Tony

And in 2024, I can't blame people much for that belief. The development of a QB doesn't stop when a player leaves college, and thus far the Bears have shown they have been unable to "figure out" the position. Not saying someone like Mitch would have been a stud if he went to someplace like the 49ers, but there has been too much history on the Bears side to just say the "players" have always been the wrong guy.

I feel like a lot of those concerns aren't based nationally, but more Chicago-based from the Fields cult.

This is dumb bit

That also goes into this whole “doing right by Justin” conversation that makes this entire situation so unique. If the Bears weren’t in line for one of the top 3 QB’s, there isn’t any conversation this offseason about moving on from Fields. It’s simply building around him to give him as many weapons as possible. And as you said, while not ideal, it wouldn’t be a terrible spot to be in, this team as currently constructed, with Fields, has a shot to win 9-10 games next season with health on their side. Acquiring the No. 1 overall (thanks Poles) changed everything, and thank god they are going to take advantage of this amazing opportunity

None of it will matter, 0%, if Caleb Williams is the real deal. Even if Fields goes on to show more than he did in Chicago, if Williams plays at the level basically every scout and prognosticator projects him to, I wouldn’t bat an eye if they just had to release Fields. If he’s another bust in the long line of busts, then Poles won’t be here long and it will be another GM in his seat still searching for that QB the Bears can’t find.

When you have back to back HOF’s still playing at an incredibly high level, it’s a lot easier to let someone sit. But Smith/Mahomes and the Packers are really the only situations where it’s happened and worked. Burrow, Herbert, Dak, Russ, Kyler, Allen, Luck, etc…all started right away and it worked just fine. You’re taking a guy No. 1 overall, he’s got 3 CFB seasons under his belt…it’s go time. Sitting and watching Justin Fields play for 6-8 games isn’t going to help his develooment

There is basically no circumstance that made sense to keep him, and clearly the Bears agreed with that line of thinking as they were only able to obtain a 6th for him. The Bears have never developed a QB, as we all know. They are to blame for that, but it’s also incredibly difficult to do, as many other teams around the league also know. They are investing the largest draft capital possible in Caleb, they better do everything in their power and give him every possible chance to develop and succeed. Having Fields on this roster hinders that in multiple ways, and clearly they decided he wasn’t going to be part of their long term plans. Once they made that determination, getting him off the roster was the only choice they had, and I believe other GM’s knew that, which is why they accepted the best offer on the table, which was a 6th.

Good breakdown on the current Bears cap https://x.com/aaronlemingnfl/status/1768683054506049735?s=46&t=Nd9oJCYs4TMp8_32NrPiMA

They need WR help badly. Surrounding Caleb with a great cast…is a good thing. And as I said yesterday, he’s the No. 1 pick going to a 7 win team that’s young. The playoffs should absolutely be the expectation this year. It’s time to go.

Yes, you gotta think the draft is kind of set now. Bears - QB Washington- QB Pats - QB Cards - WR Chargers - WR Giants - WR

I'd bet good money they trade back at 9

Whoa! What's the cap hit for the Bears?

Bears added another OL, so there is starting to be some veteran depth there. https://x.com/courtneyrcronin/status/1768434782508024167?s=46&t=Nd9oJCYs4TMp8_32NrPiMA

I’m not saying they are or they should. I’m simply saying it’s basically a forgone conclusion at this point Caleb will be at QB, which means you have a rookie pay scale at the most expensive position in the NFL, not sure why they are being so frugal with their cap situation right now

Yeah, I just don't get it. DJ Wonnum went to the Panthers on a 2 year deal. Why are they just sitting on cap money for this season? Unless they are throwing EVERYONE off, they are going to be paying their QB nothing over the next 3 seasons.

Exactly. Poles needs to upgrade positions. Center should literally be the easiest position to do that, given how bad it was last year.

That's of course what they should do, it's incredibly obvious...but they won't because why spend more money now? Jerry would never sign off on it

Getz will be here until Jerry is no longer the owner of the Chicago White Sox

But what does he spend it on? There is a LONG track record of the Sox not acquiring premiere FA's in the market, but instead spending on that "2nd wave" of players. If all this open payroll means more Benintendi's, then it's gonna be more of the same.

What a fucking loser lol

Correct, but for whatever reason, not ready to totally punt on Scott, given what we saw from Mooney last year, not sure how much of the blame goes to Justin/scheme.

Shows you why Day 1 and Day 2 of the draft are so important. If Velus Jones wasn't a total bust as a 3rd rounder, WR issues become a lot easier to solve. But when you totally whiff, it hurts.

But the Bears find themselves in a very unique position. When was the last time a 7 win team had the No. 1 pick? You and I would both agree based on how they both started the season, and how they ended the season..we should see this team improve from last year, no? I would certainly hope the folks up in Lake Forrest aren’t looking at 2024 as a season where they take a step backwards. So with the understanding they were a 7 win team last year, is 9 wins really out of the question?

If they don’t make the playoffs this upcoming season, it was a failed year. I don’t expect them to win the SB, but they won 7 games and blew three losses where they had a +90% win expectancy in the 2nd half of those games. We’ve obviously seen you can win with a rookie QB, so it’s go time now. “Rebuilding” is over

There is also much more to it than that. The package he got from Carolina at that current moment was franchise altering. Not only securing the No. 1 pick, but securing a true No. 1 is not easy, and he accomplished both, and still ended up with a key piece in Wright. Now, with that said, he’s being far too conservative with the cap. He’s shown he’s willing to be aggressive (Claypool comes to mind) but it obviously didn’t work out. It seems like he’s taking the Hoyer approach of “We want this guy but if it becomes a bidding war, we’re sticking to our projections” and sometimes you have to bite the bullet and get your guy. You can always screw with the cap and kick the can down the road if you really need to.