Pre-Senior Bowl Mock

[AZBearsFan]

I used sort of a conglomeration of player rankings I found on various sites to put this together and tried to avoid any pipe dream kinds of signings or picks, so if you’re expecting Trumaine Johnson or Allen Robinson this isn’t the mock for you. I also matched the signings with actual contracts signed last year for context (2 years for O’Donnell). 

Cap Space $40,031,517

(As of 1/15/18)

RELEASE 

Glennon +11.5

Wheaton +5

Sims +5.6

Freeman +3.5

McPhee +7

Cooper +4.5

Massie +5.6

New Cap Space: $82.7M

RESIGN

Fuller 5/52.5, $20M guaranteed (2017 Dre Kirkpatrick contract with bigger guarantees) - Big step this year and while I think he’s a bit overvalued given the lack of takeaways the market will bear this and he’s a good, solid corner who’s excellent against the run as well, is still just 25 and should be a building block for the future of this defense. 

QB Sanchez 1/2 - Vet backup and obvious mentor for Mitch. Hell, they’re handing out this offseason outside of football. Obvious rapport there. If forced to play would be a competent but highly unspectacular backup, and if Mitch misses significant time our season is sunk no matter who our backup is. 

CB McManis 1/1.5 - Excellent ST has clear value even if he should never play a snap on defense again.

ILB Jones 2/4- Solid #3 ILB and good ST contributor. Underwhelmed me as a starter but wasn’t a disaster either. 

OLB Acho 1/1 - Consummate pro as a depth player and 4-phase ST player

RB B Cunningham 1/1 - Depth RB is an adequate runner and an asset in the passing game. Versatility fits Nagy backup RB role well. Can return KO. 

OT B Sowell 1/1 - Depth OL who can play 4 positions. He’s not great but as depth he’s adequate. In this scenario ideally he’s #4 OT and a weekly inactive rostered for extenuating circumstances only.

LS DePaolo 2/2 - Didn’t hear anything about him last year. As a LS that’s a great thing. Keeper. 

P O’Donnell 4/10, $3.4M guaranteed (2016 Jon Ryan Contract) - Has improved every year and is now a solid, reliable punter who can also kick off.

TE Brown 1/1 - Young depth TE who is a passing game asset. He’s capable if called upon but with limited upside. 

CB Callahan 1/1 - Depth CB with experience outside and inside. Staying healthy an issue but he’s a capable player on limited reps here. 

AS Houston-Carson 1/1 - Core ST contributor really showed his value when McManis was hurt in 2017. Good role player. 

RFA

WR Meredith 2.7M (2nd round tender) - Ascending WR when tore up his knee last August. Should he set by TC and expected to fill a top 3 WR role. Extension candidate but here we are letting him play out the year on his RFA deal to force him to show recovery from the ACL, continued development and a fit with the Nagy offense. 

EXTEND

Goldman 3/27, $14.5M guaranteed (2017 Jonathan Hankins contract) *tacks on at the end of his rookie deal; 2018 cap hit remains 1.8M* - Young defensive core player is a 2-down run stuffer and a good one. Here we get maybe a bit of a discount for extending before UFA status, but ultimately reward home grown talent. This deal gives Goldman upper echelon money now with good guarantees but also the opportunity to hit FA again at 28 for a second big contract. Good compromise deal for both sides.  

FA

WR Randall Cobb (projected release by GB after the Adams extension) 4/32, $19.95M guaranteed (2017 Kenny Stills contract) - Skill set as a quick receiver with big RAC ability who can play both outside or in the slot is a really strong fit for what Nagy does. Numbers going down the last few years speaks to the emergence of Davante Adams more than any decline IMO. A long term asset and security blanket for our young QB. 

WR John Brown 2/11, $5.5M guaranteed (2017 Markus Wheaton contract) - Established NFL deep threat with big potential in this scheme. Brown showed huge potential and RAC ability in AZ before poor QB play largely undermined his role in the passing game. This is a bet on a better situation getting him back to 2014-15 levels, with a 1-year out of it’s a miss. 

