Chicago Bears: Top players affected by Ted Ginn Jr., Tashaun GipsonRyan Heckmanon May 2, 2020 at 12:00 pm

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The Chicago Bears made two key signings this week in Ted Ginn Jr. and Tashaun Gipson. But, what does that mean for a few other notable players?

The next wave of free agency has begun for the Chicago Bears, now that the 2020 NFL Draft is over. Chicago came away with seven selections in total, drafting in the second, fifth and seventh rounds, and now they continue to round out their roster.

On Thursday, general manager Ryan Pace signed a pair of veterans to fill key areas of need on this team. He brought in former New Orleans Saints wideout Ted Ginn Jr. along with safety Tashaun Gipson, who spent last year with the Houston Texans.

Ginn comes to the Bears knowing one thing and one thing only: Speed. He’s been one of the faster guys in the NFL for quite some time, and I think most people understand the value he brings to the Bears. More speed on offense was a huge need, and now the Bears have it in Ginn.

Gipson, meanwhile, has had a fairly underrated career. First off, he can play either safety spots, which will allow for Eddie Jackson to stay put at free safety. Second, Gipson knows what it’s like to play with an elite defense. He was a starting safety for that vaunted Jacksonville Jaguars defense back when they made an AFC Championship appearance in January of 2018.

To give you an idea of how effective Gipson was last year with Houston, he only allowed opposing quarterbacks a QBR of around 55.0. He also defended eight passes and came up with three picks. Throughout his career, Gipson has also been a healthy player for the most part. Dating back to his rookie year in 2012, Gipson has played in double-digit games every season, playing a full 16 games four times.

Both Ginn and Gipson will offer the Bears plenty of experience and talent in two areas the team needed more depth at, and even more so, a starter or two. Their presence will also immediately affect a couple of key players on the Bears. Let’s look at those players and how they will be affected.

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Chicago Bears: Top players affected by Ted Ginn Jr., Tashaun GipsonRyan Heckmanon May 2, 2020 at 12:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Bulls: GM’s comments don’t bode well for Jim BoylenPatrick Sheldonon May 2, 2020 at 1:00 pm

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Some recent comments from the Chicago Bulls new general manager signal a shift might be coming soon.

If you are a Chicago Bulls fan and have been hoping beyond hope that the team will terminate head coach Jim Boylen, you may be getting your wish if some recent comments are any indication.

Immediately following the hiring of Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations, Arturas Karnisova, fans, almost in unison, demanded that his first act be to fire the head coach. Karnisovas has, from that moment, remained diplomatic. He has taken the high-road and only responded with general statements like ‘we’re evaluating all aspects’ at the moment — basically pre-canned talking points.

Boylen, for his part, has seemed to oscillate between being confident in his job security and borderline graveling for another opportunity. Boylen hasn’t spoken much recently, but based on some remarks from newly hired general manager Marc Eversley, Boylen should be very nervous.

Eversley’s hiring was made official yesterday and he did not waste any time firing a subtle warning shot in Jim Boylen’s direction.

This would not appear to bode well for Jim Boylen. #Bulls https://t.co/815BPDLFhH

— Patrick Sheldon (@P_Shels) May 1, 2020

When asked specifically about the status of Boylen, like Karnisovas, Eversley toed the line, stating it was too early to make a decision on his future and they want to take some time to evaluate. Again, this is not a surprise for a first time general manager in his introductory press conference.

However, Eversley showed perhaps he has a bit of a shrewd side to him. While it may have entirely been a coincidence, his comments emphasizing his motto of “players first” and creating a “players-first mentality” could not have stood in starker contrast to Boylen’s philosophy that Bulls fans have witnessed over the past couple of seasons.

I can guarantee that there isn’t one Bulls fan who read that quote from Eversley and said “that sounds exactly like Jim Boylen.” In fact, I imagine you read that and thought “yikes, that doesn’t sound good for Boylen.” That’s because it would be impossible to argue that Boylen has been a players’ coach. If anything, his Draconian and antiquated style has alienated most, if not all of his players.

Next: Coaching candidates with ties to Karnisovas

While Eversley can say he wants to take his time and evaluate/observe Boylen — and by all means take all the time in the world — the fact is the end result will be the same. Boylen isn’t the guy. So save yourself some time and cut bait now.

