CP_414

I disagree only because the Cardinals really don't have enough decent pitchers right now. Which 5 pitchers are they going to start that's going to be better than Weaver, even if you don't consider Weaver to be very good? Agreed. Plus what depth do they have when injuries happen? Injuries will happen, they happen to virtually every rotation.

Another gem from the Onion... http://www.theonion.com/content/news/bears_inspire_a_city_still_reeling

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6408486?MSNHPHMA Roesenthal says Wever is near a deal with Seattle. Could be a significant loss for the Cardinals. Who is in their rotation right now? Carpenter, Wainright, Reyes, Wells, Looper?

Hillenmeyer will probably line up on him more than Urlacher or Briggs. Clark scares me more than Wayne or Harrison in this game.

Izturis.

I think the 100million is LEGIT! Also, that chick is crazy hot. I'd be in love if she wasn't a prostitute. She's not a prostitute. She works in the Sports Media, which is worse. I found the link on Peegs, and they also had her myspace page... http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=12135419

I would use him for no more than 6 or 7 plays. A couple of fake end arounds where he is a decoy, maybe 1 acutal end around, and then just send him deep, try to out run coverage and heave it as far as you can Rex.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270082990184#ebayphotohosting This girl really wants to go to the Super Bowl.

The big difference is that Rex did that in a 16 game season, his first full season, when you would expect some bad games. Marquis did it in a 33 game schedule, giving him much more of a chance to allow his better games to offset bad games. He also did that 6 games into a career that has had 2 other terrible seasons. Plus, a pitcher's numbers are a far greater indication of exactly what he did than a QB's numbers. QB's numbers depend heavily on what his players do. A pitcher's numbers depend on his defense to an extent, but it's much more of a 1 on 1 battle between pitcher and hitter. The QB is facing 11 opponents trying to stop him and needs the help of 10 teammates. You already admitted it's clear somebody else is the worst on the list. When we already know the answer, the only point in asking the question again is because you want to stir controversy. The "bad Rex" story sells, and the media loves it. They don't want decent Rex. And the only people who would actually think Rex was the worst are people too stupid to understand the truth. No, I only posted some of my analysis because two people made the statements that he doesn't deserve to be on the list with those other QB's, and that this season is better than those other QB's better seasons in their career. I refuted both of those-but he is most definitely not the worst. He deserves to be on the list of the 5 or 10 worst ever, but he's not the worst-that is clear. I would agree with you on the pitcher analogy, but only to say that a pitcher relies on a manager to limit the damage to his numbers like a QB relies on the other 10 people on the field. LaRussa did nothing to limit the damage to Marquis's numbers, and I'm not sure if the Bears did anything to try to limit the damage in his bad games or not. The problem I have with adding Grossman of the list is his lack of experience. The guy is young and just completed his first full season, to me it just shows injustice to put him on the list. I remember reading that through his first 17 or 18 starts Grossman was better stastically than Favre or Manning were through the same number of starts. To be fair, Manning was an an awful team and was a rookie, but the point remains. Rex Grossman is going to be a damn fine QB in this league for a long time. He has shown that he is capable of greatness, and very few quarterbacks are capable of that. With more experience he will be able to turn his "horrible" games into "bad" games, and by doing that he will become a Pro Bowl QB. I also find it humerous that people picked Seattle over us because Hasselbeck is better than Rex, then the Saints over us because Brees is better than Rex, and now the Colts because Manning is better than Rex. It's a team game. It is the Bears against the Colts, not Manning against Grossman.

Of course, they've been playing just a little bit different of defenses in the playoffs :D ..but then again, that will also be in the case in the Super Bowl. Manning has had a tough test-the #1 scoring defense at their place, the #2 at his place, and now the #3 on a neutral field. Manning's statistics are pretty deceiving, as he's actually played pretty well throughout the playoffs (so has Grossman btw). It could come to QB's, but it certainly might not. Ok-a different question-how do you think the Bears will try to guard the Colts receivers? Who do you double? Another question... How big of a factor is Devin Hester in this game? I think he might, in fact, be a big reason the Bears win the game, if the Bears win. The x-factor, to cite an overused cliche. Coupled with the Colts' lackluster coverage unit, Rex and the Bears should see short fields a lot in this game, and Hester may also run one back on his own. Hester will be huge in this game. The Colts kick coverage has been poor at best. Back in Miami, on the big stage, I think "anytime" has a great chance at a return score. I could also see the Colts punting out of bounds everytime because they fear Hester, and the Bears getting some nice field position out of that.

