BearFan PHX

Thank you for fixing it!

Im not really counting Willis as an option per se. i think he's more like a pet project for Roushar. Ive seen some atrocious film on this guy, but he was great in college and has all the tools. If the right LT dropped to us at the right time in the draft, none of them stop us from taking them. That said, I fully expect the 25th pick to either trade down or take someone on the DL.

He's got tools, but he was awful in the NFL. Maybe Dan Roushar can reclaim him, so this is a smart move for sure, but I wouldnt assume we will get anything out of it. Call it a cheap lottery ticket.

But the Ravens KNEW all about his knee surgeries, and they traded anyway. They didnt discover anything new, they got cold feet. And they've done it before. Also to say that Philly didnt have a pass rush in the SB against the Chiefs is just wrong. They put on a pressure clinic. Seattle also was able to bring pressure this year and it basically decided the game. If there is a lesson to be learned it's that pass rush is important in winning a superbowl.

Right i totally agree. That's why I said free agents who make over, say $15M are a different thing than the hole fillers.

yeah i heard it floating around, but this time of year no one knows what is true. That's why I said "*IF*" we did that. I still wouldnt be shocked to hear that Poles is kicking the tires on him now at a reduced price?

Schefter says they didnt even do a physical. They just got cold feet. The guy just had surgery, if any team wanted to fail him, they could. Everyone knows he isnt ready to line up today. The Ravens knew that when they made the deal, too. It's a very bad situation for the Raiders. No way Crosby will play again for them now, and with the big splash free agents signed, one assumes his price just got lower. We also heard the Bears were in for 2x first round picks, but Baltimore's were better. *IF* that is true, then we are obviously still calling, albeit at a lower price. Very interesting. The Dolphins reneged on a trade for Drew Brees after his rotator cuff surgery in a similar way - the player had just had surgery, so no one could expect a ready-to-go medical clearance. They just use that excuse to back out. Brees went on to have a career that made them wish they hadn't. Baltimore is looking very bad here, and maybe a glimmer of hope that we might get Crosby cheaper? Our 2026 first round pick, and a player. Maybe Stephenson. Raiders have to know he'll never play again for them, so they have to find something...

right! I dont see him as a starter, but hes GOT to be better depth than McCloud! lol

well said. Every year teams sign $5M to $10M a year players to plug holes before the draft so you dont have to reach for positions and can take close to BPA. Then some of those players will end up playing the same position as the $5M/yr free agent, and can push them to start during camp or during the year. the $20M+ guys are the supposed impact players, and some are, others are retreads, but you always overpay for them. That doesnt mean they arent worth paying sometimes, but it depends on a lot of things including whether your SB window is open, or if you have tons of cap room. But mostly, like you said, free agents generally arent the people to come fix your team, but to fill holes so you can draft more freely.

ha! I didnt think of it that way, but youre right.

I think the Bears saw what we saw - a bunch of interceptions, but a lot of blown coverages too.

Good returner, but very dangerous as a slot WR. Speedy, good hands... I think he is probably WR3

I hear ya, and for $5M, it doesnt bother me. But I dont believe he will ever be an excellent LT. I would LOVE to be wrong.

Billings was a NT tho, and everything I read earlier said that Gallimore was a NT too? If he's a 3T thats really good news, it's just new to me. Also, I'll take this moment to remember another Bear named Gallimore, Willie Gallimore who is an underrated HB for us who was really really good, and also the reason why my icon is a jersey with the number 28 - that was Gallimore's This was back when we all had jerseys with numbers if you remember the old board. A lot of us have been here a LONG time

If it's $5M + $5M Im Ok with it. I personally think he is deeply flawed as a LT, but if it's only $5M for depth I guess it's OK with me. I mean not that anyone but me cares about that, but still that's where Im at with it. I hope Benedet beats him out in camp, or we draft a rookie or something else happens.

