BearFan PHX

yup - it looks like if Trapilo can show against Miami, he will get the job.

this all makes sense. And just so Im clear to everyone - I would NOT trade three firsts for the guy. So if the trade price is too high, then i think we will and should pass. But I also agree with you 100% that he is a true stud, and if we can afford the trade, then he is absolutely worth the cap space, especially with Caleb on his rookie deal. Stinger earlier suggested that you dont monkey with Jaylon Johnson to get Parsons because JJ's contract is aligned with Calebs. That makes no sense because: 1) JJ already wants a new deal and is probably a hold out next year to get one, so alignment is off anyway 2) the whole POINT of the advantage of having a rookie QB is that you can afford these kind of deals for a pass rusher. Maybe someone will make the case that JJ is just that good that you cant lose him - thats not a bad argument at all, but the ones that have already been offered make no sense? If we pick an edge int he first round next year, they will almost certainly never be as good as Parsons already is. Parsons is easily worth more than a 1st round pick right now. But Dallas is going to want a haul, and that's not a great move for us. But if we can add in players and make this deal, we should.

depending on how stuck Dallas is. If Parsons is going to hold out Dallas doesnt want all the cap space going to waste. This HAS happened before you know. I mean, if you watch the NFL at all?

Its not even clear that Turner is going to play DE. But even if he does, turning our collective nose up at one of the best edge players int he league, who is only 26 is weird! If the trade cost is too much, then i get it. We wont make the trade. But if we can get him, we shouldnt say "we dont need him we have Dayo and Sweat" thats crazy

sorry if I misspoke, but yes he is one of the best edge rushers in the game. His pressure rate is 20% - that means he gets pressure in 1 out of 5 snaps. Every team needs a guy like that. you guys are nuts. if the trade value is too high, then so be it - but you act like you dont want him. Thats insane. Stinger, just imagine he is already a Bear and then you will defend the hell put of him.

right. thats what im saying. Ofcourse he would never be a free agent, but i was just saying thing to make the point that it isnt the cap space thats the problem, its the trade value i think will prevent us from getting him. Like if they want 2 firsts, a second and Montez Sweat - Im feeling like that second first rounder is too steep. but if we could interest them in a player or two to get some draft capital out of the deal, then it becomes interesting. Thats why i was throwing out trading guys like Jaylon Johnson - hes a big stud (or so it's currently thought) he gets the new deal he wants. I mean i really like JJ as a player. But if hes gonna be the top payed CB in the league, Id rather be paying a top edge rusher like Parsons or Hendrickson. Especially when we have so much depth in the DB room. Is someone ready to be a real #1 if we lose JJ - well were getting a good look at them in camp with JJ out, and you can bet Ryan Poles is thinking the same thing "can someone in this group replace JJ eventually?" and "all DBs look better with a good pass rush in front of them" Dont forget, next year you can look at Edmunds cap $ too. There is definitely opportunity to move cap money around in the defense. But Im not paying two firsts, a second and a player. That seems too high. But it's probably the price, and we will probably not make that deal. This is just what the numbers say to me.

this is the general wisdom. I agree. and when you look at a team like the Eagles, they keep going back to the DL. But we've drafted nothing on the edge for a decade, Maybe you can count Shemar Turner as an edge player? So it's pretty clear that next year, we're gonna take an edge with our first round pick. Parsons is 26, and coming into his prime years. I don't mind paying a guy like that what he's worth while Caleb is on his rookie deal. Anyway, we will probably all agree that the trade price is too high, so its not so likely to happen. Im just saying it's the draft capital that makes it tough for me, not the cap space. Check this out: as a franchise we havent drafted Edge Rushers much at all. 2025 2nd Rnd Shemar Turner 2024 5th Austin Booker 2023 None 2022 5th Dom Rob 2021 None 2020 5th Trevis Gipson 2019 None 2018 6th Kylie Fitts 2017 None 2016 1st Leonard Floyd 2015 None 2014 None

Well you need a QB that is 100% for sure. But you need a pass rush too. We didnt have a QB when we got those DEs. And I agree, I am totally against trading 2 first rounders and more - I think we need to build through the draft. That's why I suggested trading players. Trading a single first rounder is a no brainer because we are going to likely use that pick on an edge player anyway. So if your #1 pick is a proven NFL star, that's a win for sure. It would be the additional #1s that i object to. But if JJ isnt in your long term plans, adding him to the trade makes sense, and he is worth a #1 pick+ too.

nah you have it backwards. if you can get one of the game's best DEs, and pay them like it, you do it. Thats one of the 2 most important positions on a football team. We cant trade away the future for it in terms of draft picks, but if the only question is salary cap space, you do it in a heartbeat. I really dont understand why you think the way you do? If you watch the teams, they all make moves that are the opposite of what youre saying. If you could get Trey Hendrickson as a free agent, for example, and pay him what hes worth you do it in a heartbeat. thats what the $ is FOR. Also you dont pay dead cap for 3 years. You pay it all at once, or you split it over 2 years if its a post June 1st designation. If we trade him this year, its $5M against our cap and $16M free cap space. Add Kmet for another $11M and youre already halfway there before cap games - the Bears could afford this if they wanted to do it. And keep in mind, JJ wants a bigger deal soon too, so thats cap space as well.

