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Well, there is about to be some moving it shaken in the NFL. Next week, Free agency opens, Pro days underway, Top thirty visits commencing, and within the next sixty days, the Bears roster is going to look a whole lot different. We tackle all of it tonight on Bears Weekly here on ESPN one thousand and the Chicago Bears Radio Network with Super Bowl winning Bears guard Tom Thayer and former Bears quarterback Jim Miller from Serious XM NFL Radio. I'm
Jeff Joniac coming up on the program. We visit with an outstanding draft analyst who's also does the job that Tom Thayer does for the Houston Texans, John Harris from Footballtakeover dot Com.
Jimmy, you know him. He's a crazy draft right.
There's a lot of guys out there at this time of the year that our true gems are around the league. And you know, you guys talked to Brugler last week and you know the stuff that he does. But you know, there's all these cottage industries that have just branched out and done so well because the draft people are nuts for the draft, and it's just think about it. It's just the calling of a name. Yeah, and it's broadcasting on TV.
It's crazy, right, Yeah, And you're right, it is a cottage industry.
And that's how I framed his role in this.
But he'll break down the draft coming up in a couple of segments from now. Our producer Tonight, Dan Brilly, and Jordan Trenipan the ESPN studio Justin Pottinger. Executive producer of the Bears Radio network is Eric Ostrotski. All Right, so nothing is official into the new league year starts on Wednesday, So we have to talk about this as reported. Okay, everything's reported, but what we're hearing the Bears have done some really big things on the offensive line. Tom we
talked about it. They didn't shy away from talking about it. At the combine. Ryan Pools also the new head coach Ben Johnson, so some big moves on the offensive line, reportedly bringing the.
Bears what looks to be two starting guards.
Well, the first thing that comes to mind is when you're hired as a new head coach and you come into a building for the first time, the first thing that you want to do is change the culture of the building. And that means the in building work ethic. That means the on the practice field work ethic, and that's the off season preparations, how you go about your business.
And these two names, you know, they've dominated the headlines and the landscape of the NFL in the last couple of days, and I think they do a lot for the building. And then secondly, just what through my thinking is last year when you look at the leadership council and you have no offense and defensive linemen on the leadership council, the first thing that I'm going to do with this new leadership council, it's these two guys are going to have a role in it.
They're going to have a hand in it.
And then what they can do professionally, how they can expedite the development of a young football player, a draft choice or even a person in a new position. So I'm excited going forward and I think what it's going to bring to this team, organization and building two names.
That they're very familiar with. Obviously Ben Johnson knows one of the guards, and certainly Ryan Poles very familiar with the Kansas City product as well. So it's got to be first things first. This offense has to get corrected. It's it's been pretty anemic for quite some time.
Let's let's begin the discussion about Joe Toney because I think Tom hit upon it.
Everything you hear about him is leader, leader, leader, somebody to go.
I mean, he's been to six Super Bowls in his nine years. That's that's crazy. He's been with two Hall of Fame quarterbacks, Tom Brady and eventually Patrick Mahomes is going to be in that same conversation. So you know, how important is that for the entire offense, in the entire team that Joe Tooney is a Chicago Bear.
Start with you, Jimmy, Yeah, I think you know he's kind of he's been there, he's done that, He's achieved a lot of success. He'll probably bring that mentality of how the Kansas City Chiefs were you know they're fighting. This guy's a versatile guy. We know he's putting some bad spots. He's been kicked out to left tackle more than numerous occasions for the Kansas City Chiefs and has come through for his team. At that time, when he signed with Kansas City, he signed for tackle money even
though he was a guard. That's how highly regarded he was there by Kansas City. And I think, is you know, really his numbers stack up. They prove it, and we'll see where it goes. But Caleb needs a lot of help, and it's got to start with his offensive line because the sacks have got to stop. The sacks have got to stop. If the Bears keep shooting themselves in the foot that way, it's hard to play on schedule when you're all he's second and ten second and twenty second
and fifteen third and seventeen. Those situations are never good for anybody. It's got to get rectified.
Well.
I think at any position that you need consistency the most is the offensive line, and it's the work that you put in from OTA's all the way to the first regular season game to the last regular season game. When you talk about an alpha male like two in a who's I think he's only missed two games in his career. It's a valuability. It's the guy that's at practice. He's in the meeting rooms every day. He's able to have conversations with whomever the left tackle is going to
be or whoever the center is going to be. And like I said, if they're young guys, he has a chance to expedite the learning curve because he has experience at the left tackle position. He plays offensive guard and I'm sure if you asked him to go there and play center in in a desperation moment, he could do that equally as well.
All Right, Jonah Jackson reportedly going to be a Bear after the Bear's making a deal with the LA Rams injured last year him. But he's only twenty eighth, And this is a hedge on what free agency may or may not reveal here in the coming days about the lack of availability of some really good talent.
So they jumped the gun.
They reportedly make these trades, And what are we getting potentially here in Jonah Jackson.
Well, he was a one time pro bowler there in Detroit, so he knows the offense. Obviously, Ben Johnson knows his skill set. I do like that power side with him and Darnell Wright, and we'll see what unfolds. But like you said, he signs a three year I think it was a fifty one million dollar deal for the Rams, doesn't even make it through his first year. He only played four games, got hurt and probably wants to go back and be in an offense that's his comfort zone
where he performed very well. So I do think they significantly with Tooney. Would Jonah Jackson have gotten better at the guard spot?
