Happy NFL Combine Week! And Other Bullets

Last night, I was looking for a recipe I knew I had somewhere in my phone, and my search led me to an old text exchange with my mother, who’s passed. That stroke of fate should serve as a reminder to cherish the moments you have with your loved ones while you can. Even if it’s something small-ish like exchanging dinner recipes.

  • Here is the coolest thing you’ll see in football this week:
  • One of the neat things about the Alliance of American Football is that it does away with the onside kick and instead forces teams to convert on an “onside conversion attempt” where the team has to get a first down on a 4th-and-12. Personally, I dig it. And if the end result happens to be more exciting big plays in the guts for a game, I would be for the NFL adding it to its landscape.
  • The NFL Combine is here and it has a different feeling than what we have grown accustomed to around these parts. Back in 2017, we focused on quarterbacks, receivers, and defensive backs as positions of need – and those happened to be places of strengths in that particular draft. Last season, we combed through Combine participants who were potential defensive playmakers destined to be selected in the top-10. But since the Bears aren’t scheduled to be on the clock until pick No. 87, the Combine-related dives figure to be deeper.
  • Kevin Fishbain (The Athletic) and Adam Jahns (Sun-Times) have Bears-intensive Combine primers that you should clear your schedule for to read, Dane Brugler (The Athletic) has a big-picture guide to the week ahead in Indianapolis, and Brad Gagnon (Bleacher Report) has various burning questions that the Combine could provide answers for when the dust settles.
  • Do you need to scratch that itch to wager on football? Bet Chicago has you covered with Combine props! Seriously.
  • Chicago’s football team doesn’t have major needs or a ton of drama surrounding it, so the Combine doesn’t have the same type of hype it once did. HOWEVER, the Bears’ needs are ridiculously obvious.
  • I’m looking forward to GM Ryan Pace’s meeting with the media, which is expected to go down on Wednesday. It will provide the platform for his first comments since re-signing Bobby Massie to an extension, could be a space in which he discusses what went into the Cody Parkey decision (I mean, besides the obvious), what could be coming down the pipeline as far as what he’ll be looking for in a replacement kicker, and ultimately give us a glimpse at what could be in store for the Bears this offseason. Head Coach Matt Nagy will also check in with the media at some point this week, which should be interesting – especially after Parkey’s reported release.
  • Last week gave us something to chew on as we await status updates regarding free-agents-to-be Adrian Amos and Bryce Callahan. Amos said there has been a back-and-forth between his representation and the Bears, which hints at the two sides working toward a deal that keeps him in Chicago. But because Amos’ price tag appears to be on the rise, what that deal would look like is a bit up in the air at this point. Callahan’s financial future has a rosier outlook after Tavon Young signed a three-year deal with the Ravens that made him the league’s highest-paid slot cornerback. Fingers crossed for some good news on that front.
  • JJ Stankevitz and Laurence Holmes grade the Bears’ secondary and it’s wild how far that group has come if you think about where they were two years ago at this time:
  • 14/10. Would invite to the Combine:
  • Can’t believe we missed out on an #83Nation reference. Gotta tighten it up around here.
  • Another day, another moment in which Robbie Gould expresses his love for desire and hints at his interest in returning home. This time, it’s via Andrew Seligman of the Associated Press.
  • Timely:
  • Robot vacuums, razors, and PS4 controllers are among Amazon’s Deals of the Day.
  • written by

    Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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