If we could sign Parsons as a free agent, and not pay draft value in trade (hypothetically) and then pay him as the #1 paid DE, we would do it in a heartbeat. The question here is the trade value.

so there is a difference between a 5th round pick playing like a 3rd round pick, which is a great move by Poles and great value, and someone playing well at LT. Just because someone is value doesnt mean they are GOOD, and given the revamping of the roster, I dont value Braxton Jones at all right now. If he outplays the others and takes the job and dominates then of COURSE I want to keep him and pay him. But if he plays like he has the past few years, he sould be a backup and trade bait (or free agent loss with compensation) But being good value, and playing well are two different things. And I also dont see how you can discount Trapilo for being a 2nd round pick, or Amagadje for being a 3rd round pick. As you know 1st round picks can flame out and 5th round picks can become superstars. Once they are picked, its how good the player is that matters, not the round they were taken in. Right now, I would guess that Trapilo is better than Jones today. The real competition should be between Trapilo and Amagadje. Im basing this on Jones' previous NFL film. If he comes back different, then that changes everything, but I dont see how anyone can assume that Jones would be better than hes already been? Also the free agency thing includes offsets for us signing free agents too - so it might be that a 4th rounder for Jones is more than wed get in compensation for him?

So it looks like Micah Parsons wants a trade. Hes only 26 and hes a dominant edge rusher. We sure could use him. Trade values I've seen look like the Khalil Mack trade tho. 2026 1st round pick 2026 2nd round pick 2027 1st round pick Montez Sweat and more Its a steep price, and Parsons would eat up a lot of cap with a new deal too. But as i think it through, a few thoughts come to mind: 1) Next years 1st is no problem, because we were probably going to use it to draft a DE anyway. If we took Micah Parsons with our 1st rounder next year, wed all be thrilled. A proven vet etc. 2) Where will the salary cap space come from? 3) We are flush with DBs, and all DBs play better with Micah Parsons in front of them. 4) With Trey Hendrickson also still not happy, the price might be lower than it would otherwise be. So it makes me wonder if this trade would work: 2026 1st rounder 2027 2nd rounder Jaylon Johnson Braxton Jones, Cole Kmet, Dayo or Dom Rob - Dallas picks one. I think I would do that trade, and it would be a good trade for us. Thoughts? And if you immediately go back to the "no those guys are valuable" take the fandom out of it and ask yourself, if we had Micah Parsons, would you trade him to get Jaylon Johnson, Braxton Jones and a first round pick? Of course you wouldnt. So it's a pretty good deal for both sides?

Ok, but this is the last year of Braxton's rookie deal - do you think we will pay him what LTs get paid in the league next year? If not, then this is his last year. And dont you want your OL to gain cohesiveness going forward? It is very likely in my opinion that Jones will not be the starter, and unless someone trades a 3rd or better for him, he will be our swing tackle this year, and gone next year. if we are gonna get a 3rd rounder in compensation for losing a free agent, then cool. If we arent, then we might look at a trade now or at the trade deadline. As for Kmet, I dont think hes as good as you do, and thats cool. If he plays really well this year he could well stick around - having two great TEs is a luxury. But if he plays not so great, then i think we would rather allocate his cap space elsewhere and he will be gone either at the trade deadline this year or next offseason.

To the point about no one trading a 3rd or better for Braxton, I generally agree. But you never know, if a LT goes down in preseason and a team is stuck, they might pay a 3rd for him. To the idea of not moving good players in trade, I think when you look at the good teams, they all do this. You wouldnt CUT Kmet, but he is definitely trade bait at the trade deadline, or next offseason. As Ive said before he can play himself into staying, but hed have to do things he hasnt before. You just look at the players that are eating the largest slices of cap space, and ask yourself if you have a replacement on the roster already. if the answer is yes, you get the trade value for them before the next contract comes. Thats just smart - and yes it means players that can help you go, but thats what the good teams do, and if we are smart, we will follow their lead when we can. That means names that are GOOD too. Thats the point!

