jason

That "can't run block" stuff is being overplayed. People are reaching for something on him. Look at any of his highlights and you'll see good run blocking and very superior pass blocking. He engages strong in the run. He uses angles and defender momentum to crash them away from the play. He locks on and doesn't let go. When defenders get the inside leverage, they still have difficulty getting off and making the tackle because Stanley is man-handling them. He gets a good base and pushes back linemen. He absolutely destroys or seals off guys on the second level. His feet are SUPERB in all of this. It's amazing how often he gets the outside seal on a defender for being such a big guy. Watch this USC highlight and tell me you see otherwise. The pass blocking really is a thing of beauty. He just buries guys, obliterates them, covers them up with a blanket and tucks their asses in.

Personally, I say no. Stanley is a bookend LT that solidifies the offense, protects Cutler (and the QB of the future). He's about as sure of a pick as there is in the draft. A 3rd rounder is a much bigger gamble.

I think this is a horrible trade for the Rams. They're mortgaging the future on one player. It's a single roll of the dice. There is zero room for mistakes. The Titans, however, have several rolls. Great for them. It feels like the Dallas Cowboy trade that built their franchise in the 90s. You're right that Conklin et. al. are not as good as Tunsil or Stanley, but this is a smart percentage play. According to this site the Titans need a RT, CB, WR, FS, & RB. Imagine if they came away with the following combo: 1.16 - Jack Conklin, OT, MSU 2.33 - Michael Thomas, WR, OSU 2.43 - Artie Burns, CB, Miami 2.45 - Keanu Neal, FS, FL That's a scary good start and fill of their positions.

That's kind of what I was getting at. We live in a very scary world in terms of that stuff. Not to get too political, but I think these dudes are being set up for traps all the time. And it takes very little for someone to cry wolf. But just the scare of this will cause teams to completely write him off. If he falls pretty far, and the Bears get a good feeling about this being a BS case, I wouldn't mind seeing them draft him a little later.

I agree this is bad for us at 11 and the prospect of trading back. But I think this is good for us because it's likely the Rams, Browns, and Niners pick a QB. That means at least one stud falls to 11. For the record, it's a pretty even trade. Titans give up 1.1-3000 4.113-68 6.177-20.6 Total-3088.6 Rams give up 1.15-1050 2.43-470 2.45-450 3.76-210 1.15-1050 (approx) 3.145-33.5 (approx) Total-3263.5

Who know what the hell will happen now that the Titans made the trade. But I'd guess STL traded up for a QB. Why else? 1. STL - Wentz 2. CLE - Goff - Still gotta draft QB. Everyone after 2 could change up their strategy at this point. Will SF reach for the third best QB?

I can agree with Jackson, but I don't think Apple is even close to Alexander to be quite honest. Apple reaches too much, gets beat out of breaks fairly regularly, and is susceptible to penalties. I don't really like him as a prospect.

I agree. If the Bears trade up for Goff, I'll

WOW! Expect the Titans to be really good in 2-3 years. At 15 the Titans can still pick up one of the stud LTs like Conklin, Decker, or Spriggs to protect Mariota. Then they have THREE 2nd rounders. WOW.

In the Rumors thread we are talking about this in detail. I hope it doesn't happen. But then I got to thinking, "Is it even going to happen?" Kiper thinks Dallas, Baltimore, and Philly could take Elliott. I think we need to do a realistic mock. 1. TEN - Tunsil - This seems like a lock. 2. CLE - Wentz - Another lock. 3. SD - Ramsey - Best player in the draft? 4. DAL - Bosa - Let's say it is too early for Elliott. I can't see them drafting EE with McFadden having a great year and Morris/Dunbar there. 5. JAX - Jack - This seems like a perfect fit for them. Their D was atrocious. 6. BAL - Stanley - I could see EE here, but Forsett still has a decent contract and potential, and Flacco got his ass kicked last year. 7. SF - Goff - No way they pass on a QB. 8. PHI - Elliott - Ryan Matthews is their #1 guy? Seriously? If Elliott gets past Baltimore - I think he will - I can't see how he gets past Philly. 9. TB - Buckner - The value here is just too good for them. If not him, then Shaq Lawson. 10. NY - Treadwell - I think he makes sense for them, and turns their passing game into something truly scary. You know what though? Their RBs SUCK. And Elliott wants to go there. If for some reason he slips past Baltimore and Philly, there is no way in hell the Giants pass up Elliott when their RBs are Rashad Jennings and New England's sloppy seconds. Long story short, with the way people are hyping Elliott up and comparing him to AP, I don't see a chance in hell of Elliott making it to the Bears. I think we'll be choosing between Hargreaves, Alexander, or Conklin. Agree? Do you see any way Elliott actually makes it to 11?

