Bears thread 13

[sco]

I do wonder if DJ (and Kmet) are on the block? It is almost comical how badly Poles has mis-managed this situation.

2023 (both played 17 games) - DJ and Kmet combined for 226 targets, 169 receptions, 2,083 yards and 14 TD's
2024 (both played 17 games) - DJ and Kmet combined for 195 targets, 145 receptions, 1,440 yards and 10 TD's
2025 (both played 2 games so far) - DJ and Kmet combined for 19 targets, 11 receptions, 174 yards and 0 TD's

Getting DJ in the original trade was as awesome move by Poles. Having to sell low just over 2 seasons later means things really went off the rails. The production from Kmet and DJ have fallen off of a cliff during their PRIME.

Luckily (I guess) other teams have big injuries, so the Bears are not fully out of it yet. Next few games will be telling.

Honestly, this seems more like "Caleb loves Rome" than anything else. Caleb threw for 207 yards. 128 of those went to Odunze (and it could have been more in light of a couple of late drops). There's just not much left for anyone else!

It is odd.
Odunze has 20 targets this season.
Zac has 12
DJ has 11
Swift has 8
Kmet has 6
Kyle has 4
Loveland and LBIII have 3

I wanted KA traded mid-season last year because the season was sliding off the rails, and it seemed like CW focused on KA more than anyone else....which didn't make sense in the long run because DJ, Odunze and Kmet were much younger and signed long term. I can't complain about the Odunze connection, but the overall production does not match the talent in the WR room. I don't know if it is the offense or CW, but it seems like al lot is being left on the table with Moore and Kmet.

I think we should be calling KC to see what we could get for Moore and/or Kmet.

(And to add, Poles never traded KA, and he ended up walking for nothing after trading a pick for him and getting a 5 win season because Poles has ZERO foresight).

[panthermark]

Current insinuation is that DJ has been pouting and not blocking and such....and that may be true. DJ has to man up. He is in the NFL, and he signed a pretty big contract extension.

WITH THAT SAID....

If I am DJ I'm kinda pissed.
Gets traded from a horrible situation in Carolina to a bad situation in Chicago...but on the upswing. In his first year here, sets career records in receiving yards (1,364), receptions (96), receiving TD's (8) and his first career rushing TD (1).
Bears win 7 games and are sitting on the #1 pick in the draft again.
He is 50% of the #1 rated QB/WR combo in NFL. Things are looking up.

However, since he has been a Bear.
That QB connection was broken up, and the Bears have spent:
A 2nd (really a later 1st) round pick on Chase Clayfool.....which was a total bust....but was expected to compete for the WR1
A 4th round pick on a WR - Scott
A 4th round pick to trade for a perennial Pro-Bowler that would be a top target catcher (that the new QB trained with).
A high 1st round pick on a WR - Odunze
A high 1st round pick on a TE - Loveland (with Kmet already on the roster)
A high 2nd round pick on a WR - LBIII (with DJ, Odunze, Zac, Kmet, at the time KA and Scott, and the just drafted Loveland here).

This is the start of DJ's 3rd year here, and in that time Poles has spent two 1sts, two 2nds, and two 4ths on pass catchers....with half of them not on the team anymore (Scott, Clayfool and KA) and very little to show for it. (Bears traded Clayfool and a 2025 7th for a 2025 6th).

I know the WR room needed to be upgraded, but damn. The team is now heavy at pass catcher talent, but crappy everywhere else.

[fleet]

When you put it that way…..

this is a fair point. However, the sack numbers are creeping back up, and stats can become empty calories. So some things to watch.

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[Dresden]

When you put it that way…..

this is a fair point. However, the sack numbers are creeping back up, and stats can become empty calories. So some things to watch.

Read on Twitter

I don't know what conclusions you can draw comparing 2 games from '24 to two games from '25.

