AZ54

I believe the Bears are done with his injury prone ways. I like him. He is not fast, not big, but has good hands and gets to the right spot on the field. Depending on how things shake out I could see him returning on a vet min deal or close to that but I think we want to see what other options we have first, as does Earl.

Ford in college for comparison to highlights of this year's RBs. http://draftbreakdown.com/video/michael-fo...-carolina-2012/ I see a guy with speed but not a lot of lateral quickness and agility to make that quick cut to get to open space. Not much different than what he showed us as a Bear IMO. That lack of lateral quickness could also hinder him in pass protection when he has to make last second adjustments. I certainly hope to be wrong. I think he'll compete for 2nd RB but he needs some good competition and I hope we find someone that beats him out for the job because that means we're that much better. Plus we've heard nothing from the team regarding confidence in Ford. That doesn't mean anything at all because it is draft time and smokescreens are everywhere. As bad as Michael Bush was last year there was plenty of opportunity for Ford to make a statement.

I do want to add a speed element to our offense but in terms of a backup RB we need someone more versatile, a true 3-down player, to take reps off Forte and help extend his career.

Read the other thread and posted before reading this. Yes, I'm fine with going DT with our first two picks if that is how the talent stacks up. Two years to fix the D and we can't really shore up all the holes without completely ignoring the offense. I think ignoring a backup RB and TE would be huge mistake and we must have a backup QB.

Handling stunts from that Dline: Houston, Izzy, Allen, Donald, Tuitt, Young, would be a challenge. Lots of speed, length, and power. I'm ok if that talent falls that way and we go that route. I still feel fixing the defense is a two year project. We could go all-in for defense in the draft and abandon backfilling some positions like TE, QB, and RB but I feel we must rely on the offense to win. Do enough to improve the D but also do enough to ensure the offense will always be there each week. A dominant Dline will make all other positions better on defense, we've seen it before. We're still going to add in a CB and S too but we can clean up those positions next year. If we go the balanced approach (CB, DT, S) among first 4 picks then we still have depth issues at DT and LB unless Paea suddenly turns it around. Pick your poison because we'll have a gap on the depth chart somewhere no matter which way we go. Go the path that gets the best talent.

That's true, Izzy and Houston should be able to rotate inside for a few downs better than what Wootton was able to do last year. To be fair to Wootton doing what he did for us at DT was commendable. in terms of effort.

http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/bears/post...aive-de-ozougwu Austen Lane remains, for now.

One of those football abilities that matters a lot is accurate passing. I still think Tebow was a very good football player in the category you describe and could have been a good H-back type or perhaps a TE. He was not and is not a good QB. Jordan Lynch, who is also a very good football player, has followed a similar path through college. He is not fast either but he is quick and may actually play faster than he was timed. At least the videos seem to confirm that IMO. Regardless, Lynch, at just 6 feet tall and 217lbs, does not have the frame Tebow does (at 6' 3" and 240lbs). I don't know if Lynch is interested in switching positions, and if he is I'm not sure to what. I suppose he could be a FB type because we know he can run out of the backfield plus he is versatile enough to catch passes which he did in games. I just have no clue if he can block. I assume the Bears interest in him is as a UDFA QB and nothing else.

He was fighting a legal battle to win his freedom from the CFL. Once that was settled he ended up with the Saints mid-season. --------------------------------------------- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Williams_(wide_receiver) However, almost 3 months later on August 29, 2013, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice over-ruled the decision of the independent arbitrator, declaring Williams is not bound to any contractual obligations with the Tiger-Cats, making him a free agent in the view of the CFL Players Association. The CFL has announced that they will appeal the decision.[8] On October 2, 2013 the Hamilton Tiger-Cats announced that Williams was free to sign with any NFL team, but they would reserve his CFL rights through the 2014 CFL season.[9] New Orleans Saints[edit] On October 3, 2013, he was signed by the New Orleans Saints. The move came just one day after he was granted free agency.[10] -------------------------------------------- We signed him to our active roster for the last week of the season forcing the Saints to either put him on their active roster for the playoffs or let him go. I don't have high hopes for the guy but beating out Weems for a roster spot is not a high bar either.

Williams may run a 4.28 in shorts but I don't see that speed on the field in pads. Hester was also crazy quick when he started out, I don't see that same trait in Williams. I think he can be just as good a returner for us this year as what Hester gave us last year.

We've seen a lot of 285lb DTs in the NFL that haven't faired well but we haven't seen a lot of them that can run a 4.68 forty and his 3-cone time was only beaten by 3 DEs. Plus there is only 1 other DT in the top 15 of the 3-cone drill times among Dlinemen. Donald is not perfect and that is the only reason he may still be available at #14. He may be capable of 10 sacks per year up the middle not to mention the pressures that would also be there to force plays to be shorter. He might also give up 4yds per rush too. In the NFL it is the big plays for a loss that get you off the field and I think Donald can contribute more of them than any other DT in this draft.