If we were to trade Jones it would have to be this year, because this is the last year of his contract. Letting him walk after this year could also likely result on some compensation. But assuming he isnt in the long term plan, then if he is equal to Trapilo, or even a little better, then Trapilo should still win the job to build consistency on the OL. Same for Amagadje. And i do think if he was rehabbing his ankle, he wasnt able to go all out in the weight room for the things that matter in anchoring and stopping a bull rush. Both Jones and Kmet are in a similar position - both will take cap room next year, and each has a rookie competitor who is probably better than them already on the roster. When your roster is good, like ours is becoming, then you start trading and cutting GOOD players, and thats new for us here, but it's what the good teams do to manage the cap and sustain winning programs year after year. For those who become attached to those players its going to be a difficult ride, but it is good for the team int he end as long as the new talent coming in is up to the task.

I didnt know this, but the Dolphins were the 4th ranked defense, and the BIlls were 17th for yards allowed. Good that the Bears offense will get a test.

of course. and maybe Trapilo will be great against the bull rush and have a weakness to outside moves - who knows. But we KNOW Jones' weakness, and having been injured instead of building leg strength is going to hurt him - I dont see any reason to assume that he will be better against the bull rush than he was before he got injured? He hasnt been learning or working out or anything. And also, remember that this is probably Jones' last year of his rookie deal. Paying him like a starting LT is going to be a lot more impactful on our cap than if Amagadje or Trapilo gets the job. And we want to get familiarity on that OL going forward for several years... So unless Trapilo and Amagadje are big fails and we NEED Jones as a stopgap this year, i think it is more likely that Jones will not be the starter. He will be trade bait, and also free agent compensation bait. If Jones comes out of nowhere and plays like an all pro LT in ways weve never seen, then he will be worth the second contract money, but unless he is superman all of a sudden, or Trapilo and Amagadje are not ready for the NFL, Jones is odd man out.

It's always hard in training camp when you hear good or bad news to know whether the LTs are all playing well, or the DEs are sucking. And they kind of said a little of both. Our coaches will know a lot more in a couple weeks when we scrimmage against the Bills. It's too bad most of the action these days happens during the week and not in the preseason games where WE could see it. We probably wont see anything we can count on until week 1. But Johnson will know, and for the first time in a long time it seems the coaches have vision and courage to act. So we have to just trust in them for now I guess. I wish I had a more well informed opinion about the LT battle. But we dont get to see anything firsthand, and I dont really trust any of the pundits to tell me which of the three is the right choice based on a few plays, good or bad, that get blown out of proportion and become narratives. I suppose we will get to see LT2 and LT3 in pregame action vs second and third stringers but Im not sure how helpful that info is either. I expect all three of them to easily handle second and third string DEs on the opposing team, if they are realistically in competition to start. I guess Im just saying Im gonna hold my powder on this until I see something. If we see fails, we will all certainly notice that, but im not willing, for example, to assume Braxton has a shot at starting until I see him block a good DE who has a strong bull rush. That's what he has to prove to win. Him handling Booker or even Dayo isnt gonna prove anything. Hopefully the Bills will bring some challenges for these guys with Joey Bosa and others. EDIT - just looked at the schedule, and Miami is first, August joint practices and the game is the 10th. Bosa will still be a great test the week after, but hopefully Miami brings something to test these guys too.

yes, I expect Kiran will be swing tackle this year - but hes too good, and we wont keep our guards forever, Thuney may have one or two years left, and I think when its all said and done, Amagadje will start at OG sometime in the next few years. But this year, he is swing tackle for sure, unless he wins the job, then Trapilo is the swing tackle, but i do not predict he will play guard ever.

My guess, which is based at least 50% on gut instinct also known as total BS, is that Trapilo will win the LT competition, Amagadje will become a backup OG and a future starter at OG, and Jones wont be with the team next year. Maybe he will be traded, or leave as a free agent - whatever formula gets the most value for us. Maybe a compensatory pick, or an actual traded one.

as would anyone at all interesting

right, she wanted Banks like I did. And I have to admit at the time, I did not consider Trapilo at all at LT, so it looked like a really bad move to let the LTs including Ersery go by. But time might well prove that Poles was right about that and I was wrong - right now tha'ts what I personally currently believe.

A freakin MEN

I agree, but it doesnt mean her sources were unreliable. She reported that there was a lot of interest and activity around the Bears and Jeanty. The fact that the price was too high and the deal didnt happen doesnt disprove any of that?

absolutely possible. in that case shed still be telling the truth, that insiders told her this. The idea that she made it up herself for clicks is what I'm pushing back on. That doesnt sound like her. But the simplest answer is probably right: of COURSE the Bears went asking about the price for Jeanty. Who wouldnt? Doing due diligence, maybe even a little more. And obviously the deal didnt happen. After Cleveland and the Jaguars did a trade for a non quarterback and the price was a 2nd round pick, a 4th round pick AND a next years number one to go from 2 to 5, it was clear the price to move from 10 to 6 would be steep. So it all seems pretty obvious and likely to me what happened. I do think the Bears would have liked Jeanty if they could afford the trade, but not if it was a first next year and a 2nd this year?