Chicago Bears NFL Combine Takeaways & Draft Rumors

0:00Baton Bears fans, another edition of the Chicago Bears podcast coming your way. The soldier sounds a path of design or shade norling. We think back at it again. We're trying it. We're, we are, uh, we did a podcast last week that's in the last file. Listen, we'll see. We're roaming around this entire studio, just looking for a home one day at podcast studio. We'll be arched. It is, it's like, um, these are going to be the, like, when they released that Super Mario game after one and two. That was like the lost levels. Yeah. These podcasts are going to come out in four years and nobody will listen to them. It'll just like that being still exists. The lost files of the Chicago Bears pod, the lost episodes. Listen, I think it into one today's episode. I'm back from the combine, rejuvenated, feeling good time. Uh, I did have a good time. It is, um, there's not a lot of football at the football combine. I'll say that there's, there is a lot of, uh, shaken babies and kissing hands, especially when it's a big people draft, because that people really don't care about the football.

1:04But I'll tell you what, doggy. Listen, if you want to talk about seeing some stuff in person, that this was the draft to see a lot of large men moving at high rates of speed that were all very shocking. And I'll say watching Lee Hunter, that's got me a little team out of Texas tech. All right. What he, what he did at the combine a little tingly on all the Texas tech guys. Oh, David Bailey. I think David Bailey might be the best player in the draft. There's like, there's a case, there's a case. We got to talk about all that more today's episode. I hit that like button, subscribe to the page lead to five star of you. Y'all know what to do at post combine. Let's start off here, Shay. I mean, post combine and with a little bit of the news that we got the day out of, uh, Brad Biggs that the rumor that we heard on Jervon Dexter was basically absolutely nothing. He said, uh, I believe his exact words were Chicago Bears have taken no calls on Jervon Dexter. And, uh, they have called no one on Jervon Dexter. Uh, is defensive tackle still in need for this? Of course, uh, but I think they're kind of telegraphing and not going to do it in the

2:04first round, which I wonder what they're going to do in the, like, okay, here's how I'm going to throw to you. And you can tell me if I'm totally off my rocker, okay? But it feels more and more like DJ Moore is going to be traded. No, that fair. I, I would come at it from a different perspective, unless you think they're hyping him up. If, if you think Max Crosby's coming here, then yes, but Ryan Poles did say, we're only trading them for the right deal. What is the right deal? Yeah. I would assume it's a big name trade, but he also says we don't have money to go after somebody's big names and we're not going to overextend ourselves on him. Yeah. So I, I'm still on the fence on it, but if you're all in DJ Moore's, can they take over the receiver in the first round? 25th pick comes up. Caron L Tates sitting there is that, like, I'm not saying it's what I would do. I'm not saying it's what I wouldn't do. Like, I don't know that I totally hate it. But it's just the more that I think about what he's been saying. And now they don't want to trade Jervon.

3:05And I don't know that they're going to go DT in the first round. A bomb just went off. Bro, I'm not going to lie to you. I don't know if you can hear that. I'm the podcast. I got nervous with with with with what the weekend has been. I was trying not to look out there. I got nervous for a second. What was that? I just thought, but then it kept because it was like a feedback in my brain, where it just kept becoming a bigger thought. Oh my God. If I just I don't know if people could, that was loud as hell. What would we be talking about? First round wide receiver. Caron L Tates looks fine. Caron L Tates looks fine. Yes, I just I feel like it's a possibility that we haven't talked about. And like I get left tackles, I want edge rushers, a need defensive tackles, a need safety, a need linebackers, a need. There's going to be players available every position, a need because the bears need at every position. But I just could it be wide receiver? And it's not like I don't think Luther Burton can be wide receiver one.

