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I agree with the C+ grade on Poles. All GMs have hits and misses but the key to any organization, are they winning ? Poles said he needed 5 yrs to rebuild this into a consistent winner, we are in year 4. He will be remembered for drafting Caleb and hiring BJ, not all the third round misses. Shanahan traded a bunch of picks to draft Trey Lance in 2021 which would have got a lot of people fired. He didnt get fired because he is a consistent winner. Belechek is known for being the best coach ever and his history is littered with mistakes but always won. BJ has influenced Poles picks , just look at the Loveland and Burden picks but it still falls on Poles shoulders. You build a team successfully thru the draft, free agency, and C G-Johnson type pickups. The only important question , are we winning? It appears to be right on Poles schedule in a 5 yr rebuilding plan. He came in here with a terrible Cap situation, and a bunch of expensive older players without many good ones. Condemn Poles all you want on his mistakes but do we have a team now that can win the North (tied for first place) and become a playoff contender? So far so good.

I never really like Phil Simms but I agree with his ranking.

I understand the point you're making. I'm saying as we go forward, I think Johnson will make the good decisions and Poles will follow. We are already hearing that Poles wanted to trade picks away for players at the trade deadline and Johnson told him not to. So I think there's good evidence that Johnson is running the show. Of course Poles and his scouts provide all the detailed info, film and investigations that Poles and Johnson will rely on to make those decisions, so it's not like Poles will be twiddling his thumbs. But when it comes to talent evaluation, I think Johnson will have the last word, and right now at least I am more comfortable with that than letting Poles have it. And yes, that includes the picks we made this year, to at least some extent. I really like Loveland as a player, but i still think taking a TE with the #10 pick overall is a strange choice. We still have no pass rush. I also understand taking Burden at #39, but we should have taken Aireontae Ersery at #41, instead of trading down for Trapilo and Turner in my view too. Is Turner going to be worth the trade down from Ersery to Trapilo? But i think Johnson will be much better going forward now that he understands the roster better, having coached all these players this year. And maybe Johnson didnt mind taking Loveland high because he felt he needed to get Caleb going into the system. If they are aggressive about stocking the defense this offseason, then that's all gonna work out. So hopefully that clears up some of what might have looked like having it both ways, with a little more detail? I think Poles is a good team player, not much of a leader type, and is a hard worker who will do a good job setting the table, but Johnson will make the right strategic decisions after that. I mean, Poles has been here a while, and pass rush has been a consistent problem, who has he drafted on the pass rushing edge?

When the Bears were losing, Poles was taking heat for drafting a TE, WR, RT, and DT. Now that they are winning, it is slowly going to BJ made the picks. Im not calling you or anyone out, just things you read anywhere. I do believe Poles relies on Warren, Cunningham and Johnson equally and he wants all 4 of them on board for any big decisions. They also want Johnson to get the players he needs to fit his style or D Allen's (a multi position DL, tall physical CB, and fast LB). As for Alaska?, I think Poles has done above average, C+. If Kiran or Trapilo turn into staples on the oline, he can get to a B+ very fast.

Its a mixed bag with Poles, and while he did draft Caleb, anyone would have done that with the first pick. And anyone would have signed Johnson too - he was the belle of the ball last year. (yes i know at the time i thought Vrabel was the guy, but I also didnt really know anything about Johnson's demeanor, but you can assume every GM did know those things) I also think that starting with last year's draft, Ben Johnson is really the guy calling the shots on personnel. Now that might be a reason to keep Poles, because he is letting Johnson make the decisions, but it's not necessarily a reason to praise him?

That was one of the most polite and complimentary 'opp-ed' pieces I've seen in a long time.

Burkhardt and Brady are calling this matchup. Brady's called two of Caleb's best games of his career (Packers last year, Cowboys this year). Let's hope that continues

Curious, and want to ask this before we head into the tougher part of this year’s schedule. Whats the consensus on how Poles is doing right now? The team is tied for the lead in the NFC north for the first time since 2022. Poles more or less built the team we see before us. They signed CJ who has contributed significantly while the defense as a whole has struggled. And many claim Williams is coming into his own as was predicted would happen when he was drafted. Before you say ‘but this all Johnson’, remember Poles was the one that hired him.

right. you can see him doing all the little things. This is what they mean by feeding him with a fire hose. Theyve got him working on all these things - it's a lot, especially for a guy that never got coached this way before, and is still working on his footwork - starting with switching his forward foot from the snap. But hes putting so much of it together. When the game slows down a little for him, he's gonna be a killer.

