jason

DING DING DING!!!! What do we have for him Johnny!?

Yeah but you live in a foreign country; so, there's some sort of loophole for cultural differences.

Regarding this conversation...read the signature line below.

What do you base that on? Have you seen a lot of his games? He didn't appear too shifty in the games I saw, and in the highlights I've seen he doesn't appear to make anyone really miss. Looks to me like he ran where the open lane was in the spread offense.

(begin rant) Personally, I hate his haircut, or lack thereof. That new floppy haircut that all the young boys are wearing looks like shit. Guys shouldn't have long hair unless they are rockers, Indians, hippies, or bums. It's just a small part of that graying of the sexual boundaries going on in our society that is demasculinizing boys. (end rant) As for the 100 catches, keep dreaming. There is no way he gets 100 catches with the mastermind Turner behind the offense. There were several instances last year where the Bears had goal-line passing situations and didn't even let Olsen sniff the field! Who the hell else is going to catch thd end zone fade if not a massive tight end on an overmatched DB?! If Olsen gets 60 catches, consider it a good year.

Grudges? I hold many. Do they apply to this board? Absolutely not. That'd be silly, because this stuff is not that important considering our relative unimportance. Although, I would say that some conversations get more heated than others, and some posters are incredibly more sensitive than others. I don't hold a grudge against JA; I think he's done a fairly good job. If the Bears do draft a RB in the first, and it would probably be Mendenhall, I'll tell you all that he's going to be a bust...just like I said when the Bears drafted Benson. What amazes me about the whole thing is that we have all watched the same games, and I'm baffled that people think drafting a RB in the first is a good idea when there are several other more pressing needs.

I admit that I haven't seen him a ton, but I have seen enough to form an opinion. I have gone to Youtube and looked at a few highlights as well. So, what I want to know is this: Is Rashard Mendenhall a speed back or a power back? From nearly everything I've seen, he's not explosively fast. He appears to be more of a power back whose speed was accentuated by playing in a quirky spread offense. If the Bears draft him, isn't he essentially the same type of player as Benson?

That doesn't seem to make sense to me. I thought Mendenhall was considered a powerful inside runner with a little burst on the outside? If Mendenhall is drafted, it's as a replacement for Benson, not a counter-part in a thunder and thunder attack.

Just about every mock draft someone has proposed with a RB as the Bears #1 draft pick has brought about distaste from me, and a nearly universal reply of "hate it". Your mock possibility, however, is only borderline distasteful because of the start. It's like the peanut sauce at Thai places - the first bite is kinda weird, but you end up liking it at the end. Take one of those OLinemen out, and then I hate it. Any draft that starts out with a RB for the Bears has to be loaded with OLinemen afterwards.

I honestly considered it, but it was more for the sake of the board's opinion than for mine. I honestly don't think the Bears really need a RB all that badly this year. There is no way to accurately rate or evaluate the RBs on the roster when the OL sucks as bad as they did last year. When Benson was given any kind of hole, or decent blocking, he blasted through and made good gains. I really believe that Benson could put up huge stats if the Bears' OL played like they did two years ago. He's got the speed/burst to get to the second level, and enough wiggle to make it hard for stationary LBs to tackle him. That means a lot of downhill running at safeties and DBs. It's all about my signature below...

The draft list is more of a wish than a prediction. As for the QBs, it's somewhat of a personal philosophy. I think the Bears should make it a practice of signing QBs with potential in draft after draft. I like the idea of having four QBs, to be quite honest. After this year, the Bears find out which of the vets they want to keep, get rid of the other, and have an open camp with two young studs, and one young vet. It's never a bad idea to have a good QB on the roster; we should all know that by now. And since we haven't had a good QB since McMahon, it's about time the investment is taken a little more seriously. Both Dixon and Brennan have serious upside and potential, and I think the Bears should be willing to carry four if the opportunity presents itself. On a side note, what is your personal experience with Brennan?

Actually, I didn't have enough time to reply. I'm on the traveling for work this week, and don't have the computer time that I normally have. We'll just agree to vehemently disagree.

Pass. I have a friend who is a diehard Seattle fan, and he's hated Alexander for several years. Alexander runs weak, seeks the sideline whenever possible, breaks no tackles, and would get destroyed behind the Bears' OL.

Otah would excite me more than Mendenhall. Actually, if the Bears pick Mendenhall with the 14th pick, I'll be disgusted...and I'm sure I'll hear yet another year of calls from friends - who are fans of other teams - making fun of the Bears' first round selection again.

I think many would argue that the RB situation is better than the QB situation for the Bears. Let's face it; Rex Grossman doesn't really scare opponents, and they sure don't get shivers thinking about NeckBeard. And, while nobody is scared of Benson either, I think others realize that Benson has more raw talent to exploit if given the right opportunity than either Rex Grossman or NeckBeard.

What's more stupid than seeing that someone voted for Ryan is the fact that Mendenhall and Thomas are even included in the poll. Either one of those two with a top four pick would be absolutely insane.

Bingo. Trading down is a good way to avoid the higher draft picks' salaries, but I also fear the trade down and ending up with what is essentially sloppy seconds. Although, I'd rather have a trade down that picking up Mendenhall or any other RB not named McFadden with the 14.

Maybe the OL can play Red Rover, Red Rover and let waves of kids bust through weak blocks.