You know, one thing about him too is he was at the beginning of change in Detroit and he understands what that's all about. And I think when you brought in to be the same type of culture changer on the right hand side of the offensive line, I think
he has the ability to do it. And like you know, helping the center and helping a young guy like Darnell Wright, and now you're talking about a guy that has experience in Jackson and the guy that is the more experience he gets, the better he's going to become.
So I think.
You know, however, four fifths of the offensive line, three fifths of the offensive line are probably in place ready. Now you have to see where they go in the center and left tackle position.
So, Tommy, how excited are you about this?
Because it's one thing to say you're going to go and get X, Y and Z to build this offensive lion.
It's another to pull it off.
And they've already reportedly done it through trades before even tapping into free agency or the draft. And as you said, Darnell right, he's in place. Everything else is up for discussion. But they're going to continue to build this thing. And we had this discussion a couple of weeks ago, Tommy. We've talked about it every day through texts. How are you gonna do it? Why are you gonna do it this way? And you know you can't draft five rookies to start a season, so you got to dig in
and get some experience in addition. So are you intrigued here at a minimum and excited at a maximum? And how this is coming together so quickly?
You know the thing about tune Ay and Jackson for that matter, you're still not uncertain about the way they go about their business. You know how they go about their business, and you know the successes that they've had and you talk about a couple of guys that the way the offensive line finished the season last year and where they're at already before the season gets underway, tune A. He's gonna walk in that room and he's going to be one of the most important characters on this football team.
I don't care what position you play. And I've seen that before and I've seen that role of importance.
And so when you talk about a guy.
That's going to lead by example, there's no better guy that you want to have on your football team. Is a guy that stands up front in front of this young quarterback who's in the developmental stages and is you know, working with a young head coach that has to have those pieces in place. And I'm glad that Ryan Poles went out and did his research and work and brought in a couple of.
Guys that are day one starters.
They're going to be in a three point stance opening day of the regular season.
Jim, there is nothing more important than building a high caliber offensive line for an NFL football team. Yes, it's the quarterback, but the quarterback can struggle behind a bad offensive line. This is this has gotta happen this year. Like, this is so important for the.
Yeah, I Agoury with Tom Tooney was brought in to really further the development of Patrick Mahomes. I think they knew how talented he was, but once that was settled, you know, he really started to take off as a quarterback. I'd say this thing for Philadelphia. If you look at the Philadelphi Eagles, their money is in their offensive line because Jalen Hurts at that time was under his rookie deal. Right now he's got the big time contract, but you know,
they had paid Malatta, they had paid Lane Johnson. Kelsey was getting paid Jason Kelsey the center at the at the time, and so and then you see the fruits of the labor of what the Philadelphia Philadelphi Eagles were able to do. You know, at some point you have to invest in your offensive line, and specifically when it's a young quarterback who's trying to develop. And for Caleb, this is a crucial year. Last year was a waste. It really was a waste for me.
And so it.
Starts over put some competent, legitimate players around him and we'll see where it goes with the quarterback. And I like how Ben Johnson has addressed the quarterback that he's got to strip him down and start from ground zero.
That's Jim Miller. Tomp there, Jeff Joniack will take a break. More coming up here on Bears Weekly and Esbon Chicago and the Bears Radio Network.
This segment of Bears Weekly.
Brought to you by IGS Energy with Tom Dayren Jimmeler, Jeff Joniak. I mean, the off seasons the past several years have been dominated by the Chicago Bears. Tommy the line of scrimmage, we're talking about it at length, but there's other things the Bears need. And they also reportedly are going to be able to sign Durham smythe another domer at the tight end position from the Miami Dolphins. Tommy reportedly a one year contract to join cole Comet.
Tight And you you heard it here first, second and third, Well, you know so I don't want you to You almost changed my mind there a little bit because after coming out of the break, I wanted to say, even though they brought into an A and Jonah Jackson, they have Darnell right, I don't want them to shy away from, you know, targeting good offensive.
Linemen in the draft.
Well, yeah, whether they play offensive guard, tackle, or center, because you talk about what with a new offensive line coach, a new offensive line room, with a cup of an experienced veterans, what they can do to some offensive linemen that they could draft, either to play immediately or play
down the road. And you still have to have a bunch of talent because you know, you shared some messages with me over the last couple of days about where the offensive line was at in the last couple of years and how many different starting lineups, how many different players they used in the variations of position changes. So just because you got a couple of good, experienced veterans doesn't mean you ignore other guys that are valuable to you in the draft.
Yeah, Bears, I'll go over the number again. They were twenty fifth in the NFL in running the football, and I think this is a sign that they are going to run the football more because Durham smythe is more of a blocker. Yeah, he'll get you like fifteen receptions a year, but he's a blocker at the end of the day, and so that allow Cole Komet to still do his receiving you know, capabilities. You know in terms of the reception at the end of the day. But
make no mistake about it, this is a sign. You know, look at Detroit last year, how when they went heavy personnel they would bring an extra offensive lineman. I think now when you just look at the sign of Durham, the signing of Durham Smythe, he's going to be the big guy out there in running situations or if they go twelve personnel where they can really pound you a
little bit running the football. So block you get the rock, right, So I think Smythe's more of a blocker, so maybe he will get the rock more than seventeen receptions and he had last year for the Minnesota or for the Miami Dolphins.
