Da Dos

Category: NFL, Bears

  • Super Bowl LX

    Super Bowl LX

    I rememeber that ’18 NFL Draft when CLE selected Baker Mayfield #1 overall, the Jets selected Sam Darnold #3 overall, while the Bills drafted Josh Allen at #7 banking that he’d be another good ‘project’ like Carson Wentz for the Eagles [‘ 17 Wentz threw for 33TDs/7ints and 101.9 passer rating].

    Incidentally, the Bears drafted Roq at #8, Bills drafted Edmunds at #16, Panthers drafted DJ Moore at #24 and Hippy’s adopted son Chosen Rosen went #11 overall.

    I remember thinking at the time that both Mayfield and Darnold were ‘can’t miss.’
    I loved Mayfield’s mojo to turn around the factory of sadness. I thought Darnold’s steady demeanor and playing in L.A. [USC] suited him well for the intense NY market.

    Yet somehow, the Browns and Jets still broke them.

    I was a bit more on the fence about Josh Allen. Wentz recency bias made me think big physical ‘projects’ from small schools could work, but man, that’s a gamble [as the Eagles found out].

    I wasn’t too sold on Rosen. To me, he was sorta the JJ McCarthy of that draft. Meh.

    However, both Mayfield and Darnold “busting” really made me self-evaluate. How could I have been so wrong on both? I didn’t expect either to be sure-fire HOFers, but BUSTS?

    I mean one, yeah, stats say QBs are 50/50, but BOTH. Maybe draft picks are no better than taking a spin at the Roulette table.

    Well, as it turns out, both Mayfield and Darnold only needed to join functional teams.

    Then it hit me. I was wrong, but not in the way I imagined.

    I erred in believing in that the philosophy of “pick yourself up by your bootstrap” still applies to QBs. It obviously does NOT.

    Like much in life, surrounding greatly impacts results.

    This is an old debate: nature-v-nurture.

    But it’s not binary.

    Browns and Jets have been forever dysfunctional, and as Florio refrains, “dysfunctional teams do dysfunctional things” and this can be macro: owners, GMs, coaches, draft…to micro: developing players, ESP QBs.

    Being dysfunctional isn’t a death sentence either. The Bengals, Lions and Bears have also been a laughing stock for 40+ years, yet they seemed to have dug themselves out of the Browns/Jets 9th circle of hell.

    I was mistaken in assuming that a single individual, even a QB, can simply will himself to be an Ubermench regardless of circumstance.

    One might be tempted to retort, “Well, Brady and Mahomes would’ve been great no matter.” Really? What if the Chris Palmer Browns drafted Brady and the Pace-Nagy Bears drafted Mahomes?

    This works the other way as well.
    A successful organization doesn’t automatically generate HOF QBs like some GPT prompt.

    Reid in KC could only go so far with Alex Smith. The same Pats who won 6 SBs drafted Mac Jones. 9ers traded the house for Trey Lance.

    Oops!

    I suppose this is a long-winded way of stating the obvious:

    It takes both nature+nurture=success.

    The formula isn’t written in stone. Who knows about the ratio. 80% to 20% or vice versa.

    But USUALLY [outliers do exist] it is some ratio of both.

    This SB marks the first time two top 5 [drafted] QBs square-off. That’s a remarkable stat given the ENORMOUS amount of resources that go into finding a franchise QB.

    It illustrates how fickle the whole process really is, how maybe one seemingly minute factor could set off a whole butterfly effect.

    Terry Bradshaw’s life literally came down to a coin flip. Steelers won. They drafted Bradshaw, and after a disastrous start he rebounded to win 4 SBs.

    The Bears traded their #2 to the Green Bay Packers for veterans Lee Roy Caffey, Bob Hyland, and Elijah Pitts translating to squat.

    If Bears win coinflip and draft Bradshaw…well, you elder-fans tell me if it results in 4 SBs…

    Overtime:

    Butch’s SB pick.

    I think I’ve been right in every pick [except in Bears over Rams, but I can live with that].

    I think SEA’s D is simply too dominant to allow such a young QB (who’s been a playoff TO machine) to excel.

    When a D has a legit nickname [The Darkside], you know they’re good!

    There’s a risk that Darnold will Darnold, but thus far he really hasn’t [outside Rams]. If he starts seeing ghosts again, it’ll be one epic chokejob.

    On top of that, SEA has a great one-two punch at HB, plus a dangerous returner and solid specials with sound coaching.

    The Pats’ Dline is real, but how tight will the refs call this game? A lot of times they allow WAAAAY more holding [and PIs] than usual in the SB, which may mitigate the Pats’ biggest advantage.

    As such, I predict a slow, tight game, but with huge SEA momentum surges which will be too much for a relatively inexperienced Pats’ team.

