Mongo3451

If he came in and worked his ass off, I'd love to have him. His motion has a little windup in it, but his velocity and accuracy have always off-set that. Back to the main knock on him - work ethic. If JA is convinced he will bust his ass and offers him a contract with incentives, I am all for it.

The bold part is what a lot of people argued last year as the main reason to bite the bullet and sign him. If for only a stop gap until we got some talent in here. Letting him go made the cupboard bare.

Not really a fan of his

Two things: 1st - I blame the players and coaches for our D-line performance. Their decline is not age or injury related. I really think our D is arrogant and the staff has not been able to reach them. Absolutely a two fold problem. 2nd - Do you think Harris and any DE we have, has the natural talent of Sapp and Rice? IMO - all NFL players have ability, but some are just freaks with talent beyond compare. Honing that talent is a different story.(see Alonzo Spellman)

I agree it's a step in the right direction. But, still think the whole coaching exodus was mishandled. I still blame Lovie and will until proven otherwise. I agree that he cover two may not be dead. I look at the Colts and see what they do with massive losses at D every year. Every year people in Indy wonder what they are going to with without player X. They always seem to find a player. I think the Colts are also the most disproportionate team in terms of payroll in the NFL. I think around 65%+ of the money is offense. Our defense as individuals seem to rely on a false sense of greatness, leading our team to believe it can turn it on at will. Problem is, they are so far removed from the greatness that got them to that point, they are lost. The first step for our defenders is humility and the understanding they are not better without the effort and desire. Our D is still relatively young and able to overcome themselves. As far as coaching is concerned, Marinelli seems ego-less and as close to ground zero as you can get. That is a start. Maybe they can all resurrect their careers together.

How good would Gage, Berrian and Hester look as a trio? Perfect combo.

Just sayin...

That D-line had Sapp, McFarland and Rice. Our only one that is remotely close is Harris. And he is no Sapp. Not knocking the post. I just don't want us to have false hope that Marinelli is the answer to what ails our D. I do agree, he's a good coach and a step up from what we had.

I think Bobby just wants his name in the paper to re-visit glory days. Tebow has a horrible throwing motion. Combine that with his size and speed being negated by NFL standards, he will not make it at QB. TE or fullback could make him a star though.

Looking at the way this team has evolved the last 5 seasons, I feel it is in a transition phase. The transition phase is both mental and physical. The mental side of the coin belongs to the defense. I see a defense that is no longer willing to impose its will on the other team. It used to be the other team would choke, kowing we were going to make the play that would beat them. Now, we are reduced to the QB in the opposing huddle saying, "we got this". Our veterens need to step up and become what they once were. If you look at the ages of our highly paid vets, they are far from through physically. The key to our staff and players is finding a way to get that fire back. The physical side of the team is age, health and talent. Looking at our D, the only place talent is truly lacked is at FS. IMO - stabilizing this is a key. As far as age and health go, there is only FS and SS to be concerned about. On O, we are faced with an age situation on the OL. Talent is also absent on the OL and WR core, with the jury still out on Orton. Health is only an issue with the OL due to age.(see the pattern) The way I see it, we can either tank next season or become a true contender again. Here is the way I see a fix. Defense: Quick win: Move Tillman to FS. He will be a stud here. His effectiveness will grow on a bell curve, while his replacement will only have to do an average job. Quick win II: Sign either a DE or CB via FA, while drafting the other on day one. I'd prefer to sign the DE and draft the DB. Long term win: Make sure Mike Brown retires a Bear by finding a way to get him under contract and transition hin into coaching as he fades away. You think our D lacks heart now, with no Brown I'm afraid they'll pack it in. Offense: Quick win: Sign a bonafide reciever. If you want Orton and Hester to develop, a reliable reciever will fill the need. The draft will not offer this type of quick help. A WR should also be added day one of the draft. Quick win II: Sign St Clair to start at RT and move Tait to back or cut him. Long term win: Draft an OG early and make him a pile driver. Our OL lack road graders and I have no clue why. If we get off the bus running and can't get a yard when we need it. Draft some pushers. Also, if we cut Tait loose. draft and OT day one as well. This will leave us with Williams, Beekman, St Clair, Kruetz and Garza. Lets pray Buenning gets healthy as well. One more thing, draft a beast at FB! I don't give a shit if this guy can catch or carry the ball. I want a guy that will give somebody a concussion. Nuf said. Lastly, at QB. Don't confuse this for Orton love, but I leave that position alone for one more year, as I don't see an availible fix anywhere. If Orton and Hanie develops further we win big. If not, we are no worse than last year. IMO - Orton did well with the talent he had. Sure he locked onto recivers and missed some deep balls. I honestly think the deep ball had to do with his plant foot. I also think the staring t recievers can be alleviated with confidence that more than one can get separation and time from the OL. Orton will never be all-pro, but he can be servicable. Winter in Chicago, that's all you need. The big roadblock= Lovie. While I think it is very doable to get the missing peices in, I also feel that Lovie is living in a dream world. Hopefully he de-inserts his cranium from his rectal cavity and finds his motivation. I think he should have fired Babich before anyone, but since that has not happened, I hope he spends everyday with Babich working on the psyche and scheme of our largest investment. I have more thoughts, but type slowly so I'll stop now. Your thoughts...

