jason

Can you also maintain a thread like this for 2025 TEs?

1. Does it shock anyone that Swift looked better when plays were called that **gasp** put him in space outside? 2. I’m an official, and I almost never bash officials, but that was bad. The offside was terrible as was the illegal formation. In fact, I’ve been to multiple camps where NFL officials talk about a “single blade of grass”-philosophy, usually applied to defensive offsides, which means if you can put a single blade of grass between the OL and DL, make it legal. The same philosophy applies to attempting to make offensive formations legal. The tackle should be significantly back to draw that foul. 2b. The OPI was weak as well. Push offs are actually one of the OPI categories when justifying the call, but if the defender is swiveling hips to actually run, it’s generally not called. 2c. Last but not least, the illegal contact call was terrible. That has to be something that causes material restriction of some sort, not just a dude touching a WR. Otherwise literally every pass would be DPI as the DB reaches for the receiver. 2d. For any crybaby Skins fan, delay of game is not automatically synchronized with the clock. The philosophy has built in gray area for the time between zero, looking at the snap, and blowing the whistle. The last thing anyone wants is an overzealous back judge throwing 4-5 DOGs every game because he’s being overly technical. 3. Williams still hasn’t put it all together. It worries me. Multiple misses, and one horribly under thrown ball that should have been a TD. 4. Good thing the Bears used their first round selection and drafted Loveland.🙄 5. What was with that one play in the red zone where Caleb looked right, then blindly fired a fastball left straight into the defender’s hands? If he didn’t have a propensity for overpowering short throws, that would have been an INT. 6. Was anyone else going crazy when they stopped trying to get yards at the end? Dude got cut for being inconsistent, gets called up literally today, it’s raining, it’s a pressure-filled game winner, and the Bears are just content with “close enough”?

Bingo. Add in historical underperformance in prime time games and I’d say the odds are probably right. It will take a stellar game from someone to win this one.

It’s actually crazy how long this has gone on considering I was once removed from being an admin because I took out actual political content. But now there is an all out war without repercussion. As if the Bears team itself doesn’t cause enough unnecessary stress.

I love this thread.

I’m really starting to lean his way. Seems like he might finally be the offensive-minded leader of men Chicago needs.

Don’t agree on this one. You don’t dick around when you can score a TD, because TDs aren’t guaranteed.

Concur. He has been very good. Which is why the first round TE didn’t make sense. Everyone can have an off game, especially with how schizophrenic the offense appeared to be today.

Did Caleb look like shit as his stats indicate, or was the OL terrible? I didn’t watch any of the game but I thought he’d put up big stats today.

100% agree. i don’t care what anyone says, the first round TE pick was stupid. All the 12 personnel and different type of TE talk is meaningless unless the first rounder is used in surplus. He’s simply not needed as much as a DE or OT was/is needed.

Perhaps, but he looks like a ball of relentless energy. A full on battering ram who has juggernaut tendencies. And the Bears don’t appear to have a single RB who can attack the LOS with more than mediocre intent.

I haven’t seen the defense do very much, and the pass rush looks non existent, but this is an offense year. Against the Raiders I want to see Caleb go for 300+ yds and/or 3TDs.

I haven’t liked an uncertain player a ton in quite some time. I remember being in love with Randy Moss and being told he was way too big of a risk. Well, I loved Skattebo also, and many were uncertain about him. Too slow. Bad competition. Won’t translate to the NFL. Even though he appears to be fast-tracking towards CTE, he could have been the guy the Bears picked to fill an obvious need. i wonder if the Bears front office even considered drafting him? Has anyone seen reports suggesting one way or another?

That’s an EASY decision then. He’s gone.

I think it was indicative of our expectations. We are used to getting a lead and then losing it. We are traumatized. We expect failure, and didn’t want to jinx anything.

Interesting. They appear to really like their HC.

Dude has terrible vision. Should probably have another 50+ yds this year. What’s the cap hit if he’s cut at the end of the year?

I saw a thing on some site that said Poles is gone after the Bears lose to Dallas. That would be surprising, but probably warranted.

Remember, this was common sense from everyone outside the organization. Literally everyone thought RB was a significant need. But, what seems like a broken record at this point, the Bears front office was “smarter” than conventional wisdom. Maybe that’s also why the Bears have a first round TE they didn’t need, who has zero stats after two games? But but but 12 PeRsOnNeL on offense! Two common sense thoughts: 1. Don’t wait until the last round for a position of need. 2. Don’t draft a backup TE - literally what he is - in the first round.

Didn’t watch. Over 50pts given up. Pathetic. The Bears are cursed.

You’re right on all of it, but that doesn’t mean the Offense or Williams looked good. 2024-Turd 2025-Turd Sandwich

I like this way of thinking. As an official, I understand impact to the game. The NFL guys do as well. I actually officiated an arena game several years ago with the white hat from last night. He’s a great official and person from my limited interaction. But he missed on the holding call because he didn’t see the entire play. He turned his head too slowly to his key and stayed on the middle too long. And the DPI was a matter of a bad angle. That official guessed because he didn’t see the contact fully. He shouldn’t have thrown the flag and deferred it to a colleague. What’s more, one of the others should have come to him after and talked him into picking it up. Those two plays directly impacted the game.

To be fair, the offense was pretty terrible, the play calling was like a little girl in a haunted house, the second half run defense was nearly non-existent, the OL had way too many penalties, and Caleb looked far from generational.

I feel the same. Never wanted him. He was amazing in college because he was a superior talent with amazing talent around him, and his opponents were PAC12 garbage. He missed 2-3 simple passes up the middle. Almost overthrew Kmet on another if not for an amazing catch. Looks frazzled like a squirrel in the woods. And the overthrow to a wide open DJ for the win…that’s just unforgivable. Gotta give your #1 guy a chance. He better shake it off quickly, or he’s going to lose the city by mid season.

That aged like milk in the July Alabama sun.