Tony

Guys, I get all of that. I’m not confused by the case. He used a bookie, which is illegal. I understand. Again, how does that impact what I think of Ohanti? Does anyone think he is a bad person because of this? Ideal situation? No. Not a great look. But if Ohtani decided he wanted to use a small portion of his mega contract to lay big money on an NFL Sunday with a bookie? I just don’t care.

So if it wasn’t on baseball, say it WAS Ohtani making these bets but it was on the NFL. Why do I care? It’s his money and it’s not like he’s buying illegal weapons. I’m not saying people are wrong if they care, go nuts…I’m just missing the real intrigue.

Just like with Pete Rose, the issue is obviously "Was Ohtani throwing games?" That's what all this goes back to, and of course would be a mega deal if it were true. Without proof of that...does anyone really care? I mean we're all reading the story because it's around the greatest player in the sport, and it's a scandal, but if Ohtani was making huge bets on sporting events through a bookie...why should I care?

But my hope would be Poles takes BPA at 9, if they aren’t over the moon on any of the DE’s in that range. If they can’t find a trade partner, and someone like Rome is there, if they love him…then take him.

I have no idea what the Bears FO is thinking, but if Turner AND Odunze is there at 9, I have a hard time thinking they pass on Odunze, but who knows.

I still don't think that is a bad break for the Bears. The current starting LDE is Demarcus Walker. They have a large void at that spot and desperately need an edge rusher to go on the other end of the line with Sweat. If the Bears love one of Turner or Verse, I could see them staying at 9 and selecting one of them, and filling a large hole. I could also see them absolutely trading back.

What players are making is only relevant to what teams are willing to spend. By all accounts, if Yamamoto is a bust, that isn't going to stop the Dodgers from replacing him with another high end pitcher. The White Sox? Not so much. Also, your logic isn't sound and in fact fairly dumb. You're inferring all of this is in a vacuum and the Dodgers just decided to offer him 325 million because they wanted to pay as much as possible. He was incredibly highly sought after because of his past performance. It's the exact same reason Erick Fedde signed a 2 year, 15 million dollar contract, that is what the market believed he was worth.

Probably will come down to how much they love Odunze if he is there, vs. Turner/Verse. I would guess that is what they will be deciding on, and if there is a compelling offer out there to move down and get some more picks in the 2nd and 3rd.

From a pure stats standpoint, Braxton Jones had a PFF grade of 68.7, ranking him 33rd among 70 qualified OTs. Darnell Wright was at 62.4, ranking him 52nd among 70 qualified OTs. LT can absolutely be upgraded, but I believe there are better uses of that pick at this point.

Still don't know why you aren't GM. Your eye for talent can't be beat.

7 7 wins.

Good chance Alt isn't there, and the next best LT is Fashanu, who is projected to go around 14-15. So I think going nuclear if they don't draft a LT at 9 isn't the best approach...

I heard today Kiper has 20 WR in this years draft with a 1-4th round grade on them. I know Kiper isn’t what he used to be, but others have discussed how good of a draft class this is for WR. I still think I’d prefer an edge rusher at 9, it’s a bigger need for this team over the next 2 years, but if one of the top 3 WR are there at 9, would be hard to pass on them. I would also add the 4 teams that were in the Conference Championship games this season…no one had a better WR than DJ Moore. And you could make the argument the only WR better than Allen is St. Brown. (Diggs looks washed at this point) That isn’t mentioning teams like GB and Houston, who had explosive offensives with no highly selected WR’s on the roster

Watch that number skyrocket when the old man finally goes...it all starts at the top

Also wonder if Poles doesn’t try and get back into the 2nd round by trading next years 2nd and maybe a 5th next year, just to balance things out a little bit more. They have 4 picks in 2024 and 9 in

It absolutely does, but they have a gapping hole on the other end of Sweat, and I don’t know how you fill that spot with a true impact player unless it’s a DE no matter what in the 2nd round. With so few picks, and one already accounted for in a QB, Poles has to execute this perfectly.

I’ve seen a bunch of mocks the last two days, and in every one the Bears could either see Odunze or one of Verse/Turner. I still think Poles wants more picks and probably moves down, but if they stay at 9, they’ll should be able to grab someone who plays a huge role for them. I would get more excited from Odunze, but simply because he’s a WR and plays an offensive position, drafting the right DE is probably much more rational from a team needs perspective

And in 2024, I can't blame people much for that belief. The development of a QB doesn't stop when a player leaves college, and thus far the Bears have shown they have been unable to "figure out" the position. Not saying someone like Mitch would have been a stud if he went to someplace like the 49ers, but there has been too much history on the Bears side to just say the "players" have always been the wrong guy.

I feel like a lot of those concerns aren't based nationally, but more Chicago-based from the Fields cult.

This is dumb bit

That also goes into this whole “doing right by Justin” conversation that makes this entire situation so unique. If the Bears weren’t in line for one of the top 3 QB’s, there isn’t any conversation this offseason about moving on from Fields. It’s simply building around him to give him as many weapons as possible. And as you said, while not ideal, it wouldn’t be a terrible spot to be in, this team as currently constructed, with Fields, has a shot to win 9-10 games next season with health on their side. Acquiring the No. 1 overall (thanks Poles) changed everything, and thank god they are going to take advantage of this amazing opportunity

None of it will matter, 0%, if Caleb Williams is the real deal. Even if Fields goes on to show more than he did in Chicago, if Williams plays at the level basically every scout and prognosticator projects him to, I wouldn’t bat an eye if they just had to release Fields. If he’s another bust in the long line of busts, then Poles won’t be here long and it will be another GM in his seat still searching for that QB the Bears can’t find.

When you have back to back HOF’s still playing at an incredibly high level, it’s a lot easier to let someone sit. But Smith/Mahomes and the Packers are really the only situations where it’s happened and worked. Burrow, Herbert, Dak, Russ, Kyler, Allen, Luck, etc…all started right away and it worked just fine. You’re taking a guy No. 1 overall, he’s got 3 CFB seasons under his belt…it’s go time. Sitting and watching Justin Fields play for 6-8 games isn’t going to help his develooment

There is basically no circumstance that made sense to keep him, and clearly the Bears agreed with that line of thinking as they were only able to obtain a 6th for him. The Bears have never developed a QB, as we all know. They are to blame for that, but it’s also incredibly difficult to do, as many other teams around the league also know. They are investing the largest draft capital possible in Caleb, they better do everything in their power and give him every possible chance to develop and succeed. Having Fields on this roster hinders that in multiple ways, and clearly they decided he wasn’t going to be part of their long term plans. Once they made that determination, getting him off the roster was the only choice they had, and I believe other GM’s knew that, which is why they accepted the best offer on the table, which was a 6th.

Good breakdown on the current Bears cap https://x.com/aaronlemingnfl/status/1768683054506049735?s=46&t=Nd9oJCYs4TMp8_32NrPiMA