Thread: Matt Bowen Tweets

Originally Posted by Riczaj01

He stated he thinks Conte/Wright will be your starting safeties this year. And says he's been impressed w/Conte's range, technique and footwork.

Said Jennings has been starting opposite Tillman all week when someone asked if who was going to start opposite Tillman.

And said b/c of Marshal he thinks there will be oppertunities to strike downfield(was asked if he thought the Bears would take shots downfield).

Starting guards(no suprise) Spencer/Louis.

Asked if they start hardin/steltz over wright if he strugles he said you have to b/c of the tampa 2.

I'd be happier w/Hardin was there instead of Wright but I think we'll at least have some decent depth at the position for a change.

Happy for Jennings, if we could get another legit CB it would be huge; been a long time since we had one besides Tillman.

Don't remember who was saying it but it was like Hub or Zach or Brad Briggs, but one of them said that if they don't keep Brown on the active roster he'll be snatched off the practice squad.

Originally Posted by JJ-30

J. Brown needs to remain on the active roster or I am sure we will lose him. He is one of the steals of this NFL draft.

Just a few comments vis a via what I highlighted.

Let me take a few or you back 3 months to the period right after the NFL Draft when some of you were howling because we didn't take an OLineman somewhere in the middle rounds instead of another Safety and a TE or even in the 6th or 7th where we took two CB's.

I said then, and that was confirmed by several published sources, that James Brown was as good as any OLineman we could have drafted anywhere from round three on. Kiper had him rated a solid 3rd and others no less than a 5th but for whatever reason, "tweener size", off field issues, or whatever he slipped and we were able to pick him up without even spending a pick on him. He was the second highest rated UDFA overall and the highest rated OLineman.

So by passing on him in those middle rounds or even at the tail end look at the other benefits we got from that.

Ric says he'd be happier with Hardin at SS but if we'd drafted Brown in the 3rd this portion of his post wouldn't even exist. I'll chime in and say that I feel the same but for now he's #2 to Conte and earmarked for ST to begin with. And speaking of Conte how many of you would raise your hands and admit how unhappy you were with THAT pick last year? Be honest now, LOL.

In the last three drafts we taken 3 Safeties very few here thought we should have yet we now have four young guys with a reasonable amount of starting experience and a fourth who may well win a starting spot before the year is out. Speed, size, youth, talent, experience and the kind of depth we haven't had there in over 20 years. Three third round picks and a fourth spread out over fours drafts and half this board thought they were all wasted picks at the time they were taken. Looks to me like we have our depth.

One of those late round CB's, Isiah Frey, has been having a damn good camp and figures to at least make the PS if he doesn't make the final cut. Not bad for a "shot in the dark" 6th round pick whose been doing in NFL camp just about the same stuff he did in college (breaking up passes) which is what attracted him to the Bears to begin with. Kelvin Hayden is also making a big move to unseat Tim Jennings and Jennings has really lifted his game a notch or two to avoid that so we not only have one legit outstanding LCB opposite Tillman, we have two. Wilhite is also showing he belongs so now we have great depth and experience at CB along with a pair of rookies who show good potential.

Fourth rounder Evan Rodriguez is doing his best imitation of Aaron Rodriguez in camp and looks like he's carved out his spot as the "F" TE and may challenge Clutts at FB as well. It looks like he has his spot locked up and will probably haul in quite a few key passes this year provided he avoids any inuries and stays in the lineup.

Then of course there's Alshon Jeffery who were able to draft in the second primarily because Emery was willing to spend a fifth for the right to leap frog a few other interested teams in order to get him. I think he'll haul in more than just a few passes this year too and it wouldn't suprise me if a fair amount of them went for six points.

So the 3rd was Hardin, the 4th was Rodriguez, the 5th got us Jeffery in a move up, the 6th got us Frey, and even the 7th got us a top KOR guy and potential STeamer who may stick as well or maybe make the PS as an hedge against an injury to one of the other return guys. Seems to me all of these guys will either make the team or at the very least have the potential to stick on the PS.

