Speaker 1: Thanks Branding morning, guys. Just a couple of things to
Speaker 1: start off from Matt and I just right off the bat,
Speaker 1: but we know this is a difficult time for everyone
Speaker 1: and obviously just goes away beyond football, and we're thinking
Speaker 1: of everyone right now and they're safety, I think for
Speaker 1: the healthcare workers on the front line during this time period.
Speaker 1: You know, our thoughts are with those guys and just
Speaker 1: a complete admiration and respect for everything that they're doing.
Speaker 1: You know, as much of an unprecedented time period is
Speaker 1: that this is we were able to dig in on
Speaker 1: free agency make the Bears a better football team. Right now,
Speaker 1: we're taking this one day at a time, and that's
Speaker 1: our focuses on the draft, you know. I know we'll
Speaker 1: catch up with all you guys right before the draft,
Speaker 1: but I can tell you guys right now, we're ready
Speaker 1: for everything that's drafting from Hollis Hall. That's a remote location,
Speaker 1: it's from our homes. Whatever they tell us to do,
Speaker 1: we'll be ready. We're just gonna follow the experts in
Speaker 1: that area. You know. In relation to free agency, we
Speaker 1: sign a number of guys, you know, understand the focuses
Speaker 1: on the quarterbacks. Addition, it's been a focus for us.
Speaker 1: With the addition to Nick Foles is exactly what we
Speaker 1: talked about from the starter. We've increased competition at a
Speaker 1: critical position, and we talked to both players and the
Speaker 1: way we view this is it's an open competition and
Speaker 1: credits to both those guys for embracing it. We've also
Speaker 1: talked about this a lot, but it's the factor that
Speaker 1: I Sentuly lean on is the collaboration between our coaches
Speaker 1: and our scouts, the collaboration between Matt and I. I
Speaker 1: think that's a strength for us right now more than
Speaker 1: ever you. I'm also very proud of the entire organization,
Speaker 1: McCaskey family, Ted Phillips, how everyone in our building has
Speaker 1: pulled together. Right now is the Bear's family. The best
Speaker 1: thing you can do is adapt and adjust to the situation.
Speaker 1: We've done that very quickly as an organization, and I'm
Speaker 1: extremely proud to be part of that. So with that,
Speaker 1: I'll turn it over to Matt stick a couple of things,
Speaker 1: all right, everybody, I hope everybody's doing well. Again, Ryan said,
Speaker 1: I want to reiterate, um, you know, these are very
Speaker 1: uncommon times, and I know that we're here to talk
Speaker 1: about football. But again just echoing what he said. You
Speaker 1: know me personally, I don't want to take anything away
Speaker 1: from from the brave here is that we have out
Speaker 1: there on the front lines, and they're sacrifices that they're
Speaker 1: doing every you know, every day selflessly saving families from
Speaker 1: from this COVID nineteen. So to all of those, thank
Speaker 1: you so much. And also the brave employees UM that
Speaker 1: continue to keep our economy and great country running, Thank
Speaker 1: you to them. And and then the other one too
Speaker 1: that I think sometimes gets remissed, it to all the
Speaker 1: local and national doctors and media UM for for keeping
Speaker 1: us educated on how to you know, how to go
Speaker 1: day by day on a daily basis. UM. I know
Speaker 1: for me, without the uh the news stations and outlets
Speaker 1: and everything, just trying to see how to do things, UM,
Speaker 1: it would be tough. So we appreciate that. And so
Speaker 1: I think it's our job now is what's real is
Speaker 1: to into the experts and fallow through with the recommendations.
Speaker 1: And as I said the other day, it's it's important
Speaker 1: to stay home and you and you practice social distancing.
Speaker 1: So also, like Ryan said, through this all I think
Speaker 1: the communication collaboration in these truck in these times have
Speaker 1: been awesome with mccaffe family and with with Ted Phillips
Speaker 1: and everybody else that's been a part of their Ryan's
Speaker 1: been great. Um. In regards to the football, UM, you know,
Speaker 1: much smaller scale. It is oncommon constru us here too.
Speaker 1: We appreciate the hard work with our I T and
Speaker 1: video department. They're they're studs. They've been they've been amazing. UM.
Speaker 1: Coaching staff person now, everyone's been really working hard together.
Speaker 1: It's been different but unique, and it's it's been fun
Speaker 1: finding out solutions and new ways of technology how to
Speaker 1: do things, whether it's through the draft or with the
Speaker 1: coaching staff meetings where obviously pumped up and excited about
Speaker 1: our resignings and our new additions to the team, which
Speaker 1: we can talk about. And then, uh, the big one
Speaker 1: that that we're well aware of the Ryan just talked
Speaker 1: about is is uh, you know, this open competitive, open
Speaker 1: TV competition between Mitch and Nick and I think a
Speaker 1: couple of things as we look through this, and I
Speaker 1: know you all have questions, but um, you know, number one,
Speaker 1: what we're trying to do is what's best for the
Speaker 1: Chicago Bears playing is simple. That that's that's what it
Speaker 1: comes down to, and Ryan and I have had great
Speaker 1: fuss with both of them. What's important and what y'all
Speaker 1: are going to find out in this process is going
Speaker 1: to be real simple. It's going to be very transparent
Speaker 1: and very honest. And so what I thought was really
Speaker 1: neat when we talked to mitchich which was which is
Speaker 1: speaks to who he is is you could feel how
Speaker 1: much of a competitor and you know it and you
Speaker 1: see it. He's a competitor. Now he's embracing it and
Speaker 1: excited to get back back to work. Um you know.