4:07That's not the case. I 100% think he can be wide receiver one. It's more do you trust that Luther Burton and Wilma Dunes are ready to carry the load if you're moving on from DJ more? I would think if you feel that they're not, you're going to a guy that did carry the load for you this season of coast and lovelin more than likely, which I think he may be your leading target gather, no matter what moving forward. On the flip side of that, the part with receiver that is tough for me is are they good? OK, I thought he had confirmation on the bomb. I can't nervous. I was like, it's like, so we need to evacuate the building. The party receiver that would be tough for me would be even if you don't feel those guys are ready, you've got pieces in place for that that have shown you that they can be successful. And is he best player available at 25 if you stay at 25? I think that this weekend showed you defensively, how do you not go defensive

5:09this draft at just about every single pick at least of the stuff does make me think like, OK, if carnaltates, the number one player on your board at pick 25, you could go there. Aren't you going? You could go there. Aren't you going carnaltate could go there like if it's, you know, listen, Kate and Proctor, you know, I was out. Yeah, well, apparently has lost 15 pounds since the end of the season, the college season. I know a little bit back. Not really. But like if Kate and Proctor's there at 25, what do they just give him a real attack, maybe, but yeah, 15 pounds come off. Yeah, I don't know if he can play any smaller than he did. Like, who knows, but I'm just making the point option available left tackle, option available, wide receiver. And I know a lot of us look at best player available and go, dude, you need an ad rusher, just taking ad rusher, you need a defensive tackle, just take an defensive tackle. I am kind of at a point where like, I don't know if there's a pick they could make that I would really dislike. I'm borrowing punter kicker.

6:11Yeah, I'm letting that. I running back. What a 20, what a number 25 overall running back through into it. That would, I'd lose it. It wouldn't thrill me. I guess I just don't see a world where it, I don't see a world where it's even possible. Yeah, so it's not something I'm considering because Jeremiah loves not going to be available 25 and if Jeremiah loves not available 25, there's no running back that would be BBA. The bears are in a weird situation. I know a lot of bears fans, right? Look, we're so used to having this, this world where I have to go out there and I have to trade up where I have to like these off season conversations where we have to finish with the crown. The crown isn't available to you this year. You know, why could you play really well during the season? The crown isn't available to you this year because you're not going to go for whatever the reach player is or whatever, right? Trading up to go get this masterpiece, barring somebody like a David Baylor, whatever this falling, right?

7:12There are certain situations where it gets to a point in the first round where you're like, okay, we actually have to have a conversation on trading up. Because you like players, I will trade up because that's become become a little bit more of an invogue thing to say too. Now, there's also they could trade down. I'm like, the hell? Now, this is, I will say this though, down is an interesting conversation have coming out of the combine with what you saw because it shows you that there are a lot more athletes in this, in this draft combine that maybe we thought, I think we saw the big bodies and we were like, right, the six, six, 300 plus pound guys and you're like, okay, well, they kind of just eat up a lot of space. You can get those in the third and fourth round. But there's some of those guys that you do look at now and you're like, yo, that's a heck of an athlete dad that has to be on the board BPA at 25 for you to trade out of the pick because like for me to trade out, like he's the best player available. And I'm like, not what we need. That's not what we need there. It probably as crazy as it is where we started this, right?

8:15If you're, if you're sitting there looking at wide receiver, right now, you trade out with the pick because I think there is still a need for wide receiver and defensively, this is a year for you to build Dennis Allen's defense. And I think that's more important to you, especially in the second, the third round than it is adding to the offense this season. It doesn't mean you can't, but you do have a guy like Jody Walker who showed you some really good flashes. He's your fourth wide receiver on this team. There's still no guarantee that DJ Moore's gone. So he might be the fifth wide receiver yet again. Or I should say fifth receiver on this team. If you're sitting in your best player available on your board as an offensive player, unless you think he's going to be an, oh my God, a stud that you're going to regret moving on from, this is literally the year for you to go out and say in the second round, we can get an edge Russia that fits with Dennis Allen once. We can get a defensive tackle that fits with Dennis Allen once. We can get a linebacker that fits with Dennis Allen once. I feel like this is DA's year to do what you saw Ben Johnson do last season,

