Chicago Bears vs. San Francisco 49ers Rebuilding Plan

They got a nice break with Mack becoming available because without him I bet they'd still be a 4 to 6 win team.

Personally I wish we had the balls to do that but hey we'll be getting a top 5 pick to try and close that gap. Long term with Jimmy I'd take that over Mitchell so I'm guessing we'll catch up to them.

Originally posted by 49erBigMac:

Does it factor in them giving up two draft picks to trade up one spot when they didn't need to?

Also that the Raiders are dumb and assumed their draft picks would be better if they traded Mack to them?

I agree it'll be interesting to track, however they also had a good D staff in as incumbent, and didn't have to pick the rest of their staff after Superbowl week, some 5 weeks after others

Over time we'll have to see if those two firsts hurt them (they do get the Raiders 2nd back in 2020). Those may not be as painful if they hadn't added young core players.

Did moving up for Trubisky hurt them? I'd say it hurt us far more to move up for Foster, BeatHard and Pettis since Lynch is relying so heavily on building through the draft and he gave draft assets away.

I think the Bears were just the most aggressive in going after Robinson and Mack and as a result, got them. They added 10 FA starters over 2 years.

We were willing to be less aggressive in FA and rely more on draft and development. That strategy can work too but it takes longer and more pressure is put on coaching and development.

So far though, they've drafted and developed much better WHILE being aggressive in 2017 & 2018 FA (once they got their FQB --- aggressive in that move as well).

I think you bring up a critical point about coaching. We could have had Fangio this past off season or a host of other veteran DC's but again, because this FO is opting for the long game, stayed with Saleh and will likely stay with him again.

Originally posted by tjd808185:

They got a nice break with Mack becoming available because without him I bet they'd still be a 4 to 6 win team.

Personally I wish we had the balls to do that but hey we'll be getting a top 5 pick to try and close that gap. Long term with Jimmy I'd take that over Mitchell so I'm guessing we'll catch up to them.

Mack is their Aldon but did you review the rest of their D and talent and performance? It was a top 5 D before they acquired Mack.

Agree...it's a bit unfair because JG lost a whole year while Trubisky got to develop a whole year under Nagy and his great offensive system. Normally a player like JG over a 2nd year QB would mask a lot more holes and make up the difference more.

And yes, absolutely, they got a head start with a more aggressive approach but it doesn't mean we can't close the gap and catch up to them and overtake them. They turned it totally around in just 2 off seasons. We can do the same with a more aggressive approach in 2019. But I caution fans NOT to expect that as they may continue to stick to their slower long game approach.

Originally posted by NCommand:

Mack is their Aldon but did you review the rest of their D and talent and performance? It was a top 5 D before they acquired Mack.

Agree...it's a bit unfair because JG lost a whole year while Trubisky got to develop a whole year under Nagy and his great offensive system. Normally a player like JG over a 2nd year QB would mask a lot more holes and make up the difference more.

And yes, absolutely, they got a head start with a more aggressive approach but it doesn't mean we can't close the gap and catch up to them and overtake them. They turned it totally around in just 2 off seasons. We can do the same with a more aggressive approach in 2019. But I caution fans NOT to expect that as they may continue to stick to their slower long game approach.

They actually finished 10th last year but close enough. Same yards, same points given up. The big difference for them this year is turnovers. They went from middle of the pack to 2nd in takeaways. We're like dead last with our devastating pass rush of 4 defensive tackles.

It does need to be noted that Fangio is in year 4 of his defensive rebuild not year 2. He was a Fox hire. You could make the argument that much like Aldon Mack became their final piece.

Originally posted by tjd808185:

They actually finished 10th last year but close enough. Same yards, same points given up. The big difference for them this year is turnovers. They went from middle of the pack to 2nd in takeaways. We're like dead last with our devastating pass rush of 4 defensive tackles.

It does need to be noted that Fangio is in year 4 of his defensive rebuild not year 2. He was a Fox hire. You could make the argument that much like Aldon Mack became their final piece.

My apologies, they did finish 9th in points. I like your point about Fangio's scheme...it's more complex but once players get it down, it can be terrific esp. when adding that Aldon/Mack. That said, 6 of their starters were acquired in 2017 or 2018 so they haven't been too much more exposed then our players to Saleh's scheme here. They added 4 starters from 2016.