Which one would these guys have preferred not to have taken in lieu of James Brown who we got anyway and shows signs that he may have the potential to a starter in another year or two? You should all be ashamed of yourselves for criticizing these picks and saying we did nothing to improve the line.

j/k

There also an article saying another FA pickup OT, Corey Brandon, may end up pushing CWill pretty hard for a backup role. Big kid, 6'7" 320lbs who fell down the boards as a senior but was once and Outland Trophy prospect just like Carimi. Prototypical RT they say. And we got Rachal who may not start but he's a decent enough vet backup to make us feel a bit more secure than what we had last year. EWill looks like he's ready to step up his game too.

Competition has got to be pretty fierce on that line if there's a good chance that one of your best 2010 lineman may either end up on the bench as a swing OT or even get bumped by less costly alternatives Personally I don't think that's gonna happen and I wouldn't mind seeing CWill back at LG but I think the bottom line is that it is possible that we have far more talent emerging on that line than we ever suspected. The preseason is gonna tell us a lot.

Originally Posted by MPBears68

I'd like to see Clutts stick as a FB/LS so I hope you're right. He was a pretty good blocker for us last year. That leaves a battle for the RB3 spot (I doubt we will keep 5) and its tough. Both Bell and Allen flashed something last year and I think neither of them would stay unemployed long if cut. Some team will pick them up as a reserve RB. Prob the damn Lions! Lol. Unga we could prob sneak onto the PS if desired.

I'm curious as to how much Tice will use a FB in his offense.

This......is fun.

Originally Posted by MPBears68

I'd like to see Clutts stick as a FB/LS so I hope you're right. He was a pretty good blocker for us last year. That leaves a battle for the RB3 spot (I doubt we will keep 5) and its tough. Both Bell and Allen flashed something last year and I think neither of them would stay unemployed long if cut. Some team will pick them up as a reserve RB. Prob the damn Lions! Lol. Unga we could prob sneak onto the PS if desired.

Originally Posted by JustAnotherBearsFan99

I'm curious as to how much Tice will use a FB in his offense.

Clutts has competition coming from two guys. One is Rodriguez who could potentially play a FB role along with playing the "F" TE spot which keeps him on the field more often and I think that's what Tice is looking for in a FB. The other is Harvey Unga who is also getting some work at both FB and TE.

Purely from an offensive standpoint you'd have to say that Rodriguez has the advantage provided he can handle the blocking responsibility but there may be room to him and a FB depending on how well whoever else they keep can handle ST stuff. Here Clutts has and advantage over Unga based on experience.

Unga is a bull of a RB and could be just as effective as Bush as a short yardage guy but I don't see them keeping him as a RB unless he can play FB and STeams too. So I think it's Clutts and Unga who are actually the guys going head to head.

Tice uses a true FB sparingly and statistically Forte has run better out of one back sets than he has two back sets so he really doesn't need the lead blocker which is primarily what Clutts is. Bush has the size to be his own blocker so there isn't much need there either. I like both Clutts and Unga so I'm torn as far as who they should keep if either of them. I'd need to see some preseason action before I'd pick a favorite.

I think the RB who may end up on the bubble is Bell. Allen and Booker are better choices for a complimentary "scat back" where as Bell is kind of a cross between Forte and Bush. Bell is also pulling down a lot more $$$ under his tender. If either Allen or Booker have a strong preseason and show some ST talent the Bears may try to unload Bell for a pick.

If somebody loses a good back in preseason Bell could attract some interest. IMO he's not good enough to be a "feature back" but he could start in rotation with another back. I think the competition for that 3rd RB spot bares some watching. Whoever emerges from the preseason with the best combination of RB and ST skills will probably stick and it may not be Bell.

I see us having to cut some good players this year because there just isn't room for them and Bell may be one. Let's face it, with Bush and Forte under 4 year deals he has nowhere to go in Chicago so next year he leaves as an UFA anyway. If we could coax a 4th or 5th rounder out of someone for him I'd be in favor a taking it and keeping a back with a different skill set.

Originally Posted by Riczaj01

Soul, all joking aside, if Brown had gone elsewhere(which was a distinct possibility as is the case w/any FA) we'd be boned; and I think we could have lived w/out Frey to ensure it...but it all worked out.

In one draft Emery has started a bottom up aproach to the draft, and it's already showing dividens.