Ask Matt Flynn.

Yes but everyone says trade back and all teams can't trade back. So who is trading up in a "deep" draft? I hear the 49ers but what are they willing to give up? Will it be enough or will they be looking for the bargain deal? I'd much rather gamble on elite physical talents like Gilbert or Donald rather than drop back to where the players don't have elite athleticism with little gain to show for that in terms of additional picks. Donald may be a bit of a liability against the run but if he's a beast on pass rushes….well this is a passing league now. I really think with Donald it is more of a situation where he can play in a 1-gap scheme but not a 2-gap scheme. Gilbert may not be perfect but he's a great athlete and he's still a very good player. I don't rule out other options either such as Jernigan who is extremely physical in the middle. Maybe not the same as a pass rusher as Donald but he's solid on 1st/2nd down and can do some 3rd down pass rush too. In many ways he's the opposite of Donald and both are very good players. Who we take depends on what our scheme is and we don't know what our scheme is.

For a late round talent whose weaknesses seem like a perfect fit for Trestman's coaching strengths consider Logan Thomas. Lots of upside and the base talent, size, arm strength, accuracy when mechanics are right, is there to succeed in the NFL. For as much attention as we've given Jordan Lynch I have to think Thomas is also on our radar. http://draftbreakdown.com/the-case-for-logan-thomas/ http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players...93/logan-thomas Inconsistent footwork and mechanics are a big reason for his erratic passing, struggling to reset his lower body when moved from his spot. Needs to stay balanced through his delivery. Suspect field vision and questionable passing instincts. Needs to speed up his eyes use and decipher his reads quicker.

Excellent website, thanks for posting the link.

He's now at a price where he can compete for his job and if he loses we can cut him. He keeps his $100k bonus but in the grand scheme that's a fair risk/loss/reward setup for both sides.

First, I said I prefer to draft him over Dix so it's not like as if I'm projecting this as a huge red flag. In watching highlights of Pryor he occasionally leads with his head on tackles. It's not hard to project the impact of that when player speed and weight goes up in the NFL as I'm sure Brandon Hardin can explain. Major Wright had similar issues when he was a rookie. Pryor is not that big at 5-11 207lbs and given his size and style of play I can see him having a career similar to Bob Sanders. OTOH at FS he should also have less plays inside the box reducing the risk. You only need to watch the first play on this link but there are others. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3y2XwXujkk

Maybe because speed is everywhere in the NFL and if you can't consistently threaten a defense beyond 20 yards with accurate passing and receiving life is very difficult. I think we've seen enough of that in Chicago to know it's true.

I prefer Pryor over Dix because I think he's the better closer on tackles and better run support in the box. Dix is better in coverage but I don't think there's a huge gap there. When the vast majority of plays are 20 yards or less which type of player should we take? Granted giving up a huge play can change the game but if you have a good pass rush that's less likely to occur. My main concerns with Pryor are 1) can he avoid penalties and 2) with that style of play can he stay healthy.

I've seen enough of the veteran QBs you listed and nobody interests me. If we went there the two I'd be ok with are Freeman and Grossman. Freeman is a two year rehab project if at all. Grabbing a rookie isn't always downside. Many teams have done so, used them as a backup and then traded them after 3 years for a very good draft pick. If he turns out to be the guy you keep him and move on from Cutler….who you could also trade away especially as his contract is written he will be very affordable in the 4th year of his contract.

Bandwagon forming?

It isn't hard to find highlights of DAT on Oregon plays where he ran up the middle. In general I don't even have an issue with running any type of play for any person but the guy calling the play needs a brain. There are times where that type of "misdirection" will catch a team off-guard. Other times, such as having Wolfe run 3x up the middle against the Vikings best-in-the-league interior Dline makes no sense.

NFL Network's Charles Davis says Pitt's Tom Savage would be a good fit for the Bears. http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap100000034...-groom-young-qb I don't know much about this guy except he couldn't handle the heat here in AZ. I watched the video clip about him and they mentioned him going in Rd 3. CBS draft board has him as a 5th Rd pick. I think we go QB in 4-5th Rd so Savage is a guy who should be on our radar.

I watched some highlights of this kid and really like how he plays the game, both in pass coverage and run support. He won't be an elite cover corner but he matches up well with the attributes of what Jennings and Tillman have. He can definitely play man coverage and would likely be outstanding in zone coverage as he seems to have great instincts and drives on the ball. He'll need a year or two to add strength (like most rookies). http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/footb...0,4658826.story

Watched a highlight video of him. He doesn't offer much athletically, at least nothing stood out to me. Most likely can compete for the last WR spot and can also contribute as a returner. I'd say he looks like a slightly faster version of Earl Bennett. I agree, this means Weems is one step closer to the end of his run as a Bear.