2012-2013 NFL Thread

[knightni]

Soldier Field is on a virtual island, same as Field, Shedd and SAI.

 

Not much CTA except buses.

 

Building closer into the city would sure help at least some CTA-wise when it came to game day traffic alleviation.

 

 

[DukeNukeEm]

I work over there, the red, orange and green lines at Roosevelt are pretty close. Plus they have those express busses from Union/Ogilvie and the water taxi (which I work for) that can haul a good 750-1000 people. Even then, its a madhouse over there every Sunday, despite the fact that its a relatively easy place to get to.

[dasox24]

Love that the Bears are playing in Nashville. I'll definitely be going to the game against the Titans (3.5 hr drive) and I'd like to try to get to Jacksonville too (5 hr drive).

[LittleHurt05]

I work over there, the red, orange and green lines at Roosevelt are pretty close. Plus they have those express busses from Union/Ogilvie and the water taxi (which I work for) that can haul a good 750-1000 people. Even then, its a madhouse over there every Sunday, despite the fact that its a relatively easy place to get to.

 

The walk from the field to the Roosevelt train lines is an absolute cluster f*** after every game.

[southsider2k5]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/footb...0,4861655.story

 

The Chicago Bears have been looking for a player to add competition on the offensive line and found him Wednesday, agreeing to terms with Chilo Rachal, a former second-round draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers, on a one-year contract.

 

Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network first reported the news.

 

Rachal, 26, was the 39th overall pick in the 2008 draft out of USC, where he was a first-team All-Pac 10 performer. He started 38 games in four seasons with the 49ers, including 29 in 2009 and 2010, but quickly was relegated to backup status at right guard behind Adam Snyder last season when San Francisco cruised to a 13-3 record and the NFC West title under first-year coach Jim Harbaugh.

 

Rachal, 6-5, 323 pounds, is an interior lineman and he’s not going to enter a situation where he is handed a starting job. The Bears and offensive coordinator Mike Tice have a variety of players to choose from on the interior.

 

Former first-round draft pick Chris Williams is returning from a wrist injury and will have his first offseason to work at the position. Veteran Chris Spencer proved to be a quality addition last season. There also are younger players like Lance Louis, who is expected to move back inside after a year at right tackle, and Edwin Williams, who received playing time in the second half of the season.

 

The Bears pursued Anthony Herrera, a veteran that developed under Tice in Minnesota, at the outset of free agency. But he remains on the street, meaning the player either didn’t like the offer he received or wasn’t deemed healthy. They also recently checked out Adam Goldberg, another former Tice protégé.

 

The addition of Rachal is yet another sign that general manager Phil Emery will focus his efforts early in the draft on the defense.

 

On Tuesday, the Bears waived wide receiver Max Komar, citing a non-football injury.

[Kyyle23]

The Vikings are out of stadium options

 

So theoretically, if the Vikings eventually do move to LA, what happens with the NFC North? I cannot imagine they keep the Vikings in the north, so are we looking at a mass realignment?

[LittleHurt05]

The Vikings are out of stadium options

 

So theoretically, if the Vikings eventually do move to LA, what happens with the NFC North? I cannot imagine they keep the Vikings in the north, so are we looking at a mass realignment?

 

Vikings to the NFC West, Rams to the NFC North? Then again, the Cowboys are in the East, with NY/PHI/WAS, which makes little geographic sense either.

[Kyyle23]

Vikings to the NFC West, Rams to the NFC North? Then again, the Cowboys are in the East, with NY/PHI/WAS, which makes little geographic sense either.

 

Yeah that makes sense to switch them. It sucks to lose a historical rival like the Vikings for a dome team that nobody cares about

[GoSox05]

I'd like to see them switch the Vikings and Chiefs.

 

We need more non-dome teams in the NFC North.

[southsider2k5]

Yeah that makes sense to switch them. It sucks to lose a historical rival like the Vikings for a dome team that nobody cares about

 

The Vikings have never generated the excitement that Detroit or Green Bay does.

[cabiness42]

The Vikings are out of stadium options

 

So theoretically, if the Vikings eventually do move to LA, what happens with the NFC North? I cannot imagine they keep the Vikings in the north, so are we looking at a mass realignment?

