Mongo3451

Both

It's just a one in a million thought is all. I want to get it, but just can't. No lost respect, though.

You point to DL, but isn't/wasn't Marinelli supposed to fix that last year into this season? Marinelli was more heralded than Johnson. I think it goes to the DC putting the DL in winning situations and talent of the DL. Ours have been down the last couple of years.

And you gotta get there to win it! Ask a player if they would rather go home than lose the game? They would look at us like we were crazy.

Agreed. Roach was a tackling machine last year. The experience he gained was huge for his development. We can't go qrong with either guy.

Agreed. Outdated yes, extinct no. NYJ used many variations of the 46 last year to great success.(Ryan) They will likely take it far into the playoffs this year. The Colts(who coincidentally knocked the Jets out) through Jim Caldwell, upgraded their version of the cover 2 with great success, despite a decimated secondary. I think a healthy Dwight Freeney wins the Colts the SB last year. So, with the peices we have in place their is a chance the cover two will work. Just not the Lovie two.

Agreed. Damn.

This season, the middle should be open for the backs. There will be no more stacking the box as it was in the past. We may finally get to see the the versatility of Wolfe. And yes, I'd run him up the gut on draws and traps. I think he can be a weapon in this new offense.

My issue with that optimism is that Omiyale is the only drive blocking type of starter we have on the OL. Garza, Kruetz and Beekam are all undersized for the dfirve blocking task. My only optimism is that Hiestand is NOT the OL coach and that Williams and Omiyale will move toward their upside.

I think it was Pharma grade. Like the syrup they use to make the cough medicine.

Read that too. I love the way Thayer breaks down film, but don't know how sold I am on some of his commentary. Being paid by the Bears will keep him from having an impartial opinion. Always enjoy his pieces though.

Here's my take on our OL situation. Williams - played at his natural position and looked good toward the end of what really was his 1st season as a player. Add the fact that he was injury free was a a huge plus. Entering year three, I look for him to be a big upgrade over last year. Beekman - Still young and developing. He has remained injury free. Entering year 4 he should continue to get better. Kreutz - Injured for the most part of the last 2 years. He's reportedly feeling pretty good, but how good can someone with that much wear and tear feel? He feels good, but his career is aging in dog years now. I call him a push on the high side and most likely will continue to decline. Garza - Push on all categories. Omiyale - Playing at his natural position, young and improving. I look for him to upgrade as well. His growth should likely be between Williams and Beekman. Tice - Compared to Hiestand, Tice is actually a credible coach. I like the scheme and the experience he brings. The unknown is how he will mesh with what Martz requires. Thank goodness it's him, not Harry though. Huge upgrade. Maleuma - Huge upgrade as blocking TE's are concerned. Martz - Could jeopardize everything by forcing an undertalented line to hold blocks longer. Martz is a known QB maker and killer all in the same package. He scares the crap out of me, but we all know Turner had to be the scapegoat for last year. So here we are are. Individually, we are stronger and improving over last year, but collectively Martz is the swing vote to which will be a mystery untill it's not.

What's the figure if you include Vasher?

It is still possible - IMO. Releasing Brown for monetary reasons was to avoid overpaying for a position, when Brown wasn't due to play a prominant role. If you look at our safeties, they don't make squat. Adding Otogwe would change that of course. And if you look at our team, we have weak corners with still no proven cover safeties on the roster. Wright may end up being that guy, but who knows. Anyway, Wright could learn from Otogwe and be valuable insurance. He could also replace Harris in passing situations to provide flexibility in coverage. Manning needs to move back to nickel anyway. Not having a 1st or 2nd rounder saved us a ton of money this year. If we have the money, I say do it. I wonder where we are, in theory, to the cap if it were present??

One would think. That's warefare 101. JA and Lovie have figured out a better path to victory.(sarcasm) Hope all our vets have a great Memorial weekend. Thanks guys!

I consider the sidelines part of the playing field in regard to his behavior. On that, he has had several issues with team mates and coaches.(on national TV and replayed and debated on the halftime shows and ESPN) It's well documented. I will say that they do try to enhance the story, just because it's TO. But, in all reality, he's done more to deserve the attention than anyone else. C'mon, that just reeks of desparation. I addressed that in another post. We agree what they have done is NOT to our philosophy, but I think they have felt their plan should have been more successful. Mike Gandy has started as LT for the Cards for years. He's not the greatest thing, but a starter on a playoff team and better than anything we had the last few sesons.

