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I thought he was omitting OL altogether and stating they had Gibbs, Williams, and either (LaPorta/St. Brown) as mismatch players? For OL, Sewell and Decker are clearly better on the outside, but on the interior, they lost Zietler, so it would seem that Dalman+Thuney+Jackson has the edge over Ragnow+Glasgow+Ratledge at this moment. Also, how will Detroit's offense look without Johnson and the coaches that left?

Which three are you counting? Decker, Ragnow, and Sewell? If so, I’d say you can’t discount Glasgow either. Oh, and BTW, Ratledge is going to a monster in that grouping. They might have an entire OL of mismatch players.

The only statement I saw was that Caleb said no one from the team "told him what to watch". That doesn't mean he doesn't know "how" to watch tape or that he didn't.

No, as far I can tell, that is only for the offseason 90-man roster, which the league gives exemptions for international players (1 per roster).

Caleb has millions of dollars and has for many years. There is nothing stopping him from hiring a former QB or two to assist him in watching film since he feels this is so challenging.

Tory Taylor was designated as an international player,does that open a slot when setting game day actives?

Right. If he makes the jump, you have to consider resigning him. The other two LTs will sort themselves into roles if they are good.

I think the Bears are a year away from an all-in type of move and it feels like they will want to shape the roster more to Johnson's liking. and they also have to be 100% Caleb is the guy for Johnson's offense.

Yeah I agree, Hunter seems like a good athlete, but not someone you spend that much draft capital on.

So with the new rule added in 2023, there is a good chance they go with 3 QBs on the 53-man. Without a 3rd QB, you can only have 48 players active on game day, so 5 players on the 53-man don't dress every week. However, the 3rd QB does not count towards the 48. So if they did keep Keenum, he would take up a 53-man slot but would not impact the game-day 48-man roster (and would actually make it 49).

Playing well doesnt mean Pro Bowl. ( better than last year). You may be right, you dont want to let good players leave but I dont think its enough to convince the Bears that Braxton is a 20+ player. I hope Im wrong but they drafted 2 yrs in a row someone to compete with Braxton because of his lack of progress. ( a third and second round pick.)

When they brought in Keenum, they pretty well made the decision to keep 3 on the roster. There is someone else on the roster they can hide on the practice squad. They are allowed to carry two vets on the PS. Maybe one of the WRs?

You keep elaborting on Kmet and a future trade which I dont think applies this year but you orignally said midseason. There's no situation where they consider that this year. Even if Loveland is ballilng, you are weaking the team for more cap space? Next year is a complete different set of circumstances.

Reports about Caleb not getting film help tells me we are going 3 QBs. He needed this last year, but it's the Bears and they dont know what to do. Keenum will teach him the ropes from what BJ wants. BJ will do his film time but Keenum will help answer questions and do film in between.

Caleb is the starter. I am a huge fan of Tyson Bagent's as well. I think he is the backup. Case Keenum is here to provice Caleb with advice from his experience. So do we keep 3 QBs on the roster? If you put Bagent on the practice squad someone will steal him and make him QB2 somewhere. And Keenum is too old to even put on the PS. What do you think we will do? If we get a good trade offer for Bagent, then I understand that - but they JUST extended him, but I guess that also might help bring interest in a trade too... I think Bagent is a more valuable backup than Keenum, but is Keenum just for training camp?

Like I said, Im not saying to trade any of the per se. Not right now. All ive said is that Kmet is on the bubble, for next year, or possibly at the trade deadline. Also, the logic to trading Kmet (which Im not saying I would do right now!) is not just the draft pick you get, but also the cap space you open up. $10M gets you a very nice free agent, for example. but again, I am not at the decision point to trade Kmet, unless we get something big for him, like a 3rd or better. But if he was part of a package to get trey hendrickson here, for example, then his trade value and cap space would both be helpful. And to be clear, Im not saying we should trade for Hendrickson either. I would need to know how good he projects to be in 3 years, and that's for the medical staff and whatever who know better than I do. But just to be crystal clear - I've been predciting that the Bears will trade Kmet NEXT year or possible at the trade deadline this year, but I've also been super clear that he has this window to show what he can do for Johnson. So I think he could earn a spot here, but he has to work for it i think. For me, right now, without any more positive showing from him, he's gone next year. But if he balls out, then he will make the case to stay. Because everything "good" about him is what he COULD do if used properly. So that's a built in excuse, and maybe a fair one! But he has to show it now, and maybe he will. I'm just saying I havent seen it YET, and if it stays hows it's been, he will not be taking $11.6M worth of cap space next year. None of that says trade him now, or that his story is over. But that's my bet, based on what's been before. The future is of course, unknown.

