Current Roster

[ASHKUM BEAR]

5 hours ago, AZ54 said:

For him I agree and if this were us drafting last year I'd have easily advocated for drafting him and trying him out at OT first.  If it didn't work we'd have plenty of spots inside for him too.  This year with such a singular need at RT that seems too risky.   

I think he would be a nice piece for a reserve but not with one of our top 2 or 3 picks.  We need players that we expect to be plugged in. If we knew he is a for sure Center then maybe but I see him more as a G to be honest. 

[Stinger226]

Poles is definitely bringing in a RT, edge, and DT. If he drafts the OT first, chances of getting a blue chip pass rusher will be more difficult . If he goes pass rusher first , there is a good chance he gets us a quality RT.

Chances are the top 5 are gone, so is there a quality OT between Mauch, Jones, Bergeron, Duncan, or Freeland? I tink Poles knows, I have no idea. 

[Mongo3451]

10 hours ago, AZ54 said:

For him I agree and if this were us drafting last year I'd have easily advocated for drafting him and trying him out at OT first.  If it didn't work we'd have plenty of spots inside for him too.  This year with such a singular need at RT that seems too risky.   

He was the best left tackle in the big ten for two years.  He gave up three sacks in over 1700 snaps.  He also can play all five positions.  I get what you are saying about him being an over draft for an interior position and it makes sense.  It's also kind of strange that he has about the same measurables as his predecessor Rashawn Slater.  All said, I believe Skor is an outlier to the short arm rule.  If he doesn't excel at tackle, he'll at minimum be average.

 

[Stinger226]

Skon is a,blue chip player. All pro guard, long time starter at OT? Very possible he's our pick.  We need a OT, it may work. Slater had the same criticism and he made al! pro his rookie year.

[dawhizz]

Adam can probably update this his fancy way, but I'm penciling in the following for the roster:

QB: Fields, Walker

RB: Herbert, Foreman, Johnson, Homer

FB: Blasingame

WR: Moore, Mooney, Claypool, Jones, Scott, St. Brown

TE: Kmet, Tonyan, Allen

C : Patrick, Whitehair, Kramer

OG - Davis, Jenkins, Carter

OT: Jones, Wright, Borom, Leatherwood

 

DE: Green, Walker, Gipson, Robinson

DT: Billings, Jones, Dexter, Pickens

LB: Edmunds, Edwards, Sanborn, Sewell, Weatherford

CB: Johnson, Gordon, Stevenson, Blackwell, Vildor, Smith

S: Jackson, Brisker, Hicks, Williamson

 

P: Gill

K: Santos

LS: Scales

 

Besides the obvious need for a starting DE, I could see us being in the market for a better third safety (unless they see Terell Smith helping there) and maybe some OL depth.

[AZ54]

We could really use a decent backup OT.  I doubt Leatherwood is the answer to that role.  It's hard to say if Borom even makes the 53, that mostly depends on how well Carter does in camp.  Eiselen is hanging around as well and got some chances late last year,  Perhaps leatherwood competes at OG as well.  

I'd like to see another TE added too.  I watched Allen enough in college to know I prefer not to rely on him.   

For both of those I'm certain Poles will be watching for some vets to get cut post draft. 

This is the first year in some time where the competition for the backup CBs will be tough.   Could easily be the last we see of Vildor.  Say what you will about him but if we're good enough to let a player with his experience leave we've taken a good step up.  

S....Can't say the same for Safety and that's another spot I'd like to see a vet FA brought in for competition.  I like Hicks but he's just not athletic enough nor big enough to really handle that job.  Ideally I'd like Hicks as a practice squad player we can bring up in needed.  

WR room now has actual depth and some realistic competition among Velus and Tyler Scott for what I'd guess are the same reps.  ESB might find a role early but it also might not last all season if the rookie comes along quickly.   I believe Velus will be better this year as well.  

