Jay Roosevelt

I think we have to give Ickey another year at LT under the new regime. Go out and sign a capable veteran backup (we need depth regardless so we need to be doing this anyway) as insurance in case Ickey struggles again but I don't think it's time to give up on him at LT yet. Sign the best FA guard we can get (Dotson would be ideal) and draft a young center in the 2nd or 3rd round (depending on how many picks we end up with after trades) to serve as immediate competition for Bozeman + interior depth and a long-term replacement. Have Brady Christensen serve as the 6th man of the OL; he can play either guard and either tackle spot in the event of injury. LT: Ickey Ekwonu, Veteran Backup/Insurance LG: Kevin Dotson (or best FA we can get), Brady Christensen OC: Bradley Bozeman, Rookie Future Starter RG: Austin Corbett, Brady Christensen RT: Taylor Moton, Brady Christensen

I think that makes sense for us but I really don't see the Bengals paying Burns what he's asking for so I don't know that they'd go for it.

In today's NFL if a GM and/or coach can't at least show significant progress in 3 years I feel like any owner is justified in firing them. There just isn't any reason it should take longer than that in the modern NFL where teams can improve so quickly if they make the right moves. If we aren't at least knocking on the door of the playoffs at the end of year 3 of this regime then that's a sign it's probably not going to work out. Realistically if you look at teams that have hired new coaches/GMs that have worked out long-term most - if not all of them - showed pretty significant and immediate improvement. McVay with the Rams, McDaniel with the Dolphins, Ryans with the Texans, etc. Even Dan Campbell in Detroit, who had a bad first year and first half his year 2, it was pretty clear by the end of his second season that they were heading in the right direction.

"Things that start the same but end up different."

An actual modern NFL offense?

I think there really is something to the idea of a fast-processing QB, but they were foolish if they thought he could just step right into the NFL and have success without improving his mechanics and footwork. I thought that was the whole reason we hired a supposed "QB guru" with 200 years of experience like Frank Reich, but it doesn't appear that they even really bothered to improve these things.

Evero for Carroll?

If that's the case it's absolutely something you'd expect your veteran experienced head coach and former NFL QB to understand and address. You can't coach physical attributes, but you can and should be coaching footwork and mechanics whether your QB is built like a Greek god or not.

I'm sure Canales - as a former QB coach - will have a plan for what Bryce needs to be working on. And even his biggest detractors can't accuse Bryce of being lazy so I'm sure he'll attack it head-on. That alone should lead to some significant improvement. The footwork thing has always baffled me. How can we have two supposed QB "gurus" on staff and they didn't even bother to address Bryce's footwork?

At some point you do have to start wondering about Ben Johnson. I get waiting for the right job but after a certain point it starts to feel like he's lacking in confidence or something.

I don't have any issue with Jim Caldwell staying on as an advisor. Unlike with Frank Reich it actually makes sense with a young, first-time HC in Canales to have someone like Caldwell in that role.

Jesus Christ.

Why did 95-year old Frank Reich need a mentor on staff?

Not for less than a 1st rounder. I know he's been injured a lot but he's shown to be a top corner when healthy. I'd hate to see him pull a CMC, get traded and suddenly be healthy every game. Now, a contract extension is a different story. He'll have to prove he can stay healthy for that. But to give him away for some mid-round pick? Nah.

I mean obviously we have to tag him regardless. Even if we only get lowball offers and end up having to take one we can't let him go and get nothing at all in return. I think rather than looking for premium draft pick compensation for Burns a more realistic scenario might be trading him for a player + a mid-round pick to a team that needs help at pass rusher. Burns to Seattle for D.K. Metcalf + a 3rd or something of that sort.

That was never going to happen. You can't possibly pay Mahomes what he's making and pay Tyreek Hill what he wanted and got from the Dolphins. They did about the best they could with that whole situation.

Boy, McCaffrey would have been DEADLY in this offense. That said, I see us signing/drafting a pass catching RB this year.

We really don't, though. Bryce is his own insurance. What I mean by that is if he continues to struggle next year it will likely ensure we're in position to take another QB high in 2025. Why mess that up by investing more draft capital (or cap space) in another QB who is unlikely to be "the guy" even if Bryce doesn't pan out?

Was he, though?

Overrated.

"Fixed" is a relative term, but I think it's possible to an extent. In Bryce's case, however, I don't think it's a matter of "fixing" him as much as it's unlocking his potential. I don't think any QB can be viewed as needing fixing after their rookie year, especially when you consider how many of our issues on offense were independent of Bryce's own struggles. Baker Mayfield? Geno Smith? They needed fixing. Tua needed fixing. Jared Goff to an extent as well. Bryce is still a largely blank slate for Canales to work with and mold. And that's exactly how I would approach it, too. Coach Bryce like a rookie. Forget all the Frank Reich, Josh McCown, Thomas Brown square pegs and round holes; just mold the offense to his strengths and do your best to improve the situation around him. I imagine it'll be a Wizard of Oz moment for Bryce; like going from black and white to full color, just not having so many different voices in his ear preaching different philosophies. Will it be enough? Maybe. Maybe not. But I at least feel like Bryce has a chance under Canales. That's more than I could say with the previous regime.

Been saying this all week. The more I looked into Canales the more I wanted him as our HC.

And we probably have the best defensive coach in the division still.