The Bear’s Den, January 17, 2020

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

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

BEARRRSSSS

Deep Dive: Bill Lazor, the Bears New Offensive Coordinator – On Tap Sports Net - Diving into Bill Lazor’s coaching history to better understand what the Bears new offensive coordinator will bring to the table.

Wood: What Changed in the Rush Game: Volume - Da Bears Blog - Chicago’s rushing attack was woeful in 2019, finishing 27th in the NFL in rushing yards (91 yards/game), 29th in yards per attempt (3.7 yards/carry), and 26th in success rate on rushing attempts (44%). All three marks showed a decrease from 2018, when they were 11th (121 yards/game), 27th (4.1 yards/carry), and 10th (48%) in those three metrics.

Wood: What Changed in the Rush Game: Volume II - Da Bears Blog - Yesterday I dove into Chicago’s 2019 ground game to figure out where it all went wrong. There I found that the Bears missed Mitchell Trubisky’s legs, didn’t change how they used their 2 main running backs much, and saw the largest regression on runs outside of the tackles. Today, I want to look a little more closely at directional running.

Bernstein: Pace, Bears Nailed It With Mahomes Pick - 670 The Score - In an alternate universe, Patrick Mahomes has transformed the Bears.

5@5: Thoughts On Bears’ Addition Of John DeFilippo? - 670 The Score - The Mully & Haugh crew debates a five-pack of questions every weekday.

Here’s John Defilppo:

All of the Bears' coaching hires point toward one thing: Mitch Trubisky being QB1 in 2020 - NBC Sports Chicago - Read between the lines of the Bears' latest hires and you can see the same message the team has been trying to send all offseason, if not longer: Mitch Trubisky is QB1.

Bears offense gets facelift in 7-round mock draft - NBC Sports Chicago - In this new seven-round mock draft, the Bears add a high-end pass-catching tight end and a pair of offensive linemen who all have a chance to make an early impact in their careers.

Why Trade for Nick Foles Is One Bears Should Avoid - SI.com - If the Jacksonville Jaguars are going to trade Nick Foles and they contact the Chicago Bears, general Ryan Pace should only do it if he can give up a fifth-round draft pick or worse for the acquisition.

Hoge and Jahns: A New QB Coach, A New Training Camp Home, and Two More Hall of Fame Inductees - WGN Radi - Adam Hoge and Adam Jahns talk about the addition of John DeFilippo to the coaching staff. DeFilippo, who interviewed for the Bears head coaching vacancy before Matt Nagy was hired, will be the new quarterbacks coach. The guys discuss what kind of impact he could have and what it means for Dave Ragone, who was promoted to passing game coordinator.

Hoge: Goodbye, Bourbonnais - WGN Radio - Starting this summer, the Bears will join the 24 other NFL teams that now hold training camp at their own practice facilities. Only seven head elsewhere.

Bears met with FIU QB James Morgan at East-West Shrine practice - Bears Wire - The Bears were one of a handful of teams to meet with Florida International QB James Morgan at the East-West Shrine practice on Wednesday.

Bears have 9th best odds to win the Super Bowl next season - Bears Wire - You wouldn't expect the Bears to be considered Super Bowl contenders, yet alone playoff contenders. And yet, they have the 9th best odds.

East-West Shrine Bowl features NFL prospects - ChicagoBears.com - Saturday's East-West Shrine Bowl will give NFL teams a chance to evaluate under-the-radar prospects similar to Bears tight end Jesper Horsted, who played in last year’s Shrine Bowl.

Bears’ 2019 position review: Defensive back - ChicagoBears.com - The Bears secondary was once again powered by a pair of Pro Bowlers in 2019, with cornerback Kyle Fuller and safety Eddie Jackson both earning return trips to the NFL’s annual all-star game.

Ed Sprinkle’s family ecstatic about HOF honor - ChicagoBears.com - Sue Withers, the daughter of the late former Bears great Ed Sprinkle, is thrilled that her father has been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame

AROUND THE NFL

Duke Slater, early NFL black pioneer, elected to Hall of Fame - Chicago Tribune - Duke Slater was a brilliant two-way lineman and later, a Chicago judge who “used football as a springboard to other things in his life.”

NFLPA informs players of areas of tentative agreement, “major issues” that remain – ProFootballTalk - The NFL and NFL Players Association have made progress toward a new labor deal. But they’re not yet at the point where NFLPA leadership can recommend the ratification of a proposal.

Kittle says ankle feels ‘fabulous’ ahead of Sunday - NFL.com - Following a rainy Thursday afternoon practice in Santa Clara, Calif., George Kittle made one thing clear: his ankle injury will not keep him out of Sunday’s NFC Championship Game against the Packers.

