W4vsTB: Touch

   Well I wanted a better play out of Mitchell Trubisky and got it against the Buc's in a big way, he showed he has the accuracy and vision needed to be a great QB at least in this game, he did have a pair of passes he overthrew but there where plenty more where he was right on the money. Maybe the Buc's defense is a bad unit but this is what should happen when a good offense plays a bad defense, so yeah the Bears offense played as a good NFL offense and did it through the air without much help from Jordan Howard through the ground which is not to say that Howard played bad, just that the ground game was not moving the chains, at the end it didn't matter because Trubisky and company shredded the defense with the pass. There was little to worry about on defense, Tampa Bay went on to panic by siting Ryan Fitzpatrick and putting in Jameis Winston ending the Buc's offensive magic, second consecutive game where the Bears defense makes the opposing team bring in their backup QB off the bench, not counting when DeShone Kiser backed up injured Aaron Rodgers but it could count. Wonder if this could trend more this year, too much to ask? Knowing that the Bears can outplay a bad team that way is encouraging, if the offense can consistently play at least half as good as they did against Tampa Bay then this team looks like a playoff contender that should be feared and only thing stopping them would be how healthy they can maintain themselves... and maybe Aaron Rodgers.

   Next up is at Miami against an opportunistic defense that has created ten interceptions this season. Still I believe the Bears should win this one, even if the Dolphins started the season 3-0 those three wins came against low to mid caliber teams (Titans, Jets and Raiders) to then get destroyed by the Patriots and lose to the Bengals, both on the road to fairly good teams. What the Bears need is to not get sloppy returning from their bye week and continue where they left off.

W3@ARI: Shuting it down

   I expected a hard fought game but not a nail biter that went down to the wire, once the game ended I didn't realize until the next day that the Cardinals didn't score points after the 1st quarter, they where shut down by the Bears defense plain and simple creating four turnovers against the two by Mitchell Trubisky and even so just one of them cost them seven points, I knew the Cardinals where struggling at QB but this really did amaze me once I noticed it.

   Again I could see Trubisky go hot and cold still looking like someone that isn't comfortable enough yet with the system, obviously it shows he is still not ready and looks like he is really trying to not turn the ball over by making the wrong decisions on where and when to throw the ball. Still he ended with two turnovers although these where more slip ups than bad decisions, he just needs to take better care of the ball when scrambling and the interception was a better defensive play than a bad throw. This errors aside he managed to have good stats with high completion percentage and more than 200 yards for the first time this season, no scores tho so its still an average performance by him with some great plays and other times where he just made me scratch my head, throwing with poor to no accuracy, it concerns me a lot.

   I liked the balance between Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen, I felt the number of run plays and moments they where in the game were good and if they weren't trailing almost all game, I believe the Bears could have won the game with more run plays and of course good defense, which once again had to bail the offense out to manage to end with the victory. 

   Again, we can see why Kalil Mack is worth every penny, even when he is called for an offside overturning a pick six by Eddie Jackson in the final minutes of the game that would have sealed the game, its no biggie as it was just a matter of time for him and the rest of the front seven to generate enough pressure to get to the QB and be over with the game for good.

   With the Bucs playing next at Soldier field led by the magic beard of Ryan Fitzpatrick and the number one offense, this makes for a big game that can better tell us how good the Bears defense is... but not really. The Buccaneers are where they are because of the WR and TE group they have, Fitzpatrick just has to lob it to Mike Evans, O.J. Howard or Cameron Brate and they will come down with it more times than not, they can stretch the field giving space to speedy Desean Jackson, Chris Godwin and Adam Humphries, I'm still not sure if the Bucs cant run the ball or just don't want to. 

   With the news that Prince Amukamara wont play, this forces the Bears to play rookie Kevin Toliver II or Bryce Callahan outside, it doesn't look good for the Bears. Eddie Jackson and Danny Trevathan can cover the TEs while Kyle Fuller will have his hands full going one on one with Evans, Callahan has to stick on the slot to cover one of these speedsters be it Jackson or Humphries, that would leave Toliver against Godwin which I will be paying much attention to. The Bears front seven has the ability to get to Fitzpatrick against the Bucks average Oline but that may not be enough if he gets the ball fast although pressure could eliminate the deep ball which is the Bucs triumph card. This game may depend on Trubisky and the offense to get needed points on the board that they left off on the previous games, they can not play catch up like they did against the Cardinals or they may lose this one.

