AZ54

While I expected to have Urlacher back I also expected Emery to have Tillman and Jennings contract extensions done and that hasn't happened. OTOH I expected Urlacher to realize his value was far closer to $2-3mil than to $5mil. He is doing the same thing Kreutz did and we know how that worked out. When he hears crickets today he'll have time to contemplate his legacy. Clearly the new regime is headed in a different direction. They do not view this roster as capable of competing for the Superbowl this year, and thus not worthy of mortgaging the farm to make the effort. Trestman and his staff are getting something of a clean slate going forward to build their team. By holding firm (so far) on contract extensions this season I'm wondering what cap space we'd have for next season and what the plan might be. What other changes are in store for us?

Assuming this is about having a running QB then in no way do I see Cutler running this and in no way do I like it. Maybe with the bigger guys it can work ...for awhile but they are going to get hurt. The game is all about passing accuracy and you don't risk that. I'm with Mike Tomlin on this one...."it's just the latest fad, we'll see how much they like their QBs getting hit." If we're doing this at all I suspect we'll have more of a passing read option, not much different from a play action fake except the QB decides if he hands off or keeps the ball to pass instead of keeping it to run. In any case since nobody has a clue what our offense looks like he just told the first few teams on our schedule they have to plan for something that we might not run.

Lots of character concerns there. I can't see Emery going in that direction, and if they were to do so I'd rather just wait until he's released.

Payton was doing what you have to do, lean forward when taking contact in order to a) protect yourself from the contact and absorb the impact and try to keep your forward momentum. Doing what Payton did in this video is just natural instinct in terms of protecting your head and neck from injury. I feel exactly the same way in that defenders should be allowed to do the same. I only take issue with the guys leading with the crown of their helmet, not their forehead area, as that IMO is spearing. I wish the NFL would just put a line on the top side of the helmet and state if the contact is intentional and above that line it's illegal. As it is now anytime a player dips their forehead for an impact it's considered illegal and that's them protecting themselves and it's a stupid rule.

Emery says he sticks to his board and looks at value and that Jeffrey sitting there that deep into the 2nd Rd was too good to pass up and we did have a big need at WR. With Knox out I think it's fair to say Emery didn't overvalue Bennett. We still have needs in a lot of positions and both he and Trestman said they prefer to take best available so I won't be surprised to see another surprise this draft.

Risk vs. reward....the Dolphins wanted him back I thought at $8mil/yr. Regardless, given his former status as one of the elite LTs in the game he is not quite getting paid like one now and there wasn't all that much interest in him at that salary so clearly the injury concerns are real. http://www.spotrac.com/top-salaries/nfl/average/tackle/ Bushrod isn't even in the top 10, so he's really only paid as an average LT, which is by most accounts is what he is.

Not if it saves us $300-500k.

Don't see it. I do see him playing safety and covering TEs if he learns how to tackle and keep his head on straight.

Fluker in the 1st and Te'o in the 2nd would be fine by me. I can't see Te'o falling that far though, don't see him falling past Baltimore.

Hopefully what is next are some contract extensions for Tillman and Jennings that free up some cap space.

While we can't be in two places at once, I am pretty close to a split on him coming back cheap or he decides it's not worth playing for $2-3mil. I see the votes so far at 7-0 for him to return on the cheap and I wonder how many others feel he is just as close to retiring.

We would have had to beat that offer in order to get his services. However, Emery wasn't going to play the waiting game, he wanted a commitment early in the process so he could move on.

Not worried at all about Jennings in Minn. He's still a very good player but he no longer has one of the top 5 QBs throwing to him.

You can't compare teams that all have a legit starting QB in place with one that doesn't, although maybe they think they do. So yes, drafting is key especially when it comes to QB as that will define your next 5 years, or 10 years if successful. Teams without that critical (and expensive) QB piece tend to go spend money elsewhere to fill out their roster. Trestman wasn't joking when talking about the marriage between the QB and the head coach. You either win together or get fired together. Cutler could be just 12 months behind Lovie.

McCown works for me as the #2. He's cheap and plays as well (or poorly) as Campbell.

I think the wheels are falling off their bus. They are losing so many key players in one offseason it's hard to replace them all. Replace LT with first pick or DE? The smart choice is the LT as that has highest probability of success. This is Detroit.

