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NFL Off Season

#541
SomecallmeTim said:
I like Hodge, but where did you hear this? From the Iowa games I saw last year, he wasn't even the best linebacker on the team. That honor goes to Chad Greenway, the 17th pick. Both were great players at Iowa, but Greenway seemed to be the better athlete and the more explosive playmaker.

Great draft by the Packers though - a good linebacking corps is very important. Just ask the Steelers.
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I've just read a lot over the weekend from a variety of places...I couldn't tell you where exactly. I think because of Greenway, Hodge was kind of a sleeper. Think of what LB's might have had more press in this draft class if Hawk wasn't in it.

And hell yeah, I've always been impressed with the Steelers LB corp. Who couldn't be? If you have a half-way decent D-Line (not exceptional, but at least solid) and some top notch LB's, you can have a real nasty defense. Pittsburgh has always impressed me in that way (well, other ways too...but killer LB's have always been a Steelers trademark).

It would be nice to be able to say that about GB. For the past 14 years in GB, it's all been about the offense...aside from the SB years with Reggie and Butler. But even then the Packers really only had adequate LB's. It's been a long time since we had Nitschke...and we need LB's with that "bad" attitude.
 
#544
Sundogue said:
It would be nice to be able to say that about GB. For the past 14 years in GB, it's all been about the offense...aside from the SB years with Reggie and Butler. But even then the Packers really only had adequate LB's. It's been a long time since we had Nitschke...and we need LB's with that "bad" attitude.
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I think with Hawk, Hodge, and Barnett, you really might have something, especially a few years down the line. Barnett seems like a quality player from what I've seen, and Hawk and Hodge were both pretty dominant in college - and they each have a little bit of that nastiness in their style of play. Love to see that in a linebacker.

I just thought the Ray Lewis comparison sounded a little bit crazy. No disrespect to Hodge, obviously.
 
#545
SomecallmeTim said:
I think with Hawk, Hodge, and Barnett, you really might have something, especially a few years down the line. Barnett seems like a quality player from what I've seen, and Hawk and Hodge were both pretty dominant in college - and they each have a little bit of that nastiness in their style of play. Love to see that in a linebacker.

I just thought the Ray Lewis comparison sounded a little bit crazy. No disrespect to Hodge, obviously.
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I don't think it was a direct comparison, like he was in Ray's class (obviously not)...more like a comment about Hodge's attitude...as in having a killer instinct.

We won't know for sure what we have until they prove it on the field. Barnett was almost defensive rookie of the year, so to add Hawk and Hodge should be interesting.

Despite what many outsiders think, GB's D-Line (especially the interior) should be good enough to hold up the point of attack and let the LB's do thier thing...which is what Bates' defense was always about. Sanders is a Bates disciple and plans on keeping the Bates defense, so this should be really interesting.
 
#547
Here's the final tally of the draft predictions vs JazzBeau and I.

JazzBeau
6 correct slots predicted for draftees
6 correct teams predicted for draftees

Jive1
12 correct slots predicted for draftees
11 correct teams predicted for draftees
Eat that Kiper!

Another year. Another sig pwned.
 
#548
Personally, I'm pretty unhappy with the draft.
We traded down, but we didn't make the most of the picks we got. I think we should have picked up a TE somewhere in the draft. Leonard Pope was available until the 3rd round. I would have loved the Bears to take Klopfenstein, Fasano or Pope in the second round. Devin Hester was a reach in the late second round, but he's good enough to reach for. Quick, great acceleration, cut on a dime, and a threat to score each time he touches the ball. It's a matter of where to place him.
I didn't like the Manning pick in the 2nd. The Bears already have one of the best Ds, but one of the worst offenses. They added nothing to the offense this draft other than a guard and a fullback in the late rounds. The 3rd round pick of Dvoracek was a waste. We're already solid at D line. We passed up on Maurice Stovall, Dominique Byrd, and Max JeanGilles who could have made an impact on the offense.
 
