2020 Overall Free Agency Plan

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Hoog
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2020 Off Season Plan: Free Agency

Sign RFA Tight End: Blake Jarwin (Dallas) or Jacob Hollister (Seattle)

The Tight End position is just too important to this team to screw around again in the draft on a 2nd, 4th, or 5th round TE. No more hoping a rookie can solve our issues here. Looking at you Adam Shaheen. Both these guys are RFA with proven NFL production and from what I have been reading around the web is that both teams know they will lose them if they don’t put a 2nd round tender on them which amounts to $3.2M this year. I’m thinking with both teams being cap strapped a bit (Dallas a lot more so), one of these teams will not go to the 2nd round variety tender. If not, I go hard after the one that didn’t get tagged. If both are tagged, I still make a run at Jarwin with the assumption, if you build the contract right, Dallas won’t match, they have bigger fish to fry and would just use a draft pick on a TE along with signing Witten to a one year deal.

Neither of these guys is considered a stud blocking TE (see below) but they aren’t horrible either. They are the receiving TE we need for Trubisky. I would offer the following contract to one of these guys, front load it, and hope the teams don’t match it:

3 years @ $11M ($7.5M guaranteed) *Based off Ryan Griffin’s contract


Sign FA Tight End Nick Vannett (Pittsburgh)

Did I mention the TE position is just too valuable for our team not to fully address it? Vannett is one of the best blocking TE’s in the league and we can now scrap the Sowell and other plans for someone to block. We are keeping Burton and adding Jarwin/Hollister so we need a stud blocker as well. We could also keep Shaheen, Holt, or draft a TE in this scenario since Vannett will come pretty cheap. I think he also has more receiving potential than people give him credit for aw well. He has had as many as 29 catches (17 last year) and has a 73% catch rate. He would give us three very solid TE’s for Trubisky (or whomever is behind center) and solidify this position for Nagy’s offense (no more excuses). The contract would be:

3 years @ $6M ($4M guaranteed) *Based off of Steeler sites that had him as a resign at $1M per, which I thought was low.

Sign FA OL Graham Glasgow (Lions)

For some reason, the Lions are letting this guy get away and we should jump on him. He is a
versatile OL man who is a very good run blocker so he would fit out RG position really well. I
watched him for years being a Michigan fan and living near the Detroit area. The guy can play
and play well. He would be a huge addition to the RG spot from last year. The contract offer:

4 years @ $34M ($21.25 guaranteed) *Based on other OG contracts and between Leno/Massie


Sign FA ILB Nick Kwiatkoski (Bears) or Joe Schobert (Cleveland)

Both guys are 26 years old and both are productive. I think either of them next to Smith would
be a great fit. I would prefer Nick K since he has the familiarity with the defense and he did so
well last year in the revised defense. His role actually increased during the year with no let
down at all. Schobert is very similar and I don’t think we would miss a step with him in there.
Just for the record, Iyiegbuniwe made more than both these guys last year. Go figure.
The contract I would offer would be:

3 years @ $22.5M ($15M guaranteed) *Jordan Hicks and Denzel Perryman’s contracts

Or

4 years @ $26M ($14M guaranteed) *Would prefer the shorter contract for an ILB



Sign FA CB Bashaud Breeland (KC)

I would really like for us to go after Logan Ryan but I see projections for him are around $12M
so took him off my list. I can’t see us dumping that kind of money on top of what we are paying
Fuller already. I’ve made motions to sign Breeland for 2 years now, especially when we could
have gotten him really cheap after his injury. He is 3 years younger than Prince and a better
coverage guy. He won’t shy away from tackling either so I think he’s more complete than
Prince. He also has had at least 1 INT every year since he came into the NFL. Here’s the offer:

3 years @ $22.5M ($15M guaranteed) *Just short of the projected offer to Trae Wayne’s $8.5M


Best Case Scenario in FA:

Blake Jarwin, TE: 3 years @ $11M
Nick Vannett, TE: 3 years @ $6M
Graham Glasgow, RG: 4 years @ $34M
Nick Kwiatkowski, ILB: 3 years @ $22.5M
Bashaud Breeland, CB: 3 years @ $22.5
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Z Bear
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If you are going to put $17M more a year into the TE position, just sign Hooper or Henry instead of two guys. The Bears have a decent CB room without Amukamara, so I do not see them spending that much money on Breeland. Instead that money should go to a S since Jackson is the only one on the roster.

