How Bout Dem Bears?

crunchie44

White is not a horrible pick. The guy is huge and has killer speed. Will cause all sorts of match up problems. Plus he will stretch the field for us. Too often teams knew they Bears had no1 with elite pace and our passing game became predictable. The general opinion is that Pace made the right choice and I'm happy with that. Yes Williams almost fell into our lap but no point crying over something we never had. Dont think any1 expected Jets to take him given the quality they already had.

Last 2 pick were needs and out of first 3 rounds we get 3 day 1 starters. Pace has picked them. Its upto the players to prove it now

Realt Dearg Sec

crunchie44 wrote: »

White is not a horrible pick. The guy is huge and has killer speed. Will cause all sorts of match up problems. Plus he will stretch the field for us. Too often teams knew they Bears had no1 with elite pace and our passing game became predictable. The general opinion is that Pace made the right choice and I'm happy with that. Yes Williams almost fell into our lap but no point crying over something we never had. Dont think any1 expected Jets to take him given the quality they already had.

Last 2 pick were needs and out of first 3 rounds we get 3 day 1 starters. Pace has picked them. Its upto the players to prove it now

I don't think Grasu is a day one starter. The others certainly look to be.

ABajaninCork

Biggest need IMO is DB's. Perhaps the Bears will pick some up later...

Realt Dearg Sec

ABajaninCork wrote: »

Biggest need IMO is DB's. Perhaps the Bears will pick some up later...

No good safeties around. Our CBs are alright I think. Certainly Fuller is the future imo, after that it would be great to get some help but there went be year one starters in the fourth round so I think we're still in a bit of trouble.

Oat23

crunchie44 wrote: »

Yes Williams almost fell into our lap but no point crying over something we never had. Dont think any1 expected Jets to take him given the quality they already had.

If we didn't give them Marshall for sweet f*ck all, there's no way they would pass on a WR there. We'd have Williams if that trade never happened.

ABajaninCork

crunchie44 wrote: »

White is not a horrible pick. The guy is huge and has killer speed. Will cause all sorts of match up problems. Plus he will stretch the field for us. Too often teams knew they Bears had no1 with elite pace and our passing game became predictable. The general opinion is that Pace made the right choice and I'm happy with that. Yes Williams almost fell into our lap but no point crying over something we never had. Dont think any1 expected Jets to take him given the quality they already had.

Last 2 pick were needs and out of first 3 rounds we get 3 day 1 starters. Pace has picked them. Its upto the players to prove it now

Nope. He would have been a great pick if the Bears had a halfway decent O-line and Cutler wasn't so flaky. They have neither, so meh...

kennyb3

I think some people need to relax a little, this was never a one year fix. If it was they wouldn't have hired a 37 year old GM.

Now as the old saying goes it's better to be lucky than good, but signs are pace could be both. Let's look at things:

- John fox fell into his lap just after he was hired
- vic fangio only left the 9ers cause of harbaugh did too
- Ray mcdonald fell into their lap

They had a solid and unspectacular FA without killing us going forward, lots of prove it deals to asses (good idea for first year GM and cosching team)

Now let's look at the draft:

- yeah I'm not ecstatic they took white for reasons I mentioned previously. But you have to see it for what it is - sticking to your board. That's what pace has done not only here but throughout the draft - reason being all the holes can't be fixed in one draft.

- so what do you do? Take the best players. If you draft for need, more holes appear next year anyway and again you draft for need rather than value.

- I've no idea if white will be worth a 7 but I barely say one scout suggest he wasn't a top 10 pick, so it's hard to argue.

- After white we have Goldman. Great pick IMHO. 6'4 330 lbs. good size and length at a position of need and not a reach like ego last year.

Honestly who'd have thought when we switched to 3-4 we'd have a line of;

LDE : McDonald
Nt: Goldman
RDe: Ratliff

- good luck running on that. You've jenkins, ego and Sutton in the rotation too (sutton only on 3rd down realistically)

- you also have McPhee good against the run and rushing the passer.

- the more I think about it the more it makes sense not to go for another edge guy, they ve piles of bodies and salaries tied up in it, may as well let it play out this year. Can't fix everything in one year and they did get McPhee in free agency.

