Well, I defiantly agree with that. I don't mean to undermine the caliber of player Pace was/is, but he's not nearly on the same level as he once was. I only mentioned this because I think the days of aging O-Linemen is coming to a close due to the shift in how D-Lines are constructed now.

No one said he's still the freak that came out of Ohio State. He can definitely be very good this year, which is all I said.

Steve, don't let everyone s*** on your optimism. Pace will be good for us. I've seen plenty of players get banged up in their thirties and go on hiatus for a couple years, only to close out their career on a good note. Pace has a lot of pride, believe that. Pace is going to be the most accomplished player to put on the blue and orange since Walter Payton.

Edited April 3, 200917 yr by rangercal

No one said he's still the freak that came out of Ohio State. He can definitely be very good this year, which is all I said.

 

Its hard to believe he is going to be very good this year when St. Louis had one of the worst OLines in the league and were happy to let him walk. I dunno how much he has left in the tank, but I think best bet is he is decent this year. Anything more than that would be a surprise imo.

Its hard to believe he is going to be very good this year when St. Louis had one of the worst OLines in the league and were happy to let him walk. I dunno how much he has left in the tank, but I think best bet is he is decent this year. Anything more than that would be a surprise imo.

This is the NFL. You can't just look at whether or not a team let someone walk on its own, you have to look at the salary issues as well. Cutting Pace for this year saved the Rams $6 million in cap space. That's more than he'll cost the Bears by a fair amount I believe. And the Bears started off the FA period with significantly more cap room than the Rams had.

This is the NFL. You can't just look at whether or not a team let someone walk on its own, you have to look at the salary issues as well. Cutting Pace for this year saved the Rams $6 million in cap space. That's more than he'll cost the Bears by a fair amount I believe. And the Bears started off the FA period with significantly more cap room than the Rams had.

 

You're right, that does play a part in it. However, you usually see that with teams that no longer need said player. The Rams offensive line was terrible, and Pace had been one of the faces of their franchise but they had to cut ties with him for more reasons than just being owed $6 million.

 

Of course its going to cost the Bears significantly less to have Pace on their team, older players who get cut usually don't get equal or more money than they were on their previous deal. Like I said, I think that he can be decent this year if he stays healthy but I wouldn't say he has a few very good years left in him.

 

No one said he's still the freak that came out of Ohio State. He can definitely be very good this year, which is all I said.

Orlando Pace with one good leg is significantly better than some of the crap the Bears have lined up at tackle the last several seasons.

Its hard to believe he is going to be very good this year when St. Louis had one of the worst OLines in the league and were happy to let him walk. I dunno how much he has left in the tank, but I think best bet is he is decent this year. Anything more than that would be a surprise imo.

Ummm...it was strictly a financial move, same with Holt. It happens in the NFL when you get older. I've seen so many people (prior to the Bears making this move) talking about how good of a season Pace had last year and that he was a borderline probowl LT. Was he what he was, absolutely not, but he's still above average. I've also heard this from former offensive lineman during radio interviews who I would think know more than me and you about being a good tackle. Pace could never play with the Bears due to an injury, but if he's healthy he'll be a significant upgrade over anything the Bears have had at the LT position since Big Cat was in his prime.

This is the NFL. You can't just look at whether or not a team let someone walk on its own, you have to look at the salary issues as well. Cutting Pace for this year saved the Rams $6 million in cap space. That's more than he'll cost the Bears by a fair amount I believe. And the Bears started off the FA period with significantly more cap room than the Rams had.

And the Bears had a need where the Rams are still a few years away and are looking to develop in the future so Pace wasn't a good fit.