Hey, let's not forget it. Put that big man skipper out there for the dam Skipper.
This excites me so much because we all three of us love running the football.
I will never shy away from it.
I think it's absolutely necessary to win in the National Football League, whether it be the tough yards when you need him.
Look at Philadelphia. Look at Philadelphia. I mean sign sa Kwon Barkley. But that line is no joke. You know that line is no joke. In the trenches and we say, you win and lose football games. There was probably no better team than Philadelphia on both sides of the ball in the trenches, and so I think it's out there for everybody to see.
And Tommy the short yardage stuff, I mean, how many times have we pulled our hair out about short yardage?
Yeah?
You know, that's the thing about Ben Johnson. I like the fact that he's so clever and he can really keep you off balance and he.
Can keep you thinking. You know, they can put in.
Seven offensive lineman, six offensive lineman and you can say, okay, they have this big strong side here with three offensive linemen next to each other, with the tight end next to him, that's the obvious point of attack.
And then what do they do. They run a jet sweep, they.
Run some type of cleverly designed play. So going forward, just because the personnel's on the field doesn't make them predictable. It makes them a little bit more unpredictable. Because what we've seen over the last couple of years with Ben running the Detroit offense in how you know, he you know, pulled the rabbit out.
Of the hat.
Yeah, sure, did you know? I don't know if I told you, Jim.
The first time I sat down with coach Johnson before his introductory news conference, he goes, how'd you call Stumblebum? And I'm like, I didn't call it very well because I didn't know when to after the game.
It was a prop so to speak.
So he's clever and he is unpredictable, as Tom said, So it's going to be fun when this is all put together. He's got a lot of different influences in that room. Offensively speaking, yes, he's got all the guys.
From Detroit Antoine Randewell and j. T.
Barrett and all that, but there's other influences offensively from the Sean Payton tree. We've gone through the tree. So I'm really excited to see what else he wants in terms of personnel, what he'd like to have and how they pull this off and when they put it together.
Yeah, he's gonna you know, once he gets the guys on the field, like through free agency in the draft, and they have a vision of what they think it'll look like, and then you take the players out on the field and you really diagnose what they can and cannot do, you know, and uh, you know, for a lot of players even like Caleb, when they start diving into the playbook, Ben is going to realize, all right,
he's capable of doing this. Right now, he's not quite there on doing these things that we believe he can do. But he's got to show us. He's got to he's got.
To prove it to us.
So I'm a big believer in the you can't call plays on what a player hasn't mastered. You know you're gonna call plays. You hang your hat on the things you do.
Well.
That means you know that these players say on these go plays that they can execute them. Everybody's got the assignment and everybody's doing what they're asked to do. And then through the OTA's they're going to experiment and they're going to see, all right, this guy can do this. This guy all right, he's shown us he can do that. And now the playbook starts to expand on what your players can do. That's why you know, I was kind of animate that everybody just things the Detroit Lions Playbook
is coming to Chicago. No, that'll sort itself out. He's got to see the players first. Like I said, they have a vision, but now sort it out what they can and cannot do, and maybe players will grow into doing more and then you know, you can start to expand the playbook. From that standpoint, the only.
Thing that's guaranteed per game is the script. Everything as soon as that script is over. If you have early first quarter success and you run through this script within the first drive or two, then it's you know, every one of those guys, it's their accountability making sure they understand their assignments from every single play that can be called by coach Johnson against whatever defense they're playing against
that week. And I think that's when you really grow to appreciate well organized, well coached football team is when they have that versatility of unpredictability that can factor in for a play caller.
The beauty of the script is in its deceit, so you know, you just don't call the first fifteen. You set somebody up for something in the third or fourth quarter. Those are the best play college gym, right And in your career, were you always scripted in the first fifteen?
Yeah, pretty much. It's very rarely that you go off script unless you have maybe a big play that ends up in the red zone and you're already in the red zone and calling those plays. But yeah, the script normally is going to go to plan to see how a defense is going to play those certain personnel groupings and what they've had trouble stopping in the past. But yeah, you're right, you're as a game goes along, and if you're in tune with your play caller, you can almost say, oh,
he's setting up this, Yeah he's setting up that. All right, yep, it's the time for this play. And you know you're thinking a couple of plays ahead of what's going to unfold, you know, as the game rolls along.
You know, for football fans, I think the script is a nuance that has been discussed in recent vintage. So Tom, I go back to you, the man who's played the longest and been a part of the football world the longest of the three of us.
Did you guys script plays?
Yes? And it started.
It started in the first team meeting when we installed the Running Game on Wednesday, because Coach Dikab would get up there and he would start explaining the susceptibilities of the defense we're getting ready to play, and so this is what he's going to be thinking in the Running Game, and this is how we're going to attack the opponent, and then when we go Thursday install the passing game.