- we've nothing at inside backer but what can you do.

Anyway in summary what am I saying:

- we got better all round the day this staff was hired
- we got miles better defensively the day this staff was hired
- they've added some nice pieces defensively - particularly the front 3.
- pace drafting offence 3 of first 4 picks indicates true bpa, and hopefully that's the case
- can we please stop pretending we could fix all the holes after all the horrible years of drafting

Literally the worst part of this draft was that the Vikings killed it and the lions did well too. And we ain't finishing ahead of the packers anyway till Rodgers retires so not to worry about their draft of looking spectacular (it never does but they coach up the players)

Spongey1975

kennyb3 wrote: »

I think some people need to relax a little, this was never a one year fix. If it was they wouldn't have hired a 37 year old GM.

Now as the old saying goes it's better to be lucky than good, but signs are pace could be both. Let's look at things:

- John fox fell into his lap just after he was hired
- vic fangio only left the 9ers cause of harbaugh did too
- Ray mcdonald fell into their lap

They had a solid and unspectacular FA without killing us going forward, lots of prove it deals to asses (good idea for first year GM and cosching team)

Now let's look at the draft:

- yeah I'm not ecstatic they took white for reasons I mentioned previously. But you have to see it for what it is - sticking to your board. That's what pace has done not only here but throughout the draft - reason being all the holes can't be fixed in one draft.

- so what do you do? Take the best players. If you draft for need, more holes appear next year anyway and again you draft for need rather than value.

- I've no idea if white will be worth a 7 but I barely say one scout suggest he wasn't a top 10 pick, so it's hard to argue.

- After white we have Goldman. Great pick IMHO. 6'4 330 lbs. good size and length at a position of need and not a reach like ego last year.

Honestly who'd have thought when we switched to 3-4 we'd have a line of;

LDE : McDonald
Nt: Goldman
RDe: Ratliff

- good luck running on that. You've jenkins, ego and Sutton in the rotation too (sutton only on 3rd down realistically)

- you also have McPhee good against the run and rushing the passer.

- the more I think about it the more it makes sense not to go for another edge guy, they ve piles of bodies and salaries tied up in it, may as well let it play out this year. Can't fix everything in one year and they did get McPhee in free agency.

- we've nothing at inside backer but what can you do.

Anyway in summary what am I saying:

- we got better all round the day this staff was hired
- we got miles better defensively the day this staff was hired
- they've added some nice pieces defensively - particularly the front 3.
- pace drafting offence 3 of first 4 picks indicates true bpa, and hopefully that's the case
- can we please stop pretending we could fix all the holes after all the horrible years of drafting

Literally the worst part of this draft was that the Vikings killed it and the lions did well too. And we ain't finishing ahead of the packers anyway till Rodgers retires so not to worry about their draft of looking spectacular (it never does but they coach up the players)

Well said

Im a fan of what we drafted so far. People think White was a horrible pick. He was without doubt the best player available. We now have a receiver threat on both sides. I disagreed with what we got for Marshall but agreed that he had to go. There is also the issue of having to pay Alshon next year. I dont think we can afford to have two highly paid wide receivers on the roster so it will be good to have a receiver of the talent of White on four years rookie salary to complement Alshon's huge salary next year.

I actually can never remember reading the initial draft grades online and we received A's. Now i know they mean nothing but i dont think we have ever received an A in all my years following the draft. That in itself shows how improved our new front office is. As highlighted above this isnt a quick fix but its a step in the right direction. Roll on mini camps

Realt Dearg Sec

kennyb3 wrote: »

I think some people need to relax a little, this was never a one year fix. If it was they wouldn't have hired a 37 year old GM.

Now as the old saying goes it's better to be lucky than good, but signs are pace could be both. Let's look at things:

- John fox fell into his lap just after he was hired
- vic fangio only left the 9ers cause of harbaugh did too
- Ray mcdonald fell into their lap

They had a solid and unspectacular FA without killing us going forward, lots of prove it deals to asses (good idea for first year GM and cosching team)

Now let's look at the draft:

- yeah I'm not ecstatic they took white for reasons I mentioned previously. But you have to see it for what it is - sticking to your board. That's what pace has done not only here but throughout the draft - reason being all the holes can't be fixed in one draft.