    Darnold gets his ultimate vindication while the Queens are stuck with #9 watching the SB in a Cancun bar….

  • Happy Holidays!

    Happy Holidays!

    Like most, gonna be busy for a few days, so just wanna give a quick thanks to all the regs [and lurkers] for being part of a special season no matter how it ends; though obviously, a SB would make it magical!

    So enjoy the eggnog, crazy uncles and football games. Cheers.

  • Bear-lieve!

    Bear-lieve!

    I was going to write up another in-depth Packer Preview, but the Bears just played them not two weeks ago, so nothing much has changed statistically.

    That being said, much has changed personnel-wise, specifically, the INJ report.

    As of Thurs night, here’s the Packers-Bears’ INJ report:

    Packers Final Injury Report
    Out: RB MarShawn Lloyd (calf/hamstring), TE Josh Whyle (concussion), G John Williams (back).[Parsons – OUT OUT]

    Questionable: RB Chris Brooks (chest), DE Brenton Cox (groin), DE Kingsley Enagbare (illness), RB Josh Jacobs (knee/ankle), T/G Darian Kinnard (neck), DE Collin Oliver (hamstring), RT Zach Tom (knee/back), WR Christian Watson (chest/shoulder), WR Dontayvion Wicks (ankle), S Evan Williams (knee).

    Note: Oliver, Cox and John Williams have been designated for return from injured reserve and are within their 21-day practice windows.

    Bears Final Injury Report
    Out: WR Luther Burden III (ankle), WR Rome Odunze (foot), LB Amen Ogbongbemiga (hamstring).

    Questionable: DE Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (personal), LB Tremaine Edmunds (groin), TE Cole Kmet (ankle/knee), RB D’Andre Swift (groin).

    Note: Edmunds has been designated for return from injured reserve and is within his 21-day practice window

    Naturally, Micah Parsons [ACL tear, 9 month recovery] out plus Christian Watson and Josh Jacobs as Questionable are tremendous losses. Even if Jacobs and Watson suit up, they can’t possibly be anywhere close to 100%.

    Bears without Rome/Burden sucks as well, but Bears are a run first, 12 personnel team at heart, so all Zaccheus, Duvernay and Walker have to do is stay upright, block, and catch occasionally.

    I think BJ will be smart enough to target DJ, Loveland and Kmet on key downs.

    What I really want to write about though is that for the first time since maaaybe ’18, I believe the Bears can finish – not just with a winning record, or Wild Card appearance – but with a SB. The ’25 Bears can win it all.

    Yes – all. The whole enchilada. The whole 9 yards. The entire shebang or whatever other phrases exist for them winning a SB.

    It’s a confluence of many factors.

    1. No real super-team this season.
    Week in, week out, I have witnessed playoff teams ‘upset’. Whether it’s Pats losing to Raiders, Pack losing to Browns, Rams losing to Panthers, Bills losing to Dolphins, Broncos losing to Chargers, etc it’s one of those years where seemingly any team can indeed beat any favorite any given Sunday. So why not us?

    2. Bears find different ways to win in crunch time.

    Whether it’s a QB scramble, a big KR, a blocked FG, a forced fumble, an incredible INT, improbable throw/catch, or bruising runs to close, the Bears just get ‘er done. By now, they simply BELIEVE they will win. How barely matters. They’ve essentially been in playoff mode since week 3 [Cowboys], so a little pressure isn’t going to phase them.

    3. Bears’ formula wins late season.

    Don’t know if you noticed, but it’s getting pretty freaking freezing out there.
    Luckily, the Bears are a run first team. The 1-2 punch of Swift-Monangai is now spoken in the same breath as Gibbs-Monty, Kyle Williams-Corum while The Oline ranks top 5 on many sites. And, oh yeah, they have two great blocking TEs in Kmet/Loveland.

    Caleb Williams is arguably the best scrambler too which I appreciate even more after watching Stafford-v-Darnold on TNF.

    Another part of the Bears’ formula is they don’t turn it over much.

    Caleb rarely throws INTs, actually breaking the record for fewest INTs through the first 1K passing attempts. Unlike his predecessors , [looking at you Smoking Jay], he rarely gets strip-sacked [or even sacked].

    Swift also doesn’t fumble much while Monangai at Rutgers attempted 669 rushes with ZERO fumbles.

    So Bears don’t give away many freebies.

    Which dovetails well with CREATING defensive TOs. #1 in NFL with 20, and #2 Texans aren’t even close with 14.

    I, like many, was initially skeptical about Bears’ D keeping it up. As they say, TOs are unpredictable – not a good bet; nevertheless, Dennis Allen has made it just that – bankable. Somehow, someway, that D forces INTs/Fumbles, and they create momentum to win especially in hostile environments.

    So, Bears…

    Run fiercely+ block well+ limit TOs+ Force TOs= Wins

    Oh, and they’re clutch!

