adam

To me I would rank order the hot Coordinator candidates: 1. Bowles (proven track record on several teams) 2. Quinn (defense got even better with him vs Bradley) 3. Austin (only one year, hard to tell if it was his influence or partially Caldwell's) 4. Gase (Peyton effect, who knows how good this guy is, could be another McDaniels) 5. All others

When Pace said anyone, was he referring to John Hufnagel? Worked for Belichick and Coughlin (Parcells Tree), OC experience and was the CFL Coach of the Year in 2008, an All-American in 1972, and was on the last NE Super Bowl winning team. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Hufnagel

He said this before so no real surprise. Just glad we are making an effort to bring in as many candidates as possible to find the right guy.

They got the call correct based on the rule, but the rule in general is garbage. Once they have two feet in, it should count as a catch. He clearly caught the ball, made 3 steps, and then lunged for the end zone. He should've just protected the ball from the ground instead. Also, with the defender making contact, isn't he technically down once something from the knee to elbow hits the ground? Also, I don't know how the the FJ who is literally 5 feet from the play (and in perfect position to make the correct call), called it a catch. About GB, it is hard to see them winning in Seattle with Rodgers hobbled. Seattle's defense is ridiculous. I am figuring a SEA vs NE Super Bowl with Seattle winning back to back (before they sign Wilson to long term deal and never get back due to cap casualties).

Marinelli going to TB: https://twitter.com/ProFootballTalk/status/...400152962998272

We have the 10th most cap space this offseason without any other moves that could free up even more. Only 18 players have a cap hit over $1 million, so a lot of the moves occur on the bottom 2/3 of the roster (the other 35) making less than $1 million. An example would be that we sign 2x high profile FA's, draft 5-6 players that make the roster, and acquire another 5-6 mid-lower level free agents that improve the backend of our roster.

Actually it would be a good thing, because Kubiak would have first hand knowledge on Cutler and his QB/leadership traits. I don't think he would be biased one way or the other. He might come in and tell Pace that there is no way we can win with Cutler and he is gone, or he might say I know how to get the most out of him. As Pace said, we just want the best guy for the job, regardless of previous ties.

Eric Mangini and Josh McDaniels are from the Parcells tree. McDaniels obviously would not want to have anything to do with Cutler.

That is a pretty good coup for Buffalo.

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/554307516868595712 I heard early reports that he was not interested, but that was before the Ravens were eliminated. I would not be opposed to him, and like it was mentioned in another thread, he does have ties to Cutler/Marshall from Denver.

Stinger, The biggest holes to me are the need at Safety, LB (specifically MLB), CB, and OLine. If we can get starter caliber players (via Free Agency and the draft) in those areas this off season, I think that will be a great start. I think Pace is going to be aggressive and you will see a ton of transactions this offseason similar to what Seattle did a few years ago. I figure we will see about 15 new players on the 53 man in 2015, and could have essentially a completely new roster/team going into 2017 besides the players you mentioned to build around. About 1/3 a year, with us better in year one, competitive in year two, and thinking deep playoff run in year three.

What is Urlacher doing now? Hell bring him back in some capacity, QA/QC, etc.

Stinger I am with you in regards to optimism coming into this season because on paper we shouldve been better. However since we underperformed, a turnaround is not as hard because just having the same players play up to their potential will lead to a better season. Then if you can add a couple of impact players with a great scheme, we are back in the playoffs. I have zero expectations coming into this season, I just want to see improvement across the entire organization and a shift in the culture. This will eventually translate to the field. So maybe 7-9 in 2015 playing a tough schedule then in the playoff hunt in 2016. There is no way Pace touches this job if he didn't see potential to turn it around quickly. Also as bad as it was in 2014, there really is only one way to go from there.

You never know, he may unretire again.

I think it is pretty hard to get an honest assessment of a player's performance when he is in a bad scheme or has bad coaching. Regardless of how good the player is, the scheme can literally neuter a player's performance and hinder his growth. That is why some players explode on the scene when there is a change in coaching or when they go to a different team. The same can be said negatively, and I think we may have witnessed some of that here this year. Mel Tucker and the defensive scheme were historically bad. The players were never in sync and were always out of position. With real coaching, first, this wouldn't happen, and if it did, it would be corrected immediately. I almost think that is why Fuller actually regressed during the year. He came in early in the season without being tainted yet, so he played well just by running out there and acting on his previous experiences and instinct, then once he was "forced" into the scheme, he struggled. There was constant miscommunication, and the entire unit went down the drain. So even when they grade missed tackles, how many of them occurred because our guys were so far out of position that the tackle they were making was much more difficult to make than the one they would've had if they were in the right scheme or call? I really feel like with a legit HC and DC, who can coach and put players in a position to make plays that we will at least be back to an average squad. Then if you add 2-3 more legit starters we can get back to being a reputable defense again. The D-Line has enough on it going into next year. The LB's with Jones and Bostic will get better, especially with a legit MLB. If we can add another Corner and starting Safety to go with Mundy, we won't have any major holes to fill. On offense, if we can get a Center and possibly another Tackle, we will be pretty solid across the board. Regardless of the QB situation, I feel like we have the skill players to be a top 10 squad as long as the scheme is not from the mid-1980's.

