Thank you Hawk. I have been trying to make this point to some people for what seems like 2 years! AJ's contract might be top 5 for a year and then it will go down from there.
I remember posting almost this exact thing back on the old board a long time ago and it either got ignored or went over people's heads. I just think some don't quite understand it. Apparently you can just get a cheap, stud WR whenever you want or you can just have a bunch of scrubs and do just as well. Obviously the less talent you have on a team the better you will do, right?
LMAO! Seems to be the way some want to go....you shouldn't draft RB's, WR's, OLB's in the top 10....you shouldn't pay for top talent in the league...seems like a fool proof way to get to the Super Bowl...
I remember posting almost this exact thing back on the old board a long time ago and it either got ignored or went over people's heads. I just think some don't quite understand it. Apparently you can just get a cheap, stud WR whenever you want or you can just have a bunch of scrubs and do just as well. Obviously the less talent you have on a team the better you will do, right?
LMAO! Seems to be the way some want to go....you shouldn't draft RB's, WR's, OLB's in the top 10....you shouldn't pay for top talent in the league...seems like a fool proof way to get to the Super Bowl...
Every NFL expert knows you should only draft players that can rush the QB, OTs and maybe a QB in the first round. All other positions can be had in other rounds because we see it happen all the time. Even QB is debatable in the first because you can get a guy like Brady late or a guy like Romo undrafted. Drafting is easy.
Agreed. Why the media guys tend to monstracize stuff like this is beyond me. It's not like he tested positive for illegal drugs and AJ's rep is impeccable. He screwed up somehow and the question that needs answering for me is who suggested that supplement to begin with? Was it Bears personnel or someone else?
Anyone working with an NFL player should also be aware of any prohibited substances that product may have and AJ should have as well. I've been in the Broncos locker room and there is a huge list of them posted on the wall on a larger than poster size sign that lists them. It couldn't be more obvious and there are a lot of names on that list.
But despite that AJ won't have any trouble attracting offers as a UFA and neither will Cutler. The needs of other teams are too great to pass on that kind of talent.
I haven't had my coffee yet. I'm obviously not awake because my first time glossing over I thought the Broncos had a huge list of PED offenders posted on the wall of their locker room.
Now that would be something...The Wall of Shame.
LOL Well as Butkus pointed out few read it anyway and end up depending on others to protect them like many have done their entire careers. The smarter guys use every tool at their disposal to stay clean and other don't. Many of us were like that in are early 20s as well so it's not as if it's without precedent.
The ironic thing here is AJ and his agent are pushing for a top 5 WR deal so in that context money becomes extremely important but in this case not so important as to use every means possible to assure you won't lose 25% of your 2016 salary because you inadvertently used a supplement with a banned additive?
Wow if that isn't the needle pointing in the wrong direction! But as I'd guess the majority on this board have seen nearly every game over the 4 seasons we all realize why. Still the questions remain: Can he put up the #'s of 4 years ago being the #1 guy? Can he stay healthy to put up those #'s? It's quite a conundrum because the Bears don't want to be hamstrung like they were with Cutler's contract once they finally have talent (hoping) that will also be looking for big money extensions.
To the non-Bears fan who just looks at those numbers only it looks bad for Jeffery. For the person that actually watches the games and looks deeper at his stats they see a guy that is just as good as he's always been. The talent has not dropped. This is why other teams will be willing to pay him a lot of money, because their scouts know how good he is.
True. The regression is easily explained by his having played fewer games. In many that he did play he continued to dominate CBs. If the Bears aren't willing to look beyond the stats others will. His skill set is too good to not envision what he can do once things get better around him and he can stay healthy.
It always seems as though losing teams struggle more with injuries than winning teams. Yeah, that adds to why they do lose more often but I think it also adds to players willingness to play though the more minor stuff vs not being as willing to risk further injury for little gain.
I believe AJ pressed harder this year not to let those same injuries affect him in what amounts to being another contract year ergo the supplements to help deal with those and the mistake of not being as cautious as he needed to be. But come payday this stuff seldom comes back to haunt top players.
It didn't with Pep or Miller or at least a dozen or more others who've been down this same road and it won't with AJ either. Whatever other factors are part of the Bears decision process this one should be far less critical than the media is making it out to be.
I guess Pace has to look at AJ's attempt to stay healthy in the context of what he did to stay healthy. He initially took full blame in his statement but then said the supplement was recommended so who knows how this ends up.
