adam

By the way, great first post Urlacker54.

This guy is not just Pro Bowler, is a perennial All-Pro on a bad team. I can't imagine how much better is going to make the guys around him. Floyd won't see double teams anymore, and the secondary won't have to cover as long. Defense is now top 10 for sure.

Dude, great point, it's not like we are losing 2x First Rounders, we gained one by trading for Mack. He was 5th btw.

Mack is a top 4 Defensive Player, in the group with Watt, Donald, and Miller. He is 27, and we have 4 more years with Trubisky on his rookie deal. This is perfect timing. I don't see Mack as overrated, he was on a team that wasn't very good and he was still dominant. Just think of him in a Fangio defense, I can't imagine he won't be even better. If people are worried about losing 2x First Rounders, here is Pick #20 from the last 5 years: Frank Ragnow Garrett Bolles Darron Lee Nelson Agholor Brandin Cooks Any objections to giving up two of those guys for Mack?

Our starting LBs: Mack, Smith, Trevathan, Floyd (WOW), with Kwiatkowski as the 5th.

We also had 3x first rounders this year: Smith, Daniels, and Miller, so we really didn't give up any to get Mack

Also remember, there were reports that the Packers were in on Mack too. So this to me is a double win.

Love hearing stuff like this, Pace is becoming a GM Assassin:

Based on initial reports, it is at least 2x First Round picks and "a player"; they are expected to sign him to a deal that exceeds Aaron Donald's!

I wish Cam all the best, but he was playing in the final preseason game against players that will likely not be on an NFL roster in a day or two. Just the fact that the Saints played him in this game says a lot about how they feel about him. If he was still on our roster, he would be a potential roster cut anyway behind Robinson, Gabriel, Miller, White, and even Wims. I like our WR Corps. Wims is legit and should form a formidable 1-2 punch with Miller for years to come. Just think about having Trubisky-Howard-Cohen-Shaheen-Miller-Wims for the next 8-10. Robinson is only 25 and Burton is 26, so I could see this current group staying intact for at least the next 4-5 years. Gabriel is the oldest skill position player at 27. Nichols was impressing me with his inside push. Coward will replace Massie before the bye. His growth at the position shows up every time I see him. I hope Nall makes it, he provides the most unique skill set amongst the remaining backs and gives a different look than Howard, Cohen, or Cunningham. He is big, and has shown he has an extra gear.

Yeah, there is a chance that we use 2-3 spots to acquire other players as well, but for the most part, our roster seems pretty locked in.

QB (2) - Trubisky, Daniel RB (4) - Howard, Cohen, Cunningham, Nall WR (6) - Robinson, Gabriel, Miller, White, Wims, Bellamy TE (5) - Burton, Shaheen, Sims, Brown, Braunecker OL (8) - Leno, Long, Whitehair, Daniels, Massie, Kush, Coward, Sowell DL (6) - Hicks, Goldman, Robert-Harris, Bullard, Nichols, Jenkins ILB (4) - Trevathan, Kwiatowski, Smith, Iggy OLB (5) - Floyd, Lynch, Acho, Fitts, Irving CB (6) - Amukamara, Fuller, Callahan, LeBlanc, McManis, Toliver S (4) - Amos, Jackson, Bush, Houston-Carson K - Parkey P - O'Donnell LS - Scales To me it seems like it comes down to only 2 or 3 roster spots. With Shaheen injured, I could see the Bears keeping an extra TE, which would drop someone like Timu off the roster. I hope the Bears choose Toliver over Cooper (who is terrible), but Cooper was one of the guys rested, so I think they are going with him, which will suck. Nall has earned a spot and has a higher ceiling than Burton or Mizzell.