He says, Hey, this is the way we're going to play off the running game, and this is how we're going to attack downfield, and the play action the downfield passing game. I just I think it's something that's always been a part of the process of football. The thing that's changed the most to me really is the involvement of analytics on the defensive side of the ball. Because
defensive coaches can't script their first fifteen. They're kind of calling defense according to personnel down in distance and what they feel their strength can be against the opponent personnel they're seeing.
I got a question for his go to break, Tom, did you ever have a script that called for fifteen straight running place?
One game, we were playing the Indianapolis Colts in Chicago in the it was really windy. I think Steve Fuller was starting at quarterback and Dika came up to us before kickoff and he said, Hey, you guys, I'm not going to throw the ball at all today.
And I think we ran.
The ball like the first twenty two plays of the game and we but only threw it a couple times in the course of the game.
But that's kind of conditions alert.
Yeah, that's not something that you plan for on Wednesday and then you get there Sunday. So it's about you know, probably similar to that San Francisco game of a couple of years ago that we called that had forty mile an hour wins off the lake.
Yeah, that was the Nathan Vasher one. Yeah.
Yeah, the missfield goal returned Jim, did you ever have a script that called for a heavy amount of runs?
No, no script, but I'll tell you what a lot of for men ended with a lot of runs.
That's of course. Yes. I like the four minute the four minute offense.
Yeah.
In Pittsford with Drome Bette, he could he could close games out.
He when he hears about the final four.
I think it's a reward.
I think you you earned that final that four minute drive because now you're in control of the game and you're saying I think Michigan this year had a game where they ran at the final twenty plays of the game, maybe against Penn State or something.
So it's it's a reward. It's something that's earned.
You know, hard to say, oh, okay, if you listen if you had success in four minute offense running at the start of the game, just like you would at the end of the game.
Right exactly, all right, we'll go to break. When we come back, we'll hear from John Harris my conversation at the Scouting Combine last week with the man who created Football Takeover dot Com. That's coming up next year on Beers Weekly and ESPN one thousand of the Bears Radio Network.
This segment of Bears.
Reachally brought to you by Eppetical Physical Therapy, visit atical dot Com in clinic or virtual Deployment that start feeling better tomorrow.
We got a special guest now.
He is the veteran radio broadcaster for the Houston Texans on a great crew. But this guy knows the NFL Draft like nobody's business. His name is John Harris. Footballtakeover dot Com. That's a side gig in this in this cottage industry of covering the NFL. Right, when did that start?
And what is it?
What is it all about? So Football Takeover dot Com started a couple of years ago, But Jeff, I've been covering the draft since oh Man, since I came out of college. I just I just I love drafts. My buddy Lancerline, who works for NFL dot Com, we grew up together. We used to I remember the baseball game Stratumatic. You remember that, of course, the dice game. So we would sit there at night on a Saturday night and we would draft our team, his brother, three of us.
We would draft our teams. We love the draft. And then Lance's dad end up in the NFL and we just have had such a jones in for the NFL well, and we're talking about draft forever. And then Mark brought me over in twenty fourteen and one of the first things we did was the draft and we go for sixteen hours live radio on the draft. And so the Saturday of Day three, he took me off the air for four hours. Thought I needed it, and I'm like I told him after, I said, no, I'll take me off.
And Mark, by the way, it would be the veteran voice of the Houston Texans, Mark Vandermer, Yeah, that's.
Right, And I said, don't take me off. I said, let me go pillar to post. I studied these guys. I love it. I love everything about it. And Football Takeover dot Com kind of allows me to step out of my Texan shell. And really, you know, former coach love watching tape or video or whatever he calls it now, and I just I just get into I love college football. I love how it kind of merges with the draft and then come to combine Senior Bowl with EFTs like that, try it to miss and it's just, you know, we
all have a passion and football has been mine. My dad coach football, and I just gravitated towards it, and that's really that's it. I don't golf, I don't fish, I don't hunt. I'll go in my dark room and I will You'll watch a prospect from North Dakota State at times, so it's a possibly. Yeah, Gray's Abel's a hell of a football player and he's won Yo. Cam Miller maybe the quarterback, not for us, but maybe maybe for another team down the road. On day three, their
quarterback let him a national championship. So yeah, people ask me, they know in Houston, they don't have to ask anymore. It's it's a sickness. My wife is okay with it, found no cure. She's like to start a web so I was like, okay, So we did that a couple years ago. You know.
The thing is knowledge is power, as we know, and if you if you talk it without any notes, which is what you do right, you know the draft. So let's let's dig in a little bit because from a Bear's perspective, it marries up with the needs theoretically the Bears in the trenches should they decide to add another running back. That's a strong part of the draft. But I want to focus on the line of scrimmage. So you are at the senior ball I called the senior ball.
There's a plethora of defensive interior specialists. There's edge rushers, There's a certain group of tackles, and then maybe a bunch of guards as it could be tackles or tackles that could be guards. What's your impression of those positions in particular, and at the line of scrimma start on the offensive side of the moment.
