rawaction

I wouldnt trade an outright title for the world, but damn #1 got a tough draw this year. Illinois/Minnesota winner then Michigan/Wisconsin winner. Especially tough for IU considering they went 1-3 against 3/4 of those teams. #3 seems like the spot to be in. Likely get Iowa then Ohio St...imo the weakest of the top 5...... to get to the finals.

That took a lot of luck. 1-4 fts down the stretch. Bad missed flagrant foul. Lucky.

Holy [expletive] we hacked!

Nice adjustment of the flop mid-flop to avoid flopppng into Hardway. It was definitely a flop but it was also a foul.

Shitty called game so far. Were aggressive to the basket and not getting any calls. They are getting all the loose ball calls.

Based on Twitter, sounds like Idonije has other suitors and wants paid more than the 2.5M he got last year, but the Bears don't really want to pay him anymore. Also appears that they are NOT going to tender Nate Collins. That leaves Melton (FA after 2013), Paea, and Toeina (who played a total of 3 games last year) as the only DTs on the roster. Looks like you gotta use a draft pick there now. I'd kick the tires on Glenn Dorsey to see what it would take to sign him. Bears have recent history of taking former top 40 DL picks that haven't quite worked out for their former team/scheme (Okoye, Gaines Adams, Price). Edit: Collins' tender was 1.32M. No way were they going to pay a part-time player that much money. Trying to negotiate a lower deal.

He wanted the Seahawks primarily. I can flip you over to San Diego if you want, though. Ah Don't worry about it then. If/when it gets to that point, I'll take the Chargers as my 2nd team.

Actually u can give me the Chargers. Lo Pan has been the Texans recently.

Well done. I have a feeling they don't want to cut Hester though. Maybe redo his deal for a lot less though. Yeah, the Bears reporters on the radio this week seem to think they want to keep Hester. They also like Spaeth, so I'm not sure they will cut him either. So far, they've said they want to keep everyone except DJ Moore....from a team that wasn't good enough last year. I really don't see the point in keeping Hester if he's going to be the 5th WR (said they want to add speed at WR) and a mediocre kick returner for 2.4Million dollars. They paid for Weems last year who is a 5th WR and kick returner. I don't see Hester taking a paycut just to accept a lesser role.

I think Carimi is going to be the RG next year. He was terrible at RT, was OK at RG last year and giving him an entire offseason at the position could make him above average. He hasn't earned the right to start over Webb at RT. And if he starts at RT with Webb at LT, the OL will undoubtedly be miserable again. I think the Bears would like to bring in a LT to move Webb to the right, but if they can get a huge upgrade at RT, they'll keep Webb at LT and hope to get a really good LG. Winston would keep Webb at LT, but on the plus side he'll be cheap enough that the Bears could also afford to sign an OG or TE....assuming they clear some money pretty soon. i would love to see what a healthy Louis can do at RT, but that's probably sailed with the ACL injury. do they have enough money for someone like levitre AND winston? if so, we'd have enough coverup to make webb look like an average LT. and that way we could draft Eifert in the first and hope for Jones in the second. BArrett Jones is going to be a a perrenial pro-bowl player. Yeah, I think so. Winston was on a 4/22M deal. And was just cut for the 2nd year in a row. Though he's still a good player, he won't get 5.5 a year. The highest paying OG in the league only makes 8M annually, so Levitre at best will make that much. 12-13Mil is a realistic amount that can be shed.

FWIW, in order to clear cap space..... Cut Kellen Davis- 2.5M savings Cut Devin Hester- 2.4M savings Cut Matt Spaeth- 1.625M savings Cut Matt Toeina- 1.25M savings Charles Tillman- restructure to 4-year/32Mil deal, little more than Carlos Rogers deal w/ 49ers last year. Due 8Mil this year, make that a signing bonus. Only 2 Mil of that will count toward the cap this year. Give him 3Mil base salary this year and guarantee his salary in full for a 2nd year. Tillman pockets 11M this year, only counts 5 Mil toward the cap, Bears save 3Mil Henry Melton- Red Bryant got 5/35M last year, sign Melton to 5/36.5M. Due 8.65 this year, give him a 10M signing bonus. Again only 2Mil toward the cap. 3.5 base this year. Guarantee his salary for 2014 and 2015. Pockets 13.5 this year, only 5.5 against the cap, Bears save 3Mil. Tim Jennings- similar to other 2. 5.1 due this year, make that a signing bonus, low base, can save a 1.5-2.5 Million in cap hit. Robbie Gould- same as Jennings, less money, only saves about 1.5Mil though That gives the Bears about 20 Mil in cap space (3.9 currently left). Should be able to sign Urlacher, Idonije (necessary for DL depth), Hayden, and then either splurge on a LT or sign a guard and TE.

