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***2013 Chicago Bears Offseason Thread*** (1 Viewer)

2 big needs addressed in the first three hours of FA. What should/will the Bears do now in the draft? LB?

 
'3nOut said:
2 big needs addressed in the first three hours of FA. What should/will the Bears do now in the draft? LB?
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I think hoping Cooper or Warmack falls would be the best option. They prob wont though. After that I would just like to see BPA on D. We really need some young talent.
 
I feel pretty good about both signings. PFF has Bennett rated as the 5th best TE last year. I thought Bennett had a bit of a problem with drops, but they have him with only 6 drops last year. That is a nice signing to shore up a really weak position. Signing Bushrod certainly improves the talent on the line. What worries me a little is PFF actually ranked Bushrod as a weaker pass blocker than Webb last year. Overall Bushrod was slightly better, but not by much. The year before Bushrod was ranked 12th overall and out of strictly LTs he was 8th. Webb was 65th overall. I'm very curious about why his play was so much worse this past year. Obviously the Saints as a whole were a much different team last year than in 2011.

I see Carimi and Webb competing for the RT spot with Webb winning the spot and Carimi moving to guard. I'd love to see the Bears nab one of those top two guard prospects in the draft, but as was said earlier I suspect they will be gone. There are some scouts who have Womack as the best player in the draft. This really frees the Bears up to address other needs, or just take the BPA. Kudos to Emery for being aggressive without being crazy as to the money.

 
'twistd said:
I feel pretty good about both signings. PFF has Bennett rated as the 5th best TE last year. I thought Bennett had a bit of a problem with drops, but they have him with only 6 drops last year. That is a nice signing to shore up a really weak position. Signing Bushrod certainly improves the talent on the line. What worries me a little is PFF actually ranked Bushrod as a weaker pass blocker than Webb last year. Overall Bushrod was slightly better, but not by much. The year before Bushrod was ranked 12th overall and out of strictly LTs he was 8th. Webb was 65th overall. I'm very curious about why his play was so much worse this past year. Obviously the Saints as a whole were a much different team last year than in 2011.
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My guess is the reason the variance is so high from year to year is because there is a lot of noise in their analysis. It's pretty hard to use metrics to grade out individual linemen from year to year.
 
'Mister Martie said:
'twistd said:
I feel pretty good about both signings. PFF has Bennett rated as the 5th best TE last year. I thought Bennett had a bit of a problem with drops, but they have him with only 6 drops last year. That is a nice signing to shore up a really weak position. Signing Bushrod certainly improves the talent on the line. What worries me a little is PFF actually ranked Bushrod as a weaker pass blocker than Webb last year. Overall Bushrod was slightly better, but not by much. The year before Bushrod was ranked 12th overall and out of strictly LTs he was 8th. Webb was 65th overall. I'm very curious about why his play was so much worse this past year. Obviously the Saints as a whole were a much different team last year than in 2011.
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My guess is the reason the variance is so high from year to year is because there is a lot of noise in their analysis. It's pretty hard to use metrics to grade out individual linemen from year to year.
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Exactly.
 
I'm in disbelief. Marshall last year. Bennett and Bushrod this year. This is awesome. I wanna have Phil's baby!!! :pickle:

 
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Very happy today. I really like that these moves give them flexibility come draft day and if one of the guards slips it could be a great offseason.

 
Wow, really was a great day today. Couldn't imagine them being able to do all that. guess a few things will get shaken up to make room pretty quickly, but either way, just couldn't be happier with the start. Now just to grab a LB so we can get a second starter, and we are on track.

As far as draft right now I would think BPA but looking hard at LB or G.

Wow, just amazed right now.

 
'The Tick said:
Wow, really was a great day today. Couldn't imagine them being able to do all that. guess a few things will get shaken up to make room pretty quickly, but either way, just couldn't be happier with the start. Now just to grab a LB so we can get a second starter, and we are on track.As far as draft right now I would think BPA but looking hard at LB or G.Wow, just amazed right now.
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:goodposting:
 
'flapgreen said:
'RBM said:
35M+ over 5 yrs with 17 guaranteed for Jermon.

Where the hell did the cap room come from?
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Easy to backload from first season at least. Will be some serious cuts in next 24hrs too.
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Wow, was I wrong or what? I figured MB would be the extent of FA impact players, I'm shocked about Bushrod. I really thought the Bears had no room for big purchases. Will be interesting to see how they structure both contracts and how they sign/cut their own FA's. Like Flap said I think 2013 might be the last year for Peppers in Chicago, his cap hit is already over 17 million and any restructure this year would push that unpalatable number even higher.And Spotrac is showing MB's contract as 4 years for 20 million. Considering the Bears were paying Davis 3 million per year MB's seems like a steal if the NY Bennett shows up. And why haven't we seen that Kellen Davis is cut yet?