    4. Bears have elite coaching.

    Wow. Can’t believe I just typed that. I’m having an out of body experience just reading that aloud.

    Bears have elite coaching for the first time since Zubas were cool; I TRUST our brains outsmarting theirs.

    The easy example is Ben Johnson which doesn’t need much explaining, but Dennis Allen may actually be doing a superior job at DC given what he has.

    It’s not just them either. Look at the incredible turnaround of the Oline in just one season. Gotta give props to Dan Roushar for that.

    The secondary is playing out of its mind, big pat of the back [to future HC] Al Harris.

    Def Line coach Jeremy Garrett may even be sneaky good.
    Sweat has quietly notched 8.5 sacks, Booker in 7 games has 3 sacks, while the run D has recovered from being a sieve early season.

    via Matt Marton/Imagn
    I don’t really believe in ‘moral losses’, but sometimes, they do happen. After Philly, many still claimed Bears were “fun frauds”. However, after nearly stealing a win at Lambeau, the league no longer scoffs.

    I compared this team to both the SB winning Saints and Gmen; the Gmen in their finale took the Pats to the limit, ultimately losing 38-35.

    Now you figure, ‘wow, tough loss. Gut punch and no way to lurch into the playoffs’, but it was quite the opposite.

    “I know what everybody wrote and what everybody said we should do (against the Pats) and all the experts. Well, these are the same people that said we weren’t going to be in this position (10-6) and be in the playoffs, so we really don’t care what they say…[Antonio] Pierce [continued]. “All the experts supposedly said we were going to get beat by 20 or 30 points or whatever it was. That came down to the last couple minutes of the game.”

    “With that mentality, again we are going into a place where our backs are going to be against the wall, where we play our best. And I hope we can go out there and show it off.”

    Sound familiar?
    Let’s hope history repeats. No reason it can’t.

    Bearlieve.

    and FGB.

  • Bears@Eagles Game Preview WK13

    Bears@Eagles Game Preview WK13

    Happy [Early] Turkey Day! Or if you’re vegetarian, Tofurkey Day which actually can double as a football if you play Thanksgiving ball like me and my friends used to.

    Rev reminded me of the Fog Bowl, so if you’re feeling nostalgic, click here.

    Bears@Eagles Preview.

    O/U 44.5; Eagles -6.5

    Eagles’ O.
    PPG. 23.2 [17th]
    YPG. 303.6 [24rth]
    PYPG. 193.2 [23rd]
    RYPG. 110.5 [21st]
    3rd Down conv. 34.56% [27th]
    TOs. 6 [1st]

    As of Weds, the Eagles are still missing RT Lane Johnson. Given how impactful Montez Sweat has been since the bye, that’s absolutely a favorable Bears’ matchup.

    As for the Bears, eyes are on Jaylon Johnson and Kyler Gordon finally returning. Honestly though, how much of a ‘downgrade’ is Nashon Wright from JJ? JJ has dropped some relatively easy INTs, you think he makes some of those spectacular Wright high-points? Wright was also in prime position to end the Steelers’ game at the end if Brisker doesn’t tip it. You have the same confidence JJ INTs that?

    Meanwhile all CJ Gardner-Johnson has done is everything. What does Gordon do better besides strain something?

    These are real questions Dennis Allen must answer soon, and maybe Ryan Poles down the line with the cap and trying to nab and pay a premiere rusher like Jefferey Simmons or Myles Garrett.

    The Eagles’ O doesn’t turn it over, so this is strength vs strength. I think the last time the Bears lost the turnover battle [Ravens], they lost the game. So we’ll see which unit imposes its will. #1 No TO Eagles’ O – or #1 TO Bears’ D.

    Their run game has struggled though. They avg 3.9 per rush, 2.30 yds before contact, and rank 24rth in EPA in last 3 weeks. Flus actually used a 5-man “Bear” front to stuff Saquon Barkley, and I can easily see Dennis Allen following suit with Brisker, Sewell, Jackson, or Gordon[?] and CJ off the corners. Granted, Cowboys had Quinnen Williams, but Grady Jarrett has looked healthier as of late.

    The wildcard will be Jaylen Hurts scrambling; the Bears have struggled vs running QBs like Dart, Huntley, etc and are down to PS squad tier LBs who bit on every misdirection vs Steelers, but as the Giants found out the hard way, that’s a risky gameplan. Bears’ D flies and lays the wood hunting for TOs.

    On D, we all know the Eagles’ Dline is to envy. We are well aware that Poles drafted Darnell Wright instead of Jalen Carter, and that Carter has played at an AP level and is arguably a top 3 DT which we can fantasize about.

    However, the Bears’ Oline has totally rebounded from ’24 and has become an asset coming off a strong game vs Steelers where Ozzy Trapilo stepped in and looked the part.

