AZ54

Does Brady need to cheat to win? Absolutely not. Why he did it is beyond me but it doesn't change the facts. Then again these aren't exactly the cold weather/bad weather scenarios where he wanted the ball pressure lowered.

Agreed but again we have neither Jeffrey or White which takes away the fade options. Nor do we have a mobile QB so that takes away some roll outs. Eventually we'll get some more options.

Watching in the bar again so it's hard to pick up on some of the details on how guys played. Here's some thoughts on the KC game: Offense Oline: Forte managed to run for 3.9ypc behind a rookie center and 7th Rd pick Leno while going against a stacked box all game long with no credible deep threat on the outside. There was nothing spectacular in the run game but it was effective enough. On the edges Kyle Long and Leno shutout Hali and Houston from getting any sacks. The line often had help from Cutler who was elusive in the pocket but he also had places to move to on most plays. It seems to me that when the QB has space to move around it's a credit to the blockers for at least staying with their guy even if they get beat to one side. I didn't see very many free-runs at the QB like we've seen in the past. Leno has done well enough IMO that the team is not going to be in a rush to get Bushrod back on the field. RBs: Forte was his usual jack-of-all-trades again. I still want to see a little more of Langford but with the banged up WR corps and the way the game went it is understandable. WRs: Wilson is finally getting it. I see reports of Cutler getting on him during practices to run his routes better (he needs that) and it's paying off. Hopefully that light is coming on for Wilson. Bellamy is not flashy but is productive. Meredith had 4 rec 52yds and might be the real gem long-term among this backup trio. Meredith made a great shoestring grab and turned upfield for a 1st down. He has a quickness to his cuts and acceleration once the ball is in his hands that the other two don't have and he has really good hands. There is a steep learning curve for him but I don't think he'd be safe if the Bears put him on the practice squad once Jeffrey and White are healthy. ---------------------------- http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300000047...om-fcs-runnerup Wide receiver Cameron Meredith (6-3 3/8, 207) ran the 40 in 4.42 and 4.45 seconds. He had a 39-inch vertical jump and 10-foot-7 broad jump. He did the short shuttle in 4.17 seconds and the three-cone drill in 6.76 seconds. He performed 12 lifts on the bench press. He had a good positional workout and could be a priority free-agent pickup following the draft. ---------------------------- QB: Two weeks, two game winning drives late in the game. With all the changing pieces around him from WRs, C, LT he's leading them. I'm leaving it there. Defense Dline: I expected more pressure in this game and it never really materialized. That was disappointing. Our sacks were more coverage sacks (which is a good thing too). Ratliff didn't show much in his first game back but maybe after a month off I shouldn't have expected much. I love Unrein's hustle chasing down plays from behind but I'd like it better if he made more plays going forward. While it wasn't flashy the effort across the board was again productive giving up just 10pts on the road. Having Charles out late in the game helped but no sympathy from me given all the injuries and the fact we had two rookies playing safety and a ILB we signed 12 days ago. LBs: McPhee. Everyone else was ok but we did see a couple splash plays from Jones (finally) with a big hit on Kelce to stop a 3rd down play, and Reynolds ran through some blocks to make a nice stop for a loss. Lamar Houston is not fast nor quick, expect to see one of our early draft picks (of FA pickup) to get some speed on the edge. Loved seeing Willie Young on that sack, hope to see more of that from him. I think the biggest take away is that Kelce didn't have a big game 3 rec / 35 yards. Not sure if that was DBs, LBs or a combination of the two but he was not nearly as effective as KC wanted. DBs: This was not a tough challenge given KC WRs and Alex Smith. Aside from Porter's mistake taking the inside gamble and giving Thomas a 19yd TD they kept everything in check. Smith helped with several bad throws this game. We started two rookies at safety and yet there has not been a single thread, either pre-game or post-game, mentioning this as an issue. Doesn't mean it's not an issue but it does indicate how far down the list of concerns it is. I'm not putting our safeties in the Pro Bowl, and this was a game with little deep threat, but the rookies held up. Coaching: With so little talent these coaches on both sides of the ball are getting production. Fangio gets guys into the right spots on the field. Did you notice our defense is now ranked 4th in yds/game given up? Passing defense is 3rd in yds/game but rushing D not so good at 24th. I know stats don't tell the whole story and we're far from a shutdown defense. But we're also far from where we were last year when we couldn't stop anything. Gase likewise has been able to get productivity from backups at many positions as long as Cutler is on the field.