W2vsSEA: Defense for the win

   Before the game started I thought this was a winnable game for the Bears, they were the favorites to win it and as the match progressed my mood changed from winnable to a must win game mostly because of how the defense was playing, there was no way they could lose this one and at the end it was closer than it should have been. But a win is a win and a win at home is even better.

   Is easy to see that Mitch Trubisky is still not a polished QB but shows you enough to believe he can get better, but what bothers me is that his strength is considered to be his accuracy and on these past two games hes been up and down, overthrowing as well as underthrowing receivers, then you see him on the move and you kind of forgive him for the rough edges he still has.

   The offense again moved steady at the beginning and then slowed down as the game progressed but came with enough points to get the job done. This was mostly thanks to Allen Robinson who showed he is a true number one receiver, showing good hands and strength to get extra yards after the catch already showing that he can go get it on 50-50 balls, it was great to see those 10 made connections between him and Trubisky. Jordan Howard has to fight for every yard once more and Tarik Cohen had more chances on this game although he wasn't able to do a big splash aside from the lobbed catch he made for a big gain on a broken play. The O-line still looks a bit shaky and could be more consistent on making lanes for Howard to ease the pocket more for Trubisky, if not then its up to Nagy to get creative with the misdirection and option plays.

   There is really nothing bad you can say about this defense other than Kyle Fuller really needs to look back for the ball. This unit is looking to be a top 10 defense again and if everything clicks, look out. Leonard Floyd's hand is getting better, Danny Trevathan when healthy is a playmaker, Roquan Smith can really move and Khalil Mack amplifies what this defense is capable of. Honestly I am impressed with Aaron Lynch, hes done a good job  helping collapse the pocket frequently, not a flashy guy but has contributed when on the field.

   Next game at Arizona will be another winnable game, they are 0-2 but only because Sam Bradford is doing terrible. There is a slim chance that what happened in Cleveland's game can happen in this one, if Bradford plays poorly again or gets knocked out which wouldn't be something new for him, then in comes Josh Rosen and then anything could happen because the Cardinals team has a fair share of good and upcoming players on both sides of the ball just waiting for their savior. But this is not the Jets defense he would be up against, the sky's the limit for this group.

W1@GB: Un-Real

   I didn't know what to expect from this game before it started, ultimately what I wanted was for a competitive game against the rival team that has been dominating the win column the past few years. Even if the team isn't meshed up as one would like with two top talents still very raw to the team in Khalil Mack and more so in Roquan Smith, what really intrigued many was what the offense would look like. The result was un-real for me, both half's of the game.
   I don't think anybody expected a first half performance from the Bears defense like the one shown on Monday night, what Mack did was to good to be true, it made me believe that we finally had an edge against the Packers. Even when Roquan Smith came in for injured Danny Trevethan and on his first play got a sack it felt like everything was going the Bears way and when Mack read the screen and intercepted DeShon Kisers pass and took it for six, its when I felt it, it was like I was dreaming. Cross out the fact that Aaron Rodgers got hurt, I wasn't expecting or wanted that to happen, but even with Rogers in, he was getting neutralized and at the end it did factor to the insane moments that where happening, that this game was in the bag.
   Then the second half started and here came Rodgers back like a freaking sports movie hero coming in to save the day for his team and fans, I even questioned the call to let him play by his coaches, was it worth it to try and win this game? was it even possible in his state? It seemed to risky. Then with a 20 point advantage, everything went upside down. Rodgers when no huddle, the defense couldn't get to him and seemingly tired them down, they couldn't stop them. I don't get how they couldn't get to a guy who couldn't get out of the pocket, he could move laterally yes but to have pressured him from every side in the first half to not even get on his face was crazy. The defense folded, got tired and began to give Rodgers time to find receivers down field. The offense didn't play lights out the first half but moved the ball well enough. In the second half they were the unit that ultimately cost the game for their team, Matt Nagy and Mitchell Trubisky lost this game. Nagy insisted in not utilizing Tarik Cohen in favor of Jordan Howard which is not a bad plan but kept slamming him to the better part of Green Bays defense that was the front three D-linemen. Trubisky lost his chance overthrowing Allen Robinson in the corner of the end zone for a TD in the second quarter, in the second half he missed more open opportunities and was very inaccurate, he looked indecisive waiting for receivers to get open on moment that required more to get small chunks of yards and get the ball out quicker, this is Nagy's fault for the play calling or Trubisky for not making the throws. In the end not enough first downs sealed the game, yeah Fuller dropped an easy interception, Howard ran out of bounds, Cody Whitehair still snaps it to high and cost the team some opportunities, but in the end the offense stalled in the second half and cost the Bears a win.
   That they lost this game isn't the sad part of it all, this team is still growing together and still has to learn the plays and learn from their mistakes, Trubisky didn't look in control, him and Nagy still have a lot of work to do and the future still looks bright. What was sad is that this team for a half had the Packers where they wanted, showing something that fans have waited to see for a long time, at the end they still couldn't beat Aaron Rodgers, even on one leg.