Speaker 1: With that said, part of the conversation that that you
Speaker 1: know we discussed too was understanding here the big picture is,
Speaker 1: I know that Mitch, Mitch gets a lot of this,
Speaker 1: but you know, we have been a lot better coaching,
Speaker 1: uh schematically and I could have been a better head coach.
Speaker 1: And then we can we all as we all know,
Speaker 1: you know, we can always be better players around him
Speaker 1: as well. So that's the focus there. But but Mitch is,
Speaker 1: Mitch is really embracing it. He's had an unbelievable um
Speaker 1: uh personality throughout it. He understands it. All he wants
Speaker 1: to do is be the best quarterback he can be
Speaker 1: for the Chicago Parson and that's what he's going to
Speaker 1: do as we move on here. Nick the same thing.
Speaker 1: You know, I have a history with Nick. I know
Speaker 1: who he is as a person. Um, he's been great
Speaker 1: as well. Uh, he's a special person. And Ryan and
Speaker 1: I looked into that knowing that, uh when when when
Speaker 1: this went down? And and I think that that's very
Speaker 1: important that we don't lose sight of that as we
Speaker 1: go through this this competition. He's been in this position
Speaker 1: before and you've handled it great. You know, I personally
Speaker 1: went through it with him in Kansas City a little different,
Speaker 1: but but I know obviously who he is. Um, it's
Speaker 1: going to be a process evaluated over time. And like
Speaker 1: Ryan said, it's a collaboration of Ryan, some of some
Speaker 1: of the guys on his staff, myself and then along
Speaker 1: with Bill Laser, taber Gun, John d Filippo, uh and
Speaker 1: those guys all have extensive background with quarterbacks and we're
Speaker 1: looking forward to that. Um, you know, we're not there yet.
Speaker 1: You guys will have questions, but well, we'll have a
Speaker 1: great plan on how to evaluate it and then you know,
Speaker 1: ultimately what it really comes down to is winning scoring points. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, physical and mental toughness. Uh, and then obviously
Speaker 1: command and leadership with some other things. So with that
Speaker 1: we'll leave the questions. Okay, as coach said, yeah, we'll
Speaker 1: get to questions now. Again, if your line is is muted,
Speaker 1: you'll have to unmute it when when you ask your question.
Speaker 1: If you're on the phone, you'll need to hit star
Speaker 1: six to unmute your line. Take your take your time.
Speaker 1: We have a lot of questions. We'll get to you all.
Speaker 1: I appreciate it, Thank you. We'll have questions. Hey, guys,
Speaker 1: big guys, rib thanks for doing this, Matt. How we
Speaker 1: go about we just starting quarterback kids for the regular season?
Speaker 1: And what are the challenges noting any idea the next
Speaker 1: time you'll actually be on a football field with you guys? Hey, Dan,
Speaker 1: hope you're doing good. So you cut out on the
Speaker 1: first part something. Can you just say one more time?
Speaker 1: It was chopping in and out. Yeah, I just said,
Speaker 1: how how will you go about deciding where your starting
Speaker 1: quarterback is going to be for the regular season? And
Speaker 1: then obviously the challenges of evaluating the competition not knowing
Speaker 1: when you'll be on the field. Yeah, absolutely, so so
Speaker 1: a couple of things. Number One, we have no idea
Speaker 1: moving forward here as to you know, when when things
Speaker 1: go move forward and what we'll be able to do
Speaker 1: in regards to ops or training camp, So that's up
Speaker 1: in the air. UM. Once we do know that and
Speaker 1: we'll have a plan in place. We're not even there yet.
Speaker 1: I mean we're we're you know, UM, I know that
Speaker 1: with the guys that we have on our staff. Uh,
Speaker 1: it's something that you know, we'll figure out, you know,
Speaker 1: rep wise, equality wise, how that goes. It's just hard
Speaker 1: right now, just because we have no idea, um, you
Speaker 1: know what it's going to be. The only thing we
Speaker 1: can do is try to um simulate what we think
Speaker 1: could happen. And if it's you know, but if it's uh,
Speaker 1: you know, choice a choice be or choice C as
Speaker 1: regards to things that could happen, we'll have a plan
Speaker 1: for all those and then we'll put it in action.
Speaker 1: But uh, you know, again we don't. We'll see where
Speaker 1: it goes with preseason games. But that'll be something as
Speaker 1: well that'll be important to note. You know, last year
Speaker 1: we didn't um, you know, we didn't play a lot
Speaker 1: of our guys, and that'll be obviously different this year.
Speaker 1: We're looking forward to them. Hey man, this is Kyllen Kane. Um,
Speaker 1: what qualities do you see in Nick that make him
Speaker 1: a good fit for this team? And this slide? Yeah,
Speaker 1: hi kl And so you know a few things with Nick,
Speaker 1: you know he uh, I think that the biggest thing
Speaker 1: with him as a quarterback, forget the person's side. As
Speaker 1: a quarterback. You know, he does have some experience in
Speaker 1: this offense. Now, he's been through some different options as well.
Speaker 1: Something you know, Um, some people think that, uh, you know,
Speaker 1: these these offenses that he's just come from aren't exactly
Speaker 1: the same, and that couldn't be further from the truth.
Speaker 1: So there there's a learning for there a little bit.
Speaker 1: For the most part, it's a lot easier for him
Speaker 1: when he comes into it. So knowledge of the offense
Speaker 1: definitely helps. Um. You know, this is a kid that
Speaker 1: uh has has been through a lot of different situations.