I'd rather have Rex be the worst quarterback to win a Super Bowl, than the best (or second best) to never win a Super Bowl, like the other guy playing in this game. Next Sunday Rex will shut everyone up.

I don't think she has a freaking clue. Lou and Hendry have been singing a Murton lovefest the last few weeks. If anyone loses tons of at bats to Floyd, it's Jones. I don't see the point of platooning Floyd and Jones. The only reason either is valuable is they can hit RHP well. I don't think Floyd will platoon with anyone, but I think he will replace Jones in the lineup far more often than he replaces Murton. If our outfield is healthy I expect Soriano to play every game, Floyd to start 10-15 times for Murton and Floyd to start 20-25 times for Jones. That said at some point there will be injuries to deal with and this will work it self out through injuries and production.

Agreed. He's an ass, and most of his callers know more about Chicago sports than he does. He's so arrogant about having "played in the NFL." He was a clipboard holder, a glorified PT Willis.

I don't think she has a freaking clue. Lou and Hendry have been singing a Murton lovefest the last few weeks. If anyone loses tons of at bats to Floyd, it's Jones.

If Murton, Floyd, Ward, Soriano and Jones are all on the opening day roster. I have to think they'll go with another infielder there. Theriot can't be the only backup. Probably. I would guess Cedeno would have the edge. Ward can play first. The Riot can handle 2nd, short, or 3rd if necessary. I would rather see Ronny playing in AAA, but I want no part of Perez on this team, so I guess I'll root for Cedeno.

Good deal. I think the 2007 Cubs Opening Day roster is complete. C - Barrett 1B - Lee 2B DeRosa SS - Izturis 3B - Aramis LF - Murton CF - Soriano RF - Jones Bench - Floyd, Ward, Theriot, Blanco, 1 more (Pagan, Cedeno, Perez in the mix) Starters - Zambrano, Lilly, Hill, Prior/Miller, Marquis Bullpen - Dempster, Wood, Ohman, Eyre, Cotts, Wuertz, Miller (of Prior is healthy) Lots of question marks, but a very high ceiling on that team.

It's certainly possible that he could be very good, but you're going to have to accept that he won't break many long runs, and he'll have his limitations. I saw Jones make at least three runs where there's just no way Benson could've broken them like Jones did. He'll have more positive yardage plays, but not as many where he bounces outside or uses a burst to bust a big run. Jones doesn't break long runs. He's far more agile than Benson. I'm thinking of one run that he made in the last game, where he was about to be bottled up and then cut and broke it outside for about an 8 yard gain (think he got down to around the 2). Watching that play, I thought that there's just no way Benson could have made that run. He'd have plowed into the pile and picked up 2 or 3. Thats true, but there are at least 5 times in every game that Benson makes a run that Jones just can't do. They are very different players. Here is the question for the Bears to answer... Would you rather have 70% Jones carries, 30% Benson or 70% Benson, 30% A-Pete? I don't see them keeping Jones, and making him a back-up, so I don't think 70 % Benson, 30% Jones is a real option.

I think Boone and Scott might both be free agents. I hope they keep Scott, he has been pretty good when we have needed him down the stretch.

On Outside the Lines just now they said 7 teams in the NFL had 2 running backs with at least 30% of the teams carries, and 6 of the 7 had winning records. Just some fuel for those who think we need to keep TJ and Ced.

