The Bear’s Den, January 18, 2018

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS

Morrissey: With playoffs as guide, which path will Mitch Trubisky take? - Chicago Sun Times - Will Bears quarterback be more like Patriots’ Tom Brady? Or more like Eagles’ Nick Foles, Vikings’ Case Keenum and Jaguars’ Blake Bortles?

Biggs: Former Seahawks coordinator Darrell Bevell could be in play for Bears - Chicago Tribune - Sources have said that former Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell could wind up in the mix for Matt Nagy's Bears staff.

Biggs: Worst to first? A look at the climb ahead for Bears - Chicago Tribune - Can the Bears, coming off their fourth consecutive last-place finish in the NFC North, engineer a worst-to-first turnaround in 2018?

Wiederer: Here's what Mark Helfrich should know about Bears' offense - Chicago Tribune - As Mark Helfrich becomes the latest coach to take the reins as the Bears offensive coordinator, he has a lot to familiarize himself with. Just how will he tap into the talents of Mitch Trubisky, Jordan Howard and Tarik Cohen? And how long can he keep his job?

Biggs: Bears expected to hire Shane Toub as quality control assistant - Chicago Tribune - Sources tell the Tribune that Matt Nagy is expected to hire Shane Toub, the son of Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub, as an offensive quality control coach.

Tidwell: Where the Wild Things Are - Da Bears Brothers - Are the Bears shaping up to be like the Rams or Eagles?

Ortman: Hiring of Nagy Re-Emphasizes the Importance of Mitchell Trubisky - Da Bears Brothers - Ryan Pace, Matt Nagy, and the Bears franchise as a whole are betting the farm on Trubisky’s success in the NFL.

Hub Arkush: Could Chicago Bears be 2018 version of '17 Rams? - Pro Football Weekly - Signs are everywhere pointing to Bears potentially making quick turnaround

Cox: Ex-Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell could join Bears staff - Bears Wire - According to the Chicago Tribune, former Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Darrell Bevell could be joining the Chicago Bears staff.

Wood: Tracking Trubisky’s 2017 Growth Through “The Quarters Lens” - Da Bears Blog - Former Bears coach Lovie Smith always talked about breaking the NFL season down into quarters, which splits a 16-game season into 4-game sample sizes. I’ve always thought that was a good way to look at it, as grouping four games together helps smooth some of the statistical noise of individual good or bad games.

Dannehy: Pace Still Has His Work Cut Out For Him - Da Bears Blog - Matt Nagy could be the greatest offensive mind in the history of the league and even he couldn’t have succeeded with the Bears talent this season. A telling quote from Bob McGinn’s annual All-NFC North team column, polling multiple scouts: “Personnel people find it hard to believe what the Bears were employing with at WR after Cameron Meredith and, to a much lesser extent, Kevin White, suffered season-ending injuries early. ‘Just a bunch of names, really,’ one scout said.”

DRAFT / FREE AGENCY

Seahawks Draft Blog Mock Draft - Seahawks Draft Blog - Bears? #8 Chicago - Marcus Davenport (DE, UTSA)

2018 NFL Mock Draft 1-16-18 - Yes, it's 2018 NFL mock draft time. Quarterbacks, quarterbacks everywhere in this 2018 NFL mock draft. Supply may not meet demand here.

2018 NFL Mock Draft - Draft King - 8. Chicago Bears - Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama (6'1" 190) * The Bears have a considerable need at wide receiver, and it could work out very well for Chicago if Ridley is on the board at this spot. Chicago QB Mitchell Trubisky would benefit greatly from the addition of a top-flight wideout here.

2018 Mock Draft - NFL Draft Countdown - 2018 NFL Draft Mock, Bears take Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama

2018 NFL mock draft: 4-round projections heading into Senior Bowl week - The Draft Wire - With the 2018 Senior Bowl on the horizon, Draft Wire editor Luke Easterling updates his four-round NFL mock draft

POLISH SAUSAGE

Swanson: The next Matt Nagy is already in Kansas City - Arrowhead Pride - Andy Reid is a sequoia. This is not a weight joke. If Pat Shurmur does get a head coaching job this year as he’s rumored to, Reid and his former assistants will account for 25 percent of the league's head coaching positions...

Cahill: Mother of Brian Urlacher's son files $125M suit against him - Chicago Sun-Times - Tyna Karageorge, the mother of Brian Urlacher's son, has filed a lawsuit against him claiming he and others conspired to "paint her as a murderer."

KNOW THY ENEMY

Reisman: Miami Dolphins trying to hire Detroit Lions defensive line coach Kris Kocurek - Pride Of Detroit - One of the Lions’ most respected defensive coaches is in danger of getting poached.

Detroit Lions 2017 roster review: Dwight Freeney wasn’t a savior after all - Pride Of Detroit - Expectations were high for Dwight Freeney, but unreasonably so.

Demovsky: No 'musts' on Packers' free-agent list after signing Davante Adams, Corey Linsley - ESPN - The deals given to Davante Adams and Corey Linsley ensured the Packers met their top priorities in terms of signing their own potential free agents.

TRÖL: Karma comes calling for Sean Payton - Daily Norseman - Sometimes, the bad guys do lose

Lyles: Sean Payton trolls Vikings, does ‘Skol’ chant before Stefon Diggs’ TD - SBNation.com - He probably should have waited on that one.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Duerrwaechter: Bears to retain Glenn Pires, Roy Anderson on defensive staff - Windy City Gridiron - As expected, Vic Fangio will be keeping at least part of his staff intact.

Wiltfong: What to do with Kyle Fuller? Franchise tag, long term deal, or let him walk? - Windy City Gridiron - The Bears have a decision to make with free agent cornerback Kyle Fuller.

Zeglinski's Bears mailbag: Nagy relationships, 2017 rookie growth, and GM trust - Windy City Gridiron - One of the most transformative off-seasons in Bears history has only begun. Opening the mailbag on rookie expectations of all kinds, and more.

FANPOSTS

EricSoderholm'sBat: Hypothetical draft day trade idea with Bills? - Windy City Gridiron - The Buffalo Bills own the 21st (their own pick) + the 22nd (Chiefs pick) overall selections in the 2018 NFL draft. The Bills acquired the Chiefs pick during the 2017 NFL draft when the Chiefs...

FanPosts - Recent - Windy City Gridiron - Here’s a link to our FanPost section, where YOU have the opportunity to contribute to Windy City Gridiron. Take a few minutes and write a post about what you are thinking about regarding the Chicago Bears, and there’s a chance it will be linked right here in the Den.

THE RULES

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The Bear’s Den Specific Guidelines – The Bear’s Den is a place for Chicago Bears fans to discuss Chicago Bears football, related NFL stories, and general football talk. It is NOT a place to discuss religion or politics or post political pictures or memes, and any posts that do this will be deleted and the poster will be admonished. We do not allow comments posted where the apparent attempt is to cause confrontation in the community. We do not allow gender-directed humor or sexual assault jokes. The staff of WCG are the sole arbiters of what constitutes “apparent attempt to cause confrontation”. We do not allow the “calling out” of other members in any way, shape or form. Posts that do this will be deleted on sight. Bottom line, it’s fine to debate about football, but personal jabs and insults are strictly prohibited. Additionally, if you keep beating the same dead horse over and over and fail to heed a moderator’s warning to stop, you will be banned.

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