Speaker 1: He's been a Super Bowl MVP, He's been in pressure moments,
Speaker 1: and he uh, you know, he understands a lot of
Speaker 1: the things that that we're looking for. At the same time,
Speaker 1: I'm excited because I know that he's gonna you know,
Speaker 1: the person side of him. He really helped. He'll he'll
Speaker 1: be really helpful and supportive and competing with Mitch. Hey, guys,
Speaker 1: it's Jeff Dickerson. Um, hey Ryan, Uh, you know, you
Speaker 1: guys were linked. I think every quarterback available when free
Speaker 1: as he first opened up. Uh, when did Nick becomes
Speaker 1: the argut for you guys? How did he When did
Speaker 1: he emerges as the player you were really trying to
Speaker 1: go get And how open were you leaving your options
Speaker 1: in the event that that wasn't able to get done. Yeah, Hey, Jeff,
Speaker 1: I think you know, we knew there were going to
Speaker 1: be a lot of options at quarterback in this free
Speaker 1: agency period. We knew we'd have an opportunity to increase
Speaker 1: the competition. There were those options that existed, so we
Speaker 1: kind of went through through each one of those and
Speaker 1: talked about each one. I think when we got to Nick,
Speaker 1: it was really, you know, a collective effort. I think,
Speaker 1: you know, the grades kind of independently came in first,
Speaker 1: and they all came in very strong. Just a talented player.
Speaker 1: I think Match just said it. You know the fact
Speaker 1: that he's played in some big games, performing well in
Speaker 1: those big games. That carries a lot of weight then
Speaker 1: you throw that in. You know, we have a lot
Speaker 1: of people in our building that are comfortable with him
Speaker 1: as a person and the makeup, which just made the
Speaker 1: decision easier. So I think, you know, that was all
Speaker 1: kind of that all kind of came together to make
Speaker 1: him a target for us and someone we wanted to
Speaker 1: aggressively go get. Hey, guys, it's Adam hog here. Um, Matt. Obviously,
Speaker 1: Nick has a lot of connections with his coaching staff
Speaker 1: beyond you, Um, how much does that help you and
Speaker 1: how much did that impact him being a target for
Speaker 1: you guys, and considering the circumstances of this offseason, I
Speaker 1: imagine that has to be um, but an advantage in
Speaker 1: the fact that he kind of already knows the system.
Speaker 1: Hey Adam, Yeah, you know, I think as you go
Speaker 1: through this, that's something that's really easy for a lot
Speaker 1: of people to connect his offs with and UM and
Speaker 1: that that certainly helps that. I think more than anything,
Speaker 1: it's relationships and being able to understand how these coaches teach.
Speaker 1: So Nick Nick knows that's you know, talking to him,
Speaker 1: he understands how how Bill Laser teaches and how and
Speaker 1: you know, Nick was the second year uh pro when
Speaker 1: he was with Bill and since then then he hasn't
Speaker 1: been with him, you know. And then with John d. Philippo,
Speaker 1: he's been there with him in Philadelphia winning the Super Bowl,
Speaker 1: and then he's been in a different scenario with him
Speaker 1: as an offensive coordinator on a different uh, you know,
Speaker 1: in different scenario and in Jacksonville. So you build relationships
Speaker 1: through high times and load times and and so that's
Speaker 1: that's a part of it. But in the end, it's
Speaker 1: about the player and it's about what they can do them. Again,
Speaker 1: my relationship, I've had two different types of relationships with him,
Speaker 1: One as a rookie in Philadelphia me as a quality
Speaker 1: control coach, and then another as a quarterback coach when
Speaker 1: he's coming in as a as a as a backup quarterback.
Speaker 1: So there's a lot of unique different roles and relationships there.
Speaker 1: But in the end, it's about who Nick is as
Speaker 1: a player, um, obviously what he's been as a person,
Speaker 1: and just competition. It's gonna it's gonna be a you know,
Speaker 1: we really hope it's a win win for for for
Speaker 1: the Chicago Bears, and we know it's going to bring
Speaker 1: the best out of both of these guys. Just because
Speaker 1: of who they are as people and what their makeup is.
Speaker 1: So that's the exciting part. Hey, guys, Chris Timmer with
Speaker 1: a score this really appreciate it. Um, Ryan, have you
Speaker 1: reached the decision on Mitch sif your option? Hey Chris,
Speaker 1: how you doing? Yeah? As we go through that, you
Speaker 1: know that's something Uh, we're not going to comment on
Speaker 1: right now. You know, we'll discuss it when we get
Speaker 1: closer to that point. You know, we got until really
Speaker 1: until made to make that, to make that comment, and uh,
Speaker 1: we'll talk about it as we get closer to that date. Hey, guys,
Speaker 1: it's Jeff again. Um, how is this Matt? This is Patitionley.
Speaker 1: I'm curious when either of you guys did talk to Mitch.
Speaker 1: What was his reaction you met? You mentioned that you
Speaker 1: could tell he was competitive? How so I think I think,
Speaker 1: just real quick, you know, Mitch is it? This is
Speaker 1: the competitor? I think when you're built that way, you know,
Speaker 1: competition brings out the best in you. And I think
Speaker 1: you know, you know, Matt and I had that discussion
Speaker 1: with him, and and you could feel that didn't and
Speaker 1: right away just kind of that Okay, Hey, you know,
Speaker 1: let's go Um, you know what's best for the team,
Speaker 1: and this is going to bring out the best and
Speaker 1: all of us. And I think the keyword is just that,
Speaker 1: you know, he embraced you know, he embraced the competition. Uh.
Speaker 1: And I think they're both looking forward to it. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I think I think Patrie the same thing, you know.
Speaker 1: And and the the unique part about football is there's
Speaker 1: one quarterback, right, and so human nature has you when
Speaker 1: when you when you sit down and have a discussion
Speaker 1: like this, you know that there's there's there's one starter.