Probably not a first rounder, but he might get you a 2nd rounder. I wonder if any team would be interested in Jones and Wale together. How old is Jones? I wouldn't trade much for a backup RB as they are probably the easiest thing to find. Jones came into the league the same year as Urlacher, so he has been around a little while. I think he is definitly worth a #2 though. He is not a back-up running back. He would start for a lot of teams. 1300-1400 yard running backs are not that common. He did it last year, and he would have done it this year, but the Bears gave Benson a lot of carries towards the end of the season. Also if he can play well next Sunday and the Bears win the Super Bowl, his value goes up. The demand always seems to be higher for guys coming off a Super Bowl win. I think Wale can get us a 2nd round pick as well. I doubt Jones draws a second round pick. He compares very favorably to Travis Henry, who is the same age and came into the league a year after Jones. Jones' career numbers are 5,384 yards and 34 TDs and his best three seasons were (all w/Bears) 948, 1335 and 1210 yards. Henry's career numbers are 5,395 yards and 34 TDs and his best three seasons (2 w/Bills and this year w/Titans) were 1438, 1356 and 1211 yards. The Titans gave a third round pick and we paid much more than anybody was offering because we didn't want the Jags to acquire him. I think I recall the Jags being the top bidder before us, offering a fourth (I think). The only reason Jones might draw more is that the Bills had Willis McGahee and Henry was clearly the backup, Jones, while not clearly the backup, is being forced out by Benson. Both are starter material without much question, though I view Henry as slightly better. Agreed-especially since there were rumors that the Colts couldn't even get a second round pick for Edgerrin when he was trying to work out his own trade a little while ago-I doubt it's changed that much then to let Thomas Jones a 2nd rounder. The highest pick I think in a long while for a RB was a late 2nd for Dillon while in his late prime. Yeah, Edgerrin's better than Henry or Jones and he couldn't even draw a second. I could see a third for Jones, but more likely a fourth. It's simply too easy to find a solid running back. Edge only brought a 3rd to Indy because Arizona also had to give him a monster contract. Not many teams will give up more than a third for the right to pay a running back a ton of money. If he had a team friendly deal like TJ, the Colts would have gotten much more than a #3 for him. Travis Henry is a decent compairison, but I know teams avoided him as a character risk. I'm not much for rumor mongering on the internet, but you would not believe the stories I heard about him from a former Bills coach. I think there is a very good shot the Bears could get a late 2nd for TJ, but maybe it would be a third. Also, I don't think they would really have to replace him. A-Pete would be a solid #2 running back, getting 2 series a game. About Wale, I wouldn't necessarily trade him, but I would rather spend his money on Briggs or extending T. Harris than keeping Wale. I would have no problem if they could deal him for a 3rd. Use the saved money towards a Briggs deal, let Idionje (spelling?) play behind Anderson and Brown, and also have a 3rd round pick out of the deal. My question would be, who was the last running back to be traded for higher than a third round pick? I have no idea, and you very well may be right, but I think this is a bit of a unique situation as well. I can't think of very many quality running backs who have been traded at all recently, and I already noted the differences between TJ and Edge and Henry. I know the Packers got a #2 for Javon Walker, who I believe only had 1 good season in his career to that point, and he did it with Favre passing him the ball. A Super Bowl MVP trophy would do wonders for TJ's value, though!

