2022-2023 NFL Season

[DegenerateDish]

In other news, that Washington/Giants tie was a buzzkill for Detroit. Lions having beaten both teams now get hosed if all three teams finish with 9 wins.

That Vikings/Lions line certainly is very interesting this Sunday.

[Jockey]

It's not a strong QB year. Bryce Young ought to be a lock for #1 to Houston, but after that there are big questions about Stroud and even bigger questions about Levis. They'll both get drafted too high, but I don't see any team mortgaging the future to move up a few spots for them.

This is the NFL. I’ll be shocked if both Stroud and Levis aren’t top 5. I agree with you that they aren’t worthy, but that isn’t a factor when it comes to drafting QBs.

A few years ago, no one could have seen a team mortgaging their future for Mitch.

[RJax55]

This is the NFL. I’ll be shocked if both Stroud and Levis aren’t top 5. I agree with you that they aren’t worthy, but that isn’t a factor when it comes to drafting QBs.

A few years ago, no one could have seen a team mortgaging their future for Mitch.

Two 3rd round picks and a 4th is not mortgaging the future. Anyway the issue was selecting Mitch, not the trade.

[MUBurrow]

Nobody in the NFL tries to lose.

[Jockey]

Two 3rd round picks and a 4th is not mortgaging the future. Anyway the issue was selecting Mitch, not the trade.

Don’t forget to add the 1st rounder that they wasted on a stiff like Mitch. Which led to using more picks to make up for that debacle (Mack and Fields).

Added together, that’s a pretty big mortgage.

[dgies9156]

I never suggested the Bears were trying to lose. I said they were not going to do everything they possibly could to win.

I stand by that. This team has been too miserable for too long to do anything else. It’s the difference between neglectful and negligent. The Bears are the former.

[DegenerateDish]

Don’t forget to add the 1st rounder that they wasted on a stiff like Mitch. Which led to using more picks to make up for that debacle (Mack and Fields).

Added together, that’s a pretty big mortgage.

I agree with this, they paid a premium price to trade up to take Mitch.

[withoutbias]

Bears fans are really feeling themselves.

[WhiteTrash]

For the record, I never said the Bears players or coaches are trying to lose. They are giving 100% effort to win. I'm sure they are disappointed in the record.

Ownership and management are not prioritizing winning. I don't think they are upset at all with the record.

My experience with fans I know is every one of them is hoping they Bears get the highest draft choice possible. They are A-OK with the record.

I have not seen any press bashing the Bears for the plan in place. If anything I have heard praise for them going young, developing players like Fields, freeing up cap space and giving up on a season that was never going to amount to much anyway. I don't consume a lot of NFL press so maybe there is condemnation of the Bears plan, I just have not seen or heard it.

[ZiggysFryBoy]

For the record, I never said the Bears players or coaches are trying to lose. They are giving 100% effort to win. I'm sure they are disappointed in the record.

Ownership and management are not prioritizing winning. I don't think they are upset at all with the record.

My experience with fans I know is every one of them is hoping they Bears get the highest draft choice possible. They are A-OK with the record.

I have not seen any press bashing the Bears for the plan in place. If anything I have heard praise for them going young, developing players like Fields, freeing up cap space and giving up on a season that was never going to amount to much anyway. I don't consume a lot of NFL press so maybe there is condemnation of the Bears plan, I just have not seen or heard it.

I've heard that the Bears are planning to put up a cardboard cutout of Virginia McCaskey in the locker room, a la Major League, next year.

[Pakuni]

Higher draft picks give you the chance to take a highly rated QB, if you need it.

So, ya, it would help in the long run.

Has any team in recent memory been unable to take a highly rated QB because they won a game?

[CTWarrior]

Has any team in recent memory been unable to take a highly rated QB because they won a game?

Jets lost Trevor Lawrence by beating the Rams n 2020 in week 15.

[DegenerateDish]

Has any team in recent memory been unable to take a highly rated QB because they won a game?

Not recent memory, but the ‘97 Bears started 1-10. They won 3 of their final 5 games that season and ended up with the fifth pick.

Had they lost one more game, they’d have tied the Colts for worst record, and would have had the same strength of schedule as the Colts.

Top pick that year was Peyton Manning. Bears took Curtis Enis (Charles Woodson went one pick before Enis).

[Plaque Lives Matter!]

It's not a strong QB year. Bryce Young ought to be a lock for #1 to Houston, but after that there are big questions about Stroud and even bigger questions about Levis. They'll both get drafted too high, but I don't see any team mortgaging the future to move up a few spots for them.

As for the Bears, no, they're not trying to lose. Nobody in the NFL tries to lose. They'll accept losses as part of the rebuilding process, and are happy to deal older players and expiring contracts as part of that process, but that's not the same as trying to lose. If they were trying to lose, Fields would not have played yesterday.