Overall he held up well. Aside from the obvious missed blitz pickup early in the game I'm sure there some other gaffes but I have to say for a rookie against that Dline in that stadium he exceeded my expectations. When you consider all of his struggles in training camp he's come a long way in a very short time.

This is one of the biggest upsets of the day. maybe the biggest after it's all said and done. We were 10pt underdogs and rightfully so. These coaches impress me with what they can get out of the talent they have the on the field. One day I want to watch a Bears game where I don't need to keep my roster webpage open so I can figure out who is on the field.

Been on board since Week 3.

Jeffrey and Royal inactive, as is Bushrod and Omameh. I think we'll see Forte split out quite a bit with either Rodgers or Langford in the backfield. This would be a good day for the rookie RB to have a coming out party behind our rookie C. Likely need a TD by the defense to pull off this win.

Poor decisions and bad mechanics under pressure are what showed up on his film earlier in the season. There's no doubt he has the accuracy you need in the NFL when he has time to throw, but it's concerning that he still has these issues mid-season. I didn't see the game but just watching that highlight of him throwing an INT to a Dline player when there really is nothing there at all is enough. I'm moving off the Goff 1st Rd bus and will keep an eye on Cardale Jones.

The outside LBs of the Chiefs are the strength of their Dline: Houston and Tamba Hali. I'm not that worried about Houston against Long, and really not too worried about Hali against Leno. I might be crazy but Leno did ok last week against a speed rusher although Hali brings a lot more power to the game than what he saw last week. It is the stunts or other lineups with guys blitzing inside that worries me the most. Grasu is going to get challenged at the line a lot with inside-blitz fakes pre-snap. If the protection can hold up I think Cutler will find open receivers. The Chiefs defense is not ranked that highly so far. They've played the Texans, Broncos, Packers, and Bengals. In scoring defense they are dead last ...even with Chicago. But in yards/game they are 28th giving up almost 400yds/gm while we are ranked 7th giving up 309 yds/gm. It is hard to say how our running game will go with so many backups on the Oline and WR. If we can find some confidence early we might be able to make some things happen.

Omameh not practicing because of a bad ankle so right now it appears Grasu is going to get his shot. It won't be perfect and my biggest concern is our QB behind him is not able to run. Hopefully Cutler is a more mobile this week than last. I don't know where we sit on the injury rankings among the league but we have to be among the hardest hit teams. We're going to learn a lot about Adam Gase this weekend.

You compared their pre-draft abilities. I just added some context that I think is relevant. If you want to move their pro careers, DHB has averaged 13.9 yards per catch, Kevin White 0.

Kreutz didn't start his first season and he turned out just fine. We can find other players who struggled their first season with the transition to NFL speed/power in guys like Urlacher. It takes many players a year to get the adjustment in technique, strength, and scheme. Maybe we could have found someone more prepared to help this year at Center but that doesn't mean that player would be better for our team long term. In the preseason Grasu was getting pushed all over the field. He has been told to hit the weight room and get stronger and work on his technique. All indications are that he's doing just that and has added 10lbs. He says he is getting quite a bit stronger. I'm pretty sure his friend Kyle Long has given him a good indication of what is needed to succeed at the NFL level and the type of work a guy like Garza put in. He needs to be competitive for the starting job next year in camp and should win it over a journeyman like Montgomery (should we bring him back). If that doesn't happen then we can start worrying. I still think we'll see Grasu this season as Fox indicated. I don't think they want him getting out of this season without experience and some idea if he is capable of being a starter. I'm not sure if that will be sooner (within the next few weeks) or late in the season.

I don't think Heyward-Bey and White are anywhere close to the same player coming out of college. DHB http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/historical/564881 Positives: Exceptional straight-line speed. Opponents must account for his deep speed on every play. Too fast off the snap for most defenders to challenge him in press coverage. Long, lean athlete with long arms and strong hands. Has the agility to make plays in space. Reads the field and can follow his blocks to generate yards after the catch. Can snatch the ball out of the air. Learning to better use his height as an advantage. Good leaping ability and has become more consistent in timing his leaps. Negatives: Bit of a one trick pony at this time. Might be the draft's most dangerous vertical threat, but offers little else. Long-legged and struggles to generate consistent separation out of his cuts. Not as consistently effective on jump balls as he should be, considering his natural size advantage. Too often double-clutches the ball. Questionable toughness running across the middle. Lacks strength and consistent effort as a downfield blocker. White (hit the link if you want to read the full profile it is pretty long) http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players...558/kevin-white IN OUR VIEW: The best receiver in this draft class at attacking the ball, White is never truly covered with his ability in jump-ball situations to track and highpoint - high success rate in contested situations. He is a much improved route runner with an understanding of how to stack defenders and work back to the ball with excellent coordination. White lacked polish in 2013, but his light bulb is now at full glow - although his timed speed doesn't always translate to the field, the game doesn't move too fast for him. He doesn't have the sudden burst to instantly create separation when he wants, but White has the instincts, ballskills and competitive nature needed to be a No. 1 target in a NFL offense - one of the top-seven players in the 2015 NFL Draft.