7:20pm, Sunday Night Football, September 9th, Bears +8, Over/Under 47.5, NBC This felt like the longest preseason ever! I am so ready for real football. Here is what I think about the Week 1 matchup with the Fudge Packers: Based on last year's numbers, the Bears have the better defense, and you could argue now have better RB's, WR's, and TE's. The Packers have Graham, Adams, Cobb, and Montgomery compared to Burton, Robinson, Miller, Gabriel, Howard, and Cohen. I am not even counting Shaheen or White. QB is probably the only position the Packers have a definitive edge and that difference is hard to quantify. Rodgers was hurt last year and came back for one game to throw 3 picks and lose to Carolina. We have no idea what Trubisky will look like in live game action under Nagy. To me, Nagy so far compared to any recent HC has been night and day. Fox and Trestman were terrible and Lovie was great but Defensive-oriented. Nagy coupled with Vic seems like the perfect combination for this team. My biggest concern is the pass rush because Rodgers with time puts a lot of pressure on the secondary. I think this game goes one of two ways. The Bears take everyone by surprise and the new weapons dominate the Packers and we win by 10+, or we are completely not ready for prime time and get crushed by 20+. I could be wrong but based on the small sample size and seeing how we looked with mostly our #2's against KC's #1's (that some have going to the SB), I would lean towards us being sharp and prepared. Resting the starters and not showing our hand seems to be right in line with Nagy's way of thinking. He is going to gain an edge any way he can, and not getting good tape on Trubisky and Company goes a long ways towards that goal. Bears 31 - Packers 20 So what do you guys think? How optimistic are you?

Yeah, there is no way he is making it to the Practice Squad. If he doesn't make the 53-man, someone else will pick him up. Too many needy teams out there, and he is young and will only get better.

It really depends on where Daniels ends up and what they think of Kush. I would be surprised if a team actually traded for him when they can just acquire him for nothing if he is cut.

Yep, that makes it much clearer and gets rid of the OLine battle. It is now definitely 8 and Kush stays he plays both Guard and Center. I think Bellamy sticks because White doesn't play ST. I agree, I do not want Cooper on this roster. Based on shear numbers, it seems like 2 of Fitts/Edebali/Irving are in at OLB, and the 3rd one sticks if they cut Timu. QB (2) - Trubisky, Daniel RB (4) - Howard, Cohen, Cunningham, (Nall/Burton/Mizzell/Davis) WR (6) - Robinson, Gabriel, Miller, White, Wims, Bellamy TE (4) - Burton, Shaheen, Sims, (Brown/Braunecker) OL (8) - Leno, Long, Whitehair, Daniels, Massie, Kush, Coward, Sowell DL (6) - Hicks, Goldman, Robert-Harris, Bullard, Nichols, Jenkins ILB (4/5) - Trevathan, Kwiatowski, Smith, Iggy, (Timu or Edebali at OLB) OLB (5/6) - Floyd, Lynch, Acho, Fitts, Irving (Edebali or Timu at ILB) CB (6) - Amukamara, Fuller, Callahan, LeBlanc, McManis, (Toliver/Grant) S (4) - Amos, Jackson, Bush, (Houston-Carson/Hall) K - Parkey P - O'Donnell LS - Scales