Yeah, I think Garden Center not great. I think what you're getting from Garden Center are gonna be guys that transition from tackle to guard center. You mentioned Gray z Well, you played left tackle at North Dakota State, but didn't I think he maybe took two reps that I can remember at the senior Bowl, it was guard center the entire time. Hell of a player. I think, you know, back end of Day one, I think he's in the mix because I don't know that there's that level of
tackle in this draft. They're just offensive linemen in general. In this draft. I'm a big fan of Tyler Booker from Alabama. Talk to some people from Alabama at the Senior Bowl, and one things I want to know is, like I can look at the film and go, Okay, that's a dude. What's he like off the field? I want to know that. And they're like alpha team player, captain like everything, with high character yep, high character football character guy. And I know that's something that will resonate
with Ryan Poles being an offensive lineman himself. So but after that guard, Okay, we can transition maybe Kelvin Banks from Texas. I know there's been some talk about that. There's a little bit of worry about the length and how long his arms are, but I've seen so many times and we're in Indianapolis. Braden Smith got drafted from Auburn and all the talk about the way he's going to guard, he's going to guard, Well, he's eight years
into his career, nine years maybe now. I haven't seen him play guard one time against US, so there's a lot of talk about tackles that go into guard. But I do think there will be some action because there's just not much after Tyler Booker, you know, Delman Fairchild from Georgia. You know a couple centers that might be able to play guard, but there's just not much tackle position to me. You know, I had Kelvin Banks going in at Kelvin's a Houstonian and watched him a lot
when he was a freshman. I was like, Okay, that guy's that guy's headed for an NFL future. Well, one of the things I like to do, and SOBVI is, but it's I want to see guys against the best. I want to see Texas against Georgia and you go, oh boy, Kelvin struggle. He struggled to speed the guys that were bounding off the edge. So there's a talk about him maybe going into guard. I think Kelvin's gonna end up at tackle, even though I know there were
some scouts that wrote him up at guard. Will Campbell, I think is probably the best tackle in his draft. I don't think he's as good as some of the tackles we've seen in previous years. But I also probably am a little slag cause I see Larry tunsl every day. And I mean when you say to me, what does an offensive tackle look.
Like, I'm like that that's.
What it looks like. But I think Will Campbell is the type of mentality and I think that's as important as anything else. You've got to have that mentality. I think I think Will Campbell has it. I think Kelvin has it. You could tell the Texas off its line didn't adapt as much when Kelvin was out. That also tells you something. So I think those are the top two tackles. And then where Gray fits is going to be pretty interesting. The guy that I actually, I'll say this,
I stumbled upon him at twenty twenty three. And one thing with college football, as you know, Jeff and I am on a portal, there are guys that end up one place and then they end up another and you're like, wait, So I'm watching Ohio State in twenty twenty three and I'm like, Dad, left tackle looks pretty good. Who is that? It's Josh Simmons and I'm like, what's his background? I'm like I don't remember him playing with CJ the year before.
Well they transferred from San Diego stage jumping into the offense. I'm like, well, I like him. Mob behold the beginning of twenty twenty four. What do I hear? Hey, Josh Simmons rising up boards really athletic guy. I mean, now he's coming off an injury, but movement skills, A guy you can keep at left tackle. And I know there's you know, where does Braxton go? What happens with Braxton? Is there an upgrade there not? Can you use Braxton
together with another tackle? I just think that I've always been a big believer draft really good offensive linement and then figure it the hell out. So the coat did with the best five, that's right, get the best five out there. However they can fit together, you know, have a plan for it, and then coach him up and get the most out of him. And if you've got the right guy, that guy will learn how to do it. He will learn like, hey, I give me all the give me all the athletes in the world, but you
give me a guy that's like athletic, coachable. I could turn him into a player. And Dwayne Brown was really kind of the guy. That really taught me that he came to the Texans. I just I was not a fan of the draft pick. I was very vocal about that. But Dwayne was committed to being great. That's the one thing we'll never know, but if these guys are committed
to being great on top of the athlete. And that's why I was really good to hear that about Tyler Booker from Alabama for the people from Alabama, like, he's committed to being great. It's not about the bag, it's not about the money. It's about how good can he be as a player to help the team where he's drafted a note on him.
I just love how he just sits in there too. That that rear end just anchors in right.
It's so funny. I get made I get made fun of all the time. My buddy Lance Aerline is sitting over there, and we always talk about that man. His butt is so big, you know, his thighs, look at his diything. And I always get made fun of in Houston for that. But but I'm okay with it. I understand it because those are the things. You know, Scott's you're looking at that, you know, look at his man. Look his calves, My god, and he's just he's so stout. And that was something we just weren't able to do
this year. We were not able to hold up in the middle. We didn't get a great year out of Shack Mason, but we weren't alone. Oh, you to watch other teams and you watch the interior struggle, you know, the Chief's interior struggle in the Super Bowls.
Which it leads me to this because you know, Ryan Poles was asked about defensive line and the need for another edge rusher to complement Montese sweat. However, you want right to the interior. Andrew Billning's outstanding defense really struggled Oude of the run when he went out he signed Paul's loves him. Javon Dexter just got nothing but talent. He's still young. Big takeoff. You're here, but you can't
have enough. And you got to get that interior pressure on these quarterbacks and the mobile ones or the pocket passes, it doesn't matter.
You gotta cloud their vision.
You gotta put pressure those twists, those stunts, the ability to kick out side off, you need to all that. With that being said, we keep hearing the defensive tackle position double the kind of prospects from a year ago, would you agree?
