AZ54

It's going to be very interesting to see how good Dexter becomes next season. He's starting to move grown men around like pylons. I'm not sure why he's not getting more snaps yet. During the AZ game I didn't even notice the play where he lined up at DE and rushed the passer, pretty effectively too. Against the Falcons he got the call for the stunts as the man to loop around free. I'm sure he's done that before but with his power I expected he'd be more likely the one asked to take the dive inside to try to tie up 2 Oline. It's clear the team is starting to view him as key chess piece and it's paying off with QB pressures and sacks.

Perfect look at what “late hands” looks like. Post game DJ said Bates was in good position and he knew he was just waiting for his hands to go up so he waited as long as possible. I’d guess that ball is moving about 30mph. Maybe more.

I'm not worried about money as much as winning. Caleb Williams looks like a smaller version of Fields. He has some plusses and minuses on the arm talent and field vision over Fields. Maye looks like a very talented project. Fortunately for us both of them are going to look awesome at the combine (if they go) and their pro day workouts. But those aren't games. It seems obvious to me (just my dumb opinion) that if Fields can throw for 1300 yds to DJ Moore in a season then he can certainly do that on the other side of the field with another good WR. Add two of them or a good 2nd TE to compliment Kmet and then a defense has an awful lot to think about. Then fix the early pressure issues up the middle.

It's been mostly bypassed in media but Atlanta came into this past game with a top 10 defense of their own. I'm sure you can put some context into that given their division but they weren't bad by any means. I'd like to get Mooney back because as bad as he's been, he's still better than either Jones or Taylor. Aside from DJ Moore, watching our WRs last week was painful. In Week 1 Fields was horrible bypassing numerous open WRs. If they think the same QB is coming to town and they can get away with the same scheme then they won't get so lucky.

Lots of merit to the double trade down scenario especially if you are willing to give up on MHJr. If ever there was a draft to bypass that talent it's this one with several very good WR prospects.

I just don't like Williams that much. I'm not sure why all the hype surrounds him as a generational player but I'm glad it's exists. That doesn't mean he's not a really good QB but I don't know how rapidly he'll learn the NFL game, and I question his leadership. If you want the most secure pick of a Pro Bowl player you just take either MHJr, Alt, or Fashanu. Alt and Fashanu both have positional value at the top of the draft.

I'm ok with keeping Patrick as backup. If nothing else I think he'll be a great mentor to a rookie OC but he's serviceable as a backup. That would be even more true if Davis can recapture how he played earlier in the season or we find a solid starter at RG. Even when he's been on the sidelines Patrick was always one of the first players to congratulate teammates on a big play. Bagent is like that too.

Now that #1 overall is secured I've started some scouting. I have man crushes on 3 players for top 10ish. We need one of these 3 and 2 would be outstanding. MHJr (nothing needs to be said) Malik Nabers who I feel is very similar athletically to DJ Moore with his quickness in/out of cuts. WRs that can consistently win out of their break is a huge plus for a QB. I'd like 2 please. We'll add a 3rd WR later in this draft or via FA. Dallas Turner. Last year he didn't impress but this year he's playing with length and strength to compress the pocket but also has the bend and speed to get around the corner. Not only that, he can get off blocks to chase down the play (i.e. when QB scrambles). He'd look fantastic opposite of Sweat with a developing Dexter pushing up the middle. As far as safeties go I like Tyler Nubin out of Minn. There are 3 good safety candidates in the early 2nd Rd as of now, he's one of them depending on where you look. Van Pran at C makes a ton of sense but I also like the center from Oregon: Jackson Powers-Johnson as backup plan. Naturally we have a long way to go in the draft process but my takeways from initial mocks is that if we accumulate a lot of top 100 picks then. 1) We're going to have much better depth in 2024 and 2) we're going to start cutting some names we've relied on in the last year or two. That's even without adding in FA. I'm all for keeping Fields and really excited to see the roster in 2024.

When they come out with studs and duds the 3 idiots on the Bears sideline who stepped aside to let DJ Moore run into a heater need to be the dud list. How do you not put out an arm and assist the best WR the Bears have had in years slow down before he gets injured?