   On to face the Seahawks at Soldier Field on Monday night football, these Seahawks are not the same as before, the legion of Boom looks to be a thing of the past but still have enough to test the Bears offense. This is Russell Wilson's team and will determine their offense, he is quick and elusive as Rogers when healthy or even more than him, so this will be a challenge for the pass rush but it should be welcomed to see how they perform against these type of QB who are the most dangerous and trending types. I can see the Bears winning this game and many others just by watching the talent on the team, everything from here on out is going to be how fast Mack and Smith get into the starting lineup permanently, Trubiskys development and of course Nagy and Fangios gameplan.

2018 Chicago Bears Roster

   So if you look closely at this years roster you will notice a significant difference KHALIL MACK IS IN IT OMG YES. So you could say I'm glad of the decision Ryan Pace and the Bears organization took on getting Mack out of the wrinkled old hands of Jon Gruden and the Oakland Raiders, the price was steep costing the Bears the 2019 and 2020 first rounders but ultimately worth it, more so with that 2020 second round pick they packed Mack with. I do see it as Mack being our first rounder next year, at the end of the day you cant get a better first rounder than a proven elite pass rushing OLB at his prime, the other first rounder is soften by the second rounder given back so its really a good move by the Bears, the Raiders can due what the hell they want with their picks and build a dynasty for what I care, this move ultimately makes the Bears team a better team now and for the future, so great job.

   This move makes the defense look like a top 5 unit on paper, it has the making of the 85 Bears and it could sound cliche but there are so many players at DL and LB that can penetrate the line with speed and/or strength its seems a matter of time for rookie Roquan Smith to prove he is a great player, a healthy Floyd and a more accustomed Mack, add Akiem Hicks and newly resigned Eddie Goldman, you get a nasty group of headhunters which the 85 Bears where.

   All in all, I like how this years roster looks but there are some minimal things I'm concerned about. 

Going with FB Michael Burton says max protection for Mitch Trubisky, maybe Ryan Nall is to green but can still get better and impress on the PS. No surprises at WR and there is really no way to go wrong at TE but just cant get more injuries with Daniel Brown now banged up and Adam Shaheen out at least 8 weeks. Its good to see the O-line healthy, being this group the weakest one on offense, Charles Leno Jr has done his job but still has to improve to be a great player, no question Bobbie Massie needs to be more reliable, the depth is young and raw aside from Bradley Sowell but is banged up.

   At defense there is talent at the starting position and quality depth behind it, its a little shaky at ILB with rookie Joel Iyiegbuniwe but many things need to go wrong for him to play. But really my two big concerns are, who is playing behind Goldman at NT and what the hell is Marcus Cooper Jr doing on the roster? I wasn't a big fan of Crevon LeBlanc but I did see him making plays last year unlike Cooper how got benched and placed at the bottom of the depth chart and should be on this years as well. On the official depth chart there is no backup for the NT, I was waiting for John Jenkins to be resigned days after the final cuts like last year but it didn't happen, is it going to be Bilail Nichols or Mike Williams? I have no clue. I don't like the fact that Aaron Lynch made the team, he didn't play and was injured almost the entire duration of camp, only thing hes got going is that Vic Fangio knows him, so it will have to do.