#549
jive1 said:
Personally, I'm pretty unhappy with the draft.
We traded down, but we didn't make the most of the picks we got. I think we should have picked up a TE somewhere in the draft. Leonard Pope was available until the 3rd round. I would have loved the Bears to take Klopfenstein, Fasano or Pope in the second round. Devin Hester was a reach in the late second round, but he's good enough to reach for. Quick, great acceleration, cut on a dime, and a threat to score each time he touches the ball. It's a matter of where to place him.
I didn't like the Manning pick in the 2nd. The Bears already have one of the best Ds, but one of the worst offenses. They added nothing to the offense this draft other than a guard and a fullback in the late rounds. The 3rd round pick of Dvoracek was a waste. We're already solid at D line. We passed up on Maurice Stovall, Dominique Byrd, and Max JeanGilles who could have made an impact on the offense.
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I'll be sure to thank Jerry Angelo when we split the series with you this year :p But seriously, the Bears had a bizarre draft day. I thought the trade down in the first round was a good idea, but I thought they were targeting one of the big TE or WR... Honestly, Fasano would have been a good fit, Bears fans eat up those Notre Dame big guys.
 
#551
jive1 said:
Personally, I'm pretty unhappy with the draft.
We traded down, but we didn't make the most of the picks we got. I think we should have picked up a TE somewhere in the draft. Leonard Pope was available until the 3rd round. I would have loved the Bears to take Klopfenstein, Fasano or Pope in the second round. Devin Hester was a reach in the late second round, but he's good enough to reach for. Quick, great acceleration, cut on a dime, and a threat to score each time he touches the ball. It's a matter of where to place him.
I didn't like the Manning pick in the 2nd. The Bears already have one of the best Ds, but one of the worst offenses. They added nothing to the offense this draft other than a guard and a fullback in the late rounds. The 3rd round pick of Dvoracek was a waste. We're already solid at D line. We passed up on Maurice Stovall, Dominique Byrd, and Max JeanGilles who could have made an impact on the offense.
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That was a pretty bad draft. The pundits are saying that the Bears probably did the worst of all teams.

Nobody is talking about the Cowboys draft, and I like that. I really love what the Cowboys are doing and am excited about the team they're building.
 
#552
jazzbo said:
That was a pretty bad draft. The pundits are saying that the Bears probably did the worst of all teams.

Nobody is talking about the Cowboys draft, and I like that. I really love what the Cowboys are doing and am excited about the team they're building.
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Folks are all over the place with the Bears draft. After taking off the Bears helmet for a while and thinking it through, it wasn't a bad draft. The Bears have all 22 starters returning from last season, so there's continuity working for us.

It didn't make much sense to go so heavy on D, but they needed to bolster and insure the thing that got them into the playoffs. Dvoracek was a reach in the 3rd, but with the injury to Tank Johnson, depth at DT was needed. Tank will be sidelined for half the season or more, so Dvoracek was insurance. As any intelligent fan knows, being able to rotate D-linemen to keep them fresh wears an opponents O-line. The play of the D-line was crucial to the Bears success, so getting Dvoracek and Anderson in the 5th makes sense. Mark Anderson was a great value pick. He should have been a first day pick, but he's on the Bears with something to prove.

Looking at the games the Bears lost this year showed some needs on D. When safeties Chris Harris and Mike Brown were injured, the Steelers were able to run on them at will. Depth at safety is needed because they are crucial in the cover 2 scheme. That's why Danieal Manning makes sense. The games against Carolina exposed our weakness against quick receivers, hence the pick of Devin Hester and acquisition of Ricky Manning. I really like the Devin Hester pick, even though it was a reach in the second round. He's real quick, and I think he can develop into a solid CB, and make an immediate impact returning kicks and helping us in the field position game. Keep in mind Jerry Azumah has now retired so a nickel back/kick returner was a need. I think Hester will deliver in spades.

The Bears picked up Tim Day and Cooper Wallace at TE from the UDFA pool. They could be solid TEs. Day is speedy for his size, and shows excellent hands. If he can improve on his blocking skills, he could be a steal.