CB Ross Cockrell 3/16, $8M guaranteed (2017 Marcus Cooper contract) - Cockrell is a solid cover corner with good size, with a bit more upside than Prince in terms of the ability to take the ball away. He projects here as the starter on the boundary opposite Fuller. What we were hoping for when we signed Cooper last March. 

RT Cameron Fleming 2/10.25, $3.5M guaranteed (2017 Ben Ijalana contract) - Split reps with Waddle in NE at RT after Marcus Cannon’s season ending injury. NE doesn’t protect their tackles in pass pro any more than KC does and Fleming more than held his own. Here Fleming gets an audition for a long term gig at solid short term money, and we get a potential upgrade to Massie at about the same money with a 1-year commitment. 

K Cairo Santos 2/4 (2017 Robbie Gould contract) - Santos wasn’t the wrong guy for us long term IMO when we signed him midseason - it was just the wrong time with him rushing back from injury. He’s healed now. He’s a reliable, consistent kicker who’s still very young, and one with whom Nagy is familiar and likely comfortable. 

TE Ed Dickson 2/4, $1.2M guaranteed (2017 Lance Kendricks contract) - with the Sims release here we need to fill the secondary TE role behind Shaheen. Dickson has shown to be able to do fill this role, and has ties to Mark Helfrich. 

DE Tank Carradine 2/2.7, $300k guaranteed (2017 Evander Hood contract) - Depth 5T drafted in SF under their Fangio era. Signing him here to be essentially a younger Unrein. Solid rotation player. 

WR Tavon Austin (projected release by LAR) 1/2, $1M guaranteed (2017 Kendall Wright contract) - a good fit skill set wise for the Nagy scheme. Here he’s cast in the appropriate role as a sub package WR. 

ILB Korey Toomer 2/3 - Depth ILB against whom Nagy coached last year in the AFC West. An upgrade over Timu. 

DRAFT

1 EDGE Harold Landry, BC - Our defense is an elite pass rush away IMO from jumping from good to great. Landry is arguably the top pass rush prospect behind Chubb. The pick cards as a reach here in early January however Landry should crush the combine and if that follows a solid showing at the Senior Bowl he’s going to move up. His 16 sacks in 2016 speaks to the upside. 

2 OG Will Hernandez, UTEP - We need to get younger at guard and after Nelson Hernandez is right there with Braden Smith to be that next guy. We also get a long term answer here at a 2nd round salary which allows us to spend more at premium positions.  

4 EDGE Marcus Davenport, UTSA - Athletic freak at 6’7” 255 from a smaller school is getting a lot of buzz for his potential. The more young edge rushers the better. I want waves of pressure coming off the edge. 

4 WR Steve Ishmael, Syracuse - Good size and crazy productive in college, Ishmael brings a contrasting skill set to the smaller speed players. Here’s where the Nagy and Helfrich spread concepts ideally speed the transition from college to the NFL. Here we’ve set Ishmael up so that he’s not going to be forced into a big role though until he earns one. 

5 OT Brandon Parker, NC A&T - Developmental tackle prospect ideally our swing or pushing for RT by 2019. Hopefully he shows enough right away to keep Sowell inactive. 

6 CB Justin Thomas, Oklahoma - Boundary corner size played 42 games for the Sooners with 8 INT. Depth for now. Bigger role for later. 

7 RB Justin Jackson, Northwestern - RB depth is more of a need than I think most people realize. Jackson produced big numbers in both the running game (5440 yards and 41 TD) and passing game (122 receptions). His versatility will make Cunningham expendable sooner than later. 

DEPTH

QB Trubisky, Sanchez

RB Howard, Cohen, Cunningham, Jackson, Burton (FB)

WR Cobb, Brown, Meredith, Ishmael, Austin, White 

TE Shaheen, Brown, Dickson

OT Leno, Fleming, Parker, Sowell

OG Long, Hernandez, Kush, Morgan

C Whitehair (Kush backup C)

DL Hicks, Goldman, Bullard, RRH, Carradine

OLB Floyd, Landry, Davenport, Young, Acho, Irving

ILB Trevathan, Kwiatkowski, Toomer, Jones

CB Fuller, Cockrell, Thomas, LeBlanc, Callahan, McManis

S Jackson, Amos, Demps, DHC

K Santos

P O’Donnell

LS DePaolo

(KR/PR Cohen, Austin)

