The Bears Offseason Thread

[Soul]

Between Wolfe, Hester, and Olsen, the Bears got one hell of a lot faster on offense this season.

 

Olsen will blow away most linebackers with his 4.5 speed, Wolfe runs a 4.38, Hester runs in the low 4.3's.

 

This is going to be nothing if not interesting to watch. I can imagine Ron Turner is pretty happy about the possibilities, unlike after last year's draft.

 

With Hester moving to offense does this mean that Daniel Manning is definitely moving to corner with Mike Brown moving to FS and Archuleta playing SS?

 

 

Our defense still scares me to death...who is going to lineup next to Harris? Dvorak, Tank? I think if Briggs doesn't play he can be easily replaced because the weakside LB in the Cover 2 is a position made for people to make plays.

 

Nothing confirmed about Danieal Manning moving to CB as of now, still just talk. I think it will happen, though.

 

Our DT depth is certainly going to take a hit with Tank likely to miss at least half the season. The rotation right now is Tommie Harris, Tank Johnson, Dusty Dvoracek, Israel Idonije and former 49er Anthony Adams.

 

I forogt we signed Adams...that helps a lot.

 

It does, and I think one of the big questions out of camp will be if Dusty is ready to play serious downs, or if we will be utilizing Adams alot. Izzy will likely still be deeper on the depth chart.

[jmajew]

Between Wolfe, Hester, and Olsen, the Bears got one hell of a lot faster on offense this season.

 

Olsen will blow away most linebackers with his 4.5 speed, Wolfe runs a 4.38, Hester runs in the low 4.3's.

 

This is going to be nothing if not interesting to watch. I can imagine Ron Turner is pretty happy about the possibilities, unlike after last year's draft.

 

With Hester moving to offense does this mean that Daniel Manning is definitely moving to corner with Mike Brown moving to FS and Archuleta playing SS?

 

 

Our defense still scares me to death...who is going to lineup next to Harris? Dvorak, Tank? I think if Briggs doesn't play he can be easily replaced because the weakside LB in the Cover 2 is a position made for people to make plays.

 

Nothing confirmed about Danieal Manning moving to CB as of now, still just talk. I think it will happen, though.

 

Our DT depth is certainly going to take a hit with Tank likely to miss at least half the season. The rotation right now is Tommie Harris, Tank Johnson, Dusty Dvoracek, Israel Idonije and former 49er Anthony Adams.

 

I forogt we signed Adams...that helps a lot.

 

It does, and I think one of the big questions out of camp will be if Dusty is ready to play serious downs, or if we will be utilizing Adams alot. Izzy will likely still be deeper on the depth chart.

 

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

[jersey cubs fan]

It does, and I think one of the big questions out of camp will be if Dusty is ready to play serious downs, or if we will be utilizing Adams alot. Izzy will likely still be deeper on the depth chart.

 

It appears to me that they intend on having Dusty playing a lot from the get go. Word was he could have played late last year, if not for the stupid IR rules.

[Banedon]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

[jersey cubs fan]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I would trade either he or Ogunleye because both are overpaid and underwhelming.

[Soriano12]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

 

Because you have Mark Anderson

[Banedon]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I would trade either he or Ogunleye because both are overpaid and underwhelming.

 

I completely agree on Ogunleye...I'd like to keep Brown though.

[Soriano12]

I remember a few years ago on the Bears offish board if you said anything bad about Alex Brown his wife would actually respond, and basically ream your arse.

[Guest]

I'd definitely trade Ogunleye before I think about trading Alex Brown.

 

But I don't think the DE depth will allow it: Anderson, Bazuin, Brown, Ogunleye and Idonije can play end at times. Lovie likes rotating his DL so I think they'd have to be wowed in a trade before they move one of the vets.

[jmajew]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

 

I just posted it because of this quote from ESPN Insider:

 

Brown staying put?

Don't expect Alex Brown to be traded to the Redskins any time soon, ESPN.com's John Clayton reports. The Redskins are looking for a pass rusher and might have to make a trade to get one, while Brown could be had in a trade because he wants a new contract and the team isn't close to giving him a new deal.

However, it will probably cost a team a first-day draft choice to get Brown, and the Redskins aren't willing to give up that much. Relations between the Bears and Redskins have cooled since the Lance Brigg trade fell apart the night before the draft.

[Soul]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

 

I just posted it because of this quote from ESPN Insider:

 

Brown staying put?

Don't expect Alex Brown to be traded to the Redskins any time soon, ESPN.com's John Clayton reports. The Redskins are looking for a pass rusher and might have to make a trade to get one, while Brown could be had in a trade because he wants a new contract and the team isn't close to giving him a new deal.

However, it will probably cost a team a first-day draft choice to get Brown, and the Redskins aren't willing to give up that much. Relations between the Bears and Redskins have cooled since the Lance Brigg trade fell apart the night before the draft.

