OK, so the Salukis aren’t going to the NCAA Tournament. But I’ll give them credit for this: They brought me joyful moments during some of my darkest hours this year. Getting 20+ wins and playing on Saturday at Arch Madness seems like a solid foundation. Onward and upward.
- Saturday’s showing by the quarterbacks was a wonderful development — particularly if you’re a Bears fan wanting to trade down and collect a treasure trove of draft picks. Simply put: The more QBs who look alluring, the more likely it is someone will go bonkers with an offer on the trade market.
- More from Patrick about the Combine here:
- Alabama’s Bryce Young and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud are at the top of the QB pecking order. But Kentucky’s Will Levis is making a push. As is Florida’s Anthony Richardson. Seeing two other quarterbacks leave solid impressions only helps Chicago in its quest to trade the first overall pick for a haul. Heck, this could help in the path to create multiple trade-down opportunities. We still have 53 days until the NFL Draft, but I’m starting to get antsy.
- I’m taking this as a bit of high praise:
- Some more quarterback and Combine chatter via Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox.
- Tell ’em, Louis!
- Calling last year’s supporting cast “mediocre” is being too kind. However, Louis Riddick’s overall point still stands. Enough is enough.
- Again, does Fields have things to do to be better in 2023 than in 2022? Absolutely. But the 24-year-old quarterback (who is celebrating his birthday today) is working on it. And when the season starts, he’ll (hopefully) have sone new beefy linemen protecting him up front and pass-catchers to help bolster the passing game. Last year’s Fields production was just an appetizer. The good stuff is coming soon.
- Nothing like celebrating a birthday like re-watching this extra hard 7-minute hype video featuring Fields’ best plays.
- I’m not sure where Texas running back Bijan Robinson falls in the draft. And I’m not someone who wants to spend a high pick on a running back. But it is fun to dream about the type of ground game the Bears could produce with Fields, Robinson, and Khalil Herbert in the backfield. That the Bears met with Robinson suggests they want to know a little more about the Texas ball carrier:
- Why, yes, the Bears do have a good reason explaining why they’re playing darts with prospects.
- Thinking about the Chase Claypool trade gives me mixed feelings:
- Part of me tips my cap to Bears GM Ryan Poles for rolling the dice with the Claypool deal. Fortune favors the bold. And keeping the Packers from acquiring him was an additional bonus. But the Ridley deal looks like it could be a steal for the Jaguars. It’s the type of creativity I was hoping to see out of the Bears before the trade deadline. Perhaps we’ll see it in the coming months. Poles needs to think outside of the box to maximize the trade possibilities ahead. Hopefully, he’ll have learned something about the art of the deal since the last time he was making them.
- FWIW: It’s not as if free agency is a barren wasteland. Don’t get me wrong. It’s not pretty. But someone like JuJu Smith-Schuster or Jakobi Meyers could be a fit for the Bears depending on if the price is right. We might not see a blockbuster receiver trade like we saw with the Chiefs sending Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins or Packers shipping Davante Adams out to the Raiders. However, that doesn’t mean the Bears can’t upgrade their receivers’ room.
- Chicago’s best path to a top receiver is to go the draft-and-develop route. So we shouldn’t sleep on this team’s draft options. For instance, players such as Rashee Rice and Kayshon Boutte look like potential Day 2 targets the Bears could consider drafting. (CHGO)
- This made me laugh:
- Spring training is fun:
- It is good to see these Cubs pitching lines (even if these games don’t count for anything in the standings):
- Is the tank back on?