 

Simplest realignment that makes geographic sense is Vikings to NFC West and Rams to NFC North.

 

If you really want to preserve the Vikings' rivalries, you can float the idea of having the two franchises swap nicknames. The team currently known as the Rams becomes the Vikings and assumes all their franchise records. The team currently known as the Vikings does likewise with the Rams.

 

EDIT: From a selfish standpoint, I'd love to see Vikings to NFC West, Rams to AFC South, and Colts to NFC North, but that probably wouldn't happen.

Edited April 19, 2012 by HickoryHuskers

[southsider2k5]

http://www.csnchicago.com/football-chicago...12740603208-915

 

Bears keep adding "starters" to the depth chart

April 19, 2012, 12:38 pm

 

The Bears signed linebacker Geno Hayes to a one-year deal. (USPresswire)

 

JOHN "MOON" MULLIN

 

 

One aspect of the annual NFL teams’ offseason mission statement is to build both the quality of a roster as well as the quantity. That means not only depth but specifically depth that is good enough to either contend for a starting job or replace a starter without precipitous falloff.

 

The Bears, in Phil Emery’s first offseason as a general manager, have added not only volume to the roster, but also players who come in not as starters, but could be.

 

The latest is linebacker Geno Hayes, signed to a one-year deal after starting 42 of 56 games played at weakside linebacker in four seasons for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hayes succeeded longtime Pro Bowl fixture Derrick Brooks in Tampa and is a speed addition at 6-1, 226 pounds.

 

The Bears previously signed guard Chilo Rachal, a one-time starter for the San Francisco 49ers. Kelvin Hayden was a starting cornerback with the Indianapolis Colts with a stop in Atlanta last year before signing with the Bears. Brandon Marshall obviously was a starter-plus for Denver and Miami. Corner Jonathan Wilhite started 17 games over his five NFL seasons.

 

Jason Campbell was a starting quarterback with the Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders. Michael Bush started nine games last season for the Raiders. Devin Thomas started 11 games over his four seasons.

 

In 2011, Hayes started 13 of 16 games played, finishing third on the team with 86 tackles and seven tackles for losses, adding one interception and two forced fumbles.

 

The knock on Hayes, and why the Bucs were willing to let go of a one-time starter, was maturity and discipline, one NFL source told CSNChicago.com. He made flash plays but was prone to taking chances – all pointing toward a big upgrade to special teams.

[DukeNukeEm]

Hayes is going to a monster on ST. Basically Corey Graham's replacement.

[Balta1701]

Commish met with Minnesota lawmakers today and raised the "topic" of Los Angeles not having a team.

[southsider2k5]

Commish met with Minnesota lawmakers today and raised the "topic" of Los Angeles not having a team.

 

"There were no implied threats or any threats at all," Goodell said. "What we talked about is the importance of creating a solution here that works for the team, that works for the community. This isn't a new issue. It's been discussed here for several years. I think the legislative leaders and the governor understand the time is now."

 

I'm sure they just mentioned LA because it is nice out there this time of year...

[southsider2k5]

http://www.masslive.com/sports/index.ssf/2...eams_bette.html

 

By JIM LITKE

NFL general managers looking for an edge in next week's draft scour folders thick with information and base their decisions on the slimmest of margins — a tenth of a second in the 40-yard dash, an extra inch in height, the last 5 pounds on a barbell being bench-pressed two dozen times or more.

 

But a provocative new study suggests an almost surefire way for any GM to maximize the value of his pick: Choose a player who's already had a run-in with the law.

 

"So if you're on the fence about a player and worried about his criminal record," said Stephen Wu, an economics professor at Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., "the data says take a chance."

 

That sounds strange, but makes sense when you consider the study found that players with so-called "character issues" get drafted, on average, 15 to 25 spots lower than players who performed similarly during their college career and at the NFL's annual scouting combine but had zero entries on their rap sheets. Apparently, it's already a consideration during draft-day planning in Arizona, Cincinnati, San Francisco and Chicago, where teams led the league in making shrewd picks out of problem children during the five drafts covered by the research.

 

"It sounds like an interesting breakdown, but I rely on our guys to do their own homework," Chargers general manager A.J. Smith said. "Besides, plenty of 'clean' guys come in, get the money and go 'Hollywood,' and cause trouble until the day you off-load them. So we do it our way, hope we don't make mistakes and clean up the ones we miss as fast as we can."

 

Those sentiments were echoed by Buffalo GM Buddy Nix.

 

"I wish I could tell you it's scientific, but it's not," Nix said. "It's more of a gut feeling. There are some things kids do ... they do it their first year, freshman and sophomore year, and then you say, 'Well he's changed.' But most of that comes from learning about life and how to act, so we think that doesn't really eliminate a guy.

 

"But if it's a repeat offender and if it's the wrong kind of trouble," he added, "then we stay away from it."

 

Take cornerback Janoris Jenkins, for example. He was kicked out of Florida a year ago after two arrests for marijuana possession in four months, which is why he played his final season at North Alabama. But even there he had problems, getting ejected from a game for throwing a punch at an opponent. He was also arrested in a 2009 bar fight. Lots of scouts see Jenkins as a first-round talent at a critical position, but most mock drafts already have him slipping into the second round because of that checkered past.

 

"I'd just as soon not get into that," Nix said about Jenkins, then added, "But if you mean whether we'll take him or not, I think ability-wise, obviously, you would. This is a political answer I'm fixing to give you, but probably otherwise, you wouldn't. You get enough trouble without getting one that you know is a problem."

 

On the other hand, despite an early blot on his record, Iowa offensive tackle Riley Reiff is exactly the kind of guy Nix and plenty of other GMs would grab with a Top 10 pick. As an incoming freshman visiting campus, Reiff, then 19, stripped in an alley and led eight police officers on a 20-minute drunken foot chase. He paid a hefty fine and never appeared on the police blotter in Iowa City again.

 

The study was done by Hamilton student Kendall Weir as his senior thesis for an economics degree and is being overseen by Wu. It included every player (around 1,200) taken in the 2005-2009 NFL drafts and their results at the scouting combine. Then it divided players into four groups based on comparable results and tracked their performance through the 2011-12 season. The four groups:

 

1.) Players with no suspensions or legal problems in college;

 

2.) Players suspended one game or more for violating team or university rules;

 

3.) Players arrested and charged with a crime;

 

4.) Players arrested, but not charged.

 

If you wanted the biggest bang for your buck and this were a multiple-choice quiz, the best answer would be No. 4.

 

Players in that group are usually drafted in the same spot as comparable players in the No. 1 group, yet wind up averaging two more starts per season. Suspended players dropped the farthest in the draft, 25 spots on average. They also fared the worst in performance terms when compared to the "clean" players, averaging two fewer starts per season, as well as having shorter careers. Players in the arrested-and-charged group tended to perform exactly the same as the clean group, but ended up being drafted 15 spots lower.

 

Of the teams mentioned above, Arizona used 27 percent of its picks during the five-year span on players in the last three groups. Cincinnati, which has become a sort of "Boys Town East" for troubled free agents as well as draftees, was second at 25 percent, with San Francisco and Chicago tied for third at 20 percent. At the other end of the spectrum, Seattle drafted no players with character issues, followed by Atlanta (2 percent), Baltimore (3) and Green Bay (6).

 

Asked about the conclusions of the study Thursday, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello quit laughing long enough to say, "Any comment should come from the individual clubs."

\

[GoSox05]

The Bengals have been doing this for years.

[StrangeSox]

Can someone explain to me why the hell fans care if these guys are trying to kill each other? I certainly don't. These assholes are getting paid bazillions of dollars (plus a pension) to play a violent game. Am I supposed to feel sorry for them? I don't get the faux outrage and I especially don't get the faux reaction from the NFL. If I were Goodell I'd be like, "look, it's a violent game, i'm not going to belittle our fans who basically could care less if these guys are injured (unless it screws up their chances at a championship, but even then it's not like we're upset that someone got seriously injured...that s*** happens every week). So, yeah it was a little unprofessional, and maybe Williams took it a LITTLE too far. But the death penalty? No, not even close."

