dawhizz

I agree that this team needs a speed WR. But Austin isn't the only speed WR in the draft. Swope, Goodwin, Stills, and Boyce all ran sub 4.4 and Wheaton's not much farther behind. Plus, guys like Woods and Bailey are really elusive in the open field, which helps them to avoid hits just as much as someone with straightline speed. I watched some highlights of these guys, and I don't see where Austin is worth an entire round (or two) above the other guys I've mentioned.

I have a really hard time spending a #1 pick on a WR who is 5'9" 174. That's one of the lightest WRs in the draft. I know he blazed the 40 and was very productive, but if you're going to work in the slot in the NFL, you're going to get pounded and you need to be able to hold up. So either he puts on a little bit of mass, which probably means he loses speed, or he stays at his current weight and you take you chances. I would much rather wait a round or two and get whoever's left of Robert Woods, Stedman Bailey, Ryan Swope, or Markus Wheaton (in that order), all of whom are nearly as dangerous in the slot and have at least 15 pounds on Austin.

Peter King tweeted that the Falcons are apparently looking to move up in the draft from #30, though it's not clear how far up they want to move or what/who they are looking for. Might be a good trade match for the Bears.

I saw a Tribune article from today on Emery's comments during minicamp. Apparently they have a standing offer out to Idonije. He also talked about the depth of the CB position in the draft, that they were looking at 12-15 players in the draft who they saw as immediate contributors.

I like the fact that we are stocking this roster with NFL players at pretty much every position. While there are certainly weak spots, there's no gaping hole with no one currently on the roster who can compete for a starting job. I foresee a very BPA type of draft.

Know who else was pegged as an immediate starter at tackle? Gabe Carimi.

Keith Pough, LB, Howard - The Bears have shown interest and he seems like the kind of versatile LB we could use to get younger at that position. Nickll Roby, CB, USC - Probably won't be picked until at least the fourth round because he's so small (5'8"), but the Bears have done well with undersized CBs, he comes from a legit program where he was tested and performed well, and could be an immediate nickel/dime contributor.

Undrafted FA in 2011 out of Humboldt State (where) formerly of Jets who has not appeared in a regular season game. Probably just another guy, but at least the Bears are getting bodies to back up nearly every position. Led the blocking for HSU's running game, which accumulated a GNAC-best 2,239 yards. He also anchored a unit that ranked fifth overall among NCAA Division II programs for least quarterback sacks allowed, surrendering only eight in 11 games. Boggs has twice been honored as a Strength and Conditioning All-American. 2nd Team JB Scouting All-American; 1st team All Super Region 4; GNAC offensive Lineman of the year; 1st team unanimous all GNAC team; 2nd team CDS pre season all american; JBS scouting pre season all american honorable mention; JBS Mid Season all american second team; NSCA strength and conditioning all american; Team Captain; Team offensive lineman of the year

I agree that the Bears could use a big body, but at 6'2" 302 (according to NFL.com), Fluellen isn't exactly undersized. In fact, he would be our heaviest DT, according to the numbers on ChicagoBears.com.

If you're talking playmakers at WR, I think there's plenty more you could add to the mix. Leaving out other really good first round receivers like Deandre Hopkins, how about Stedman Bailey, who scored 25 receiving TDs last year? Or Markus Wheaton? Or even Ace Sanders? The Bears will have plenty of opportunities to add someone who qualifies.

I agree with a lot of your thoughts. I think the OL help will be gone. My gut says we draft Arthur Brown if we keep the pick, but my dark horse is Sheldon Richardson - we don't have a lot of DT depth and he's a great fit in our scheme.

The longer introduction did me in . . .

This is the list WalterFootball has on visits/meetings/etc. Not sure where they got this information, but here it is: Terron Armstead, OL, Arkansas-Pine Bluff (EW) Arthur Brown, LB, Kansas State (PRI) Josh Evans, S, Florida (EW) Matt Evans, LB, New Hampshire (EW) Reid Fragel, OT, Ohio State (PRI) Johnathan Franklin, RB, UCLA (SR) Tyrone Goard, WR, Eastern Kentucky (EW) Stefphon Jefferson, RB, Nevada (COM) Lane Johnson, OT, Oklahoma (COM) (INT) Edmond Kugbila, OL, Valdosta State (PRI) Robert Lester, DB, Alabama (SR#) Zach Line, RB, SMU (EW) Bradley McDougald, S, Kansas (EW) Brandon McGee, DB, Miami (PRI) Christine Michael, RB, Texas A&M (INT) (EW) Jordan Mills, OT, Louisiana Tech (COM) Keavon Milton, TE, Louisiana-Monroe (PRI) Alec Ogletree, LB, Georgia (PRI) Sean Porter, OLB, Texas A&M (COM) Eric Rogers, WR, Cal Lutheran (PRO) Brandon Williams, DL, Missouri Southern (SR) SR - Senior Bowl meeting. EW - East-West Shrine meeting. COM - Combine meeting. INT - Interested. VINT - Very Interested. PRO - Pro Day meeting. PRI - Private Workout. % - indicates more than one meeting. # - indicates meeting set up outside of the 2013 Senior Bowl or the 2013 East-West Shrine Game http://walterfootball.com/draft2013meetingsteams.php

I tried to make this a poll, but couldn't make it work.

Just taking the temperature of the board - I sense a lot of resistence to Manti Te'o, but I wonder if he's become underrated at this point. So I'm wondering, what is the earliest you would be OK with having the Bears draft Te'o? Assume for the purposes of the question that either Ogletree or Brown are gone by #20 (but not both). 1) #20 overall 2) Trade down, but pick still in the 1st round 3) Trade down, but pick in the early 2nd round 4) #50 5) Don't want him

I still think it's way too early to give up on Carimi. And, to be fair to Webb, the league is littered with failed LTs who are quality RTs.

Haven't seen any of these. What do they do?

Adam Schefter ‏@AdamSchefter 3m Rams re-signed G Chris Williams to a one-year deal worth up to $2.75 million.

Thought this was interesting, since there were only three GMs there. Maybe a long look at Robert Woods (who was reportedly very impressive) or Khalid Holmes?

I see the Bears had two scouts at the LSU Pro Day yesterday. Could have been for Kevin Minter. Could also have been for Mr. Badger . . .

Don't love the idea of spending a draft pick on a back-up. I saw that Vince Young threw at the Texas Pro Day and was reportedly impressive. I'd be open to it . . .

The name of the Bears offseason has been flexibility. This sets them up to draft a CB without needing to press him into service at the nickel or dime right away.

4) Except Urlacher was also a FA LB. We're just going to be signing a different FA LB instead of Urlacher. There's reallty no change except the potential FA LBs the Bears could have signed has decreased by one. 5) And we all know the true barometer for a fan base is in message boards. It seems to me message boards are typically more likely to be negative (just look around here . . . ). 6) OK. I just hadn't heard that. 7) Spencer, Campbell, and Idonije are FA. I would say Bush, Gould, and Garza are earning their money.

Less fun fact: He doesn't play LB.