Hooper or Henry at TE
Glasgow or Thunney at G
Kwit at ILB
a S for $7M year
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dplank
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Nice plan Hoog. Couple thoughts...

We can only carry so many TE's on the roster, and Burton is a lock as one U because of his contract. But we can't count on him because of his mangina, so we have to address U TE significantly IMO. Right now, the only TE on our roster that looks at all like he can block is Holtz. Shaheen, Bruanecker, Hoersted...can't block and aren't the bigtime U TE threat that we need either. I like Vannett as a primary blocking TE with Holtz as his backup, and he could be had for the money we'd save by dumping Braunecker and Shaheen (2.5M) - can't keep them all. So that means we have 1 very important spot open a U TE and we haven't spent any extra cash yet. That, IMO, opens us up to the possibility of adding Hooper or Henry (I prefer Hooper).

I agree with Z that we can probably add some CB depth in the draft and need to sign a legit starting S instead.

I agree with your take on Kwit over Danny T. I've had to eat crow on Kwit, I thought he sucked but he proved me wrong last year.

I prefer to go big on OL and rather than spend over 8M/yr on a G, I'd go higher on an OT and draft a G in the 2nd who could likely start Day 1. Doing this frees up a few million of spending at OT because we won't have to resign Lucas to play swing T again (although, same logic at RG I suppose with Coward). If we go G, I'd prefer the versatility of Thunney.
Drone7
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I was much more impressed with Pierre Louis' sideline to sideline speed than Kwit's and I believe he would come cheaper.

Kwit is more of an aggressive, straight line player. He definitely improved in 2019. He also has some experience calling the plays, so if they let Danny Trev leave, they might want to pay more to have a guy capable of that. A bit disappointed that Smith hasn't stepped up in that regard and become the Bears' Wagner, but maybe he isn't mentally capable yet of running their defense.
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dplank
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Drone7 wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 3:22 pm I was much more impressed with Pierre Louis' sideline to sideline speed than Kwit's and I believe he would come cheaper.

Kwit is more of an aggressive, straight line player. He definitely improved in 2019. He also has some experience calling the plays, so if they let Danny Trev leave, they might want to pay more to have a guy capable of that. A bit disappointed that Smith hasn't stepped up in that regard and become the Bears' Wagner, but maybe he isn't mentally capable yet of running their defense.
Or maybe Chuck Pagano is a moron.

I keep forgetting about Pierre Louis, and agree he was very good. Hope we find a way to keep him.
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AZ_Bearfan
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Smith may be too quiet to get the calls out loud enough for everybody to hear, kinda like James Daniels.
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wab
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I don't know what Pagano has to do with anything, but ok.
Drone7
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I didn't expect Smith to supplant Trev--a smart ILB--but if not mistaken, Kwit made the calls when Trev was out not Smith. And then you have the mysterious "absence" where he watched from the bench, which we should probably avoid getting into. At best, it showed some immaturity.

I hadn't seen Pierre Louis play until last year. I was very impressed with that pickup by Pace. He's a bit older than Kwit, but much faster.


BTW Hoog had some interesting guys to target, but what about the QB situation?
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Pagano had Smith playing out of position, Trevathan made it known...
Trevathan echoed that sentiment. “Roquan, he’s a dog, man. Once he gets rolling, he’s going to be good,” Trevathan said. “He’s just trying to figure out a bit right now. He’s a guy that can make some plays for us. I know the type of person he is. I’ve been around him a lot. I know that dog. It may not look like it right now, but he’s still out there. He’s still wreaking havoc. He’s just not making the plays as much, as often, as he used [to].”

Trevathan said it might be related to playing the “Jack” inside linebacker spot instead of his accustomed “Mike” position. But Pagano downplayed the impact of the position switch
Pagano is also known for calling dime defense frequently, something Vic did infrequently. And Pagano pulls the Jack LB out for an additional DB when he does this. He also plays more man to man where Vic played a lot more zone.
MAN TO MAN: Pagano’s play-calling could be most different for Danny Trevathan and Roquan Smith, who happen to have the athletic tools to match up well with tight ends and running backs one-on-one.

Ultimately, it’s on Pagano to find ways to make his players successful, and Fangio laid out the blueprint perfectly in 2018.
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Yogi da Bear
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First, I really want to resign Deon Bush. I think he might be the better safety fit for this team than Clinton Dix was. He's more of an in the box guy.