[Dresden]

Looks like the Texans are having more problems with their O line protecting their young QB than the Bears even are: https://www.yahoo.com/sports/nfl/article/nfl-panic-meter-the-texans-are-failing-cj-stroud-not-the-other-way-around-135541971.html

[Dresden]

Cowboys are still only a 1 pt favorite v Bears this Sunday.

[kodo]

I don't know what conclusions you can draw comparing 2 games from '24 to two games from '25.

That he had a really horrible start to 2024.

[Jeffster81]

Quoted from another site:

Romang67 wrote:

As far as I understand the NFL dead cap system, I don't think Moore's contract is moveable until next season, unless you do some restructuring on other contracts. If he's traded now, you're sitting on a $24M dead cap hit for this season (and you're ~$13M over the cap), and a $12M dead cap hit for this season.

Barring some crazy trade value, I think it's more likely that he loses playing time than that he is traded. I could see it happen next season, since the dead cap hit is smaller and more workable with a post June 1st designation.

Though it is a fairly attractive contract to trade for, given how much of the money the Bears are eating and if you think Moore is a good fit, so an overpay is not impossible.

IDK if the Bears can trade Moore during the season but I do believe this will be Moore last year in Chicago. DJ simply has not clicked with Caleb since Williams got to Chicago.

[molepharmer]

I do wonder if DJ (and Kmet) are on the block? It is almost comical how badly Poles has mis-managed this situation.

2023 (both played 17 games) - DJ and Kmet combined for 226 targets, 169 receptions, 2,083 yards and 14 TD's
2024 (both played 17 games) - DJ and Kmet combined for 195 targets, 145 receptions, 1,440 yards and 10 TD's
2025 (both played 2 games so far) - DJ and Kmet combined for 19 targets, 11 receptions, 174 yards and 0 TD's

Getting DJ in the original trade was as awesome move by Poles. Having to sell low just over 2 seasons later means things really went off the rails. The production from Kmet and DJ have fallen off of a cliff during their PRIME.

Luckily (I guess) other teams have big injuries, so the Bears are not fully out of it yet. Next few games will be telling.

Honestly, this seems more like "Caleb loves Rome" than anything else. Caleb threw for 207 yards. 128 of those went to Odunze (and it could have been more in light of a couple of late drops). There's just not much left for anyone else!

It is odd.
Odunze has 20 targets this season.
Zac has 12
DJ has 11
Swift has 8
Kmet has 6
Kyle has 4
Loveland and LBIII have 3....

fwiw - Ben J in his presser yesterday(?) when asked about why the TEs weren't getting more action, said it was on him; giving the impression that Ben hasn't been scheming the TE position for open looks and that he needs to correct that in the offense. He implied that it wasn't the QB's fault for lack of TE targets.
It seems reasonable that unlike fans who what instant gratification, he's playing the long game. Not showing everything in the offense right now and trying to pare it down until Caleb et al get more comfortable running basics.- heck, until they clean up the stupid O-line and false start penalties, the play design is secondary.

[Dresden]

I agree that it would be nice to see the TE's more involved, but for the most part, that's not holding the offense back.. We're moving the ball thru the air pretty well, and Caleb has been finding plenty of open targets to throw to. The bigger issues are penalties, inability to run the ball effectively, and sometimes, pass protection.

[panthermark]

Honestly, this seems more like "Caleb loves Rome" than anything else. Caleb threw for 207 yards. 128 of those went to Odunze (and it could have been more in light of a couple of late drops). There's just not much left for anyone else!

It is odd.
Odunze has 20 targets this season.
Zac has 12
DJ has 11
Swift has 8
Kmet has 6
Kyle has 4
Loveland and LBIII have 3....

fwiw - Ben J in his presser yesterday(?) when asked about why the TEs weren't getting more action, said it was on him; giving the impression that Ben hasn't been scheming the TE position for open looks and that he needs to correct that in the offense. He implied that it wasn't the QB's fault for lack of TE targets.
It seems reasonable that unlike fans who what instant gratification, he's playing the long game. Not showing everything in the offense right now and trying to pare it down until Caleb et al get more comfortable running basics.- heck, until they clean up the stupid O-line and false start penalties, the play design is secondary.