I think Carimi is going to be the RG next year. He was terrible at RT, was OK at RG last year and giving him an entire offseason at the position could make him above average. He hasn't earned the right to start over Webb at RT. And if he starts at RT with Webb at LT, the OL will undoubtedly be miserable again. I think the Bears would like to bring in a LT to move Webb to the right, but if they can get a huge upgrade at RT, they'll keep Webb at LT and hope to get a really good LG. Winston would keep Webb at LT, but on the plus side he'll be cheap enough that the Bears could also afford to sign an OG or TE....assuming they clear some money pretty soon.

Problem is u only has so much money and so few picks. But I think it is very feasible to use Garza's money in something else and replace him in the draft with Edwin as a fallback option.

Worth noting that Emery was head of scouting when Atl drafted Baker. Could be a real possibility.

louis should be re-signed on the cheap and should be a fixture at guard in the long term. the other guard position can be filled by taking barrett jones in the 2nd. jones can slide to center if need be. this would give us the flexibility to take an ILB in the first. i'm ok with t'eo, not so much with ogletree The problem u run into is that u still have Webb and Carimi on the edges. Unless u sign or draft an OT. In that case, u have one of Carimi, Louis, Jones on the bench unless u cut Garza which would be ok by me but maybe not realistic.

i'm good with his. melton will have to be extended as well. he should get around 5 mil instead of the 8+. he's cheaper to keep long term than franchise. i like baker, but i like finley more than cook. Agree with Finley over Cook. I think u need a guy that can at least try to block.

He's actually the top rated OG per PFF. Interesting thing is that he's only ever played RG. And it's probably a case of old dog/new trick with him. Meanwhile, the Bears have Carimi, who played RG last year and the position I assumed he was earmarked for this year. Louis also is still a possibility to re-sign and also played RG, though he is flexible having played both.

So if Michigan St. wins tonight, IU is #1 seed. Maybe they will cut down the other basket's net tonight!

I still feel like TE isn't worth spending a lot of money on, especially not in lieu of OL help. Jared Cook would be a nice luxury, but if the Bears want a TE with a lot of potential to stretch the field, I'd just as soon trade down and target Zach Ertz late 1/early 2. Or draft Escobar in the 2nd. FWIW, don't think Eifert is worth 20 and won't be there much later than that.

Forgot about them. Isnt the South in Lexington though? Lexington hosts the first two games (first and second rounds in old lingo, second and third rounds in current lame lingo). There was some debate if IU would get sent to Dayton or Lexington if they do get a No. 1 seed, though it seems like it would be Dayton. The South Regional is in Arlington, Texas. Hell, just beat Michigan and get the MW #1. FWIW, I think this game is much more winnable than @ Michigan St. was on paper. IU doesn't matchup that poorly with Michigan as our 2 best defenders get their 2 best offensive players and they can't really get physical with Cody/Watford.

Forgot about them. Isnt the South in Lexington though?

Please no. No Cutler = no win. Maximize the team around Cutler and draft a QB mid-round in the next couple years but don't spend money on veterans backups. Not talking about real money. But they aren't going into the season with just a draft pick and the Udfa from last year as backups. Thats all they have. Campbell and McCown are ufas.

One thing in IU's favor, is that they don't have much competition for the Midwest region. If Duke or Gonzaga 1 seeds, they aren't going to the Midwest. Kansas could go to the Midwest, but I think they'd prefer the South. And I don't think the committee would put teams outside of their region just because none of them fully deserve it. Michigan is probably the only team that has a chance to take the MW #1 from IU, and if IU can win there or go further/win the B1G tourney that conversation is over too.

Yeah, I've been thinking the "cheap" route may be the way to go this offseason. Jake Long or Andre Smith would eat up a huge chunk of space. And as I see it, the Bears could stand to upgrade all of the following: 2-3 OL spots, TE (maybe 2 spots, if cut Spaeth also), backup QB (again maybe 2 spots), WR, DT, DE, CB (also maybe 2 spots if Hayden leaves), and LB. With only 5 picks, the Bears either have to trade down, spread out the $ in free agency, or suffer at a couple positions. That being said, I think I'd still rather spend a chunk on OT (maybe not Long though), then get cheap depth in free agency at DT (Dorsey?), backup QB, and maybe CB. Then I'd draft WR, LB, TE, OG, and CB.

It's incredible how just about all of the 1-seed candidates have at least one inexplicable loss on their resume. IU's the only one I can think of without a really terrible one (road losses to Illinois and Minnesota are nothing to be ashamed of). Every game they've lost has been to a team that's going to be a top 7 seed in the NCAA's. But I am ashamed of the Ohio St. loss. I just dont think they are a very good team. I think Illinois is a more complete team actually. Not that OSU is bad, but as I said earlier, can't lose that game on that day under those circumstances on Tuesday.