Reality is beginning to set in for me now.

I'll preface this post to say "it's all good" change. And I'm glad we pulled the plug on the Lovie era.

Initially, I believed it would be a more simple transition for 2013. I figured we had a 10 win team. We had a great defense and special teams. We had Cutler, Marshall, Forte & a promising rookie, AJ, on offense.

How complicated could it be? Bring in a new HC. Let Emery plug some holes through the draft and FA. And 2013 should be an immediate upgrade over the Lovie era.

But after a few weeks now, reality is setting in for me. This is a bigger deal than I first thought. I still think we have a great shot at having a better team. But there are a WHOLE lot more moving parts to this than I first considered.

Think about it.

We have a guy from Canada, and some CFL coaches - and basically adding into the mix a new Offensive Coordinator, Defensive Coordinator & Special Teams Coordinator (all 3 new coordinators), and roughly 17 other sub-coaches. Add to the mix the question marks on defensive personnel (who's coming back, like Melton & Urlacher), and wondering if the really old guys can still play well. Add to the mix new schemes everywhere, offense, defense AND special teams. Add to the mix new playbooks & an influx of new players through the draft and free agency (guys, a LOT of people are going to come and go over the next few months). Add to the mix, how our franchise quarterback is going to do with all of this. And all of this is before the rebuilding of our offense - from the offensive line on up to some key skill player additions & subtractions.

We've all been very positive about all of the new coaches and we've kicked around some guesses as to massive roster changes that are coming.

But when I step back for a moment, and try to "see the forest for the trees" I realize this is one HUGE set of changes. What I thought originally was a simple equation (just swap out the HC variable and it's all going to be good), is really more like an equation with a zillion variables, of which most of those variables are "unknowns" at this point.

We're all "hoping" it all works out fine, and we end up with something much better than Lovie's teams. I believe it will. But we're fooling ourselves if we think this is a simple change.

This is definitely a significant rebuilding of the team (yeah, I used the hated "R" word). This is rebuilding. A serious gut job in the making.

Rebuild is what is needed, this team was no where near the GB/SF's of the NFC, let alone the top AFC teams. The D wasn't there, nor was the O even close.

So this was a required step.

I have to laugh. It reminds me of a home improvement project I started early in my marriage. I told my wife it was not a big deal. And I truly believed that at the time. Six months later ($10,000.00+ construction materials later, which was a lot of money back then, when you bought a nice home for not much more than that), I realized I had no conception of what I was taking on. I did learn how to operate some heavy equipment though (even in the dark after work :smile:). I sometimes couldn't sleep at night afterwards wondering if I had done the wiring right - and the house wasn't going to burn down :smile:

Anyway, today when I thought about the Bears changes since we pulled the plug on Lovie, it reminded me of back then. It is a bigger deal than I first thought.

p.s. On a "good note" I can say the home project turned out great, and the home is still standing. So, I'm sure the Bears upgrade will end up being a blessing too. Hope so anyway.

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Originally Posted by Riczaj01

Rebuild is what is needed, this team was no where near the GB/SF's of the NFC, let alone the top AFC teams. The D wasn't there, nor was the O even close.

So this was a required step.

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I agree 100%.

Reality on that, hit me when I thought about us being 3rd place in the NFC-N. Again. Behind the pitiful Vikings, and realizing we were now bottom-feeders with Detroit in the NFC-N.

I mean, how low can you sink?

The window on Lovie's way had reached it's shelf life with this organization and things were just status quo season in, season out. Angelo's lack of quality draft picks leaves a veteran roster (whose Super Bowl window is nearly closed) with little up & comers to replenish the roster. It was just same players, same system... just hoping for better results the past 2-3 years.

Lovie showed us repeatedly he wasn't able to bring in the right coordinators on offensive to help the Bears keep up with the rest of the league. While our defense was leading the way, our offense has been stuck in park for nearly 9 years. The Emery hire added some new life (BMarsh pick up) & hope, but even with the best play makers ever on the roster for Lovie... it was another piss-poor choice in OC (Tice) that started his demise.

I have a feeling that Emery didn't foresee the mass exists in coordinators and positional coaches after letting Lovie go, but it is for the best. Everyone inside Halas is now on the same page with Trestman and Emery and there won't be any of this "that's not how Lovie did it" going on.