Even though the O needs improvement, getting Mark Bradley, Ariese Currie, Cedric Benson back after injuries last year is sorta like getting 3 more draft picks on offense. We were bad on O last year, but we are gaining 4 more players (including Grossman) that we couldn't use last year. The O-line and running game is solid. The passing game is lacking, and hopefully the Bears hope that another year under the system improving things will come true.
 
#553
jive1 said:
We were bad on O last year, but we are gaining 4 more players (including Grossman) that we couldn't use last year. The O-line and running game is solid. The passing game is lacking, and hopefully the Bears hope that another year under the system improving things will come true.
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I think if Grossman can stay healthy...that will do more for the Bears than anything else offensively. He seemed to be the real deal until he got hurt. The Bears haven't had a real good QB since...well, forever. Grossman might be that guy, but he needs to stay healthy to find out for sure. Good luck with that.
 
#554
Can I just say that I hope the Lions never fire Millen:

"The NFL said the Dolphins were within their rights to discuss contract terms with quarterback Joey Harrington once Detroit gave Harrington permission to seek a trade. That comes in response to complaints by Lions president Matt Millen that the Dolphins went outside the boundaries of the collective bargaining agreement in working out the parameters of a two-year deal. However, it appears Millen was mistaken."
-- Miami Herald

mattmillen1129.jpg
 
#556
jive1 said:
All good things must come to an end.

I learned that when Mike Tice got fired.
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I hear ya Bro Jive. I thought the same thing when Wannie left. I was hoping he'd stay in Chicago forever, standing on the sidelines, chewing gum, getting it on his porn-stache, wearing only his leather coat to show how tough he was, and getting drilled on a weekly basis!
 
#557
cheezewiz said:
I hear ya Bro Jive. I thought the same thing when Wannie left. I was hoping he'd stay in Chicago forever, standing on the sidelines, chewing gum, getting it on his porn-stache, wearing only his leather coat to show how tough he was, and getting drilled on a weekly basis!
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Oh man, Wa..... I can't even say that word. It's been stricken from my vocabulary. Oh, those years were awful. I look back at those years and think, I did a whole lotta partying during that time. Mostly drowning out sorrows. Thanks for reminding me of those wonderful days. It more than makes up for pairing you up with Ponch.

I was gonna grab a bite to eat, but I just lost my appetite.
 
#558
jive1 said:
Oh man, Wa..... I can't even say that word. It's been stricken from my vocabulary. Oh, those years were awful. I look back at those years and think, I did a whole lotta partying during that time. Mostly drowning out sorrows. Thanks for reminding me of those wonderful days. It more than makes up for pairing you up with Ponch.

I was gonna grab a bite to eat, but I just lost my appetite.
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Always glad to help!:p
 
#559
I really like the Cleveland picks. Kamerion Wimbley will learn under big Willie, and they definitely got the best guy on the inside with D'Qwell Jackson.

I think the Pats made out really well. Maroney in Round 1, but then Chad Jackson in Round 2...they could be a scary tandem later on.

I'm surprised Buffalo reached that far to get Donte Whitner...I didn't think he would crack the top 20. They must really see something in him, or they were just upset that Huff was taken in the pick before. and who is Jon McCargo?
 
#560
This is probably full of what ifs, and homer like optomism, but my beloved Packers have the makings of a killer defense.

With Hawk, Barnett, and Hodge at linebackers, they'll have an incredibly fast group that can pursue with the best of them. They'll have the two defensive lineman that led the NFL in tackles for lineman last year, Kampman and Ryan Pickett.
Woodson and Al Harris are both proven corners. Nick Collins did an excellent job at safety last year as a rookie, and newcomer Manual is pretty well regarded. Fast but grabby corner Ahmad Carrol moves to nickel back, which probably suits him better. With better depth on the D line, KGB can get back to being a sack machine and quit trying to stop the run at 250 lbs. I'm pretty darn excited for this year!
 

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