Holy hell. Oakman, what a moron. I thought/think he has potential from a purely athletic point of view, but he's a moron to get in trouble this close to the draft. That being said, if he's there in the 6th I think the Bears should pull the trigger. You never REALLY know why some of these things happen, and it could have been just some nasty skank trying to take advantage of his position. The 6th and 7th is where you take chances. It's why I wanted the Bears to select Burfict a few years ago.

No doubt. Even I won't argue that. But it's too big of an if to risk when there are other positions of much greater need right now. Unfortunately, we don't know for certain what someone will do in the NFL. We, as Bears fans, know that better than most. Our front office and coaches have drafted poorly for decades. There is a reason the draft has often been said to be a 50/50 endeavor. What if he ends up being just 50-60% of LT or AP and Mackensie Alexander, for example, turns out to be 85% of Deion Sanders? It's too much uncertainty for me. I'd rather just have them draft need+BPA. A different thought on that, what if Langford turns into LT? What if he has the ability to do so? Honestly, we don't know what he can do right now. Carey either.

First bold - It sure seemed that most were OK with Forte leaving. Maybe you were not on board. I still think it was a mistake, especially since this entire discussion is about drafting a replacement RB. Second bold - Agree with the ease of transition being something that puts a feather in the cap of RB BPA.

http://www.drafttek.com/2016-NFL-Mock-Draft-Round1.asp 1. Ronnie Stanley, LT, ND 2. Jaylon Smith, LB, ND 3. Karl Joseph, SS, WVU ... Looking through how things played out, there are some interesting combinations to be made depending on your view of the SS class.

The key to your statement is that anything can happen. As such, the odds of finding a player dominant in his 10th year or so is slim. It's even slimmer when it's a RB. RB's take way more damage than average players at other positions. AP is the anomaly, not the average - that dude has a six-pack visible through a sweater. Matt Forte is a better example, even if unfair (because we already know Forte has produced in the NFL). He ripped the league a new a-hole on Bears teams good and bad for 8 years, then was forced to split carries last year despite playing better than the others, and he was unceremoniously dumped despite having clearly tread on the tires. Why? Because of the fears that he regresses towards the mean of RBs who struggle or nosedive at or around 30. And virtually nobody had a problem with it, including most on this board, because the RB position has a limited life-span. Pretty much everyone thinks Tunsil, Wentz, and Ramsey are gone. There is a good chance Bosa and Goff are also gone. That leaves five players before the Bears. In no specific order: -Shaq Lawson -Myles Jack -Vernon Hargreaves III -DeForest Buckner -Ronnie Stanley If those 5 guys are also gone, then I hope they trade down. If that doesn't happen, I hope they pick A'Shawn Robinson, Mackensie Alexander, or Jack Conklin.

1. The RB position has been severely devalued in the NFL. I'd argue it's really not one of the most important. 2. It tells me the coaches don't agree with me, and want to get another RB. I think it's a bad idea. 3. OK, we are understood on BPA vs pure BPA. I think it's stupid because the BPA we're talking about must consider the comparable replacement at another position. So, given number 2, the fact that Langford appears to be pretty damn good, the fact that there are not great players at a few other positions (CB, OLB, LT, SS), and the fact the league is crazy pass-happy, and I'm saying it doesn't make sense to get a RB when there are comparably skilled players at positions of greater need. 5. You're moving the goal-posts somewhat. The Bears do, in fact, have a better set up at RB than multiple other positions. They have a better starter in Langford and a better backup in Carey than several other positions. The FO doesn't agree, apparently. 6. Long term success? With a RB? What's the shelf-life of a RB? 2.57 years according to this. Long term success is built elsewhere.

I'll add in Vernon Adams to the list. If not for his height, people would be salivating over him. He has put up massive numbers in college, shown good touch, and just gets the job done. He may not have the perfect size, the perfect delivery, the perfect anything, but he's a serious gamer. He's a winner. He's a guy that does the right things at the right times, but gets critiqued to the Nth degree. If the Bears wait on QB, I'd love to see him in the 6th.

You're right - he's not a traditional mauler, but he's still a good run blocker. Better than Leno, easily. And three more reps on bench. Besides, at LT I'd rather have elite pass-protection and good run blocking. Make no mistake, there is a reason he's probably going to go in the top ten. We can nitpick all we want, but he's better skilled than Leno at pretty much everything.

