What could have been.

[beardown07]

Wiki fucked me per the yoosh.


It was on Pace's watch. Maybe not his best move, but I think one thing is clear with pace....no one player is above the team and locker room cancers will not be tolerated. I'm ok with that. Marshall was coming off an embarrassing season off the field. As Bears fans, we put up with it cuz he's awesome, but if he was pulling the same shit on another team, everyone would rag on him.

Marshall is long-gone. It's done and over with. I've moved on and so have the Bears. Hopefully White can help us all forget about him.

 

[beardown07]

My main point is, I don't think we've regressed as much as you think on offense, all while the D is getting much better. Our D was a major problem that needed addressing. Even with all those great offensive players in 2013 and 2014, we fielded two of the worst teams in team history because our D was atrocious.

My other point is, as of right now, aside from losing an aging RB, we are absolutely killing it in FA(last year too) and have arguably the best coaching staff in my lifetime. The arrow is pointing up, and now is the time for optimism IMO.

 

[averagejoe]

Are we a better team right now, compared to 2 years ago?

Posted this on another forum:

It may be hard to tell from what the Bears actually show on the field, but GM Pace and HC Fox have had to repair what the former GM Emery and HC Trestman had broken. And part of what they broke is "character" and accountability. I applaud what they've done so far. (Like mending the bridge to Urlacher.)


If they're willing to do that for guys no longer on the team, imagine the culture of the locker room that they want to build on with accountable leadership.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

Posted this on another forum:

It may be hard to tell from what the Bears actually show on the field, but GM Pace and HC Fox have had to repair what the former GM Emery and HC Trestman had broken. And part of what they broke is "character" and accountability. I applaud what they've done so far. (Like mending the bridge to Urlacher.)


If they're willing to do that for guys no longer on the team, imagine the culture of the locker room that they want to build on with accountable leadership.

I agree to a point about BM and Ratliff and Bennett but what about Forte? He was no cancer and deserved to play out his game as a Bear. My point was, were doing some good things and some not so good things. Every time we lose a elite player we get further away. Overall I'm pretty excited about next season, and beyond. But until we get some game changers I don't see us as a real threat to top teams. Winning teams have good nucleus's with stars. We have what looks like a good team but no stars outside of 1 WR. We need both and it seems were to fugal to bring any in. We need some really good drafts to fix this.

 

[beardown07]

Who was the "star" on Denver's Offense this last season? Not that I think our D is or will be anywhere near as good as Denver's was, but just trying to illustrate a point.

As far as game-changers are concerned, I think we agree AJ is a game-changer. I think Langford showed he can be explosive and I think we all hope K. White can be a difference-maker.

I think losing Forte, we took a step down at the RB position, at least in regards to how "complete" he was, but I don't think it's a HUGE step, and one could even argue that Langford is more explosive than Forte. Langford also showed he has pretty good hands and can/will pick up the blitz.

I think if we improve up front, that will compensate for any loss with Forte. I also think if the D improves, that will help the O.


I see us being an improved team this year, and one that nobody WANTS to play. With statistically, the easiest schedule on paper, and said team improvements, coupled with what I think will be a decline from Detroit and Green Bay, I could actually see them competing for a Division title, THIS YEAR.

 

[richig07]

B Marsh, M Forte, M Bennett, J Ratliff plus draft picks used to replace these guys. If we still had these players and used our draft picks at other positions, we would be a much better team today. This is what is bugging me. This is where I lose some faith in Pace. I'm NOT here to whine but to look back a little at what could and should have been. I do think we have upgraded the coaching staff and the depth of the team overall, but losing all our playmakers will keep us down a few more years. I did not need to be this way. We lost major talent and replaced them with cheaper less talented players. I will give a third year to this rebuild before I start bitching but all is not well in Chicago. We are doing some things right and some thing wrong, But I am not convinced we are better off now then 3 years ago. We went from having a few stars with scrubs around them to no stars with better medium players across the board. We are younger but are we better??

Two cancers that the team wanted out of town (one long past his prime in Ratliff), a shell of his former self RB, and a heartless middling TE who never lived up to his potential. Oh my gosh! All EXPENSIVE over 30 players on the decline! EXACTLY what you want in a rebuilding process!

We would have not made the move for at least one of our D-lineman signings if we had Ratliff. Would not have EVER drafted White if we had BMarsh.

Also, what were you watching last year? Miller is easily the better TE at this point and cheaper.

We're a younger, less expensive/cost effective team with a lot more upside. And YES! We're better!

THANK GOD you're not running this team. I am on my knees praising the heavens you only watch the games. You would be making all of the classic mistakes of shelling out huge sums of money to the biggest names and guys on the decline.

This team is on such a great path, and this team will have as much success come the end of next season (IMO more) than any team since our last playoff run in 2010.

You just don't get it, Noon. You simply don't get how a team is built.

 

[richig07]

I agree to a point about BM and Ratliff and Bennett but what about Forte? He was no cancer and deserved to play out his game as a Bear.

This isn't a damn charity. It's NFL football.

That's the kind of bull shit that actually WOULD hold this team back. Dead weight on the ship, worth 3 years and 12 mil!!?? 3 years? For a 30 year old RB that has steadily looked slower the past two years? It would be such a CLASSIC mistake to keep him on board.

Stop holding onto what used to be. This is a new team, in a new direction.

If you sign Forte, and keep the players you mentioned. You're talking about not bringing in hardly any of the guys we did to get this defense how it is looking right now.

