The author recounts their experience in two all-time Chicago Bears fantasy drafts. In the first draft in 2018, despite securing the #1 pick, they opted for Brian Urlacher over Walter Payton due to a pre-set defensive strategy. In the second draft, they corrected this perceived mistake and selected Walter Payton with the #1 pick, acknowledging him as the GOAT. The article also briefly mentions other offensive players like Ed Brown, Dick Gordon, and Dennis McKinnon, and defensive players like Brian Urlacher
Each day in the month of June, we’ll roll out a fresh topic to get Chicago Bears fans thinking. Be sure to chime in with your answer in the comments so we can all get to know our WCG members a bit better. Maybe it’s not much of a surprise who I chose for this answer. After all, I do go by “Grim Cutty” on Twitter. That said, ask me this question again 10-15 years from now, I’m fairly confident that the answer to this question changes. I’ve never been more certain about a quarterback figuring things out and becoming the elite face of this franchise more than I have with Caleb Williams . But before that, lets take a step back and talk about my current all time favorite Chicago Bears quarterback: Jay Cutler. Drafted 11th overall in the 2006 draft by the Denver Broncos , Cutler was deemed a can’t miss quarterback prospect after he set essentially every record relating to quarterbacking at Vanderbilt. He impressed with his Brett Favre like arm strength and strength in general, as he set the then quarterback record for bench press reps at the combine, with 23. The Broncos saw enough in him to trade their 1st and 3rd round picks to move up to draft him. After a strong training camp and preseason, he was finally elevated to starting quarterback, taking his first start in week 13 of the 2006 season against the Seattle Seahawks . He threw his first 2 career touchdowns, including a late 71-yard touchdown to future Bears teammate Brandon Marshall to tie the game. Cutler would go on to make 37 starts for the Broncos, completing 62.5% of his passes while amassing 9,024 yards passing, 54 touchdowns, 37 interceptions and a 87.1 QB Rating. He would make the Probowl in the 2008 season, throwing for 4,526 yards, a franchise best. (Until Peyton Manning ) But his relationship soured with head coach Josh McDaniels after McDaniels attempted to trade Cutler in a three team trade to acquire Patriots quarterback Matt Cassel . Cutler in turn demanded a trade from the strained relationship, and the Chicago Bears jumped on the opportunity, sending quarterback Kyle Orton , two 1st round picks, and a 3rd round pick to Denver. In return Cutler became the face of the Chicago Bears franchise. Cutler immediately gave the Bears something the franchise had lacked for nearly 40 years, a bonafide franchise quarterback with elite arm talent. But it wasn’t all roses for Jay Cutler and the Bears. The 2009 season started rocky, with the Bears losing on the road against the Packers, 15-21. A game where Cutler threw 4 interceptions to just 1 touchdown. Interceptions would remain an issue for the gunslinger in 2009, where he recorded just 4 games without one, and threw multiple interceptions in 7 games, including 5 against the San Francisco 49ers in a 6-10 home loss. He did finish the year with 27 touchdown passes, the most since Erik Kramer’s 29 in 1995, but his 26 interceptions was the second most in franchise history, only to Sid Luckman’s 31 in 1947. But Cutler rebounded the following season, with a 23-16 TD-INT ratio, it would help the Bears win 11 games, and the NFC North. Cutler was brilliant in his playoff debut, throwing for 2 touchdowns and rushing for another two in a 35-24 win over the visiting Seattle Seahawks. But the run would end when Cutler tore his MCL in the NFC Championship against the hated Green Bay Packers. And unfortunately for the Bears and Jay Cutler, this would be the only time they would make the playoffs with Cutler under center. A myriad of issues seemed to follow Cutler every season. If it wasn’t his own performance, it was the lack of weapons around him. If it wasn’t the lack of weapons it was the shoddy offensive line in front of him. If it wasn’t the shoddy offensive line in front of him, it was a coaching staff that was rare put in place to help him success. If it wasn’t a coaching staff that was rare put in place to help him success, it was injury. But Cutler endured it all, rarely speaking negatively about his surround
[... truncated ...]
While some teams are trading for future HOF defensive ends, most of us are existing in the doldrums of the offseason. Join us in our quest to provide the best Bears centered topics around. Our next topic? Mine is easy – my former college teammate Brandon Marshall who set the franchise record for most receiving yards (1,508) and receptions (118) in single season. If you have been around here long enough, you more than likely have seen me talk about how Brandon started at safety in college the year I was on the team and led the team in tackles. He was a freight train standing 6’5” and weighing 230lb playing safety and I was a walk-on, scout team RB. I could tell stories of taking a hit from Brandon in the B gap that I felt for days or somehow catching a wheel route with him in coverage despite not being able to see the ball until the last nano-second, but this article is about his WR play. After starting his career in Denver with Jay Cutler , B-Marsh reunited with Cutty in Chicago in 2012 and immediately broke records. Brandon played the position like a LB and it showed in his run after catch and blocking ability. Here he is laying out former All-Pro Sean Lee with a clean block. And here he is seen high-pointing the football, stiff arming defenders and plucking the ball in tight-coverage. Though he was not drafted by Chicago and he was only a Bear for three seasons, Brandon Marshall averaged 93 catches for 1,175 yards and 10 TDs a season as a Bear. Only Alshon Jeffery, Darnell Mooney and DJ Moore have come close to those numbers since, and most of them only one time. While Tom Waddle, Curtis Conway, Rome Odunze and now Luther Burden III all drew considerations here, Brandon was a helluva Bear and embraced the city and rivalry with the best of them. His off-the-field issues have been scrutinized for years but as a pure WR to ever don orange and blue, none brought me more joy and excitement to watch than B-Marsh. Brandon, if you read this, hit me up so we can get you on our podcast!