Probably not a first rounder, but he might get you a 2nd rounder. I wonder if any team would be interested in Jones and Wale together. How old is Jones? I wouldn't trade much for a backup RB as they are probably the easiest thing to find. Jones came into the league the same year as Urlacher, so he has been around a little while. I think he is definitly worth a #2 though. He is not a back-up running back. He would start for a lot of teams. 1300-1400 yard running backs are not that common. He did it last year, and he would have done it this year, but the Bears gave Benson a lot of carries towards the end of the season. Also if he can play well next Sunday and the Bears win the Super Bowl, his value goes up. The demand always seems to be higher for guys coming off a Super Bowl win. I think Wale can get us a 2nd round pick as well. I doubt Jones draws a second round pick. He compares very favorably to Travis Henry, who is the same age and came into the league a year after Jones. Jones' career numbers are 5,384 yards and 34 TDs and his best three seasons were (all w/Bears) 948, 1335 and 1210 yards. Henry's career numbers are 5,395 yards and 34 TDs and his best three seasons (2 w/Bills and this year w/Titans) were 1438, 1356 and 1211 yards. The Titans gave a third round pick and we paid much more than anybody was offering because we didn't want the Jags to acquire him. I think I recall the Jags being the top bidder before us, offering a fourth (I think). The only reason Jones might draw more is that the Bills had Willis McGahee and Henry was clearly the backup, Jones, while not clearly the backup, is being forced out by Benson. Both are starter material without much question, though I view Henry as slightly better. Agreed-especially since there were rumors that the Colts couldn't even get a second round pick for Edgerrin when he was trying to work out his own trade a little while ago-I doubt it's changed that much then to let Thomas Jones a 2nd rounder. The highest pick I think in a long while for a RB was a late 2nd for Dillon while in his late prime. Yeah, Edgerrin's better than Henry or Jones and he couldn't even draw a second. I could see a third for Jones, but more likely a fourth. It's simply too easy to find a solid running back. Edge only brought a 3rd to Indy because Arizona also had to give him a monster contract. Not many teams will give up more than a third for the right to pay a running back a ton of money. If he had a team friendly deal like TJ, the Colts would have gotten much more than a #3 for him. Travis Henry is a decent compairison, but I know teams avoided him as a character risk. I'm not much for rumor mongering on the internet, but you would not believe the stories I heard about him from a former Bills coach. I think there is a very good shot the Bears could get a late 2nd for TJ, but maybe it would be a third. Also, I don't think they would really have to replace him. A-Pete would be a solid #2 running back, getting 2 series a game. About Wale, I wouldn't necessarily trade him, but I would rather spend his money on Briggs or extending T. Harris than keeping Wale. I would have no problem if they could deal him for a 3rd. Use the saved money towards a Briggs deal, let Idionje (spelling?) play behind Anderson and Brown, and also have a 3rd round pick out of the deal.

Probably not a first rounder, but he might get you a 2nd rounder. I wonder if any team would be interested in Jones and Wale together. How old is Jones? I wouldn't trade much for a backup RB as they are probably the easiest thing to find. Jones came into the league the same year as Urlacher, so he has been around a little while. I think he is definitly worth a #2 though. He is not a back-up running back. He would start for a lot of teams. 1300-1400 yard running backs are not that common. He did it last year, and he would have done it this year, but the Bears gave Benson a lot of carries towards the end of the season. Also if he can play well next Sunday and the Bears win the Super Bowl, his value goes up. The demand always seems to be higher for guys coming off a Super Bowl win. I think Wale can get us a 2nd round pick as well.

Congrats to the Illini on the win last night. Their season might have been on the line and they played hard, while IU looked really flat. The Illini did a great job shutting down the entry passes to DJ White, and IU's shooters were just freaking terrible last night. I was hoping for a more inspired effort from Kelvin's boys. Being at the game I was both really impressed and somewhat let down by the Illini crowd. I was impressed by how respectful everyone seemed to be. I stood and cheered for my Hoosiers the whole game, and they supported there team and there was never a bad word said either way to any of the Hoosier fans, other than the ones next to the Krush. I was let down because it was not nearly as loud in that building as I was expecting. Other than a few brief moments it was even hard to tell anyone other than the Krush was even there. IU needs to put it back together and run off some very tough wins the next 4 games. Michigan at home is next (Saturday), then the Badgers at home, then at Iowa, and then I believe the Illini come to Bloomington. The Hoosiers will need to sweep those games to have a decent shot at a share of the Big Ten Title.

I'm all for running more than we pass, and I think our play action can be really effective in this game, but Rex is going to have to make some plays too. The Colts have really zoned in on the run the last few weeks, and I think we can take advantage of that in the passing game. A good balance, with a few more runs than passes is the way to attack the Colts now.

I actually was reading on my Colts board, and was just coming here to post this-shame on me for thinking I could get a scoop on the Bears before a Bears fan :D . Respect my authoritay! :D Hopefully the Colts can get their own good news soon, and the Nick Harper ankle injury is a basketball sprain and not a high ankle sprain. He has been so good this season flying under the radar-no team wants to throw at him much. An interesting stat BTW is that the Colts have not allowed a 100 yard receiver all season. It doesn't mean much for the game, but I love those little tidbits. To be fair that could be because they allowed a 100 yard rusher in every game this season, and teams ran on them more than threw.