- so what do you do? Take the best players. If you draft for need, more holes appear next year anyway and again you draft for need rather than value.

- I've no idea if white will be worth a 7 but I barely say one scout suggest he wasn't a top 10 pick, so it's hard to argue.

- After white we have Goldman. Great pick IMHO. 6'4 330 lbs. good size and length at a position of need and not a reach like ego last year.

Honestly who'd have thought when we switched to 3-4 we'd have a line of;

LDE : McDonald
Nt: Goldman
RDe: Ratliff

- good luck running on that. You've jenkins, ego and Sutton in the rotation too (sutton only on 3rd down realistically)

- you also have McPhee good against the run and rushing the passer.

- the more I think about it the more it makes sense not to go for another edge guy, they ve piles of bodies and salaries tied up in it, may as well let it play out this year. Can't fix everything in one year and they did get McPhee in free agency.

- we've nothing at inside backer but what can you do.

Anyway in summary what am I saying:

- we got better all round the day this staff was hired
- we got miles better defensively the day this staff was hired
- they've added some nice pieces defensively - particularly the front 3.
- pace drafting offence 3 of first 4 picks indicates true bpa, and hopefully that's the case
- can we please stop pretending we could fix all the holes after all the horrible years of drafting

Literally the worst part of this draft was that the Vikings killed it and the lions did well too. And we ain't finishing ahead of the packers anyway till Rodgers retires so not to worry about their draft of looking spectacular (it never does but they coach up the players)

Great post. I didn't like the white pick but he's clearly solid, potentially spectacular, the picks since have been fantastic. I didn't like getting rid of Marshall but this is a long term project and big egos are not gonna suit this fo. I'll miss him and I really, really disagree that he was a major problem with the offense. But this has to be paces team or else you can't have a problem. He needs the space and time. It doesn't mean he can't be criticised, but the notion he would have gotten Williams if he had held Marshall? Ludicrous, he's not psychic, I didn't see Williams getting out if the top three, and just because the bucs and titans are idiotic enough to take bust quarterbacks doesn't mean pace is a dingbat.

Immediate reactions aside, it's a decent draft. I still disagree with dropping all these key players, but they want their team. If they fail, fine, but the bears have been expecting to win now since I've supported them. Time for patience. Which isn't my expertise...

kennyb3

The way I see it us we got 3 starters and Langford and Amos will make contributions.

Last year our second round pick wasn't nearly ready to start and our third was an undersized alligator armed DT. I liked Sutton as a prospect but it made zero sense given we couldn't stop the run at all.

3 starters would be better than our last 3 to 4 drafts at least. That's why you take bpa. We aren't in a position unfortunately to take players and develop them.

We also didn't go after boom or bust talent - just solid players. Even if white doesn't hit expectTions he ll be a very solid player given the size and speed.

This defence will take another draft or possibly 2 to fix and they need to see what they have.

Anyway we need to get to a stage were we have 7 or more picks, as it's often hit and miss and we need to play the percentages.

We should remember we signed 7 defensive players in free agency.

bobdobadini

Regardless of the White trade, which was clearly a case of BPA, and one that I would have no problem with.

I think there are two picks that go a long way to prove what Fox is trying to do with the Bears.

1 is Eddie Goldman. I have watched a fair bit of his tape and he really has the ability to stop teams running on us. I think that has been such a huge problem for the Bears recently and while you can talk about defensive backs etc. John Fox has controlling the spine as a focal point this year.

The other pick was Langford. This proves, again, that the Bears will rely heavily on the running game. One of the main arguments against Trestman was that he used Forte wrong, not enough and too much in the wrong situations.

Langford, Rodgers and Forte will really be able to carry quite a load next year and the Bears aim is to stop the run against them and establish the run in offense to at least give the Bears a fighting chance!

I am new here and look forward to contributing!

kennyb3

bobdobadini wrote: »

Regardless of the White trade, which was clearly a case of BPA, and one that I would have no problem with.

I think there are two picks that go a long way to prove what Fox is trying to do with the Bears.