SF added to the OP.

Originally posted by Fanaticofnfl:
The key here is Khalil Mack and Allen Robinson.

They acquired both of them. We did not.

I bet our records are reversed if we had acquired them instead (well the Bears are still probably better than 2-8 since Trubisky likely doesn't get hurt).

Oh well.

Those are keys for them. For us, the key is Jimmy G. Give us health and I don't think it's unrealistic to say we could be 6-3. Packers, Giants, and both Cardinals games were either right there for the taking or were given away. If we make the right moves with this draft and free agency period, we should come out far and away as the better team. But the Bears will definitely be a team to look out for down the road.

I do like this comparison however.

Originally posted by LifelongNiner:

Those are keys for them. For us, the key is Jimmy G. Give us health and I don't think it's unrealistic to say we could be 6-3. Packers, Giants, and both Cardinals games were either right there for the taking or were given away. If we make the right moves with this draft and free agency period, we should come out far and away as the better team. But the Bears will definitely be a team to look out for down the road.

I do like this comparison however.

Yeah, adding our snapshot in time helps but I'll redo it next season (maybe mid season) to see how we're faring on a more equal playing field.

Originally posted by tjd808185:

Originally posted by NCommand:
Mack is their Aldon but did you review the rest of their D and talent and performance? It was a top 5 D before they acquired Mack.

Agree...it's a bit unfair because JG lost a whole year while Trubisky got to develop a whole year under Nagy and his great offensive system. Normally a player like JG over a 2nd year QB would mask a lot more holes and make up the difference more.

And yes, absolutely, they got a head start with a more aggressive approach but it doesn't mean we can't close the gap and catch up to them and overtake them. They turned it totally around in just 2 off seasons. We can do the same with a more aggressive approach in 2019. But I caution fans NOT to expect that as they may continue to stick to their slower long game approach.

They actually finished 10th last year but close enough. Same yards, same points given up. The big difference for them this year is turnovers. They went from middle of the pack to 2nd in takeaways. We're like dead last with our devastating pass rush of 4 defensive tackles.

It does need to be noted that Fangio is in year 4 of his defensive rebuild not year 2. He was a Fox hire. You could make the argument that much like Aldon Mack became their final piece.

I have the feeling that if Fangio were in year 1 and Saleh were in year 4, Fangio's D would still be further along.

Originally posted by LifelongNiner:

I have the feeling that if Fangio were in year 1 and Saleh were in year 4, Fangio's D would still be further along.

Uhhhhh...yeah. No doubt.

Originally posted by LifelongNiner:

I have the feeling that if Fangio were in year 1 and Saleh were in year 4, Fangio's D would still be further along.

He gradually got better every year in Chicago. No miracles.

Let's see them beat a team with a winning record before talking about they have turned it around. They could win 10 game and never beat a team above .500

As I have said before I don't like the strategy of going all in. I much prefer the Vikes way of building things. They are the team to model after. Much more sustainable.

Originally posted by 9ers4eva:

Let's see them beat a team with a winning record before talking about they have turned it around. They could win 10 game and never beat a team above .500

As I have said before I don't like the strategy of going all in. I much prefer the Vikes way of building things. They are the team to model after. Much more sustainable.

You're welcome to outline the Vikings strategy. That would be a fun one to add as well. They just added the huge FQB to their plan.

Originally posted by tjd808185:

They got a nice break with Mack becoming available because without him I bet they'd still be a 4 to 6 win team.

Personally I wish we had the balls to do that but hey we'll be getting a top 5 pick to try and close that gap. Long term with Jimmy I'd take that over Mitchell so I'm guessing we'll catch up to them.

Long term you'll take the older qb who has 2 signifficant injuries in about 10 starts? Homers gonna homer

Originally posted by Fanaticofnfl:

The key here is Khalil Mack and Allen Robinson.

They acquired both of them. We did not.

I bet our records are reversed if we had acquired them instead (well the Bears are still probably better than 2-8 since Trubisky likely doesn't get hurt).

Oh well.

Mack maybe but I'd still rather keep out 1st round picks.

Robinson is average. He is averaging 57 YPC which translates to 955 yards over 16. That is not worth 10 mil a year.