adam

I don't understand the concerns about Caleb. It is almost like people expect a perfect QB Robot to go out there and execute every play with perfection with zero incompletions, zero sacks, etc. Mahomes played against 64% of the Bears starting Defense from a 5-win team and still went 8-13, and needed a 30-yard penalty and a whole bunch of no-calls on his O-Line to pass for 1 TD. If not for a busted coverage bomb, he would've had 90 yards passing.

Minnesota will be without Jordan Addison for this one. On the injury front, we know the Bears will be without Booker. The team is still hopeful to have Jaylon Johnson back to match up with Justin Jefferson. Both of those two are dinged up right now. I could see a heavy dose of Aaron Jones and TJ Hockenson in Week 1. LBs will play a huge role in stopping them. The pros for the Bears is playing on MNF at home, Soldier Field should be electric. Getting off to a hot start is key. McCarthy is basically a rookie. Caleb played well against MIN last year all things considered, he had 531 passing yards (265 yds/g), 3 TD, 0 INT, and 5 sacks in two games against MIN. Ben Johnson's offenses play really well against MIN, in the last 3 seasons, DET has put up 31, 31, 30, 30, going 4-0 against them and a Flores led defense. So I am less concerned about the offense than I am about the defense and Special Teams. Early prediction, Bears 27-20.

You know Spags pulled the Detroit preseason tape and had at least a general idea of what to expect. On a few plays early, the DBs were running the routes for the Bears WRs. For the Bears defense, there is nothing you really can do if you are being held. On the Mahomes scramble and the play to JuJu where he rolled out, Bears were being held, yet no calls. The 30-yard penalty was also insane. Mahomes was targeting backup CBs and LBs, and it worked, shocker. Again, without JJ, Gordon, and Edmunds, that is a lot of downgrades in pass defense against the best QB in the NFL. Then no Jarrett or Booker in the rotation, and the line is going to be weaker. Also, I still like the live reps and actually glad Caleb got sacked, took a hit, and had to scramble, because now they have something to really work from compared to the Bills game being against the 2s. Compare that to McCarthy, who didn't play. Caleb didn't throw an INT in the preseason and was only sacked once. If you project that out for a full season, that is only 25 sacks, so his rate is down. Again, it's preseason, but the signs are there. His Comp% was 73.3 against KC and really only had 2 incompletions, a drop by Odunze, then the play in the end zone where Odunze was held at the top of the route. Burden got an unsportsmanlike penalty for spinning the ball, hopefully he learns from it and doesn't do something like that again. Better to do that in the preseason when the games don't count. Johnson said Booker will be out a few weeks, so I expect Hardy to make the 53-man. I would not be surprised if they look for Edge, CB, and RB help with the injuries.

Hard to assess when the officiating was that bad. Special Teams is an issue. Terrible coverage on kickoffs, bad returns, blocked PAT and a missed FG. Not good. People forget that the Bears defense had 4 starters out and no Booker who has been a spark plug. No JJ, Gordon, Jarrett, or Edmunds. That's not nothing especially how KC attacked the Bears.

They gave Mahomes a 30+ yard penalty to aid his first drive, ridiculous. They called a face mask AND DPI on Wright. Then try refuse to call holding on the KC Oline.

I think Hyppolite, Ogbongbemiga, Hicks and Owens are all but locks. Then probably Frazier and Homer. Ogbongbemiga and Hicks are core special teamers, as is Owens and Hicks. I think the last OL, DL, and WR will probably be the toss ups with Amegadje, Pickens/Ford as the leaders. Poles mentioned Jahdae Walker by name which was surprising to me in regards to camp standouts.

I know he got dinged up a little, but if Austin Booker is half as effective as he has been in the preseason, the pass rush rotation is going to be really solid.

I hope he sticks around, but the contract now makes him more appealing to other teams because he is locked in at the lower price for a few years. Kind of wild that Trubisky hasn't gotten another chance to start, but teams like New Orleans are ok going with Shough, Haener, and Rattler?

I set the league draft for 7pm on Sunday, August 31st. We will need to identify keepers by the 30th.

Bagent deserves it, from UDFA to contract extension is a huge accomplishment.

Refs suck in general, but that had nothing to do with their offense only scoring 20 and 19 (in regulation) in the last two SB appearances. In 2020, they didn't score in the 4th quarter, then in OT in 2024, they got to the KC 9 and kicked a freaking FG. He had 1st and 10 from the 15 and lost the game. He had similar games in ATL, CLE, WAS, and HOU. Before ATL, he was an OC for 7 years and had one season where his team made the playoffs, and what did they do, lose a home wild card game and only scored 14 pts. It is the Shanahan curse.