To be quite honest, I haven't wanted to get into this entire thing. Then I said I was done. But when I saw you get all pissy with it and start calling people names, as if you were someone better, it made me want to reply. Especially considering you are in the vast minority when it comes to the "are athletes being greedy" discussion. I understand economics just fine. I understand the athletic side of it just fine. Etc., etc., etc. I'd say many here do. It's just a matter of disagreeing on whether or not the players are being greedy. I just think that the players get paid an obscene amount of money, and if they are going to ask to get their contracts restructured halfway through, then they should be equally willing to restructure and take a pay cut if they are sucking. For instance, Muhsin Muhammed would have been paid about 500K last year. But we all know that ain't gonna happen because, as you have said, they gotta get paid. It's just too bad there can't be some sort of performance-based pay system. That would end this entire debate. Of course, that won't happen either, because the players would never agree to it. It would stop them from huge contracts and then

The way I see it, the Bears QB and RB situation are nearly the same. QB: Two average starters who have done well at times, horrible at others. Nobody from other teams is scared of either Bears' QB. RB: Two average starters (and a younger guy who is outside the box), who have some good qualities, but several bad ones as well. Nobody from other teams is going to stack the box because they're afraid of the Bears' running game. So, all the talk about Mendenhall got me thinking.... What would you guys think if the Bears selected Brohm at 14? Assuming Ryan is gone, then Brohm is basically regarded as the second best QB, which is essentially what selecting Mendenhall would be. Would you be upset by this?

Good job Bearsox! The quotes are good ammo. It makes me think that we could see some Colt Brennan action late. I think it'd be a great pick as long as it's lower than the fourth.

It is nice to see pro athletes giving back, but I don't think that RMJ is the best example out there.

Three teams trading up into the top 12?

After reading the rest of your comments on this thread, it's pretty clear that you are the one being irrational and emotional about this issue, not me. I understand that the negotiations happen the way they do, but I'm pretty confident that the constant renegotiations happen because of greedy players and agents most of the time, and players deserving more the rest of the time. Just for your own information, I work for a small company, make very good money, and I could totally dick my company if I wanted to. I could demand more money or quit like the pro athletes do (but I couldn't stay out as long, obviously). The reason I don't is because I made an agreement, I shook hands, I signed a contract, and I'm not a dick. Speaking about specific questions: 1) Have I turned down a raise? No. But that's not what is happening. Is it? They aren't offering raises unless they have entered into negotiations with the players. 2) Did the offer to take less money happen with Darwin Walker? I don't know, honestly. However, what happened to him? Cut. This is not a realistic recourse for the owners in situations dealing with Urlacher, Hester, and Harris. Not only does cutting a player like basically mean you lose your job as the GM, but it also kills you in the salary cap. And as you like to mention, the GM has to do a lot of things, one of which is salary cap management. As for the GMs, I think most would admit to the fact that we don't know as much as them. But what you don't seem to understand is the fact that the GMs surely don't like the fact that the players seem to be pulling this renegotiation demands garbage more and more nowadays. They accept it because they can't change it, but it's a stone-cold guarantee that they dislike it. Keep thinking you're smarter than everyone else. Keep thinking you know everything. Your assumptions and ad hominems just prove that your argument is weak. Keep throwing fits and calling people names because you can't get your way. Take your ball and go home. Just like the old board; you're gonna cry and whine like this stuff is somehow personal to you and crucial to your life. The sad thing is, you still don't get it.

It's clear that debating or discussing this with you is pointless because you don't even pay attention. Besides that, you clearly have a broken sarcasm meter, and your hypothetical situation gauge is just plain broken. Nobody wants to actually trade Urlacher, Harris, and Hester. For you to take it seriously shows how blind you are when it comes to these discussions. You don't actually take time to read the responses and understand them, you just toss out rebuttals because you are such a fanboy. When I made the majority of the comments, I wasn't speaking specifically about Urlacher, but instead about spoiled athetes. As for your points: 1) So, it's about the players being competitors now, and not about their secure futures? 2) We all know contracts get renegotiated. We all know each side has specific leverage. It's not grandstanding, and it sure as hell isn't ignorant. What you fail to get, still, is that while the negotiations are accepted by the league, you can bet your ass that the teams abhor the constant bitching by the players about being underpaid. And you can guarantee they hate the fact that a guy will sign a four year, front-loaded deal, and then complain halfway through when the big bucks are gone. 2b) Point me to one situation in which the team went to a player and said, "Look, if you were doing well, you'd be asking for a renegotiation for more money. However, you sucked last year, and weren't up to par with your contract the year before that; so, we'd like to renegotiate your salary so that you diminished performance is more in line with your worth to the team." DOESN'T HAPPEN 3) As for your comments about fools on this board, I think you are in the minority when it comes to thoughts on how the negotiations happen. You are in the minority about the players and their contracts. And you are being incredibly obtuse, arrogant, and ignorant to think your opinion, which is pretty clearly in the minority, is somehow superior than ours. You don't hear much complaining when the millions are thrown around like nickels, but when the players complain, that's when you hear the noise. What about that don't you get? It's not even the renegotiation that gets the complaints. It's the comments alongside the renegotiation that are basically slaps to the face of hard-working, normal fans who know greed when they see it. 4) Last but not least, comparing the renegotiations between professional athletes and normal people is just plain stupid. It's apples and oranges. Sure, people renegotiate at their jobs, but rarely will you hear someone do so while quoting the company's profit margin. And it's very rare for someone to get a raise of some absurd percentage like 30% or 40% more. And it's nearly nonexistent for a person to bad mouth their employer and STILL get that raise! It's not that we don't understand the league. It's not that we don't understand money, negotiations, contracts, or business. It's that we hate greed. And what the players seem to be doing more and more these days sure as hell looks, sounds, and smells like greed to most fans I've heard. But go ahead thinking that you are the superior intellect, one who knows more than just about everyone else who seem to agree on the opposite of your beliefs.