WrigleyField 22

Patrick Williams, F, FSU, it is. Based on the early reaction at RealGM I like this pick.

I mean, second coming of Embiid is awesome! If you think he's closer to that than Ball the second coming of whoever, then theres a good argument for it. Bulls got "lucky" in a pretty poor draft and with Donovan brought it, it doesn't look like they're headed for a tankathon. So they just gotta build a pre-made competitive roster and try and poach the next big FA wing. Without GarPax, I actually buy that they can pull it off. If Porter stays healthy this year and Donovan can coach up Coby playing point, the team could make a really big jump this year. With Otto's money coming off the books, they should be able to get a quality FA on the team next summer (whenever FA actually falls in 21). They've got players to make up a quality supporting cast. They need the star to be the focal point. No matter who they pick, I don't think that star is coming from this draft. Well it wouldn't hurt to get one of your stars in this draft. Obviously you aren't getting both stars, and you don't have one on the roster now. Even if you thought the low-end of Wiseman was merely WCJ, you're at least extending the cheap/controllable window, along with buying the upside. If Wiseman only ever became a DeAndre Jordan rim runner, its still a nice piece to put around a future star FA wing.

I'm guessing fit with the current roster isn't as big of a concern for AK. Do you need a star wing in today's NBA? Yes, but a star Center is still plenty valuable and if you feel he'll reach that ceiling more likely than the other guys, I think you try and address the wing at a later date. I've not watched any of these guys though, so I'm pretty impartial as to what they do. Just glad it's not GarPax still in charge. Yeah, definitely fit with who's on the roster doesn't matter. My angle was more of building a team. If you trade up to #2 for someone, it should be someone you can build a team around. Wiseman's really good, but he's not a guy thats going to create his own shot. You gotta have guys that can create their own shots to build around. Best case, Wiseman's the 2nd coming of Embiid and you still need help on the wing and especially at PG with a guy that can create his own shot (and shots for Wiseman). I mean, second coming of Embiid is awesome! If you think he's closer to that than Ball the second coming of whoever, then theres a good argument for it. Bulls got "lucky" in a pretty poor draft and with Donovan brought it, it doesn't look like they're headed for a tankathon. So they just gotta build a pre-made competitive roster and try and poach the next big FA wing. Without GarPax, I actually buy that they can pull it off.

Apparently there's some rumors about Patrick Williams as well as rumors of LaVine being dangled on the trade market. Not sure if there's a world where AK trades up from 4 and then uses LaVine+ to get back into the lottery. Or perhaps it's Wiseman if they can make the trade, Williams if they can't. Or its all smoke and AK is playing everyone.

I'm guessing fit with the current roster isn't as big of a concern for AK. Do you need a star wing in today's NBA? Yes, but a star Center is still plenty valuable and if you feel he'll reach that ceiling more likely than the other guys, I think you try and address the wing at a later date. I've not watched any of these guys though, so I'm pretty impartial as to what they do. Just glad it's not GarPax still in charge.

The vet FA market is always hard to get a read on, but I just dont see a huge market for Smith compared to the value of locking him on a extension and letting him be the leader of the defense for the next realistic window. I guess if someone comes up with a 1st rounder or multiple top 50 picks I could be swayed, but I don't see it. Somebody's money will have to come off the books in 2026 when the team is needing to extend this year's draft picks, might as well be Smith. Already predicting a Kyle Trask extension. I like it.

Rebuild Red Sox: 2002-2011 Rebuild Cubs: 2011-2020 Rebuild Mets?: 2020 - 2028 Rebuild America: 2028-2036 Theo 2028.

The vet trade market is always hard to get a read on, but I just dont see a huge market for Smith compared to the value of locking him on a extension and letting him be the leader of the defense for the next realistic window. I guess if someone comes up with a 1st rounder or multiple top 50 picks I could be swayed, but I don't see it.

Yea, a Fuller extension is a possibility, for sure.... Really just depends on how risk averse you want to be with soon to be 30 year old CBs. That could maybe get you the cap space you need instead of cutting Leno, to your later point. I'd actually probably prefer to keep Massie and replace Leno, but its a situation where neither is really great. Leno just seems to have more downward trajectory than Massie, IMO. I'd love to see an early investment in the OL with the draft. Pace actually hasn't been horrible finding replacement level OL in FA, with the weird love affair with Coward being probably the biggest stain. You do end up with a little bit of a catch 22 if you invest your first rounder in a QB and totally rebuild the O-line with unknowns. Outside of Fields/Lawrence though, most the other QBs probably aren't day 1 starters though. But you'd also not really trust Foles to stay healthy, especially behind a patchwork OLine. I think you could convince yourself to go with Bars/Mustipher/random vet min FA G as your other interior OLine starter and backups. So it comes down to replacing both tackle spots. ETA- This actually is somewhat the thesis of my post though too. They're stuck with terrible depth in 2021 unless they turnover every possible stone as far a cap manuevers, but since they don't have a QB, you're probably looking at another losing record and then you're still not in a great cap spot in 2022 since you just shifted all the 2021 hits. If Foles was even looking average I'd say, well you could try and double down on awesome D, game manager offense again... But short of finding an unexpected Day 1 QB contributor from a rookie (like a Prescott), you're horsefeathers out of luck.

Thanks Theo.

Maybe replace Phillips/McCaskey though.

Thanks Theo.