RB... who stays, how many do we keep?  Injuries usually play a role here but I have to think Roschon definitely has a job, along with Herbert.  Are we keeping all 4 with Foreman and Homer?  Ebner to practice squad?  This UDFA RB Robert Burns we signed is a FB.   I like Blasingame a lot but it'd be nice to have a decent backup FB on the practice squad.  We'll see what he does in the preseason.  FWIW drafting Roschon means this team clearly believes Herbert will always be a complementary piece.  I agree.     

DT now has a lot of youth and inexperience.  I think we're better but it also might not show up until the 2nd half of the season.  Both Dexter and Pickens are in need of good coaching, and a desire and willingness to work to get better.  There's a lot of potential in each of them but if they aren't up to speed we're stuck with Jones as a starter again and he's not built for that role.  I'm really curious about the guy from Kennesaw just because Poles and Flus spoke so highly of him at the press conference and I can't find anything on him.  I can't imagine he'll be competitive at the NFL level but I'd be happy to be proven wrong.  I haven't said this in a long time but.... he'll actually be facing a good starting Oline in camp, if he gets reps against them, so we'll get an idea what he can do.    

LB...if Weatherford can improve enough to be a solid WLB backup we should be in good shape.   Sanborn and Noah Sewell seem like they are cut from the same cloth.  It's not bad to have football players like that on the roster but we do need at least one solid coverage LB to backup WLB or maybe MLB on 3rd and long.  

[Stinger226]

1 hour ago, AZ54 said:

We could really use a decent backup OT.  I doubt Leatherwood is the answer to that role.  It's hard to say if Borom even makes the 53, that mostly depends on how well Carter does in camp.  Eiselen is hanging around as well and got some chances late last year,  Perhaps leatherwood competes at OG as well.  

I'd like to see another TE added too.  I watched Allen enough in college to know I prefer not to rely on him.   

For both of those I'm certain Poles will be watching for some vets to get cut post draft. 

This is the first year in some time where the competition for the backup CBs will be tough.   Could easily be the last we see of Vildor.  Say what you will about him but if we're good enough to let a player with his experience leave we've taken a good step up.  

S....Can't say the same for Safety and that's another spot I'd like to see a vet FA brought in for competition.  I like Hicks but he's just not athletic enough nor big enough to really handle that job.  Ideally I'd like Hicks as a practice squad player we can bring up in needed.  

WR room now has actual depth and some realistic competition among Velus and Tyler Scott for what I'd guess are the same reps.  ESB might find a role early but it also might not last all season if the rookie comes along quickly.   I believe Velus will be better this year as well.  

RB... who stays, how many do we keep?  Injuries usually play a role here but I have to think Roschon definitely has a job, along with Herbert.  Are we keeping all 4 with Foreman and Homer?  Ebner to practice squad?  This UDFA RB Robert Burns we signed is a FB.   I like Blasingame a lot but it'd be nice to have a decent backup FB on the practice squad.  We'll see what he does in the preseason.  FWIW drafting Roschon means this team clearly believes Herbert will always be a complementary piece.  I agree.     

DT now has a lot of youth and inexperience.  I think we're better but it also might not show up until the 2nd half of the season.  Both Dexter and Pickens are in need of good coaching, and a desire and willingness to work to get better.  There's a lot of potential in each of them but if they aren't up to speed we're stuck with Jones as a starter again and he's not built for that role.  I'm really curious about the guy from Kennesaw just because Poles and Flus spoke so highly of him at the press conference and I can't find anything on him.  I can't imagine he'll be competitive at the NFL level but I'd be happy to be proven wrong.  I haven't said this in a long time but.... he'll actually be facing a good starting Oline in camp, if he gets reps against them, so we'll get an idea what he can do.    

LB...if Weatherford can improve enough to be a solid WLB backup we should be in good shape.   Sanborn and Noah Sewell seem like they are cut from the same cloth.  It's not bad to have football players like that on the roster but we do need at least one solid coverage LB to backup WLB or maybe MLB on 3rd and long.  

Weatherford came with some creed, I want to see him play and go from there.   