 

Call me crazy, but I didn't think the Briggs deal falling through was any reason to get upset with Angelo. I thought it was a good deal at the time because I realize someone is going to try and play off Briggs' anger and try to fleece him from us. But they were only offering a swap of picks. It wasn't like they were giving us the moon, or even close to the 2 1st rounders that the franchise tag says we should get.

 

Anyway, on A. Brown -- I get the feeling the Bears are just waiting to be sure they have what they think they have in Mark Anderson, then Brown or Ogun will be traded. But I don't think they'll be sure enough to do it before the season. I could be wrong.

[jersey cubs fan]

Call me crazy, but I didn't think the Briggs deal falling through was any reason to get upset with Angelo.

 

It's not a matter of getting upset with Angelo. It's more the Bears, and Angelo, being upset with Snyder for the whole dog and pony show at the meetings.

[Soul]

Call me crazy, but I didn't think the Briggs deal falling through was any reason to get upset with Angelo.

 

It's not a matter of getting upset with Angelo. It's more the Bears, and Angelo, being upset with Snyder for the whole dog and pony show at the meetings.

 

Ahhhh, gotcha.

[Banedon]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

 

I just posted it because of this quote from ESPN Insider:

 

Brown staying put?

Don't expect Alex Brown to be traded to the Redskins any time soon, ESPN.com's John Clayton reports. The Redskins are looking for a pass rusher and might have to make a trade to get one, while Brown could be had in a trade because he wants a new contract and the team isn't close to giving him a new deal.

However, it will probably cost a team a first-day draft choice to get Brown, and the Redskins aren't willing to give up that much. Relations between the Bears and Redskins have cooled since the Lance Brigg trade fell apart the night before the draft.

 

Huh...I remembered the Sun-times having some of that speculation, but I assumed it was just Brad Biggs interjecting some opinion into his article.

[jersey cubs fan]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

 

I just posted it because of this quote from ESPN Insider:

 

Brown staying put?

Don't expect Alex Brown to be traded to the Redskins any time soon, ESPN.com's John Clayton reports. The Redskins are looking for a pass rusher and might have to make a trade to get one, while Brown could be had in a trade because he wants a new contract and the team isn't close to giving him a new deal.

However, it will probably cost a team a first-day draft choice to get Brown, and the Redskins aren't willing to give up that much. Relations between the Bears and Redskins have cooled since the Lance Brigg trade fell apart the night before the draft.

 

Huh...I remembered the Sun-times having some of that speculation, but I assumed it was just Brad Biggs interjecting some opinion into his article.

 

The Bears aren't actively shopping defensive end Alex Brown but would be inclined to listen to offers through training camp from teams willing to rework Brown's contract—which they don't expect. Still, they are in no rush to part with a young player who has been a two-time Pro Bowl alternate, no matter how disgruntled he might be over being pushed by Mark Anderson and second-round draftee Dan Bazuin. Their other veteran defensive end, Adewale Ogunleye, has limited trade value because of a hefty contract teams don't want to inherit. ...

[rawaction]

What do you think the odds are of us trading Alex Brown? Could we possilby get a decent weakside LB for him?

 

Why would you trade Alex Brown?

 

I love this move with Hester. From Turner's comments it looks like he wanted Hester on offense all last season and it took till now to convince Devin...

 

I just posted it because of this quote from ESPN Insider:

 

Brown staying put?

Don't expect Alex Brown to be traded to the Redskins any time soon, ESPN.com's John Clayton reports. The Redskins are looking for a pass rusher and might have to make a trade to get one, while Brown could be had in a trade because he wants a new contract and the team isn't close to giving him a new deal.

However, it will probably cost a team a first-day draft choice to get Brown, and the Redskins aren't willing to give up that much. Relations between the Bears and Redskins have cooled since the Lance Brigg trade fell apart the night before the draft.

 

Huh...I remembered the Sun-times having some of that speculation, but I assumed it was just Brad Biggs interjecting some opinion into his article.

 

The Bears aren't actively shopping defensive end Alex Brown but would be inclined to listen to offers through training camp from teams willing to rework Brown's contract—which they don't expect. Still, they are in no rush to part with a young player who has been a two-time Pro Bowl alternate, no matter how disgruntled he might be over being pushed by Mark Anderson and second-round draftee Dan Bazuin. Their other veteran defensive end, Adewale Ogunleye, has limited trade value because of a hefty contract teams don't want to inherit. ...

 

Same thing they said about Moss' contract. I think Wale could be traded, albeit for minimal value. Of course, unlike Moss, Wale can't blame his teams situation for his lack of production the last 2 years.

[Banedon]

Same thing they said about Moss' contract. I think Wale could be traded, albeit for minimal value. Of course, unlike Moss, Wale can't blame his teams situation for his lack of production the last 2 years.

 

Wale doesn't have the name value that Moss does either.

