Who We Need to Exceed Expectations in 2017

The key word in there is "healthy".

I think he was healthy for maybe a half a dozen games over the last 2 years. If that.

 

My biggest concern when they signed him was I questioned if he could be an every down player. He's proven he can't be.

Use him like Baltimore did as a situational guy and get the most out of him with 1/3 to 2/5 of the overall snaps and he can be productive.

I hate his paycheck to but you can get something out of this guy.

 

I am pretty sure that a team that is expected to win less than 4 games should have many exceeded expectations.

 

I see what you did there Poo, man you are a funny guy, how did you find the time to come up with something that clever with all the time you spend fondling yourself to pictures of Tommy and playing with your deflated balls?

Funny that a guy who probably lives in someone's basement (with them possibly not even knowing he is down there) and has clearly never met the expectations of anyone and disappoints whichever hand he is dating for the night, can make comments about how anything is not going to exceed expectations.

Go troll somewhere else Poo boy, you are not even good at it.

 

Quite brilliantly-said Aggie! Well done!

 

What are you getting out of trolling?

Seriously. What does it do for you?

 

I gotta post here more often....you guys are letting trolls run wild on my board.

 

"But to bring it back to the Bears, by far the biggest problem i have with Pace, besides taking 3 offseasons to pick a QB of course, has been the complete abandon with which he's shown talented & productive veterans the door. A football team is like any other business, when you have talent in the building you do your best to keep it. And no one but the biggest slurper could say Pace has done that. He categorically hasn't. Only the Browns let talent walk as easily."

Can't really argue.

But... Just playing devil's advocate - who has Pace let walk that would have a) gotten the Bears to the playoffs under his tenure and b) would have been worth veteran money?

It's clear that he's trying to get younger and sees that some players, regardless of their short-term value to the team will not make a playoff-level difference in the short term, and are clearly not of any value in the long term.

To clarify, I am not a fan of Pace. I think he sucks for the most part. But he has a long term plan. And he's sticking to it.

And now Brandon Marshall has yet another vet saying he's a locker room cancer... and Martellus Bennett has changed teams as well. After they won a super bowl.

 

Slauson was a massive fuck up. Sitton becoming available completely covered Pace's ass.

Bennett would've given either of our new QB's an actual target. It's not like the guy doesn't still have quality years left. Realistically, he'd be a contributor to a playoff team in the next few years (for the record, I think we might sniff the playoffs once in the next 5-7 years, tops).

Alshon is a young, quality player. We can argue about injury, but with the contract he has now, I don't think any of us would've objected to it.

The problem is, none of those guys actually wanted to be here. He could've thrown the world at the latter two, and they still would've left. Slauson was let go, but I'm sure he doesn't mind. They wanted out because this team is an absolute dumpster fire, and that's WITH Fox and Pace at the helm.

I'm sure Pace has a plan. I just don't think it's a good one. If Trubisky works out, he's in better shape than most, and it'll do a world of good. There are few GM's who can take a team with a young franchise QB and keep its nose firmly planted in the dirt. Hell, look at how little real talent GB has, and yet they keep winning - their GM safe and praised. Of course, if Trubisky sucks, Pace will be out on his ass, regardless of his many other flaws.

I get that Pace tanked. And I'm relatively at peace with that. I hate seeing my team suck, but given how completely fucked the NFL is (worst run professional sports league in the country, potentially the world), I get it. The problem I have is, I don't think his plan to handle the tank has been good. I hope it works out, and I hate that - because that means I'll be stuck with Pace. My fear is that the above plays out - Trubisky is good, but Pace isn't good enough to get the team over the hump, languishing in the mediocre middle ground til I die of frustration. ... Or setting something on fire.

 

I liked Matt Slauson as much as anyone.

But calling getting rid of him a "massive fucck up"? Is that accurate? Was he the lynchpin holding the team together for a playoff run?

No. He was an above average guy that could play guard and center. He's had injuries too, he's old, and who would you rather have going forward, him or Cody Whitehair?

Sitton fell into Pace's lap, but is he part of the plan going forward? A guy the Packers cut? How did he do last year again?