    Caleb struggling under pressure raises an eyebrow. Would like to see him make aggressive Ds pay, but what QB doesn’t struggle under pressure?

    One thing that could be a gamechanger though is that the Vikings brought edge blitzers to stifle the stretch run and contain Caleb.

    The Eagles’ Dline is talented enough to not need to blitz, which means Fangio will use all kinds of exotic coverages to confuse Caleb. If there’s a rush in his face on top of that, could be a long Black Friday for Caleb.

    Here’s a concise game preview by Bears Now.


    Think Trac said Bears would have to get two turnovers and score over 30 to win this game.

    My response, “So, basically, another Bears’ game.”

    It’s gotten to that point in the season where we don’t have to wonder all that much what teams are.

    The Bears are a feisty, sloppy, opportunistic team with the most dangerous weapon of all:

    BELIEF

    They BELIEVE that if it’s close, no matter how slow, penalty-ridden, or miscued through 3 QTRs – no matter if the opposing team blocked a punt/FG, returned for a TD, strip-sacked TD, are averaging 6 yards per play, or if they’re down to 20 players because lighting struck their sideline…these Bears believe they’ll close it out regardless.

    That’s a 180 from the floundering Fluses which found ways to lose.

    Bears are a scary team to face even if you are the reigning champs and favorited Eagles. Bears are playing with house $ while the entire Philly hate-machine has been pounding on them all season especially after a brutal blown game against their hated rival Cowboys.

    Overtime:

    Couple odd stats for Bears.

    1. No QB with such an awful comp% wins as much as Caleb Williams. It’s not even all that close really:

    2. Bears are also -3 point differential total the whole season. Apparently only the 1987 Chargers were worse through 11 games.

    [Any old-timers recall the ’87 Chargers?]

    I mentioned this before, but this Bears’ team reminds me a lot of the ’22 Vikings when they made that crazy 13-4 run with Kirk Cousins. Felt like every week was that scene from “Airplane”, “Looks like I picked the wrong time to quit sniffing glue!”

    [2023 Vikings? 7-10]

    Then add that the Bears’ D allows 5.77 YPP [20th], 26.5 PPG [27th] yet still count on at least 2+TOs per game [1st], and one can understand why many persist the Bears are “Fun Frauds.”

    It’ll be up to Bears to finally silence the doubters; after all, the only difference between “fun frauds” and epic “Cinderellas” is winning.

    [Go Puke?]

  • When a win is more than a win, or is it?

    When a win is more than a win, or is it?

    By reg Clockwork Orange and Blue

    Aaron Rodgers has a career 25-5 record against the Bears. He famously declared his ownership of the Bears following the Rodgers Packers’ penultimate victory against the Beloved in Rodgers’ final year with the team. Nothing tastes as sweet, or devastates as much, than a win or loss against the Packers, and this was especially true with Rodgers at the helm. And now in week 12 of an improbable 7-3 season, the Bears are faced with an aging Rodgers on a different team.

    8-3 is a mark that would put the Bears one win closer to the magic number of 10, a total that would certainly catapult them to the playoffs and mark the start of what could be the Bears team we have all been thirsting for – one that wins games not in spite but because of their offense and quarterback. Are all wins equal? Do we dare now move the goalposts from “any win is a good win”?

    With Rodgers suffering (my god, I hope he is suffering) a broken left wrist and marked as questionable to play on Sunday, do we hope to see him in the pocket, knowing full well his ownership, his football voodoo, over the Bears?

    You and I know he wants to be dancing out of the pocket after a near sack, twisting and galloping with Bears in pursuit from behind while he angles toward the flat, and with a flick of the wrist, sending a perfect lofted spiral into the waiting hands of a streaking receiver, breaking Chicago’s spirit once more. You just know he wants to do that one last time, to punctuate his career with a defining statement: “I will forever own you.”

    On the flip side, even though he is not with Green Bay, what would be sweeter than to see Rodgers rolling in agony on the Soldier Field turf after releasing a lame duck following a brutal full frontal blow, a ball that flutters gently down into the hands of a waiting safety who then speeds by the scene of the crime and all eyes are not on the motionless Rodgers, but on the celebration in the end zone, the final score that ends both the game and Rodgers’ career.

    Do you take that chance with Rodgers, knowing it could take you back to the heartbreak of the last 20 years, but also knowing that you could find yourself with a real reason to say “this Bears team is different and for real”? Or would you rather not face that prospect and see Mason Rudolph under center, knowing the chances for victory are that much greater. How badly do you want to reach 10 wins – are you a pragmatist or a romantic?

    Mike Tomlin and the Steelers are the quintessential pragmatists. It is why he is where he is in his 19th season, having never suffered a losing season, yet only winning a single Super Bowl. Do we want to be the Steelers? Would you be happy if Ben Johnson’s career mirrored Tomlin’s?