QB (2) - Trubisky, Daniel RB (4) - Howard, Cohen, Cunningham, (Nall/Burton/Mizzell/Davis) WR (6) - Robinson, Gabriel, Miller, White, Wims, Bellamy TE (4) - Burton, Shaheen, Sims, (Brown/Braunecker) OL (8) - Leno, Long, Whitehair, Daniels, Massie, Kush, Watford, (Coward/Sowell) DL (6) - Hicks, Goldman, Robert-Harris, Bullard, Nichols, Jenkins ILB (4/5) - Trevathan, Kwiatowski, Smith, Iggy, (Timu or Edebali at OLB) OLB (5/6) - Floyd, Lynch, Acho, Fitts, Irving (Edebali or Timu at ILB) CB (6) - Amukamara, Fuller, Callahan, LeBlanc, McManis, (Toliver/Cooper/Grant) S (4) - Amos, Jackson, Bush, (Houston-Carson/Hall) K - Parkey P - O'Donnell LS - Scales I see 47 locks with 6 positions open. The Bears can even replace any of these guys with new acquisitions when the rosters are trimmed. I could see them looking for OLB help and maybe even DB. Battle #1 - RB/FB, it seems like there is one spot for Nall, Burton, Mizzell, and even Davis. Davis adds the most on Special Teams, Nall was probably the best RB, Burton the best FB-type, and Mizzell seems like the best pass catcher. So at least Pace/Nagy have options. I can't see them carrying 5 unless they only go with 3x TE's Battle #2 - TE, there is a battle at the last TE position between Brown and Braunecker, Brown is the better pass catcher and Braunecker has special teams value. If Sims concussion extends into the season, they could potentially keep them both with Sims on some type of IR. Battle #3 - OL, the top 6 are set, and I think Watford gets in to complete the interior. Then it comes down to whether the team wants to carry Coward or Sowell. Sowell just got hurt, and I think Coward has more upside. Battle #4 - LB, I don't know if the Bears will keep someone like Timu for special teams or Edebali with Floyd's injury, so it seems like the team will either have 4 ILB with 6 OLB, or 5 and 5. Battle #5 - CB, I hope they don't keep Cooper who is absolutely worthless, but it is worth noting that he was a player that was rested against KC. I would rather see McManis (for ST) and Toliver as the last 2 CB's over Cooper. Even Grant would be better. Battle #6 - S, Hall is suspended and DHC has a broken forearm. So it will be interesting to see if the Bears keep both and go with one less at one of the other defensive positions. Who would they drop? If they go with Hall, are they comfortable only having 3x Safeties for Week 1? What do you think?

I am ok with resting starters. It gives more reps to guys trying to fill out the roster. Why risk injury on a play that you might not even use in the regular season anyway? Now we are going into GB and they have absolutely no clue what we are going to do. I rewatched some of the game, and I would not be surprised if our top 2 WR's are Miller and Wims in a few years. They compliment each other so much. I don't think there is a QB controversy, the team knows Daniel's limits and he is perfectly suited for spot work as a backup. It is good knowing we have a legit backup if needed.

Damn, Javon Wims was tearing it up. If he is our WR5, and White ends up being half of what we expect, is there a deeper WR Corps than: (Robinson, Gabriel, Miller, White, Wims)? We might not have the top notch elite guy (unless Robinson or Miller becomes one), but if Wims is our #5, that is pretty impressive. Same could be said for TE. Is there another team deeper at TE than us with Burton, Shaheen, Sims, Brown/Braunecker?

That was always the number one concern. Just like Bosa last year. You can't get into football shape in a week when everyone else has been gradually getting into shape over the last month. Pretty disappointing considering Floyd's and Hicks' injuries.

Yeah, that didn't look good but it at least wasn't his full weight.

2nd drive, 1. Howard stuffed on first down for a loss of 4, almost didn't make it out of the end zone. 2. 2nd Down a short run up the middle only gets 2 back. 3. 3rd and 12, Massie a false start, now on our 1. Going backwards. 4. 3rd and 13, Trubisky fumbles the snap, gets sacked for a safety. That was all on Mitch, it hit him right in the hands. 2-0 Denver

Man the defense looked good on a quick 3 and out. Got pressure on 2nd and 3rd down and forced a quick punt.

First drive: 1. Howard Run, no gain, off tackle, a little misdirection 2. TE Screen to Burton for 8 yards (Burton looks good) 3. Howard Run for the first 1. Incomplete pass to Cohen on the outside 2. Missile to Burton for 19 yards, first down (Burton looks really good) 1. Pass to Shaheen, Shaheen comes up limping, looks like he rolled his right ankle, defensive penalty for lowering head, first down 1. Deep pass to White, thrown out of the end zone from the 45 by Trubisky, a lot of time, no one open 2. Awesome fake reverse to Howard for 15 yards, negated by Leno holding 2. Trey Burton with a nice out for 10 on 2nd and 20 3. Blitz, quick throw to Brown, bad throw by Trubisky, incomplete 4. Parkey misses a 52-yarder, wide right. On both of his misses, last game and this kick, it looks like he is compensating too much for the wind and his ball is not moving. Stats 6 passes, 2 runs Targets: Burton-3, Shaheen-1, Cohen-1, Brown-1, White-1