Like I posted in the scheme of all things Pace has to balance when it comes time to talk deal again this one is lower on the totem pole than others. Because of the injuries and lack of progress by White he still has the team over somewhat of a barrel.
It may be slightly easier to reach a compromise using the limited number of games he's been available but that will only carry so far. If we don't make a good offer he accepts becoming a FA or forces Pace to tag him again so we don't have much leverage.
Beyond that how easy would it be to draft yet another WR with his skills. When he's on and his QB is on all you have to do is get a ball close and it's a catch. Not many WRs have his catching range, body control, and hand strength so he's not easily replaceable.
His talent is undeniable . So is his injury history . Couple that with his suspension and I'd bet that he's lost 'some' money - sure some team is going to offer him a good contract with more money than most ... but it won't be what it could have been and it comes with more risk than a player with a 'cleaner' backstory .
I'd still like to see him on the Bears , but not at ridiculous money , and if someone offers more and he walks away , then c'est la vie - we can spend it on other players who can also make us better .
Now tell me just how getting better at one position while getting worse at others solves any problems with getting better overall as a team? It doesn't work that way blue.
We cut ties with Marshall and freed up money to sign McPhee. For a brief period of time our pass rush improved ('til he went down with a knee injury) but White wasn't there to pick up any slack from Marshall and no one else has done that to date either.
You can't make a team better unless you make the entire team better. We seem to have gotten lucky as far as replacing Forte and using some of that money to sign our own FAs but the flip side is we did not get better at WR or as a team by swapping BM's pay checks for McPhee's so far.
Maybe that looks good on paper but in reality it won't work if the players you choose to offload are productive players. It ends up being a zero sum gain at best.
I remember posting almost this exact thing back on the old board a long time ago and it either got ignored or went over people's heads. I just think some don't quite understand it. Apparently you can just get a cheap, stud WR whenever you want or you can just have a bunch of scrubs and do just as well. Obviously the less talent you have on a team the better you will do, right?
LMAO! Seems to be the way some want to go....you shouldn't draft RB's, WR's, OLB's in the top 10....you shouldn't pay for top talent in the league...seems like a fool proof way to get to the Super Bowl...
Only if you're motm and then it's a lock. Don't believe it? Just ask him but do it quick or the formula will change.
For those of you that are fine with Jeffery leaving the Bears, I assume you are hoping the Bears start a rookie QB in the next year or two. Who is that young QB going to throw the ball to? Is he going to have to rely on White, Royal, Meredith and Wilson? I don't see them as being able to help a young QB yet so hopefully the OL and running game is spectacular.
I guess Pace has to look at AJ's attempt to stay healthy in the context of what he did to stay healthy. He initially took full blame in his statement but then said the supplement was recommended so who knows how this ends up.
Like I posted in the scheme of all things Pace has to balance when it comes time to talk deal again this one is lower on the totem pole than others. Because of the injuries and lack of progress by White he still has the team over somewhat of a barrel.
It may be slightly easier to reach a compromise using the limited number of games he's been available but that will only carry so far. If we don't make a good offer he accepts becoming a FA or forces Pace to tag him again so we don't have much leverage.
Beyond that how easy would it be to draft yet another WR with his skills. When he's on and his QB is on all you have to do is get a ball close and it's a catch. Not many WRs have his catching range, body control, and hand strength so he's not easily replaceable.
I'm not denying anything you are saying Soul. All I mean is that Pace has to look at al the factors that come with negotiating a large contract, that's all.
For those of you that are fine with Jeffery leaving the Bears, I assume you are hoping the Bears start a rookie QB in the next year or two. Who is that young QB going to throw the ball to? Is he going to have to rely on White, Royal, Meredith and Wilson? I don't see them as being able to help a young QB yet so hopefully the OL and running game is spectacular.
White = no idea yet what we have in him but isn't even as dependable as Meredith when he is on the field which has been very seldom.
Wilson = in contract year, injured much of his career, may not be back
Royal = too pricey to think they may not let him go if he can't stay healthy either
Meredith = solid #2 guy but not a even a top ten WR prospect
So where we began this past summer with a WR core that looked as good as any I've ever seen around Chicago things sure have changed. If we put a young inexperienced QB out there with a WR core that resembles the days of "Moose", Bennett, Hester, and Knox we may as well get ready for a few more years of top ten picks too.