But its on the coaches... are we rebuilding and finding the right players for their system with hopes for success 2-3 yrs down the road or can we win now by adopting their systems and create schemes that maximize the pieces currently in place. Everything that Trestman said in his presser points towards the latter of two options. (This is will be the telling sign if we upgraded our coaching staff or not.)

In the end though it is some high expectations and we are all excited to see how it plays out.

Does anyone know if .... under the new CBA agreement a team with a new head coach is allowed to add in an extra mini-camp or OTA?

Thought I heard something about this on the Score one day.

I still believe that if Griese had been starting, we'd have won the SB, so we were certainly good enough that year. Ric, I must disagree, this defense is at an elite level, even though it continually gets tired at the end of the season. If the offense doesn't have to rely on the Defense to have a chance of winning games again. They had the ability to turn it on in games in 2010 and 2011, but still had embarrassing performances(remember the NE game?), but just had no rhythm last year at all. Really, Lovie was a good, but not great couch, and should have won against weaker NFC competition for 3 SB appearances (2005, 2006 and 2010), but couldn't capitalize on those opportunities. I think if Emery can do half the job Angelo did to the defense, this team will have a break or two go their way in the next few seasons.

OP you just figuring this out? haha not trying to poke too much fun but i knew this was gonna happen the second Trestman was selected. Can he succeed? Honestly its a 50/50 chance but for some reason i think were gonna be a below .500 team. I want the bears to succeed but the lovie area has forever corrupted me and left me not even happy after winning games like the Carolina game and others. At this point who knows.

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Originally Posted by draw2anderson35

Does anyone know if .... under the new CBA agreement a team with a new head coach is allowed to add in an extra mini-camp or OTA?

Thought I heard something about this on the Score one day.

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I found this on ESPN just now:

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LINK to the article

As part of the new collective bargaining agreement, teams soon will be allowed to take their players to the field for non-contract drills and practices.

According to the release by the league, clubs are permitted to hold a rookie minicamp on one of the first two weekends after the NFL draft, and conduct one mandatory minicamp for veteran players. Clubs with new head coaches, however, are permitted to conduct one additional voluntary minicamp for veteran players. There is no restriction on the number of minicamps a club may hold for rookie players.

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by draw2anderson35

Does anyone know if .... under the new CBA agreement a team with a new head coach is allowed to add in an extra mini-camp or OTA?

Thought I heard something about this on the Score one day.

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Yes but exactly how many and when I can't remember. I just recall that the lockout in 2011 cost John Fox some valuable additional workouts with his guys as the new Bronco coach.

Edit: Oops 99 got this answered already. But I'll continue.

I guess I'm not all that worried. I think Trestman walked into a much tougher situation with less talent in Montreal and on top of that had to learn a new way to play and coach the game yet he turned that team around almost immediately.

As it stands going into 2013 there isn't all that much that needs fixing that a good coach and his staff can't fix. Trestman and Kromer need to design an offense around the talent we have and what few parts we can afford to add then Trestman needs to teach Cutler to run it Kromer needs to teach the line how to block for it.

Maybe I am oversimplifying it but that's the point. KISS. Start by massaging what's there so that it works. The Bears aren't devoid of offensive talent so just get them working well as a unit and the offense will improve. Whoever thinks it could possibly we worse raise your hands?

This is a system that's coming in the door that some of these guys, Cutler and Marshall included, do have some brief experience with and did very well with it in Denver. We need a better TE to work it well and I think they'll find that guy but the backs we have should be ideal for it. Both are strong runners and receivers. So get some added talent upfront and teach them how to block in this system. It puts a hell of a lot less pressure on them than either Martz or Tice way of doing things did.

On defense the best thing that Tucker can do is very little to begin with except to plot out the replacements he's gonna need in another couple of years and create a wish list for Trestman and Emery. That defense can be rebuilt on the fly if we start doing it gradually now and I think Emery will do that. This is not JA wait until it's already broken then fix it time anymore. There's a few positions that need sorting out but it's not like the entire defense is gonna crumble to dust in just one year. They're still good enough to win a SB with.

I guess I'm not all that concerned and I'm gonna stay that way until there's something to be concerned about. There may be but I don't know what that is yet so I'm not gonna worry over nothing.