Caleb was mic’d up last game. When he barely missed Rome on a deep route you hear them talking afterwards about if Rome was taking it upfield or flattening out. There are still subtleties to work out between QB and WRs but each week it gets better.

You can pretty much grab any film review of the last few games and see about half of Williams throws are being released before receivers make their break. He’s also moving safeties and LBs intentionally with his eyes knowing where he really wants to throw. Watch the TD to Rome where he’s all alone in the end zone. See the subtle fake to the outside route that gets both defenders to bite leaving Rome alone. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XyeHR_Du4Y4&pp=ygUdY2FsZWIgd2lsbGlhbXMgZmlsbSBicmVha2Rvd24%3D

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tv9JpqrmdC0&pp=ygUNQmVyY2ljaCBiZWFycw%3D%3D A view from the other side.

I enjoyed hearing the press after today's practice since they get access to Caleb. They flat out ask him why he has good starts and ends but the middle is blah. They asked him about him abandoning the pocket sometimes too soon. These are all things him and BJ are working on. He said most times he is going thru reads too fast. Sees a guy starting to break a block and knows he has to move. He will get this and once he gets the timing part down, that is when he is big time. Right now, we see flashes especially at the end. He can play when pressed.

I like that. Hearing a few podcasts, they stated how strong his lower body must be to not be taken down very easy. Has that 6th sense when players around him.

Hope y'all can open this...🔥 https://www.facebook.com/share/v/17esnN6tKz/

I suppose I'd need you to define what you mean when you say "anticipation"? How is that measured? When I say he reminded me of Cam it was more about their similar charisma, ability to extend plays with their legs and the team around them during their earlier years. Carolina was never a year in year out playoff contender before Cam got there. It took him 5 seasons to finally make the super bowl. Could Caleb be on the same timeline? All the stats in the world can only get you so far.

Here's a chart of Caleb's numbers in his first two seasons playing vs. some greats and their first two seasons on the field. What I like, is that his stats are right there, and we can see by eye that he isn't anywhere near his full potential. You can see that a couple guys had monster years (like Mahomes and Marino) and then followed it up with a 2nd year more like Caleb's, and you can see that Rodgers benefitted from maturing ont he bench! Mostly you can see that Caleb needs to get his completion percentage up in the 65% range, but he is pretty careful with the ball, his INTs are very low, and none of this includes his rushing yards and ability to escape the pass rush.

Greenard right now is questionable with an injury he sustained on Sunday. If he doesn't go, that is a huge relief for the O-Line as he is very disruptive with pressures and TFLs.

I agree with all of this. I dont want to spend a first round pick on a LT, even though Id love to have that player. We need a pass rush so bad. I honestly wouldnt mind if the first three picks all go to defense. And of course there is free agency and all that too. Imagine if we could put two studs on the D line. That, plus the continued development of the offense would make us a real contender next year. Course you have to draft, sign the right guys. They have to be absolute beasts.

The future of our Left OT does need to be addressed. However, this year we were all into boosting the offense. Mission accomplished. Next year, we need to address our defense's needs with the same aggressiveness. If we do —and succeed— we will have one hellava team. PS - Dump Hightower! I didn't like him when he was hired initially. I was disappointed when BJ brought him back. Enough, already!

agree with all of that, and I still think we might add another LT, but it wont be in the first round I agree. We need to stock that defensive line more than anything else.

I don’t remember Can ever throwing with the same kind of anticipation.

I tend to agree. We all want the LT position settled, but when you have the seventh rated OL, in the first year of a system, that's a great thing. Add in that these five guys have never played together before this season. Braxton was always average at best, but coming off the injury made him worse. We could even sign him on the cheap, as he is still very young. I could see Theo taking over for Thuney one day. If draft day comes and the clear best prospect is a left tackle, I'm taking him. If it's close, I'm taking someone to get after the QB. We need that first and foremost.

They saw enough of him to put him ahead of a guy who’s been out starting LT now for 3(?) years. And with regards to untapped potential still on the team, there’s Trapilo waiting in the wings.