[Mongo3451]

10 hours ago, AZ54 said:

S....Can't say the same for Safety and that's another spot I'd like to see a vet FA brought in for competition.  I like Hicks but he's just not athletic enough nor big enough to really handle that job.  Ideally I'd like Hicks as a practice squad player we can bring up in needed.  

Agreed on swing tackle.  Also, what are your thoughts on moving Smith to free safety?  He is bigger than Jackson and has long arms.  He's also a very willing tackler.

I'm adding because just read it of the Bears site.

"Smith, a safety from Minnesota, was named Honorable Mention all-Big Ten last year after starting all 13 games and compiling 38 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss, two interceptions and five pass breakups.

Poles called Smith "a guy that really stood out to us at the East-West [Shrine] Game," adding: "He can straight fly on top of having size and length, which is beautiful.""

[ASHKUM BEAR]

5 hours ago, Mongo3451 said:

Agreed on swing tackle.  Also, what are your thoughts on moving Smith to free safety?  He is bigger than Jackson and has long arms.  He's also a very willing tackler.

I'm adding because just read it of the Bears site.

"Smith, a safety from Minnesota, was named Honorable Mention all-Big Ten last year after starting all 13 games and compiling 38 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss, two interceptions and five pass breakups.

Poles called Smith "a guy that really stood out to us at the East-West [Shrine] Game," adding: "He can straight fly on top of having size and length, which is beautiful.""

With Michael Ojemudia at CB, who we picked up late, I think Terell Smith can go S. 

Also, I don't discount Terrell Lewis at DE as a pass rusher.  I believe he wasn't used properly with the Rams as he dropped back into coverage more than attacking the QB.  We will find out were he slots TC, but I thought he'd be a good prospect the year he was drafted.

[Mongo3451]

17 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

With Michael Ojemudia at CB, who we picked up late, I think Terell Smith can go S. 

Also, I don't discount Terrell Lewis at DE as a pass rusher.  I believe he wasn't used properly with the Rams as he dropped back into coverage more than attacking the QB.  We will find out were he slots TC, but I thought he'd be a good prospect the year he was drafted.

Lewis could be a terror if he can stay healthy.

[AZ54]

6 hours ago, Mongo3451 said:

Agreed on swing tackle.  Also, what are your thoughts on moving Smith to free safety?  He is bigger than Jackson and has long arms.  He's also a very willing tackler.

I'm adding because just read it of the Bears site.

"Smith, a safety from Minnesota, was named Honorable Mention all-Big Ten last year after starting all 13 games and compiling 38 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss, two interceptions and five pass breakups.

Poles called Smith "a guy that really stood out to us at the East-West [Shrine] Game," adding: "He can straight fly on top of having size and length, which is beautiful.""

I like the idea.  With a 3-cone drill of 7.02 he's not very twitchy for dealing with NFL WRs.  For a zone CB that's a bit less of a challenge.   OTOH his straightline speed and willingness to close on the ball would serve him well at safety.  This draft profile criticizes his lack of ball production but I can see that being a factor related to his agility... he's just not quick enough out of his cuts to arrive before the ball.  

https://www.nfl.com/prospects/terell-smith/3200534d-4973-9042-a2e5-7a611c3c3214

[AZ54]

1 hour ago, Mongo3451 said:

Lewis could be a terror if he can stay healthy.

Maybe his knee can't hold up under the stress of a pass rush move with a 300lb OT leaning on him?  I have more hope that a full offseason of strength training and coaching (I hope he found someone to help him) as a DE and Dom Robinson will show up ready to play.  

[ASHKUM BEAR]

29 minutes ago, AZ54 said:

Maybe his knee can't hold up under the stress of a pass rush move with a 300lb OT leaning on him?  I have more hope that a full offseason of strength training and coaching (I hope he found someone to help him) as a DE and Dom Robinson will show up ready to play.  

He was signed by Poles for that chance and was healthy with the Rams when cut.  The Rams said they cut him because he was going to be buried under younger players they felt good with and didn't want Lewis to become disgruntled.  Time will tell but he could be a rotational pass rusher that gives us production.

[BearFan PHX]

Things will change, but here we are as of today.