And Bennett just won a Super Bowl, and is moving on again. Clearly he is a beast, but at what price? How many teams is this now - 4? Hmmmm...

The Alshon move stung, but like you said and we all know now, he wanted out. So why even bring it up? Leaving the team was clearly HIS choice.

I guess I am defending Pace... F-U-C-K

Somebody help me. I've clearly lost it.

 

What I'm saying, Bear-man, is that Pace has clearly not fostered an environment that players even want to be a part of. Even if he's a good talent evaluator, he had better hope that turns around quickly, or that talent will keep walking out the door, even when he wants to hold onto it (this is partly in response to the question about Jeffery, but also in general).

It's one thing to tank, it's another entirely to just dismantle your team with no plan in place. My point about Slauson was that, without Sitton, who comes in to play there? What are we left with? You can make the argument that, going forward, Slauson may not be very meaningful, but why get rid of him at the moment if you have no better options? Would Slauson really have prevented them from taking Whitehair (I don't remember how the timeline worked out)? If Pace is any fucking good at his job, I sure as fuck hope not (pass on a clearly talented player who dropped because you have a decent vet at a position that demands depth). And when you can field a starting G-C-G combo, but have nothing behind it, even with Sitton and Whitehair, Slauson would've helped. No reason he should've been gone. No explanation. Having Slauson on the team doesn't hurt you in any way just because, once the team presumably crawls out of the dumpster fire, he's older and less valuable.

We can say that Bennett has been on different teams, but what does that influence the idea that he was traded away for absolute peanuts, and that he would be a help both now and in the future? Again, Pace chucked him out the door for nothing, no plan in place.

What I'm saying is that wanting to plan for success in the future is not mutually exclusive with being good in the present. I get tanking. But jettisoning guys with no apparent or good plan in place, or being unable to foster an environment that attracts quality young players... That's not showing foresight beyond the tanking. Pace is banking that his personal abilities as a scout (see: going to every game he can, etc.) seeing him through to a successful team. And, if he's money in the draft on a constant basis, that will be the case. But he clearly hasn't employed a consistent plan or shown good decision making in his roster building. So, if he's a genius talent evaluator, we're fine. If not, see my post above.

 

Ok, I get you dline.

But you can't blame Ryan Pace solely for the years and years of losing seasons and ham-handed team management. That's on the ownership.

Players don't want to come here because we have now entered the laughing stock zone of teams, and that has been festering for several GM's now.

 

So because one player(Alshon) decided he didn't want to be a Bear Pace is now fostering an environment that players don't want to be a part of? Hmmmm. Tell me what Alshon did in his 2 seasons with Pace that showed he should have been offered the contract Alshon was seeking. Alshon left because he feels the Eagles give him a better chance to show his worth short term. In the hopes of getting the monster deal he is seeking.

I think the Bears viewed Slauson as a center. Grasu was viewed as the starter going forward and the Bears were content in adding a guard in the draft. I think you do the right thing by Slauson and cut him free allowing him to get a starting job elsewhere. The Sitton signing had more to do with Grasu's injury than letting Slauson go. As for drafting a position your already strong at just look at this draft where Pace took another guard to groom behind Sitton.

If Bennett wasn't traded he would have been in the same boat as he was this offseason. A FA. Trading him is the right move if he is not in your long term plans. We can argue the compensation but that's not the point. All Pace had to do was pay the man and he would be a happy camper until he felt he outplayed that deal and deserved more. Which the Bennett brothers tend to do about 20 minutes after they sign a deal. Bears drafted their TE of the future. We will see how it works out.

Just because a plan doesn't show immediate results does no mean it doesn't exist. Whether you agree with the plan or not is a different story.

 

Were you present for this offseason? Numerous players said they had no desire to be here. This team's ability to attract players has been sincerely diminished, and Pace is at the helm of that. Pretending Alshon is the only example of this isn't just looking through rose-colored glasses, it's trying to paint everyone else's red.

Why wouldn't Bennett be in your long term plans? He's an outstandingly talented dual threat TE that isn't being diminished by age. Of course compensation is part of the point, Rob! Why wouldn't it be? They got, what, a 5th in return for him? Was it a 7th? I don't even remember, because it was so inconsiderable! Oh, they had to pay him? What are they doing with that money, otherwise? Who are we paying, if not him?

