Mongo3451

This is a building year. I'm not sure if we can quite call it a "re-build" based on what our moves have been. Our moves have indicated, we are happy with where we are are on defense and content with what we have left on special teams. In a re-build year, we may have seen a sign and trade with Alex Brown. We would have seen Arch and M. Brown cut. We would not have seen Rex and Kyle BOTH back. (just one) Therefore, this is what I see happening on draft day. I see us drafting players that are able to provide depth, with the potential to become solid long term contributors. Say we draft OT, QB, RB and OG with our 1st four picks. I would say only the 1st round OT has a chance to start, with the RB getting PT as the year goes on. All = building. The short term benefits of this off-season will be minimal. Get ready for a long season of hoping the Defense and Hester can provide enough magic for us to be competitive. IMO - until we get the OL fixed and find a franchise QB, we will not contend for anything. Our defense can only have a strong identity/ as long as our offense can control the clock. (which it can not or will not) Prediction with no major Defensive injuries: 9-7 wildcard. Full season of Mike Brown 10-6 Prediction with major Defensive injuries: 6-10 #8 pick in the draft.

Thought I'd throw this out there. It really struck an important tone in the importance of picking OL. http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sp...,7056029.column

Bravo! It said nothing of increased size, strength, skill or ability to compete. That article was complete PR bullshit, with all the substance of a "popcorn fart".

Nice! Thanks AZ54, that was a nice breakdown of the backs. There is only one type of back I’d like to see drafted. Power 1st with speed a close 2nd. To be a good playoff/cold weather back you need to be able to take that 1st shot and break it off. I just want them to move the chains, eat the clock and break off an occasional. That is what they drafted Benson for and I still think he has a chance to be that guy. Problem is, the odds dictate he be challenged. If we go RB in the 2nd or early 3rd, it has to be Forte. No way Stewart lasts that long. The dark arts are in effect!

Wouldn't a drunk hooker with braces also snag Johnson? Sorry, couldn't resist. I'll go back to my room now.

I like that you started the post with factoids from the previous season, as it does tie into the madness. The D was upcoming and nasty - I thought it was a great move to add talent to a strength, as the depth was not great and you want it to remain a strength. The pick of D Manning was a bad one and we are still paying for it. I liked the trade down and THEY sold me on the pick as I truly never heard of Daniel Manning before the draft. Dusty and Anderson, I thought to be great picks and still do. The O was in development. The OL was solid, Rex was still future Favre, Cedric was in waiting, Berrian was rising, Moose was still decent, Bradley had promise. Sooo, they thought they pretty much had a red-shirt offense in the wings. With all that being said, I think you can say the staffs' equation was A+B=C. The Bears drafted for zero needs and all potential. That truly is where you want to be as a franchise. My thoughts were and still are, that it was a great plan in theory. And we could have a few special players out of it. It's just unfortunate that JA and Lovie are not fortune tellers or good judges of offensive talent. My answer is C

Polian is the best and has been for over a decade. He will retire a Colt unless Irsay runs out of money. He could have listened to the experts and drafted Ryan Leaf instead of Manning. He also drafted Edgerrin James when the experts said Ricky Williams. He also was panned for drafting Marvin Harrison, who was deemed by some too small to ever be significant. (In a draft with Moose, Keyshawn, T.O.,Toomer, Moulds and Terry Glenn) And the, alleged, monster reach of Dwight Freeney. When he needs something, he simply picks the best. Oh yeah, Bob Sanders was drafted too high as well.(Too short)

I'd do the same thing if was him. $$$$$ Left tackles, QB's and shutdown corners make all the money and are the hardest commodities to find. Great work from his agent. I like this line of thinking only if we draft a tackle as well. Don't break your arm patting yourself on the back. Trust me, I'll remember if turns out to be a Matt Jones and you'll get re-blasted just for fun. Kiper had him at #5 which I think is a pipe dream from a blow hard, but Kirwan had him around #9 and his opinion I do respect. He is climbing some boards and staying around #22 in others, but I still question the basis of his rise. Was he that good when he moved out to tackle or was he raw but showed promise? Why, all of the sudden are people falling in love with his OT skills playing only two games? For now, I still take Clady or Williams over Albert.

Do you really need an extra gear if you run a 4.27? Spot on. Ditto You are out of your gourd on this one. Ronnie Brown was the most productive back in the NFL, last year, until he got hurt. You think we had nothing on offense?? They had only Ronnie Brown. You could could put 10 in the box vs Miami and he still produced. He was a one man break-out season until the injury. LOL

He was and always has been a physical freak. He never really adapted to the pro game. I don't think he saw any time to speak of.

Great work guys!!

There will never be a worse Bear than RW McQuarters. I'll never forget the Packer game when that punk ass bitch was calling for the ball instead of blocking on an INT that surely would have been a TD. Hell, all he had to do was get in between and not even throw a block. We ended up losing that game, probably because of that one play. I'm with you Bradjock, but let me tell you this: Those cars and houses exist! Those people exist! I pray to the football gods that JA gets this draft right. I'll end by saying, I absolutely love Mendenhall and would not be upset if we drafted him. But, I really hope an OL guy we covet is availible at 14. I would love to trade down in the 2nd and pick up Forte in the late 2nd plus another 3rd rounder. Then, I could see Henne at #70, Chilo Rachal at #90 and Jerome Simpson. Five picks in the 1st three rounds would be... Williams OT Forte RB Henne QB Rachal OG Simpson WR, Also wouldn't mind Quentin Demps at Safety. Some say he's a Mike Brown clone.