I'd say Pace's FA has been a mixed bag, but overall good. Hicks has been one of the most successful FA signings of the past several years. I think he made many of the right calls on many internal FAs as well (Fuller, Amos, Callahan, Meredith are all plus decisions that come to mind). He's gotten a seemingly endless supply of qualified replacement DL bodies to flow through FA. ARob will have been a great value signing. He didn't go crazy investing in safeties opposite Jackson, which again I think is smart. TE and QB decisions have pretty much all sucked (FA or trade). Outside of ARob, WR hasn't been great in FA either, bu no killer deals handed out. OL has been okay FA wise, I'd just have preferred more draft investment. RB he hasn't done much in FA, but that's probably what I'd prefer. He committed to it in the draft generally with mid round picks... that's what you want to see at that spot.

Re: The offseason. The cap could drop down to like 175M. If that happens, to even fill the roster, you're probably looking at; Cut: Massie, Leno Jr, Skrine, Graham Trade: Hicks (I think you could maybe get a 6th or 7th and the trading team would try and extend him). If not, cut as well I don't know what the market for Fuller or Mack would actually be. I'm not sure it'd be worth dumping them for a late pick. They're older, but could still have some legs for 2 or 3 years down the line if you're trying to compete again relatively soon. Fuller's deal is up after 2021 though, so that does play a factor. Stuck with Quinn and Trevathan pretty much. Their 2021 base salaries are both guaranteed, so there is almost no value to cutting them. That would get them about 25M under the cap, but with only like 30 roster spots filled, so with the draft and minimum signings, that basically uses up your cap. If you actually did that, you're also letting Arob, RRH, Patterson, Trubisky, O'Donnell, Edwards Jr, Bush, Mingo, Gipson, Urban, Houston-Carson, Santos all walk. Maybe a couple of those guys come back at small salaries, but I'd feel pretty confident in netting the max 4 comp picks, including a decent one for ARob. They did trade away their 4th this year, but should get 3 comp picks (2 6ths and 1 7th projected). Then I think they send a 7th to OAK for Piniero and get one back from Shaheen (possibly a 6th). So I think they're at 9 picks potentially; 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 6, 6, 6/7, 7. Then all their picks in 2022 still intact, if they netted 4 comp picks from this FA, that's 11 more draft picks in 2022. Then in 2022 the weight of a lot of their dead cap hits is lifted and they could have a very healthy FA splurge along with the 20 recent draft picks just mentioned. So a new GM could remake the roster to his liking a lot very quickly. Fuller, Smith, Daniels, and Miller would be the FA of note that year. Obviously QB would be the big elephant in the room, but basically nothing else on the roster should be a major hindrance to build back in that timeframe. Even without cutting guys they could probably have big cap room and could open up a lot more with aging guys like Quinn, Goldman, Trevathan who's dead hits largely drop off. If Pace stays, I'm guessing they'll figure out some crazy ways to leverage the future 2022/23 space with a lot of salary cap tricks and maybe trade away more future picks. I have grown accustomed and comfortable with some amount of silly cap manipulation because it is basically play money, but at some point, it usually leads to a need to take all the hits you've been moving around. 2021 just looks like that year, especially with a dropping cap due to covid. The only chance of getting out of it most the time is banking on rising cap numbers. So unless you felt really strong about Pace, it make sense to make a move. I still think Pace is okay, and maybe he'll get another shot one day as there's some positives, but I don't like him enough to stick out a transition at this point, and going in again on 2021 is dumb. I'm walking myself into saying Champ Kelly (current assistant director of player personnel) could be that guy, as he could keep whatever is good of the current FO and get some of that continuity benefit, but perhaps put a guy at the top who might do better picking in the top 10 and understand resource allocation/risk better than Pace has (apparently he's something of an analytics/scouting bridge guy on the staff). I'd presume to move on from Nagy, but a lot depends on how you feel about the current QB class in 2021. If you feel relatively certain you'll target one of the QBs, probably best to move on. If you think you may not draft a high pick QB, not a lot of harm in letting him be a placeholder for a year if you want. I suppose part of me just isn't ready for another big tear down like there was between Emery and Pace again. I guess a qualified guy like Dodds could come in for a mini rebuild instead of complete overhaul too, but... I don't know, its never easy for fans to figure out the "hot" FO hires, but apparently one of the hot names is already on the staff, seems convenient.

I wish... but somehow the Bears would horsefeathers that up too. I'm confused, what's supposes to be exciting about that combo? (also, I read and article that had Riddick gotten the NY job, he'd have hired McDaniels.)

Meh it was a nothing contract and he has contributed more than Quinn who they gave an enormous back loaded contract to.

Bold of you to assume we will be making that pick. We'll trade it for a 29-year-old d-lineman. Obviously this is the NFL and you can always cut guys, but this team already has $117m in cap space committed next season to defense alone. And that's with only 4 DL under contract. Yea and a lot of the cap is dead and they have a very small number under contract, so there isn't really even much to blow up. More just about letting FAs walk, maybe pick up some comp picks and try to string two strong drafts together for a quick rebuild (if you can find a QB). I'm down the rabbit hole of GM candidates now. Apparently one of the Bears own guys, Champ Kelly, is a hot target (interviewed for Jets GM job in 2019). Read a few articles and there's actually some intriguing sounding things about him. Came over to the Bears by way of recommendation of Fox. Apparently a strong mix of analytics and scouting. I just want to know if he was one of the FO guys who apparently preferred Mahomes. If he was, I say, worth a shot. Go more with the "redirection" than blowup route.

No shame in that, my man.

Positives of this game, I feel like I can pull back in the "worst 5-x team ever". Line again.

It really depends on the question.

horsefeathers that looks bad. Bray time.

I'm trying to figure out how they even got 108. I think about 40% was one throw.

Hey at least they started losing before it was too late for a top 10 pick. Let's go.

Can't make chicken salad from chicken horsefeathers.

Ok blow it up. 100%.