Bears
- Per the Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain, the Bears shared their thinking on a variety of their draft picks this year, including fourth-round WR Tyler Scott. Bears GM Ryan Poles says Scott’s speed should allow him to make an impact right away as he works on other areas of his game: “The beautiful thing is when you have top-end speed, that buys you time to get that detail in and become a pro in your skill set and how you approach the game.”
- Chicago double-dipped at cornerback with second-rounder Tyrique Stevenson and fifth-rounder Terrell Smith and both checked important boxes for the Bears. Bears co-director of player personnel Trey Koziol explains: “I think everybody, really, is looking ideally for big, long and fast, right? Because when you’ve got somebody with those physical skill sets, they don’t have to be perfect and they can still be right.”
- Despite loading up at linebacker in free agency, the value of former Oregon LB Noah Sewell in the fifth round was too much for the Bears to pass up on. He’s the younger brother of Lions RT Penei Sewell and was seen as a potential first-round pick entering the 2022 season. Bears HC Matt Eberflus noted his athletic traits were appealing: “He’s a fantastic instinctual player. He’s obviously a big hitter. He can go sideline to sideline, so that’s what we like about him.”
- The Bears invited free-agent WR Jacob Harris to their rookie minicamp on a tryout basis, per Aaron Wilson.
Lions
The Lions’ draft haul was as well-received inside the league as it was by fans and media analysts — which is to say it wasn’t. Detroit traded down from No. 6 to No. 12 and took RB Jahmyr Gibbs, then doubled back with their second first-round pick to take LB Jack Campbell. In the leadup to the draft, Gibbs was seen as a late-first prospect and Campbell was widely seen as a Day 2 guy.
“They outsmarted themselves,” one NFL GM said via Jason La Canfora of the Washington Post. “They passed on the better back, and then go linebacker? I didn’t really like their draft. The linebacker probably would have been there when they picked again in the second round.”
Packers
- According to Field Yates, Packers QB Jordan Love‘s extension through 2024 includes an $8,788,765 signing bonus and a base salary of $1.01 million in 2023, and a guaranteed $5.5 million salary in 2024. He can earn a $9 million salary escalator in 2023 and a $500,000 workout bonus in 2024.
- Yates notes that Love earns an extra $7.5 million in 2023 and will have a chance to earn $14.5 million in 2024 through salary escalators for playing time, wins, team stats, and other clauses.
- The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman notes it’s setting up to be a three-man race for the No. 3 running back job in camp between Patrick Taylor, Tyler Goodson and seventh-round rookie Lew Nichols.
- Another intriguing competition will be on the offensive line, where Schneidman is interested to see if OL Zach Tom can crack the starting lineup at either center or right tackle.
- After a disappointing second season that was ended early by injury, Schneidman says former first-round CB Eric Stokes is slated to open camp at No. 4 on the depth chart
- Schneidman mentions the Packers and veteran S Adrian Amos have stayed in touch this offseason and the veteran is a candidate to return to Green Bay.
- The Packers are set to host the Patriots for joint practices in training camp. (Schneidman)
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