dasox24

Well, he'll be missing all offseason workouts, which will put him behind a lot strength-wise and endurance-wise. I agree that the likelihood of a DT earlier than we thought is much more likely. I don't think we'll see one picked with our 1st or 2nd rounder, but if Tank Tyler was to be available at our 2nd pick and Angelo really likes him, I wouldn't be surprised to see us take him.

Gotcha. I see what you're saying about Sears, and I understand where you're coming from. You're right that he won't be a Jones/Pace type, but I didn't mean to imply he was in my above post. I even said he won't be as good. I do think he'd be valuable to us since he could be a very good OG, and a servicable OT. I was thinking that if, worst case senario, we need a tackle to step in, then he could get the job done. But he wouldn't be a full-time player at OT. Then, after his rookie season, he could take Ruben's place (assuming Ruben is re-signed) and we would add some youth to that OL. Meanwhile, if he had to, he could still shift to OT with Metcalf talking over at OG. With that said and like I've said before, I'd rather not take him in Round 1. I'd prefer a safety or LB, but if nothing else we liked was left at #31, then I would be happy taking him.

Not at all. I like him a lot, and think he'd be a very solid pickup in the 2nd round if we don't address Safety in Round 1. He's extremely disciplined (military family) and a very hard worker. He's also great in pass coverage and has played both Safety spots, so he's versatile. I believe before the season he was thought of as being one of the Top 2 safeties along with LaRon Landry. Unfortunately for him, Reggie Nelson had a spectacular season, and he kinda got lost in the Landry/Nelson "hoopla."

I realize we'll never agree on this, but you're telling me that dominating college players is "nice and all?" Are you serious? What, did you want him dominating NFL players? I'm not trying to be dick; I just don't get your reasoning. How else is he supposed to impress you than doing extremely well against fellow college players? Just out of curiosity, how many games did you watch? Please don't tell me only one. I mean, even Walter Jones and Orlando Pace have their bad games. No, I'm not saying Sears would be that good, but my point is that even the best of players can have an off game. I do agree with you, however, that Safety is a much more pressing need and that OL can be addressed in round 2 or 3. Heck, you can see that in my two mock drafts in the Briggs thread. I just don't think it would be that bad if we did end up drafting Sears.

From all I've heard, the biggest knock on Gattis is his tackling. With proper coaching and hard work, he could develop into a very good safety. However, if he doesn't improve his tackling, he'll be no more than a backup, which would be a waste if we used our 2nd rounder on him. As for Sears, I think you vastly underrate him. I guess you can call him a slob b/c he's big and didn't do well in the BP at the combine. Though, a person's bench press is not very indicative of how strong they are, especially when referring to sports like football. It's more of a "showman" thing. Personally, I prefer to look at how Sears dominated every premeir SEC DE he faced and the fact that he won the SEC Offensive Lineman of the Year Award this past season. Trust me, I knew going into this season that the Bears should be looking for O-Lineman going into the draft since we were old, so I specifically watched Sears play in every UT game this season and he is no slob on the field.

I agree. Though, I'd really push for a 3rd rounder. However, if a 2nd and 4th is what we got, I'd be happy b/c that 2nd would be high, which would give us so many more options. Plus, the Bears are very good (as we all know) at finding impact players in the 2nd-4th rounds, so getting a 1st Rounder for Briggs isn't a necessity. As for some options we'd have with that extra 2nd, we could trade the 1st and one of the 2nds and move up to get a Reggie Nelson or LaRon Landry. Then, we could use that 2nd we still have on a LB like Jon Beason or Rufus Alexander, or on a O-Lineman like Justin Blalock or Joe Staley. How awesome would a draft (thru the 1st 4 rounds) like this be? Round 1- LaRon Landry - S - LSU Round 2- Joe Staley - OT - Central Michigan Round 3- Lorenzo Booker - RB - Florida St. Round 4- Turk McBride - DT/DE - Tennessee Round 4- Tim Shaw - OLB - Penn St. -OR- (more likely since Angelo isn't known for trading up) Round 1- Brandon Meriweather - FS - Miami Round 2- Jon Beason - OLB - Miami Round 2- Joe Staley Round 3- Same as above Round 4- Same as above Round 4- Ryan Smith - CB - Florida I would like to point out that CB becomes more of a need than WR b/c (from all I've heard) Hester will be playing WR quite often and maybe permanently, which fills the WR need. I can only imagine what Hester would be like at WR if he could learn to run consistent routes.

RME JICO, I know no one has said anything in awhile, but I would like you to know that I (and I'm sure everyone else) really appreciate you keeping this thread updated. So, thanks!

Are you a Florida fan? haha... just kiddin Seriously though, I would like to know why you don't like Sears.

Whoops, you're right. I didn't read it closely. But, I still don't know how much we'd get for Briggs considering everyone and their brother now knows he wants out. It definitely doesn't help our ability to get good value for him.

Yeah, at this point, I'd be willing to accept a Jones-like trade involving Briggs and swapped picks with any team 20 or higher in the draft. Though, I'd rather just keep our 1st rounder, and trade Briggs for another 2nd round pick. That would give us 3 in the 1st 2 rounds, rather than only 2 picks, and since we'd be losing 2 impact players, it's more important to get draft picks to fill needs. Actually, I could see Angelo trading down again and picking up a 2nd and 3rd like last year, giving us 3 2nd round picks (if we trade Briggs for one) and 2 3rd round picks with those additional 2nd rounders being used on guys like Joe Staley, Justin Blalock, Brandon Meriweather, Anthony Gonzalez, Kenny Irons, etc. I wouldn't mind that at all.