I want to see Goff throw with better technique when under pressure before throwing away a top 5 pick on a QB.

On Timu....maybe they are keeping all the LBs worth a damn? I suspect he'll be back on the practice squad if he's available. In the meantime our defense is improving each week so I'll trust the coaches know what they need on the field to keep the progress moving forward. Barrett Jones seems like a good pickup but I was wondering why he was available. Looks like he's had a couple injury plagued seasons so far including a back surgery last year. That's never good for anyone let alone an NFL player. I would have expected he'd stick on the Steelers practice squad but maybe that is all devoted to kickers now. If he makes it that far, next offseason we'll see if this is a case of the Bears grabbing a guy they think can contribute next year. I doubt he's ready to contribute this year.

Our WR just ran his route to the corner but yes I know if you just go out and run into a CB to set a pick it can be called.

Two of those penalties were bad calls. Royal dropped the ball after a catch and got flagged for spiking it One of the CBs had his hand barely graze a face mask, maybe one finger nail touched it, and they flagged him for hands to the face.

That is funny.

I think we all assumed this would be the case when we heard he had a broken leg. http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/footb...1005-story.html With Bushrod nursing a back issue, likely for the entire season, I expect we'll be signing someone off the street. That is unless they are starting to get some confidence in Fabuluje. I think we kept 9 Oline at the start of the season so we might decide to go with 8 and keep that extra slot open on the bottom of the roster to help special teams.

Rumor is that Slausson will start at Center. http://www.csnchicago.com/bears/expect-bea...enter-vs-chiefs I have a feeling Grasu is going to get his chance soon but Fox isn't comfortable with him starting and making the calls on the road against KC. That's a tough place to play with all the crowd noise, and they still have a strong Dline. Omameh has been around a few years so I guess they were ok with what he did and prefer to have his experience on the field. We have a bye in two weeks so if they want to shake it up and get the rookie in there that would be a good time to get him ready. I expect Grasu will be active for this game.

Except for Tracy Porter...to my surprise.

I agree on his improvement. He is starting to show up at the right spot and on the underneath stuff he closes on the ball very quickly. The drop off from his speed to Rolle's is noticeable such as on Amari Cooper's TD catch. If that was Conte on the deep coverage instead of Rolle we'd have two threads dedicated to blasting his "late as usual" coverage skills.

I agree with this. On a long term basis having Kevin White be productive running all types of routes is a good goal. In the short term having his physical presence out there makes a difference. Even if his route tree is limited you still have to worry about covering him deep. DeSean Jackson did quite well affecting how defenses played when he just ran routes on the outside. Not putting White in that same category of deep threat, but on the other hand White has attributes for making contested catches that Jackson can only dream about. The reason I liked White a little bit better than Cooper in the draft is that he's an excellent run blocker. Not only for running plays but hustling to block for other WRs after they make the catch. It might take him a bit to get used to the game speed of the NFL but this will show up early. If you happen to have seen Marquess Wilson attempting to block someone you already know what we're missing.