Speaker 1: And and so we're all competitors. These guys haven't made
Speaker 1: it to this point without being competitive guys, and they've
Speaker 1: been that way their their whole life. So, um, you know,
Speaker 1: I don't I don't care who you are. If you're
Speaker 1: a competitor and you care, you know right away you're
Speaker 1: gonna be fired up and you're gonna be ready to go.
Speaker 1: You're gonna embrace it. And there's a couple of ways
Speaker 1: to look at it and either do that or you
Speaker 1: shy away from it. And um, the competitor that Mitch
Speaker 1: is with the way that he was with us was
Speaker 1: really neat to see because he embraced it. And it wasn't.
Speaker 1: It wasn't about excuses, It wasn't about anything other than Okay,
Speaker 1: I understand that I'm going to give you everything that
Speaker 1: I got. We're going to compete, and you're going to
Speaker 1: get the best that I got. And I think that's
Speaker 1: what's pretty neat in this whole process. And so when
Speaker 1: we look at that as as coaches, that's all we
Speaker 1: can ask for is trying to make sure that we
Speaker 1: do everything we can possibly do on our end to
Speaker 1: make this completely fair. Let them go out play football
Speaker 1: and be the best quarterback that they can possibly be.
Speaker 1: If that's the case and that happens, we're going to
Speaker 1: be in a good place. Hi, guys, this is Hub
Speaker 1: and I know you've said clearly open competition, but I
Speaker 1: just want to make sure reported absolutely right, because when
Speaker 1: we lasted visit in a different world, you said you
Speaker 1: wanted competition, but that Mitch was still the starter. Is
Speaker 1: Mitch still number one on the depth chart? Is there
Speaker 1: no depth chart right now? Yeah? Yeah, so so, And
Speaker 1: that's a good question. When we walk out on the
Speaker 1: first day, whatever it is, whether it's OTAs or whether
Speaker 1: it's training camp, Mitch will be going first in the huddle.
Speaker 1: Uh and and and those guys know that that's not
Speaker 1: news to them, that's not something that they're here for
Speaker 1: the first time. The one thing that again you're gonna
Speaker 1: you guys will realize about Nick Foles is that he's
Speaker 1: very aware. He understands what's going on. He understands the situation.
Speaker 1: And that's gonna That's another part of this too, is
Speaker 1: that and so um, you know, Mitch is going to
Speaker 1: be out there, but at the same time, it's going
Speaker 1: to be equal and we as coaches need to make
Speaker 1: sure we do the right thing in regards to equal
Speaker 1: reps uh and make sure that they're going against they're
Speaker 1: playing with similar or the same players on offense and
Speaker 1: going against the same players on defense. So there'll be
Speaker 1: some juggling that we have to do. It might be
Speaker 1: a little different at times on how we do it,
Speaker 1: how we get to it, but I can promise you this,
Speaker 1: it's going to be completely fair. It's gonna be um,
Speaker 1: it's gonna be extremely competitive in a good way. It's
Speaker 1: going to be a healthy competitiveness and uh, you know,
Speaker 1: in the end for us, it's gonna be a collaboration
Speaker 1: of what we all feel and it's Uh. I think
Speaker 1: that that's all that those guys really ask for, and
Speaker 1: one as competitors. And then the other thing too that
Speaker 1: I just want to say is it's easy to say, um,
Speaker 1: wherever this takes us, whenever it is that we end
Speaker 1: up naming a starter. Uh, you know, this is a process,
Speaker 1: and so with that becomes responsibility as of winning and
Speaker 1: playing well. And so we want to make sure that
Speaker 1: that as we do this, those guys know that and
Speaker 1: they already know it, so that that's that's where we're
Speaker 1: out with that. Um, um, real quick, just with me,
Speaker 1: and I think when you stay open competition, Um, you know,
Speaker 1: this is an open competition. They've both been told that.
Speaker 1: I think it's the best way to do it. I
Speaker 1: think the good thing is just honesty and transparency with
Speaker 1: both players as we go through it. And you know,
Speaker 1: we want much best with the Chicago Bears. Is as
Speaker 1: simple as that, and that really applies to any position
Speaker 1: on our team. And for this situation, Hey, let these
Speaker 1: guys battle that, let the process naturally happen, and over
Speaker 1: time that decision will be made. Hey, Ryan, it's Dan
Speaker 1: Reader again, and then got a quick follow up from
Speaker 1: Matt after this but what are your current options for
Speaker 1: offsite draft weekend locations if indeed Howise Hall is off limits?
Speaker 1: You know swee d Hey, Dan, We we've talked about that.
Speaker 1: You know. Again, I think art ic guys in our
Speaker 1: video guys right now have been awesome through all this,
Speaker 1: So I think a Mike Santarelli just installed, Dave Henderson,
Speaker 1: Dan Twoey, Brad Goldsberry, h Simon Galan. They've been preparing
Speaker 1: us for all this. So we have a couple options
Speaker 1: right now, Dan, if if that's if that is a
Speaker 1: possibility for us, UM, you know, the first one would
Speaker 1: be Hollis would to the limited number of people and
Speaker 1: using the technology in our draft room. UM. The other
Speaker 1: one would be an off site location, which we're establishing
Speaker 1: several options now. The third one would be operating from
Speaker 1: our homes remotely, which obviously there's some there's some challenges
Speaker 1: with that, so we're kind of going through each one
Speaker 1: of them. We do have some off site locations, UM,
Speaker 1: but we haven't pinpointed one down just yet. And what
Speaker 1: are your contingency plans and the adjustments that you have
Speaker 1: to make for this offseason program given the likelihood that
Speaker 1: you won't have much if any traditional prints or meeting time. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you know what, Dan, it's it's a it's gonna be
Speaker 1: um certainly different for us. You gotta be tech savvy
Speaker 1: and that's why we rely on all those people that
Speaker 1: Ryan just mentioned. They've been amazing and communicated with us
Speaker 1: on how the two things. Uh, you know, I have
Speaker 1: my office here at my house and I'm able to
Speaker 1: have four different computers rolling, and we've been having fall
Speaker 1: with it as a coaching staff. Guys have been very
Speaker 1: proactive and trying to get good at it. But we
Speaker 1: gotta adapt. We got to figure out solutions. We can't complain.