Honestly, in my lifetime, I can't remember a team with a better, deeper collective group of receivers than this team with: Moore, Odunze, Burden, Zaccheaus, Loveland, Kmet, and Swift. The best that I can remember for the Bears was 2014 with Marshall, Jeffery, Bennett, and Forte who all 4 of them had over 100 targets. I asked some different AI's to give me a list of the best Receiving Corps in NFL history. The 1999 Rams were considered the best, and I can understand that at the top end, the Bears do not compete with Bruce, Holt, and Faulk, but from Receiving option #4-#7, I think the Bears have the edge. Isaac Bruce (WR): A second-round pick in 1994, Bruce was a Hall of Famer with impeccable route-running and hands. In 1999, he amassed 1,165 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. Torry Holt (WR): The sixth overall pick in the 1999 NFL Draft, Holt was an immediate-impact rookie who would go on to have a borderline Hall of Fame career. Marshall Faulk (RB): A first-round pick (second overall) in 1994, the Hall of Fame running back was a revolutionary pass-catcher out of the backfield, leading the team with 87 receptions for 1,048 yards and 5 touchdowns in 1999. Az-Zahir Hakim (WR): A fourth-round pick in 1998, Hakim was a speedy and dangerous slot receiver. Ricky Proehl (WR): A third-round pick in 1990, Proehl was a savvy veteran who provided crucial depth and clutch plays. Roland Williams (TE): A fourth-round pick in 1998, Williams was a solid contributor at the tight end position. Jeff Robinson (TE): A fourth-round pick in 1993, he provided additional depth at tight end Here were some other teams the AI spit out. I honestly think that this group can be amongst these teams in the next year or two: 2004 Indianapolis Colts: Featuring the Hall of Fame duo of Marvin Harrison (1st round, 19th overall) and Reggie Wayne (1st round, 30th overall), complemented by Brandon Stokley, tight ends Dallas Clark (1st round, 24th overall) and Marcus Pollard, and running back Edgerrin James (1st round, 4th overall). This group had three receivers surpass 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns in the same season. 1998 Minnesota Vikings: This offense was headlined by two Hall of Fame wide receivers, Cris Carter (4th round, supplemental draft) and rookie sensation Randy Moss (1st round, 21st overall), along with veteran Jake Reed. Their top targets also included tight end Andrew Glover and running back Robert Smith. 2013 Denver Broncos: Peyton Manning's record-breaking season was fueled by a deep group of receivers including Demaryius Thomas (1st round, 22nd overall), Eric Decker (3rd round), Wes Welker, and tight end Julius Thomas (4th round), with running back Knowshon Moreno (1st round, 12th overall) also a significant receiving threat. 2011 Green Bay Packers: Aaron Rodgers had an MVP season throwing to a talented and deep group that included Greg Jennings (2nd round), Jordy Nelson (2nd round), Donald Driver (7th round), James Jones (3rd round), Randall Cobb (2nd round), and tight end Jermichael Finley (3rd round).

I love the buy-in. From the interviews, you can really see that there is a difference. Compared to the other younger Offensive-minded HCs, McVay is probably the only one I would take over Johnson. Shanahan always chokes, LaFleur is solid but I feel like he has already peaked, and McDaniel gives me young Trestman vibes.

and Caleb had 1,500 Passing Yards, 9 TD, 0 INT, in 6 Division games.

Johnson said starters will play some, so I assume at least one drive for offensive starters. I like how Johnson ramped this up.

Some crazy stats from Sunday Night: - The Bears had 83 offensive plays (10 possessions), compared to the Bills 42 (9 possessions) - EPA/Play - Bears were at 0.369 while the Bills were -0.471, and that includes the kneel downs at the end. - First Downs - 30 - 12 - Passing First Downs - 18 - 5

Burden playing against CB3 or CB4s is gonna be crazy.

Yeah, the media circus finally picked up on it. The ball was coming out quick and he was decisive. It doesn't matter if the defense has the best pass rushers, they aren't getting there in 2 seconds unless unblocked.

Sunday the 31st works good for me since I would not have to worry about missing it because work goes late. So unless there are any objections, I will set the 31st at 7pm Central for our draft on Wednesday (20th). If you have a conflict, and need a different date/time, please let me know before Wed.

Ok, I have been tempering my excitement and it is only the preseason but I always felt that there are things you can take away from the preseason even if it is not game outcome related. The operation as a whole looks crisper, tighter, and it feels like everyone understands what is going on. Communication looked good, no delay of game penalties or wasted time outs. The buy in is real. Burdens blocks at the goal line were impressive. If the players have confidence and trust the process, there is another level that can be achieved, something we haven't seen since the Lovie era. Now this might not equate to wins right away but I feel like once they get on a roll I don't see them getting blown out. They will be in every game.

I will have to look at snap counts but not all Bears starters played (Thuney, Swift, Johnson, Gordon), plus the Bears started their 4th string RB, so it want completely mismatched compared to the Bills. Also, it was weird to see Mitch come in for clean up duty as the 3rd string QB. I kind of felt sorry for him tbh. With the way rotations work on the DLine, non starters get a lot of snaps anyway. The next game will be the biggest disparity in play as most teams won't risk injury that close to the regular season.

Jahns mentioned that Doyle called plays for the offense and Harris called them for the defense in the 2nd half. That is impressive because there wasnt a drop off or any string of pre snap or penalties. Also, OZ basically gives the Bears 4x starting WRs. If you add Loveland to a 5 wide package, 3 of those guys are a straight up mismatch on every play.

Crap, Terrell Smith is hurt.

It happened again, this time the 32. How is that even possible when they are lining up at the 40? The returner ran 30 yds to their 8?

Booker with another sack on a stunt.