scs787

Well we shall certainly see in about a month. If Phil sees DT as the biggest need, and Donald is there I just don't see how he passes on Donald who has really separated himself from the pack of other DTs. He talked about length at DE, which is needed to get around the edge, you don't necessarily need that same length at DT.

What's a warm room?? I think "Panic" is probably a little exaggerated, but I of course think he is the #1 target....I think HaHa/Pryor/Trade Down/Hageman/Jernigan/Nix should be the order of backup plans after Donald.... I know I've talked about taking Ebron if Donald/HaHa aren't there, but I've kindda backed away from that...I want defense in the first at all costs.

I get that that's what you guys think he'll do but I just think that's a little silly. Are we really going to go into every year saying we aren't gonna take the best player available at a position of need because he's kinda done it before? As far as his run defense, I posted an article rotoworld wrote up and by their metrics Donald was the 2nd best run defender in the draft. He's an all around prospect and one who's going to be great in this league for a long long time. Durability shouldn't really be a concern IMO.Dude is 285 pounds and I wouldn't be surprised to see him bulk up to 290-300 pounds by the time he takes his first snap in the NFL. Being a few inches shorter doesn't make you less durable IMO. If you're worried about durability with him you're worried about every DT in the draft. A guy like Tuitt who is 6'6" 304 is probably about as evenly distributed weight wise as a 6'1" 285 Donald, Donal could actually be a little bulkier.

He is a little bit of a hipster. You could probably say he reaches for needs. In the short sample size I don't think it's a lock he'll take a guy who's being talked about as a 2nd rounder, that's the part I think is silly. I believe it's already been said they'll be a 1 gap front so you don't really run out those big DTs, you still want that penetrating force that Donald brings unlike anyone in the draft. Houston isn't gonna play there every down, and Ratliff is old, hasn't done anything in 3 or 4 years, and is injury prone. I wouldn't absolutely hate to see him there but I think not upgrading DT would kinda be half assing it as far as fixing the DL goes.....Last year we saw pretty much a total rehaul on the OL and I think we see the same thing this year. I wouldnt hate to see them go safety in the first at all but I really think Donald is more of a game changer. I really think he's the next Geno Atkins/Kyle Williams/Jurrell Casey who are all 6'1" and have a combined 33.5 sacks in their last 3 full years.

For some reason I can't start a new thread so I'll post it here..... Kiper has a new mock draft up, any insiders care to share? If you're feelin frisky, perhaps throw up notable picks(like DT/S/CBs) made after our pick so we can change it up a bit. New thread would be cool if you can, not sure why I can't right now.

Eh, maybe that's more on mock drafts and the talent evaluators who put those round grades on them. In both cases we heard about other teams who were planning on drafting SMC and Long with their picks in the first. I also think Emery loves his Senior Bowl prospects and puts a lot of stock in how those guys look there....and there wasn't a better prospect at the Senior Bowl than Aaron Donald.

That's just silly IMO.

I just don't see how they can pass on him if he's there.....Shaun King of yahoo sports called him the 3rd best prospect in the draft behind Robinson and Clowney, and I agree with that.

I don't think it's that crazy at all. They can still find a good safety to compete with Conte in the 3rd, and CB is deep so there's still probably gonna be some good options to compete with Frey and Hayden in the 4th. The only crazy thing about your statement is Hageman in the 2nd, that's wishful thinking. I don't think he makes it out of the 1st. DT is fairly deep as well though too, I'd wait till the 3rd to get a guy like Daquan Jones or Ego Ferguson to pair with Donald

Man I've been slacking lately lol...admins go ahead and close my thread.

Chicago Bears ‏@ChicagoBears 4m LM: #Bears have retained veteran OL Eben Britton, who has agreed to a 1-year contract. Saw this one coming, surprised it took so long.

Another meeting?? That would be his 2nd. WF has these guys listed as guys we met with already. Walt Aikens, DB, Liberty (PRI) Tajh Boyd, QB, Clemson (SR) Xavius Boyd, LB, Western Kentucky (INT) Deone Bucannon, DB, Washington State (PRI) Aaron Donald, DL, Pittsburgh (COM) Marqueston Huff, DB, Wyoming (PRO) Gabe Ikard, OL, Oklahoma (COM) Jordan Lynch, QB, Northern Illinois (COM) Kevin Norwood, WR, Alabama (PRO) To do a little overreacting to the QBs we've looked at and also throwing in the fact we brought back Jerrod Johnson, it looks like Trestman likes his "scrambling" QBs. Could be yet another reason why they chose Cutler over McCown.