Context is everything. My comments were strictly on his success or failure, based on what stinger said...

The hardest part for Braxton will be getting up to speed if he misses much of TC. He's projected to be limited at the start. Kiran's practice window opened Aug 20 last year and he missed crucial practices to develop for a rookie. Braxton won't be nearly as bad, but he might miss the new coaching reps that can limit his technique to their liking.

That makes no sense at all. If Braxton plays well, you pay him and trade away other dollars. Nothing more valuable to a quarterback than good OT's. There's no way to know if Ozzy and Kiran look good if Braxton doesn't let them on the field.

I get your point it just doesnt apply to this roster this year as constructed. What is more valuable, Cole Kmet or a 5th round future pick? We drafted a potenial better player in Loveland but he isnt on the field yet. 50% of all first round picks never live up to expectations. So they are not making our team weaker , they will see on how well Cole fits in the offense and see how well Colston developes after he comes to camp.We are not adding ac 30+ ml contract this year. It will totaly blow up our cap space. We are thin at LB and as much as I agree Edmunds has not lived up to his money he is not a bad player. He may be a cauality next year if they replace him but not going anywhere this year. I do think if Braxton comes back and plays well and Ozzy and Kiran look good, the possiblity exists we trade Braxton because we are not paying him 20+ next year. Two LTs got paid this year that are clearly worst than Jones. If he stays for the year and he gets a 20+ contract we will get a comp pick in the 3rd or 4th round. So he probably stays.

Im not saying to trade any of these players per se, but I do want to make one point. A player is not more valuable because they are on the Bears roster already? It's Ok to trade good players if you get something more helpful in return. And then the new player will be on the roster, so you can be a fan of them then? I think about what the Bears still need (and no roster is ever perfect) and I think about players out there that can help us. we've been so terrible for so long, that as Bears fans we are used to wanting to keep anyone that can kinda play. But now, our roster is much fuller, and we are at the point where we will let good players go in trades. When you have a player that you know you arent goingt to pay big money to in the future, who is still a good player, it is better to get some trade value for them than to milk that last year out of them. Now I admit that compensatory picks do change that formula somewhat, so understanding that sometimes losing a player to free agency is a benefit in terms of compensatory picks, there will still be many cases where losing that last year of a players contract is worth what you get in trade. Eventually, when you're winning, you have to realize that you will lose your players to free agency, and replace them through the draft. Any sustainable winning formula requires it. So gaining extra draft capital, even in the 3rd, 4th and 5th rounds, is necessary. So I would say maybe be less attached to players just because they are on the roster when you follow a winning team, and think more about keeping the team going with new faces or you will age out and be back to mediocre where we lived for FAR too long. I get it that that could be a challenge for a fan who wants to develop a relationship with the players, but that loyalty doesnt keep teams relevant. At some point, the question has to be asked whether we root for the team, or the players on the team. For me, it's the team.

This type of get are what a team does if they are one player away with looking at SB aspirations. The Barkley acquitition by the Eagles are the example. It pushed them into a SB.

Its easy to dismiss a 7th round pick but a deep dive into the player looks a lot more promising. Like that guy said , listen to what the coaches say. His metrics are very good for a late pick and then add in he did that in the Big Ten. I dont think we add more to the RB room unless there is an injury. Looking back on this draft in the future, he very well could be the steal of the draft. Cudos to Poles for getting him in the 7th round.