$5mil/yr too much for me. If we get Urlacher for a value similar to what Roach signed for I'm ok with it...shorter term of course. That's probably still a bit higher than his play warrants but he is a better leader for the defense and getting players lined up before the snap has value.

Maybe the real deal here is that we took Carimi out of the equation at tackle? We're all focused on Webb for obvious reasons but the reality is this team signed a LT, moved Webb back to RT where he'll compete with (they hope to re-sign) Jonathan Scott. It's not that difficult to read between the lines here and IMO they are telling us Carimi is either an OG or he's quite possibly not on the roster. Part 2....yes why not put a healthy and durable Bushrod at LT (we know the other options and their risks) thinking you can get a very good OG to park next to him in the draft? So yes, I'd say we plan to do just what New Orleans had setup....very good OG next to average LT. Our GM has already stated his intention to drop back in the draft. This from a guy who holds secrets so tight he makes diamonds. There is some good depth at OG heading into the early second round. QB is a very likely target around 20 IMO. Lance Louis...are we that eager to have him back? Or will we take him back for the right price but we're content to move forward with Carimi and Brown at OG with a rookie thrown in the mix? My thoughts were that we had to have Louis back but I'm now doubting the organization sees it as that much of a need.

I think this paves the way for the Bears to sign Urlacher for another year (likely a 2yr deal the team can get out of). Roach got $3-4mil/yr and there was no way the Bears would go there. Roach was an ok player but he wasn't worth that. I might be in the minority but I prefer having Urlacher leading the defense (I don't think he'll be as hobbled as last year) than Roach....for the right price. I expect Urlacher to get a deal done within the next couple days and I agree LB will be one of our first two picks.

I watched the Bennet press conference. A couple things stand out. 1) He clearly stated he had to grow up and accept his role and he learned to do that after a couple seasons and then started to excel as a blocker (his role). 2) He clearly stated he never wants to be the second guy...always wants to be #1 option. During most of the press conference he was all smiles but in the instant he made this statement his face changed to a serious and focused expression. (about 1/3 of the way into the video on the Bears site). Body language gives away much of what we really feel but it's usually just the small glimpse that tells the true story. I think there's more to his desire to be a good player than what is being made of his dinosaur and Harry Potter quotes in the media. I think we're going to be happy to have him here.

That would be a massive amount of luck.

I'd bet all three would like to know how healthy he is and how that relates to the Bear plans in the draft or the rest of FA. They can look for free.

Stats in sports are not really statistics in the true sense...we've had this conversation before. Just one example is the oft cited stat that Brees gets rid of the ball on average about 1sec quicker than Cutler. Ok fine, but with no standard deviation we have no idea of the distribution of those populations. Or are there two populations in the data...one where Brees has very quick 1-2sec reads, and another distribution where he has 3-4sec reads? I look at the PFF blocking stats the same way. Maybe Bushrod had as many rushers get past him as Webb but did Bushrod completely whiff on the block as Webb occasionally does? Some of this is about consistency. Everyone on this board has watched Drew Brees drop back sometimes as much as 10 yards from the LOS and hold onto the ball a long time before throwing. The fact is that New Orleans would take some deep shots every game and those plays take time to develop. Certainly Brees is far better at quick releases than Cutler is, but I think his offense is better designed for it as well. Hopefully we'll be adding more of that element to our passing game. Hopefully Cutler will learn to take the quick underneath read when that's what the defense gives him. For me, when Phil Emery and (by default) Kromer say that Bushrod was better and more consistent than Webb I'm trusting them (not that I have a choice). Is Bushrod an elite LT? No, but then again we didn't pay him elite LT money which would have been closer to $10mil/yr so I think both sides understood that. I'm also trusting that they are able to design an offense that can make better use of his 3 sec of pass protection and have Cutler get rid of the ball than what Tice and Martz did the past few seasons.

He barely played and still got hurt...won't be missed.

I think we wait for value now. Hopefully a player like Moore, who hasn't been active yet in FA, lowers his $$ expectations and we can add some depth and insurance in case Louis doesn't return, or in case Carimi can't play OT or OG. I would love to know what the coaches think of Brown's performance last year and his future on the roster. Is he OT material or OG? Is he worth keeping around? We won't hear anything on that until we get past the draft.