Tony

Thus far, they have plugged holes with seemingly similar players for last season. And there are still more holes to fill. But, when the draft is over, we should all have the expectation that the Bears went out and made this team better during the offseason than it was last year. That should absolutely be the goal, based on where they are at in their timeline. On March 10th, that isn't the case, they are not a better roster than they were last year, but there is still some time. I assume you mean that as a slight based on your post history, but banking on free agent signings isn't the way successful teams prosper. You don't hit on your draft picks, your team will fail, it's a really simple equation.

Thought this was interesting I think the right answer is probably somewhere in the middle when it comes to the cap, but I think the logic is sound in the idea of "kicking the can down the road" really isn't that risky with how we've seen the salary cap rise over the last few years, but a team has to have a willingness to actually want to spend big when the timing is right, and not sure we've seen the Bears show that sense of urgency.

And the Bears wouldn’t have been able to beat that offer given the Ravens are picking ahead of the Bears. Just too much

This is one of those moves you can’t totally judge in a vacuum, let’s see where else they spend. A Crosby trade is more of a stand alone deal, this one kind of seems like “Ok, let’s see where the dust settles with the rest of the offseason.”

Agree. Don’t love it, but simply need to see how the rest of the offseason plays out

I think they have to move forward with the idea that Ozzy is basically a lottery ticket at this point. The history isn't great with that type of injury, especially for big guys. And lets be honest, it wasn't like Ozzy was playing at an all-pro level. He was serviceable, which we were all happy with for a rookie. If he was healthy, based on his play last year, he'd be the starting LT, and you'd feel OK about that given the other guys on the OL. Think for the most part, if you have 4 guys on the line you truly trust, you can get by with one "weak link" Bears need one more guy on the OL, and probably two given how healthy they were last year (probably doesn't hold up again in 2026) I'd make some investments in FA in the OL, go heavy on defense in the draft.

Not sure the money he is looking for, but would be a nice stop gap at LT

Not sure Poles has earned our trust, but I don’t see him overpaying for Crosby. His quotes seem to indicate taking a more measured approach, trying to walk that tight rope of getting better now, while also not making future years much harder with roster construction. Think he knows they have the QB and Coach locked down, which ideally gives them a somewhat long term window for success. Like almost every other fan, I’d be excited if they acquired Crosby, but I think we all know deep down it’s the fun move, but probably not the smartest

I smell a Dennis Allen reunion.

Think I'd rather the Bears actually keep the picks, get creative with a Trey Hendrickson deal in FA.

Not bad. Now have 4 picks in the Top 90

DJ to the Bills.

With the massive hole at LT, 2026 may have to be a "transition" year...I don't know how they fill the holes they have. Absolutely brutal, especially as the LT and C spot seemed secure as of about Week 15 of last season.

I think there is a world where he does, but it won't shock me at all to see him moved. Feel like it's probably 50/50 at this point.

I think it makes the salary cap much harder to navigate to add Maxx and still have DJ's salary on the books.

That's the key to all of this. If they won 95 games last year, no one cares. If Getz had any kind of track record of success, no one cares. But they've been the worst organization in baseball since he took over. Yes, I know that was part of the plan, but the organization's "reputation" 100% plays a role in this story.

I can’t imagine what the online discourse would be if Caleb put up the performance Maye just did….people would be begging for Bagent lol.

I don't get the Giannis fit with the Bulls, at all. The Bulls by all accounts don't have the assets to acquire him, and if they some how found a way to gather up the assets, the team would be left with nothing around Giannis. Why would he want out of Milwaukee to come to...the Bulls? How is it a better situation at all? Plus, Giannis is now 31, and has been dealing with a calf injury for a while now. He's never been a pure shooter, instead dominating with slashes and force...something that probably doesn't age very well. I just don't understand the fit.

So what are the Bulls trying to do with these moves, big picture? I'm honestly asking, really don't follow the NBA closely anymore and have completely given up on the Bulls, but I'm having trouble totally understanding what these moves signal by the Bulls in terms of a long term plan?

Except you, me, and the fence post don't know what their budget is, and what their revenue/EBITDA goals are for 2026. In 2024, they had a yearly attendance of 1,380,733 and a payroll cost of $123,336,791. In 2025, they actually had more people in the building, at 1,445,738, and a payroll cost of 63,430,000. And I agree with your last part...revenue will rise with more people going to the park, which history has shown happens when the Sox put a good product on the field. Given their history with prospect development, scouting, drafting....having the 27th ranked payroll isn't a good recipe for success for this organization. Since 2001, the three times the Sox won the division, they were 7th (2005), 5th (2008) and 5th (2021) in the AL in payroll. They will go into 2026 as the 13th highest payroll in the AL, only behind Tampa and Cleveland.

Correct. And this isn’t a Getz thing at all, he clearly has a very specific budget to work with and is getting fairly creative to work within those limits. And everyone has a budget. Needed in all business. It’s just embarrassing low for an MLB Team in Chicago. If the Sox decided to add a 25 million dollar a year player to the team tomorrow, they still wouldn’t crack the Top 20 in baseball this year for payroll costs.