On this week’s show:

• Jeff plays a clip from “All That Jazz” and misidentifies it as “Lenny” (those familiar with the clip will understand why). He then discusses stages of death when it comes to the 2016 Bears season.
• Adam Jahns discusses the tone in the Bears locker room Monday night and whether he believes the team has enough left in that locker room to be competitive the next few weeks.
• Reverend Dave blows us off! (So instead we play an oldie but goodie. 2013’s “When the Bears Win”)
• Jeff tries mighty hard to like the Chicago Bears this week.

ADAM2ADAM ON LEONARD FLOYD

Leonard Floyd didn’t have a great day Sunday, expectedly for a raw rookie. But he almost never left the field. Jahns broke down his debut after film study:

“We got a fast, relentless team, guys that can do multiple things in any situations,” linebacker Jerrell Freeman said. “We got [outside linebackers] that can go out there and play seam/flat on some receivers.

“You see the young fella out there playing great.”

But sacks still matter most for Floyd. His takedown of Osweiler in the third quarter was his best play. He didn’t have a quick jump off the snap, but he fought through left tackle Chris Clark, reached the edge and quickly closed on Osweiler.

As Fangio predicted, there were moments when Floyd was overmatched. On Hopkins’ 23-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter, Floyd was stood up by Newton.

Play fakes negated Floyd’s speed at times, but he handled his run assignments well, which included squaring up with tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz. Floyd also was involved in six tackles, but he wasn’t on the field for Fuller’s 18-yard score on a tunnel screen.

“I feel good,” Floyd said. “But I’ve got some improvements to make.”

Adam Hoge had an interesting take on the Bears decision to play Floyd about 80% of the defensive snaps.

This, of course, does not mean that Floyd was the best option to play the most snaps at outside linebacker in Week 1. In fact, I would argue that the Bears coaching staff did not give its team the best chance to win by only playing Houston on 36 percent of the defensive snaps.

But I guess it depends on how you look at it. Which is more important: beating the Texans in Week 1 or getting your raw first round draft pick the most experience possible?

I guess we now know where the Bears stand on that question.

The Bears are committed to developing Floyd. And they are willing to sacrifice early success to do so.

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On this week’s episode:

• New theme songs!
• I complain about the Tribune.
• Adam Jahns talks about who is filling the defensive leadership void, why the negativity surrounding the Bears is wrong and pinpoints as HJQ as his player to watch early in the season.
• The Reverend does a rant about a transvestite prostitute. .
• Bears 20, Texans 14

BIGGS ON GRASU

If Hroniss Grasu develops into a frontline center, the Bears may have a terrific offensive line in 2016. But Grasu would have to make a significant leap if that’s going to be the case. From Biggs in the Trib:

The statistics in the eight games Grasu started last season and the other eight games that were split between Slauson and Will Montgomery are similar with one glaring difference. I tallied the stats for Jay Cutler’s 15 starts, (excluding the dud of a performance in Seattle in Week 3 when Jimmy Clausen was at quarterback) and what jumps out is the Bears averaged 4.22 yards per carry with Slauson and Montgomery at center. With Grasu, they averaged 3.77, nearly a half-yard less.

If the Bears had a high level of confidence in Grasu, they wouldn’t have made three additions even while removing Slauson from the equation. When the season opens Sept. 11 in Houston, left tackle Charles Leno could be the only starter in a position he played for the team last season.

My favorite line in the piece? “One front-office guy said his team nearly drafted Whitehair about 20 picks before the Bears.” I maintain a firm belief that Whitehair is going to be a ten-year star at guard for the Bears.

JAHNS ON THE UNDRAFTED FREE AGENTS

Adam’s piece in the Sun-Times is a solidly comprehensive breakdown of all the UFAs but I’m sampling the one position they may have had been most focused on: tight end.

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On this podcast, Sun-Times beat writer Adam Jahns discussed:

• The early season excellence of Jay Cutler and Pernell McPhee.
• What the hell is going on with Kyle Fuller and why he’d move Fuller into the slot (not to safety).
• Whether he believes Matt Forte is in the Bears’ future plans and whether a trade is something they’d actually consider.
• Why he believes Shea McClellin will be part of this defense in 2016.
• The current mood inside the locker room & more!

Had some sound issues with my phone line on the below pod. Some of Adam Jahns’ beliefs:

• Jimmy Clausen was terrible in Bourbonnais and looked similar on the field this week. Nobody should be surprised by his struggles.
• The same goes for Kyle Fuller. He was torched by just about every Bears receiver all summer and was thoroughly embarrassed by TY Hilton during the co-practice with the Colts. Jahns reports an ornery player at his locker long after the game, delivering a series of one word answers and deflections. He believes Fuller is at “a crossroads” and I agree.
• I asked how the locker room after Sunday compared to the 2014 locker rooms after blowout losses. His response was disconcerting. (I was hoping to hear about an angry room. It just sounded sullen.)
• Bears biggest problem in the pass rush is their overwhelming failure to win one-on-one matchups. Their rush is not being schemed out. It’s being talented out.
• Kyle Long is the only offensive lineman on the Bears without a penalty, per Jahns.
• Jahns gives David Fales a good chance to start should Cutler miss any time.

After the jump, listen to the entire interview.

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On this episode of the nation’s most popular podcast between a Bears blogger and a Bears beat, Adam Jahns tell us:

• Why he believes Eddie Goldman starting now in the middle of the defense is better for the Bears long-term.
• Why he’s best impressed by not only Goldman but also Ego Ferguson and Will Sutton.
• Why he’s far more concerned about the recent play (including practice sessions) of Kyle Fuller.
• Why the Bears don’t have an answer at right tackle but he believes Charles Leno Jr. is going to continue seeing first-team action.
• Why Ryan Mundy’s injuries have paved the starting road for Adrian Amos.
• Why he’s not buying in entirely to Marquess Wilson yet but is slowly coming around.
• Why “Bad Jay” will surely make an appearance but he believes the system will showcase his abilities better than any previous one.
• Much, much more!

John Fox has assumed command of the 2015 Chicago Bears without running away from the defensive disasters of the previous two campaigns. He is not taking a “those weren’t my teams, I don’t worry about them” approach. He is now the head coach of this proud franchise and seems to have accepted with that role all of the organization’s history as his own. From Adam Jahns’ piece in the Sun-Times:

The strongest message is on the binders of the defensive players: ‘‘Things must change. Be part of the solution, not the problem.’’

What must change is the passivity that has defined Bears defense for longer than a decade. Lovie Smith, while certainly an able-minded defensive coach, frustrated fans with his soft, Tampa-2 approach. During his tenure the Bears defense always seemed willing to allow the opposing offense to dictate the terms of play, waiting for mistakes instead of creating mayhem. Mel Tucker attempted to execute the same concepts, only with older and oft-injured versions of once great players.

51-23.

55-14.

On two nights in front of the nation, this decade of passivity reached its version of rock bottom. It is from those depths from which Fox must operate. And his acknowledging the existence of those depths is the first step in what will surely be a lengthy recovery.

On this episode of Jeff & Jahns, the Sun-Times beat writer tells me that…

• Shea McClellin has been handed the reins of Vic Fangio’s defense (and I laugh)
• He believes Jay Cutler’s lack of interceptions thus far is newsworthy
• Marquess Wilson is still out there making too many mental errors to expect major impact
• Pernell McPhee and Marc Mariani are the players jumping off the field (Mariani at wideout)
• Jordan Mills still looks to be the weak link on the offensive side of the ball
• Much, much more!

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.