 

Simmons has this article where he's pleading for someone to draw the "line" to let him know what should be acceptable and what should not be acceptable. I say don't have a line. No holds bar (within the rules obviously). I have the same opinion about the sudden seriousness of concussions. You get what you pay for. These guys aren't dumb. They know it's a violent sport and it comes with risks. Hell, the first day of football for any kid in this country is a video about becoming paralyzed.

 

Another ex-NFL player suffering from severe dementia killed himself.

 

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7839981/...mmitted-suicide

[Jenksismyhero]

Another ex-NFL player suffering from severe dementia killed himself.

 

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7839981/...mmitted-suicide

 

Cancel the sport! Shut it down!

[SoxFan1]

The Quinton Coples dropping to the Bears thing at 19 seems to be gaining some steam, but who knows. Seems very likely they go with best d-linemen available, whether its Coples, Poe, Brockers, Mercilus, Cox, Ingram. It also looks like they might have their choice of OL and WR too. If Floyd is there, it'd be hard for them to pass him up, and it seems pretty obvious they like Kendall Wright. Looks possible that Jonathan Martin is there too. It'll be very interesting to see how this plays out.

 

Ideally, DL/OL/WR/TE, if you get 3 of those in the first 3 rounds, I like it.

[Balta1701]

The Quinton Coples dropping to the Bears thing at 19 seems to be gaining some steam, but who knows. Seems very likely they go with best d-linemen available, whether its Coples, Poe, Brockers, Mercilus, Cox, Ingram. It also looks like they might have their choice of OL and WR too. If Floyd is there, it'd be hard for them to pass him up, and it seems pretty obvious they like Kendall Wright. Looks possible that Jonathan Martin is there too. It'll be very interesting to see how this plays out.

 

Ideally, DL/OL/WR/TE, if you get 3 of those in the first 3 rounds, I like it.

I can't see Floyd dropping that far and if he does I almost hope they'd trade down a couple spots because someone else ought to need him more than the Bears.

 

I think the Bears are at the point where their main priority has to be their D-Line.

[DukeNukeEm]

What exactly is wrong the DLine, did I miss something? Paea, Melton, Idonije, Peppers... I thought that was pretty good.

[SoxFan1]

I can't see Floyd dropping that far and if he does I almost hope they'd trade down a couple spots because someone else ought to need him more than the Bears.

 

I think the Bears are at the point where their main priority has to be their D-Line.

If he's there at 19, I'd have a hard time passing on that talent. He's a physical specimen and pairing him with Marshall on the outside with Bennett in the slot, combining that with Forte/Bush? That's a deadly offense. Plus, I'd love to get my hands on Dwayne Allen or Orson Charles at TE. But if you can trade down a few picks and add another pick, I wouldn't be against it, depending on who's available. It's hard to speculate until it unfolds.

[Balta1701]

What exactly is wrong the DLine, did I miss something? Paea, Melton, Idonije, Peppers... I thought that was pretty good.

Paea is pretty young and unproven, Melton is pretty inconsistent so far, Idonijie is sorta a decent backup right now, Peppers is still great, but the Bears need a bigger pass rush from that opposite side and more strength in the center of their line. Right now it looks like they could use a starting DE opposite Peppers and another rotation player at DT (although Paea could step up and make that part into more of a strength).

[Balta1701]

If he's there at 19, I'd have a hard time passing on that talent. He's a physical specimen and pairing him with Marshall on the outside with Bennett in the slot, combining that with Forte/Bush? That's a deadly offense. Plus, I'd love to get my hands on Dwayne Allen or Orson Charles at TE. But if you can trade down a few picks and add another pick, I wouldn't be against it, depending on who's available. It's hard to speculate until it unfolds.

I hear the case for it, and I was as big of a fan of adding a WR as anyone this offseason, but that was pre-Marshall. Right now when I look at that roster, the biggest place I could see an upgrade happening for this year is DE, giving extra passrush opposite Peppers. I put WR in that 2nd tier, along with LT.