1 is Eddie Goldman. I have watched a fair bit of his tape and he really has the ability to stop teams running on us. I think that has been such a huge problem for the Bears recently and while you can talk about defensive backs etc. John Fox has controlling the spine as a focal point this year.

The other pick was Langford. This proves, again, that the Bears will rely heavily on the running game. One of the main arguments against Trestman was that he used Forte wrong, not enough and too much in the wrong situations.

Langford, Rodgers and Forte will really be able to carry quite a load next year and the Bears aim is to stop the run against them and establish the run in offense to at least give the Bears a fighting chance!

I am new here and look forward to contributing!

Welcome. Great to have another Bears fan & contributor.

They also have Carey too not to forget.

It looks like RB by committee and really shaping up to be Forte's last year.

kennyb3

So they waived Greene already what a waste of a mid round pick.Emery s drafts have been a dumpster fire. 3 starters from 3 years it seems.

We are going to have massive holes for a long time. Years and years of awful drafting

padraig_f

I know you shouldn't get excited about rookie training camp , but **** it, I'm getting excited.

@danpompei:

"1. Kevin White had a dominant rookie camp. He had a lot of balls thrown his way, and he caught many, some in impressive fashion.

2. Kevin White is impressively big and strong, but has the quickness and change of direction of a smaller man.

3. Kevin White easily is the most impressive rookie wide receiver I’ve ever seen walk through the doors at Halas Hall."

Realt Dearg Sec

kennyb3 wrote: »

So they waived Greene already what a waste of a mid round pick.Emery s drafts have been a dumpster fire. 3 starters from 3 years it seems.

We are going to have massive holes for a long time. Years and years of awful drafting

Well, depends how the 3-4 system shakes out for D line and LBs as regards the final numbers from Emery's drafting, but undeniably we are in a bad way no matter what way I try and cut it.

Of course, for all we know Pace might be terrible too, we just can't know. But what I would really be worried about is how impatient the fans are likely to be, going into the 30th anniversary year of the last SB. If Pace and Fox work out, and their draft picks are decent, we are still probably five years and a good QB from being truly a competitive, threatening team. But there's just no way the Bears fans will wait that long. If they aren't in the playoffs in the 2016 season, Fox will be under serious pressure. If they aren't there by 2017 people will be looking for heads to roll before we've even had time to evaluate the FIRST draft class. And then we'll be back to square one. In the meantime the Packers will have passed us out in the overall W-L record, probably have tacked on a SB.

Not that they'll be paying too much attention, I don't the Bears are a particularly relevant issue for the Packers these days.

Oat23

Ray McDonald arrested again it seems.

https://twitter.com/DickersonESPN/status/602870678312779776


He'll be cut by the end of the day I'd say.

Realt Dearg Sec

Hopefully. Much as we need guys in his position, we don't need that ****.

adrian522

Did ye give any guaranteed money? That's his third arrest. Domestic violence, sexual assault and now domestic violence and child endangerment.

He hasn't faced any charges on any of this as yet but you'd imagine Goddell will throw the book at him.

padraig_f

adrian522 wrote: »

Did ye give any guaranteed money? That's his third arrest. Domestic violence, sexual assault and now domestic violence and child endangerment.

He hasn't faced any charges on any of this as yet but you'd imagine Goddell will throw the book at him.

No guaranteed money, no. So I guess he'll be gone quickly.

Dabearsblog has a good blog on when he was first signed:

The McDonald Dilemma: Does Being a Sports Fan Come with a Social Responsibility?

I'm one of those fans that, rightly or wrongly, tries to ignore the off-the-field as much as possible, one of the reasons I watch sport, to get away from the depressing stuff in the news.

Although sometimes, as in the Ray Rice case for example, you can't ignore it.

At least it happened before any games were played.

kennyb3

Wow, just wow - what a retard and p ' rick.

Our front 3 looks like s ' hit again all of a sudden.

Don't look good on pace, Fox or fangio. George will be pissed, massive risk and hard to believe it back fired so quickly and spectacularly.

Oat23

kennyb3 wrote: »

Wow, just wow - what a retard and p ' rick.

Our front 3 looks like s ' hit again all of a sudden.

Don't look good on pace, Fox or fangio. George will be pissed, massive risk and hard to believe it back fired so quickly and spectacularly.