The one I laughed out loud at was Ratliff? Really dude?... You wish we still had Ratliff? My god.

 

[richig07]

How is this team not MILES better right now with the front seven we have now put together headed into Fangio's second year? Along with possibly another addition in a guy like Hargreaves in the draft? Think about our defensive lineup right now? It looks PRETTY damn good.

Then couple that with the offense being boosted in a BIG way just with Jeffery, Miller and White potentially being healthy? How do we lack enough playmakers?

No. This isn't going to be a team that makes a Super Bowl run. However, it is a team that is now primed to be very competitive this season, and could be another good off-season away from THEN being ready for a deep run.

@noonthirtyjoe

You are stuck with your head in the ground, while the rest of us are eyeing the road ahead. It looks pretty damn good.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

Two cancers that the team wanted out of town (one long past his prime in Ratliff), a shell of his former self RB, and a heartless middling TE who never lived up to his potential. Oh my gosh! All EXPENSIVE over 30 players on the decline! EXACTLY what you want in a rebuilding process!

We would have not made the move for at least one of our D-lineman signings if we had Ratliff. Would not have EVER drafted White if we had BMarsh.

Also, what were you watching last year? Miller is easily the better TE at this point and cheaper.

We're a younger, less expensive/cost effective team with a lot more upside. And YES! We're better!

THANK GOD you're not running this team. I am on my knees praising the heavens you only watch the games. You would be making all of the classic mistakes of shelling out huge sums of money to the biggest names and guys on the decline.

This team is on such a great path, and this team will have as much success come the end of next season (IMO more) than any team since our last playoff run in 2010.

You just don't get it, Noon. You simply don't get how a team is built.

I'm gonna have to say you are the one who just does not get it Rich. Every team needs vets and playmakers. We got rid of our playmaking vets and replaced them with cheap young backups. While I do agree with many of Pace's moves, I do not agree with them all. I am surprised you blindly follow and have no qualms about any of the moves we made. We are still a 8-8 team with big questions moving forward. Sure were younger and cheaper, but better? Where? I think the goal is to win a SB. If we had those vets to go along with the rest of the moves we could be in the hunt.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

How is this team not MILES better right now with the front seven we have now put together headed into Fangio's second year? Along with possibly another addition in a guy like Hargreaves in the draft? Think about our defensive lineup right now? It looks PRETTY damn good.

Then couple that with the offense being boosted in a BIG way just with Jeffery, Miller and White potentially being healthy? How do we lack enough playmakers?

No. This isn't going to be a team that makes a Super Bowl run. However, it is a team that is now primed to be very competitive this season, and could be another good off-season away from THEN being ready for a deep run.

@noonthirtyjoe

You are stuck with your head in the ground, while the rest of us are eyeing the road ahead. It looks pretty damn good.

Sure the def looks better on paper but the offense will be 3 & out. How will the def look then? My head is stuck so far in the ground that other teams are snatching up our garbage and improving themselves. How come? How come other teams want these old useless players? I mean if it's just me that sees them as good vet players.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

This isn't a damn charity. It's NFL football.

That's the kind of bull shit that actually WOULD hold this team back. Dead weight on the ship, worth 3 years and 12 mil!!?? 3 years? For a 30 year old RB that has steadily looked slower the past two years? It would be such a CLASSIC mistake to keep him on board.

Stop holding onto what used to be. This is a new team, in a new direction.

If you sign Forte, and keep the players you mentioned. You're talking about not bringing in hardly any of the guys we did to get this defense how it is looking right now.

The one I laughed out loud at was Ratliff? Really dude?... You wish we still had Ratliff? My god.

The Bears are becoming a org that does not reward their longtime productive team orientated players. The rest of the league see's this and it will cost us in the long run. MF signed for cheap and would have taken even less here. Langford/Carey are part time backups at best.

 

[beardown07]

The Bears are becoming a org that does not reward their longtime productive team orientated players. The rest of the league see's this and it will cost us in the long run. MF signed for cheap and would have taken even less here. Langford/Carey are part time backups at best.

Players want to win, not have a lifetime residency.

I feel like the Bears could sign Jesus of Nazareth right now, and you'd still complain.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

Players want to win, not have a lifetime residency.

I feel like the Bears could sign Jesus of Nazareth right now, and you'd still complain.

...Well ya. Jesus would be another Shea. No thanks. Also I am not complaining. I like most of what we are doing and think we are headed in the right direction. Sorry if I'm not blindly 100% happy about every move.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

Players want to win, not have a lifetime residency.

Not always true. BU refused to even try to play elsewhere and Forte made it clear he wanted to retire a Bear.

 

[beardown07]

Players playing their whole career with one team is a thing of the past. It rarely if ever happens in today's game. Even with the best players in the game, i.e. Manning, for example.

I would've loved Matt's contract to have been for another season, maybe 2. But I also don't think it's the end of the world or that it somehow translates to the Bears being massively inferior (I think last season proved that, as Langford and Carey did fine replacing him.) Nor do I think it's some massive faux pas by the Bears' brass. I'm going to assume that they know how to run a team better than anyone on sportshoopla does.

 

[noonthirtyjoe]

[QUOTE="beardown07, I'm going to assume that they know how to run a team better than anyone on sportshoopla does.[/QUOTE]
You can assume that if you want too, for now. I was told to shut up Tdog and Emily know more then me too. Difference is I'm still here, they are not. IMO, we need to add some vets now to go along with all the youth. For me this subject is over. We just have different opinions. No biggie.