Don't forget Hasselbeck was hurt most of the year.

That's the best thing that's happened so far this off-season! I remember how Url responded to the "most over-rated" article(defensive MVP) Now, I hope they rank Tommie "most overpaid". Then, they can give the "biggest pu$$y" award to Vasher, as well as the "over the hill" award to our OL. Last but not least they can give the "can't sack groceries" award to our DL!

I agree with all that are wishing for St. Clair to stay. I believe it to be critical. On the other hand, I'm not seeing a lot of love for Beekman. IMO - he and Olin were our best linemen this year. He has shown quick feet, an ability to engage his man quickly, is very adept at pulling and didn't make a bunch of stupid mistakes (not bad for a developing young player) He IMO would make a better starting guard than St. Clair and definately better than Garza. Move St. Clair to RT, while his heir is drafted. Move Tait to backup, as the wear and tear of a backup make make him servicable for small stretches. If the staff doesn't see that in him, he should be cut. I would prefer to see a stud OG be drafted in the 1st couple of rounds. Maybe another day one tackle as well.

Good points. Let me add one scenario. We have a practice with Supervisors and above that our company puts them on notice that they're on the way out, then give them the opportunity to find a job elsewhere. Lovie and JA seem to have a relationship with Babich and may be giving him a deadline.

The thing that killed me about Mac was that he didn't need to be injury prone. I remember everyone from Ditka to the broadcast announcers trying to get him to be less reckless. Hell, he had the best OL in the NFL with Covert, Bortz, Hillgenberg, Thayer and Van Horn. There was absolutely no reason for him to be geyying killed like he was. But, that is what made him great to me. There was never any doubt he was going to leave it on the field.

I'm sure Lovie has a lot of input on the players JA brings in via the draft and FA, so I don't think he can lay blame on JA for that. Pulling the trigger on FA's is a different story.

I hope you are right. I think Lovie knows his ass is on the line if the D sucks next year. Anyway, what else does he have to do besides practice his blank gaze?

It started when Briggs was a RFA as well. Now, compare Fitz to Url when you talk about investing too much in one positiion. IE: paying #1's. I can't find a difference. I also recall how we all conjured up deals to try to get compensation for Briggs. We, as in this board, started lowering our standards of what we would take for Briggs in trade. Then we lamented when we franchised him, thinking we were going to lose him and get nothing. Good thing JA knew what he was doing. FYI - JA could have swung the deal for Berrian as well. It would have taken some restructuring of other deals that would have taken him out of great cap shape. Not saying he should have, but he could've. Please convince me of a difference, otherwise I don't understand your point.

That's what everyone said about Briggs. Same situation.

All of you know my thoughts on who is to blame for the collapse of our defense. That being said, I also called for Babich to be the scapegoat. From everything I have been reading, it is looking as if he is staying as DC. Is this Jauron/Shoop all over again? Seriously, WTF is going on? Are they so clueless to think firing the DB coach is going fix the shit we saw on the field? Are they secretly giving the power to Marinelli to save face? Thoughts...

So we simply suck at picking guys with good hands. LOL!! You know the shopping list of WR's we have all been dreaming of?? None of them are on the list! Housh, Boldin, Harrison, Holt and Johnson.

Jason and I had a small debate over Forte's ability to be Faulk-esq. Now that you have thrown that out there, can you eleborate? Of course my rebuttal will destroy you.

Agreed. I happen to be a fan of trading down.(to a degree) But, I think last draft was an example of how NOT to do it. We simply had too many late picks to make it effective. I would have much rather had JA trade some of those late picks to move up in the middle rounds.

I'll call TJ out. Sure he may be right. Favre was clearly the main culprit in their demise. But, you don't call out your teammates or coaches that way. There is never any reason to trash a player/coach that is trying to win. I think what Url did was fine, as he didn't elude to any player or coach. He simply said don't blame me. Frankly, I'd be sick of it too.

Mays is a freak. He's not only the biggest guy in the backfield, but he's also the fastest most fluid and agile player out there. That being said, he's a top 10 pick and out of our range. I think the instant fix for our D-backfield is moving Tillman to FS, retaining Brown as his mentor and signing or drafting a CB.