Speaker 1: We gotta we gotta make sure that whatever that we
Speaker 1: do from the whether it's teaching purposes, Uh, it's going
Speaker 1: to be different. You're not going to be standing there
Speaker 1: in front of thirty to sixteen players or however many
Speaker 1: guys it is, uh speaking your your team message for
Speaker 1: the day is that you're going to have to rely
Speaker 1: on them possibly looking at it online, you know, with
Speaker 1: with online installations. So how do we do that by
Speaker 1: being as clear as we possibly can, but also too
Speaker 1: making it be forever to where they get forward to
Speaker 1: starting on a train for a long time, so it'll
Speaker 1: be different, but we you know, we gotta, we gotta
Speaker 1: adapt intire ab solutions on I'm looking forward to. Dan, Well,
Speaker 1: I think it's been good. Just you're forced to quickly
Speaker 1: adapt to this changing landscape. So we talked about our
Speaker 1: IIC and video departments. They've been us standing and the
Speaker 1: silver lining is that I think it's pushed us further
Speaker 1: from a technology standpoint, so you know, the virtual meetings,
Speaker 1: whether that's you know, skyper Zoom, and it's actually been
Speaker 1: highly efficient and in some ways, in some ways better,
Speaker 1: you know. I checked this morning. I think it's been
Speaker 1: about two weeks since we moved out of Hollis. They've
Speaker 1: been working from home and it's really been seamless with
Speaker 1: the ability to watch video, the ability to have meetings
Speaker 1: and communicate interview players. That part's been really good. I
Speaker 1: think it's a credit to our staff. Dan. I'm like,
Speaker 1: I don't even go to the hit the green button anymore.
Speaker 1: I just go to FaceTime. That's all crazy. This has
Speaker 1: been so I've just been FaceTime and morn the phone calls. Ryan,
Speaker 1: this is Hub again. Can you walk us through you're
Speaker 1: thinking on the Jimmy Graham signing and how you view
Speaker 1: your tight end roster right now. Hey, Hub, Yeah, but Jimmy,
Speaker 1: I think with Jimmy Graham, I think it's a good
Speaker 1: example where we're all connected on a vision for a
Speaker 1: player with our teams. So you know, it starts, Hub.
Speaker 1: You had the physical evaluation on the player, obviously a
Speaker 1: guy you know we know well, but then you had
Speaker 1: to fit within our offensive scheme and I just think
Speaker 1: there's a lot of discussions on how to best maximize
Speaker 1: Jimmy Graham in this offense. And uh, that's that's with
Speaker 1: Matt and all of our offensive coaches in our scouts,
Speaker 1: and we're all really excited about him being a Bear
Speaker 1: and how we're going to maximize him. So it was
Speaker 1: just a thorough process into how he fits. When you
Speaker 1: talk about the tight end room in general. Uh, you know, look,
Speaker 1: we know we have a lot of tight ends on
Speaker 1: the roster right now. It's something we're working through. We
Speaker 1: know we have some decisions to make across the board
Speaker 1: really at that position, um, but we aren't there yet,
Speaker 1: but we're definitely happy to a Jimmy to this offense
Speaker 1: and also Demetrius Harris to this offense. You know that
Speaker 1: was a while ago, but that's a good addition for
Speaker 1: us as well. Hey guys, it's Jeff again. Um, last
Speaker 1: time we spoke at the Combines, Ryan, you know, there
Speaker 1: were a lot of players that we're going to have
Speaker 1: offseason procedures. You know, Mitch had his, Trey Burton, Anthony Miller. Um,
Speaker 1: how are you able to keep tabs on those guys
Speaker 1: and their recoveries and will the fact that the facilities
Speaker 1: are are clothes, well, that's pushed back any of their
Speaker 1: returns in any way, Jeff, good question. We're still able
Speaker 1: to work with those guys from a rehab standpoint, that's
Speaker 1: the one exception. So those guys you know, you know
Speaker 1: Anthony Miller, Uh, you know Roquan Smith, you know Mitch,
Speaker 1: Trey Burton, those guys are still able to work from
Speaker 1: a rehab standpoint. So we've been able to keep close
Speaker 1: tabs on that. And again, we feel really good where
Speaker 1: those guys are heading and nothing has changed from an
Speaker 1: injury update standpoint. We expect all those guys to be
Speaker 1: ready to rule for training camp. Hey Ryan, Ryan, this
Speaker 1: is I'm curious when you guys knew or when it
Speaker 1: became apparent right before the started free agency that your
Speaker 1: off season might be truncated in some way. Did that
Speaker 1: influence which players you pursued or how you looked at
Speaker 1: those players in terms of familiarity with your playbook, your system,
Speaker 1: your coaches, et cetera. And that's a great question, and
Speaker 1: I know it probably feels like it it happened that way,
Speaker 1: But to be completely honest, that wasn't a complete focus.
Speaker 1: It was, Hey, let's just go acquire the best players
Speaker 1: that we feel fit us. You know. I think, you know,
Speaker 1: sometimes when when there's background with a player, it just
Speaker 1: helps because there's risk in every movie you make, and
Speaker 1: the more background and intimate knowledge you have of a
Speaker 1: guy and his makeup, you know, I think that helps
Speaker 1: a lot. But to answer your question, it just kind
Speaker 1: of came together that way. Uh, you know, from a
Speaker 1: positive standpoint, But that wasn't a focus. I think, you know,
Speaker 1: when these when these things go down, and you know,
Speaker 1: I know Matt talked about you know, it could be
Speaker 1: with a quarterback and it's Bill Laser and we're going
Speaker 1: and and flipped and and I think on the personnel,
Speaker 1: and you know, you got Josh Lucas and Champ Kelly
Speaker 1: and Jeff King, just to name a few. It's a
Speaker 1: it's a very collaborative effort um for that whole thing
Speaker 1: that came come together. But there wasn't a focus on, hey,
Speaker 1: let's go get these guys because they know the offense
Speaker 1: because it's going to be a short offseason. Was Hey,
Speaker 1: let's just go get the best players. Hey, hey guys,
Speaker 1: this is Stacy Dale's um coach. This is for you.
Speaker 1: What really is the depth of Nick's knowledge of this offense?
Speaker 1: And you know, for all intents and purposes, if the
Speaker 1: season started tomorrow, could he go out tomorrow and play
Speaker 1: right now because of his knowledge? Stay, Stacy, how are you? Yeah? Uh,
Speaker 1: Nick is at a point right now where he should
Speaker 1: get by and get through a game, because it would
Speaker 1: it would uh you know, he would understand the words
Speaker 1: and the concepts, but not fully to where you know
Speaker 1: he needs to be. So there's and again it's kind
Speaker 1: of like riding a bike. You're able to, you know,
Speaker 1: and you get back onto it. You hear some words,
Speaker 1: some plays that that you've heard in the past, and
Speaker 1: you remember all of a sudden, and it's different languages.
Speaker 1: You know that that he's been in the last couple
Speaker 1: of years, just some tweaks here or there, nothing major.
Speaker 1: So uh, but but right now he should go out
Speaker 1: and play, and I think, uh, you know he would
Speaker 1: he would do well just because we'd have to to
Speaker 1: keep it simple and let him just uh you know,
Speaker 1: do his thing by by by playing, um, you know
Speaker 1: and playing football like he normally does it. Here, UM,
Speaker 1: do you do you have to have a contingency plan
Speaker 1: in place in case you have a short training camp
Speaker 1: that this quarterback battle might extend into the season, or
Speaker 1: when you name a week one starter, you want that
Speaker 1: guy to be your guy for for the whole season
Speaker 1: and not really challenged. Well, we definitely need to have that.
Speaker 1: That would the contingency plan, you know, that would be
Speaker 1: one of our options. We have to make sure that
Speaker 1: we kind of go through, UM communicating now, so what
Speaker 1: some choices could be from now until the start of
Speaker 1: the season, and what that is, and then we have
Speaker 1: to figure out if it's expedited because it's shortened, UM,
Speaker 1: the best way to be able to decide that and
Speaker 1: evaluate that process. So we'll have that ready that that
Speaker 1: part won't be hard, UM. And then we just got
Speaker 1: to figure out as we do that, UM, what's what's
Speaker 1: what's the most fair way to do it so that
Speaker 1: we can understand it. It's the best decision for us.
Speaker 1: I think, like like a lot of things, um, it'll
Speaker 1: it'll all just kind of naturally happen. Uh. And and
Speaker 1: that's that is the challenge that we're at right now
Speaker 1: in this situation. Not knowing um be unknown is a challenge,
Speaker 1: but we'll be ready for it. And and then once
Speaker 1: we do that, like I said, once we do name
Speaker 1: a starter, you know, we're playing football and what we
Speaker 1: want to we want to win games. And I have
Speaker 1: no idea how it's going to go from there. That
Speaker 1: moon here just to clarify something earlier, can we assume
Speaker 1: and if there is a preseason that both Nick and
Speaker 1: will play in preseason, absolutely yeah, they're they're they're going
Speaker 1: to play in preseason. It'll be equal reps and it'll
Speaker 1: be a good competition for them. Um. And you know
Speaker 1: again that that kind of goes in tune with what
Speaker 1: we're doing really with with our with our whole team.
Speaker 1: It's going to be some of the things we discussed
Speaker 1: and talk about when we're able to do that with
Speaker 1: the team. But I think it's I think that part's
Speaker 1: important and they'll be a big part of that. Hey, Ryan,
Speaker 1: what what went into the decision to move on from
Speaker 1: Leonard Floyd and then signed Robert Quinn in that spot
Speaker 1: who's a little bit older. Hey, I think Adam, I
Speaker 1: think when you talked about, you know, free agency in general,
Speaker 1: first of all, we wanted into this free agency knowing
Speaker 1: it was going to be I guess pretty technical would
Speaker 1: be the word to say. I think, you know, with
Speaker 1: a quarterback trade and the outside linebacker edition Wayne, Leonard Floyd,
Speaker 1: sit your option, the decision on Trivasion and Quikowski, you know,
Speaker 1: I think we knew it was gonna be a technical, uh,
Speaker 1: free agency. That's why I think the collaboration with the
Speaker 1: scouts and the coaches kind of helped navigate us through
Speaker 1: this whole thing. Um. I think one thing we did
Speaker 1: feel is the people wanted to be here. That's been
Speaker 1: a couple of years in a row now where we
Speaker 1: you know, there were recruitman was pretty easy. I think
Speaker 1: when you talk about Quinn and Leonard Floyd, I think,
Speaker 1: you know, first of all, with Robert Quinn, I think
Speaker 1: the obviously it's a position we value. Um. One of
Speaker 1: the you know, the first things that comes to mind
Speaker 1: as your strength and your team is your pass rush
Speaker 1: affecting the opposing quarterback. And we just feel like Quinn's
Speaker 1: approven pass rusher. He's got excellent edge speed, he's got
Speaker 1: outstanding ability to bend the corner um and I think,
Speaker 1: you know, we take a position of strength on our
Speaker 1: defense and we make it even stronger and more dangerous
Speaker 1: when you add Quinn, and you can buy them with
Speaker 1: the players that are already up there, especially up front.
Speaker 1: And I think when the Quinn, uh, you know, Leonard
Speaker 1: Floyd decision, you know, look, Leonards has some very good
Speaker 1: years here. He's a key part of a top defense.
Speaker 1: And I don't think acquiring Robert's not necessarily a knock
Speaker 1: on Leonard. It's just doing what's best we feel's best
Speaker 1: for our team. And I think you saw how quickly
Speaker 1: Leonard signed elsewhere, you know, pretty good contracts. We're happy
Speaker 1: for him, um, but for us, it was just, hey,
Speaker 1: you know, we're anesomely tweaking and trying to upgrade our roster,
Speaker 1: and we feel like we've done that with our pass
Speaker 1: ups with Robert Quinn, Ryan Matt Smart Potash. Ryan is curious, well,
Speaker 1: how certain are you the Quinn will be as effective
Speaker 1: and in year three four as he was in the
Speaker 1: Cowboys four to three, because even he has said he's,
Speaker 1: you know, much more comfortable in the four to three
Speaker 1: going back to two when he was with the Rams
Speaker 1: and Mark Yeah, good question. No different than the Jimmy
Speaker 1: Graham conversation. This was something that was talked about their leagues,
Speaker 1: you know, with our with our coaches and scouts and
Speaker 1: Pagano and Ted Monicuino and and how we're gonna make
Speaker 1: it make it all work, because I think you do
Speaker 1: have to look at it and say, Okay, how has
Speaker 1: this player had success in the past, and how can
Speaker 1: we make sure we maximize that? And so that was discussed.
Speaker 1: Um that the schemes he's played in, Um, you know,
Speaker 1: he's played a lot on on the right side of
Speaker 1: the defense. Uh, And so hey, let's get everybody in
Speaker 1: the spots uh or their best, but without being predictable
Speaker 1: at the same time. So we feel very comfortable with that. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, I know our defensive coaches and match does too.
Speaker 1: Just to put him out there in the best positions
Speaker 1: to succeed. I mean, he's a he's a really natural
Speaker 1: pass rusher, He's one of those guys where you could
Speaker 1: be watching other players on other teams and you're just
Speaker 1: crossing over Cowboys cowboy tapes and you can't help but
Speaker 1: watch him. I know when we played him this year,
Speaker 1: we had to have a plan for him. UM, combined
Speaker 1: with their other defensive end, I just think it makes
Speaker 1: this really hard to defend on defense when it's when
Speaker 1: it's hard to double one guy because you've got multiple
Speaker 1: guys coming at you, especially when you throw in a
Speaker 1: Keen Hicks to that mix as well. Hey, Ryan Arthur Arkish,
Speaker 1: how much does the Roquon turves and presence inside and
Speaker 1: their coverage ability allow you to switch out someone like
Speaker 1: Floyd for someone like Quinns who may not give you
Speaker 1: as much in that area. Yeah, we you know, we
Speaker 1: talked about that. I think you know, a strength of
Speaker 1: Leonards was was no doubt that the cover ability. And
Speaker 1: I think we look at our inside linebacker rooms as
Speaker 1: a strength UM and and not Turvasan and Roquan and
Speaker 1: then just the depth of that room UM as a
Speaker 1: strength as well. So I think what you're saying is accurate. UM. Now,
Speaker 1: when you know and and Khalil, I mean you want
Speaker 1: those guys rushing the quarterback as much as possible, um,
Speaker 1: but they are athletic enough to do different things on
Speaker 1: defense too, just to keep as flexible. And then we've
Speaker 1: added some depth to the outside linebacker room and in
Speaker 1: recent weeks that we feel also can provide some of
Speaker 1: those coverage things you're talking about. Hey, guys, it's Brandon.
Speaker 1: We got about five minutes left here, but go ahead
Speaker 1: with with questions. Hey guys, circling back to Jimmy for
Speaker 1: a second, what gives you fall the greatest belief in
Speaker 1: the two and twenty version of Jimmy Graham that made
Speaker 1: him a priority for you? Hey, Dan, Yes, there's a
Speaker 1: lot of things that go into this. Was this was
Speaker 1: something that, like Ryan said, we all saw a lot
Speaker 1: of the same things. And what's exciting is when you
Speaker 1: look at this, you have to be able to look
Speaker 1: at this with the ability to see how could he
Speaker 1: or how does he find into what you want to do?