Shouldn't look good on George either, with him meeting McDonald himself and giving the go ahead to sign him.

George never looks good though I suppose.

Funny that they got rid of Marshall because character concerns, and then they brought in this bum.

edit: Released now. At least they haven't f*cked about doing due diligence because they seem pretty sh*t at it.
https://twitter.com/ChicagoBears/status/602934673606627328

GM Ryan Pace: "We believe in 2nd chances, but when we signed Ray we were very clear what our expectations were if he was to remain a Bear...
Pace cont: "He was not able to meet the standard and the decision was made to release him."

Realt Dearg Sec

He's not that good, 5.5 sacks is his best year ever and no pro bowl. He's a loss but there's others who can step in, it's not like we lost jj watt.

Oat23

:pac:

https://twitter.com/Ky1eLong/status/602936715834204160

Realt Dearg Sec

Oat23 wrote: »

:pac:

https://twitter.com/Ky1eLong/status/602936715834204160

I love Kyle Long.

Oat23

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

I love Kyle Long.

You and me both!

kennyb3

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

He's not that good, 5.5 sacks is his best year ever and no pro bowl. He's a loss but there's others who can step in, it's not like we lost jj watt.

He's no JJ watt alright but he is a very solid 5tech, stout against the run and has scheme experience and no durability issues. But Kyle Long said it best and it's all irrelevant now anyways.

adrian522

Ray McDonald arrested AGAIN, thus time for violating restraining order. 4 arrests now. Can't see anyone picking him up to be honest.

Realt Dearg Sec

adrian522 wrote: »

Ray McDonald arrested AGAIN, thus time for violating restraining order. 4 arrests now. Can't see anyone picking him up to be honest.

We've lost a real genius so.

kennyb3

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

We've lost a real genius so.

:pac:

Gone full retard by the sounds of it

kennyb3

Zach Zaidman ✔@ZachZaidman
Reporter to #Bears coach John Fox: What have you seen out of Jonathan Bostic? Fox: "Nothing." Bostic (back) has not practiced in offseason.


Not looking good for Bostic. Badly needs to practice to get better (and he needs to get a lot better).

This back injury has been ongoing for couple of seasons now. Really don't see him amounting to much now.

Realt Dearg Sec

kennyb3 wrote: »

Zach Zaidman ✔@ZachZaidman
Reporter to #Bears coach John Fox: What have you seen out of Jonathan Bostic? Fox: "Nothing." Bostic (back) has not practiced in offseason.


Not looking good for Bostic. Badly needs to practice to get better (and he needs to get a lot better).

This back injury has been ongoing for couple of seasons now. Really don't see him amounting to much now.

Yeah a real shame, I remember when he had that fantastic hit put in during a pre-season game (for which he was completely unfairly fined), and thinking this guy might just work out. Looking like another bust, and another hole to fill.

adrian522

Anyone know when the Bears put their single game tickets on sale?

Website says mid-July but nothing more specific than that. Looking for tickets to the 49ers game in December!

http://www.chicagobears.com/tickets-and-stadium/single-game-tickets.html

Would I be better off just going ticket exchange?

kennyb3

This might be a useful read re going to Chicago (not sure how familiar you are with it).

Never been, hoped to do it for my 30th but our girls came along - my 40th it is so!

adrian522

Thanks, I'll have a read, never been before actually.

SameOleJay

Training Camp!!!

Can't remember ever having this low expectations before. Probably not a bad thing. Floating around the net and all the forums are like morgues. Still can't wait for some football.

Realt Dearg Sec

SameOleJay wrote: »

Training Camp!!!

Can't remember ever having this low expectations before. Probably not a bad thing. Floating around the net and all the forums are like morgues. Still can't wait for some football.

Yeah low expectations are a good thing, maybe the notion that there's some quick fix that can be implemented that is standing between us and super bowls has been banished. And improving on last year, however we define it, can't be hard.

padraig_f

Yeah, seems to be all doom-and-gloom with most forecasters predicting the Bears finish bottom of the NFC North.

I'm a little more optimistic, just think you can't understate how bad the coaching and lack of discipline was last year. Personnel issues exist, particularly on the defensive side, but I think with the right attitude and cohesiveness, you can be competitive.

