Let's go Bears!


And also, Diggs can eat a bag of.......

Leave it to Chicago to wet themselves

Tksymm7 said:

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Leave it to Chicago to wet themselves

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They are a very weak 2 seed…but GB has let them back in to both games earlier this year

Pretty much make or break here. Have to have a TD.

Screw the bears oh my god

Da Bears take the lead. Still time

Let's ****ing go

Good times

Nice comeback Bears

God bless. What a day of football.

Correct, Jerry was forced into changing his mind on Micah, but he still gets credit for making the right move after.

I don't see it much different than Jimmy Johnson getting credit in '89 draft when another team took the LB that he wanted... he pivoted and made the right call and drafted Emmitt Smith instead.

While I mostly agree here I'll push back a little. I recall the talk was the only trade market for Micah was contending teams thinking they were 1 player away and able to absorb his contract. So they weren't getting a top 20 2025 draft pick. Yes a player in 2025 draft will be more valuable for a team looking to win than a 2026 pick, but the other team knows that too so the value equation is different for them as well.

Look at Green Bay - their 2025 pick was at 23 Mathew Golden. A so so season for him, but made some plays last night. Would they trade him for a #20 pick in 2026 draft?

Where Jerry won is that Green Bay was probaboy valuing that 2026 pick as being 29 or higher (1 player away). Cowboys took that downside risk of a disaster season leading to a pick 15-20 range. How does the value equation quantify this?

As for the ability to adapt the roster. I don't think it would have changed much. I think the problem with the defense was a couple players not "buying in" (*Diggs). The other players knew this and tried to compensate by doing more than "their jobs" to cover for them. Thus leaving holes all over the place.
That's the best explanation for all the players looking bad/overmatched at times. Maybe the training camp time w/o Micah could have flushed out those bad apples or given time to placate them? Jerry definitely didn't forsee this cuz he doesn't understand his players/locker room like a good GM should.

Also important to remember we were dealing with a new coaching staff right before the draft. It was also a somewhat weak draft... Not a ton of top flight talent.

Did we really want an extra pick last year with Fluss having a big voice in the room evaluating last years edge rushing class?

I'm personally glad we had time to sit on it.

althepal97 said:

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While I mostly agree here I'll push back a little. I recall the talk was the only trade market for Micah was contending teams thinking they were 1 player away and able to absorb his contract. So they weren't getting a top 20 2025 draft pick. Yes a player in 2025 draft will be more valuable for a team looking to win than a 2026 pick, but the other team knows that too so the value equation is different for them as well.

Look at Green Bay - their 2025 pick was at 23 Mathew Golden. A so so season for him, but made some plays last night. Would they trade him for a #20 pick in 2026 draft?

Where Jerry won is that Green Bay was probaboy valuing that 2026 pick as being 29 or higher (1 player away). Cowboys took that downside risk of a disaster season leading to a pick 15-20 range. How does the value equation quantify this?

As for the ability to adapt the roster. I don't think it would have changed much. I think the problem with the defense was a couple players not "buying in" (*Diggs). The other players knew this and tried to compensate by doing more than "their jobs" to cover for them. Thus leaving holes all over the place.
That's the best explanation for all the players looking bad/overmatched at times. Maybe the training camp time w/o Micah could have flushed out those bad apples or given time to placate them? Jerry definitely didn't forsee this cuz he doesn't understand his players/locker room like a good GM should.

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I think you're relatively correct on your assessment of the defense.

I think this team had 2 factions. Diggs and Parsons were 1 team and Dak was the other and they didn't exactly co-exist. With Parsons getting traded, Diggs power went out the window and with it his desire to get after it.

I'm notoriously not a Dak guy, but I think Dak is good leader. I think Micah was a bunch of hot air. All the talent in the world, but he's a square peg that's forced himself into a round hole trying to play DE. It's not the position that makes he the greatest and he's rendered himself a pass rush specialist only in a league that's starting to go back to power football.

Anyways, love the move. Love that we have 2 picks in this draft - hopefully both used on defense. We need help at every level, so whoever the biggest difference maker is on the board at the time we pick, we need to get them. Safety, Corner, LB, DE - doesn't matter. It's weird to say we're good at DT, finally.

Parsons probably holds up better as a roving LB where he's not going against an offensive lineman every play. But he needed to be mainly DE cuz that's where the money is at. Now that he's paid could he be convinced to change to more LB? Anyways - not our problem.

As for Diggs could the staff not see he wasn't into it 2 games into the season? Trade/cut him and make an example of him? We ended up cutting him with 1 game left anyways - did we gain anything having him on the roster all season? I guess they thought he'd just turn it around.

$45 mill on a roving LB would be as badly as one could mispend resources as possible. He has to be a pass rusher.

DannyDuberstein said:

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$45 mill on a roving LB would be as badly as one could mispend resources as possible. He has to be a pass rusher.

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Not to mention Micah tried to play LB with the Cowboys and he sucked at it.

A pass rusher that won't last 17 games?
Its not like he'll never rush the passer. I liked when he'd play from any position on the front 7 - keep the oline guessing. The resource is already spent.

I guess in the end you are correct. And not our problem anymore.

The highest paid off-ball LBs in the NFL are making 40% of what Micah is. And as mentioned, he's not good at the other anyway. You trade him if you don't think he can hold up, not move his position. Yes, they would move him around but he was still rushing the passer

Also, I'd take the 23rd pick in the 2025 draft over the 20th pick in 2026 any day. If that was actually done as a pre-draft trade, the team holding the 2026 pick would be throwing in a 2nd or more to get that 2025 pick. It doesn't have to be Golden. I'd use it on someone else, or possibly package it to move up. A #1 now is always worth significantly more than a #1 later, especially when the clock is ticking on your old qb

Did he suck at it cuz he didn't have decent defensive tackles that would occupy the offensive lineman?
I guess more examples of poor roster construction.

He sucks at it because he's basically a bigger Harold Perkins. See ball, chase ball, hit ball

althepal97 said:

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Did he suck at it cuz he didn't have decent defensive tackles that would occupy the offensive lineman?
I guess more examples of poor roster construction.

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Good LBs need to be able to read and react. They need to study film. Micah works best as a missile. Even GB was consistently lining him up as a 1 or 3 technique. I bet they regret the investment already.

Fair points. I appreciate the discussion. I probably agree more than I'm letting on.

I just think for the betterment of his team he could change his style now that his priority #1 isn't "getting paid".

When does the off-season thread get started?

I am not a Micah guy like most here, but in fairness to all of the guys who play NFL football, it's pretty damn rare to play all 17 games in a season, especially on defense. This game and having to play 17 of them is preposterous in a lot of ways. I don't think they ever should've gone from 16 to 17 with how big, strong and fast these players are today. They key to me or the mark to hit is limiting the games missed to two or three at the max. Micah always seems to miss four, five or even six+.

Little tore his achilles. His career could be over.