AZ54

2002 is a long time ago. I'm curious if anyone can recall what year the pass interference rules get more favorable for the offense? If anything that should help Trestman's style of offense.

I used Hester as part of my argument that the ability of a WR to learn an offense is important to success in the NFL. I suppose I could have used David Terrell. We're in agreement...the interviews are far more important and could give some indication of the why behind the Wonderlic test results. Gabbert may be smart enough to read a defense but lack the courage to hang in the pocket and make the play. I don't know I've never watched him play in the NFL. A low score would definitely make me do more research to understand why. Teams add in feedback from coaches on the player (although that could be biased as well). The problem is teams get a whopping 15min to interview at the combine but the other visits from players are probably more telling. That assumes a team doesn't waste time on stupid questions. This is the stuff we never get to know as teams keep it all very close to the vest. Hester had a good work ethic to build up his body for being a WR. It may have helped in some ways but slowed him down. Austin is a far more polished WR coming out of college, he will contribute immediately for any team. I just think there will be players at that spot in the first that can contribute as much or more over more games (i.e. Fluker) and that we can get a productive slot WR later in the draft. Since they decided to keep Hester (I preferred the cap space) there is no need to bring in Austin to return kicks.

Thanks don't read much of their stuff since they like to spam my email.

I said "it's a factor" I didn't say it was the only thing a team will consider. Vince Young had a 6 but you can keep cherry picking players for which it may not have been a sign of poor future performance. Blaine Gabbert had a 42, what's that doing for him? This might just shock you but there is a reason teams likw to interview players they are interested in and this is one of them. Great math skills, or English skills, don't have a perfect correlation to great skill reading defenses, or diagnosing offensive plays at the snap. It may (notice that word "may" http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/may?s=t) indicate work ethic on and off the field, and the ability to assimilate information in a short amount of time (i.e. learn a new playbook) and that is a factor for every team at any pick. College grades do not necessarily indicate success in business world but companies still want to know what your grades were. The question is how much weight does it deserve? Explain why you like to take one small word and then extrapolate the meaning of it all the way to extreme position, a position which is clearly not being argued? It's a straw man argument (http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-a-straw-man-argument.htm). And my comparison to Hester was not just based on his early lack of knowing where to line up and what route to run, it was also based on the smaller stature of both players.

For anyone who remembers teammates having to tell Hester where to line up on plays, yes, it is a factor. Perhaps moreso now than with our last couple offenses: http://www.chicagobears.com/news/article-1...f3-1248af4292da Great start: New coach Marc Trestman was impressed with how sharp the players on the Bears offense looked in the team's first minicamp practice Tuesday. "Their ability to learn a complete language, line up in the right spot and keep practice moving fluidly, I think that was apparent," Trestman said. "There wasn't a lot of stop, get-back-in-the-huddle and re-dos, and that's a real credit to our coaches and our players for being able to assimilate so much information in a short period of time. "[but] it's not over. [On Wednesday] we're giving them a whole other game plan and they've got to learn another 100 plays and another 20 runs and come out here and do the same time. We're really trying to stretch them as much as we can, particularly offensively. I think they've shown they can handle the information and we'll see what happens [Wednesday]. [Wednesday] is a new day."

I think that's what we plan to do as well but I wouldn't completely rule out trading him or using him as part of a trade. However, his cap hit makes it a tough pill for a most teams so the market for that trade is small. He's proven to have no value as a WR so why wouldn't that same team just grab one guy in the 5th to return kicks? The only real value I can see is his name will help a bad team sell tickets.

I agree, that's not the real news, or key to Kromer's success, but it is still telling the way Garza stated it. I think the secret lies more in the teaching aspect and his understanding that different guys have to do things slightly different to fit their talents.

All Shefter said is that the room belonged to those two players. But if this smoke has no fire they why did one of these players blow off meetings with teams at his pro day? I don't know which one of them it was but it's hard to see how that helps them. How players handle situations like this does matter to teams, ask Brandon Marshall.

I was somewhat on the Austin bandwagon a couple months ago but now I'd rather have Eifert than Austin at #20. He'll bring more versatility to the offense plus TE is the most injured position in football (ask the Patriots) so if the TE is a staple to your offense it is important to have two very good pass catchers in this role. Plus 175lb football players have a short shelf life during the season. Look at how Hester has fared in his role as a WR, he's always beat up and half the time he runs out of bounds. As we all know, the NFL is not like college where just being fast works. This league has quite a few CBs like Patrick Peterson who are just as fast as Austin but outweigh him by 45lbs. That adds up over 16 games. You can find little fast players later in the draft if that's what you want. I think Bucky Brooks summed it nicely although he's talking about him as a top 10 pick I still think these points must be considered at #20. At #30 it's a bit different. http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/0ap10000001...rated-prospects ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Now, I definitely see the similarities in playing styles, but neither Harvin nor Jackson has made a significant impact as a No. 1 receiver in the NFL. (Harvin has never posted a 1,000-yard season, while Jackson has surpassed that mark just twice in five years.) And there haven't been many 5-foot-8, 174-pound receivers who have taken the league by storm. That's why I can't fully endorse Austin's rise as a potential top-10 pick, even with his ability to score from anywhere on the field. The NFL remains a big man's game, and it's hard for a diminutive pass catcher to function as a legitimate No. 1 receiver. I believe Austin can be an explosive complementary player, but you don't take role players early in the draft.