9:16where there were a ton of questions. And guess what? Last year, it was a surprise when you took a tight end 10th overall. What if it's left tackle? Is that becoming a need enough? If you, a whole conversation aside that we just had there, if at any point you find a left tackle that you think could possibly be the future, you draft it. Okay. And I stand on that with everything because left tackles are such a premium worst case scenario. You develop this guy and you can trade him away in the second or third year of his contract. And if he's that good, you can probably move a guy into guard or whatever it is, right? Like left tackles are so premium. That's a different conversation than I would think. And because usually first round, I think you're either taking a quarterback. Yeah. You're taking somebody who protects the quarterback or you're taking somebody who kills the other quarter. Yes. Those are the only three things I really entertain. Now 25 is a different type of thing because the board can fall in a way where those guys don't exist for you.

10:17So like, honestly, if it's Dillon Tina men, the safety out of Oregon transfer from Purdue, this I would take him. I would take it, I would take it by the way, and you see that footwork this weekend. Hey, you see, you see the baby. Oh, yeah, oh, yeah, the Purdue tape is insane. Oh, my God. You're like, Ronnie lotness prime. No, but it's, this is kind of one of those drafts for the more I dig into it, the more I see. Yeah, there's not sexy players. Yeah, it's not a few years ago where there were six quarterbacks. And everybody wanted them. And there's like my leak neighbors and you had Rome, yeah, BTJ, all these. MHA still in my, yeah, Marv, I lad McKonkey. Like, think about a couple drafts ago. All the skill players, the names people knew, Brock Bowers. Yeah, where this year's very different because Mendoza is the only quarterback. Jeremiah loves really the only standout skill player.

11:18And then it's carnal tape, but kind of a late first round grade. Like, there's not this group of elite pass catchers or elite skill offensive players that are going at the top of the draft. So it ends up for me like, you're going to get what you get if you're picking at 25 as far as the big people go. And if the board doesn't fall in a way where that's conducive and you're sitting there and it's like, Hey, Dylan Deedham is the best guy available or, you know, it's some cornerback is the best guy, just take him. I'm not going to fight too hard on it. No, I think, and this is the funny part, right? Like you talk about the sexiness of it, the offensive players are sexy. They're always going to be sexy. This is a year that is perfect for you because I think it's a year where Ryan Poles can have the blinders on. I think it's a year where Ben Johnson can have the blinders on where there's going to be some player that stands out offensively. The Bears are going to take an offensive player in this draft. It's, it's going to happen. It's not going to be everything is defense, but I look at this and I say, if you needed an answer at any point, that was cap friendly for your future,

12:20which the Bears are going to need and that fits what Dennis Allen wants to do. This is the year for you to have that. This is the perfect draft for where the Chicago Bears are at right now. And when you leave the combine and talk with people up there, you know, like, there's this belief that it's going to go really well moving forward for the Chicago Bears. Like teams around, I feel like Bears fans are waiting for the balloon to pop because that's the world that we've lived in. Bears fans, that is not where the NFL thinks they're at. Everybody down there thinks Ben Johnson is the next God send of this NFL. They look at him like he is one of the Sean McVeigh Kyle Shanahan hires. Everybody down there thinks that Ryan Poles is doing this thing the right way. It took some time for you to get there. But like, you're in a position where the next step isn't sexy, but it's the right step and that's building up DA's defense and give it because think about everything we had. And I get it. The yards per carry or the yards allow per carry, the yards allow perception. They suck for the Bears last year.

13:22And that defense still at times wasn't your biggest issue on the field. Now give DA his defense, let him build his guys out. That, that to me is just a perfect scenario for the Bears for the next five years. If you need wholesale change and it sounds like they're going to get a third round pick in the next two drafts for the Atlanta stuff free and conning him. So that gives him nine picks. If you use seven of them on defense, you're probably going to hit. I think it's reasonable to say on three plus. So if you get three quality defensive players, that can alter really an entire season. And I still pat I still feel like they can be a better team and have a worse record and maybe miss the playoffs, but we all kind of feel like, okay, that still was a step in the right direction. Like I don't, I don't think this is a lion's possible scenario where like, oh, they took a real step back. They got worse because the decisions they made.