    I would not. I am a Romantic, an Idealist, and I have an inkling that Ben Johnson is too. Does he enjoy the wins? Yes. he certainly does. But in his decisions, I do not see Tomlin, or Lovie. I see a man driven by his ideals. He knows what he wants and he knows what he wants to see. He is a man who will not just be satisfied with a .600 winning percentage and a long career. He wants to feel the adrenaline of a win without excuses.

    He wants to beat Rodgers.

    And so do I.

  • Bears: Subpar, Soft & Stupid

    Bears: Subpar, Soft & Stupid

    I can go into a Dataeque deep dive citing PFF, Next Gen Stats, charts, twitter clips and still-shots, all sorts of links to former players/coaches dissecting every Bear minutia, but frankly, they’re not worth the effort.

    My only take away: the ’25 Bears are subpar, soft and stupid.

    1 Subpar. Or more accurately, substar in that the team rosters no real blue-chips. MAYBE Jaylon Johnson who is INJed. Maybe Thuney who is on the downslope of his career. That’s about it. In a franchise that boasts the most HOFers full of players like Butkus, Sayers, Sweetness, Dent, Hester…studs who made plays especially when the game was on the line; this current Bears’ incarnation of JAGs is the main reason I predicted Bears would finish last in NFCN. What I didn’t expect that they may finish last in the entire league. This mostly falls on Ryan Poles whom naturally the McCaskeys, in their infinite wisdom, decided to extend.

    2. Soft. This is something I suspected but didn’t want to manifest into existence. This team is mentally SOFT AF. I’ve never witnessed a team fold like a cheap tent after one loss like this team did after the Washington Hail Mary. That wasn’t anomalous either, but fast forward to this year. Week 1 they were very much in that game until that bogus Wright holding call. After that obstacle, they never recovered. This week again, very much in it, until that bullshit ending to the half where the Viking should have been ruled down and clock expired. Instead, he was ruled out – Vikings rewarded six seconds back. Predictably they scored a TD, and once more, self-implosion. This team can’t handle adversity or setbacks which is a lethal mix with being…

    3. Stupid. They just keep shooting themselves in the foot, whether it’s drive killing pre-snap penalties, holding, pass-interference, terrible time management, angles, situational awareness, challenges, blown coverages, going for 1st downs instead of kicking easy FGs, not kicking it out of bounds, seemingly NO professional game plan or counter-punch, and that’s not even considering the lack of execution like killer drops, missed running lanes and big plays [see #1].

    This team reminds me of Mush from “The Bronx Tale.”

    We all know a Mush. I have a friend who seemingly gets-off on complaining: work, family, relationships, sports, car, traffic, everything and anything. Just always self-pitying, whining, and somewhat permanently disgruntled. I love him, but I can only take so much before my Boomer-itis kicks-in, “Snap the fuck out of it!” [and he’s OLDER than I am].

    I introduced him to the girl I’m dating at a happening club with plenty of skimpy clad women; he proceeded to spend half the night relaying to her his last 3 breakups. At some point she turns to me like ‘is this guy forreal? I just met him’ I just shrugged and went over to save her. We danced. He hit the bar.

    He expects life to kick him in the balls, and somehow, life obliges.

    “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, in both instances – you’re right.”

    This team is like that. I get it, TBH. I’ve been on some terrible teams where losses completely demoralize players. Everything transforms to doom and gloom. At the beginning of each season, everyone is angelic shining with radiant hope. After a chain of brutal beat downs, that locker room disfigures into “Paradise Lost”. Sometimes a team climbs out of the fall. Often it doesn’t.

    This team can’t apparently. They expect for something in the game to go south, and when it does, they quit. No 3 AM grit. No Lach in Zona refusing defeat. No coach at halftime losing his shit, throwing objects around, calling players out as men.

    Nope, instead we get the same ole same ole

    Mush.

  • Ty-Writer Drops Bombs!

    Ty-Writer Drops Bombs!

    At this point it would be negligent of me to NOT share Tyler Dunne’s trilogy “House of Dysfunction.”

    I won’t cover it all, and TBH, it’s a bit of a bummer reading this right before the season kicks-off. It’s like sniffing a turd emanating from a wrapped gift before Christmas.

    Nevertheless, wishful thinking is no way to prance through life. So buckle up; here’s a summary:

    Part I

    1. Caleb Williams seems disrespectful towards the coaches: Waldron, Brown, and likely Eberflus.

    2. The Vets didn’t like Caleb, a rook, busting on the scene, making coaches and vets conform to him.

    3. Caleb might be football dumb; apparently his mental struggles were so extreme, Dunne muses if Caleb actually possesses a learning disability.