[jersey cubs fan]

Same thing they said about Moss' contract. I think Wale could be traded, albeit for minimal value. Of course, unlike Moss, Wale can't blame his teams situation for his lack of production the last 2 years.

 

My impression on NFL trades has always been that they are hindered by the negative affect on the salary cap of the team trading the player. If two teams trade two expensive veterans, both get hit by the prorated portion of the salary cap all being pushed to this year. But if one team is trading an expensive player for a draft pick or cheap player, they are the ones taking the hit as the player goes out the door.

 

Oakland, as a crap team with no hope for the near future can deal with a the short-term remifications of such a hit.

The Bears, as a contending team near the salary cap can't afford this problem nearly as much.

[Soul]

Players always grumble about being "pushed" by up and coming guys. Through my observations, I've learned it often results in better play despite the grumbling.

 

The Bears aren't in the business of making warm and fuzzies for every player. It's pretty obvious we could improve our DE play a little, and we now have a couple young bucks to come in and at least push those vets to greater heights. I see that as a positive.

[Butterscup1679666578]

I liked the Wolfe pick during the draft (albeit it was way too early), but doesn't putting Hester on the offense make that pick kind of...unnecessary?

[Guest]

I liked the Wolfe pick during the draft (albeit it was way too early), but doesn't putting Hester on the offense make that pick kind of...unnecessary?

 

I don't see Hester lining up at RB ever, so no. Wolfe is a third down back - he might come out to slot or something for a few plays but I can't see him taking away time from Hester.

[texascub]

I liked the Wolfe pick during the draft (albeit it was way too early), but doesn't putting Hester on the offense make that pick kind of...unnecessary?

 

I don't see Hester lining up at RB ever, so no. Wolfe is a third down back - he might come out to slot or something for a few plays but I can't see him taking away time from Hester.

 

A formation with twins on the weakside (Hester and Wolfe) with Moose on the strongside could cause some real mismatches.

[Soul]

Yeah, I think Hester is moving to offense in the sense that they will now be using him as a gadget option or to gain a mismatch somewhere. Despite his lack of size, Wolfe is a trained RB so I would expect him to have more of a consistent role, provided the Bears don't discover his size to be too limiting.

[rawaction]

I liked the Wolfe pick during the draft (albeit it was way too early), but doesn't putting Hester on the offense make that pick kind of...unnecessary?

 

I don't see Hester lining up at RB ever, so no. Wolfe is a third down back - he might come out to slot or something for a few plays but I can't see him taking away time from Hester.

 

I still wonder what happens if/when Benson gets hurt....like he did as a rookie and in the Superbowl. Benson runs into people too much to make it healthy through at 350 carry season. Can Wolfe be an everydown back? I don't don't Pittman could be, who I wanted the Bears to pick instead.

 

Still, I like Wolfe a lot. I think the Bears take something from everybody this season and we'll see a better offense. Olsen is used like Clark in Indy. Wolfe can be used like Bush in NO, although a very poor man's Bush (hehe). Hester, I'd like to see used like Steve Smith was early in Carolina. Five years later, the WR screen finally has a chance to actually work.

 

Strangely enough, as much as the Bears needed to take pressure off of Grossman, it looks like the Bears have the personnel to actually throw the ball more than they did last year.

[jersey cubs fan]

I liked the Wolfe pick during the draft (albeit it was way too early), but doesn't putting Hester on the offense make that pick kind of...unnecessary?

 

I don't see Hester lining up at RB ever, so no. Wolfe is a third down back - he might come out to slot or something for a few plays but I can't see him taking away time from Hester.

 

I still wonder what happens if/when Benson gets hurt....like he did as a rookie and in the Superbowl. Benson runs into people too much to make it healthy through at 350 carry season. Can Wolfe be an everydown back? I don't don't Pittman could be, who I wanted the Bears to pick instead.

 

Still, I like Wolfe a lot. I think the Bears take something from everybody this season and we'll see a better offense. Olsen is used like Clark in Indy. Wolfe can be used like Bush in NO, although a very poor man's Bush (hehe). Hester, I'd like to see used like Steve Smith was early in Carolina. Five years later, the WR screen finally has a chance to actually work.

 

Strangely enough, as much as the Bears needed to take pressure off of Grossman, it looks like the Bears have the personnel to actually throw the ball more than they did last year.

 

In my Madden season I had to rely on Peterson and Anthony Thomas to split the load for the first 8 games, and really stepped up the passing game. Worked well enough.

 

But that is a concern. I like Wolfe as a 3rd down back, but I don't see him being able to carry more than 10 times in any game without dying. I think Peterson can start a game or two. But if Benson is out for any significant time, this is going to get dicey. I would have preferred a guy who could actually develop into an everydown back with time.

 

I think Grossman now has a lot of passing options, I'm just not sure he has any great ones. It would be nice to have an elite pro bowl starting star at some offensive position, to try and carry the load. Instead they have a lot of good players. And I'm still worried about the offensive line.