Walter Payton and George Halas to Be Immortalized With Soldier Field Statues and Other Bullets

Au Cheval has one of the best burgers I have ever had, but I rarely make it downtown to get it. So you could only imagine how happy I was to learn there was an off-shoot (aptly named Small Cheval) two blocks north of where the NBC Sports Chicago studios are located.

The burger I had last night helped make up for another woeful showing by the Cubs. Here’s hoping I don’t have to eat my feelings too often moving forward.

Statues of Bears legends Walter Payton and George Halas are being erected outside of Soldier Field and will be unveiled just in time for the season-opener:

The Bears will unveil statues of Hall of Famers Walter Payton and George Halas outside Gate 0 of Soldier Field on Tuesday, September 3. Each statue will be 12 feet tall and 3,000 pounds of bronze.

— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) August 7, 2019

Could you hand-pick two better or more-deserving icons to get statues outside the home of the Bears than Payton and Halas? No. The answer is no. As the founder, owner, and greatest head coach in Bears history, a Halas statue was long overdue. And then there is Payton, the best player in franchise history and arguably the greatest player in the league’s history. A Payton statue was a long-time coming. I can’t wait to see both in September.

Also, when does the Khalil Mack statue go up?

This tweet makes me feel better about QB1:

I thought Mitch Trubisky had his best practice of camp today. Was crisp, accurate and in command. The 2 INTs came on a slip from WR and a tipped pass. Much better today. #Bears

— Zack Pearson (@Zack_Pearson) August 6, 2019

A preseason broadcast nugget: The Bears announced Adam Amin and Jim Miller are returning to provide the calls of the preseason action for the first three weeks. Amin is an experienced play-by-play broadcaster who you might be familiar with from his work on college football Saturdays. Miller is an ex-Bears quarterback who has slid into a role as an analyst on TV and radio. That duo worked well last preseason, so I’m cool with them running it back. NFL Network personality Kyle Brandt will once again handle play-by-play responsibilities in preseason Week 4, where he will be joined by Miller and ex-Bears head coach Dave Wannstedt. Preseason games will air on FOX-32 in Chicago, but you’ll want to check out this list to see where they will be on in your market.

The citizens of Tuddyville, USA, are blessed with great hands:

https://www.instagram.com/p/B01QthclNVc/

Way to get ’em, Prince:

https://twitter.com/ChicagoBears/status/1158840088505331712

If you can’t be motivated from within, then I reckon football is not the sport for you:

Bears secondary coach Deshea Townsend, a two-time Super Bowl champion player, said of his team's defense: "You don't have to push them. They're self-motivated. It's easy when they're self-motivated. … I've been on some good defensive teams. They have it within."

— Chris Emma (@CEmma670) August 6, 2019

Khalil Mack is too cool:

Some Khalil Mack audio from Monday's practice. #Bears pic.twitter.com/uWQTgRTCQM

— Bear Report (@BearReport) August 7, 2019

BOOM!

I didn’t realize how good of an angle I had for this Matt Nagy dime to Javon Wims from Monday’s practice until I got a chance to sort through my camera roll this morning. pic.twitter.com/XRxf39W9Rk

— Luis M. Needs A Clever, New Display Name (@lcm1986) August 7, 2019

These sentences are pure gold: “I accept that, in order to be a successful NFL quarterback, you have to be insane. Lord knows that Tom Brady is. Scouts spend the entire combine making sure that you’re of suitably UNsound mind and thus eternally dedicated to their deadly sport. … But Aaron Rodgers seems to have no grasp of the fine line between pushing your teammates and alienating them.” You can find the rest of them here:

Packers Nation is a cul-de-sac of odd-smelling ranch-style houses, each one uglier than the next, with a loaded handgun and a pan of gross-looking seven-layer dip on every table. The Packers suck: https://t.co/BXpfl5CM7c pic.twitter.com/q1cYqGwYVR

— Deadspin (@Deadspin) August 7, 2019

I haven’t laughed this hard at the Packers’ expense in a hot minute. My morning has officially been made.

It turns out things worked out well for the Bears here:

The #Packers waived/injured former second round pick OT Jason Spriggs. They drafted him one spot before the #Bears pick in 2016. Bears ended up trading back and took Cody Whitehair at No. 56.

— Adam Hoge (@AdamHoge) August 6, 2019

At the time, the belief was that the Packers traded up to take Spriggs before the Bears could. Whoopsidoodle. The Bears ended up trading back and snagging Cody Whitehair. Nothing like the dance that is trading draft picks in the NFL!

I see the Raiders are back to being the Raiders:

Antonio Brown's mysterious foot injury is the result of extreme frostbite caused by a cryotherapy machine, a source confirmed to ESPN. https://t.co/yeIDVBsBCM

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 7, 2019

Not buying the cryotherapy/frostbite story for @AB84. Follow this thread to see why. My thoughts still stand.https://t.co/7AvyCbEN55

— David J. Chao (@ProFootballDoc) August 6, 2019

Shoutout to Nick Shepkowski of 670 The Score for reminding us of this important anniversary, in which ex-Bears defensive lineman Steve McMichael was tossed from a Cubs game by home plate umpire Angel Hernandez *DURING* the Seventh-Inning Stretch:

Eighteen years later, Hernandez is still one of baseball’s most disliked umpires. And that’s putting it nicely.

The Cubs had a backup catcher pitching to an emergency catcher last night:

Treat Yourself to Star Relievers Duane Underwood and Taylor Davis (VIDEOS) https://t.co/JwIOJXwCT8 pic.twitter.com/HERJHXKAjz

— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) August 7, 2019

One of the keys to success is to surround yourself with greatness. I see Coby White has this locked down:

Coby White Was Ballin’ Out at Dwayne Wade’s Exclusive Up-And-Comers Camp https://t.co/YFtBO1oh4X (via BN)

— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) August 6, 2019