How are the Patriots going to use A.J. Brown? ‘X' marks the spot originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston FOXBORO — The Patriots know they picked up a rare, game-changing weapon in the form of A.J. Brown this week. How rare? Even offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who has coached a number of “No. 1” receivers in his career, had a hard time comparing him to anyone he’s worked with in the past. “This is a big man,” McDaniels said just ahead of Brown’s first OTA practice with his new team. “Randy [Moss] was tall, certainly, and fast and all the rest of it. I think they’re all a little different. I say ‘they,’ meaning I’ve been fortunate to have the chance to be around some really good ones. “Not sure I’ve been around one just like [ Brown ]. Maybe the closest thing I’ve seen is [ Rob Gronkowski ]. This is a big guy. Does a lot of things well. Looking forward to seeing how we can acclimate him and fit him into our system.” Brown’s physical stature doesn’t exactly align with that of Gronkowski, a behemoth tight end who measured at 6-foot-6, 265 pounds. But the strength with which Brown plays his position, not to mention his ability to violently attack the football when it’s in his area, are reminiscent of some of the most powerful pass catchers in recent NFL history. Brown is listed at 6-foot-1, 226 pounds and played even bigger than that when he was at his most dominant in Philadelphia . And his game is different from those of bigger-bodied wideouts like Davante Adams and Brandon Marshall , with whom McDaniels has worked in the past. Brown racked up four straight 1,000-yard seasons with the Eagles as a man-to-man beater who often played the role of the “X.” That placed him on the line of scrimmage, on the weak side of the formation, allowing him to work out on an island against corners who often couldn’t physically measure up. “Big and physical,” McDaniels said when describing Brown’s skill set. “Aggressive. Explosive. He has really good hands. He’s just a competitive guy, and there’s a force to the way he plays the game. Looking forward to getting used to the things he can do that I don’t know about. I’m sure there’s many of those. “I’ve had an opportunity to have a few different receivers come into our system at times, and you’ve heard about them, you’ve seen them, you’ve watched them play on tape, but then to actually get them on the grass and watch them do different things, it just brings the picture to life.” Where will Brown be aligned, and how will he be used as a featured member of the Patriots offense as the picture starts to come to life in Foxboro? Mike Vrabel provided a hint Tuesday as to how it will go in the early stages of Brown’s onboarding process. “I think all the guys right now are going to learn a lot of the different positions,” Vrabel said. “I think the ones that have been here — that’s how [receivers coach] Todd [Downing]’s tried to install the offense, is to know what each player has on each concept and learn it that way. I would imagine that A.J. would do the same, and give guys the ability to line inside, Kyle [Williams], or align outside and use Romeo [Doubs] inside. “Right now, [Brown] is going to have to learn one position, and I would imagine that’s going to be outside. But as that grows, I know that will be across the board. I think that’s hopefully something that he’s looking forward to do. But you have to learn one before you can learn them all.” Brown played on the outside in the few snaps he was given for the Patriots during competitive 11-on-11 periods in Tuesday’s practice. He caught his first target from quarterback Drake Maye on a hitch while working in 1-on-1 coverage along the sideline. Simple pitch and catch. Those are the easy yards that could be available to the Patriots with Brown working outside the numbers against defensive backs willing to give him ground. But there should be explosive gains to be had with Brown working outside as well. On deep passes last season i
[... truncated ...]
Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has likely been thinking about ways to deploy wide receiver A.J. Brown for some time, but he had to wait to discuss the wideout until Monday’s trade officially brought Brown to New England. It’s no surprise to learn that McDaniels is excited about what Brown brings to the table. Brown has crossed the 1,000-yard mark in six of his seven NFL seasons and McDaniels said that the receiver’s power on the field reminds him of one of the most prolific players in franchise history. “There’s a force to the way he plays the game . . . Maybe the closest thing I’ve seen is Gronk. This is a big guy,” McDaniels said, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. Brown is likely looking forward to playing for McDaniels as well. ESPN pointed out that wideouts have a history of great success in their first seasons playing for the coordinator. That includes Wes Welker and Randy Moss in New England in 2007, Brandon Marshall in Denver in 2009, and Davante Adams in Las Vegas in 2022. Unmentioned was Stefon Diggs with the Patriots last year and the Patriots might be aiming for more than Diggs’ 85 catches for 1,013 yards once they turn Brown loose this fall
You're caught up — end of feed.
Data comes from cached Sleeper and KTC snapshots. Values update when the sync jobs run.
