UMFan83

The one thing I hate about the NFL is the offseason is soooooooooooooooooooo long compared to other sports. If you miss the playoffs its basically 8 months of waiting. Obviously the NFL has done a great job of keeping themselves relevant during that time, but dammit I want to see Caleb running a Ben Johnson crafted offense like tomorrow, not in freaking September.

Press conferences are informative but ultimately meaningless, but this was a good one. I know every coach demands accountability, but I believe it when he says it. He mentioned how appealing Caleb was to him right in front of Caleb but also didn't fawn him with praise and discussed how much effort and work will be needed to get Caleb to where he should be. If Kap's reporting on Caleb's work ethic is true (meh) or even if its not, I am convinced that Ben Johnson will be someone who is not afraid to push him as hard as its needed to get him where he needs to be.

Statements from Poles, Warren, McCaskey and Johnson. PC tomorrow. This happened so fast!

Honestly this title doesn't bother me (that much). I might have said this earlier in the thread but if there was ever a time for an OSU title to happen, its after a year Michigan won the title and then beat OSU in the season they won the title. I mean come on, OSU is the first team ever that has to literally wear the L from their rivals: I mean it sucks but its also kind of hilarious

IM SO GLAD NOTHING ELSE IN THE WORLD HAPPENED TODAY EXCEPT THE BEARS HIRING A GREAT HEAD COACH (sorry Andy)

Along the lines of predicting contract bravo George doesn’t erase the dog horsefeathers job you’ve done the last 15 years but it’s a start

Its gotta be a great sign that Ben Johnson chose Caleb over Trevor Lawrence and Tom Brady + a big bag of money. I mean its more complex than that, Trevor Lawrence seems like he has a ceiling and hes also expensive, the Raiders have no QB of note. But still, if you felt disappointed by Caleb's season (you shouldn't have) this is a sign that Caleb is likely still thought of highly.

Didn’t realize this:

To emphasize the "look what happened when Ben Johnson took over" And for reference Gibbs, Montgomery and Jameson Willaims didnt come until 2023

I have so many questions now: -Do the Bears consider bringing back Keenan Allen now? I believe there was a report he would prefer to either return to LA or stay in Chicago. Caleb absolutely built a great connection with him. Ben Johnson is someone who can weaponize that more than our coaching staff did last year. - Can Swift be the Bears Gibbs? At least a poor man's version? If so who can be the Bears Monty? Roschon or someone external? It's clear even with Swift, Rome and DJ (and maybe Allen) there is a still a gap between the Lions skill position players and the Bears. And that's not even addressing the offensive line which is drastically worse. Poles better be busy this offseason. OK I guess I only had 2 questions for now. Edit: No! a 3rd question: -NOLA mentioned the style of defense Dennis Allen works best with. I think we are good with the straight man press component but not the "behemoth D Linemen" component. Does Poles go HAM on both lines this offseason finally?

I was just thinking that...I wonder how much interesting knowledge they garnered from all those interviews. Maybe they were keeping an open mind but it seems clear with how quickly they moved (and not even meeting BJ in person) that he was one of their very top choices from the start. I'm sure they got some great intel from everyone else though

Then why was Matt Eberflus allowed to tank another season?

Couple more thoughts: - Once again Schefty saw through the BS and was a voice of reason when everyone assumed it was a foregone conclusion that he was going to LV. - The "next head coach futures" and "plane spotting" people get a big W - I do wonder if Caleb being on that St. Brown podcast had an effect on their decision making. I mean clearly they aren't picking a coach because their rookie QB who finished 28th in QBR last year (as great as his potential is) loves Ben Johnson. But Caleb made it pretty clear that he wanted Ben Johnson and said if it wasn't him "it is what it is". Possibly gave the bears the additional motivation to close the deal - On the flip side, Caleb's father was retweeting critical comments about Ben Johnson over the weekend. However Caleb's dad is also a huge Washington fan so it could have been as much about that as it was about not wanted Ben Johnson to be the bears coach. Also Caleb's dad is weird

For those concerned about Ben Johnson's ability to lead a team or calling him the next Nagy: - Ben Johnson led potentially the best and most innovative offense in football the last 3 seasons. Look at Goff's numbers in Detroit and tell me when Ben Johnson got hired. He was the head coach of the offense - Matt Nagy called plays for 5 games with the Chiefs, under Reid who was the offensive mastermind. He also had Patrick Mahomes, not Jared Goff. I believe Reid even took over playcalling duties for the Chiefs playoff game before Nagy was hired -The Bears obsessed over the statement 'leader of men'. I know, they are still probably incompetent at their jobs, but they were not going to make a hire unless they were convinced that Ben Johnson is a leader of men -To further that point listen to the St. Brown brothers podcast last week with Caleb on it. The way Amon-Ra talks about Johnson, it seems pretty clear that he was beloved and got the most out of his unit. We don't know how he'll manage timeouts or the clock or in game situations, that will always be in doubt until we see it. But he absolutely checks every other box, especially coming in with Dennis Allen at DC. Mike McCarthy is a floor raising move, Ben Johnson is a ceiling raising move IMO. Bad day for America, good day for the Bears

it was almost certainly using them for leverage

As someone that lived through Dave McGinnis and Bruce Arians "finalizing a deal" doesn't let me feel all the way excited yet lol

Is that even the Bears plane or just a charter jet they use? It flew from Pontiac to Chicago as recently as 3 days ago so it seems like that's a normal route for it.

Make bluesky better and I'll move permanently.

If true, lol to the “this is wrapping up soon” crew

Jed: Hey Tom, ready to talk about that contract extension now? Tom:

I love the wording of that report. “Johnson will decide by the end of the week”. Have all 3 teams made it clear that he is their number 1 choice?

No it doesn’t. It’s annoying af but at this point all I can do is laugh and shake my head.

If I was an NL West team I’d be pissed for sure. Of course I want the Cubs to spend like the Dodgers and horsefeathers Tom Ricketts for not spending like this but this is not like the Heat adding LeBron, Wade and Bosh and everyone knew that the east was unwinnable for the next several years (as hard as the Bulls tried pre-Rose injury). The World Series is still extremely winnable for many teams including the Cubs. Maybe a normal great team has a 60% chance of winning a 5 game series and 65% chance of winning a 7 game series. The Dodgers might be up to 65% and 70%. Formidable odds but it’s not hopeless.

Also I wonder how this changes the Cubs spending strategy now. I know there are other relievers the Cubs will pivot to but none likely to get near what Scott got. Will they spend it on 2 relievers, a reliever and a quality bench bat? Or will they just go into the season spending less than they intended because it will make Tom happier and they can pivot to the “in season moves” excuse?