Absolutely? And I think it's gonna be interesting how teams go about it too, because you think about and Nicko Sario Jam of the Texans, we always got to talk about spply demand economics, and the supply is absolutely massive in that group this year, and the demand is definitely high. But we just talked about a couple of groups, the
interior offensive line, the supply is low, very low. So if you're a team that has both needs and and I don't you know, you mentioned two guys that can have you think about those guys inside you you gotta have dudes inside that you can roll in. And the way that Demiico plays his defense, it's and I'm sure Dennis says the same thing. You can't just have one Like I look at the Tights. They got Jeffrey Simmons and he's a study. He's got to come out of
the game at some pointer. And that was one of the things that we did well last year, kind of rotating those guys. But at the point being, do you draft an interior offensive lineman because you know those aren't going to be available on day two and then say, hey, we're gonna take a guy in day two that should have been around one guy, but because there's so many defensive tackles in tiory, a lineman so versatile, so adaptable,
let's get that guy on day two. Now it's a little bit of a game of guts poker, but I think if you want to maximize that, and I always look at this, would you rather have offensive lineman X and defensive lineman why? Or wuld you rather have offensive lineman X defensive lineman why? So? Meaning do I want this offensive lineman with a really good defense tackle but a lesser offensive lineman and a very similar tackle. And I think that's the thing you can find in this draft.
So teams are going to go through that. I think teams Jeff are going to have an issue in a sense, like we really want some of these DEFENSEI tackles, but we got to get one of these interior offensive line guys. We don't get them, we'll take that guy. We'll take the top offensive lineman in the fifth defensive tackle because in normal years that fifth defensive tackle would have been one or two. But it's just that good a group this year appreciate your time. You got a brother, Thank you well.
I have more here and he asked Ben one thousand of the Bears Radio network.
After this time out, they've.
Been a Bears Weekly is brought me by CDW people who get it. With Tom Bayer and Jim Utter, Jeff Jony, I'm breaking things down with the Bears. A lot of great news pointing in the rank direction with the news this week or some deals reportedly everything becomes official next week.
What else is on your minds? Collectively?
We'll start with Tommy about next week in free agency.
There's still a lot of camp room.
My eyes are still very laser focused on the drafts. I want to get those young guys in here, obviously.
What is your purview of this situation?
You know, I wish I knew a little bit more about the status of Jakwan Brisker because I think he's a brilliant player. I think he's one of the best safeties when he's healthy in the National Football League. But if you look at Kevin Byers and you look at Jakwan Brisker, I think you need to solidify that position for Dennis Allen as much as any other position on
the defensive side of the ball. Yeah, they're still looking for interior, defensive alignment and pass rushers, and I think that investigative work will be done until, you know, into the regular seat. I said, why, we need a little bit more on the offensive line. And I'd be interested to see if there's a running back out there that peaks their interest and peaks the interest mostly of a guy like Ben Johnson that feels like this guy can really come and be an immediate contributor to the running
back room. And those are a couple positions of concern. But not knowing a lot about Jakwan Brisker and we haven't seen him since early last season, I do have curiosity about him.
How about you, Jan?
Yeah, I think you know. I'm with Tom on the defensive line. In past rushers, you know, old line is going to be interesting because you know, sentators have been a really good pick. You know the guys I always bring up trads, Frederick Nick Mangold. There are undrafted free agents that have started, say David Andrews of the New England Patriots, you know the opening day of the rookie years.
This is a very strong center class where the Bears are picking at ten if they did want select a left tackle, and they could take the top left tackle if they needed to, if that's the direction they want to go in, and then still come back later in the draft, say John Mannheim from a USC is available. I would think Gray's Abel has already gone from North Dakota State that many project as a as a center
and to be a first round pick. He's got versatility, but there are still really good centers later in the draft. If they wanted to address tackle at the raft.
Lance Zerline had the Bear in his latest mock draft. He had the Bears picking I think Will Campbell at ten, Yeah, and then trading back with Philadelphia into the first round at thirty two to get Gray's Abel.
Beautiful. That would be beautiful. I mean that would be if they could do that. That hey, and to double up at a position, meaning the offensive line, it's not unheard of. It's not unheard of. I think it's it's got to be addressed, and we'll see how aggressive the Bears, but those if they were able to do that, that would be a win. I know a lot of people are talking about Will Campbell's arm length, but they're thirty
three and seven eights. Okay, let's just call him thirty four. Okay, it's okay, He'll be all right, because that's pretty good.
Matt.
I played with Matt Light he only had thirty two in jarms and the guy was awesome. So just watch him play football.
Right, just listen.
Offensive play by tackles is debt is because of their feet, not because of their arm length.
So that's what thing.
And one thing about the center position too, is when the Kansas City Chiefs they drafted Creed Humphrey, Tuney was there at the guard position.
So maybe he could.
Get you know, you know, be a little bit of an influence of what to look at within the talents of a center in order to kind of look at him and say, okay, this guy, I think that he could be a day one, a day one starter.
