AZ54

I don't consider myself among the smart people but here's where I'd go in FA. First off, though I tried to do some research I have no idea where to go to assess the market value for these players so it's a bit of a crap shoot. The draft is very weak in positions we need help with like Safety and ILB. So we go at those two positions in FA and take what the draft says we should take. FS: Devin McCourty $9 mil/yr (add the leadership on the backend of the defense that we haven't had since Mike Brown) SS: Rahim Moore $5mil/yr (and just like that I fixed the safety position) DT: Dan Williams $4 mil/yr run stuffing anchor for our new 3-4 D, let Paea walk in FA ILB: David Harris $4 mil/yr Leadership for the 3-4 LB corps that we need. TE: Virgil Green $1 mil/yr signing Zach Miller proves the Bears want a move TE on the roster so they bring in Green to compete for the spot. Green reportedly is a good blocker as well. CB: Patrick Robinson. $3 mil/yr I'd like to bring in Buster Skrine to play the slot and/or backup the outside position but he's going to get a big contract that we likely can't afford. Culliver makes a lot of sense here too given the connections to Fangio but he has some legal issues that have yet to be decided. I think Pace will prefer to stay away from that media circus in his first year especially on a large contract like the one Culliver will get. I still like Jennings although he clearly didn't like playing last year in Tucker's defense. I like Al Louis-Jean as a player to develop. We give Jennings one more year to show his worth before we move on. Pace brings in a former Saint's 1st Rd pick to add competition with ALJ to take over the starting job in 2016. That's $26mil in FA contracts, leaves room for rookie deals. I'm open to trading Brandon Marshall for a 3rd Rd pick too but less than that and he stays around. I said it before but Marshall is one of the best blocking WRs in the league and I want to run the football this year. If I did that trade I'd be taking another WR in Rd 3 but I don't think that would change the rest of my picks. Our WR depth last year was horrible. My Rd 4 and 6 players have the ability to develop into contributors on offense down the road but for now both are excellent on special teams and we need leadership there after Emery and Trestman let that decline. Draft….. Rd 1 OLB Randy Gregory Makes plays all over the field. Rd 2 OT TJ Clemmings he drops due to concerns over his inconsistency and Pace takes BPA. Clemmings starts at RT over Mills but is our LT of the future. Rd 3 ILB Denzel Perryman his slow forty time has him there for us in Rd 3. Instinctive player who knows how to get to the ball and let's players know when he arrives. Rd 4 WR Kenny Bell fast quick inside receiver, plays special teams both on coverage and can return kicks, blocks well, excellent locker room leader, just what the coach wants late in the draft. Rd 6 RB Karlos Williams big fast back but lacks instincts as he was a converted safety in college. With just 2 years as a RB he needs time to develop as a runner but has potential. While he learns how to be a RB in the NFL he already is an outstanding special teams player and that gets him a roster spot. Rd 7 OC Greg Mancz Great leadership, work ethic, how often do you see a C win league MVP honors? Coming off a knee injury so he's available late or UDFA but we take him here. Needs a year in the weight room to hit his potential but already is a sound technician as a blocker for both run and pass and he takes over for Garza in 2016.

I prefer to take the cap space and apply at all 3 levels of the defense and find our elite playmaker with pick #7. However, we aren't going to get 4 great players for the same money we'd spend for Suh. We might get 4 good players but it is the great players who make the difference on the field at the end of the day and those guys are hard to find. Suh can certainly play DE in a 3-4 alignment. Just imagine him at LDE and Shelton at NT. Are you going to double team both on running downs? Even on a passing down Shelton is going to walk a single Olineman back into the QB's face. Now you've taken the rest of your defense and they pretty much have to focus on the edge plays with one ILB to help the other DE. If we have Ferguson and Ratliff as DE/backup DE along with Sutton/Houston we have a very stout Dline. Keep Paea around to backup at NT as he has the strength for it or grab another guy out of FA that is a better fit for the role like Raji or, if you just want pure run stuffer, Dan Williams from AZ. With that setup you would be very comfortable bringing pressure with blitzes off the edges or even up the middle.

I agree.

No. He brings nothing to the roster we don't already have and he's not better than Brandon Marshall or Jeffrey.

While we are speculating what the new regime is going to do, we are also saying what they should do. However, I am extremely confident that in either case I will be wrong.

http://www.nfl.com/draft/2011/profiles/bru...rvin?id=2532871 245lbs and ran 4.5 forty.

I was looking at ILB prospects in this draft and there just isn't a lot of talent there. I like Perryman but he is not fast on the field in the two games I watched but seems to have good instincts and hits like a ton of bricks, we could use that inside. Reminds me a lot of Chris Borland last year although I think Borland was little quicker getting around blocks and Perryman is more physical. The lack of talent in the draft leads me to think we'll be aggressive on this position in FA. If Perryman is there in the 2nd Rd he could very well be our pick because after him the drop off becomes steep and I don't like McKinney because he reacts late to everything.

I think you missed the point here. At 235lb he is already one of the most productive and competitive players. Add 10-20lbs and he could be great.

He's probably better than our #4/5 WRs last year so he might be worth a look there but if he's looking to get back into a top 3 role on a team I'd say no. I really want to add some speed to our offense. Between Forte, Bennett, Marshall, Jeffrey, and Wilson, we have no real speed threat.

