I had a lot of questions. Adam Jahns always has a lot of answers. On this pod we discuss:

• The fallout of the Ray McDonald signing at Halas Hall.
• Was Cliff Stein demoted with the hiring of Joey Laine? (Sure sounds like he was)
• Where the hell is Martellus Bennett and what does he want?
• Would giving Matt Forte another year tacked on to his deal suffice or is the back looking for a multi-year commitment?
• Shea McClellin. Lots and lots of Shea McClellin.
• The Ultra-Positive: observations from the John Fox practice field.

If you ask me, this is one of my best radio appearances to date. This is a passionate conversation about Ray McDonald, domestic violence in the NFL and how the league must address their growing problem of a league comprised of unlikable men.

• I questioned the social responsibility associated with the Ray McDonald signing at the time the move was made. The Bears displayed none, overlooked a history a sketchy behavior towards women, and gambled on a bad guy not being bad for the year he would spend under contract with the Bears. George McCaskey did not want his organization to make this move. This is why. The reward was not worth the public relations risk.
• Easy for Kyle Long to Tweet “good riddance” about McDonald after McDonald does what he did. He also Tweeted this when the move was made: “If yall don’t like second chances I can go back to folding t shirts and sticking the shoe room at the surf shop lol.” If you read about McDonald, you’ll realize the Bears didn’t give him a second chance. They gave him a fifth chance.
• I know a lot of people. None of them have beaten a woman. None. It ain’t that hard to NOT do. McDonald is a bad human who should never be allowed on an NFL field again.

Picture if you will…

January 3rd 2016.

Lions at Bears.

John Fox has rejuvenated the Bears franchise and led them to a 9-6 record. A win, at home, against the lowly Detroit Lions will send them into the postseason.

Lions lead 24-17 heading into the fourth quarter. The heavens open. Snow. Not just snow. A blizzard. Both teams struggle to move the ball. The game seems lost. With 1:07 remaining, Cutler hands the ball to Forte at midfield. A hole opens! Forte slips! Forte slides! End zone! Touchdown! Overtime!

Or not. Because now, according to the new rules of the NFL, in the howling winds off the lake, with snow piled an inch and a half high off the field, the Bears must now make a 32-yard field goal to enter the postseason.

Read More …

I’ve never cared for the writing of Bill Simmons. It’s just not my thing. It’s doesn’t stop me from acknowledging Simmons as the most important sports media voice since the turn of the century.

Why don’t I care for Simmons? Content and approach.

Pop culture references in sports writing, movies, music…etc always bother me because they limit the lasting power of the piece. Nobody on earth will get the references in The 40 Year-Old Virgin – an otherwise funny movie – twenty years from now. (They actually make jokes in that film about Maid in Manhattan, a movie people had forgotten before it was released.) Simmons not only utilizes pop-culture references but often uses reality TV and his favorite movies as the complete framework for his columns.

Simmons likes a lot of stuff I don’t care for. He likes reality TV and fantasy football and wrestling. He’s spawned a generation of barroom boneheads saying things like “Andre Iguodala is like the girlfriend who blah blah blah nonsense.” He’s glib and unserious and that works for this generation of young males (especially his most dedicated readers) who have a detachment from the sports they watch.

Read More …

This season DBB would like to introduce some new elements to the site aside from the columns and podcasts. Today I am asking you, the loyal readership, what you’d like from this site. What does this site not currently provide that you wish it did?

All ideas are welcome and please share them in the comments below. If you’d prefer to email me, feel free to do so: jeff@dabearsblog.com.

Adam Gase has to love this opportunity.

He has one of the league’s top backs, one of the league’s top tight ends, a terrific receiving corps (especially if Kevin White makes an immediate impact) and a quarterback that can make every throw. The unit has two holes: health/production from right tackle and the decision-making of the quarterback. Gase’s system should mitigate both to an extent with a run-heavy approach and quick, timing throws. Gase is going to be a head coach in 2016.

Read More …

A year ago the Bears used a second round draft pick on a defensive tackle from the southeast. They took a productive running back in the fourth and a safety with the pick that followed. This year they did the same in those three spots. This was not, as it has been characterized, a redraft of 2014. 2014 never happened according to Ryan Pace and John Fox. Those picks, more than anything else happening on draft weekend, signaled clearly the Bears have begun to rebuild their roster. They are acknowledging their talent deficiencies and turning positions over.

Is this significant? Absolutely. Phil Emery tried to build an offense around a pre-existing defense. In doing so he created a massive locker room divide that proved irreparable. The Bears were two teams. Emery’s Trestman-led offense and the remnants of Lovie’s defensive dynasty. This resulted in the Sarajevo-like disaster that was the 2014 Chicago Bears season.

Read More …

Three of the four players I profiled last week – Nick O’Leary, Jalston Fowler & Nick Perry – are still available for the Chicago Bears on day three of the draft. Who else of note is available?

• Two of the safeties I thought would be gone on day two – Josh Shaw and Adrian Amos – are still on the board. Both are potential NFL starters in 2015. Since I posted some Shaw video yesterday, here’s Amos:

Read More …

Can’t bring myself to sit on the couch and watch eleven hours of Mike Mayock making up phrases and misusing half the English language. So if you’d like to follow my thoughts over the course of rounds two and three, as always, you can do so by (a) checking out my Twitter on the right rail of this page or (b) following me on Twitter by CLICKING HERE. 

I’ll have a report on tonight’s selections posted late tonight/early AM.