I was listening to some of the early reports from Zach Zaidman,

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/audio/670-the-score-interviews/zach-zaidman-on-the-mully-and-hanley-show/

seems like there's some kind of injury issue with Kevin White?

Realt Dearg Sec

padraig_f wrote: »

Yeah, seems to be all doom-and-gloom with most forecasters predicting the Bears finish bottom of the NFC North.

I'm a little more optimistic, just think you can't understate how bad the coaching and lack of discipline was last year. Personnel issues exist, particularly on the defensive side, but I think with the right attitude and cohesiveness, you can be competitive.

I was listening to some of the early reports from Zach Zaidman,

http://chicago.cbslocal.com/audio/670-the-score-interviews/zach-zaidman-on-the-mully-and-hanley-show/

seems like there's some kind of injury issue with Kevin White?

What I read was a shin injury but putting him on pup now is essentially to get him right for later on, rather than a real concern that he'll be able to play. Hopefully that's correct.

kennyb3

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

What I read was a shin injury but putting him on pup now is essentially to get him right for later on, rather than a real concern that he'll be able to play. Hopefully that's correct.

Yes - you can come off training PUP at any time - i.e he could come off tomorrow. Sound like they are being cautious.

It's still worrying that with a 6 week gap he isn't fit.

He is also raw as a player, given lack of collegiate experience so you'd be hoping he gets on the field asap.

padraig_f

kennyb3 wrote: »

Yes - you can come off training PUP at any time - i.e he could come off tomorrow. Sound like they are being cautious.

Cool. Yeah I heard he's a bit raw in terms of route running, so I guess will need the snaps.

padraig_f

My favourite thing about training camp is possibly the photos, this looks like a well-organised warm-up:



via @DickersonESPN

padraig_f

Oh, so Willie Young is OLB:
Willie Young faces steep learning curve at outside linebacker

Not really used to watching a 3-4 defense, so looking forward to that, even if it sounds like there may be some square pegs in round holes initially.

SameOleJay

Post taken from one fo the halas hall regs. Interesting read.

Wilson really is the training camp king.

One-on-one pass rush vs. RBs, Matt Forte got crushed by Mason Foster. I mean absolutely blown up, and he wasn't happy about it. Was really happy to see that kind of pop out of Foster, keep an eye on him moving forward.

Shea McClellin had a couple of good rushes, used his speed/quickness to slip past a blocker and had another spin move that freed him right to the QB. Looking good, just wish I saw more aggression out of him. Wished him good luck as I was following the team out and toward the building -- seems like a genuinely nice guy.

Jaquizz Rogers looked fine in pass protection, Ka'Deem Carey stoned his guy so that was impressive to see.

Marquess Wilson is making sure that Gase takes notice of him. Cutler found him multiple times across the middle and hit him in stride, had another beautiful throw on a corner route where Wilson was covered but put it in a place where Wilson's outstreched hands were the only ones that would catch the ball (which they did for a TD). Don't sleep on him, will be our #4 at worst. He had a solid one-handed catch on an out route that Cutler overthrew.

Offense is looking pretty crisp, and the defense did a solid job in run defense (but not so much in coverage, I hope that isn't an issue that lingers).

Seems like the O is focusing on running the ball, heavy emphasis placed on it today. Gase sprinkled in a flea-flicker that the defense COMPLETELY bit on, Alshon was running wide open down field with nobody within 15-20 yards of him. Cutler, God damnit, overthrew him by about 5 yards much to the dismay of everyone in the stands. Speaking of Cutler, he was glued to Gase's hip any time he wasn't taking reps and they had more than their share of discussions on what seemed to be route concepts in various plays. I don't think he'll ever be an elite passer in terms of accuracy, which is unfortunate. His arm is clearly night-and-day above anyone else on our roster, especially Shane Carden who has zero chance of making our team/practice squad.

Martellus Bennett is going to have our front office by the short hairs next season... our TE depth is awful, and I mean AWFUL. Aside from Bennett and Miller, we have no other TE that can catch the ball. Blake Annen (#84) had 4 drops by my count, two of which were wide open. Zero chance this kid makes the 53, IMO. Lumbers as he runs his routes as well. Bennett looked smooth in the passing game, didn't drop anything, and more than held his own while blocking. I think he's primed to have a big season if he gets featured in this offense.

