ball in the right spot on the sidelines, even in the middle of the field. That last pass Bellamy dropped was in a perfect spot despite tight coverage. Windy conditions for either of these QBs is a problem. Probably also true for Shaw. Among the draft QBs I'd say Kizer can best handle the Chicago conditions but the occasional short throws into the dirt that he makes is odd. I don't know if he's rushing the pass or poor mechanics but the clock only speeds up in the NFL. Trubisky is ranked a mid-1st Rd pick. He's a QB so he's only going to move up as the draft process continues just because of the value of the position. The only QB in recent drafts that didn't have a lot of question marks was Andrew Luck. Take a stroll through the mine field of QB draft history and remember both Vince Young and Matt Leinart were drafted ahead of Cutler. http://www.nfl.com/draft/history/fulldraft?type=position

If Trubisky is there I take him. Otherwise I strongly consider that trade back.

I'd take him too, he has great mobility for a big man.

I completely agree except, if we move on from Cutler, Barkley could well end up our starter and compete with a rookie. At this point I've seen enough of Barkley to know we can say goodbye to Hoyer. Bring back Barkley, Shaw, and a good rookie prospect (plus a camp arm). Sutton only has dead money of $2mil next year. I agree he hasn't played that great but he also joined late and is in a totally different system. I'd give him a full offseason to get with the program and see what he's got next year. If the youth steps up in preseason and are better just cut him and save $4.5mil. I think Sitton will improve and we'll be solid across the interior Oline. I do like Brown and coaching him through a full offseason program should only improve his performance. Having him and Miller on opposite sides will really stress a defense and opens up the playbook equally on running and passing plays. It may not show in the record but Pace is finding talent that can play in this league. Top priorities this offseason are to sort out the QB situation and DBs.

As losses and draft picks go, this one was done perfectly. The youngsters had some fight in them and made it a very close game. Barkley looked good again and did his job in the last two minutes to win the game. Bellamy came through again to save the draft pick. We have to bring Barkley into camp next year.

If we've decided to move on from Jeffrey then it might be franchise tag and then trade. There will be a market for him as long as we're not demanding too much. We might get a 3rd Rd pick for him but should garner at least a 4th. You can argue that isn't much but it's more than we get just walking away from him. I don't see the Bears offering anything different from last year: A contract for a top 6-10 WR. Probably closer to #10. Jeffrey just lost over $3mil for his PED suspension which follows an injury plagued year. He's damaged goods around the league. IMO, if he is smart this time around he takes the Bears offer and maybe works for a higher bonus structure. Both sides should want a shorter term deal no more than 4 years but a 3yr deal wouldn't surprise me. That gives the Bears less risk and, if Jeffrey performs well, he's young enough to cash in again at the age of 30. I doubt he'll get much more anywhere else.

Just curious...has there been a recent draft where you didn't want the Bears to draft an Alabama player?

I'd have no issues with drafting Cam Robinson but I'm not sure I wouldn't trade back a bit and then take either Cam or my QB. Let's just say we stay in the top 10, there's a wealth of talent that can help us next season. Then with the extra pick we gained use that to trade back up into late 1st and take a QB there. I haven't yet seen the safety out of LSU but he is intriguing to me not just for how well he reportedly can play but for his leadership on the field. We really need that general among our DBs. Mike Brown was slow but he had everyone knowing where they needed to be and what they needed to do at the snap. How much value is there in having one player among the DBs who has 4 (or more) other players one step closer to where they need to be?

I may well be alone on this but I have said before that I like what Loggains has done. With 3 QBs this season he has been productive almost every week on offense in one way or another. Hasn't always translated into points but I've seen other 3 QB seasons for the Bears turn into complete nightmares on offense. Offensive line lost two Pro Bowl anchors in the middle, and the expected starter at OC swapped ut for a rookie in Week 1, yet we've been ok. Jordan gets some credit. Yet who has gone from game planning for Cutler's strengths, to Hoyer's who is a complete opposite, to Barkley (were there any strengths?) and kept the offense moving? ...and Loggains is still learning his job. I see no reason to think he won't improve.