    4. Caleb is not just entitled and learning disabled, but LAZY.

    The Bears offense devolved into an exercise of trial and error to fit whatever the USC rookie demanded.

    All of which would’ve been manageable if Williams was willing to work. He was not.


    Part II

    1. Ryan Poles rigged the selection. Like Kim Jung Un, he let his biases be known and expected the lackies to follow. Here’s a reenactment.

    2. Poles’ autocratic manipulations essentially made Caleb Williams the only viable option at QB despite it being arguably the strongest QB draft since ’83.

    “To those seeking a vibrant debate, these draft meetings were a farce.”

    Part III has yet to drop, but this is their outline:

    In Part III, we zoom out: Who’s to blame? The Bears have become an organization repellent to independent thought. The GM inherited a bad situation and managed to make it worse with a 15-36 record. All roads in this league tend to lead back to ownership.

    I won’t rehash my thoughts. If you’re curious, just click on the previous post; however, I do disagree with Jeff on one point.

    How in the world can this news, if true, NOT impact Ben Johnson’s tenure?

    If the QB is entitled, challenged and lazy, what can the HC do to fix THAT?

    What kind of culture will those traits create?

    [Didn’t we get a sneak peak of that last season when rumors swirled that the vets wanted Bagent to start over Caleb?]

    That being said, as a fellow late-bloomer, this doesn’t mean that Caleb is Jeff-George-Leaf-Manziel-Fated. Even if all those reports are legit, something can click inside Caleb to turn it all around.

    Happens all the time. Everyone loves a 2nd act.

    Still, I expect Poles and sycophants to vigorously deny, deflect, and distort the details because that’s what ‘strong-men’ do when criticized, exposed or challenged.

    Heck, maybe Poles will claim that Dunne is a Detroit constructed AI to undermine the Bears’ season and his reign – Fake News!

    I would absolutely love for some intrepid reporter to ask Mercedes Lewis, Keenan Allen or DeMarcus Walker if the trilogy is accurate. The current Bears like DJ will likely lie through their teeth. That’s fine, but those ex-Bears are free to relay the truth.

    And as with all things, the truth will out.
    The die is cast. The chips are all-in.

    Like those Turkmenistan cabinet members, we too are now forced to cheer, root and clap as Poles raises the fu-bar to another level…

  • The Bears are Finishing Last in the NFCN. AGAIN…

    The Bears are Finishing Last in the NFCN. AGAIN…

    As y’all know, I’m new to this whole Blogging biz. So, I snoop about. Seems like everyone is making a bunch of predictions. I was going to do some in-depth 4-parter… no need.

    Poles whiffed on the previous HC, Flus. And YES, as Jeff the ultimate Bears’ insider has stated emphatically, Poles WANTED Flus; furthermore, Poles vouched for Flus the off-season he should’ve been canned.

    In La Cosa Nostra, when mobsters vouched for Joe Pistone, AKA, Donnie Brasco, they were KILLED. Dead wrong was literal.

    Seems the least that should’ve happened to Poles is a pink-slip. Yet, he somehow stuck like shit on soles, and stunningly even managed to get extended! So Bears…

    Poles hiring, and backing Flus stunted the Bears on multiple levels. But this isn’t the only way Poles has hurt the Bears. In addition, his mediocrity [at best] has left them bereft of not only blue-chip talent, but DEPTH.

    Now the chickens have come home to roost.

    Poles tried his best to compensate for his misses, doing what most mid-GMs do to salvage their rosters and careers – trades for players other teams developed since the Bears can’t develop their own. Plus FA shopping spree.

    Nevertheless, it’s still not enough, is it?

    Too many questions persist: can Sweat rebound, or is he essentially the new Alex Brown? Can Dayo, ya know, sack QBs, or should that $ have been funneled to possibly Trey Hendrickson or Micah Parsons? WTF’s going on at LT? Was Wright overdrafted and merely an avg RT? [cough, Carter, cough] If Jonah Jackson was so good, why did McVey happily send him packing? What happens if Brisker gets another concussion? What if Swift or Byard go down?

    And the million dollar question:

    Can Caleb become better than Jayden Daniels?

    Poles didn’t draft Caleb #1 overall to be Kyler Murray or worse than Bo Nix.

    NTM , no matter how much Ben Johnson is praised, we simply don’t know if he’s an NFL-winning HC.

    Remember when Chip Kelly stormed into the league in a whirlwind of praises?

    Meanwhile, the Lions, Vikings and Packers pose far fewer questions. They won 15, 14 and 11 games, respectively, and all are legit SB contenders.

    Then the lowly Bears.

    That’s a tough road to slog with so many unknowns, lack of All-Pros, and paper-thin depth at key positions under a rookie HC.

    As such, my predicalator computes…Bears finish last in NFCN.