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Chicago Bulls: GM’s comments don’t bode well for Jim BoylenPatrick Sheldonon May 2, 2020 at 1:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Bears: 2021 trade packages for Aaron RodgersVincent Pariseon May 2, 2020 at 2:00 pm

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The Chicago Bears are locked into their quarterbacks for 2020, but what if Aaron Rodgers was available in 2021 for them to acquire?

The Chicago Bears are locked into Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles going into 2020. They are going to need one of those two to step up and play well otherwise 2020’s season is going to be similar to the very mediocre 2019. 2018 was a brilliant year but they took a major step back in 2019 because of one position. They don’t even have average quarterback play which has led to them wasting a year of their elite defense.

There was some discussion on a local radio station called ESPN 1000. Friend of the program, David Kaplan, and his crew discussed what it would take for Rodgers to come to play for the Chicago Bears. They gave plenty of reasons why it would be a good idea and why it would be a bad idea.

Aaron Rodgers might be on his way out of Green Bay after the decision they made to draft Jordan Love from Utah State. It is hard to see Love sitting on the bench for four years or more so this could lead to Rodgers playing for another team one day. What if that team really did turn out to be the Bears?

A lot of people simply don’t want him because of the fact that he is a Packer. That might be the most ridiculous thing ever if he is capable of playing quarterback at a high level. Jim McMahon went and played for the Packers late in his career, former Detroit Pistons star Dennis Rodman came to play for the Chicago Bulls, and Johnny Damon played for the New York Yankees late in his career after becoming a Boston Red Sox postseason legend.

The fact of the matter is that winning is important. Yes, by the time the 2020 season starts, Rodgers will be 37 years old. With that said, at that age, he is probably still going to be a significantly better option than anything the Bears have. These are three packages that might get it done after this year:

Next: Trade One

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Chicago Bears: 2021 trade packages for Aaron RodgersVincent Pariseon May 2, 2020 at 2:00 pm Read More »

Chicago Bears: Declining Trubisky’s option the right movePatrick Sheldonon May 2, 2020 at 8:15 pm

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The Chicago Bears have officially declined Mitch Trubisky’s fifth-year option and it was the right move.

Late Saturday afternoon, Ryan Pace and the Chicago Bears ended the suspense around the decision whether to pick up Mitchell Trubisky‘s fifth-year option. The team put out a press release announcing they would be declining Trubisky’s option, signaling the end could be near for Mitch’s time in Chicago. Regardless of how you feel about Mitch, the decision to decline the option was the correct one.

There have not been many quarterbacks over the last five year who have had their option declined. It’s a tough pill to swallow for an organization because it typically means you have come to grips with the fact that you made the wrong decision on your franchise quarterback.

For the Bears, that realization particularly stings because they had a “win-now” roster that they were able to build, in large part, due to Trubisky’s cheap rookie deal. But when they traded for Nick Foles during the offseason, the writing was on the wall for Mitch.

But again, even if you think Trubisky can still be the guy — and perhaps he can and prove the doubters wrong — there was still little reason to pick up the option. In fact, it seemed like such a logical move that the fact it had not been announced until today was a bit confounding.

The cost of Mitch’s fifth-year option would have been approximately $25 million. While the option would only have been guaranteed for injury, that is still too significant a risk to take, especially considering the franchise tag for next year is likely to come in at around $29 million (2020 franchise tag is at about $26 million).

Now the Bears have sent Mitch a message. Improve or you will find yourself without a job in 2021. Fear can be a great motivator for many, and the Bears hope this is the case with Mitch. He has largely been handed the starting job in Chicago and has not had the threat of losing his job until this year.

Next: Pace doubling-down on a strength for 2020

It’s time for Mitch to swink or swim. If he swims and balls out this season, the team can tag him for only a few million more than the cost of the option, or work out a long term deal and minimize the cap hit. When you analyze the options of each course of action, it’s clear to see there was little to be gained by picking it up and potentially a lot to lose. The attention now turns to Mitch to see how he handles the news.

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Chicago Bears: Declining Trubisky’s option the right movePatrick Sheldonon May 2, 2020 at 8:15 pm Read More »