AZ54

Interesting names for how they chose to have the world view them. I'll wait.

I think we're ok at WR and TE. I think we're good at RB. All this depends on the Oline coming together, including the WR performance. After the chaos of the Nagy years where players often didn't know who to block I can't imagine it being worse. To be honest while I like the Oline draft picks and our new C is a good pickup to help the transition, this wait and see approach is an uncomfortable feeling. As always I'm optimistic but part of that optimism is simply based on Poles' background at KC, along with Cunningham plus the new Oline coach's proven history of success. We still might add to the LT position but at this point they are their 3rd week of OTAs and they are not panicking. We still have $15mil in cap space per Overthecap.com. They could (and IMO would) do something if they felt they had to but so far the players are doing enough learning the new scheme for them to hold off and see what happens. Getting in the right position for a zone block is one thing, holding that block is another. All eyes will be on the Oline the first day the pads come on.

Add this to the Nagy pile of #$&^$... https://www.dabearsblog.com/ A Tweet from Nate Tice seemed to capture the imagine of the internet this week: “the 2021 Bears drew up isolation plays in the redzone for 34-year-old Jimmy Graham with a straight face.” Aside from the insanity of the actual concept, this is also a reason I don’t take Cole Kmet touchdown production criticisms very seriously. Kmet didn’t score in 2021 because the Bears didn’t really give him many opportunities to score. Because, you know, they had Jimmy Graham! ...and on the silence of the LT FA experience we may just have to wait and see... As for the offensive line, there is still nothing to evaluate until we know how the players shake out. The Bears still don’t know where Teven Jenkins is going to line up. They don’t know if Larry Borom if going to be in their starting five. Similar to the QB, these guys are still learning how to play within a new scheme/structure. One thing I have heard from inside the building is Morgan likes Borom more than Poles and company did when they were first hired. Poles didn’t initially envision Borom as a starter. That may be changing.

...and in OTAs he's still maintaining the shorter throwing motion. Changes like this are difficult to maintain in live action due to muscle memory so we'll see how he does once the season starts but I'd say he's on the right path and over the next couple seasons this should become consistent as long as he puts the work in.

https://mobile.twitter.com/Veluzz_/status/1505022219843420160

This news isn't surprising... https://www.si.com/nfl/bears/news/bears-coaching-staff-makes-one-key-change-in-approach "It was here where Tolbert described the change in approach by this regime." "It was to my understanding that they didn't come up to coaches' offices a lot of times in the previous regime and we told them it was an open-door policy for us," Tolbert said. "So he's always up in my office asking questions about different things."

Again half the good stuff he talks about with Pettis is what he did in college 5 years ago. That's not something I want to see on any job applicants resume regardless of career. He's good competition for the bottom end of the roster and that's it. Tajae Sharp OTOH is solid competition with ESB and should push him to earn his roster spot or playing time. As far as early in the season ... remember the 49ers shutdown the Packers in the playoff game. I'm not optimistic we'll do much better than Rodgers/Adams could muster up in our first game in this offense. It is possible the defense shines against Lance in their passing game and turnovers could be the story of the game. I'm more confident in the back 7 of the D, I'm doubtful we'll stop their run game. Last night I watched Lance's first start, it was not very good. Shanahan did the same crap he did with RGIII on the designed QB runs. I hope Getsy stays away from that. A couple mixed in on some designed rollouts is ok but running the QB up the middle we don't need. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Aujxc3AJFk

That's what I"m thinking we're headed for. Getsy did say he listened to his staff and added some twists to what he originally wanted to do, so perhaps the expanded FB role is one of them. Now if you enjoy the strategic aspect of player personnel ... who did Kyle Shanahan draft last year? A mobile QB so this little experiment with both teams running the same style offense is going to be fun to watch. The 49ers and Trey Lance have a big head start since they've been using this system for years. I would have liked to have seen this matchup a few weeks into the season so our Oline and Fields could be more comfortable but regardless it's going to be entertaining. That also means they won't have much film on guys like Velus, and maybe Ebner, and how we plan to use them. Everyone else should fit into the typical role in this scheme. On the plus side our defense will have seen this scheme for weeks in training camp so they should be ready. I'm not expecting a win just going to watch the game within the game among the QBs. https://dknation.draftkings.com/2021/4/5/22350956/49ers-2021-nfl-draft-picks-team-needs-mock-draft-justin-fields-trey-lance-jimmy-garoppolo-trade "49ers beat writer Matt Barrows made the point that the Shanahan archetype at quarterback is not Kirk Cousins, but rather John Elway. Shanahan is looking for a “strong, savvy, mobile quarterback with a powerful arm.” Trey Lance fits that mold as well, so it comes down to whether you like Fields or Lance more. I lean toward Fields given his more extensive experience at a higher level of competition, but I can see why someone might be enamored by Lance’s tools."

