balta1701-A

Ok...assume for a moment the 2 contracts were identical. And assume you only got to choose 1 of the 2 guys to keep. Pick one.

One good thing the Bears do have going for them...Hester now has what, $25 million or so worth of motivation, in those escalator clauses, to become a solid and hopefully top of the line WR?

So, while this probably taps out most of the Bears' remaining cap room for this year, I have to think this puts the Bears in an excellent position to be players on the FA market next offseason right? Aside from the 1 year deal folks, Jones, Lloyd, Grossman, the Bears really don't have to worry about extending or losing anyone ext year do they?

The Cowboys wouldn't have cut him if they thought they were going to be able to play him. They decided that if they kept him, he was just going to take reps away from one of their younger WR's. The Bears ought to look at him the same way. Give him training camp to keep rehabbing. Then teams ought to take a look at him in the last week or so of camp or first couple weeks of the season, after you've seen what you're getting from the WR's you have, after he's had more time to rehab, and after the first round of injuries hits.

Ok, now that is sweet. Now I have reason to go in to school on Sundays in the fall.

I'd give just as much credence to a coin flip at this point as I would to any leaks.

Only problem with that idea is...the Cleveland Browns are probably the only team for whom Hester @ Return man wouldn't be a huge upgrade. They're pretty darn happy with Cribbs at that spot.

This almost certainly has to cost minny a draft pick or two doesn't it?

Backup Tackle sounds to me like the kind of position we might be able to fill as training camp cuts hit?

2nd and a 5th. And I mean this makes both teams better this year. Eli Manning just seems vastly more comfortable when he doesn't have to deal with guys like Barber and Schockey who are demanding the ball.

Frankly, I think this makes both teams better.

You can never know exactly how the numbers are crunched on any of these...but I would expect that some chunk of Williams's contract for this year is covered out of the draft-related cap holds, and I believe that there is a limit to how much of a rookie salary you can put on the cap their first year, right?

FWIW, prior to this signing, Peter King put up a chart showing which teams had enough cap room to grab Favre...so here's a little ditty about how much cap room the Bears have left this season prior to this extension, if his numbers are accurate. Chicago $13.2 million So, prior to the Urlacher signing, that's how much you have to work with on this year's bonus for Hester.

Can't speak specifically to scheme...but I can speak to need, and Washington has been known as a team in need of an improved pass rush for several years now...they just haven't had the chance to target it in the draft because they keep having other needs appear thanks to their other issues. Taylor has managed to pull off 3 10+ sack years in a row on what has frankly been a disappointing team...while they still had other people on their defense, he's been putting up decent numbers while even facing double teams, and that's exactly what the Skins need.

I'm just going to assume that's what you meant.

If I went through the Top 12-13 players on the Bears Defense...how many of them have never had a pro bowl caliber season or aren't thought of really highly? The whole D-Line, Every LB except HH, Vasher, Tillman, Brown...Pretty easy to be the worst player on a defense when that's the kind of company you're keeping.

The worst that can happen is overkill...none of them get enough reps/snaps to actually develop any sort of a feel with the players here and therefore none of them develop and you essentially guarantee a QB disaster next year. There are only enough practice snaps to go around. If you think Leftwich or Simms will be significantly better than what you already have, ok bring them in and give them a tryout. But if you think they're roughly at the same level as your 2 guys now and you're just hoping something sticks...then just stick with the guys you have.

From my point of view...this setup is entirely plausible...but it's almost certainly not going to happen...because this is the NFL. A huge part of the fun of the NFL is that on any given weekend, anything can happen. One player can step up big, make a couple plays, and suddenly turn a game around. If you assume you're a good team and look at your schedule...you say that you can beat the teams that last year weren't great teams and you can hold your own at home. But that's never the way it happens. Someone does something stupid. The Colts/Eagles/Vikings kick to Devin Hester a couple times. Vince Young has a monster game. Whatever. On top of that...there is always, always a surprise team or two in the NFL. The Saints 2 years ago. The Browns last year. The Packers to some extent last year. And just as likely, there's always a few surprises on the down side, for whatever reason (Injury, bad chemistry, bad coaching, etc.) For that, think about the trendy playoff pick at the beginning of every year. Like last year...San Francisco spent a bunch of money in the offseason on FA's to improve what looked like an improving team...and they totally imploded. This is a good starting point/goal. 12-4 or better is certainly within the range of what the Bears can do...if things go well and people stay healthy. But this is the NFL. Expect the unexpected.

Kind of amazing how many teams haven't even got started yet. And not just crappy GM's, like the Lions...the Colts haven't touched theirs yet. The Packers...well their GM's been on vacation/in hiding, so he has an excuse at least.

Newbie 0 College Graduate 25 Unsigned free agent 50 Camp invitee 100 Practice Squad 250 53 man roster 500 Special Teamer 1000 Key back up 2000 Platoon starter 5000 Starter 7500 Pro Bowler 10000 MVP 15000 Hall of Famer 20000

He may very well not even be ready to play by then.

I'm of the opposite mind. I don't think getting a premier WR can be that big of a jolt to the offense unless every other part, most notably the O-Line, is working well on its own.

Yeah, this certainly has all the hallmarks of one of those messes that can tear apart a locker room, and hell, damage a franchise for a fairly long time.

I still hope they consider Forte the #1 back and give Wolfe enough playing time to actually have a chance to do something, but there are very few ways in which this is a bad signing.

Several other things to consider on this... First, how would the Bears get him? Would they have to trade for him? Because if so, his contract right now is very large and would take up a good sized chunk of cap room. After signing harris, I'd imagine that you're choosing between getting Favre and extending Hester. And I believe his contract also has 3 more years on it...so if he decided to pull this retiring/unretiring garbage again every year, he'd have the opportunity to drag this team through the same crap he's dragging GB through right now. And what price would the Bears be prepared to give up in a trade for him? If the Pack demanded a top draft pick would you give that up for a 1-2 year Favre rental? On the other hand...let's assume he un-retires and then the Pack cuts him. He's then on the open market. Are the Bears prepared to outbid for his services? What kind of dollars would he command from Minnesota or Tampa Bay, or some other team that thinks they're on the cusp but is unsure about it's QB situation?