14:22I almost think this is set up where Ryan Poles can't screw it up. Yeah. But that doesn't mean they're going to be some like 14, 15 win team next year. They're going to build it probably not for rounds. First place. Yeah, just changes. We're getting not close because we're not close at all yet. And we'll see what the draft ends up looking like. But the more that I kind of just 30,000 foot view of it, I feel like they're building for 2027 in 2027s, the year to just like, now we rock. It's it's going to be interesting to see what Ryan Poles does because, you know, you hear the stuff about Max Crosby yet again. Like the rumor drops on Crosby, three teams being, or I'm sorry, uh, that there's a certain number of teams that have made the calls on Max Crosby. The bears are included in that, um, per Albert Brear. And when you start to hear that, you're going, okay, but does what's available in the draft change that for you or are you all in?

15:22But I keep, I keep going back to this shape. Ryan Poles last year and kind of through this process. Really hasn't sold the bear bears fans, uh, gold and what was a pile of garbage. He's kind of been realistic through the process. He said, listen, this is where we're at this year at the combine. Continually, he goes, listen, I understand the names that are out there as everybody tries to ask, are you trading for Max Crosby a different way? He just goes, we, we got to create money, we got to create cap space. We have to find ways to get money on this team. Now, there are ways for you to do that. Tremaine Evans trade is one that is, uh, brought up today and, uh, the Raiders are a team that are interested rate Max Crosby for Tremaine Evans. I'm in on it. But bottom line is like, it kind of sounds like he's telling everyone. I'm not going to get Max Crosby. I'm not going to get Trey Hendrix and I, if Miles Garrett becomes available, sure. Let's have a conversation outside of that. You're probably just building this thing through the draft. Like it feels like Ryan Poles is telling you the answer.

16:24It's just not the one that fans want to hear, especially when you hear that the bears are possibly an on Max Crosby, guess what? I'd rather hear that than here. Yeah. The bears have zero interest in Max Crosby, right? Do your due diligence 2027 more than 2026. And that's not to say that I think they can't win a Super Bowl or in the division in 2026. They can still be a very good team. Uh, I just, when you have to clear this much money already, yeah. And then you start talking about all indecisions like trading for Crosby or kicking money down the road with guys, that's always dangerous. And I feel like if you view 2026 is kind of this middleing, not middleing, but, uh, in between season, like a trainer thing where you had this incredible come up, now we're going to stabilize it. And then 2027, we run and that like even in the stabilizing year, you can still win a championship. You just saw it. The Seattle Seahawks this year were in a stabilizing year. They made a couple of moves where you were like, okay, that's a, that's a bigger move right, bringing into Marcus Lawrence and things like that.

17:27But Sam Donald was not, we're going to try and win a championship level move this season. That was, we need a quarterback that we feel can run this system and get us to whatever the next step is. You'll want a Super Bowl in that year. I think that could be very similar to what the bears are looking at. By the way, the year where now they're going to invest, the Seahawks are terrifying. They have nothing but money, nothing but young players and nothing, but an ability to build on that and obviously this is too lofty of a place to put the bears because they're not there yet. But the seasons where the chief said, one, a Super Bowl in the preceding year. Yeah. And then they like, by nature, have to stabilize things. Trade, legaries, Sneed, move on from Tyree Kill and continue to reload through the draft. They did a great job with guys like Creed Humphrey, but I'm just making the point. That is a rebalance and they still won Super Bowl. Yes. So it's just the more I look at this off season for the bears, I think less. It's time to bear down load up.

