Chicago Bears Offseason Thread (the tank must payoff)

[Brian707]

1 hour ago, gflore34 said:

For such an important draft it's been extraordinarily underwhelming, you'd think Poles might draft like his future with the Bears is at stake.

I would say whelming is the correct term

[jersey cubs fan]

9 minutes ago, Hairyducked Idiot said:

I don't remotely see the comparison between last offseason and this one.

2022: 
Biggest free agent signing:  Justin Jones at 2 years, 6m per year,.
Major trade acquisitions: None
Picks in the top 4 rounds:  3

2023:
Biggest free agent signings:  4 new starters ranging from $21m to $72m in total contracts
Major trade acquistion: DJ Moore
Picks in the top 4 rounds:  5

Last year was a complete bottoming out of the team's talent level. This year they've brought in literally half a dozen guys better than anyone they brought in last offseason.

You can criticize the decision to bottom out last year. You can criticize their priorities in how they spent their money.  You can criticize their draft decisions.  But I don't see how you can say this offseason resembles last in terms of lack of effort.

I didn’t say anything about effort. I cited the lack of urgency to improve. They’ve replaced the guys they traded away with variations of them, overloaded on LB. The one spot they’ve really improved is WR. And that should help a lot. The offense might take a big leap if Fields can carry them.
But the defense is atrocious. 

[jersey cubs fan]

They are slowly and methodically building a team that could be stacked in 2025. But they still aren’t any good now. 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Offensive line is significantly better 

 

I don't know what "urgency to improve" looks like if it's not bringing in 6-8 new starters better than what we already had.

Edited April 29, 2023 by Hairyducked Idiot

[jersey cubs fan]

3 minutes ago, Hairyducked Idiot said:

Offensive line is significantly better 

 

I don't know what "urgency to improve" looks like if it's not bringing in 6-8 new starters better than what we already had.

Roquan is better than anybody they brought in, and Khalil Mack is in the mix of that group. They are relying on a secondary to carry the defense and none of them are first round talent types. 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

3 minutes ago, jersey cubs fan said:

Roquan is better than anybody they brought in, and Khalil Mack is in the mix of that group. They are relying on a secondary to carry the defense and none of them are first round talent types. 

But losing those guys wasn't part of this offseason 

[Tim]

The Bears still have a pile of money that they have to spend to get to the minimum. There are a bunch of good pass rushers out there and there will still be some additional cuts.

https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-2023-free-agent-rankings-edge-defender

Not to mention that they could still make trades for guys like Young or Sweat.

 

On offense, they've massively improved the WR room, significantly improved the line, and improved the TE & RB.

On defense, they've added athletes at DT, and improved at the third CB.

The only position not improved so far is DE and that's likely where they spend their remaining money that, once again, has to be spent.

 

They're going to be a much better team this year.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

Waiting for cuts never helps.  Our DEs are going to suck and we will sink or swim on that 

[Tim]

5 minutes ago, Hairyducked Idiot said:

Waiting for cuts never helps.  Our DEs are going to suck and we will sink or swim on that 

I'm counting more on signing some of the guys already available. We've got a pile of money that we have to spend somehow.

[jersey cubs fan]

27 minutes ago, Tim said:

I'm counting more on signing some of the guys already available. We've got a pile of money that we have to spend somehow.

Are they not spending that on extensions?

[UK]

Anything less than 7/8 wins next year is a huge disappointment.

[jersey cubs fan]

1 minute ago, UK said:

Anything less than 7/8 wins next year is a huge disappointment.

7 wins is 10 losses. If that’s not hugely disappointing I don’t know what is. 

[Hairyducked Idiot]

I did not expect 3 secondary guys and zero DEs

[bukie]

7 picks on the defense in this draft, 3 on the offense (plus Moore from the pick trade). Built up the defensive line depth and the secondary depth on a unit that was terrible last year, 31st against the run and 32nd against the pass. Surprised they didn't load up on an edge rusher or two, but I have to imagine that's the priority for the rest of the offseason. Fields gets his #1 WR before the draft even starts, the Bears prioritize a top end RT early in the draft, and fill in some WR and RB depth late.

Draft focus really seemed to be on speed and athleticism, with effectively every pick in the 85th percentile or better in RAS. We'll see how it worked, but at least there's a consistent method at play here.

[jersey cubs fan]

10 minutes ago, bukie said:.

Draft focus really seemed to be on speed and athleticism, with effectively every pick in the 85th percentile or better in RAS. We'll see how it worked, but at least there's a consistent method at play here.

Regarding RAS, can anybody give a good reason why they list how a player in 2023 ranks against guys measured in 1987? I cannot think of anything valuable to be gleaned by that data. 
 

 

[stitchface]

1 minute ago, jersey cubs fan said:

Regarding RAS, can anybody give a good reason why they list how a player in 2023 ranks against guys measured in 1987? I cannot think of anything valuable to be gleaned by that data. 
 

 

bigger sample size? I think if you were using it as a predictor of NFL success, you would have to look back at many years. Of course, comparing where the results are relative to other concurrent NFL players is probably the meaningful way to do that.

[David]

 

[Magnetic Curses]

2 hours ago, jersey cubs fan said:

7 wins is 10 losses. If that’s not hugely disappointing I don’t know what is. 

i don't really think people understand how good Fields can be.

[Hairyducked Idiot]

30 minutes ago, Magnetic Curses said:

i don't really think people understand how good Fields can be.

The season is 100% tied to Fields now.  He's got enough to work with.  If he's the guy people keep insisting he is, this roster wins 9+ games.

[jersey cubs fan]

Bears sign the son of the greatest lh arm wrestler in history as UDFA QB.

 

[WrigleyField 22]

 

 

[raw]

Some interesting parallels between last years draft and this one. 

Last year, Poles took 4 OL. All were obviously late in the draft as the Bears had just a few early picks.

This year, Poles took 3 DL. A couple early, 1 late, based on actually having early picks this year.

So, this is a good sign if you want the Bears to sign a couple of FAs later. They obviously signed Schofield and Reiff late in the offseason. The potential is there to do that at DL as well.

 

[BigbadB]

If they sign/trade for 2 DE's, I'll be pretty happy with this roster. I feel like Walker, Robinson and Gipson are all decent enough as rotational backup DE's. But, they still need two starters. I'd be fine with an older dude since there are guys who can rotate in and out to keep everyone rested.

There are several options just sitting there waiting to be picked up. Some may be possibly hoping for a SB contender to nab them, but the Bears have money to spend and should spark interest with playing time available.

It's a long time until the next draft, but if Fields proves to be "the guy", I feel like the Bears can be in a great place going into the next draft. 

[gflore34]

On 4/29/2023 at 5:24 PM, Brian707 said:

I would say whelming is the correct term

You're probably correct, for what its worth most draft experts believe the Bears did well.  Guess my expectations were a bit too high nevertheless, it certainly appears the OL, receiver and running back rooms are significantly improved.  There really is no excuse for Fields not to take big step forward in the passing game next season.  No more excuses, no more Swiss Cheese turn style at C, no more receivers with hands of stone, it's all on Fields and, to some extent, Getsy.

[gflore34]

On 4/29/2023 at 7:49 PM, Hairyducked Idiot said:

I did not expect 3 secondary guys and zero DEs

As stated earlier it appears Poles is a big believer in the effect strong coverage can have on improving a defense.  I can see that, receivers cannot get open as quickly thereby, in theory, allowing your pass rush to get to the QB or something along these lines.