Ehhh, I guess. It would create another need, but then again you get more picks to fill that need.

If the Bears see Bostic (or even Greene) as the future Will then I absolutely would have loved the trade.

FWIW he was dealing with a turf toe all season, and that's a beeatch....but ya I certainly think an upgrade is due regardless. Ratliff MIGHT be that upgrade at the nose, but I'm not so sure that's a great proposition either. I'd actually love to see a DT in the 1st (Donald) to start at the 3T and another in the 3/4 round to push Ratliff and Paea at the nose.

Shoulda said the Bucs!

It got you for a second at least lol Hopefully people check the article before they check our comments I even coded the link so the whole april fools part of the link didn't show up.

Aaron Donald will force trade if drafted by Bears It's just one of those days

I think the article is garbage. I still hate/don't understand the logic in the whole "We signed 3 DEs so DT is less of a need". That's just simply not true and somewhat ridiculous IMO. Yes, there's a good chance Houston will be lining up at DT on occasion, but he won't be there every down so they shouldn't skimp on DT. That quote is ridiculous. Is it possible that we go into the season with Ratliff/Paea as our starters or they can draft a guy later to compete with those 2? Sure. Is it ideal? Not in my opinion. Ratliff is gonna turn 33 this season and he hasn't had a season to write home about in 4 or 5 years, I think relying on him to be a guy to get you more than 3 or 4 sacks is a mistake. His spot is at NT IMO. I've been a Paea fan, I liked his upside but in all reality he hasn't been that great. Aaron Donald takes this DL from potentially good, to potentially great. I also disagree that there's no back up at OG. Did he forget about James Brown? I believe he's a player who still has some good upside, and I believe last year he was giving Long a run for his money last year. The only unexpected thing he mentions is Ebron. Whom I wouldn't take over a DT.

I thought you actually liked Jernigan? Or at least did like him? I'm shocked(not really) you don't like Donald. Dude is the most legit DT in the draft, a future pro bowler.

I hate these convos on old topics, but I'm up early today and have nothing better to do. I think the fact that the Bears didn't even negotiate with Hester just means that they already like someone in house. Chris Williams and Michael Ford, who we almost saw take one to the house in preseason, come to mind. Eric Weems, at this point, is still on the roster as well. Hixon will also add to the competition, but I get the feeling they already liked the guys in house before they even signed Hixon.

Champ Bailey, who has said he's willing to move to safety, is about the only somewhat intriguing possibility left in FA. Thomas Decoud might be interesting as well. I was reading that the Falcons switched from a zone/area type defense in 2012 to a more aggressive secondary last year. Decoud was a Pro Bowler in that zone type D so if the Bears continue to run the cover 2 he could return to his former pro bowl status. As far as the draft goes, the 2 obvious guys are HaHa and Pryor, but I get the feeling they are gonna wait till around the 3rd round to grab their guy. In which case Terrance Brooks and Ed Reynolds make the most sense from a coverage perspective. I also really like LaMarcus Joyner, but I know some here probably won't like the fact that he's only 5'8". I look at Honey Badger(5'9") and Bob Sanders(5'8" 2x pro bowler/Defensive player of the year) as players his size who have been difference makers, and guys he compares to in both size and athleticism.

Certainly possible and I wouldn't hate it. Sounds like Dallas might be his destination though, apparently he has "fantasized" about playing for his home town Cowboys.

Weems is still on the roster for whatever reason. Ya, I doubt we're done. Along with DT and OT I think we'll probably grab a QB, and maybe a RB as well. I could no doubt see these signings happen after the draft. As far as a Brown goes, ya fumbles are/were a big concern, but after getting out of Coughlins doghouse he didn't fumble again. It's still a potential problem but I think he'll offer the biggest bang for your buck at RB. He was one of the best at picking up the blitz(something Emery or Trestman said was important), he's a solid pass catcher, and has the body to carry the load should Forte go down.

That's what I'm thinking as well. Emery touched on the depth at CB and made the comments about Conte, so that leads me to believe it's DT or trade down....Right now Jernigan is being talked about as a late 1st/early 2nd, so it could really be Donald or trade down.