 
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That was the final piece I needed to call this FA a success. I don't mean to dislike you Mr. Davis, but the Bears are a much better team without you.

 
Bears cut TE Matt Spaeth

With signing Bennett/Bushrod. I would like Chicago to continue to look at Brandon Moore OG and Antoine Winfield CB(to play slot CB).

Draft Ideas:

I've voiced my desire for Tavon Austin in round one previously and think that is a more likely with the bears free agency.

If Chicago goes LB, I want Arthur Brown Kansas State.

 
'benson_will_lead_the_way said:
Bears cut TE Matt SpaethWith signing Bennett/Bushrod. I would like Chicago to continue to look at Brandon Moore OG and Antoine Winfield CB(to play slot CB).Draft Ideas:I've voiced my desire for Tavon Austin in round one previously and think that is a more likely with the bears free agency.If Chicago goes LB, I want Arthur Brown Kansas State.
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on the score doug buffone said that only 2 guards are worth taking in the 1st round, if you cant get that take the best available player.
 
'RBM said:
http://my.chicagotribune.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-74795508/
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This draft is considered deep, but not really a lot of stand out talent at the top. The Bears are missing their third round pick that they traded for Marshall. Trading down, even dropping out of the first, would probably be a good idea if they could do it. If they could trade their first for a second and a third that would be nice, depending on where that second was at. I think there isn't a tremendous difference between the players they are likely to get in the 20th spot versus a player they might get at say 38. If they could do that and pick up a third rounder that would be very good. These free agent signings certainly open up their options.
 
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http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/football/bears/ct-spt-0314-bears-pompei-chicago-20130314,0,2517781.column

'Perfect storm' carried Bushrod to Bears

Emery bucked several trends in prying Pro Bowl left tackle away from Saints

Jermon Bushrods don't just happen.

Jermon Bushrods hardly ever are available in free agency.

Jermon Bushrods rarely are available in the draft after the first handful of picks.

So when Jermon Bushrod falls from the sky in March, and your starting left tackle gave up nine sacks and committed eight penalties last year, you pounce.

And you pay.

And you laugh.

Good fortune will wear jersey No. 74 for the Bears.

General manager Phil Emery used the term "perfect storm" to describe the circumstances that enabled him to reel in the big fish.

"When there is a high-quality left tackle available in the (unrestricted free-agent) market, that doesn't usually happen," Emery said. "When it does happen, nine times out of 10 they are going back to their own team. So chances of actually acquiring that player are mostly slim and none."

We can debate how good Bushrod has been. But it's fact he has been to two Pro Bowls. He has been a starter on a Super Bowl winner. And he has protected the quarterback's blind side on an offense that twice led the NFL in passing.

He is closer to Kobe beef than chopped liver.

Emery said Bushrod uses his hands as well as any left tackle in the NFL. He also said Bushrod's balance, ability to redirect and foot and body quickness are on a par with any of the top offensive tackles in this year's draft.

Three tackles — Luke Joeckel of Texas A&M, Eric Fisher of Central Michigan and Lane Johnson of Oklahoma — are expected to be top-15 picks. Joeckel and Fisher could be top-five picks.

The Bears, who own the 20th pick, never would have gotten a sniff at Joeckel, Fisher or Johnson. And they are the only bona fide, plug-and-play left tackles in the draft.

That is why Bushrod is a Bear.

"Most years you're not going to find a starting left tackle at 20," Emery said. "If we feel good that our team can win nine or more games on a consistent basis … when do you have a chance to draft a left tackle? So in terms of putting the resources out there from a dollar perspective, it was time to do it. There was a quality player there."

Since the late, great Jim Finks chose Jim Covert with the sixth pick of the 1983 draft, the Bears have used later first-round picks on four offensive tackles. Between them, Stan Thomas (22nd in 1991), Marc Colombo (29th in 2002), Chris Williams (14th in 2008) and Gabe Carimi (29th in 2011) have made zero Pro Bowl appearances.

That should not come as a surprise. Since 1993, every offensive tackle who has been initially selected to three or more Pro Bowls was taken in the first 13 picks, according to Tony Villiotti of draftmetrics.com. And only 16.7 percent of the offensive tackles taken in picks 14 through 40 have been initially selected to even a single Pro Bowl.

What happens is once the sure-fire left tackles dry up, teams start trying to create them. They reach. And they fail.

