jason

Safety battle from those scrubs? Forgive me...

You know what? I'm pretty much saying we have to go OL in the first, or second, or both. There is an absolute ton of top shelf talent on the OL this year, the likes of which we may never see again.

I think the difference is, you appear to separate the two concepts of BPA and need, when, in reality, virtually no team does that. If you have 4 or 5 ranked needs going into the draft, where 1 is the most important and 5 is the 5th most important, you have to factor that in as well. If the BPA happens to be from your #5 position, and no other player from needs 1-4 come close to #5's rating, then you probably go with #5. But grabbing the BPA even though he's at position #9 of need doesn't make a lot of sense to me. One, because there's a greater chance he doesn't start and doesn't have a high impact. Two, you have too much money invested at one position. Three, even if that player does start there is a decent chance he won't be able to excel because players from position 1-5 are still going to suck. BPA only takes you so far when you need 22 guys to fill a roster. This ain't the NBA where one dude can absolutely carry a team.

I'm so sick of hearing that. He really didn't hold on to the ball too long in normal circumstances. It's just messed up perspective from Bears' fans who were disappointed with Jay, and the offense. How in the hell can anyone honestly say he held on to the ball "wayyyyyy too long" when he almost never had time to get to a second read. Aaron Rodgers holds on to the ball for ridiculous amounts of time while waiting for his 2nd, 3rd, 4th read. Cutler doesn't do this because he rarely had time to do so. Every once in a while? Sure. But unless you consider holding it beyond the first read when the first read is blanketed as holding it way too long, then it's just BS. The next time Cutler has consecutive plays where he has a comfortable pocket that allows him to look at a 2nd or 3rd read will be his first with the Bears. As for the rest of your post, I agree. The RBs will play a much larger role in the passing game this year.

Agreed about WR.

For old time's sake:

So, no real change from last year, and the Bears still have Marshal, Jeffery, and Bennett as the core WRs.

I'm normally in favor of the talented player with issues, but F this guy. He has always been an on-field trouble maker, and a punk.

Yes. I like Carimi. I like him in a "don't give up on your first round talent because he had an injury and wasn't completely horrible"-kind of way. Scott was not good. No Bears offensive lineman was good. Average is the best adjective permitted when describing any of their performances last year. Going into the year with Webb (whose best year is still subpar), Scott (a journeyman who has proven he is not very good), and Carimi (a 1st rounder most on this board despise) is not ideal. Adding a 4th rounder from a virtual non-football school like UAPB doesn't get me all warm and fuzzy. Emery agrees; he almost drafted OL ahead of Alshon last year. Most certainly not, check. You have more faith in URFA Louis (horrific injury for a guy that size) and yet another late round OG than I do. No check. I agree that Garza is declining, and Jones won't be there in the third. But Frederick or Schwenke could very well be there in the 4th. It's not even a 100% OL issue. I don't like drafting two WRs. I think that's stupid because the Bears still have Marshall, Alshon, and Bennett...a very good core group. I don't like drafting a LB in the 1st AND 4th rounds. This team has been defensively oriented for quite some time. It's time to give the offense a chance to win some games. Sorry, I just don't like the draft.

This.

I don't have the time or desire to crunch this, but it would be interesting to pair up the FAs with the teams in the most dire salary cap situations. If I were GM, that's a nugget of information that would always be in my mind.

If it's only those four on the Bears' radar with that grade, then it absolutely has to be Cooper. Period. And, in my opinion, Ertz shouldn't even be in the picture with the others. TE in the first?

Beatty doesn't excite me, and I consider just about any draft that doesn't address OL in the 1st, or 2nd, or both, a poorly planned and executed draft that doesn't adequately address the 1st and 2nd biggest problems with the Bears.

There you have it...OL, OL, OL. PFF basically just said all the players on the Bears OL suck. This offseason should be very OL heavy...like it should have been for the past several years.

Obviously hate the draft. Two LBs and two WRs?! C'mon.

This is why I don't want to go to games any more. http://espn.go.com/chicago/nfl/story/_/id/...ticket-prices-a $80 for the cheapest seat in the house?! And that's before some asshole scalper gets his hands on all the other tickets and charges a 50% markup (if I'm lucky). So, take the family and you pay a couple hundred, plus $20+ parking, plus $50 or so for grub/drinks. No thanks. I'd rather watch ALL the games and sit in the comfort of my home.

Why does everything have to be so elementary all the time? Jeez. If you have access to an online resource of every time Hester had the ball in his hands, I'd love to see it. I'll gladly break down the film. In the meantime, the plays I mentioned demonstrate he still has lethal speed. What he lacks is the vision and decision making. Having said that, I don't disagree with the production angle you and AZ bring up. Hester has done little to warrant his salary the past two years.

That's a poor logical jump. I was getting my hair cut yesterday by a lady at Sports Cuts who said she wasn't a sports fan, tuned out the TVs most of the time, but was completely sick of the Teo story. I bet a lot of those voters voted the way they did for the same reason.

There were several glimpses this year when he showed his burst. Look at his one receiving TD this year, for instance. You don't get that kind of separation from a pro DB unless you possess serious speed or great route running ability. And we all know he doesn't possess the latter. Watch his return from the Tennessee game. Undoubtedly the same Hester from years past. He just needed someone to step up and make one more block. A breakdown... He makes a drastic cut at the 50 and gets between two Titans who are about two yards apart. Absolutely flies by the second level of players who thought they had an angle/chance. Makes a jab-step cut at the 30 that leaves the Titans punter nearly falling down at 8-yards away. And if #37 Anthony Walters (who?) had looked to make a block instead of watching the play, Hester has a return TD again.

Dude, there is no if to it. Lovie was, without a doubt, highly instrumental in the selection process for the players. The link for this thread is exactly why both guys were fired. Both share the blame.

So you think Lovie is at fault for choosing the wrong OCs, but you don't think he's also at fault for choosing the wrong players? I'm just saying it's convenient if you blame Lovie for selecting the wrong OCs if he also had a big hand in selecting the players that directly led to those OCs doing so poorly.

Exactly And I'm still angry about it because it was ignored AGAIN. Preach.

Dub

For certain? I don't know. I haven't seen him run a straight-line 40 and timed it. But when I see him in the game, he still looks lightning fast with crazy misdirection ability. The eye test, for me anyway, says he still possesses very rare speed.

Maybe not, but he was instrumental in the players' selections, as well as how they were used. So, he got the fifth highest dollar value to play with, and produced a horrible offense. Similar to what Parcells(?) once said, Lovie was allowed to help shop for the groceries AND cook, but dinner was disgusting.