NEWSLETTER
Fridays are for closers and those of us who were lucky enough to pick up a rare SNKRS win.
If your Friday can have the same kind of good vibes mine had this morning, then I think we’re all in for a good day.
- Happy Devin Hester Day to those who observe:
- Should I guard myself against getting my hopes up too much? Probably. But what is the fun of that? With that being said, I fully expect to be writing about Hester’s induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Class of 2023 at this time next week. And I hope to have planned an Ohio getaway to ring in Hester’s enshrinement in style. Let’s speak/tweet/write this into existence. Positive vibes only.
- The cascade of tweets that fell on our timeline after Arian Foster told a podcast that the NFL was scripted had me rolling! It was beyond hilarious. And I’ll admit that I laughed way too hard at this from Bears running back Darrynton Evans:
- Some draft crushes don’t go away easily. So while we’re exploring all other running back options for the Bears in 2023, part of me wouldn’t mind seeing if Evans can play his way into a depth role. Let the record show that Evans’ 76.3 pass-blocking grade was the best PFF handed out to Bears backs last year. Evans was in on just four pass-blocking snaps, which is a tiny sample and not something I want to look into too much. And for obvious reasons, too. But I feel as if one thing we should be looking for in rounding out the RBs room is how they hold up in pass protection.
- Here are the pass-blocking grades and rankings (among fellow RBs) for notable free agents to be: Tony Pollard (74.9, 3rd), Devin Singletary (73.2, 8th), Saquon Barkley (71.3, 11th), David Montgomery (59.8, 24th), Josh Jacobs (56.3, 26th). Keep in mind there are 60 qualifiers for the leaderboard. To me, it makes it notable that all of the most notable backs are above the midpoint in pass-blocker rankings.
- Johnathan Wood (Da Bears Blog) takes an analytical approach to unearth David Montgomery’s potential role and future contract. Monty has a role on this Bears team (or any of the league’s other 31 teams, for that matter). He gets tough yards and is tough to bring down in short-yardage situations. And let’s not forget about his prowess as a pass blocker and catching balls out of the backfield. These are important things that worthwhile running backs do within the confines of an offense. But fleshing out the fit and maximizing the output is key. Should Montgomery return for a fifth year with the Bears, how he is used could tell us a lot about how Offensive Coordinator Luke Getsy’s mind works.
- Speaking of running backs, I see Tulane’s Tyjae Spears is making some heads turn:
- FWIW: The Bears have had some success snagging Tulane’s top players in recent years. Between Matt Forte’s superb career in Chicago and Darnell Mooney’s solid start, I’m all-in on rolling the dice on Spears being next to join the party.
- Hit-stick engaged:
- Bears LBs Coach Dave Borgonzi is mic’d up at the Senior Bowl:
- I suppose we should keep our eyes on players like Edu Leota, Isaiah Land, Will McDonald IV, Aubrey Miller Jr., SirVocea Dennis, Dee Winters, and Dorian Williams. Those are the linebackers on the American team. Meanwhile, the National team has a bunch of linebackers worth keeping tabs on, too. Nick Hampton, Andre Carter II, Cam Jones, DJ Johnson, Demarion Overshown, Carlton Martial, Daiyan Henley, and Ivan Pace Jr. are on that squad.
- There is so much Senior Bowl talent on display. I’ll be really disappointed if the Bears don’t leverage this trip into multiple quality additions onto their 2023 roster.
- It is rare to see the NFL pull back the curtain, but I found this worth sharing:
- Hmm. It’s almost as if a little bit of transparency and some extra eyes in the sky can be helpful.
- Uhhh … wut?
- Is Tony Romo “bad” now? Or are we just going through Romo fatigue? Whatever it is, I think we can all agree that Romo needs to go back to the drawing board, focus on what works, and be true to himself. To me, that means being less like the caricature of himself he had become at times. But that’s just me thinking from a pure media analyst perspective. I don’t get to wear that hat too often, but it’s fun to wear every now and again.
- Roomba, kitchen supplies, iPhone and more are your Deals of the Day at Amazon. #ad
- The Dolphins made old friend Vic Fangio the NFL’s highest-paid defensive coordinator. Can’t say I blame ’em. (BN NFL)
- Today is a day for the G.O.A.T.s who wore No. 23. And they don’t get any better than this guy:
- Good luck, Seth!
- A reminder that baseball is coming:
