NFL Trade Rumors
The Bears landed Ben Johnson as their head coach after he entered the offseason as one of the most in-demand coaches on the market. When appearing on the Mully & Haugh Show, Johnson said Chicago’s ownership and front office structure were appealing to him.
“That’s the best part of this particular situation I walked into, I was talking to Ryan (Poles) about it the other day, a lot of the structure was already in place,” Johnson said. “From great ownership to Kevin Warren at President, to Ryan (Poles), there’s a lot of things that I might’ve struggled with if I was with a first-time GM and we’re both finding our way. Ryan, naturally, he’s helped so much, it’s really a good thing that he’s been around and been helpful that way. You look at it that way and then the coaching staff, they’re a high level. We’ve got a wealth of knowledge and it makes my life easier, I didn’t have to do this blind. It was by design that it was all structured this way and I think it gives us a better chance to get us off the ground faster.”
Lions GM Brad Holmes explained why the team only kept 50 players on their initial 53-man roster.
“We had 50 make the team,” Holmes said, via NY Times. “That’s it. I don’t know what else you want me to say. I think I explained it. Do you want (the) three first guys out that (were) close? Go ahead and give it to him? He didn’t really (earn it) — but go ahead and give it to him because we’re only at 50. If you only have 50 that we deemed as the standards of making it, then you’ve got to look elsewhere. So, that’s the approach that we did.”
Detroit cut a pair of 2023 third-rounders in QB Hendon Hooker and DT Brodric Martin. Holmes explained that the decision-making process has improved since the two failed selections.
“Unfortunately, you know, they did not meet expectations in the timely manner that we would have liked for them to do,” Holmes said. “You’ve just got to look at it. I’m a big self-assessment individual — after action review, look at it, analyze it. I think we’ve already identified some areas. But yeah, you’ve just got to learn, you’ve just got to grow and get better.”
Holmes added that even though they didn’t work out, he still feels good about the processes that led to the selection of those players.
“I think all you can do is put all the work in and feel good when you take the player,” Holmes said. “*Look, I think there’s risk involved with every single pick that you do. There was a great definition of risk. … It was one of Morgan Housel’s books. I’m not sure if it was Morgan Housel’s quote, but he said, ‘Risk is what’s left after you think you’ve thought of everything.’ And I think it’s...
