The Bear’s Den, March 6, 2023

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

Matt Eberflus’ influence essential as Bears GM Ryan Poles begins roster construction - Chicago Sun-Times - The GM and coach seem to be more cohesive than Ryan Pace was with Matt Nagy and John Fox. Poles needs to make sure Eberflus maintains significant input.

Northwestern’s Peter Skoronski could be a sure thing — a Bears OL rarity - Chicago Sun-Times - Skoronski is productive: in three seasons as Northwestern’s starting left tackle, he allowed just five sacks in 2,364 snaps. He has the pedigree, too: his grandfather Bob was a left tackle and offensive captain on Packers teams that won five NFL championships from 1961-67.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba wants to re-create ‘connection’ with Bears QB Justin Fields - Chicago Sun-Times - Quarterback Justin Fields wants the Bears to draft receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, his former Ohio State teammate. Smith-Njigba would love it.

NFL Scouting Combine shifts mock draft, but Bears’ needs unchanged - Chicago Sun-Times - Their biggest challenge at the moment is weighing the legal situation of Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter.

QBs in NFL Draft in haze as Bears play poker with No. 1 pick - Chicago Sun-Times - Also, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud would be happy to go high in the draft but was adamantly against going to the Bears because of his relationship with Justin Fields.

Jalen Carter arrest throws Bears a hittable curve - Chicago Sun-Times - Carter’s arrest for reckless driving and racing weakens the Bears’ position in the 2023 draft, but with the No. 1 overall pick, the Bears still have plenty of promising options — whether they stay at No. 1 or trade down.

Braggs’ NFL Combine Diary: Looking back at a rewarding week in Indianapolis - CHGO - Note: Greg Braggs Jr. was in Indianapolis this week with the CHGO Bears team and filed dispatches each day about his experiences at his first-ever NFL Combine. This is his final wrapup from Indy. We made it, ladies and gentlemen. The final moments here in Indianapolis at the NFL Combine, as I sit in this

Braggs’ NFL Combine Diary: Hanging out with the wide receivers on Day 4 in Indianapolis - CHGO - Note: Greg Braggs Jr. is in Indianapolis this week with the CHGO Bears team and will be filing dispatches each day about his experiences at his first-ever NFL Combine. Well, we're surviving! Barely. Two straights of staying out til 4 am has left me dazed and confused. I don't even know if I went this

CHGO Bears Podcast: Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud praise Chicago Bears QB Justin Fields at NFL Combine - CHGO - In this episode, the crew wraps up their week at the NFL Combine by bringing on some guests and sharing the latest around QB Justin Fields.

NFL Combine: Rashee Rice and Kayshon Boutte could be prime Day 2 targets for the Chicago Bears - CHGO - The Chicago Bears have met with wide receivers Kayshon Boutte and Rashee Rice. Both would love playing with Justin Fields. Here’s how they’d fit.

Justin Fields and Jaxon Smith-Njigba want an Ohio State reunion with the Chicago Bears - CHGO - The Bears needs to add weapons for Justin Fields. One possibility would be to reunite Fields with his former Ohio State teammate, Jaxon Smith-Njigba.

Elite WRs excited to help ‘dynamic’ Justin Fields if Bears call in draft - NBC Sports Chicago - Jalin Hyatt knows Justin Fields can “take over a game.” Zay Flowers called him “dynamic.” The Bears have a quarterback that the elite draft WRs would love to play alongside. Can they bring one to Chicago?

C.J. Stroud defends Justin Fields, doesn’t want Bears to draft him - NBC Sports Chicago - “That’s his team. I can do my thing. I can go build my legacy.”

Justin Fields, Jaxon Smith-Njigba talked about reuniting since Bears drafted QB - NBC Sports Chicago - Can Ryan Poles find a way to bring JSN to Chicago?

KNOW THINE ENEMY

The Raiders are the betting favorites to land Aaron Rodgers - ProFootballTalk - Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers doesn’t seem to believe that the time is now to let his wishes for 2023 be known. His current team and potentially interested teams may feel otherwise.

FREE AGENCY & DRAFT

Anthony Richardson’s sensational Combine performance raises his draft stock - ProFootballTalk - Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson may have done more than any other player to improve his draft stock at the Scouting Combine.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Saints restructure contracts of Demario Davis, Taysom Hill - ProFootballTalk - The Saints have also created cap space by tweaking the contracts of safety Tyrann Mathieu, right tackle Ryan Ramczyk, safety Marcus Maye, center Erik McCoy, and kicker Wil Lutz. They also signed defensive lineman Tanoh Kpassagnon to a contract extension.

Wade Phillips thinks he's out of NFL due to his age - ProFootballTalk - “I hate to say it but I think it’s age,” Phillips said, according to David Russell of the New York Post. “It’s hard to beat my record as a coordinator so there’s got to be another reason. But that’s OK. I’m glad to be doing what I’m doing.”

Ravens face tricky decision on level of franchise tag for Lamar Jackson - ProFootballTalk - A decade ago, the Ravens faced a tricky decision on whether to use the non-exclusive franchise tag or the exclusive tag on quarterback Joe Flacco. On the brink of the deadline of picking one or the other, they signed him to a long-term deal that made him the highest-paid player in the NFL, at the time.

Report: Daniel Jones' agents to leave Indianapolis "with no contract resolution in sight" - ProFootballTalk - This as the franchise tag deadline grows closer.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Infante: Winners from Day 3 of QB, WR, TE workouts - Windy City Gridiron - WCG’s Lead Draft Analyst shares brief anecdotes on each of his top performers from Day 3 of the 2023 NFL Combine.

Schmitz' Building the Chicago Bears Draft Board: Let’s talk about Running Backs - Windy City Gridiron - We’re excited! We want to hear your thoughts — do you agree with today’s grades? Do you disagree? Let us know!

Zimmerman: Trevis Gipson to particpate in NFL Career Tours with Interscope Records - Windy City Gridiron - The NFL is offering a new program to players and Trevis Gipson is taking them up on it

Chicago Bears 2023 Free Agency Roundtable: Sleeper signing we’d like to see - Windy City Gridiron - The WCG crew ran through several free agency questions in this roundtable, and today we wanted to know which player the Bears could swoop in and unexpectedly sign.

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