I think Hicks has definitely improved as the season progressed but he's also had to play quite a bit without Eddie Goldman. That means he had to work with guys like Sutton, Washington, Unrein, and Bullard who each have their own limitations for various reasons. Among those players, if you were game planning for the opponent's Oline who would you focus on the most? Even with his own personal improvement, I don't think it's pure coincidence Hicks is getting much better numbers with Goldman by his side. This is the combo we hoped to see develop when the season started. I can't wait to see both in action when Goldman is fully healthy. With these two beasts driving Oline backwards on the inside, now we can stunt a guy like Floyd around from outside.

That would absolutely be a huge loss. I hope this is just the usual media BS that goes around during every losing season.

Why did so many teams give up on Brandon Marshall? Marcellus Bennett? Knowing he has the physical talent means and been dumped twice makes me think he won't be here for long either.

I can certainly be wrong but what we see around the league each offseason says it is not unrealistic to find a team willing to give up a day 3 pick for Cutler. When the league changed the rules of the game making it a passing league it had one key ramification: If you don't have a good QB you will not win at all. We watched Brock Osweiller get $37mil guaranteed last season, $72mil total. What's he done either before (getting benched) or after? He'll make $19mil next season. There are questions about Trubisky's level of competition yet we watched the Eagles trade up twice in the last draft and select Carson Wentz. He was supposed to be a 2nd Rd pick. Ryan Pickspatrick did a standoff with the Jets last offseason when nobody else wanted him and then earned $12mil for this season. Ryan Tannehill got a $77mil contract with $21mil guaranteed. He just threw 3 INTs against Baltimore but he had his own turnover issues with 10 fumbles the year before he got that contract. Tyrod Taylor for his 6th year in the league received a $90mil contract, but just $9.75 guaranteed. Sam Bradford saga is well known and we've seen what two teams have been willing to pay in the last 12 months just to have his services short-term. Talk about leadership questions did you see him whine when they drafted Wentz? Yeah, that got him to Minn where he was the MVP for 5 weeks before he became Sam Bradford again. In this market lies Jay Cutler and love him or hate him he's still an average QB in the league. His injury certainly complicates things but he no longer has any guaranteed money on his deal. That is an attractive option for a GM and he'll make just $16mil and $17mil the next two seasons. A 4th Rd pick is never someone a team will rely on near term but there is an expectation they'll develop into a player that can contribute at least as a backup. Beyond that the 5th - 7th Rds is pure crapshoot even to make the final roster. Teams like the Jets can't even find a decent backup QB let alone a promising young QB. Tony Romo is also out there coming off his recent back surgery. He'll want and command some significant guaranteed salary. The list of FA QBs starts with Kirk Cousins (who isn't going anywhere) then goes to Case Keenum and on downhill from there including Brian Hoyer who had trouble finding employment last season. FWIW Matt Barkley is a restricted FA. Then there is the economics of game day and, if anything, the Bears have shown that 2 or 3 win seasons do not fill seats in a stadium. That can mean as much as $5-10mil in lost revenue per home game. Maybe your season tickets still get purchased but there are parking fees and concessions revenue too. Start losing $50mil in revenue or more during a season and you will get an owner's attention. With his injury Cutler has at least 6 months of recovery so he isn't going anywhere until well after the draft. I doubt the Bears will want to cut him early with an injury settlement as that is likely to be significant money. Unless Cutler just agrees to take the bonus money he'll get in 2017. If we have to pay that money anyway why not just hang onto him until the 53 man roster cut down? By that time coaches around the league will know if they drafted Jared Goff or Carson Wentz. Or we just wait for the preseason injuries to occur.

