scarey

They've been doing it all year. Izzo almost lost a lung complaining about it last week. Painter complained about not getting calls AGAINST Edey through his first 3 years, and they finally started calling them near the end of last year. They still miss a bunch of hooks on Edey every game, but this is what college basketball refing is. I am in no way saying you shouldn't be upset about it, but this is how things work in the NCAA. If you are a national player of the year candidate, whistles will blow more often in your favor.

Teams have not been able to get fast break points on Purdue this year. Braden Smith's improved decision making is a big reason for this. We aren't seeing the 5-8 turnover games like he had last year. As much as the level up from Smith is helping them, having a secondary ball handler in Lance Jones as a pressure release valve has been a BIG deal. Smith wore down as the season went on last year, and having that constant burden as their sole ball handler didn't help. Jones' backcourt defense and awareness is also a huge factor on minimizing fast break points. He had an ugly game today, but he is a difference maker even when he has a bad shooting night.

What a weird game. -Illinois clearly were just letting Edey get what he wanted until around 14 minutes left in the game, then they started challenging him -Hansberry with 4 fouls in 4 minutes? I was following the game without being able to watch and thought it was a glitch when I saw it the 4th time -The Illini almost matched Purdue on rebounding, which almost never happens -Purdue couldn't miss from beyond the arc late in the game -Shannon shot HORRIBLY It was nice as a Purdue fan to see Loyer bust out in this one. I have worries as Jones has been really really bad in two straight games. Hope they can figure that out

Honestly, teams try to do this against Edey pretty much every game. He is incredibly disciplined when it comes to choosing his spots on defense. He will let in easy ones from time to time because of it, but Purdue's scoring efficiency really counteracts that. There was a sequence against Michigan State where their off the bench center Booker hit two back to back 3s. It loosened up the lane a little bit, but Booker stopped making those and Edey went back to protecting the rim. The guy is so hard to play against partly because of his talent, but also because of his smart decision making.

I have a feeling my Boilers are taking an L on Friday.

I just wanted to say I am loving this unified "ignore Kyle" stance we're taking here. Keep it going.

I didn't watch this game, but I was watching the highlights and am scratching my head at a handful of plays that looked like this: This looked a lot like some of the wide open receivers against the Bears in week 18, My question would be, is LaFleur's offensive scheme this good? How does an NFL receiver get THIS open without a busted coverage? Or was it a busted coverage? I could tell the Melton TD was a busted coverage due to the safety falling down, and the 2 point conversion was legitimately good design... but how are the Packers the beneficiaries of stuff like this so often if not scheme? And if it is scheme... can we get some of that?

Carr's contract isn't too bad after 2024. Cap hit is $17M, $11M, and$6M respectively after this year. I agree, this shouldn't be done just to facilitate the trade of Fields... But if the Saints are willing to compensate for taking the contract, it could be worth while.

Would it be a crazy idea if Poles were to take Jones or Carr back as a really expensive backup? That could potentially sweaten the return for the Bears. I know offloading contacts is not normal in the NFL... I'm not sure if it even works with the way cap hits work. But, this is truly a unique situation that makes it possible.

I haven't been much of a fan of Braxton Jones and have advocated for looking for a better tackle... but I might be willing to back off my feelings on this. Tied for the 4th best pass block win rate, and middle of the road in double team percentage.

I thought Johnson had a reputation of a very good pass blocker. I remember him making some amazing blocks this year.

I think it's 99% probability that Caleb, Maye, and MHJ all go top 3. The 1% I'll reserve for a possible Daniels reach. That leaves 5 picks between the Bears and the 9 pick. Assuming they stay in the 1 spot and draft Williams, I am dreading a nightmare scenario where those 5 picks are Nabers, Odunze, Alt, Fashanu, and Bowers. I think the talent drop off after those 8 players is massive and the Bears will have missed out. I do think there's a good chance that 1 or 2 QBs will be picked in there somewhere. Personally, I'd be thrilled if one of Alt or Fashanu were to fall to 9. I am sick of relying on plan C/D/F for left tackle and the O-line in general. I'd be thrilled with either of Nabers or Odunze. So that leaves Bowers. I have heard a lot of hype on what Bowers will be able to do at the NFL level. I'm curious for those among us that put a little more into evaluating college talent (Raw?) if Bowers has enough receiving ability to be consistently split out. Does he project as a better blocker than Kmet? I guess I'm wondering out loud how much sense does it make to draft another tight end. I think we can all agree that Kmet's production the last 25 games or so has been really good. I want to maximize this pick and if we're only seeing one of Kmet or Bowers on the field at a time consistently, I just don't know if it's a worthwhile pick despite Bowers' talent level.

As a Purdue fan, I would give them a bit more credit than that. They seemingly couldn't miss from three (all the fall-away threes were infuriating to watch) but they also did a number on Edey and did a good job jumping passing lanes on the perimeter. They played a really good game. Hats off. 60% from three was a huge factor, but it wasn't the sole reason. I think they're a legit team (although I fully expect them to get crushed by Iowa, it seems to be the way it goes when teams knock us off our perch).

I don't know if it is the dread I tend to feel every time the Bears play the Packers, but the first Packers drive made me think the Bears were just not going to get to Love today. Even when Walker got that sack, it just seemed like he was going to be sitting in the pocket all day without bother.

Been following this guy for the last couple of weeks. He does really good technical breakdowns on Big Ten basketball. Here, he shows some of the adjustments Illinois did to get back in the game against Edey and Purdue.

Nobody's debating you on the play. You mention that people can talk about the Bears instead of you, but we've collectively agreed they sucked. You're loving this, and talking about emotions and truth is just deflecting from the fact that Trypt has you pegged here. I know this is just hardening your nipples that just more, so drink this one up. I won't be providing you more fuel after this one.

Man, your ego is something else.

You really are enjoying this, aren't you?

You really are enjoying this, aren't you?

Surprising that Illinois was able to get Edey into foul trouble. Not an easy task, and I'll have to look at the game closer to see if there was something specific they were able to do to force him into bad situations. While it's concerning to see only 10 points from Edey, I think I'm happier to see TKR fill up the stat sheet instead. He, Gillis, and Jones were great tonight. Purdue destroyed Illinois on the boards. That to me was the major difference in this game.

Personally, I think there meatballs will quickly jump in the new QB bandwagon. There will be there random one offs who will pop up from time to time when the new QB faulters even slightly, but it will be no different than the holdover Mitch fan boys.

If my post lead anybody to believe I'm advocating for selecting him 1st overall, than let me set the record straight. The MHJ option is inclusive of a trade down.

I think we need to see how the pre-draft buzz builds up the value of guys like Daniels and McCarthy. If the draft order shakes out as it stands for the current top 3, the Bears are in an excellent position to dictate a huge overpay on a trade down. The value from for either Williams or Maye is going to be extremely tempting by comparison, and I won't be surprised if New England or Washington dish out a future first plus more to put themselves in position to draft their guy. It's why, more than anything, I think it's important that the Bears take Fields 5th year option and then take bids from everybody even if it's up until the draft. Either you hold on to Fields and trade him later if you have to, or you get blown away by a trade offer for either Fields or the 1st overall pick. To me, cashing in a trade for Fields for anything less than a 2nd rounder is a mistake that takes away the option for somebody to make you a ridiculous offer for the 1st overall pick.

There seems to be a sentiment that you either fall into two camps: 1. I believe in Justin Fields 2. I think Williams/Maye will be better for the team long term I'd like to enter the third option: 3. I don't want to miss out on MHJs HOF career in Chicago for a rookie QB that the Bears probably ruin anyway