1. They did invest. His name is Langford and his backup is Carey. Neither has received sufficient carries to know if they can carry Forte's missing load. 2. See point one. That next great guy may be on the roster. 3. Pace doesn't believe in pure BPA. No GM does. Well, except for Matt Millen and his three straight WRs in the first, which pretty much sealed his fate. 4. Sure, I'll grant this one. The Bears have a good read on him for sure. 5. The same could be said about any other position basically. Carey is a potentially better backup than other positions. 6. He may be, but he won't be if the Bears draft him because he'll split carries with Langford, get stuffed on the left side, and won't get carries in the 4th because the Bears will have to pass since they'll perpetually be trailing if they don't address the rest of the defense.

1. I'll be sick if the Bears pick Elliiott at 11. It doesn't make sense. I've asked several friends who aren't Bears fans and they all think it's stupid. Because it is. The Bears need help several other places. 2. Leonard Floyd is an enigma for sure. He has the athleticism, but not the production you'd like. Kind of like Nkemdiche. 3. Shaq Lawson might be a reach at 11, but I do like him more than Dodd for sure. The problem with 11 is that most of the guys we really want are gone. 4. Hargreaves is not the ideal pick, you're right about him being a good pick. I think he'd be one of the better picks for the Bears because I expect it to be between him, Elliott, whichever QB falls, and various reaches. 5. Nick Vigil - 4th or 5th round? Sure. 6. Agreed! That's my dream scenario. I really want to trade back. I'm really hoping for draft picks more than players. 7. Higbee is a great 7th round pick at this point.

I don't agree with your disagreement. 2006 - Daniel Manning was drafted to be the team's FS because Chris Harris was not a FS (Harris was a SS who was NEVER going to take the job from Mike Brown). Manning had crazy athletic upside and it was a worthy gamble. Hester was another freak athlete who had crazy upside, so much so that nobody really knew what position he would play. Many thought he would play WR, especially since Justin freaking Gage was the #2 WR in 2005 with 31 catches. 31 CATCHES. And if you recall correctly, the year prior was when Bobby Wade's slow ass and questionable hands did almost nothing as the returner. The Bears needed WR, returner, and a maybe even a nickel CB. 2007 - Desmond Clark was a journeyman his entire career. In 2006 he was average at best. The Bears were absolutely average on offense, and probably worse if not for the defense and ridiculous field position Hester gave the team. They needed upgrades on offense, and Olsen was a definite upgrade.

Regarding the bolded, I don't believe any team is so stupid as to exclude any position if the value is so great as to override need. They probably had him on their big board rated pretty highly, and when he dropped as far as he did it was unexpected. So instead of the guy they were expecting, someone rated in the 20s (if they were lucky in the teens), there was a guy rated as a top 10, maybe even top 5 player. The ROI there is too great. The key here, however, is that only good teams can do this. Only good teams can take that chance. The previous season they were 10-6 and won the North. They had a top 5 offense and a subpar defense. The next two years Farv was crazy Farv, with tons of INTs. Otherwise they were the same team that felt they could compete as long as Farv didn't just throw the ball to the other team consistently. The Bears haven't been in such a position more than once in the last 20+ years, but they wasted that opportunity by creating a QB controversy, changing up 1/2 of the DL, ignorantly dropping Thomas Jones, wasting draft picks on Dan Bazuin and Michael Okwo, and generally not preparing for the future.

Exactly. You follow someone enough and they constantly get a chubby when combine warriors put up crazy bench reps or a stupid 40 time, then you know he's an "athlete above football player" kind of guy. But there are others who don't care about that stuff and see guys who rack up 100+ tackles or constantly get open, despite unimpressive physical attributes. I like the latter approach. Guys like Nkemdiche, Oakman, and the no-name German WR are exciting, and have potentially higher ceilings, but the other guys who killed it for four years at mid-majors have lower floors. I'm a way bigger fan of not shooting the moon, picking a ton of B+ guys with upside. Give me Day Ngyuen and Zach Thomas all day over some pool-jumping dickhead.

Witness Relocation Draft 1. Ronnie Stanley, OT, ND 2. William Jackson, CB, Houston 3. Austin Johnson, DT, PSU 4. Jack Allen, OC, MSU 4. Jordan Howard, RB, Indiana 5. Jonathan Jones, CB, Auburn 6. Willie Henry, DT, Michigan 6. Justin Simmons, FS, BC 7. Chris Moore, WR, Cincy

The Punctuation Draft 1. A'Shawn Robinson, DT, Bama 2. Su'a Cravens, LB, USC 3. Nile Lawrence-Stample, DT, FSU 4. Le'Raven Clark, LT, TXTech 4. De. Houston-Carson, FS, W&M 5. Deiondre' Hall, FS, UNI 6. Briean Boddy-Calhoun, 6. De'Runnya Wilson, WR, MSU 7. Henry Krieger-Coble, TE, Iowa