As we look at free agency, we always look at ages. So with free agency coming before the draft and started next week, you know, we're really intrigued by it all. But there's a bunch of defenders that are in still that sweet spot of twenty five to twenty eight. I call that the sweet spot. I don't know where you guys look at it? Do you care about that type
of thing. If I'm going to invest in a free agent more often than not, if I'm when I'm talking about investment, I'm not talking about a one year deal, which has certainly become almost an epidemic in the NFL right now and a necessity. The older guys that have been around a bit are getting one year deals. Look what Zach Bond turned into though, right, one year deal and now he's a rich man there in Philadelphia.
But on the.
Defensive line, guys like.
People probably haven't heard about this guy defensive tackle to shn Wharton from Kansas City. That guy at very productive, minimal snaps. He's just twenty seven. Levi on Zeriki he's just twenty seven, but when he was right, he was effective dent in the pocket. Milton Williams from Philadelphia, defensive tackle. He's gonna make a lot of money. Then you got Aziz Azulari did not work out for the New York Giants out of Georgia high draft pick.
He's just twenty five years old. This shocked me.
Am I right on this, Chase Young is only twenty six. Yep, what feels like he's been in the league forever. Do you take some swings at some of these reasonable deals.
How many snaps do you want to play per game?
Because one thing, when you're looking at a defensive lineman, you're talking about a guy that you can get thirty dominant snaps a game out of him, Then you're gonna win the position and you're gonna help the overall rotation of the defensive line offensive line. You gotta be looking at about seventy plays per game. And then you start taking age into consideration. And the reason I'm not concerned about a guy like tune A because the modern day NFL is a lot different than the old NFL.
You can stay younger and fresher a lot, a lot longer.
That's why some of these guys that are in their mid twenties, as you called the sweet spot, is that what you said, I think their life is yet to begun in the NFL in some of those respects. So if you have identifiable traits on film that those guys are are coachable and they can be contributors, Listen, I'm going to kick the tires on every one of them.
Yeah. I just think for the Bears to be draft and develop on defense, I want the offense you know filled with veterans around the young quarterback. So granted we're saying they should draft a young center. But again, if you look at other teams, they'll invest in free agency on one side of the ball and then trip typically draft and develop on the other side. And there's all those pass rushers, there's nothing guess, but Chase Young, it's
kind of come and gone for him. You know, I know he's a young player, but he really hasn't been the same after he's come back from that Aco injury. We even did an interview once a week with Ron Rivera, who was then the head coach of the Commanders, and they they just really he was he was scared to get back out on the field. He just didn't have confidence in his knee. Then he gets traded to San Francisco.
He lost snaps towards the end of the year in postseason because his play was lackluster, and then New Orleans Saints signed him and he really hasn't done anything there. So I would think they'd target a young draft draft pick because you know, guys like DeMarcus Lawrence and other free agents will probably be too much money.
He's gonna make some money Sweat's gonna make a ton.
Indianapolis defensive endo Adenebo twenty five. He's got thirty four sacks and hits combined the last two years. He's been doing a nice job there for the cold. That's the name that just popped up.
And that's a good fit because Dennis Allen is typically a four man front guy and that's what Indianapolis has been as well. So yeah, I don't think that's out of the realm of possibility at all. I think that's a good name to throw out there, Jeff and here.
At the safety position. Time we saw him in the opener at Soldier Field. I think in the rain game that Justin Fields did the great slide in the end zone and Talanoah Hufonga.
That's a bad man at safety. He's just twenty six. He's a free agent.
Yeah, you know again, I would have to do it a little investigative work on his health status. Is he available and ready to go for the long haul? And if you're playing a physical position of impact, is there something that's affecting you that maybe could factor in the long term performance if there is something, So yeah, I mean listen, if you I and Jim were sitting here and we are playing fantasy football and you're just taking the name of the day or guys that you really
like coming out of college. It'd be easy, but you can't be naive in your approach to say, Look, you really got to be thinking of some of the details.
About some of these players.
No question about it. We don't know their health situation either. That's the scary thing about free agency. You're not bringing them in for a look. You're not putting them on the field, right, You're just signing them. You're trusting the agents.
Yeah, it's style of play too that I think Tom's referred to because I agree with Tom. I like to Kwon Brisker. I think we know he's a physical safety that really will throw his body in and that's what Halfunga is too. But they're different sizes and so you have to wonder are they too reckless with how they play because they will literally, you know, give up their bodies, you know, to make a play. And that's why they both have missed time. They play like Tasmanian devils when
they're out there. But you gotta keep them out there.
Like Jim Kriner was the former Iowa State head football coach when I was a student there and I used to interview him before games, and he's popular phrases. I want our guys to play with a reckless abandon So that's that's getting up your body, right, That's what That's what he loved.
All right, we'll take a break.
One more segment to go with Jim Miteran. Tom there, I'm Jeff Joniak. This is ESPN Chicago and the Bears Radio Network segment of Bears Weekly has brought to you by IGS Energy with Tom and Jim. Jeff Joningak Karan Bears Weekly to wrap things up. There's a lot of stuff going on in the league, obviously with the business season right now, but a couple of things post combined.
Jim must start with you.
I don't know how severe this is, but the Georgia outside linebacker Jalen Walker, expected to be a top ten pick, one of the top edge players, injured during training in a thigh injury. So he's not gonna work out for his pro day in April seventeenth.
Is this a concern?
Do you know anything more about this particular injury and what that means?