This will fit in somewhere.... https://www.si.com/nfl/bears/news/the-role-bears-have-in-mind-for-their-new-fullback It seems the Bears are actually planning for Khari Blasingame to have a real modern fullback role. Will he be a Chicago version of Kyle Juszczyk, blocking or even carrying the ball in an offense using the wide zone scheme like San Francisco? The Bears won't reveal this until the start the season but are hinting at something more involved than playing special teams and blocking in an occasional short-yardage play. "The fullback position, he's not going to just line up in the backfield," Bears running backs coach David Walker said. "He's going to do some stuff out on the perimeter, as well, and has to understand route concepts when he's out of the backfield and then be able to execute when he's out of the backfield. And so far so good from that standpoint."

After watching both videos the decision to draft Velus seems like a perfect complimentary fit for this offense. I was focused on finding an X WR but it appears Jones is the chess piece that makes the play fakes (or not) something the defense has to react to. There are some very simple route concepts where Fields can get him the ball in space and let him do his YAC thing. Jones working out of the slot on those deep sideline routes makes a lot of sense too. It's a simple rub concept where his speed really challenges a DB to keep up with him through. the traffic. With this offense we simply don't need Velus to execute what might be a more traditional X WR route tree. On the flip side we have Mooney doing those things, filling the role Adams did for GB. He's not as good but maybe they view him as good enough. Looking back at the draft, we weren't going to get as much production or attention on jet sweep plays/fakes from Skyy Moore or Alec Pierce, but might have been good with Tyquan Thornton in the same role. Maybe Poles figured Velus or Thornton would be there in the 3rd? Afterall, what role are the Patriots going to use Thornton (50th pick) for because Mac Jones is not consistently hitting him 50 yards downfield? Pickens was still on the board too when we chose Brisker and I'd have been happy with him there. IMO Pickens skillset would be a better fit in the role Adams had but again, it appears they are content with Mooney. Would Pickens be happy when he is primarily a blocker or decoy? Adams was never the WR who routinely won contested catches. He used quickness to get open and if that failed, as we saw last year after Jaylon Johnson shut him down in the 1st half, the scheme could get him open. There's no reason to think Mooney won't benefit in the same way. As others have shown RBs get a significant chunk of targets and based on what was shown here the rest (Pringle, ESB, Kmet, etc) just as coverage dictates or when plays break down. I can definitely see Fields ability to run really stressing defenses on some of these play-action plays. All of this has to start with an effective running game or there is little reason for LBs or anyone to respect the play fakes. The teamwork on the zone blocking requires practice especially on spots where they have to help chip and then get to the 2nd level. That is job 1.

I have always like when the organization keeps former players engaged.

Passing game breakdown

This is long but he goes over the various type of running plays the Packers ran and Getsy is almost certainly going to follow. It seems clear St Brown was brought here moreso as a run blocker than pass receiver. That's not necessarily bad as long as he can contribute some as a WR. You'll also get to see some of the limitations Lucas Patrick has but those should be less impactful at C. There is a similar video breakdown for the passing game I have yet to watch but will post here in this thread.

Now he has two WRs like that in Pettis and StBrown.

It pays to have friends in the media. Criticizing him would be like eating their own.

Funny thing about Pettis is that he was a 2nd Rd pick largely because of his return ability followed by his skill as a WR. At least that's how I remember him when I watched him in college and his draft profile sort of echoed that. The 49ers were lauded for selecting Pettis, or at least not criticized for it despite a big trade up to get him much earlier than he was valued. Fast forward to today and everyone in the media is complaining about Velus Jones being a 3rd Rd pick and Jones offers even more versatility than Pettis did coming out of college. At the time everyone was still singing the praises of Lynch for the Trubisky draft/JimmyG etc. so he got a pass for reaching on Pettis so he could help his QB. https://www.ninersnation.com/2019/1/28/18200971/49ers-offseason-grades-nfl-draft-2018-dante-pettis "The 49ers needed to add some playmakers this past year, and they made an aggressive move in the 2018 NFL Draft to add Pettis. The team traded a third round pick and received a fifth round pick from Washington to move up from No. 59 to No. 44. Non-first round trades can fly under the radar, but it was still an indication the 49ers were high on the Washington receiver and returner." https://www.nfl.com/prospects/dante-pettis/32005045-5473-5981-8eda-5f27db81c106 https://www.si.com/nfl/2018/04/28/nfl-draft-2018-team-grades-picks-analysis I don't expect anything out of Pettis but he's good for camp and if there are injuries who knows how the last WR spot shakes out.