So I could be REALLY wrong about this, but I went to overthecap to look at Trent Williams' deal, and it's kind of shocking. *IF* the 49ers traded him to us, it looks like his cap number for us is ridiculously low. $4.7M for us this year, and $7.5M next year, because so much of his deal was guaranteed. 1) maybe I'm missing something major 2) SF would want something significant for him because theyre paying the bill for us. 3) Maybe he requires a new deal? Hard to say he was just the highest paid OL in the league when this deal got signed and there is more than one year left on it. 4) Maybe he wants a ring? Go here, and set for trade before June 1st, and you can see the cap savings, thats what we'd pay, and their dead money is what theyd have to pay. So for example, his cap number is $38M, and if they trade him, they have $34M of dead cap, and savings around $4M, which is what we'd have to pay. Now I dont get why overthecap is scoring it like this. This all includes $12M in roster bonuses ($750k per game) and there's a salary of $22M that's $34 of the $38, but overthecap clearly calculates that all as guaranteed, staying with SF. Interesting. https://overthecap.com/player/trent-williams/1466

at that price, I am too. $27M is insane.

For what it's worth, Rich Eisen and others are reporting that we DID offer two firsts for Crosby, but the Raven's two firsts were better. I don't think we can assume that the Bears werent interested in signing Crosby or Linderbaum, but they had a price they wouldnt exceed and the market beat them.

Linderbaum is a serious stud. Maybe the best center I've ever seen, but $27M a year is a LOT. I'd have been in on a 4 year $80M deal, even that high hes worth it, but we cant outbid a team like the raiders who have lots of cap to spend, and want to give a rookie QB a real chance.

Bush is a hunter. He's great at sniffing out the run and blitzing. He's not great in coverage, his INTs all came on deflected balls, but his situational awareness is very high. If something floats near him, he's snatching it. Hes a real asset in the run game tho - he locks on like a missile and finds his way through traffic well. Hes got a high motor too, making plays from the backside when the hole gets slightly gummed up. Bryant is great. Physical, good in coverage, a ball hawk, and a peanut puncher. Both these guys look like Bears players.

I dont even think Bryant is that big of a splash. These are all good solid signings, and obvious upgrades over last year. Also, it speaks to our weakness stopping the run. We signed DT, LB and S - improving at all three levels right up the middle. Id LOVE to see a proven pass rusher, but they are not necessarily in reach now. But the people we have signed will definitely give DA pieces to cook with. And I suspect we spend a lot of draft capital on the defense as well. We might see a DE in the $15M range, but I think the chances of a Trey Hendrickson are no sure thing. But is it possible one of our first three picks goes to WR or RB? sure it is, if they are believed to be dominant players by our staff. Also, we havent really fixed the LT spot yet. What we do in free agency might affect our draft needs, or not, depending on who we sign.

Yup, big signings or not, we always also sign mid tier free agents to fill holes so we dont get screwed if the draft doesnt go well for us, and we have to reach for positions. You avoid that by having someone you can put there if necessary. Then you draft rookies close to BPA, and some will play behind and eventually overtake those vets we signed for $6M/yr or less. Some years you make a big splash with a big name player, and some you dont, but either way you always fill holes before the draft. OK so we have signed S Coby Bryant at $40M/3yr (thats a starter $13.3M/yr) DT Neville Gallimore at $12M/2yr (thats a rotational player and hole filler $6M/yr) LB Devin Bush $30M/3yr (thats a starter $10M/yr) LB Demarco Jackson $10M/2yr (backup or LB3 on running downs, pushing for LB2 $5M/yr) DE James Hardy $6M/2yr (special teams player $3M/yr) Great Hole filling, and we have new starters at S and LB. And maybe I'm wrong, maybe Gallimore will start at NT. His salary says less though. Certainly is getting started on an upgrade on the Defense. Bryant and Bush are both upgrades. I think I predicted as many as 5 new starters on defense this year. There's 2 already. I feel like they will go after the defense like they did the OL last year.

Courtney Cronin's source is Jeff King. She's had exclusives from him before, and even attributed some to him. And I'm not saying Jeff is breaking rules, Im sure the Bears are good with it - most teams find a reporter that they can use when they need to put out disinformation before the draft, or spin on some negative publicity thing, and they "pay" for that by letting info out early to those same reporters in return. It means Courtney will sometimes have inside info, but it also means she wont be the one asking tough questions in the pressers either?

I'd have jumped at paying $15M for Linderbaum, I thought he was probably too expensive at $22M. I mean, I like the player a lot, so I might have found a way to make it work, but I get that cap space is going to do good somewhere else.

That works. Not sure we won't get an edge too. Could be a big name, could be mid tier?