I would definitely do this deal in a heartbeat. However, since this rumor has not been reported anywhere else, I guarantee it's not true. But, it's fun to think about, especially since it doesn't sound like Briggs will be locked up long-term. Anyway, let's just say a deal like this was to happen. If we want that first rounder, we'd probably have to throw in our 5th and 6th as well. Not too high of picks, but a little something else for the team we're trading with. Anyway, the deal would end up being something like: Briggs, a 5th rounder, and a 6th rounder for their 1st, 2nd, and 5th round picks. With the first of the 2 1st round picks, we could get Robert Meachem, Patrick Willis, Greg Olsen, or Reggie Nelson (if we're lucky), and with the 2nd of the 2 1st rounders, we could get Ben Grubbs, Arron Sears, Justin Blalock, or Michael Griffin. The possibilities are fun to think about. Plus, we'd have 2 2nd rounders as well!?!? With those we could get Kenny Irons, Aaron Rouse, Anthony Gonzalez, etc. Damn! The more I think about trading Briggs, the more I wouldn't mind doing it.

Yeah, baby!!! Thank God this finally got done. It's about time! It should also be mentioned that Angelo signed a 7 year extension.

That's exactly what I would do too. I like Stanton a lot, and think he was just unfortunate to be stuck on a team like MSU w/ a bad, lame-duck coach. Put him with Weis at ND, and he could have been a lot like Quinn. As for Carr, he just needs a change of scenery. He's really not that bad. I think he completed like 68% of his passes this year, which is really really good, especially considering the o-line he had. It's just time for both of them to move on.

I'd imagine they'd get a guy sometime in the draft, but not 1st round. The only thing I've heard about them is that if they traded Carr, they'd try to pick up Jake Plummer.

Hell yeah! I love seeing my boy Meachem get some love! He's a game-breaker. I can't tell you how many times I saw him take a 10 yard route, and turn it into a 50+ yard TD.

Rice definitely helped himself a ton. Some were saying that as long as he ran around a 4.5, he'd be helping himself, and then he went out and ran a 4.41. Personally, I'm not a big fan of his (having seen him play a few times), but some team will draft him higher than originally thought.

Oh man, I can't believe I forgot about Booker. I must say that I like him a lot too, and he definitely would be a nice change of pace back. A big knock on him is his durability, so if he only had to take some carries w/ Cedric getting most, then I think that would help him in being able to go contribute throughout the season without wearing down. As for Leonard, I've had a certain love for him as a player ever since I watched him tear it up in the Illinois-Rutgers game in '05. I've heard about Wendling before, but must say I don't know too much about him other than the scouting reports I've read. You definitely can't argue with his measurables, though. I wouldn't mind using our 2nd rounder on him if he's still around.

No kidding. Even some of the "top" free agents have their flaws. All in all, I'd much rather keep TJ. I mean, even if he is unhappy, I'm confident he's profesional enough to keep it to himself and then just leave as a free agent next offseason if he really wants to.

I too am really interested to see how the RBs perform b/c if we trade TJ, we might be drafting a RB in like the 3rd/4th round. Unfortunately, this is a down year for RBs. That means Free Agency might be a better place to pick up a veteran like Correll Buckhalter or Chris Brown. Oh, and thanks for that link.

I know we could always change our mind, but according to John Clayton, that's all we'll take at the moment. I do agree, though. I really don't see a team giving up a #1 to get TJ. Personally, I'd be very happy with a 2nd rounder.

Beason wouldn't be a bad pick at all if we were to trade Briggs. Otherwise, I'd rather address some other needs first. What I like about Beason is the only real knock on him is that he's on the smallish size (6-0, 236), but what's great for us is that his size wouldn't really matter. We can afford a smaller LB, as long as he's fast and a playmaker, which is what Beason is. Looks like Olsen will be gone when we pick, so he's probably not an option anymore. As for Arron Sears, that really sucks for him about his #'s he put up on the Bench Press, but he'll have a chance to redeem himself at UT's Pro Day. If he doesn't, then I'd love to pick him up in the 2nd b/c I still truly believe that he'll be a very good OL. Plus, with Rusty Jones, he'd be able to (in a perfect world) sit a year and just get bigger and stronger. Just think of how good he is now w/o being super strong, and then think of how good he'd be if he got stronger.

As for trading TJ, I think we can cross any team off the list where he'd have to split carries, or else he'd probably rather just want to stay here. Well, unless of course one of those teams were to offer him another couple years on his contract. Also, if we were to trade TJ, it sounds like it would have to be for a 1st rounder, which would probably come in next years draft if a team like Cleveland were to trade with us, since they wouldn't be giving up the #3 pick for a RB like TJ. If we can get a 1st rounder, it would probably be with a team that has a low pick this year, like the Ravens, or a team that thinks they'll be good next year, so they'll give us their 2008 1st rounder.

Oh, I have no idea. He didn't say... Clayton didn't focus for very long on the topic; he just basically said what I wrote.

Well, John Clayton was just on ESPN and said the Bears were offered a 2nd and 3rd a year ago for TJ, and would only make a trade if they got a 1st rounder.

Wow, I love the Nickerson addition for all the reasons that have been mentioned above. In case anyone is interested in more about Haley, here's what I found from Miss. St.'s website: For more, click here: http://www.mstateathletics.com/index.php?s...hange_well_id=2