Pernell McPhee is going to have a big year. He's massive and very, very fluid for his size. Counted a handful of times that he got into the backfield and would have blown up runs if he so chose.

Was sitting by Greg Gabriel at the end of camp and a few of us were shooting the **** with him. He talked about how Phil Emery was telling him last season that the light was starting to come on for Cornelius Washington. Said the kid put on weight (which I mentioned previously) and that you could easily get him up to 300 lbs if you wanted. Thinks that he doesn't have very good football instincts, but that if he develops he could be a decent player. Mentioned that Jared Allen is going to be a de-facto defensive end in our defense. Anytime we are in nickel he said Allen will be at end and doing what he has been doing his entire career.

Starters at OLB were McPhee and Houston. Houston looked fluid out at LB, made a nice downhill stop of a RB and didn't seem to have any hesitation in his movements. If he stays healthy I think he can have a decent season.

SameOleJay

Tackle is a huge problem this year. I’d put our guard tandem up with the best in the league but Mills is an atrocity (and is struggling in TC yet again) and Bushrod has a back problem that is persisting.

padraig_f

SameOleJay wrote: »

Post taken from one fo the halas hall regs. Interesting read.

Good detail.

kennyb3

http://www.scout.com/nfl/bears/

Reports on every day of TC

padraig_f

Bit of reassuring news on the Kevin White thing:
https://www.reddit.com/r/CHIBears/comments/3gcu6s/kevin_white_injury_information_from_personal/

Seems like a pretty good training camp apart from that. The two big free agent signings, McPhee and Eddie Royal have been reportedly going very well. Cutler supposedly going well too, and some cautious optimism that he's forming a good relationship with Adam Gase. This season is probably make-or-break for Cutler with the Bears, I'm rooting for him. He has the arm talent, and if we have to go looking for a new QB, it could put us back years.

Impression I get is training camp is a bit tougher, and there's more of an edge compared to previous years.

Also hearing Fox is a delegator on the training ground, which I like the sound of, giving authority to his assistant coaches. Bit of a contrast to Trestman, who apparently was more of a micro-manager. And the more I think about it, the more I think it's probably a bad idea for your head-coach to be also co-ordinator & play-caller.

kennyb3

I think the big problem is the oline. We've a turnstile a RT, Bushrod is aging and average on a good day at this stage. Long is very good but still not making massive holes in the run game. Slauson is a beast. We're average at centre. Overall we've no real depth at the position.

Cutler looks good every training camp as he's not being hit. Once he's hit his footwork goes to s'hit and he starts throwing off the back foot.

We aren't going anywhere with him.

There'll be large roster turnover before we are in a position to compete again. Therefore I'm really looking to the yonger players - Jones, Fuller & the draft picks of the last couple of years (but esp Pace's).

padraig_f

Game day! (sort of)

Not staying up, I'll watch a bit tomorrow morning. Interested to see how the front 7 goes. Didn't think they'd show anything at all ahead of Green Bay in week 1, but Brad Biggs was on the radio the other day, and thinks they'll have to show something just because they need the practice in a game situation, which seems a fair point. Also guys will be fighting for starting positions, with not much locked down. Heard positive noises about McLellin at ILB, will be interesting to see if that shows up.

Realt Dearg Sec

padraig_f wrote: »

Game day! (sort of)

Not staying up, I'll watch a bit tomorrow morning. Interested to see how the front 7 goes. Didn't think they'd show anything at all ahead of Green Bay in week 1, but Brad Biggs was on the radio the other day, and thinks they'll have to show something just because they need the practice in a game situation, which seems a fair point. Also guys will be fighting for starting positions, with not much locked down. Heard positive noises about McLellin at ILB, will be interesting to see if that shows up.

Meh I'm awake so I'll watch a while. At the very worst it'll put an end to the never ending "positive vibes coming out of camp" stuff you hear every year. Cutler hasn't thrown an int, and mcclellin is the new urlacher, so far. Today might tell another story.