[51to54]

" ...if Mitch misses significant time our season is sunk no matter who our backup is.  "

This has to be the Bears' Prime Directive over the next couple of seasons of roster building and thus I like this off-season. I believe that our Oline is in a precarious position and could fall off a cliff with only a couple of more even non-catastrophic injuries. Last thing we need is to watch our second multi-draft pick acquired QB get hammered into the ground where his strong arm does nothing, but lessen his smashing into the turf.

Added experienced WR that will benefit Trubisky in 2018.

Added FA Oline and second round Oline as well as a developmental OT.

Took a shot at an impact defender to boost our defense a level with the first round pick as well as adding another pass rusher in the fourth. Love taking multiple shots at a position.

Adding a kicker is a big upgrade and I think adding another RB is prudent as I think we are weaker there than we look at first glance.

 

 

 

 

[Rogerthat]

you lost me at Randall Cobb

[G08]

1 minute ago, Rogerthat said:

you lost me at Randall Cobb

Why? Cobb would be a stud in this offense.

[Blaize4488]

I think our 1st rounder will be one of Key, Williams, Nelson, mcglinchey, or Landry. I'm not sure pace and nagy are going value other positions other than pass rushers or pass blockers that highly this year at that spot.  Pass rusher is as big of a need as receiver is, imo. 

 

I have also seen multiple draft guys say they think Davenport goes round 1.

[WindyCity]

1 hour ago, G08 said:

Why? Cobb would be a stud in this offense.

I am not sure real Randall Cobb exists anymore.

He really has not been a difference maker for a couple of seasons.

[Rogerthat]

1 hour ago, G08 said:

Why? Cobb would be a stud in this offense.

he signed that contract and then disappeared.  Cobbs sucks and he has sucked for a few years now. 

[yomyyo]

Count me as unsure about the Cobb signing, but otherwise I love this offseason! With these additions / subtractions, I can envision the team as improved and competing for a wildcard slot. 

[WindyCity]

I am not sure that the free agents are marked improvements over the guys who they are replacing?

Cam Fleming is really just another Bobbie Massie

Ross Cockerel might have more picks, but also gives up way more then Prince does.

Randall Cobb has really not done a lot for a couple of seasons now.

[G08]

1 minute ago, WindyCity said:

I am not sure that the free agents are marked improvements over the guys who they are replacing?

Cam Fleming is really just another Bobbie Massie

Ross Cockerel might have more picks, but also gives up way more then Prince does.

Randall Cobb has really not done a lot for a couple of seasons now.

re: Cobb... it's more about projecting his skill set in this offense more than looking at how he was used/how his role decreased in GB.

[WindyCity]

Just now, G08 said:

re: Cobb... it's more about projecting his skill set in this offense more than looking at how he was used/how his role decreased in GB.

I think part of it is physical decline.

I do not think his skill set is what it was. I think for the money we can probably find someone to play that role that is not declining physically.

[G08]

Just now, WindyCity said:

I think part of it is physical decline.

I do not think his skill set is what it was. I think for the money we can probably find someone to play that role that is not declining physically.

At age 27? Maybe... I haven't watched him a ton yet but I'm sure I'll check his play out.

[WindyCity]

Just now, G08 said:

At age 27? Maybe... I haven't watched him a ton yet but I'm sure I'll check his play out.

If you wander over to the Packers forum I think they will tell you something similar.

I do not think he has the elite gear that he did before.

[mikee]

There is no chance that Davenport is available in the 4th, or the 3rd, or perhaps even in the 2nd round.

[RTD]

Overall good offseason. You added speed to the WR corp, a speed rusher to set up beside Floyd and rebuilt the Oline with solid picks. I don't think Davenport lasts till R4 but there are developmental edge guys that can be had in early R4. The kid from Georgia might be there. Also not a big fan of Cobb but you never know what can drive a man to higher level. I was one that thought Peppers was through when we didn't resign him, and look at him even now.