adam

Awesome deal for the Bears. They basically got Johnson and Bates for $1.8M less than Johnson's tag cost. If Fields is traded, the Bears gain back an additional $3M+ on the cap. So they could have over $65M if a trade occurs. That should leave between $45-50M for free agency alone. I feel like there is a big fish or two in those number. Wilkins please.

I expect a Fields decision and an announcement of 1 or 2 key acquisitions before the 13th when FA opens officially. Based on the recent cuts, I think they wait on FS or get a tier 2 guy (which would still be 3 tiers better than Jackson was last year). That really only leaves DT and Edge on defense, and then C and WR2 on offense. Looking at the WR class, I don't think he goes big there. So hopefully the money goes to DT, Edge, and C.

That is a good find especially with link to JJ.

Some teams are screwed this offseason. As of today, Miami and LAC are both $20M over the cap. The Bills, even after all those cuts are still $13M over. The Saints and Ravens are both $10M over, the Broncos are $3M over, and the 49ers are 300K over. Not only do those teams need to get under the cap in a few days, they need operating income and money for the rookie pool, which collectively is around $10M.

Welcome aboard! If you were here at the split you are an oldtimer, that was a long time ago. Yeah, the Chris Simms review of Williams has to get you excited about the player. I think when you look back at pure QB potential, Williams would be the best QB the Bears have ever drafted since Jim McMahon in terms of pedigree coming out of college. He will have the most yards and TDs of any Bears QB ever drafted: College Passing Totals Williams - 1099 passing attempts, 10082 yards, 93 TDs in college. McNown - 1153 passing attempts, 10008 yards, 61 TDs in college. McMahon - 1060 passing attempts, 9536 yards, 84 TDs in college. Grossman - 1110 passing attempts, 9164 yards, 77 TDs in college. Fields - 618 passing attempts, 5701 yards, 67 TDs in college. Harbaugh - 582 passing attempts, 5214 yards, 31 TDs in college. Trubisky - 572 passing attempts, 4762 yards, 41 TDs in college.

I say that because he is still on the roster. This would be different if we were comparing two players the Bears don't have. In this case, Fields is on the team, and until he is not, there is a chance that he is the QB next year.

Going Maye, Daniels, McCarthy, Nix, or a vet FA would be shocking. Sticking with Fields or drafting Caleb would not be.

So $38M for free agency. The Bears have holes at WR2 and FS, and could use upgrades at C, Edge, and DT and or LT (depending on how they view Dexter and Braxton). What is pretty wild is the Bears can basically field the same team for the next two years if they extend Jenkins and Herbert, obviously once they address the aforementioned spots.

Even after JJ extension, Bears still with $58M in cap space. Depending on structure, at $19M per year, that's 800K less than the tag this year, and would be several million below the tag next year.

I was looking at the timing and it does line up better with a rookie QB than it does with Fields, but that doesn't mean anything as that is so far out that there are like 2 guys under contract for that year right now lol. However, as the contracts keep stacking on themselves, the QB pay bump is definitely something Poles or the next GM will have to figure out.

Awesome deal, and fair for both sides. Getting him for under $20M AAV is great for the Bears, and him getting $54M guaranteed is great for JJ. Schefter says JJ is getting $60M in the first 3 years with only $16M in Year 4 (2027).

Grizz, after looking at a lot of numbers, I think the entire "what number they were selected at" is just another made up talking point by the media (just like Mr. Irrelevant). The biggest correlation to anything is most QBs drafted #1 go to crappy teams. That's it. When they were selected is considerably less relevant than who selected them, what kind of team is around the QB, and how good is the coaching staff. One big thing about the COVID year, that made evals 10x more difficult. A good number of players opted out, so the competition all around was much weaker that season.

This is the sad part: https://stathead.com/tiny/quNM3 Fields makes up for a lot of deficiencies with his legs, but as a passer he is closer to Zach Wilson than Mac Jones.

I think you can probably come up with 20+ categories that define QBs in a different way that could show that group winning or losing SBs. I also don't think Caleb Williams is generational. I think that is really hard to do in football because you are so dependent on 10 other players and your coaches. So if we all call Caleb Williams the best college QB ever, is that going to change any outcomes? If the Bears draft a QB, they believe the projection and value going forward are greater than what Fields can provide. If they keep Fields and trade down, they believe Fields coupled with the draft haul give the Bears the best chance at sustained success.

Bates may be the Bears vet option at Center, and a fallback in case they don't get one in the draft. That basically leaves WR2 as the only true "hole" on offense as starters are concerned. The defense needs an Edge2 and a FS to fill current holes. That's it. The other spots are backups or starter upgrades (DT, WR3, TE2). So if the Bears do go Williams at #1. They have to address a few of these with the remaining 4 picks. If Fields is traded they may get an additional pick or two. Just say they have 5 more picks after #1. WR, Edge, DT, C, and TE/WR make sense.

Bates' contract is great for the Bears. Two years, at $4M per year with zero dead money. Virtually zero risk outside of losing the 5th Round pick. Bears still have the 4th most cap space at $75M after this move. If they trade Fields, they gain back $3.2M, almost the entire Bates cap hit.

Now Denver needs a QB though. So there are the same amount of teams needing a QB. Wherever Wilson goes won't need a QB, but now Denver does. So it cancels itself out.

With so few picks, and the likely haul for #1, it seems that trading #1 has gained some steam by this trade. Going from 6 picks to 5, with 1 going to a QB would make this a pretty thin draft class. I know they can trade #9, but they need a trade partner, and it would seem like the only option would be a team wanting to move up for a QB.

Looks like a Patrick replacement. Can play both Guard and Center.

They were trying to sign him last off-season but he went back to Buffalo. For a 2024 5th rounder. Poles is going to have to trade down, down to 5 picks in the draft.

Absolutely. However, there feels like an element of strategy here, and Williams may have been in on it. There is a chance the Bears already told Williams they are selecting him, thus the reason why he was so relaxed at the combine. The Bears could've even told him not to do it to prevent injury. For the medicals and visit, if they schedule it early, like everyone suspected they wanted to, doesn't that show more proof that they are leaning towards him than any other option in the draft? Why make it that obvious? Everything has felt sort of artificial. The first we hear about Williams official visit to the Bears is the day before the proposed visit. Then that gets postponed until after his pro day within an hour? So are the Bears really going to trade Fields before even getting medicals done on Williams? It's possible that they aren't trading Fields OR they are planning to select a different QB OR they believe there are not going to be medical issues (Williams has never missed a game). This just got hairy for a lot of QB needy teams. Poles controls the draft and to an extent free agency. The QB plan is integral to the overall roster. You can't just figure that out later.

How do we even know anything was scheduled? Like you said, if Breer is just giving his opinion, maybe he thought they were do a visit right after the combine since Williams was close by in Indy. Who know if anything was actually scheduled, because nothing came from the Bears. Normally their visits are announced.

Albert Breer is not a trusted source? He is probably one of the top 3 or 4 dudes. He doesn't post rumors.

Man those articles are confusing. The title says they are referencing Breer's article, but when you read it, it says traditionally players do their visits in that period AFTER the March 20th pro day, but Williams was scheduled to meet the Bears on Tuesday. The other article says "and Williams' early visit will only fuel that continued speculation"

Crazy to think of how many ESPN anchors and contributors have died in recent years. From Stuart Scott, to John Saunders, to John Clayton, and now Chris Mortensen. Very sad to see another great pass away. You know you are getting old when so many people are passing away in your life.