Somehow, I had never seen this. And it’s terrific!
George Halas Interview, 1975 [VIDEO]
Somehow, I had never seen this. And it’s terrific!
‘Tis the quietest part of the NFL calendar. But we’re a month away from having actual things to write about. Here are some links for your enjoyment.
Vildor has been ruthlessly dogged by fans, mostly deserved, but he was also hurt by the decisions of the previous coaching staff.
The Bears really liked Vildor after his rookie season and he played well in the playoff game against New Orleans. But why Sean Desai felt comfortable leaving the second-year corner from Georgia Southern on an island game-after-game last year is a mystery. A reasonable expectation would’ve been for Vildor to be a reserve in his second season. Instead, he barely had to compete for a starting job and was left to his own, oft-limited resources.
When Vildor played well as a rookie it was in Chuck Pagano’s zone concepts. As a result, they held a 13-win Saints team to 14 points through three quarters. Vildor gave up four catches on four targets, but limited receivers to just 24 yards. He was also seven-for-seven on tackle attempts.
The 2021 coverage statistics for Vildor look horrendous — he allowed a passer rating of 136.1 — but the tape isn’t nearly as bad. He was often in position to make plays but failed at what some refer to as “the moment of truth”. (This is when the ball arrives, and the receiver and cornerback have to battle to get to it.)
It’s also worth mentioning that several of the touchdowns blamed on him appeared to be coverage breakdowns, including the Week 15 game in which he jammed Ihmir Smith-Marsette and went to cover the flat before realizing nobody followed the Vikings wide receiver into the end zone.
Vildor was benched midway through last season but came back and played well. He played 133 snaps combined the last four games and allowed a total of 57 yards, while fan favorite Thomas Graham Jr. played 112 snaps and allowed 67 yards. (It’s worth noting that much of the yardage Graham gave up was on a 41-yard touchdown pass because Dasai left him on an island with fricken D.K. Metcalf).
As bad as he was at times last year, the new staff seems to like Vildor. While we maybe shouldn’t read a lot into the decision to demote Jaylon Johnson to the second team in an OTA, it is worth noting that it was Vildor who replaced Johnson in the starting lineup. If Vildor can be disciplined in zone coverage, make plays when they’re available and continue as a sure tackler, he can have a future with this team.
As the Chicago Bears have already seen, the changing of regimes often means a lot of roster turnover, but there are several players carrying over that could potentially still be relevant with the organization. Ryan Poles and Matt Eberflus took over a roster with players designed for a hybrid, Andy Reid-style West Coast offense and a defense that played mostly Cover 1. But new schemes and new coaches can often help uncover diamonds in the rough.
Below is a list of a few lesser-discussed players who might benefit from the regime change.
Kamara was kind of a weird fit in the base 3-4 scheme the Bears played last year. They ended up sticking him at edge, but at 6’1”, 285 pounds, he could find a new home inside at three-technique. He showed some pass rush burst in preseason last year and actually played 108 defensive snaps. A move inside wouldn’t be a complete projection. Kamara rushed inside at times while in college at Stony Brook.
Mike Singletary is a strange human being. And this is an impeccably strange and awkward interview. But I enjoyed it in that way you enjoy awkward things, like weird hugs.
Admittedly, I knew very little of Nicholas Morrow’s time with the Raiders. But this film study video does a nice job breaking down his work in space. If he stays healthy, he’ll be a brilliant complement to Roquan Smith inside.
Players seem to be making the interview rounds these days, and this one is actually from about ten days ago. But I have found Blasingame to be one of the more engaging players on this roster and this interview is worth your time.
Everything is on the table for the 2022 Chicago Bears, including the possibility that Justin Fields will initially struggle to learn a new offense. That is not a comment specifically about Fields, but instead based on the historical trends of this offense around the league. The Bears have spoken extensively about playing to what Fields does best and last week Cole Kmet detailed what that might entail. But that doesn’t mean it’ll be easy, and history shows it’s unlikely to be quick.
While Matt Nagy’s offense was rightly criticized, saying the new offense fits Fields’ strengths better is mostly a projection. As Fields said himself, what the Bears did last year was familiar to him.
“I think the only different thing with our offense is that at Ohio St., we did signals from the sidelines so actually getting in the huddle and calling the play out is the only different thing,” Fields said in a press conference May 21, 2021. “Everything else is pretty much the same when it comes to concepts and stuff like that.”
It’s likely that Nagy had sound offensive concepts, and coming from the world of Andy Reid, that would be expected, but he couldn’t coach the execution. The scheme Nagy wanted to run works, he just wasn’t able to successfully teach it or call it in the framework of an actual ballgame.
This new scheme should better fit what Fields can do well at the NFL level. Getting him out of the pocket on more designed rollouts and emphasizing play action should, in theory, benefit Fields, but this scheme doesn’t always click right away. Luke Getsy comes from Green Bay, and even they, with one of best quarterbacks ever, had issues in the first year.
DraftKings Sportsbook has updated their odds for the coming season, and this is a good opportunity to see where they project the Chicago Bears and where value can be found.
____________________
Regular Season Wins: o/u 6.5
Why: The Bears won six games last season, with one of the worst coaches in the sport and one of the hardest schedules. Why can’t they win one more this season, with a new staff in place and a significantly easier schedule? There have been some wild predictions on social media (11 wins?!?!?!?) but an 8-9 victory season does not feel like a long shot.
____________________
Buffalo Bills First Loss: at Chicago (+25000)
Why: The Bills are going to win a lot of games, as they’re likely the best team in the league. What if they fly through their schedule and lose to a hungry Bears team with a fired-up crowd on Christmas Eve? This is a bet that allows you to root for a truly likable Bills team all season, until they come to Chicago. So why not bet $5 on it and hope for the $1,255 payday?
____________________
Divisional Finish: Second (+400)
Why: Assuming Aaron Rodgers stays healthy, the Packers are going to waltz to a division title, even if there are some serious questions about their offensive roster. But are we really convinced the Kevin O’Connell/Kirk Cousins partnership is going to work? (I’m not.) Are we really convinced the Lions are going to be better in 2022, even with Jared Goff still playing quarterback? (I’m not.) Nine wins was second in half the divisions in the NFL last season. The Vikings were second in the NFC North with eight. This bet has a higher probability than many think.
