They should be able to throw around some money and front load shorter contracts in order to get to the spending floor they need to get too. Don't commit to jags beyond a year or two. Poles is going to have to spend money, but there is no reason he can't spend it smart. If they need to over pay, make the over-pay short and don't commit to void years or push money into the future. Pay it now, on shorter contracts. Offer more up front and less years. They can also commit to slight more front loaded guarantees in order to pay players now and give guys a shot at a second contract (or they can phrase it that way.)
IE. Pay a tier-2 DT a slightly above market rate contract but only for 2 years, which more of it guarenteed. That should beat out a team offering a longer contract with less guarantees. of course, I teach HS math and don't really deal with NFL contracts. Makes sense in my head which also means it most likely wouldn't fly.
What we really need is to improve our CollabAv
I don't think there is causation or correlation there. Collabav is less a future predictor stat than a standard by which to look backwards and test post-active vision.
According to the old-old-old Bears' board we only need a top 5 def or a top 5 off, OR both OFF and DEF to be top 10. Of course this was only yards for and against. PS or PA were not important. Having the number 1 run DEF also guaranteed a SB win.
I don't think there is causation or correlation there. Collabav is less a future predictor stat than a standard by which to look backwards and test post-active vision.
According to the old-old-old Bears' board we only need a top 5 def or a top 5 off, OR both OFF and DEF to be top 10. Of course this was only yards for and against. PS or PA were not important. Having the number 1 run DEF also guaranteed a SB win.
I agree. Poles should front load these FA contracts anyway to help his spending get above the floor.
As you said the "blowing it up" was needed, even overdue IMO. Some may have seen that as going too far. I see it as Poles playing the patient, long-game knowing that short-term bandaids were not going to get the job done.
Likewise, I'm heartened by the fact Poles has stated he's not going to "overpay" in FA. Keep in mind that overpaying in FA is in the eyes of the beholder as FA is more expensive than the draft and, like with the draft, a lot of players don't pan out like you hoped they would. For every Akiem Hicks signing, there's plenty of Dion Sims's and Byron Pringle's too. But yeah, if he can't sign players who are clear upgrades then I'd prefer he not get desperate and sign a bunch of overpriced JAGs just because he has lots of money to spend. That may make fans feel good temporarily in the short-run but it leads to lots of disappointing signings and dead cap down the road.
With DTs, with Payne now off the table, Dremont Jones should be his next target. If he can't get Jones, then Hargrave is a good consolation prize as long as the team has an easy out by year 3. Hargrave is 30yo so expecting him to not show decline after a couple more seasons is unrealistic. If both Jones and Hargrave go off the table, then he I hope he doesn't panic-sign an average player(s) just "to get somebody".
I want this rebuild to be successful and not just in the 2018 sense where we had one good season and then promptly regressed into mediocrity again. Don't spend like a drunken sailor just because you can.
This 2023 team should be a lot better than last year. I don't know how it could not be. But if the team is built right, for sustained winning, then (as you point out) you don't just throw $$$ this year at JAGs. A good GM will look at this rebuild more carefully and thoughtfully with a multi-year plan. Do the best you can this season, and them build on top of this foundation in 2024. That doesn't mean we have a crappy team this year. But there will still be additional, and significant upgrades in 2024 needed. Hopefully some of that cap money will be invested in keeping our own players where appropriate. We have key people we need to re-sign over the next 2 years.
So far, I like his approach to his first season. Lots of signings that, if they panned out, would have been fantastic. He didn’t have a lot to work with and rolled the dice often but that was ok as we weren’t going anywhere anyways.
if he holds true to his statements and remains patient, it’ll hopefully lead to long term success rather than one hit wonders.
I've read this guy has been really impressive thus far but does he have any chance of making it to the late-2nd round?
Or is this just a puff-piece writeup cuz he's at a local school?
I would love to see this guy as our 3t. He would be a fantastic fit for our defense. In fact THIS is the guy - THE guy - I hope we bring here for our 3t. I think he is going to be very special in our D. If he is there at #53 we'd be nuts to not draft him there. LOL, my #1 complaint with drafting him is that I would never be able to pronounce the guy's name :-)
I've read this guy has been really impressive thus far but does he have any chance of making it to the late-2nd round?
Or is this just a puff-piece writeup cuz he's at a local school?
I would love to see this guy as our 3t. He would be a fantastic fit for our defense. In fact THIS is the guy - THE guy - I hope we bring here for our 3t. I think he is going to be very special in our D. If he is there at #53 we'd be nuts to not draft him there. LOL, my #1 complaint with drafting him is that I would never be able to pronounce the guy's name :-)
We would have give him a nickname. Like AA or double A. And a middle name like mad dog AA MD or A MD A. I don't know. I think I just confused myself
I've read this guy has been really impressive thus far but does he have any chance of making it to the late-2nd round?
Or is this just a puff-piece writeup cuz he's at a local school?
I would love to see this guy as our 3t. He would be a fantastic fit for our defense. In fact THIS is the guy - THE guy - I hope we bring here for our 3t. I think he is going to be very special in our D. If he is there at #53 we'd be nuts to not draft him there. And as much as I dislike trading up, I'd be all in trading up a bit to land him. I like him that much.
Just watched the CHGO pod/youtube today. They covered a lotta ground including stuff we have been talking about (pros/cons what Poles did so far in FA) as well as NU's Pro-Day today which Flus/Poles attended. Interviewed AA as well. He's a really impressive and smart dude. Actually staying in school to finish his degree before the draft. Hard not to like the guy.
Key takeaways and definitely worth watching:
Some praise and some legit grumbles for Poles in FA so far (I'll just leave it at that since that's a topic for a different thread)
Skoronski will be a stud guard at the very least. Hoge thinks the arm length thing is overblown and he will be a stud OT as well. Surefire top-20 talent depending on how teams view the OT vs G thing.
AA is seen as a 3tDT by Bears and that's his best position
NU DL has sucked lately and he was moved all around by necessity, hurt his stats. But he's a freak and will be a good player.
Hoge thinks AA won't make it to #53; Carmen thinks he will cuz his stats aren't special.
I'm interested in both those guys IF Skoronski can play OT. I may be biased since he went to my high school LOL