Second, I really like what I saw from Pierre-Louis. Kwit is okay but his speed is a major detriment for us. Don't forget that opening Green Bay game two years ago. With Kwit, you absolutely have to hide him in coverage. But I like what Kwit does in the run game. He's a major force there.

Hoog, I can't see us getting not one but two RFA TEs. I haven't seen but a handful of competent RFAs change teams EVER. When I'm looking at a free agent class, I pretty much write them off.
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wab
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In my perfect Madden-esque free offseason world, the top 10 things I would do (in no particular order) prior to the draft are:

1 - Sign a center. Either Stefen Wisniewski or Bj Finney. Both are primarily centers and have experience at guard. Wisniewski understands the offense and Finney is a load in the ruinning game.
That allows the Bears to put their best three interior linemen on the field at the same time.

2 - Trade Leonard Floyd for OJ Howard (I know, this is very unlikely). Both are relative disappointments on their current teams and both could benefit from a change of scenery. Floyd would greatly benefit from playing the "Robber" in Tod Bowles' defensive scheme. Howard would give the Bears an element in the passing game that they currently don't have.

3 - Sign TE David Wells from KC. He'd effectively replace Shaheen, Braunecker, and Holtz...all in one player. He was hurt in camp and never got a chance to show what he was capable of.

4 - Re-sign Kwit. For obvious reasons.

5 - Sign Yannick Ngakoue. If the team is cool with playing Floyd 13mil, they should be cool with paying Ngakoue 15. He'd be a monster opposite Mack.

6 - Sign Nick Williams over RRH. I was super high on RRH after the first 5 games of the season. Then he disappeared. The Bears are in a tight spot with specific needs and probably won't be able to bring both players back. Where RRH was a better fit for Fangio's defense, Williams is a better fit for Pagano's.

7 - Re-sign Deon Bush and give him a legitimate chance at a starting position. This allows Eddie to move back to FS where his impact can be felt. Bush isn't a superstar, but he's a sound tackler who can play in the box and doesn't get fooled often.

8 - Release Amukamara and Gabriel. Their money will be needed elsewhere.

9 - Sign Jeff Driskel. Everyone is talking about Dalton, and I get it, but Driskel also has a connection to Lazor. He's also highly athletic and would give the Bears that Taysom Hill type player as a backup to Mitch.

10 - Bring back Cornelius Lucas. I'm not sying he makes the final 53 or anything, especially if the Bears draft a tackle of the future. But...even though Lucas will be 30, he's kind of a late bloomer who doesn't have a lot of mileage on him. He also clearly outplayed Massie in spot duty.
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Hoog
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Yogi da Bear wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 11:06 pm Hoog, I can't see us getting not one but two RFA TEs. I haven't seen but a handful of competent RFAs change teams EVER. When I'm looking at a free agent class, I pretty much write them off.
Yogi, there was an "or" placed there between Jarwin and Hollister. Is someone else a RFA that I listed? If so, didn't know.
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Hoog
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Z Bear wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 2:56 pm If you are going to put $17M more a year into the TE position, just sign Hooper or Henry instead of two guys. The Bears have a decent CB room without Amukamara, so I do not see them spending that much money on Breeland. Instead that money should go to a S since Jackson is the only one on the roster.

Hooper or Henry at TE
Glasgow or Thunney at G
Kwit at ILB
a S for $7M year
Z Bear, not sure where you are getting the $17M from unless you are taking the 3 year life of the contract figure. Should only be around $5M a year.
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Moves with current Bears:
Release Gabriel
Release Shaheen
Release Braunecker
Extend Robinson for first tier WR money (WR1)
Extend Floyd for second tier EDGE money (EDGE3)
Extend Prince for old man CB money (CB2)

Pre-draft signings:
Stefan Wisniewski (C1)
Nick Vannett (TE2)
Nick WIlliams (DT3)
Arik Armstead (DL)
Re-sign Bush for third (?) tier S money (SS1)
Re-sign Kwit for second tier ILB money (ILB2)
Re-sign Kevin Pierre-Louis for third tier ILB money (ILB3)

Post-draft Signings:
Andy Dalton (QB2)
Over the Hill RB to be named (RB3)
xyt in the discord chats
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Hoog
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Drone7 wrote: Mon Feb 10, 2020 3:29 pm
BTW Hoog had some interesting guys to target, but what about the QB situation?
Drone, I am really waiting to see where the dust settles for a true QB free agent prediction. I'm really not seeing a great fit that I think will be an upgrade yet.