    Now, this might seem pessimistic at first, but don’t throw your laptop at your TV quite yet!

    If the Bears were in a weaker division, say, the NFC or AFC South, I’d argue they could win the division, but that’s not our reality.

    They can win 9 games, yet be last and out of the playoffs. In that scenario, we can still be optimistic as long as the team appears heading in the right direction.

    This is like a middle-weight being thrown into a division with prime Sugar Ray, Hagler, Hearns and Duran – via con dios…

    How the Bears don’t finish last:

    Like Dr. Strange navigating multitudinous futures, I’ll offer some possibilities where Bears leap-frog their rivals. I’ll try to leave the obvious ‘if player-x gets INJed.’


    1. Lions. They’ve been remarkably consistent. In some ways, they’re like the Bills. A blue-collar gritty out. However, both their lauded OC and DC left, and no one knows exactly how it will negatively impact them. It can’t be good, but how bad can it make them?

    2. Vikings. Perhaps the biggest X-factor in the division – is JJ McCarthy a franchise QB? If he’s not, or even just starts off slowly like Bryce Young, well, Vikings could drop to the dredges.

    3. Packers. Much like the Vikings, their future firmly rests on the arm of Jordan Love and the back of Micah Parsons. I just feel something askew with that team. They were a blocked FG away from the Bears sweeping them last season, and they couldn’t beat the Bears in the finale despite the Bears playing for only pride. Jordan Love could be their Sexy Rexy. A streaky, sometimes INJed QB, who can push a team far but always tumultuously. Plus, if Parson’s back is more messed up than previously assumed, then that truly cripples the team as he cost two first rounders and an astounding $46M against the cap.

    4. Bears. Throw all the doubts out. Ignore the lack of a premiere pass rusher, questionable LT, thin depth, rookie HC…

    If Caleb becomes Mahomes, then game on. Not only won’t they finish last, it’s entirely plausible they overtake the Lions and make a strong playoff-push.

    Look at the Bengals. Their ’21 team was OK, but I don’t believe many predicted they’d make it to the SB. Bengals like the Lions were a joke for decades. They made the SB mainly on the phenomena that is Joe Burrow [and to a lesser extent, Ja’Marr Chase].

    If Caleb throws for 4,600, 34TDs, runs for another 500 while earning an 108 QB rating, then it won’t matter what the Lions, Vikings, Packers, or any team honestly, does because Caleb will simply impose his greatness, and all the D and specials have to do is not suck.

    Hey, a gal can dream…

  • Gruden Grinding NFCN

    Gruden Grinding NFCN

    Chucky breaking down NFCN, starts off with Bears.

    Some interesting tidbits:

    Bears haven’t had a winning season since ’18 [12-4].

    Bears have finished LAST in past 7 of 11 seasons.

    Bears have only had a Top 10 Offense three times in past 30 years.

    Bears only team to never have a 4K passer or 30 TD QB.

    ‘It’s time for all the players Poles got [in CAR trade]- Caleb, Wright, DJ, Stevenson and Burden – to step up’

    Lions went for it on 4rth down 110x in last three [BJ] years.

    ’24 Bears O were 32nd in yards [4,820],31st in passing yards [3,552], 25th in rushing [1,734] while giving up a whopping 68 sacks [3rd most EVER].

    “That’s like getting kicked in the groin 68 times.”

    Detroit in ’24 ran the most plays under center [56%]. The Bears with Williams only 84 snaps out of 575 attempts. [Approx 14%].

    ’24 Detroit lead the league in PA 37%; Bears only PAed 18% [30th].

    PA should help the RBs accelerate and find lanes.

    Should be way more PS motion. “RCE – Recognize, communicate, execute”

    Caleb was off target 21% of passes [PFF]
    Esp deep. Completed 14/68 passes over 20 yds 23% [sic] My math computes 20.5%

    Of the 68 sacks, 28 of them Caleb held ball for over 5 secs.

    Dennis Allen will use a lot of exotic looks. Cover 1/2/3, pre/post coverages, CBs pressing, man, zero blitzes.

    Bears allowed 17.2 points in first seven games.

    Last ten games allowed 25.1 ppg.

    2,317 yds allowed [28th]. 4.8 rush avg allowed [29th].

    Edmunds youngest player [27] in NFL history to start 100 games. 100+ tackles in first seven seasons.

    “I think the Bears’ D fell off because Brisker was out. Reminds me of old Bears’ safety, Fencik, Plank…”

    [I suspect the running D went to shite after Big Billings went down].

    Tory Taylor broke Bears’ net-punting record – 41.6



  • Special Edition PT 2: “CTE Victim” Guns Down NFL Central

    Special Edition PT 2: “CTE Victim” Guns Down NFL Central

    I don’t know much about the gunman Shane Tamura. From what I gather, he was a ‘normal’ dude:
    “Now, his former teammates are speaking out after learning Tamura is accused of the killings.