The dysfunction was pretty rampant, but Briggs didn't really help the cause either. What is crazy is Emery and Trestman are probably still with the Bears if Urlacher/Peppers/Hester were not let go. I say this because Urlacher was the team leader and Peppers and Hester were at least team players. The team lost a lot of leadership and identity when Urlacher left. In the end, it actually works out for us because Pace+new HC are already better than Emery+Trestman. Especially for long term success.

I think we can turn over this roster in two years, but at least be competitive next year. To me, we need 3 new starters on defense, 1 Safety, 1 LB, and 1 CB. Then could use additional depth at CB, LB, S, and DE. However, if we can acquire a Safety like McCourty and LB like Marshall, we would really only need to go into the draft looking for a CB, but could draft BPA for basically any defensive position making it an upgrade. Teams needs: 1. Safety (Mundy is the best we got) 2a. LB (Bostic and Jones would be great with a true MLB in the middle) 2b. CB (Jennings is over the hill and drunk, Fuller is under-sized, so we could use 1 or 2 here) 3. O-Line (Obviously need a Center and ROT, or LOT and shift Bushrod to the right) 4. DE - Young and Allen are fine, but I can see Allen only lasting one more year, but I don't see this as a huge need in 2015. 5a. Skill positions - If you can get BPA and pickup a RB/WR/TE, you do it 5b. QB - This would obviously shoot to the top if Cutler is gone, but with him on the roster, this is not really a need area if he is starting. 5c. DT - With Ferguson and Sutton, and possibly Ratliff and Paea, I think we are good here 6. Kickers - I would replace Gould only if you could find comparable skill for cap savings; O'Donnell got better but needs to show more to stay

Saints UFA's of interest (ties to Pace): Patrick Robinson, CB, 27 Mark Ingram, RB, 25 Ramon Humber, ILB, 27 Robert Meachem, WR, 30

I don't know about this guy, he only placed 361st in his age group in the 2014 Austria Ironman, and it took him 12 hours and 45 minutes to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles and then run a marathon. https://twitter.com/RobertDriskell/status/4...7322624/photo/1

Here are some realistic candidates that are under 30: Defense: S: Devin McCourty, 28 Will Hill, 25 Tashaun Gipson, 25 LB: Brandon Marshall, 25 Jason Worilds, 27 Craig Robertson, 29 Brandon Spikes, 27 CB: Brandon Flowers, 29 Kareem Jackson, 27 Byron Maxwell, 27 DL: Ndamukong Suh, DT, 28 Terrance Knighton, DT, 29 Nick Fairley, DT, 27 Jared Odrick, DT, 27 Jerry Hughes, DE, 27 Brandon Graham, DE, 27 Offense: OL: Stefen Wisniewski, C, 26 Orlando Franklin, OG, 27 Mike Iupati, OG, 28 King Dunlap, OT, 29 WR: Cecil Shorts, 27 Kenny Britt, 26 Andre Holmes, 27 Denarius Moore, 26 FB: Henry Hynoski, 26 Cory Harkey, 25 Will Johnson, 25 Jed Collins, 29 RB: Stevan Ridley, 26 Shane Vereen, 26 Jaquizz Rodgers, 25 Roy Helu, 26 Mark Ingram, 25 Ryan Mathews, 27 TE: Jordan Cameron, 27 Chris Clay, 26 Niles Paul, 26 QB: Jake Locker, 27 Ryan Mallett, 27 Mark Sanchez, 28 Austin Davis, 26

I thought Pace did great in the presser and revealed a few things. I actually like that he picked the Bears and felt that it was the right fit and he wasn't desperate or looking for "the next job". Just him listing off the characteristics of the QB makes it seem like there is no way Cutler is back this year (or at least not in the long term plans): After saying things like "reliable" and "instincts" and "intangibles" which are basically what Cutler lacks, I really don't know how an interview is going to change his view on him. Also, I liked that he said that he wants the coach to be able to maximize the player's abilities with the schemes and not pigeon-hole them into something they are not (McClellin anyone?). Then he also mentions about drafting BPA and not to weight the needs so high. McClellin was basically not a need, BPA, or in the right scheme, so Emery failed 3 times on the same pick. Also, merging of the scouting departments makes a lot of sense, since technically the traits you are looking for should be similar. He also said he would use analytics, but it was only another tool - which is in stark contrast to Emery who would go into detail about all the stats he looked at: Lastly, this might sound weird, but I liked his energy. He was enthusiastic and is big on everyone buying into the plan, which is much easier to do with a boss that you respect and trust, and a vision you believe in. In a way Emery might have gotten a raw deal at first with the "you must keep Lovie deal", then he did the same thing to Trestman with Marinelli, so the culture was tainted from the beginning. As Pace said, his next step (and arguably biggest) is getting the right HC. This will be our first true assessment of Pace, so I will withhold any judgement until after that selection, but all signs are pointing to this being a great move by the franchise.

Just kidding, but here are some videos of Ryan Pace if you haven't seen them: http://www.neworleanssaints.com/media-cent...70-0645c279fa4d http://www.neworleanssaints.com/media-cent...cf-c411bc91921c

Nice one. I really didn't know a lot about him, but the more I read on him, the more I like. I will go on record and say that I approve of this hire.

I just remember initially not having a good feeling about Emery (whether it was his age or connection to the Bears), but this is what I initially had to say, when speaking about the GM candidates, lol:

Once again thanks for the great info.