Speaker 1: And so there's a lot more to that than just
Speaker 1: looking at numbers, like you know, the stats that you
Speaker 1: see and where he's at. He's obviously had a hell
Speaker 1: of a career and with that he's also grown older,
Speaker 1: but at the same time when you look at the
Speaker 1: stuff that he's doing, maybe when he's not catching the
Speaker 1: football or maybe when he's not making a block, but
Speaker 1: you see him within the play doing something that you like,
Speaker 1: and then you visualize that what you can do with
Speaker 1: him and what conceptually what you do, how it fits
Speaker 1: And that's the exciting part. When you talk to him
Speaker 1: as well, you understand the knowledge that he has for
Speaker 1: the game. He's very very motivated right now, which which
Speaker 1: I love. And so it's it's just a fit for us,
Speaker 1: a big size you know, you know, six six playmaker
Speaker 1: that you can get some mismatches with and uh, I
Speaker 1: know me personally very very um looking forward to being
Speaker 1: all to put him in some great situations. Hey guys,
Speaker 1: it's Adam Hogan again. Um. On the offensive line, do
Speaker 1: you guys, uh imagine or envisioned Jamaine Effetti kicking the
Speaker 1: inside to guard? And what did you like about? He's
Speaker 1: a Adam you know he's obviously he's played both right
Speaker 1: tackle right guard. Right now, we do envision him kicking
Speaker 1: inside the guard, uh and just engaging no different than
Speaker 1: the quarterback, just adding competition to the right guard position
Speaker 1: with a fetty Um, he's a guy. You know we
Speaker 1: liked coming out in the draft. Um, we've kept close
Speaker 1: tabs on He's a talented player, thirty six inch arms,
Speaker 1: highly intelligent. I know Juan Castido is really high on
Speaker 1: this player too, and and how he feels he can
Speaker 1: make him better, which we're confident in. Um, so we're
Speaker 1: excited to get him where we got him. Just that,
Speaker 1: just to really add competition to the offensive line. You know,
Speaker 1: that's important. That depth there's important. We'll let that play out, okays,
Speaker 1: Andrew Salidman um telling you when during that players are
Speaker 1: working out the way you wanted and following the program
Speaker 1: you want them to follow. Yeah. So, so one of
Speaker 1: the things we're doing, and I want to give a
Speaker 1: lot of credit to our our our coaching staff along
Speaker 1: with Jason mo Scalville and our assistant coaches UM in
Speaker 1: the in the strength program and Andre Tucker and Jane Gibson,
Speaker 1: they're all doing a great job of staying on top
Speaker 1: of them and making sure that we communicate with them
Speaker 1: to make sure that they're um, they're doing okay, number
Speaker 1: one with with what we're going through, which is very important.
Speaker 1: And and number two, you know, staying you know, figuring
Speaker 1: out different ways of how they're staying in shape and
Speaker 1: stay staying strong and so a matter of fact, I
Speaker 1: got a picture last night, UM, from our strength coaches.
Speaker 1: We got a player that he built out of wood,
Speaker 1: his own his own squat rap and bench rack. So
Speaker 1: I thought that was pretty pretty neat to see. Some
Speaker 1: people are adapting and they're coming up with solutions, but
Speaker 1: we're staying on top of them. We're making sure they're
Speaker 1: healthy and uh, you know, we're excited to make sure
Speaker 1: that they're doing okay, and they all are. Right now,
Speaker 1: we got time for two more questions. Stacy, go ahead first,
Speaker 1: and then we'll get the last question after Stacy. Thank you,
Speaker 1: Thank you. Brandon. Um, you know, clearly with all of
Speaker 1: the uncertainty for both of you, UM, not really knowing
Speaker 1: when your players can actually take the field, UM, sort of,
Speaker 1: what what is the plan in advancing your playbook too,
Speaker 1: especially with a new quarterback on your roster, to make
Speaker 1: sure that these installations are up to speed if the
Speaker 1: season does start on time. Yeah, Stacy, that's a great question.
Speaker 1: I think that for for us, once we're once we're
Speaker 1: given a time that we're able to rock and roll
Speaker 1: start talking in football with these players. Um, we're gonna
Speaker 1: have to be make sure we're very, very efficient with
Speaker 1: if it is video insults. Um, I think you're going
Speaker 1: to see. We were talking about this last night with
Speaker 1: some position coaches. There's going to be a lot more
Speaker 1: time for these players with position meetings and position um uh,
Speaker 1: you know virtual meetings where you might have four or
Speaker 1: five guys that are talking with a coach and it
Speaker 1: might be more specific than it is ten or eleven
Speaker 1: or twelve guys or thirty guys together. So we'll be
Speaker 1: efficient with it. We'll make sure that we're doing everything
Speaker 1: we can. And then at the same time, you know,
Speaker 1: in a good way. It's going to make you as
Speaker 1: a coaching staff too, probably limit the amount of volume
Speaker 1: that you usually try to get in in a normal situation.
Speaker 1: So I look at it as the positive. Guys, it's
Speaker 1: how but I'm really sorry this wasn't the first thing
Speaker 1: I said, But yeah, it's is for both of you.
Speaker 1: Really hope that your families and extended families are all
Speaker 1: doing well and healthy and safe and curious if either
Speaker 1: of you had any firsthand experience with anyone you know
Speaker 1: or that you're close to who's contracted the virus and
Speaker 1: if so, anything you share about how you handled that. Hey,
Speaker 1: first of all, thanks for saying that we feel the
Speaker 1: same way about you guys, So I think that comes
Speaker 1: first and foremost. You know, Fortunately on my end, it's
Speaker 1: been pretty good thus far. But I'll let that chuch
Speaker 1: on his own. Yeah. Hey, thanks, thanks again again for
Speaker 1: taking of us, and it's it's back to all of
Speaker 1: you guys. Are everybody in there is? I know we
Speaker 1: can sometimes. I think this is a good step back
Speaker 1: for all of us to be able to really realize
Speaker 1: how important family time is and also look out for
Speaker 1: for lovel and I have a great pan of um
Speaker 1: who's in Pennsylvania that that I was told through family
Speaker 1: that she's in her nineties that she has uh has
Speaker 1: contracted it. But other than that, no immediate family UM
Speaker 1: or no one, no one else that I know of,
Speaker 1: And so I know it's uh uh, there's a lot
Speaker 1: of people that have been through it and we just
Speaker 1: we're thinking about them all and so we appreciate you
Speaker 1: saying that about us.