They do that because they are desperate for left tackles, and sufficient left tackles are not available. Once teams have Pro Bowl left tackles in their primes, they almost never let them leave.

In the 20-year history of free agency, only three previous left tackles under 30 who had played in at least two Pro Bowls signed with other teams. Will Wolford went from the Bills to the Colts in 1993. Jason Peters went from the Bills to the Eagles in 2009. And Jammal Brown went from the Saints to the Redskins in 2010.

Brown was an unusual case. He missed the 2009 season with an ACL injury and had been replaced by a player the Saints liked better — Bushrod.

Losing their left tackle hurt more for the Saints this time.

They started Tuesday over the salary cap and had until 3 p.m. to get under. They turned the trick by restructuring the contracts of linebacker Jonathan Vilma and defensive end Will Smith and cutting linebacker Will Herring.

"Jermon was in a unique situation in that they had a cap situation," Emery said Wednesday. "They were reconstructing players' contracts yesterday. As the UFA market hit, they were still doing players. That didn't give them as much flexibility as maybe they needed to sign him back. I can't speak for them, but it certainly was a factor in the reason he was available."

So a 315-pound man fell into Emery's lap.

And he couldn't stop smiling.
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'twistd said:
'RBM said:
http://my.chicagotribune.com/#section/-1/article/p2p-74795508/
Click to expand...
This draft is considered deep, but not really a lot of stand out talent at the top. The Bears are missing their third round pick that they traded for Marshall. Trading down, even dropping out of the first, would probably be a good idea if they could do it. If they could trade their first for a second and a third that would be nice, depending on where that second was at. I think there isn't a tremendous difference between the players they are likely to get in the 20th spot versus a player they might get at say 38. If they could do that and pick up a third rounder that would be very good. These free agent signings certainly open up their options.
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Emery did say yesterday that the FA acquisitions put them in a position to now move back in the draft. I looked at the "trade value chart" and moving back 5-6 spots would gain you a lower 3rd. The chart may be outdated but it still gives a rough idea how far they can move back to get that missing 3rd.That being said, I'd love to see them get one of the 2 guards if they fell. DeCastro was thought to be going in the 10-15 range last year and fell to the Steelers at 1.24. Then again if we got that 3rd back, maybe we could get a center like Barret Jones.ETA: spelling
 
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Looks like Roach to Raiders.

My link

The Chicago Bears have some holes to plug on defense and they won't be filling one with a familiar face.

Linebacker Nick Roach has agreed to terms on a contract with the Oakland Raiders, according to ESPN Chicago, taking him out of the mix for the Bears. General manager Phil Emery had expressed a desire to keep Roach but said on Wednesday the team is pressed against the salary cap. Whether or not Roach's exit affects the status of negotiations with middle linebacker Brian Urlacher remains to be seen. The Bears probably aren't going to ante up more for him just because Roach has left.

Roach, 27, has been the team's primary starter on the strong side since 2008. He started the final four games of last season at middle linebacker after a hamstring injury sidelined Brian Urlacher. So, his versatility and his ability on special teams made him valuable.
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Draft is wide open. No idea who we will get. I had barely heard of McClelin last year and didn't even think about him with our pick. I hope Emery is a good drafter and doesn't blow it like we have on most of our picks. It remains to be seen what happens with last year's picks but they did little in the way of contributing to last season. I was hoping Shea would take over at DE but he may not even start this season and was injured last year, along with the rest of our picks. I'd have like to have seen more out of our first round pick. Most of our draft picks over the last few years are either not on the team now or aren't very good. We have to draft well to compete.

 
Been out of the country since that first day of free agency, and it looks like I didn't miss anything.

A little surprised we didn't get anything done on the linebacker front yet. Disappointed that we lost Roach, but do like how they are handling the Urlacher situation. I think he could be valuable for the bears at the right price and it seems they made the right decision by going the "here's our offer, check out FA and see what happens" route.

We need to get at least one more LB under contract before the draft.

 
'The Tick said:
Been out of the country since that first day of free agency, and it looks like I didn't miss anything.A little surprised we didn't get anything done on the linebacker front yet. Disappointed that we lost Roach, but do like how they are handling the Urlacher situation. I think he could be valuable for the bears at the right price and it seems they made the right decision by going the "here's our offer, check out FA and see what happens" route.We need to get at least one more LB under contract before the draft.
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I hate that we lost Roach, but he did get a pretty significant contract from the Raiders.
 
Interesting comments from Hester saying he doesn't want to play offense. Trestman also saying he's not sure Hester will even practice with the offense.

 
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