Some General Bears Thoughts
- The first year of Trestman came with a lot of enthusiasm around the offense but nobody foresaw the defense plummeting to the bottom of the league. (There was also a segment of the fan base that refused to be excited about anything involving Jay Cutler.) This year there is just as much enthusiasm around the offense with an expected top-ten unit on the other side of the ball. There is real excitement around this club right now. They better win games.
- When DBB started there were like two other Bears bloggers. Now there are about 100. And I honestly don’t follow or read what 99% of them do. But I’d love to see the out-and-out lying stop. Stop pretending you have sources. Stop pretending you’re “told” things. Stop linking the team every seemingly-available player in the league so you can get ten more clicks. It took ten years of me grinding before anybody associated with the Bears (or the league) would even answer an email. Sadly, the lying shit reflects poorly on this site because we got the fucking word “blog” in our title.
- Nobody should underestimate how little this team has in the pass rush department. It will keep them from being a dominant defense. Leonard Floyd is their only reliable rusher on the roster and he’s (a) inconsistent and (b) averaging 11 games played over his first two seasons. What happens to this defense if Floyd misses five games in 2018?
Finley: Defense Believes in Offense
From his piece this week in the Sun-Times, profiling Prince Amukamara’s decision to return to the Bears:
“I want to win a championship, and having Mitch here, that’s always the start,” he said after the Bears’ second organized-team-activity practice Wednesday. “The quarterback’s always the start, and just having Mitch and seeing his improvement and his effort . . . I’m sure some people saw, but even when Mitch was the backup, Mitch was staying after practice and always working hard. And you love seeing that in a quarterback, especially a backup.
‘‘I’ve always just saw greatness in him ever since then. I think this year he gets to really show it.”
Amukamara isn’t alone. Receivers Allen Robinson and Taylor Gabriel, who signed this offseason, hope Trubisky can get them a “third contract, or help them get their first ring,” Amukamara said.
“I think if guys came here to win, then, yeah, the quarterback should definitely be the first thing that you look at,” he said.
NFL players want to do two things: make a lot of money and win. And the hierarchy of those two things is a player-by-player thing. For wide receivers choosing where to land in free agency, the quarterback can enable both. That’s why Robinson and Gabriel chose Chicago.
Hoge on the Royal Wedding
Me: “Where is Meghan Markle from?”
My wife, disgusted: “America. How do you not know that?”
Me: “Who was the shortstop on the 2005 White Sox?”
My wife: …
Me, disgusted: “See, same thing.”
— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) May 19, 2018
I feel like this Tweet perfectly encapsulated conversations in living rooms across America Saturday morning. But I’ll never understand why people get angry about what other people like. If you like to watch fancy people get married, excellent. You like the housewife programs or riding your bicycle super long distances, cool. How is that worse than the thirty hours of golf I watch a week? Lady golf. Senior golf. Web.com Tour golf. I watch more golf than golf journalists.
Everybody should drain every ounce of joy they can from this planet before they die.
Anthony Miller Presser
Two things I thought watching this:
- My god does he look young. As a matter of fact, all of these rookies look like children. I guess when you start being 15+ years older than those entering the league, it’s noticeable. And I’m now solidly through that wall.
- Everyone I’ve spoken to about Miller makes lofty comps, including several pointing out that he’s got some Steve Smith in him. Smith is my favorite non-Bears NFL player in league history. He’s Roy Jones Jr. Pound-for-pound I can’t think of any player who got more out of their physical gifts at the position. If Miller is 2/3 what Smith was, the Bears have a star on their hands.
Cat Pic: Chicago Style
Nobody gets more comfortable than my cat, Bear. The pillow comes from Windy Kitty Chicago. 1746 W. North Avenue. Chicago. If you love cats, support them!
Links, Gambling Style!
- Paddy Power – Ireland’s leading gambling entity – is now in talks to combine with FanDuel in the United States. FanDuel and Draft Kings skirted US law with their bullshit “fantasy is a game of skill” argument, supported by Roger Goodell repeatedly, and are now positioned to dominate the digital market as sports books become a reality in the fifty states. As someone who has used Paddy for years, this is a good thing. They have a wonderful digital offering.
- People think sports gambling will be a financial windfall across the country. But as this well-written opinion piece from Robert Robb of AZCentral proves, states with tribal gaming monopolies will face complicated, difficult decisions very soon.
- USA Today compiled a state-by-state gambling guide, breaking down the status of each state’s gambling rules/laws. Worth your time. There is going to be federal oversight of the gaming industry. But this current Congress will never get their act together long enough to do anything meaningful.