I always laugh at this when I think of how Green Bay's poor drafting causing them to have a $12mil cap hit for Julius Peppers this year. If we want to be like Green Bay we need to draft a top 5 QB. That covers up a lot of mistakes they've made. I still say Baltimore, with a "good" QB is the standard when it comes to reloading through the draft.

Based on what I saw at the combine I want Randy Gregory. He moves in space far better than I expected, better than Beasley, but he gets off blocks better than anyone else on this list. I don't care about the 235lb weight, he'll add 10-20lbs easily. You rarely find this line in player's draft profile: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players...0/randy-gregory "Gregory has the upside to rank among the NFL's most feared edge rushers if his current trajectory continues." 1a/b: Shane Ray or Vic Beasley and I'm not sure it matters which one. Ray is likely the more fluid athlete for coverage assignments and Beasley might be the better pass rusher right now but it's close in every aspect. I think Beasley and to a lesser extent perhaps Ray, will be the better pro in the first season or two over Gregory but if Gregory has the work ethic he'll be a stud on both run and pass plays for many years. I don't think we'll go wrong with any of the three. Beyond those guys players like Dupree will be good players for your roster but not difference makers. Dupree looks like the fast pass rusher who always gets pushed behind the QB. I don't see him getting off blocks, or around the edge the same way the top 3 do.

Nice post summarizing some good resources. I'll add that among all the available player draft profiles I like the ones I find on http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/prospec...rch?position=OT best.

I could see Colts going after D. Murray in FA and wouldn't be surprised to see them make this trade for BMarsh. Late 2nd Rd pick seems reasonable to me, not sure I'd want their late 3rd Rd pick or they'd have to toss in something else.

Don't see much on film that makes me think he's anything but a UDFA.

Nothing to lose on this deal.

Before I get into this, if the team decides Cutler is our best option I'm ok with that and I've long said that just cutting to get him off the roster is a bad move when there is so little talent available to replace him. Every now and then I hear that Tenn still has interest in Cutler. The question then would what is the deal? I'd give them Cutler, #7 and take their #2 and then draft Mariota. I think Mariota will be that good in a few years. Not saying he'll be elite, nobody can ever predict that, but his floor IMO is top 15 but most likely he'll end up a top 10 QB without the Cutler mistakes. That is the hardest piece of the puzzle to find on an NFL roster and if the opportunity is there you go for it. I watched the Michigan St. game where he was under pressure the entire game and he shows good decision making often taking the sack rather than risking a bad pass, and no fumbles. You see can him go through progressions and if he forces a ball into a tight area he puts it away from the defender where it can't be intercepted. It might not be caught but it definitely won't be intercepted. He's very accurate hitting guys in stride but can make plays on the run like Romo makes… but without the INTs. I've watched a lot of Oregon football games over the last 20 years and their QBs are usually 1 read and run players. Mariota is different. http://draftbreakdown.com/video/marcus-mar...-state-2014-2/-

It seems everyone still has us taking Shelton. I'm hoping Gregory falls to us and we take him.

If we're taking a flyer I'd rather do it on a younger player for exactly the reasons you listed. This team needs to get some good young players not older ones who can't make it through a 16 game season.

I need to spend some time on who is available this weekend. For now among your list I can say I'm not interested in Hillis and I think if we want a FB we can either draft one very late (i.e. 7th Rd) or find one UDFA. On Julius Thomas…I think he'll cost too much and we have Marty B. but adding Virgil Green as others have suggested is a great idea IMO. Talking with Knighton makes a ton of sense for both sides. He will likely get more money from Oakland.

Of the two I'd take Jones but that's more because he's an excellent returner. As a WR he has never done much considering how many years he's been in the league. If he had something as a WR you'd think the Ravens would be hanging onto him knowing that they are likely losing Torrey Smith. $2.5mil wasn't that much to keep him around.

I was thinking the same thing in this proposed scenario…more than SMC turning it around I think it will be Washington who gets the nod at OLB. He showed strides last year in the pass rush but he's a natural athlete and it shows on special teams. He might be a better fit at OLB than he was at DE for us.

Why so much love for Ted Ginn Jr.? I watched a few Cardinals games and saw nothing from him to make me think he's better than Mariani, and in fact I think Mariani is better. That in itself doesn't mean there aren't players better than Mariani.

http://www.chicagobears.com/multimedia/vid...57-c11c6e59eae1 Not that I see him that much these days but I have to say this is the first time I've seen him so relaxed and smiling at a media event. Great job doing something like this for kids and I like the life lessons he put in his book.

Pass on Ted Ginn. He is not a better option than what we have on the roster today.

The combine is there for a reason and measurables do count but are just there to backup the tape. Or in other cases, make people wonder why a gifted athlete wasn't more productive. Shelton isn't going to be Haloti Ngata in the NFL unless he shows later that he has more short area quickness. If you aren't that quick then you better have some long arms to help you get off blocks. I still see Shelton being a good player, he's still strong enough to hold his ground even against a double team. I just don't see him as a perennial Pro Bowl player. When you draft someone at #7 that's what you must come away with and we don't have anyone on our roster that should prevent us from doing that. There are so many good rush OLB and we need one badly. Beasley impressed me the most today. He's a more fluid athlete than Fowler but adding the weight, the strength, and running a 4.53 was pretty good.