 

[ASHKUM BEAR]

1 hour ago, BearFan PHX said:

Things will change, but here we are as of today.

 

That is starting to look like a good team. I will say Braxton Jones improves with Jenkins next to him too and even more so with Whitehair at Center.  I remember all the silly missed blocks with Mustispher and Patrick.  

[BearFan PHX]

17 minutes ago, ASHKUM BEAR said:

That is starting to look like a good team. I will say Braxton Jones improves with Jenkins next to him too and even more so with Whitehair at Center.  I remember all the silly missed blocks with Mustispher and Patrick.  

for sure. and I assume some of the backups will become starters too. plus we will probably pick up a Free Agent DE. THis will all change, and Ill update the graphic as it does.

The weirdest part is that i put 3 LBs in and made NB Kyler Gordon a rotational player. I did it because if I put the D in nickel, then the front 4 might change.

[Alaskan Grizzly]

1 hour ago, BearFan PHX said:

for sure. and I assume some of the backups will become starters too. plus we will probably pick up a Free Agent DE. THis will all change, and Ill update the graphic as it does.

You have Foreman as RB1 before Herbert?  

And I am eager to see where Roschon ends up due to him being a diamond in the rough...it would appear.  

Interesting that both he and Foreman played at Texas.  

[BearFan PHX]

1 hour ago, Alaskan Grizzly said:

You have Foreman as RB1 before Herbert?  

And I am eager to see where Roschon ends up due to him being a diamond in the rough...it would appear.  

Interesting that both he and Foreman played at Texas.  

I think Foreman will be the first down starter back. I also think Roschon will move up the depth chart fast, but until he does, he is #3. The rookie DTs might well break thru and become starters too. We arent done at OC yet, there could be surprises there to come, and a Free Agent DE too.

Herbert is a good back, but i have been watching some film on Foreman and damn he is good and strong. He's a better Montgomery (and I loved Montgomery). Herbert never really took over the starting job over Monty so that's why that's my guess. Let the best back win, and if it's Herbert, then lets go Herbert!

Foreman is a better Monty with great vision who can bounce it outside (something Monty couldnt do)

you gotta click the link and watch Foreman on youtube...
 

 

[Mongo3451]

10 hours ago, BearFan PHX said:

Herbert is a good back, but i have been watching some film on Foreman and damn he is good and strong. He's a better Montgomery (and I loved Montgomery). Herbert never really took over the starting job over Monty so that's why that's my guess. Let the best back win, and if it's Herbert, then lets go Herbert!

Agreed 100%  Herbert is a fantastic #2, but Foreman is a beast as long as he is healthy.  He has more burst and power than Monty.

[Pixote]

We've seen it happen before. A player never gets the respect he deserves because he is playing backup to a guy everyone is calling a generational talent, a surefire NFL Blue Chip player.

I predict, unless he gets injured, Ros will be every bit as productive as Bijan. In fact, I'd go so far as to say he might wind up being our starter, and put up some amazing numbers.

Individual Rushing Statistics

#	Player	GP	ATT	Gain	Loss	Net	AVG	TD	Long	AVG/G
5	Robinson, Bijan	12	258	1622	42	1580	6.1	18	78	131.67
2	Johnson, Roschon	12	93	563	9	554	6.0	5	52	46.17

[BearFan PHX]

38 minutes ago, Pixote said:

We've seen it happen before. A player never gets the respect he deserves because he is playing backup to a guy everyone is calling a generational talent, a surefire NFL Blue Chip player.

I predict, unless he gets injured, Ros will be every bit as productive as Bijan. In fact, I'd go so far as to say he might wind up being our starter, and put up some amazing numbers.

Individual Rushing Statistics

#	Player	GP	ATT	Gain	Loss	Net	AVG	TD	Long	AVG/G
5	Robinson, Bijan	12	258	1622	42	1580	6.1	18	78	131.67
2	Johnson, Roschon	12	93	563	9	554	6.0	5	52	46.17

Yes, I think this is a real possibility too! I only put him at #3 on the depth chart for now. I think he is a real steal for us. I think WR Tyler Scott is gonna move up fast too.