2020 East-West Shrine Bowl: Nick Westbrook back on track - NFL.com - In 2017, Nick Westbrook’s career was imperiled by an ACL injury. See how he fought his way back to turn heads at the 2020 East-West Shrine Bowl. Plus, notes from Day 4 of practice.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

It’s not just a Detroit thing, everyone seems to hate the Packers - Pride Of Detroit - We polled. Everyone hates the Packers.

Senior Bowl 2020: 10 defensive prospects to watch for the Detroit Lions - Pride Of Detroit - The Senior Bowl is quickly approaching so it’s time to look at who the Detroit Lions should be focusing on the most, starting on defense.

Detroit Lions 2020 free agents: Tavon Wilson should be an easy re-signing - Pride Of Detroit - His play, leadership and veteran knowledge should keep him around in Detroit for another year or two.

Detroit Lions film breakdown: Jarrad Davis improved in 2019, but not by enough - Pride Of Detroit - The linebacker has slowly improved over time, but he still is not good enough.

Did Kyle Shanahan take the ball out Jimmy Garoppolo’s hands last week? - Acme Packing Company - Kyle Posey of SB Nation’s San Francisco 49ers blog Niners Nation answers our questions about the team.

Norse Code Podcast Episode 315: An Offensive Failure - Daily Norseman - Arif and James are back and quite disappointed at how the season ended in San Francisco. We go over the few shining stars (Ameer Abdullah) of the game and get right into what happened on offense. Also - is this a mutiny or a jailbreak for the coaching staff now with Stefanski leaving? And then there’s Arif’s Dukes...

49ers’ losses reveal ways Aaron Rodgers can attack while avoiding Richard Sherman - Acme Packing Company - Opposing offenses have found success targeting the left side of the field specifically and staying away from Sherman’s island.

Super Bowl 2021 odds: Detroit Lions have longest odds at championship - Pride Of Detroit - Pride of Detroit does not advocate gambling on the Detroit Lions... ever.

Lions Roundtable: Should Detroit draft Tua Tagovailoa? - Pride Of Detroit
- Our staff weighs in on whether or not the Detroit Lions should redirect the course of their franchise and draft the southpaw from Alabama.

Detroit Lions legend Alex Karras finally voted to NFL Hall of Fame - Pride Of Detroit - The Wait Is Finally Over

Detroit Lions 2020 positional breakdown: Can the Lions trust their current set of running backs? - Pride Of Detroit - On paper the Lions have their top 3 RBs, but do they need some insurance?

NFL Draft scouting report: Utah State’s Jordan Love has Patrick Mahomes potential - Pride Of Detroit - The quarterback fell under the radar while playing at Utah State, but he has real potential at the next level.

A TED Talk, Season’s End - Daily Norseman - We step into the off-season and uncertainty

IN CASE YOU YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Infante: 8 players Bears should target from 2020 East-West Shrine Bowl - Windy City Gridiron - The Bears would be wise to target these players from this year’s Shrine Bowl.

Wiltfong: Bears legends Gary Fencik & Doug Plank talk about the violence of the game - Windy City Gridiron - The Players’ Tribune has been around for over five years now, and it’s become the go to place for athletes to tell their stories. Whether by word, video or podcast, the athletes are able to share a...

Wiltfong's Mocking The Mocks: Chicago Bears get Jake Fromm in the latest Mock Draft from Yahoo Sports - Windy City Gridiron - Mock drafts will start to look much differently once the college All-Star games are over, once the NFL Combine takes place, and once the colleges get through their pro days, but for now it’s...

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

Windy City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bear With Me from Robert Schmitz, Bears Over Beers featuring Jeff Berckes & EJ Snyder, and T Formation Conversation from Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.; Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert; and Robert Zeglinski’s The Blitz Network

THE RULES

Windy City Gridiron Community Guidelines - SBNation.com - We strive to make our communities open and inclusive to sports fans of all backgrounds. The following is not permitted in comments. No personal attacks, politics, gender based insults of any kind, racial insults, etc.

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

Windy City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bear With Me from Robert Schmitz, Bears Over Beers featuring Jeff Berckes & EJ Snyder, Bears Banter hosted by Bill Zimmerman, and T Formation Conversation from Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.; Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert; and Robert Zeglinski’s The Blitz Network

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WCG Contributors: Jeff Berckes; Patti Curl; Eric Christopher Duerrwaechter; Kev H; Sam Householder; Jacob Infante; Aaron Lemming; Ken Mitchell; Steven Schweickert; Jack Silverstein; EJ Snyder; Lester Wiltfong, Jr.; Whiskey Ranger; Robert Schmitz; Robert Zeglinski; Bill Zimmerman; Like us on Facebook.