    One teammate described Tamura as a “goofball.”

    Another, who didn’t want to be identified, said Tamura was a good guy.

    “He was a great teammate. He was a great guy in general. He didn’t cause any problems actually at all in the locker room or on the field,” he said. “He was just a guy who really enjoyed the sport, not problematic at all so when I found out the news, I was really shocked, I really couldn’t believe it.”

    There are also reports that one of Tamura’s parents may have been a retired Los Angeles Police Department member.”

    I don’t know how in roughly 9 years you go from THAT to this.

    Now, I know what the general reaction is

    ‘Oh, here we go again, making more excuses for scum…”

    But if you only take away ONE lesson from Butch, let it be this:

    The more science advances, the more causes [not excuses] are discovered.

    This might terrify some who TOTALLY believe in absolute free will, but you can’t WILL yourself out schizophrenia, borderline personality, dementia or Alzheimers.

    If you were to time travel to the medieval ages and yell, “Stop! She’s not a witch! She’s just a paranoid schizophrenic who needs meds!”

    They would burn YOU at the stake next to her.

    When I was in college, I read a story about Phineas Gage.

    Probably the most famous person to have survived severe damage to the brain. He is also the first patient from whom we learned something about the relation between personality and the function of the front parts of the brain[…]Some months after the accident [a rod through brain], probably in about the middle of 1849, Phineas felt strong enough to resume work. But because his personality had changed so much, the contractors who had employed him would not give him his place again. Before the accident he had been their most capable and efficient foreman, one with a well-balanced mind, and who was looked on as a shrewd smart business man. He was now, Harlow said, fitful, irreverent, and grossly profane, showing little deference for his fellows. He was also impatient and obstinate, yet capricious and vacillating, unable to settle on any of the plans he devised for future action. His friends said he was “No longer Gage.”

    So what happened to poor old Phineas? He just “decided”, coincidently, one day to totally devolve?

    No, much more likely is sections of the brain that contained parts of “Phineas” shot out of his skull with that rod never to return.

    It’s a bit macabre to think about, but we also see this in the lobotomized.

    You can’t just snap out of a lobotomy.

    It’s almost self-evident now that definite parts of the brain contain more than we assumed to the point where identities can alter drastically.

    And if I took ONE thing from Antonio Demasio’s book “Descartes’ Error,” it’s that a WHOLE LOT more ppl than imagined might be walking around with a degree of brain damage [insert jock, celebrity and politician joke here].

    If you google, “behavioral symptoms of CTE” this appears.

    Behavioral symptoms of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) can include aggression, impulsivity, depression, anxiety, mood swings, and personality changes. These symptoms can significantly impact an individual’s behavior and relationships. Additionally, some individuals may experience suicidal thoughts or engage in erratic behavior

    And as we have sadly seen in Junior Seau, Dave Duerson, et al, CTE can indeed change a person irrevocably and tragically.

    Or as the NYT wrote:

    What scientists — from such diverse fields as psychiatry, neurology and substance use — can say is that the arrows seem to be pointing in the same direction. A number of brain states raise the risk of acting out violently, and the evidence so far, while incomplete, suggests that C.T.E. may be one of them.

    Dr. Samuel Gandy, director of the N.F.L. neurology program at Mount Sinai Medical Center, said his research showed that rage and irritability “are far and away the most prominent symptoms” among former players with likely C.T.E.

    The tricky part comes when crime enters the formula as with Aaron Hernandez, Kellen Winslow and possibly Shane Tamura as correlation may not equal causation.

    A combination of photos showing sections from a normal brain, top, and from the brain of former University of Texas football player Greg Ploetz, bottom, who had Stage IV chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or C.T.E. An autopsy of former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez revealed severe C.T.E.
    Credit…Ann Mckee/Boston University, via Associated Press

    So where does this leave us as football fans?

    Well, pretty fucking confused since many of us aren’t neurologists, psychiatrists, biologists or epistemologists, and even they’re still sorting it out.

    As of now, we don’t even know if the gunman actually suffered from severe CTE while the NFL is trying to paint him as a barking moon lunatic.

    However, for a nut, Tamura sure found a rather NICHE cause to fly over the coocoo’s nest, and given some previous social media posts from him, he had to devolve relatively quickly.

    I suppose I’ll just keep my antenna up on the subject and see where it goes. It could lead me to sadly quit watching the NFL if the data keeps getting worse.

    However, medicine advances at seemingly warp-speed; maybe science finds a way to mitigate, or drastically minimize, concussions and CTE.

    So for now, I’ll crack open some beers and root for Da Bears to lay clean rib-crushing hits.

    Hey, at least I’m not watching bum fights or betting on FanDuel for this…