I do know what I want though. Bare with me a moment...... Andy Reid has said the following about Patrick Mahomes:

Leader
Likes to take charge
Not afraid to make things happen
Confident in his abilities

Understands leadership and who he needs to be!

Now keep in mind, I am not a Trubisky basher, in fact have been accused of the other way BUT I can't use any of the above information to describe Mitch. In fact, all of the above is what I see as his failures. Mitch is more of a "lead by example guy" but his example doesn't exude confidence or a take charge nature. Even when he makes a big run or throw, it seems as if he is more surprised than "yea, I did that" type of attitude. He definitely isn't the "give me the ball and let me win this" guy, even when he has done it you don't get that feeling. I think he sorely needs a mentor to push this out of him. For that reason Mariota, Bridgewater, Winston, and Dalton are all out for me. None of them have that type of bravado either.

If we could get Rivers in here, which I don't see happening because the Bears want Mitch to be the starter, he would be able to show Mitch the ropes to this attitude. Rivers isn't my favorite player but man when he plays it's balls out and confidence in his ability. If Cam Newton is let go, he might be this option. When he was not injured, he was another guy that put the body on the line and made sure everyone knew he was in charge. Again, he would be a starter so I'm not sure he would work either.

This brings me to the only guy I see as a real option here that meets the "personality" requirement I have for our FA. Case Keenum, plays hard, isn't afraid to be "the man", and even though his talent isn't up there with the others, you wouldn't know it. I think he's a great back up QB in this league and can help Mitch with his confidence and leadership. Barring Keenum, the low end type Keenum for me is Nick Mullens. He is a guy that doesn't have the talent but he won't let you know that when you play against or for him. Always high motor and confidence. He would gladly push Mitch to the limits.

So, that's where I'm at Drone. What do you think?
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Hoog
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wab wrote: Tue Feb 11, 2020 11:32 am In my perfect Madden-esque free offseason world, the top 10 things I would do (in no particular order) prior to the draft are:

1 - Sign a center. Either Stefen Wisniewski or Bj Finney. Both are primarily centers and have experience at guard. Wisniewski understands the offense and Finney is a load in the ruinning game.
That allows the Bears to put their best three interior linemen on the field at the same time.

2 - Trade Leonard Floyd for OJ Howard (I know, this is very unlikely). Both are relative disappointments on their current teams and both could benefit from a change of scenery. Floyd would greatly benefit from playing the "Robber" in Tod Bowles' defensive scheme. Howard would give the Bears an element in the passing game that they currently don't have.

3 - Sign TE David Wells from KC. He'd effectively replace Shaheen, Braunecker, and Holtz...all in one player. He was hurt in camp and never got a chance to show what he was capable of.

4 - Re-sign Kwit. For obvious reasons.

5 - Sign Yannick Ngakoue. If the team is cool with playing Floyd 13mil, they should be cool with paying Ngakoue 15. He'd be a monster opposite Mack.

6 - Sign Nick Williams over RRH. I was super high on RRH after the first 5 games of the season. Then he disappeared. The Bears are in a tight spot with specific needs and probably won't be able to bring both players back. Where RRH was a better fit for Fangio's defense, Williams is a better fit for Pagano's.

7 - Re-sign Deon Bush and give him a legitimate chance at a starting position. This allows Eddie to move back to FS where his impact can be felt. Bush isn't a superstar, but he's a sound tackler who can play in the box and doesn't get fooled often.

8 - Release Amukamara and Gabriel. Their money will be needed elsewhere.

9 - Sign Jeff Driskel. Everyone is talking about Dalton, and I get it, but Driskel also has a connection to Lazor. He's also highly athletic and would give the Bears that Taysom Hill type player as a backup to Mitch.

10 - Bring back Cornelius Lucas. I'm not sying he makes the final 53 or anything, especially if the Bears draft a tackle of the future. But...even though Lucas will be 30, he's kind of a late bloomer who doesn't have a lot of mileage on him. He also clearly outplayed Massie in spot duty.
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Hoog
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Like you said, not sure how realistic it is but I would have a hard time disagreeing with most of it other than the David Wells signing, which I am not sure I can agree on. I'd love to get OJ Howard in here though if that was an option.
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