18:28Go on in. It's more rebalance. Yeah. And then we're going to reload and it's essentially what I mean, what do you have? 15 defensive free agents, arguably more than likely you're going to be dealing with 16 this year. If you, you're, I guess if you're the Titans or somebody you want to really trade for Tremaine Evans, I'm not going to turn it down. But if you're trading for Tremaine Evans, knowing the bears are going to cut them. God bless you. Like you're talking about 16 players on the defensive end that you're going to be replacing this off season. That's not a season where you go, yeah, you're trying to win a Super Bowl the next year because you're replacing most of them with rookies. Now your hope is two or three of those rookies hit like you had this season. Then there's enough of veteran stability that it helps you get there. I think that makes the most sense with keeping Javon Dextro on this team, keeping somebody to know the system, Montess, sweat, guys like that. But it is a, hey, if we get to, if you get to a point next year, Shay, with the offense that we saw this year, where you're middle of the pack defensively, you can compete for a champion. 100% yeah, 100% and rookies helped the bears get to that level.

19:34And I just don't feel like they need to take some big Max Crosby swing for that to happen. No, with the number of picks that they have, like it's rare that you have this much draft cap that'll begin with. And honestly, the financial restrictions like, I don't love that we're already in this spot before paying the quarterback. Well, it does all fall off when it's time to pay the quarter. 100% right. What is it? 90 something million. The bears get back when it's time to keep. It's more about for me rebalancing because like, honestly, if you have an really honest, like, look in the mirror conversation with yourself as a fan. Are you telling me that the guys eating the vast majority of this cap sheet are guys that are worth it when you aren't paying your quarter back? Like, think about how the Eagles are going to move on from AJ Brown. Yeah. And people here are like throwing their hands up at the idea of moving on from DJ Moore. Yeah. DJ Moore makes more money than AJ Brown and is a worse player.

20:35No disrespect to DJ, but that's where I just, I don't love that we're already in this spot and you can rebalance it by moving on from some of that. But see, I feel like with that, and this is why like this draft for the rookies is so important in getting it right. If you're next season moving off of Grady Jarrett, but you have Grady Jarrett's replacement and a Lee Hunter, you feel great about that. If you're moving on from DJ Moore, the reason that it's like, it would suck to move on from DJ Moore, but it's also like, all right, well, receiver got that other receiver got that third receiver that has one games for us. Got that like Luther Burn, Roma Dunes, a Johnny Walker dominated tight end got that back up tight end is making big catches for you. Got that like it doesn't hurt you as much. I think that's kind of the position that you're in right now. Well, yeah, you're moving off of these pieces, but this is what big boy football teams do. And I love this that the Bears are, it is tough for 2026, but I think when you get to the point where you're paying Caleb Williams and Roma Dunes and Darnell right, you're living in a good world, real good world.

21:38He looked at me right in my eyes. This man just said paying Roma Dunes in 2020. Then the year of our Lord, 2026, this guy's talking about paying Roma. Well, let's see what 2026 brings here. Three is usually the big year for wide receivers. Let's see what 2026 brings. I think Rome has a bounce back here. I think that catch percentage rises. I just needed to rise like Caleb Williams pass percentage. Just 10 percentage points. Oh, just 10. Just 10, just 10. All well as volume goes down 10%. Oh, yeah, I don't think it's going down. You think he's losing catches? Yeah, Luther's going to be a dog. I'm not going to lie to you. Luther's going to be a dog. We'll see what ends up happening. A lot, a lot from the combine. Appreciate you all for tuning in and showing love as always. Hit that like button, subscribe to the page. Little five star view. Y'all know what to do. We'll have a lot more coming to you guys. We as we continue through the week. Courtney Cronin back on with us. Of course, there's always your coat in the building. And Jason McKee back on after a couple of weeks. We've been we've been moving around on Fridays.

22:39So Jay Mac, not able to get on with us. All that and more coming up, man. Y'all stay safe out there. Chicago bed down. One love for Shane Norling. It's your boy path of designer peace.