Yeah, I thought it was just a thigh injury. I don't think it'll be anything that he'll you know, that'll drop him in the draft. You know, say Abdul Carter, like the top rusher. He's dealing with a stress fracture. Is that gonna need surgery? I think you worry more about Abduall Carter than say the Georgia linebacker. But you know, you watch Georgia, you know they practice. They call their practices in pads, Like their first practice in pads is
on Tuesday. They call it bloody Tuesday for a reason. I mean this team, Yeah, they get after it. They get after it. And if you watch Walker play, he's a blitzer from the outside, he's the heat seeking missile. From the inside, he's a lot like Ropewond Smith. I brought up Ropewond's name and he said, yeah, that's the first player we throw up his tape at Georgia because that's who we all want to be like. And if you watch him play, he plays a lot like Ropewond.
He is around the football all the time. And I'd say the same thing about the safety Malachi Starks. Go watch him play, Go watch his blitzes. It's like sea ball, get ball. That's it and that's all he sees is getting to the football. It's pretty it's pretty fun to watch.
You know, a lot of these guys you always have to take in consideration, even like the Philadelphia guys and some of their free agent off defensive linemen, you got to think of the supporting cast that they're playing with, because sometimes you get a little bit more freedom because they have more concerned about some of the other star quality players on the inside and the outside of them.
You imagine a team like Georgia and the way they play in those practices on Tuesday, it would probably make the offense a little bit uncomfortable because you know what this defense is going to do, the way they're gonna bring it, and you know, can you live up to that competition on Tuesdays? But it probably makes you feel a little bit easier on Saturdays.
All right, into the division as we do some notes and nuggets here. So, no, tag, I don't think it's a surprise for Minnesota Sam Darnold. So is that Jim the end of the line there in Minnesota for him? And is it JJ McCarthy time?
I believe so. I think they'll re sign Daniel Jones. Is what I think there. They signed him late in the year from the Giants when he was released. Then they elevated him from practice squad to you know, their fifty three man roster. That way, they also get a third round draft compensation is what it'll be, because the Giants basically lost that. So I think Sam will be
moving on. I think he'll be coveted, and then if McCarthy is not healthy, I would think Daniel Jones is used in Darnald as a template, and that's why he wanted to sign in Minnesota, thinking he could step in be the starter until McCarthy's healthy and maybe rehab his career a little bit for the following year.
Thomas, I gotta think JJ McCarthy better be healthy or else is the severity of that injury kind of not really telling us the truth because I really thought, in kind of a callous way to say it, the best thing that ever happened to JJ McCarthy was him tweaking
his knee so he didn't have to play. I don't think they'll go and sign and invest a thirty five to forty five million dollar contract in Darnald because in those last two games that he finished the season with why would you revert back to your old self at the most experienced time that you have throughout the course of that season, and someone else will go out there and pay him and it's going to be a buyer
beware deal for Darnold. But when you went out and drafted JJ McCarthy as high as you did, you brought him in here to be the starter with a good quarterback, head coach and a guy that got.
To believe that he can develop him.
Have you think the NFL learned a lesson from the Deshaun Watson contract.
Yeah, it's it's an outlier. It's an outlier contract. And that's why owner Steve Bashatti was so mad at the Baltimore Ravens because he knew that contract was going to affect his ability to re sign Lamar Jackson. And look, Lamar's Jackson. That deal after Watson signed that deal to Lamar took literally almost two and a half years to get completed because every agent's going to want to point towards no, we want to fully guaranteed, you know, Deshaun
Watson contract. And now that market has kind of settled down. Granted, guys are getting huge money, but they're not getting fully guaranteed contracts like Deshaun Watts. And then it's really as hamstrung the Cleveland Browns. It really has they have they really they just they got to hold on to him for two more years. Realistically, I mean there's no nothing they can do.
I mean there's a chance they'll never take another snap.
Yeah, realistically, And he heard his achilles again. I saw they just restructured his contract today because they can't cut him. They can't cut him. He is too financially, he cap straps him too much where they just cannot move on.
Tommy, you look like you're itching to say something.
No, I just you know, just paying attention to a little bit about the quarterback salaries, the ups and downs and the investments in that position. And is there ever a lesson learned about how much they pay these guys? Just like that big deal that Max Crosby got yesterday, is it an is it an over the top deal for the length of the contract, for how much they're paying him? But when you think about the forty nine plus million a year that's still owed to Deshaun Watson,
the do the owners learn anything from this? And are they kind of willing to try to take a step back instead of trying to re up the next guy.
All Right, boys, we're out of time. Put another one in the books. Can't wait till next week. Things are going to be popping. As they say in the National Football League. I know I said this a couple of years ago. The Bears are poised to make some noise. They still are poised to make some noise as they're putting together the twenty twenty five version. That's going to do it for us. Thanks for listening to everybody. The executive producer of the Bears Radio Network is Eric Ostrowski.
Thanks to our Bears producer Dan Brilly and Jordan tread Up and in studio Justin Pottinger and our guest John Harris from Footballtakeover dot Com. For Tom Thayer, Jim Meta, I'm Jeff Joniac. Have a great night, everybody. This has been Bears Weekly on the radio. Homer your Chicago Bears ESPN.
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