After free agency he is now the fourth oldest. [Chase Daniel (31), Sherrick McManis (30) and Sam Acho (29) are older according to the Bears' official site.]
Thanks, and 29 isn't "old" for an OL. It's the injuries that worry me more than the age. I don't think Long is finished at this point by any means. I do think the team should be thinking of bringing in a young guy at some point to prepare for the post-Long era. I hope they are proactive here.
You do know in the NFL no player is ever truly 100% right?
After free agency he is now the fourth oldest. [Chase Daniel (31), Sherrick McManis (30) and Sam Acho (29) are older according to the Bears' official site.]
Thanks, and 29 isn't "old" for an OL. It's the injuries that worry me more than the age. I don't think Long is finished at this point by any means. I do think the team should be thinking of bringing in a young guy at some point to prepare for the post-Long era. I hope they are proactive here.
In Kyle Long's case I think we have to look at his "football years". This in only year six out of what we at least hope can be a 10-12 year career.
If we can draft Nelson I think that would help a great deal since it would reset the clock at one OG spot. Kush, Morgan, and Whitehair are 28, 25, and 25 respectively so we should still be adding other mid to late round prospects and UDFAs hoping Hiestand will find a nugget in there somewhere. IMHO he's the best hope we have for maintaining the OL.
I know that you have said several times that you are concerned about Long, but I predict he will surprise you.
For how "long" though :-)
I wouldn't be surprised to see Long come in and play pretty well for 4 or 5 games and be done again. Career-wise, he is nearer the end than the beginning, BIH. He hasn't played a complete season in awhile as it is. My hope is that the Bears don't wait like they did with Urlacher a few years ago and fail to have a plan for the day when Long hits that age/injury wall and is in serious decline. After this coming season ends it will be interesting to see how he did. I hope he will have a great and healthy 16-game season though.
I hope we get another good 2 years out of him andthen he hangs it up if he cannot play at a high level. I think most of his guaranteed money should be paid by then. The dead money is minimal after the 2019 season. We need to target a RT and RG in next year's draft. One to replace Massie and one to groom as Kyle's eventual replacement.
Thanks, and 29 isn't "old" for an OL. It's the injuries that worry me more than the age. I don't think Long is finished at this point by any means. I do think the team should be thinking of bringing in a young guy at some point to prepare for the post-Long era. I hope they are proactive here.
I know that you have said several times that you are concerned about Long, but I predict he will surprise you.
I agree. I think KL will be ready week 1 and will have a good season. Reports of his demise seem exaggerated to me. I have to believe that Pace wouldn't have released Sitton if he had serious reservations about Long and the RG position. Sitton would have fit well there if need be and it's usually the LG who does more pulling which might not have been Sitton's strongest attribute.
Thanks, and 29 isn't "old" for an OL. It's the injuries that worry me more than the age. I don't think Long is finished at this point by any means. I do think the team should be thinking of bringing in a young guy at some point to prepare for the post-Long era. I hope they are proactive here.
You do know in the NFL no player is ever truly 100% right?
You're over exaggerate his injury too much jabf
Which injury? He's had a number of major injuries and surgeries. And by his own admission not all of the surgeries have gone well. I'm just stating facts here. The guy hasn't completed a season in years now. Two straight years on IR. Right? He has a fused neck now, he compares himself to his arthritic dog who can't walk well on some days (Long has had hip injuries). His ankle surgery didn't go well (for a 320 pound lineman that is concerning), he's had his shoulder surgery to fix his shoulder. He's had back injuries, hand/finger, shoulder, neck, hip, triceps and other serious injuries. Which one am I exaggerating? Some of these have been major. IR major. Major enough to require multiple fairly major surgeries.
The guy will be on the wrong side of age 30 late this year. Doesn't mean he is done. I've said that repeatedly. But age/injuries slow, and eventually end the careers of even the best athletes in all sports. Why is this guy different? My point, and I stand by it, is that the Bears probably should be planning for the post-Long era that will surely as death and taxes begin at some point sooner rather than later.
We can all revisit this at the end of the 16-game season. I hope he does well for years to come. We'll see.