1) He's not practicing as a starter 2) He's getting very few reps at RT 3) He's "competing" (coaches words) with Slauson at RG therefore he's not competing with Brown at LG 4) The Bears just signed another backup OG in Britton....who is he competing with? I didn't say he won't make the team, I hope he has improved and earns a starting job. Right now as I see it he's 3rd on the depth chart. If we draft an OG we know that guy is staying. I believe Slauson is staying. Carimi competes with Brown and Britton to be backup OG. I don't see that as a guaranteed position on our roster...or as the original post phrased it..."a lock".

Because if you are committed to this plan meaning you will trade up no matter what for this player you want (or more likely one of two or three players), then they think they can get a better deal now versus waiting to negotiate during the draft. Lots of teams want to trade down like the Bears so why not start negotiating? Can you always complete a trade in 10 min? A lot of trade talks fall apart under the time limits of the draft. Since nobody knows who they want or what position it places a huge wild card in front of every team. While we see lots of team wanting to trade down there are a handful that might trade up. It's a buyers market why not be the first buyer? The Falcons were one play short of making it to the Superbowl and they have a lot of picks so in their mind they are very close and one missing piece might put them over the top.

I don't see Carimi as a lock. He's listed as a backup OG right now behind Brown and Slauson. They continue to bring in competition for backup OG in Britton and I have no reason to think there won't be another body competing at OG after the draft. I can't see that they are that satisfied with Brown/Carimi as a lock to be a starter when they haven't seen either in pads blocking someone this year.

....and yet no reports from mini-camp about where Rodriguez is lining up? Maybe I missed it.

....and yet no reports from mini-camp about where Rodriguez is lining up? Maybe I missed it.

That would be a good draft.

I thought he was a 2-3rd Rd pick?

I think we could get Brown at 50.

I don't want Brown in the first either. Should be someone rated far higher available and we have plenty of need positions. I've seen some lists that don't even have Brown as a top 50 player.

Not all Oline issues: “When you get in the game, sometimes you get flustered, and things get thrown out the window. But it’s a difficult thing to call plays and call the correct plays.”

I'm not as high on Fluker as others are for the same concerns...his pass protection ability. I know he won't get bull rushed like Carimi was last year so that's one plus but protecting the edge is a legit concern in his draft profile. Trufant is a lightweight. He can't be very physical because he's not very big. He will not be a very good tackler but that could change over the years as he bulks up. In coverage though he's very fluid and can run fast. I think Trufant is worth taking a couple spots later but then again CBs who can cover are very valued in this league. From that list I'm taking Ogletree. I do think he'd end up starting at SLB this season. If DJ Williams plays well and we sign him for a couple more years I can see these two switching positions one year down the road.

Is Eifert the best rumor we could generate to help motivate someone to trade up with us? I didn't realize the flexibility we have with Bennett's contract. OTOH adding Eifert definitely rounds out the TE situation for years to come, which I like. I just don't like the holes it leaves us at LB and potentially OG for years to come. I say potential because as already stated above, we just have no clue what the coaching staff thinks of the remaining RT competition and/or Carimi at OG. Brown as well. Looking at our roster it's hard to rule out a DT with our 1st pick. The only thing I feel confident in right now is that some player of very good value, if not a few, will be there for us when we pick at #20. So I'm not fixated on any position as I think Emery and (more likely) Lovie were last year. Hopefully Emery and Trestman stick to their BPA mantra.

Ogletree at #20 is my preference and if he's drafted I expect he'll challenge for the starting job at SLB. I like Brown but he's more of a 2nd Rd pick for me. I like the Missouri LB as well in the 3rd. Seems like he was too much of a playmaker for him to last until our 4th Rd pick.

Clearly they know the names so all the GMs know who it was as well. With one guy labeled a "potential" first round pick it has to be someone who is late first round. Since this is the area we will be drafting in I'm wondering who this was. Any ideas? http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/NFP-Su...Blitz-9661.html *NFL teams still were trying to find out about an incident in which a hotel room at the combine was trashed, apparently by two players who were staying there. One of the players is a potential first round draft pick, and the incident could affect both players’ stock. Front office men hoped to speak with one of the players about it at his pro day, but the player curiously made himself unavailable to talk.

Things are a bit slow as we wait on the draft. I found this article on Favre's last hit and thought some others might like to read it. http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/blog/eye-on-f...ded-his-career-

Apparently nobody is arguing about him anymore: http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/Friday...k-and-more.html *From what we’ve heard, there has been very little interest in quarterback Jamarcus Russell, and it seems unlikely at this point that he’ll get another chance. The biggest issue is Russell still is overweight and out of shape. His lack of discipline and conditioning is what derailed his NFL career in the first place, and the fact that he hasn’t changed his habits tells NFL front office men he hasn’t learned anything. But at least J'Marcus has solid goals for his comeback as he stated he "wants to sit on that bench behind the starter".