I can't find anything to disagree with. Damn!

Yeah, there's no doubt we agree on this issue of OL. I think where JA's philosophy differs from ours is that he places a premium on DL. As we've heard many times, they are the key to the defense. The fact that JA has failed so miserably at having a stud DL, QB and S has dramatically shifted his ability to aquire OL via the draft. Leaving him to take late flyers, hoping to get lucky or supplementing with servicable FA veterens. IMO - if they would have focused a higher level of attention on OL and coaching them up, everything else would have fallen into place on the offense. It would have made everyone else better, including the QB's. Here's the funny thing; DL in the cover two is supposed to be one of the easiest positions to find, yet JA has had success with only one out of 13 draft choices?? That tells me our coaching sucks. How many times have you heard that JA had solid drafts from people in the know, only to have them NOT pan out. Coaching... I have preached for years to have the OL fixed or to have one side of the ball be dominant. Neither has happened, but not for a lack of trying to draft D. Coach is a defensive guru and they still can't get it right? I'm blaming Lovie. IMO - where JA screwed the pooch was during our Superbowl window. Remember the draft after the Superbowl? GM's from other teams thought we bulletproof and the only team that could win it all despite not having a good QB. He took flyers at many positions to gamble on explosiveness. That draft with not adding OL high and letting TJ go put a world of hurt on our future. It was a squandered opportunity by drafting a bunch of men for their measurables. IE: men in shorts.

That's the way I remember it. I think there was even a joke going around about Graham bangin Lovie's wife.

I ignore all articles that have Smith in the title. I simply pretend he is NOT here anymore. I've gone numb to him. Hope Forte is on the right track and that he is healthy.

The key word in your statement is "solid." I agree; often you can get solid players. But rarely do you get superstars who don't have a little bit of "me first" in them, maybe more. Randy Moss sure seems to be doing fine in New England. Terrell Owens sure seems to do well when his teams are winning. That is a cop-out and simply not true, TO was throwing McNabb under the bus after a Championship run in which he got the ball often. Both have no issues getting along with teammates while ON the field. While I’ll agree on Moss, TO has proven to be a different story. He’s completely clueless to his surroundings. I think it goes a little deeper than being a prima dona. TO simply does not know right from wrong on how to interact with men. He’s more like a bitch in a beauty parlor. That's what I care about. I'm not saying they'll be perfect, but neither has punched a teammate in the face like another person on our team. None has helped split the team against another teammate. Again, TO has been accused of being a locker room divider wherever he has been. It’s been talked about in detail in SF, Philly and Dallas. The point is, EACH year those two stars were available, the Bears needed WR help in a VERY bad way. Each year they were ignored...much like the team seems to ignore the OL. Disagree with our team addressing needs of OL and WR. The team has tried, but failed. That’s more of an indictment on JA’s talent evaluation or the coaching staff’s ability to get production out of players. Moose went back to Carolina and had good stats again. We have a starting left tackle playing for the Cards and another Starting right tackle playing for the Cowboys. (Both playoff teams) I’m more convinced than ever we have a bunch of bumbling idiots running this team. I’m leaning toward Lovie and below, as I think JA has done at least an average job. I think the positions have been addressed, just miserably

Yes and yes.

Gotta go my own way on this. You know it would be cool if everyone agreed and got along all the time, but it would be boring as hell too. Butkus, Sayers and Urlacher have the right to say what they want. If they want to spar, let them. I personally like the feistiness. It shows people care. Sayers and Butkus have a loyalty to the franchise and each other, while Url has the loyalty to the franchise and his teammates. What will this do, other than motivate the team?

I agree and have a big problem with this as well. See if the guys pick up what you are teaching before you teach them something new. It must translate to the playing field. Everyone knows Wright was drafted to play FS. Play him there! As of now, he's the only player we have that is a league average FS.(and we don't even know that yet) We have 6 other SS's on the roster that we know aren't good FS's. This jackassery has got to stop. Problem with the D these last few years is the same idiot at the top of the chain. Too many men in shorts and too many square pegs in round holes.

indeed