adam

Someone is going to pull the trigger on Prescott before the 6th, but if he is there in the 6th, I would draft him.

Very solid and consistent against the run and pass. One of the best LB's at shedding or evading blockers. Actually very under-rated in the mass media, but pretty well known within the experts.

Hicks is also 3 years younger and has history with Pace.

Yeah, Hicks, Robinson, and Bruton, and re-sign Miller. That would cap off a very solid and productive FA period.

scs, pretty good so far.

Define great? Both were top 10 ILB's last year. With the cap at $155M, the average per player salary for the 53-man roster is about $3M, and I believe Freeman was signed for $4M and Trevathan for $6M. That is actually awesome for 2 starters of that caliber.

No issues with this signing. He was actually a fairly reliable target for Cutler when all the injuries hit, and he should be better in year #2 with same QB and system. I didn't mind him with punts but we were better off with him taking a knee on kickoffs.

The only way QB is even an option is if only 1 is selected in the top 10, which is highly unlikely. 3 QB's are not going in the top 11. So the only way we would select one is if Wentz or Goff fell to us at 11. ILB would be out unless Jack is there. I agree on OLB. I think DL in general is a possibility between Buckner and Robinson. Stanley for LOT or Hargreaves at CB. Then there is Elliott, if he is there at 11, it will be hard for the Bears to pass on him.

Yes, Jaylon Smith would be in play (could ultimately replace Freeman in a couple of years).

This is awesome too, we are not overpaying:

Unrein was really solid, and already knows the system and coaches. Solid depth signing.

So we go from the likes of SMC, Jones, and Anderson to Trevathan and Freeman. That is a massive upgrade. Freeman turns 30 on May 1st, but has only played in the league 4 years, so he should have less wear and tear than a normal 30 yr old LB.

I would be happy with Hicks-DL, Bruton-S, Freeman or Laurinaitis-ILB, Robinson-CB, and possibly Gresham if Bennett is traded. The rest of the guys brought in would be on 1-yr league minimum deals.

One big reason Forte may have a down year, the Jets schedule. Depending on how you look at it, I see at least 12 solid to great defenses on their schedule: Home: Buffalo, Miami, New England, Baltimore, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Seattle, Indianapolis Away: Buffalo, Miami, New England, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Arizona, San Francisco, Kansas City

This is all setting up for Peyton to come out of retirement.

I am going to have to do some analysis on performance of 30+ yr old RB's 1st year on new teams to see how they performed. I would think there would be a drop in performance related to the team/scheme switch in addition to the age, and gradual shift away from the run game.

Forte got 3/$12 w/ $8mil in guarantees and an additional $4mil in ecscalators. Average is a little less than I expected, but he got a 3rd year and 2/3 guaranteed. It looks like he can get up to $16 w/ $4mil in incentives making the potential annual average $5.333.

They seemed to be in on both Allen and Massie. If they got Allen, Long would still be playing outside. Now with Massie he can move in and upgrades two positions with one acquisition. This worked out for us pretty good in the end.

I figured we would look to upgrade our #3, but Kearse would be an expensive #3.

In NE, they already have starters, so they are not going to pay him starter money as a rotational guy. That doesn't mean he is a backup just because that is where NE used him. To me, this just reminds me of McPhee. He was a rotational guy on a deep position on a great defense. They couldn't pay him starter money, but we could. Hicks is in a very similar situation.

That was just tweeted out:

I am so glad Atlanta didn't swoop in and steal him. One of the biggest upgrades in one of the biggest needs on the team in a long time. Our ILB's looked like this: https://vine.co/v/eUWEHZELLJv I also like the fact that he is coming from a winning team.

Adam Schefter ‏@AdamSchefter 2m2 minutes ago Bears are signing former Broncos LB Danny Trevathan, per source.

Not too bad, $7M average. Houston is having a day, Osweiler, Miller, and Allen. Their offense is going to be much improved this year. Too bad they won't need to trade up for a QB now, my Mock Challenge is now screwed.

Damn, we probably got outbid. I would be curious to see the number he was signed for.