Post-Lockout personnel moves

My preliminary take so far:

Center
Re-signing Kreutz (esp. since he's agreeable to a one-year only deal) has to be the biggest no-brainer out there. I know he's not what he used to be physically, but A) he's desperately needed for his leadership & knowledge/experience/continuity with the system and B) it is not like JA has an immediate upgrade lined up. I like the pickup of Linnenkohl as an UDFA (thought he could have been a late-round pick for us), but he's at least a year from significant PT in the best case scenario. The Bears signed their big-WR on the cheap in Roy Williams, so PAY KREUTZ THE EXTRA $500K HE WANTS IMMEDIATELY.

WR
I would have preferred Floyd (figuring Sidney Rice was way too pricey for JA's taste), but I can live with Roy Williams. He's got history with the coaching staff so hopefully he can recapture some of his 2006 magic. If he reverts to his Dallas disappearing, ball-dropping act, then this will be another classic example of how cheaping-out can be so expensive in the long run. Losing RDavis was a bit of a ST blow but replacement help is available there. I like the other down-the-depth-chart possibilities brought in.

OG
Does anybody have any idea why virtually NOTHING has been done here??? Given the glaring obviousness of this hole, its baffling...

TE
I'm very disappointed in the Olsen trade. He was Cutler's only big go-to guy and Martz-not-liking-receiving-TEs or not, he should have been kept around. I'm fine with Spaeth as a replacement for Brandon Bust Manu, but not for Olsen. The only consolation in this bonehead move is that the 3rd round pick we got will likely be at the top of the round since he went to the Panthers. Not much, I admit...

Secondary
Lost Manning, but generally we look to be ok.

DL
We should be strong here. I hope Gholston and/or Okoye can contribute something.

RB
Forte needs to be locked down with a deal he deserves. He's one of the more unsung and under-rated O players in the league. Chester Taylor totally sucked last year, so cut his overpaid ass loose unless he clearly beats out Barber in preseason for the #2 job.

LB
Re-signing Roach was vital. I like what I see here and have high hopes for the future in JT Thomas.

Punter
Maynard was slipping big time, so the move was warranted.

QB
I was afraid that Martz was gonna pull some anti-Hanie move off here, so I'm glad we re-signed him. Dear Coaching Staff, please remember that Hanie is the absolute #2 QB if needed.


Final Question
IS THERE ANY HOPE (AND HELP) FOR THIS O-LINE???

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Originally Posted by MPBears68

Final Question
IS THERE ANY HOPE (AND HELP) FOR THIS O-LINE???

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you can say Carimi is a new guy and upgrade.

Nice commentary MP. I thought of doing one of these myself but the first 13 words all started with F U C and K so I thought I better wait. :laughing-019:

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Originally Posted by GermansbombedPH

you can say Carimi is a new guy and upgrade.

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Yes, he definitely is.

This (the OL upgrade situation) was discussed thoroughly here pre-draft with a thousand different permutations thrown out there involving both the draft and FA. The general consensus was that the OL needed 2 significant upgrades minimum to be decent. Getting Carimi in round 1 was definitely a big win and improvement for OT. That left filling an OG-starting spot out of FA--which we all assumed was going to priority#1 as soon as the lockout ended.

Well...it hasn't happened yet and a number of the top FAs are now off the market.
And...if the Bears foolishly let Kreutz go (resigning him was also thought to be a given) & have Garza play C, the OG position goes from needy to desperate.

I don't get it.....

Quote:

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Originally Posted by soulman

Nice commentary MP. I thought of doing one of these myself but the first 13 words all started with F U C and K so I thought I better wait. :laughing-019:

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LOL

Soul, please weigh in anyway...wanna hear your thoughts.

Who's left for OG? Blalock, correct??

Personally, I'm trying to wait until the dust settles before I start forming detailed opinions. Although my knee-jerk thoughts (particularly regarding the o-line) run something to the effect of: Jerry has his head so far up his A$$ that the light he sees at the end of the tunnel is just his own (Jerry's) mouth breathing.

A truly serious case of auto-cranial auto-rectal impact syndrome......

Trust me there is no reverting to his Det days; and even then he was only average. Ball drops and allegator arms have nothing to do w/scheme and everything to do w/a scared WR. Hurd replaced Davis, and I do believe that is an upgrade. So far the only real upgrades I've seen are on the ST's side. Everything else is a slip(O) or basically stayed the same w/potential for upgrade(D). This is not going to be a great year if the OL is not significantly upgraded, and one rookie is not going to make the difference. Barber will also suffer the same fate as Taylor b/c no wholes are going to open up for him up the middle; but he is a better option then Taylor.

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Originally Posted by Riczaj01

This is not going to be a great year if the OL is not significantly upgraded, and one rookie is not going to make the difference. Barber will also suffer the same fate as Taylor b/c no wholes are going to open up for him up the middle; but he is a better option then Taylor.

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Yep. I've said it before in defending Taylor-who I could care less about- but NOBODY is going to be able to run between the guards and center. Forte got most of his bouncing to the outside. We'd be better off with Reggie Bush as outside will be the only positive yardage. Think we had zero goal line punch last year? Try this year-it will be in the negative

I'm kidding about Bush obviously.

Offensive line as usual is totally neglected by JA. As I predicted on another thread.we will end up with Spencer at C who is yet another first round bust. JA is really looking for lightning in a bottle this season. Only moves I like so far are Okoye and Poldesh. I think Okoye will fit good in this defense and is really young. At 1.3 million it is a good risk. Other than that not impressed with any signings of players not on the roster last season. Still waiting for at least one G signing. What do you all think of Tatupu for strong lb? Another Ruskell connection just released by Seahawks.