   Pat O´Donnell beat the rookie, Patrick Scales got a spot and no Robbie Gould, sigh.

   Ryan Pace has assembled a nice balance roster in age and of drafted/signed players. I do believe that this team can go only up in the next few years but its all in the hands of Trubiky, his development with these coaches is what will make or break this team, he doesn't have to be the best QB in the league but does have to be a leader and a contributor for this team to get where they want to go. I like how the majority of key players are signed long term to keep the team focused on the game and nothing else. This season looks to be tougher than the previous one, not sure if this is because I have never focused on the whole season from the start until recently but looking at it by opponents they could finish 7-9 and miss the playoffs, but if this team plays like they look I wouldnt be surprised if they go 9-7. This first match against the rival Packers as any other one before against them marks a strong statement of what this team is made of and how far they can go, but one still needs to be patient until Smith and Mack gel with this team and then it should look different, hopefully better, like a playoff team.

Predicting the 53 man roster for 2018

   Its almost here, its almost time for the 2018 season to begin and while it hasn't been a smooth ride from the end of last season to this point, it really doesn't matter I just want this season to start already. There are good vibes coming from the Bears locker room from what I have read but its still early, for its only the first year of newcomer coach Matt Nagy. The ex-QB turn coach has had a good first impression on everybody from the owners and players to the media and fans. It didn't take him long to show hes not afraid of change with the recent announcement that he would rest almost all of his starters and not play them for the final two games of the preseason so they can be ready for week 1 against the Packers. As a fan I get it, he wants to get to the season with as many healthy starters as possible against a difficult first quarter of the season and with the recent history of injured Bears not surviving preseason it really isn't difficult to understand this decision, what is difficult is knowing how it will affect the players understanding and execution of the new playbook more so for he offense, but Nagy put it to rest  by saying that its his team and know where its at. So yeah you believe in him or you don't, I choose to believe the guy.

   In other events from this offseason, we got the Roquan Smith holdout. Only good thing about this is that its over and he is signed but from there on out it has gone poorly. His development took a halt with his hamstring injury, not getting enough reps to even play in one of the two preseason games he could of played and now we will have to see how many reps he can get at games that do matter. It was rather odd to see him be the last player drafted to sing his contract due to contract terms when he wasn't the only LB picked in the first round, or the Bears organization screwed it up by getting to cocky with special terms or Smiths agent blew it by taking burning to much time getting to specific, Roquan's decision I understand in not getting on the field until guaranteeing a contract because if he gets hurt worse as he is now, who knows when he would get a deal done then.

   Supposedly the contract terms that where so troublesome to correct where because of the new tackling rule established this year by the NFL where they focused more on hits made or intended with the crown of the helmet which I don't have a problem with, but the players do with reason, I understand when some don't know what to do when in a situation where they would normally lead with the helmet to initiate the hit but I see it as a way to change their ways and use technique, easy no but impossible I don't think so. But watching some of the penalties called on these preseason games that the league and refs are using to experiment with the new rules I see that it is difficult for them to call it right and worst is by having this rule its making them call hard hit as penalties and that shouldn't be a given that if the hit is hard it should be an automatic foul and what I hate most of what i have seen is that its more focused on the defense and not applied to the offensive player when lowering the helmet to ram defenders over. For these reasons I believe the league should make their refs study more film and be ready for next season maybe to apply this rule.

OK so the 2018 Chicago Bears roster, how do I think its going to look like,

QB Mitch Trubisky, Chase Daniel

So two should be enough this year where Mitch the apprentice will take the helm and Chase the vet is already familiar with the system and showed he can handle himself with some good plays made this preseason. I don't know if teams still carry three QBs on their team but I don't see the need here.

RB Jordan Howard, Tarik Cohen, Benny Cunningham, Knile Davis

I wouldn't have a problem if the prefer going with Michael Burton instead of Davis, think it will tell me more of the type of offense Nagy will run depending on which they choose. Cunningham showed this preseason he should be the 3rd back. I read that Ryan Nall could play FB as well as RB, if this is true than forget about Davis or Burton, get this guy a spot.