You really think Cutler is worse than the two QBs we faced Sunday?

http://sports.yahoo.com/m/0afeb552-df94-39...-potential.html I came across this rumor mill starter and at this point it is nothing more than pure speculation. If Tannehill continues to struggle as he did with 3 INTs this past game I could see where Gase would want Cutler but Tannehill has a $10mil cap hit. The only way I'd see this is if Cutler is a FA and not getting starter offers. He will. There are no Day 1 starters in the draft class so I can see desperate teams like San Fran, Cleveland, Jets tossing something out there to get Cutler. Might be just a 5th Rd pick but if we're moving on anyway just take it.

I think we'll win one game but have no idea which one. The good news is that we'll have a better feel for what Barkley can do after meeting our division rivals. Detroit is playing good defense now. Overall the Vikings are 3rd in defense (yd/gm), Bears are 7th, Redskins 9th, Packers 14th, Lions 15th. Green Bay in particular, with all the ways their DC will mix up coverages and blitzes, will be interesting to watch. There will be mistakes made by Barkley and it will be interesting to see how he responds.

Why would it matter when he doesn't catch with his hands?

I'll gladly take this win because this team needed it and IMO they've earned it by how they've stayed with despite all the adversity this year. There is a lot to like coming out of this game but let's start with Barkley. He's better than Hoyer for the simple fact he can throw a guy open. Hoyer by and large has to see a guy open to get a completion and just can't accurately put passes around a defender. The accuracy he threw with in that weather was impressive. I think wet heavy snow is the 2nd most difficult condition to throw in (after the sub-freezing temps) because the ball is heavy and doesn't carry well in the air, not to mention just holding the ball as you release it is tricky. Despite that he was dropping in passes down field over the outside shoulder. On intermediate routes across the middle the ball was right in the belly, no jumping or reaching needed to bring the ball in. I'm not ready to say he's starter material because there is so much more we need to see against good defenses. Considering where he came from as a late arrival to the roster with little to no practice time he's doing pretty good within the offense. Kudos to Loggains because he's on his 3rd QB this season and his offense is still moving the football. Oline: I am not taking back all of my criticism of Ted Larsen, but maybe most of it. I have to give him and Kush a lot of props for the work they've done inside the last couple weeks. Despite having a bad D overall there are some good players on the 49ers Dline. They shutdown Ajayi the previous week in Miami and stopping the run was their primary focus today and they were not successful. WR: Bellamy use your hands to catch the football or you'll be dropping right out of the NFL. Defense: Impressive work today. Given two short fields to defend early on they did so. Afterward they completely shutdown whatever was left of the 49ers offense. There were some struggles early on with the 49ers running game but that settled down as the young LBs got a feel for the game. Giving up a net of 6 yds passing is a damn good day against any NFL opponent. D Line: Hicks needs a contract extension this offseason. I've seen enough to want him around for the long haul. Washington was out there while Bullard was benched for poor, and often non-existent, play. There is still a lot of room for Washington to improve but considering it's his first year at a new position he's done alright. It was Washington that had the early pressure the led to Kap moving into the first sack of the day. Goldman was his usual rock in the middle of it all but I have to believe he's still not 100%. OLB: I was wrong on Floyd. I don't think he'll ever achieve elite pass rusher status like Von Miller, who has rare elite quickness around the corner, but he might hit 10 sacks in his rookie year. I can see where he'll be capable of 15 sacks a season in the near future. Floyd's versatility as a run defender and occasional inside pass rusher, where we've already seen him split interior double teams, will make him a valuable part of our defense. ILB: Kwiatkoski had an excellent game. 9 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 passes knocked down. I think he had some misreads on run fits early on but for a rookie being out there without Trevathan and Freeman he did well. When he's in his gap on a running play that RB is going to stop cold. I didn't review the Titans game but I believe it was Kwiatkoski who stopped Derek Henry at the LOS on one goal line play last week. Time who has more experience wasn't much of a factor at all. DB's: Nobody stood out but with a good pass rush and Kap throwing the ball nobody had to.

That's probably not too good. I know we got blown out by the Cowboys but beyond that I think we've been in every game. While Hoyer was running the show we couldn't score points but despite all that the D has generally kept us in every game.