They drafted a TE with a mid-2nd round round pick. We know what Bennett brings to the field, and if this kid brings that, we'll be happy. So why not just pay Bennett?? Maybe this guy is the next big thing, maybe he's a bust. But he'd also look great across from Bennett, and so would a CB or S, instead...

If the next argument is that Bennett didn't want to be here, I refer you to my original point!

So, you have a young, unproven player you want at C, you add a fresh 2nd round pick at G, and you have Long at the other spot. You have absolutely no one capable of playing in their stead, should the need arise. So... you cut Slauson? Poor roster management. Let Slauson and the two kids compete, put the remainder on the bench. It's what good teams do. If Chicago only viewed Slauson as a C, then they're even bigger morons than I thought, but still should've done the same thing.

They drafted a 5th (6th? I don't remember) round G out of a D2 school. Put the paint down, Rob.

I'm not looking for immediate results. I'm looking for logic, which Pace shows shockingly little of, at times. I think Pace has done some good things, and again, he tanked - that never reflects well, but can be necessary. That said, there is no reason not to criticize his actions accordingly. I'm not going to just sit on a bandwagon and wait for a 'plan' to materialize - partly because I don't want to be sitting around dumb-founded when it doesn't (he hasn't proven to me that he's a good enough talent evaluator, yet).

 

Please show me a quote that says any player had no desire to play here. Pace had a budget he wasn't willing to pass with any of the FA's regardless of the $$ he had to spend. We didn't land any of the top FA's because Pace didn't want to pay them. Not because they didn't want to come to Chicago. If you want to question Pace for not willing to pony up fine. It's a valid argument. Gone are the days where FAs visit teams and get sold on signing there. Now Agents get the offers and decide between the serious ones. Pace for better or worse didn't make his offers serious enough.

I have stated before that I would have liked to pay Bennett and deal with the headache. Doesn't mean I'm going to crucify Pace/Fox for not wanting to do the same.

If Bennett is such an amazing talent then why did the Patriots pass? Why did the rest of the league pass? Why did he sign for less than he wanted in GB? My thinking is probably because a team needs strong leadership to keep him in check. Something the Bears are trying to build but don't quite have.

Slauson was a fan favorite. It is obvious that the Bears didn't like him as much as the fans did. Me included. Doesn't mean he was cut without a plan. Pace signed Larsen who he felt was a better scheme fit to compete for a starting spot. When Sitton became available he pounced. Funny nobody gives Pace credit for scooping him up so quickly. Instead saying he fell into his lap.

Pace has done pretty well in the 5th round wouldn't you say. Or are you unable to give Pace even the slightest bit of credit.

Please explain the tanking. I'm missing you on that.

As for the bandwagon I hardly think there are any bandwagon fans when it comes to the Bears right now.

IMO I think it is still too early to label Pace as a good or bad GM. I do know that changing GM's every couple of years is bad. So I will continue to hold out hope that Pace and his plan work out and he can bring the Bears back to where we all want to see them.

Doesn't mean I don't criticize some of his moves. I just try not to exaggerate the questionable and downplay the promising.

 

How much do you get paid by the team to apologize and rationalize every shit move they make? Be honest.

 

Apologize? Please explain.

Rationalize. Hmmm. I try to see the reason behind every move they make. Whether I agree with it or not. I assume the don't make decisions to purposefully harm the team.

Why does it bother you so much?

 

Another deal that makes no sense, Bears sign Victor Cruz to join an already crowded though largely devoid of talent WR group. Can't find the terms of the deal. Given his injury history and decline, it's hard to see how he makes the final 53. And that's saying a lot.

 

Completely worthless signing. Eddie Royal is gone, Alshon walked and so Pace needed someone to fill in the for those two on the injured list.

Team Psychologist BigRobo will explain the deep thought process behind this move.

 

"Butt-Fumble drops back, he's got No-Knees in the endzone.... TD, TD Bears!!! The Butt-Fumble to No-Knees connection pays off once again and that's No-Knees 15th salsa dance of the season. Remarkable!"