WR Allen Robinson, Taylor Gabriel, Anthony Miller, Kevin White, Javon Wims, Josh Bellamy

Choosing this group is kind of easy, but knowing how they are going to perform and who is going to play "Y" is not as easy. This is the hard part when taking in Nagy's word and not take those extra snaps in the preseason, but again one thing is what we see and another what Nagy sees in practice. But the ones that did play and played good benefited big time, White and Wims demonstrated that they deserve a shot this season and with the size and speed they bring you cant get but somewhat exited about these guys.

TE Trey Burton, Dion Sims, Daniel Brown, Adam Shaheen

I placed Shaheen last only because his health status is still in the air, Nagy says he s not going to IR but didn't mention if he could go to the PUP list which I see happening. If this is the case then they should bring in Ben Braunecker and keep four TEs in the team because all four have played very well and should be a strenght on this offense.

OL Charles Leno Jr., Erick Kush, Cody Whitehair, Kyle Long, Bobby Massie, Bradley Sowell, Jordan Morgan, James Daniels

Sowell could be hurt for a long time so if this happens then Rashaad Coward could end on the team but wouldn't be surprised if I'm wrong on this one because Sowell would have been the swing T where Coward is still learning the position and couldn't be counted on to cover one of both T positions, he should be concentrated at one for now. Kush get to start on LG but this positions is still strongly fought for. Other that that position the other positions are very set for week 1.

DL A. Hicks, E. Goldman, R. Robertson-Harris, J. Bullard, J. Jenkins, B. Nichols

The DL is going to be the heart and soul of the defense, if this defense plays good its going to be because this group will open the doors for the LB to go get the ball if they don't get there first. Nichols showed good play when on the field and consider he should get a spot in an already strong group where he can learn from them.

OLB L. Floyd, S. Acho, I. Iring, K. Fitts, K. Edebali

This group is going to need all the help they can get from the DL until Floyd get back to good health if he ever get there this season. I dont think Aaron Lynch should get on the team because he hasn't been around to much and the rookies have shown they can get to the ball. So I prefer the team develops these new guys instead of having someone who is as much a question mark as the other guys and maybe get injured again.

ILB Danny Trevathan, Nick Kwiatkoski, Roquan Smith, John Timu

I cant believe myself I'm giving Timu a spot but its the only one I have seen making plays on these preseason games, I would give it to Joel Iyiegbuniwe but haven't seen him do much at games, neither has Smith college production backs him up. If I'm right and Timu is the pick, this group is worrisome.

DB Kyle Fuller, Prince Amukamara, Bryce Callahan, Creveon LeBlanc, Sherick McManis, Kevin Toliver

Aside from Toliver, everybody is back and boy is this a good thing, getting better at communicating between these guys and safeties will be huge, they already showed they can play, its all on how healthy they can keep themselves that will matter now. Toliver get the last spot mainly because of the rave he got from camp and practice, who gets picked will be the one the coaches see who shown more promise and growth.

S Eddie Jackson, Adrian Amos, Dion Bush, DeAndre Hall

Same guys, know the playbook, better communication. That the same secondary group returns along Vic Fangio makes me hopeful that the OLBs will get more time to get to the QB. Amos has been targeted with negative comments about if he should be considered a starter caliber player, this will be his year to make a statement to the critics.

K Cody Parkey

Hes been better than Connor Barth right? Ugh letting Robbie Gould go I believe is the one bad thing I will never forget about Paces carrier with the Bears so far.

P Pat O'Donnell

Haven't payed much attention to this position battle so ill just go with the same guy.

LS Patrick Scales

Same here.

As a team, this is almost a very solid team if not for some injuries and 1 or 2 players short of being a great team on paper that should be considered an underdog playoff team at leat. Based on this years schedule and the division their in tho, its going to be a hard ride to consider getting a playoff spot,   theres a shot at not ending at the bottom of the division for a third straight year. So now we wait a little to see what the team is going to be that will fance a hard first quarter of the2018 season.