Not sure I've seen this here on our board. I came across this on Bearswire cross-referenced from ESPN where Matt Bowen selected Brisker as one of the top 10 best fits among the rookie draft picks: https://www.espn.com/nfl/insider/draft2022/insider/story/_/id/33891791/nfl-draft-2022-best-team-fits-top-rookies-perfect-landing-spots-midround-steals-early-impact-potential https://bearswire.usatoday.com/2022/05/16/chicago-bears-jaquan-brisker-dubbed-perfect-fit-2022-nfl-draft/ Brisker is a classic fit for Matt Eberflus’ scheme in Chicago as a defender with multidimensional traits. His play style reminds me of Bills safety Micah Hyde. With a smooth pedal, split-field range and easy transition ability, Brisker can drive downhill on the ball from the deep half or match vertically in Quarters. When the Bears do play their single-high schemes, look for Brisker to rotate down, tracking the ball in the run game or lurking underneath in coverage. A highly instinctive player with disruptive traits, Brisker will pair with safety Eddie Jackson in the Bears’ heavily defined system.

I have been a proponent of this going back to Trubisky's days. There is one caveat in that play action takes the QBs eyes off the defense. To keep QBs looking forward I think coaches fell in love with the RPOs and it had initial success when it was new. On those plays the QB has a simple read for a run/pass option to one side of the field but that is extremely limited in terms of what a defense must defend against. Defenses adapted quickly as they always do and now nobody really cares about RPOs. Where RPOs force the action into a narrow window I feel like play action opens up the entire field and allows a good OC to take advantage of weaknesses or bad tendencies of specific players (susceptible to double cuts, LB with coverage issues, etc.) which create more opportunities for big plays. You have to coach the QB how to interpret the defensive shifts that happen while his back is turned, and he also has to read the rush package properly and be in sync with the Oline blocking assignments before the snap. With athletic QBs like Trubisky and Fields you have options on moving the pocket, and hot reads if a guy blitzes to mitigate that. I think all this takes more commitment and effort on the part of the players and coaches versus learning college-style RPOs but there's a reason it's lasted so long as an effective play call in the NFL. It's going to be interesting to see this play out this year.

Good call.

Justin has been working on an improved more compact throwing motion this offseason. It appears here that Getsy is pushing him to get rid of the little hop he takes before he throws.

Wow that is a seriously underthrown pass. Hard to say if it was the wrong route but for Gordon to be able to come back on that and pick it off says a lot. I'm guessing this is the same play but Finke is listed as #8 on the Bears site but jersey numbers at this point change frequently. In any case that WR doesn't have the burst to challenge Gordon and he was going nowhere against his coverage. I look forward to seeing Velus against Gordon. https://www.chicagobears.com/news/quick-hits-bears-top-pick-gordon-lighting-it-up The ball skills that second-round pick Kyler Gordon demonstrated at Washington were on display during the Bears' first two OTA practices Monday and Tuesday. On one play, the rookie cornerback ran stride-for-stride with receiver Chris Finke, stopped on a dime, turned around and leaped high in the air to intercept the ball. "Kyler's been lighting it up the last two days, I'll just tell you that," coach Matt Eberflus said following Tuesday's practice. "The guy's got tremendous ball skills. He's been playing defense the right way and we're very impressed with him.

Other than the fact Eberflus reportedly moved to more Cover 3 to close some of the Cover 2 issues teams we able to take advantage of. That's good news IMO because I got sick of the Cover 2 getting burned on the same throws again and again. I was all for drafting offense early in this draft but I thought it would have been nice if we were in position to take advantage of the Rd 2 DB talent. The Vikings got my guy Lewis Cine at 32, which seemed high, but left us Gordon on the board who I think is a very good fit for our scheme. And so here we are with an upgraded secondary. The mixed coverages is why having a legit Field General out there in Brisker was such a good pick. My assumption is that his leadership is what we coveted as much as his physical ability. He seems like one of the few safeties in the draft capable of getting everyone aligned before the snap. We badly need that so I don't have to see Eddie Jackson waving his hands up in the air on every blown coverage. If Brisker is that guy, then the DC can mix in coverages during a game with more confidence.

He has some good insights into our offseason with the new coaches, strength and conditioning program, Oline, and the WRs. Most of that is in the first half of the interview and the second half goes further back to his days with Angelo.

If he's even he's leavin' and so I'm taking Velus on this one.