First and foremost I have to say that there is something different with this coaching staff. Week to week I keep seeing improvement in the quality of play, both individual and team (i.e. being in the right position). As of right now we have the 7th ranked defense in terms of yards given up per game. That is surprising to me. The offense is way back in the low 20's but has still been productive with Cutler at the helm. Normally when you get new schemes either offense or defense there are learning curves and mistakes but there are also plays that you run that other teams aren't prepared for. Around the 4th game is when the surprise starts to wear off and teams figure out how to match up to what you are doing. I think some of that helped us against the Packers. Our team has had the growing pains with mistakes but despite teams being better prepared for what we do, we are still improving. Next week on the road in KC will give us a good idea where we are headed. Anyway, off to game thoughts. Offense: Cutler - Noticeably limited in his movement and it affected him when he felt pressure and had to move around. Late INT was a good decision followed by a bad throw with a guy right in his face. OTOH a great drive and cool under pressure to go down the field late and win the game. Overall a good game. This offense is limited inside the redone without White and Jeffrey. Nobody is worried about a fade pass to Royal or Wilson. Getting that option back on the field will help in the redzone. Oline: Charles Leno held up. It wasn't perfect, not necessarily good either, but this was not the J'Marcus-Webb-at-LT performance I was expecting. I can only remember one blatant miss where he overstepped Aldon Smith's rush. Consider also that on the first play series we lost our starting C and Slauson moves away from Leno for the rest of the game and is backfilled by Omameh who has been with the team just 4 weeks. I expected having those two guys on the left sdie protecting a QB who can't run was a recipe for disaster like in years past. Didn't happen. We gave up 3 sacks but for the most part Cutler had time to move away from his first read. Run blocking started off strong but faded later in the game. Overall a good effort and I go back to the coaches getting these guys ready to play. Nobody even talks about Kyle Long anymore because nobody is worried about him at RT. He's not perfect but he's good and that says a lot for a guy just 4 games into a position switch. WRs: Marquess Wilson finally showed up. Nothing great but his first consistent performance along with an excellent difficult catch as the sideline on the game winning drive. Hopefully he will build off this going forward. Without Jeffrey the group overall is nothing anyone will fear but they at least did enough to keep the passing game productive. Cam Meredith continues to get some snaps. TE: I still like Bennett and prefer to keep him around long term. He is the stabilizing force in our offense right now either through solid run blocking, pass protection, or as a receiver. Lee had a couple bad penalties and it would be nice to see us start spreading the ball around to guys like Miller. Defense: Overall we held Murray to just 3.1 yards per rush, meanwhile early favorite for "offensive rookie of the year" Amari Cooper was held to just 4 rec for 49 yards with 1 TD by a secondary missing two starters (Ball, and Rolle left the game early). After putting up 300+ yards against Baltimore and Cleveland, Carr had just 196 yards today and looked inaccurate under pressure. Find a Raiders fan who expected that coming into the game. Dline: From where we were the last two seasons to where we are now ... nobody predicted it. We're competitive now and more importantly we have guys making some plays in the backfield. I now know that Eddie Goldman can run faster than I, or Derek Carr, thought possible. Despite missing Ratliff (I don't think Sutton played either), Jenkins continues to flash the potential that had him picked in the 2nd Rd four years ago. We don't know what Ratliff will bring to the table once he gets back on the field but right now I feel pretty good about having Ratliff, Goldman, Jenkins as our starters with Ferguson and Sutton in the rotation. LBs: McPhee is the energizer for this group. He backs up his words with his play on the field and I believe it is impacting other players positively. I didn't notice Houston or Acho on a lot of plays but again the overall performance of the defense was solid and they contributed. SMC is ok. He's not the weak spot anymore as he was in years past. He's also not the strong point of the defense. He was in the right spot in coverage to force a high pass that (just barely) ended up being caught out of bounds and prevented a TD. Jones had his Bostic moment and over-ran one short pass play giving up a TD. Both ILB's support on running plays is improving. CBs: Ball was out and Porter got the start on the outside. Porter played well and we'll be seeing more of him. Fuller is improving. Holding what was a pretty good Raiders passing attack to less than 200 yards was not expected (at least by me) and we have to give these guys credit. Coverage across the board, Fuller included, has improved and is also part of what is leading to some sacks. S: Rolle left the game and we brought in the rookie Jones-Quartey who was cut by the Cardinals. I can't really say what we lost in that switch because the defense looked the same or better with JQ in there. Maybe someone else can comment on how JQ played. ----------------------------------------------- Looking ahead I think we match up well against KC if we can get Jeffrey back on the field. They haven't looked good so far this season but they will be looking to right the ship with a win at home. Their Dline can generate pressure so Oline is a concern. Do we go with Slauson/Omameh or Grasu/Slauson? The Chiefs offense has done: (summary of Chiefs vs. Bengals) Coming into the game, the Chiefs offensive line had surrendered a league-high 14 sacks on the season. On Sunday, they allowed 5 sacks and 9 quarterback hits. Travis Kelce is the real deal and so is Jamaal Charles. Keep Alex Smith nervous and he'll seek out the early dump off routes even when there isn't pressure.