Post Draft 2018

   With the draft over I can see now that evaluating talent is one thing and predicting what teams want or need is another. Everybody knew the Browns needed a QB, but until days or even hours before the pick there wasn't that many who believed that Baker Mayfield would be the pick, most believed it should have been Sam Darnold like myself and some people I don't understand what they where thinking had them picking Josh Allen so the need was obvious but what they wanted wasn't. Then the Browns with their 4th pick didn't need a DE but could have gotten arguably the best player in the draft in Bradley Chubb but instead went with need again and reached for Denzel Ward letting Chubb land on Denver's lap like it was their birthday. Then came Chicago's pick selecting ILB Roquan Smith, who didn't necessarily fill a need, the Bears needed at least to address the position with some depth, but went with the best player available, something that Ryan Pace has said to be his motto and finally showed it this year. Honestly I really didn't like the pick that much, I can understand the pick and any other pick at that spot with the players available would have been considered a reach for the Bears in terms of need, so basically their best move was to trade down which I would have preferred but if there aren't any decent offers well then the only option left is to pick value. Smith comes with a very high ceiling but great concern, I like his awareness and showed he can read plays, he is fast to go side to side and strong enough to tackle RBs on his own. He isn't good shedding OL blockers and can be eliminated from plays completely, so I really hope Vic Fangio can help him with that because if he does then this guy is going to be very good and should push Nick Kwiatkoski to the backup role. 

   Biggest reach in the fist round should go to the Steelers picking up S Terrell Edmunds, I think he is an average player and had him going in the 5th round at least, they took the spotlight away form the Seahawks with their own questionable pick of RB Rashaard Penny, there where more options at RB than S at this point so this one could be more of a headscratcher. The Saints and Raiders really reached for their guys but at least Oakland didn't give picks to get him but instead got picks by trading down, although the 49ers maybe are to blame for possibly screwing them by picking the T they wanted. There really wasn't a pick I loved, but Indianapolis trading down and getting the best ranked OL player in Quenton Nelson to protect Andrew Luck was awesome. I wont call the D.J. Moore pick by the Panthers a reach yet because I did read a lot of hype from a lot of people about him, I don't really see anything really obvious that tells me he is special but seems I'm missing something then. I did decent in my rankings i believe, I did though do horribly on my TE and S list but well still it was pretty fun doing the lists although it really time consuming even if I just scraped the surface of a real player analysis.

   Bears second rounders James Daniels and Anthony Miller are really good picks, I really like Miller's play and attitude. Daniels fills a big need for the Bears and hopefully he will eliminate the problem at LG if he is able to play as he did C at college. Fourth pick Joel Iyiegbuniwe (got it on my third try... first time didn't even write what I thought to write) was a reminder that Pace is the Bears GM and he is picking his small school prospects, I'm getting used to it and giving Pace the benefit of the doubt on these type of players given now his brief history of late draft picks that have worked but having guys like Lorenzo Carter go some picks earlier or Josh Sweat still on the board is hard to digest. Fifth pick Bilal Nichols, another small school prospect, will play the 5Tech and hopefully bring depth to the position. Finally in the sixth round Bears address the pass rush picking Kylie Fitts who I had as a seventh rounder, supposedly Fitts had a long run of bad luck getting injured most of his college carrier but has what it takes to be a good OLB, this position of not the first at least the second most important need the Bears had and to try and fix it with a sixth rounder feels like a big gamble. Seventh round WR Javon Wims will battle for a backup spot and he wont have it easy. As a result from this draft the Bears came up strong at ILB with a possible upgrade as a starter and dreat depth, no DBs selected this year means same starters and depth from last season most likely which isn't bad, no OT improvement meaning that Bobby Massie will start one more season (sigh), WR is loaded and most likely almost everyone that makes the team will have a role, TEs set, RBs set, DL set and yes finally QB set so its rookie minicap followed by OTAs then 2 months of no one getting charged, arrested or suspended so we can get to the nightmare that is August with training camp and the pre-season praying no one gets a mayor injury and we can start the season, almost there. 

   There were many players I had going before the third round that didn't even get picked, so yeah whatever I may have gotten it wrong, only time will tell, but guys like Simmie Cobbs Jr and Holton Hill not getting picked was unimaginable for me, I was checking the URFA list to see if the Bears picked them up, unfortunately they didn't although they did pick up Kevin Toliver that seemingly has personality issues but I had him as a third rounder. 

   So I have something to look back to and see if how I looked at things works, even if there is so much more things that impact a players success like scheme,  team chemistry, all around team talent, injury, etc. Vven so, if I got something right it wont stop me from going I KNEW IT!