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I agree with this. Ozzy is raw though, and especially his first two snaps were ugly. But you could tell he was being challenged a lot the whole game. At one point they started helping Ozzy with chips and rollouts away from his side etc. He was amazing in the running game though, he can really move people. But protecting Caleb has to be job 1. I think he will be able to do it, but he needs more experience. Hopefully that comes fast. Braxton on the other hand was a mess on most of his snaps. Im gonna rewatch it this week, and take some specific notes on each rep.

Ozzy showed he belongs on an NFL field and the game wasn’t too big for him. However it shakes out our backup LT will be the best backup LT we’ve had in years.

Kinda in between. He's a little better than Braxton in that area. It's funny, Braxton looks top heavy and Ozzy looks bottom heavy.

Good observations but we should keep in mind, Braxton was going against starters for the first 3 sets and Ozzy played against 2s and 3s. If neither improve, likely they go with Braxton because of his 3 yrs of starting in the NFL. Did you notice if Ozzy was to upright or was he getting down in his set up?

Just got done reviewing the left tackles. Braxton got 14 pass sets with two bad plays. One was the sack of Bagent. That play was disappointing because he made the initial block and lacked effort after. The second he whiffed on an inside block on a slight delayed rush. The smaller linebacker put cement in Braxton's shoes. He faced four bull rushes and handled them well. The other twelve sets were really good. He also played well in the run game. Ozzy got 16 pass sets with two bad plays. They were both outside rushes on his first two snaps. He cleaned it up after that, but they did have a back cup a couple times and a TE on another. Ozzy also played well in the run game. Overall, Braxton was slightly better in pass pro and run game. Braxton had the benefit of starting, so I look forward to Ozzy starting next week. Ozzy was better picking up the inside rushes. Seems like his lateral agility is better. Kind of an odd thing was Braxton made his mistakes late, while Ozzy made his early. After watching them both play, I feel Ozzy is closing the gap. The important thing to look at this week is his work on the outside. Braxton's conditioning needs to trend up, as this was his first week at full go.

I think until we see the starting OL playing together, we wont get the real picture on the LT spot. If no one shines there, they can give him chip help, scheme to control the damage. I think Thuney playing will help support the position also. If no one steps up, they will play Braxton because of his experience over a rookie. Braxton was playing against the #1 D starters where Ozzy played against the 2s and 3s. It matters where the OL is at in the first real game not the first preseason game, there is still time for someone to step up.

me too - whichever is fine. I just think it will be Trapilo based on nothing, but if Amagadje becomes a stud, then that will be amazing.

That game felt organized. I watched to the bitter end with two 2 min offenses. Plus the way we ended the first half it always felt the way an NFL game should feel. I didn’t see players running on the field late or time outs for misalignments. In short I didn’t see what I usually see in a first Bears preseason game.

I’d be equally happy if Amegadji turned into a good starting LT.

Regarding special teams - I need to see the stats - but my eye test said Taylor’s punts were awful with no hang time in the first half. Haven’t watched 2nd half.

It was great to see our depth go against higher level guys, and it gives more context to Booker's sacks too. Hopefully that can project to the regular season. Sewell and Monangai - yup. Sewell is our 3rd LB for when we need it, and good depth. Monangai sure does run hard - love those style of runners. There was one play, when Trapilo was in the there where Monangai chipped the DE that Trapilo had, and Monanagai hit him so hard you could hear the crack on the broadcast. Nice. Your point about special teams is a real issue. It needs to be much better. And youre right they have some time to get that fixed. Usually its mostly about desire and tackling, and you can coach that and lean on it. Yeah Braxton looks like a real liability out there, and to be honest Triplo didnt exactly take the job with any confidence either. They are both not up to par, and I hope Trapilo can grow fast. He did look better after a minute out there, but we were giving him help and rolling away from his side too. He really has to grow fast. No matter how good our offense is, it's going nowhere if the LT is sieve. It's a real issue. I'm not hitting alarm bells yet, but it needs to be fixed for sure. The best answer would be if Trapilo develops quickly under fire and becomes trustworthy.

The Dolphins played their starters, so at least 1/2 the game was 1st vs 2nd string, then 2nd vs 3rd string. Then at the end, our bottom guys were getting a ton of snaps. Booker, Sewell, and Monangai were my game balls. I am most concerned about special teams because technically, that group should've had all the main players playing, and the coverage and return units were terrible. At least they have a month to get that fixed. Braxton looks cooked. I keep seeing the video of the TD where he was playing matador with the DE, but there were 2 plays before that on the same drive where his guy got pressure and flushed Bagent out.

cool - look forward to what you see

To me, he looked too high and stiff with zero lateral agility. In almost every sport, it's butt down chest up with weight shifted to the balls of the feet. He looked like Frankenstein on that play. Stacey Dales said that this was the first week that he's worked at full speed. It doesn't look like he's there. I DVR'd the game and will review his and Trapillo's reps tomorrow. My wife is leaving for Chicago in the morning, so I'll have time on my hands.

he looked like he was setting too deep expecting a bull rush. so his over correction of his weakness put him a bad position with an open gap to the inside. Thats one thing you never want to see. Get beat outside? it happens. Inside? Thats a crime.

I think having an experienced QB in the room has to help Caleb, as far as keeping on the 53 that is another conversation.

He ain't ready. Terrible footwork...

This is brutal. to the inside too. Yuck.

I loved watching our coaches as the game progressed. It looked like the coaches and players are hyped. Al Haris was on it. And they all liked that first goal line stop.

I thought Keenum looked like the old man that he is and my take away was we should keep 2 QBs and use that roster spot elsewhere like the backup Oline where it seems we have several players who are developing well. I can't speak for his off the field help in the meeting rooms or sidelines. I'm sure that's good but we also have coaches who are supposed to do that.

For the record I like this approach. Doing things right vs. having a fortuitous outcome are two different things. These coaches want things done right so they won't need good luck.

With most of the starters sitting, I didnt expect a lot to cheer for but Monongai, Booker, Wheeler had some good moments. Jones didnt look good but at least he was playing against starters instead of 2nd string. Ozzy needs to improve. The DL did keep the pressure on but we need some better tackling.

That was a rough watch. Brutal offensive execution down the stretch, especially after the big sack to set them up in FG range. My only real observation/takeaway from that game is that Keenum looked a lot more comfortable than Tyson Bagent. I'd elevate him to QB2 for the next pre-season game, at the very least.

Do any of our coaches smile? Even after good plays everything is a teachable moment.

Hmm Trapilo is back in now - maybe he had an equipment issue?