I mean, there’s potentially 4 QBs in the top 10 vs last years first one taken at #20. YOY it’s far stronger

[WhiteTrash]

Has any team in recent memory been unable to take a highly rated QB because they won a game?

What am I missing about this "winning one game" narrative? The Bears have positioned the team to lose lots of games and end up with a high draft choices. I agree losing 13 or 14 games is not a huge difference but losing 10 would be a material change in daft capital.

For the Bears, every loss helps...... so from Bears fans we say "thank you Aaron Rodgers".

[Pakuni]

I mean, there’s potentially 4 QBs in the top 10 vs last years first one taken at #20. YOY it’s far stronger

I'd be surprised to see more than two QBs in the top 10, though I suppose there's a chance someone falls in love with Richardson's tools.
Anyhow, my larger point is that none of these guys, outside Young, are likely to entice a QB-needy team like the Panthers or Colts give up multiple firsts-plus to move up into the top 5 for. They're more likely to wait and see who falls to them. Of course, crazier and dumber things have happened (see: 49ers giving 3 firsts for Trey Lance), but I just don't see these guys generating that hype.

[MU82]

Not recent memory, but the ‘97 Bears started 1-10. They won 3 of their final 5 games that season and ended up with the fifth pick.

Had they lost one more game, they’d have tied the Colts for worst record, and would have had the same strength of schedule as the Colts.

Top pick that year was Peyton Manning. Bears took Curtis Enis (Charles Woodson went one pick before Enis).

I remember that, Dish. Wannstedt was totally trying to lose to St. Louis in the next-to-last week but the Rams also wanted to lose, it was a complete shyteshow, and the Bears ended up somehow winning 13-10.

IIRC, even if they had finished 3-13, they would have lost the tiebreaker to the Colts for the #1 pick. But that was seen as OK back then because all the experts were high on Ryan Leaf.

Also IIRC, a meaningless next-to-last game win over Washington in 2020 cost the Panthers a top-3 pick.

[Pakuni]

Jets lost Trevor Lawrence by beating the Rams n 2020 in week 15.

Did it stop them from taking a highly rated QB?
They still had their choice among four others.

[Pakuni]

Not recent memory, but the ‘97 Bears started 1-10. They won 3 of their final 5 games that season and ended up with the fifth pick.

Had they lost one more game, they’d have tied the Colts for worst record, and would have had the same strength of schedule as the Colts.

Top pick that year was Peyton Manning. Bears took Curtis Enis (Charles Woodson went one pick before Enis).

They'd have taken Leaf.
Look, I chose my words intentionally. I never asked whether a team never lost out on a particular player by winning an extra game. I asked whether they missed on a chance to draft a highly ranked QB.
There was nothing preventing the Bears from trading up (like the Chargers did) that year for Leaf.

I'm sure if we try hard enough we can find an instance where it's happened. But the fact we have to try hard illustrates it's pretty rare.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

For the record, I never said the Bears players or coaches are trying to lose. They are giving 100% effort to win. I'm sure they are disappointed in the record.

You said they want to lose.

The losses are exactly what the ownership, management and fans expected and want.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

Has any team in recent memory been unable to take a highly rated QB because they won a game?

Packers lost out on Troy Aikman because they won the last week in Phoenix.  They picked Tony Mandarich #2 over Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas and Deion Sanders.

[RJax55]

I'd be surprised to see more than two QBs in the top 10, though I suppose there's a chance someone falls in love with Richardson's tools.
Anyhow, my larger point is that none of these guys, outside Young, are likely to entice a QB-needy team like the Panthers or Colts give up multiple firsts-plus to move up into the top 5 for. They're more likely to wait and see who falls to them. Of course, crazier and dumber things have happened (see: 49ers giving 3 firsts for Trey Lance), but I just don't see these guys generating that hype.

The hype season is just about to start though. Let's revisit in late March.

[Pakuni]

Packers lost out on Troy Aikman because they won the last week in Phoenix.  They picked Tony Mandarich #2 over Barry Sanders, Derrick Thomas and Deion Sanders.

That's close to a great example, but the Cowboys had the lower strength of schedule that year, so they'd have won the tiebreaker and still gotten Aikman.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

That's close to a great example, but the Cowboys had the lower strength of schedule that year, so they'd have won the tiebreaker and still gotten Aikman.

I think they only had the lower SOS because the Packers beat the Cardinals.

https://www.yahoo.com/video/what-if-the-packers-had-tanked-properly-and-drafted-troy-aikman-232442085.html

"The 1988 Packers were very good at losing. They were 2-12 after 14 games. Had they lost either of their last two games, they’d have had the top pick in the 1989 NFL draft. Aikman was the Packers’ preferred choice."

[Jay Bee]

U guys gonna be cheering for the NFC North’s leader in the playoffs, hey??

We keep pulling it out (paws)