No "ulda's" Ric, they don't count, and that's one. LOL Yes he "coulda" gone elsewhere but he didn't. I think given the OL issues here that he and his agent saw this as his best choice to make a final roster. Having Tice around didn't hurt either.

Right or wrong here's what I think went down. Somehow the kid's stock fell on draft day. It might have been outside issues but I think it had more to do with his size, or lack of it. He's 6'4" and about 305lbs so he wasn't prototypical size for a LT (where he played in college) or a RT. There were probably also questions as to whether he had the size for OG either. He was a very good athlete but a "tweener" as OL go. Lance Louis was like that at one time too and he struggled until he gained about 20lbs. So Brown was seen as a project and not worth a 5th so teams passed.

He may have gone in the 6th or the 7th but lately a lot of teams (the Bears included) look to fill ST spots with those picks so they look at DB's, LB's, TE's or maybe take a flyer on a speedy WR or even a RB hoping to get lucky. Those guy rate higher on their boards and by then they aren't filling a position as much as looking at BPA's. My guess is Frey rated slightly higher as a CB and McCoy as a KOR/DB than Brown did as a lineman and apparently others had similar thoughts.

So even before that last pick is made the way it seems to work is you've got whoever scouted the kid on the horn with him telling him that if he doesn't get drafted we want to sign you as a "top priority" FA. Yeah there was a little risk but it's pretty clear that either Emery and his scouts know what they're doing or their mighty damn lucky. I'll go with the first one. They picked up OT Cory Brandon too and that kid had a pretty good college career until his senior year when his 2011 draft stock fell too. Now's he a year older, 20lbs heavier, a little more mature and he's challenging for a backup RT spot.

So we actually managed to get two half way decent OT prospects after the draft. Brown should definitely make the team and Brandon maybe spends a year on the PS developing a little more. We were pretty well stocked at OG so but we did manage to find a couple of OT prospects.

Originally Posted by soulman

Clutts has competition coming from two guys. One is Rodriguez who could potentially play a FB role along with playing the "F" TE spot which keeps him on the field more often and I think that's what Tice is looking for in a FB. The other is Harvey Unga who is also getting some work at both FB and TE.

Purely from an offensive standpoint you'd have to say that Rodriguez has the advantage provided he can handle the blocking responsibility but there may be room to him and a FB depending on how well whoever else they keep can handle ST stuff. Here Clutts has and advantage over Unga based on experience.

Unga is a bull of a RB and could be just as effective as Bush as a short yardage guy but I don't see them keeping him as a RB unless he can play FB and STeams too. So I think it's Clutts and Unga who are actually the guys going head to head.

Tice uses a true FB sparingly and statistically Forte has run better out of one back sets than he has two back sets so he really doesn't need the lead blocker which is primarily what Clutts is. Bush has the size to be his own blocker so there isn't much need there either. I like both Clutts and Unga so I'm torn as far as who they should keep if either of them. I'd need to see some preseason action before I'd pick a favorite.

I think the RB who may end up on the bubble is Bell. Allen and Booker are better choices for a complimentary "scat back" where as Bell is kind of a cross between Forte and Bush. Bell is also pulling down a lot more $$$ under his tender. If either Allen or Booker have a strong preseason and show some ST talent the Bears may try to unload Bell for a pick.

If somebody loses a good back in preseason Bell could attract some interest. IMO he's not good enough to be a "feature back" but he could start in rotation with another back. I think the competition for that 3rd RB spot bares some watching. Whoever emerges from the preseason with the best combination of RB and ST skills will probably stick and it may not be Bell.

I see us having to cut some good players this year because there just isn't room for them and Bell may be one. Let's face it, with Bush and Forte under 4 year deals he has nowhere to go in Chicago so next year he leaves as an UFA anyway. If we could coax a 4th or 5th rounder out of someone for him I'd be in favor a taking it and keeping a back with a different skill set.

How cool is this that we are talking about having to cut loose good players / stashing them on the P.S. instead of bitching about the "Angler's" blown draft picks or Who will be our starting QB. I find it refreshing and shocking at the same time.

Originally Posted by Zelezo Vlk

We haven't been discussing who the starting quarterback will be for four years now, have we?

No we have not but before J.C. it was a yearly occurrence for decades. Now not even a question of who our #2 is. UNREAL !