And remember, this staff has no problem playing rookies. Damn this is gonna be fun.

[dawhizz]

1 hour ago, Pixote said:

We've seen it happen before. A player never gets the respect he deserves because he is playing backup to a guy everyone is calling a generational talent, a surefire NFL Blue Chip player.

I predict, unless he gets injured, Ros will be every bit as productive as Bijan. In fact, I'd go so far as to say he might wind up being our starter, and put up some amazing numbers.

Individual Rushing Statistics

#	Player	GP	ATT	Gain	Loss	Net	AVG	TD	Long	AVG/G
5	Robinson, Bijan	12	258	1622	42	1580	6.1	18	78	131.67
2	Johnson, Roschon	12	93	563	9	554	6.0	5	52	46.17

I have to admit, while I have no problem with the pick, I don’t really see it with Roschon as a starter. I don’t know how many starters in todays NFL run a 4.58 40 but I’m guessing not a ton. I certainly appreciate all the things he can do and I think he will be a very useful back, but I think you are going to end up with a guy who can get you chunks of yards but doesn’t really break big runs, which is something we saw with Monty. I see him as our best goal line option, but I don’t think he’s as elusive as, say, Nick Chubb. He’s more Rhamondre Stevenson (or, dare I say, Jordan Howard) I think, which is a fine player and quasi-starter, but I think Foremsn and even Herbert have more big play ability. 

[BearFan PHX]

30 minutes ago, dawhizz said:

I have to admit, while I have no problem with the pick, I don’t really see it with Roschon as a starter. I don’t know how many starters in todays NFL run a 4.58 40 but I’m guessing not a ton. I certainly appreciate all the things he can do and I think he will be a very useful back, but I think you are going to end up with a guy who can get you chunks of yards but doesn’t really break big runs, which is something we saw with Monty. I see him as our best goal line option, but I don’t think he’s as elusive as, say, Nick Chubb. He’s more Rhamondre Stevenson (or, dare I say, Jordan Howard) I think, which is a fine player and quasi-starter, but I think Foremsn and even Herbert have more big play ability. 

Montogmery ran a 4.63
Khalil Herbert ran a 4.46
Foreman ran a 4.45

BUT

Roschon's 10 yard split was 1.52
Montgomerys was 1.61
Khalil Herberts was 1.62
Foremans was 1.63
Nick Chubbs was 1.62
Jordan Howards was 1.66
Justin Fields was 1.59
Tyler Scotts was 1.51
DJ Moores was 1.54

So Roschon hits the hole faster, has more burst, but less top end speed. That's OK for a RB.
 

[AZ54]

7 hours ago, Mongo3451 said:

Agreed 100%  Herbert is a fantastic #2, but Foreman is a beast as long as he is healthy.  He has more burst and power than Monty.

Herbert is ok as a 2nd RB but he can't pass protect and he can't catch passes.   You can only call plays where he gets handed the ball or you use him as a play action fake.   Homer and Roschon can do both.   Foreman says he can catch better than he's been given credit for, no clue on his pass pro.   It's not hard to imagine Herbert ending up as the 4th back and being inactive a lot of games.   

[Stinger226]

I agree with everyone's opinion. Herbert has problems being an every down back. Pass protect and receiving  questionable, but good runner. I think Foreman is going to surprise everyone how good he is. Everywhere he's been, he was the backup. Last year in Carolina he got to be the lead back. Was better than Monty. He's senior season at Texas, over 2000 rushing. He won't get the chance here but if healthy, he could be top 5 rushers in the league. I watched a lot tape on him, I didn't realize he was that good. Then they draft Johnson who  would easily be an every down back. Our rushing offense is going to be outstanding with so many good backs. Added Wright, Davis, and Cody moving to OC. Then Jones and Jenkins getting better. Our offense is going to be outstanding. I think they also increase the passing offence, with such balance we will add 10 to 15 more offensive plays to each game. I predict our offense is going to be top 5 in scoring if Fields takes his next step forward.