Not following based on the comments.

[Dresden]

It's going to take time for Ben Johnson to figure out what his players can do on offense. It's only 2 games in. They looked a lot better last week (the offense) than in week 1. It could take most of the season, or beyond, for everything to start clicking. Seems kind of pointless to worry about who is or isn't getting touches just yet.

[ThisGuyFawkes]

I don't know what conclusions you can draw comparing 2 games from '24 to two games from '25.

That he had a really horrible start to 2024.

What do we do other than draw comparisons? I thought that one was well laid out and made a direct point. I'm not sure if I agree with it or if it makes sense in the context, but I'm not complaining about it.

[fleet]

A little more to chew on. Some good, some bad. One possible takeaway, he needs a clean pocket to function accurately more, relative to some other quarterbacks’ needs. But OTOH he did comparatively well when he had a clean pocket

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On the ‘24-‘25 comparo:

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^^^But I don’t know if you can call it ‘slashing’ sacks going from a 67 sack year down to a 51 sack year pace.

[patryk7754]

Youngho koo has been released. We should sign him. At least as a replacement for moody

[Dresden]

DAL still favored by just a point. I hope it's a close game- I could see the Bears getting blown out again and giving up 35-40 points. Will be interesting to see how our corners do. Stevenson was unbelievably bad last game- I think Lions had a perfect QB rating targeting him. He just doesn't seem to be able to stay close in coverage. He always makes a couple good tackles per game, but he gives up so many catches. I don't know what the coaches can possibly do with him that hasn't already been tried. With Jaylen out, there's no one to take Cee Dee Lamb.

[panthermark]

https://www.windycitygridiron.com/chicago-bears-news/98856/chicago-bears-place-jaylon-johnson-and-kiran-amegadjie-on-injured-reserve-transaction-roster-moves

JJ isn't a surprise, but Kiran is looking like a super bust.

[fleet]

Tony Pauline?

Ben Johnson "loves" Tyson Bagent, could start over Caleb Williams if struggles persist

Multiple sources tell me that Johnson loves backup quarterback Tyson Bagent, who signed a two-year contract extension at the end of camp in August. In a report I did on the Chicago Bears just a few weeks ago and before the extension was signed, I mentioned that people close to the organization said the backup quarterback looked better than Williams during camp on numerous occasions. Bagent does everything Johnson wants in his offense and, more than anything else, brings the structure the head coach demands when the Bears have the ball.

Sources tell me there is a good chance Bagent gets on the field this season if Williams does not consistently play at a high level, if nothing more than give the former first pick of the draft a chance to reset from the sidelines and watch what’s happening on the field.

https://www.sportskeeda.com/nfl/news-insider-notes-bears-concerns-caleb-williams-learning-ability-ben-johnson-s-frustrations-tyson-bagent-s-timeline-to-start-and-more#google_vignette

[Dresden]

https://www.windycitygridiron.com/chicago-bears-news/98856/chicago-bears-place-jaylon-johnson-and-kiran-amegadjie-on-injured-reserve-transaction-roster-moves

JJ isn't a surprise, but Kiran is looking like a super bust.

No kidding. Another 3rd round bust, joining Pickens and Velus Jones. Tory Taylor isn't looking all that great either.

[Almost Retired]

[quote="panthermark"]https://www.windycitygridiron.com/chicago-bears-news/98856/chicago-bears-place-jaylon-johnson-and-kiran-amegadjie-on-injured-reserve-transaction-roster-moves

JJ isn't a surprise, but Kiran is looking like a super bust.[/quote]

If he can ever go a month without an injury of some kind then maybe the best plan forward is to try to groom him as a backup guard. Maybe learn from Joe Thuney for a couple of years.