1 Bears 2 Wash need QB 3 NE needs QB 4 AZ could take a QB but they definitely won't trade up to do that. If they grab one, I'd say they are more likely to grab a QB in the 2nd Rd or after a trade down. 5 NY Giants...toss up here. 6 Tenn. Drafted a QB last year and expect they will develop Levis. 7 Chargers ... top need HC 8 Jets. they'll add talent and try to win with Rodgers although it would be awesome to see a pouty Rodgers if they drafted a QB. 9 Falcons. Fits last year's blueprint for a trade down to a tee. The one player I'd take off their roster is Safety Jessie Bates. I'd even be kind enough to send them Eddie Jackson in exchange. This doesn't really shake out well for the Bears if you want a mega trade down. Plus like last year we likely have Williams/Maye as 1a/1b. There will need to be a clear #1 at QB. However, if you consider we might not want to drop back any further than 2 or 3 it is perfect. The price to move up to 1 overall isn't exorbitant to guarantee your preference at QB.

Nice win all the way around.

I agree. I think he keeps everyone guessing even if he trades down from #1.

And the backstory gets better. Their top QB choice is not Wilson. https://thefalconswire.usatoday.com/2023/12/27/russell-wilson-atlanta-falcons-broncos-nfl-trades/

Bummer won’t get to see a grudge match against our former punter. https://thefalconswire.usatoday.com/lists/atl-falcons-practice-squad-tracker/

You have more loyalty than I do. No way I’d give him a raise based on his performance in any other industry. I wouldn’t even guarantee Flus his job unless or until I understood the details. That’s stuff we can’t get. The overall trend for the team is upward You just see it as this is as high as it will ever get. I think the ceiling is higher with better talent and better coordinators.

The only way to get the Jordan rules is to be a winner. Or have a friend on the inside. The BS hold on Patrick looked as corrupt as when ASU basketball players were throwing games for Vegas.

I don’t have that in a specific number but in my line of work most new engineers don’t get it all correct for a couple years, even if they have PhD. I evaluate more on the body of work and are they trending in the right direction. That’s especially true with new managers. I look at coaches and players in the same manner. Last year the consensus on Kyler Gordon through about 3/4 of the season was that he was a wasted pick. Leading a large organization through a very difficult time takes a lot to turn it around and Improve performance. Is it all perfect? Not at all. Is the trend positive and improving? IMO yes and the record validates that along with many performance stats. For example, I don’t believe having the NFL’s best rushing defense is an accident or something the players are doing to spite their coaches When I consider we were the worst rushing defense last year and fixing that was job one in the off-season I’d say that’s a pretty good turnaround. If he sticks around can Flus learn from his hiring mistakes? I think so. As someone who has made mistakes hiring people I can say most managers do learn but not all. I also don’t think Flus is the ego maniac Nagy was who always thought he was the smartest guy in the room. In fact his history of changing his cover 2 heavy scheme to adapt to modern offenses by using more cover 3 shows that. He said as much when he was at Indy.

For those who don’t like our punter Mega Punt just became available. https://www.thecollegefix.com/sdsu-punter-who-lost-nfl-gig-vindicated-as-accuser-drops-rape-claim-against-him/

How many wins were you expecting with this roster in the first year of a rebuild?

I’ve never seen him have good accuracy deep. intermediate and short yes. I don’t see that as an elite trait as it’s not hard to find QBs like that. Anticipation is good but not great but a lot of what he does he gets bigger windows. That’s because he has several elite talents pulling a defense apart and a good OC designing the plays. Processing I think is good He’s still young and will get better. I give him a ton of credit for picking up their scheme and executing it very well as a rookie. He’s what I thought he’d be coming out of college although he got there sooner than I expected. I didn’t see anything last night to make me change my opinion.

If I’m reading this correctly we are predominantly a cover 3 defense.

He’s getting a ton of credit today.

I think so too with new OC and DC.

Yes. So is Scottsdale Blonde but that night only be available in AZ.

If he were allowed to be in the usual day 3 rookie WR role his issues might not be so glaring. That is sitting on the bench.