I’m trying to take advantage of what moderately warm days we have left on the calendar by grilling as often as possible. But in doing so, I need to remember to make sure I have all the necessary ingredients for dry rubs, marinades, and side dishes. Luckily, my improvisational skills in the kitchen allow me to create magic out of thin air.
Kyle Long’s reported move to injured reserve pushed Bullets back a bit this morning. My apologies for not pushing them out sooner. You’ll want to catch up on that news here.
Our friends at BN Bulls have an alternate viewing option if you want to join the Bears in taking a bye week from football:
Hey @BN_Bears, if you need something to do today, I got you.
Second to last preseason game in Toronto at 5pm.
Should see return of Carter Jr. Plus, we’ll get a stronger indication for what the team’s actual regular season rotation will look like. Sounds fun to me!
The Bears can’t lose today, which is a good thing for all our psyches. Last week’s loss was a gut punch that we have been stewing over all week. I’m looking forward to turning the page to Saints week, if only because we could all use a clean slate as Chicago’s football team prepares for an 11-game slate that will ultimately make (or break) its season.
But first, we must survive Sunday’s showdown featuring Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. If you’re like me and can’t stay away from the football for too long, then I reckon that game will be on your television set. Just try not to get too down about neither of those guys quarterbacking your favorite team. Deal?
Or maybe you’re interested in listening to Watson break down some defenses:
https://youtu.be/iCFpQNmyYao
Timely: ESPN took some time to give the top 10 picks of the 2017 NFL Draft a re-do. Mahomes and Watson go 1-2, leaving the Bears in an unenviable position in needing a quarterback after watching the two best prospects go off the board. But instead of selecting the highest-rated quarterback available, ESPN’s Kevin Seifert has the Bears taking Texas A&M pass-rusher Myles Garrett. Drafting Garrett would have filled a hole the Bears had been seeking to fill since Julius Peppers was let go. Landing an ultra-talented potential game-wrecker of a edge defender would have been applauded by all on-lookers and viewed as a step in the right direction for a rebuilding regime.
Re-drafting 2017 changes so many things, it melts my mind. With Garrett in tow, Chicago probably doesn’t pull off a Mack trade. And what about the rest of the draft? Is wide receiver Cooper Kupp still available in Round 2 when the Bears took Adam Shaheen? Are tight end George Kittle and defensive back Desmond King still on the board in the late rounds? What about place-kicker Jake Elliott as an option to unseat Connor Barth? I could go on.
And what happens at quarterback? Do the Bears take a flier on DeShone Kizer, Davis Webb, C.J. Beathard, Joshua Dobbs, Nathan Peterman, Brad Kaaya, or Chad Kelly? Is trading for Jimmy Garoppolo (remember when that was an option?) back on the table? Do the Bears approach free agency differently and approach Colin Kaepernick as a more feasible long-term option than Mike Glennon?
Speaking of Kaepernick, his representatives shared a document in which it is stated their client has not been offered an NFL contract since kneeling during the national anthem in an attempt to protest police violence, which you can read about in The San Jose Mercury News. It has been three years since Kaepernick last laced ’em up. And despite reaching out to each of the league’s 32 teams, the document shared by Kaepernick’s representation states they have received “little to no response” about teams interested in signing the quarterback. I imagine it is getting tougher for teams to want to go all in on a quarterback who hasn’t suited up in a long time, but some of the quarterbacking options on rosters and on the market should inspire a team looking to shake things up at quarterback.
Between Trubisky’s struggles and Chase Daniel’s obvious limitations, I have found myself watching college football through the lens of finding another quarterback option. Could Trubisky still develop into a fine passer? Sure. It would be foolish to rule it out. However, watching the likes of Kyle Allen and Gardner Minshew II step in and run offenses successfully serves as a reminder that there is a certain upside to having a young, developing quarterback on the roster.
I don’t know where Jalen Hurts’ draft stock is at this moment, but I know there is no one I enjoy watching on Saturdays more than this Heisman hopeful:
NFL Points Allowed and Points Scored Relative to Opponents Average Performance.
Top Right- Good offense, good defense Bottom Right- Good offense, poor defense Top Left- Poor offense, good defense Bottom left- Poor offense, poor defense pic.twitter.com/jpmiXxXvDc
There are some wallets that are lighter this week than they were a week ago:
#Raiders OG Richie Incognito was fined twice for actions against the #Bears for a total of $21,054. One was the unnecessary roughness penalty and the other was a chop block.
Anthony Miller was fined $10,527 for unsportsmanlike conduct (taunting) and Eddie Goldman was fined $14,037 for unsportsmanlike conduct from Sunday’s game.
Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.
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