Iwas just on NFL.com and both Pat Kirwan and Vic Carruci have us taking Mendenhall in their mocks.

I wonder how Bethoven or Einstein would have done on the Wonderlic. Weren't they both considered a little idiotic before proving their brilliance? I think the Wonderlic is justa small peice of the puzzle. My truest opinion is this; you are either a football player or you are not. Call it old school, but real football players have real football smarts. You won't ever see a Hall of Famer that people say is stupid.

Speaking to this point. I agree, like Spygate, that all teams are probably guilty of something. As an example, take this case to a public court of law to be tried as a crime. Someone has to pay. I'm sure a lot of people think it's no big deal if they smoke a little weed, or drive a little over the speed limit or under aged kids go parking to have a little fun. They aren't hurting anyone and everyone does it. But again, someone has to pay. The NFL and other professional leagues must advertise this and make a solid common practice of it to maintain purity and order.

I like it. I thing the number one thing that effected our team last year was over-confidence. You go into the off season knowing you were a game away from winning it all, with most of your players players returning, great cap shape for free agency and your maligned QB has seen what it truly takes to be the winner. Now, looking into that flat season: we were in almost every game we lost and it was always one or two pivotal plays. Did our OL underperform, because they got too old or did they underperform because they didn't train as intensly as they did the year before? I say both. All being said this a huge year for us. Do we overcome? Do we need rebuilding? Was las year an abberration? All I know is this: If i were Lovie, I would post every negative thing written, for locker room motivation, all off season. It's time for this team to show it's heart and that it can adapt and grow or we will be at the bottom again. Me, I don't think so.

The only way I'd trade up like that is if we were a one need team and the guy we target is a bonafide stud. Otherwise, standing pat or trading down is always the better scenario for two key reasons. One, is you do not lose picks and may possibly gain some. Two, is because trading down is financially better, even if you draft more players.

As far as thread moving is concerned, I am on record as not liking it.

The problem with what they did could have potentially made it impossible or way more expensive for us to retain Briggs. All turned out well, but the intent was still there.

This is the interesting part of this article for me. While we all get excited for the big free agent splash, the teams that are proven winners, stay the course for the greater good of the organization. JA gets a high grade from me in this category. It's a fine line when you want a guy, like we wanted Faneca 'this year' and to keep BB. I guess we can all say, time will tell.

I'd love Clady at 14, but he'll be gone. Love Baker in the 2nd, but he'll be gone as well.

My God man! Have you lost your mind? He'll now have a purpose in life. Please do not awaken the fingers of fury!!! NFO - keep on posting bro!

I am in agreement that you are the one confused. Pre-draft Freeney was a beast and highly rated a great fit for a cover two. Of course you are going say Polian said what we all expected him to say; stating that he was the player we had targeted all along. Tell me how the Bears could say that about anything less than Clady or Williams? Otah and below, just don't cut it at #14. Unless JA and Co use a different rating system for left tackles than the rest of the NFL. Show me where any coach or GM says they drafted an LT prospect that fit their system. It's completely different when you draft a player for scheme. Anyway, If Otah or Albert were graded as a true LT we wouldn't be having this debate. You are right, that is extreme. If Forte rates that HIGHLY for the Bears and they want him, he's not a reach. Fact is: we simply don't know what is going through the minds of scouts and GM regarding players. My argument all along is picking a player you don't have graded that highly simply out of need or fear. I argued this point to you a couple of years ago. You are not allowed to use that against me. As much as I want OL, I am against drafting a player you don't have graded as highly because of need. It could send the bell curve toward mediocrity. If the player rates high for you, he is not a reach. And I have Polian comments that say other, his resume as a college player and a stated fact that Freeney was highly coveted by more than one team in the 1st round. Angelo and Lovie in particular coveted him. Back to perfect fit for scheme. Thus, NOT a reach. And my point is, you don't take them highly unless you have them graded highly. Otherwise, you take best player available. Reaching on the eyes of the media and value placed on a players talent by the indidvidual staff are two separate things. I'll never have a problem with a coach or GM standing in front of the room and stating they got the man they wanted. I'll always have a problem, same scenario, of them saying we had to pick him here out of fear of not filling a need.

Keep in mind a few factors: 1) Freeney missed several games with a broken foot, thus deflating his stats. 2) Freeney IS good against the run. As you know, he plays in our scheme and is asked to disrupt and penetrate. He's made it possible for the Colts to lose LB after LB and still make the shitty one thay have look good. 3) Find a stat on who draws the most double teams. I think you'll find it's Freeney. I'm not arguing against Peppers as much I am the fact that Freeney was NOT a reach.

I did a wire tap at Halas Hall and unearthed this jewel. JA: "Hello Cedric" CB: "yeah" JA: "Thought to call and offer my engouragement in your daily rehab at the facility" CB: "what" JA: "your rehab" CB: "oh, I thought that was voluntary" JA: "it is" "I would never wan't you expect to be cut for not re-habbing that would really hurt your career, let alone your bank account" "that simply doesn't occur in the NFL" "you have planned for the future right?" CB: "you know, I've been planning on being there but lost my entry key" JA: "I'll meet at the door with a new one tomorrow morning" CB: "yes sir" "thank you, sir" click