Aaron Rodgers is a long-standing nuisance who has been making life as a Chicago Bears fan quite difficult (to say the least) since the days Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs, and Charles Tillman were manning the defense.
And if Rodgers has his way, it’s not coming to an end any time soon:
Rodgers is entering his age 35 season, and it doesn’t appear like he’s slowing down any time soon. Spotrac shared what a potential extension could look for the leader of the Packers offense, and it’s quite a pretty penny Green Bay will need to fork over:
NEW: A look at a potential contract for #Packers QB Aaron Rodgers that won’t make him the highest avg. paid player in football, but instead guarantees an unprecedented $105M at signing thru 2021. pic.twitter.com/Bn9XP1yHg7
I think I speak on the behalf of the rest of the NFC North when I say: Go. Away.
If Rodgers is going to be around for the next five years or so, then he can expect to see a lot of Roquan Smith. Over at BearsWire, Lorin Cox dives into some of Smith’s film and dissects how the rookie linebacker can be an impact playmaker against the run, pass, and as a pass rusher. Not that Rodgers will be intimidated by the All-American Butkus Award winner who the Bears chose with their first-round pick in 2018, but he should circle the name on his scouting report.
(Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
Just the idea of the Bears challenging Rodgers with an intense defense warms my soul on a surprisingly cool and rainy spring day. Check this out: Chicago has allowed 25+ points against a Rodgers-led Packers offense in seven of its last eight games. Now that you know that, you won’t be surprised when I tell you the Bears have one win in those eight contests. Naturally, the one win came when they held Green Bay to 13 points in a 17-13 win on Thanksgiving in 2015.
Perhaps the biggest misstep of the Phil Emery era was the idea of building up an offense to out-duel Rodgers in a shootout. The Bears invested gobs of money and assets onto the offensive side of the ball, but left a withering defense that was a shell of its former self out to dry against an all-time great signal caller in his prime. Even though Chicago overhauled its offense in the offseason, Pace’s Bears appear to have more balance when it comes to picking a battle with Rodgers moving forward. With the investments via the draft (Smith, Eddie Goldman, Eddie Jackson, Adrian Amos, Leonard Floyd) or free agency (Prince Amukamara, Danny Trevathan, Akiem Hicks), there isn’t much of an argument to be made of the Bears ignoring one side of the ball to focus on the other.
Keeping Rodgers off the field would be one way to limit what he can do offensively. After all, you can’t torch the secondary from the sidelines. Some love from left tackle Charles Leno Jr., whose skills blocking for the run and pass improved last season and could even get better under new position coach Harry Hiestand:
Bears LT Charles Leno Jr. on O-line coach Harry Hiestand: "We love Harry, let's just get that out of the way. Harry is a great coach. I saw what he did for guys that he coached in college and the guys that were before us here in Chicago. He's getting us better."
You know, maybe it will prove to be difficult for the Bears to be the surprise of the league if everyone keeps talking about them in such a glowing manner. Let’s add Gordon McGuinness of Pro Football Focus to the pile, as he lists Chicago as one of five teams who could be a surprise Wild Card contender. McGuinness cites an overhauled roster with no less than five new pieces on offense and a bulked up middle of the defense as reasons why the Bears could spring up and surprise some folks along the way in 2018.
It’s also worth pointing out that the Miami Dolphins – a Bears opponent led by former OC Adam Gase – also makes the cut. I guess that would make their Week 6 matchup in Miami much more interesting that originally believed.
Change happens, but this one coming after the draft might raise some eyebrows:
The #Bears have released National Scout Ryan Kessenich. He had been with the team since 2013 after coming over from the #Chiefs, where he had been an area scout. He also spent a year as a pro personnel assistant with the #Redskins.
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.
In a few hours, the Chicago Bears will have a new franchise quarterback, Caleb Williams. He'll be the best quarterback prospect they've ever welcomed into Halas Hall. There are many reasons why I believe that drafting Williams is a no-brainer,...
If you're looking for chaos on NFL Draft day, you just might get it. And leave it to the script-writers to get a team out in Hollywood involved. Here is a scoop from The Athletic's Dianna Russini, who hears the...
NFL Draft followers seem to have settled on four quarterbacks going somewhere in the top 10 picks. Many appear to think that we could get a draft with quarterbacks going 1, 2, 3, 4 in succession at the top. Others...
The 2024 NFL Draft begins TODAY. Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles, Assistant GM Ian Cunningham, Head Coach Matt Eberflus, and others will put their heads together to come up with a winning plan for the team’s four picks (Nos....
The 2024 NFL Draft begins TODAY. Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles, Assistant GM Ian Cunningham, Head Coach Matt Eberflus, and others will put their heads together to come up with a winning plan for the team’s four picks (Nos....
We've been talking about this day since the Bears' 0-4 start to last season, and it's finally here. It's NFL Draft day. We know it'll be Caleb Williams at first overall, but what direction will the Bears go with the...
If the Chicago Bears end up drafting Caleb Williams and Rome Odunze, I imagine this tweet from Tom Pelissero is going to get a ton of engagement: https://twitter.com/TomPelissero/status/1782905425689522654 In fairness, it already has gotten all sorts of clicks. But that...
Draft Day is finally here! We've taken quite a few cracks at what the first round could look like, and this will be the last one before the NFL Draft kicks off tonight! It still feels like a really unpredictable...
The 2024 NFL Draft begins Thursday. Chicago Bears General Manager Ryan Poles, Assistant GM Ian Cunningham, Head Coach Matt Eberflus, and others will put their heads together to come up with a winning plan for the team’s four picks (Nos....
The Chicago Bears drafting Caleb Williams with the first pick in the 2024 NFL Draft is a foregone conclusion. However, what happens with the Bears' other first-round pick is anything but a lock. One name we haven't discussed much as...
Boy did he need that! The Chicago Cubs top prospect, Pete Crow-Armstrong, was called up this season not because he was quite ready offensively, but out of necessity after multiple injuries to the Cubs starting outfielders. And, predictably, he looked...
The Los Angeles Lakers meet the Denver Nuggets at 10:00 PM ET on Thursday, in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs, and one of the 3-pointer over/unders available for this clash requires two trifectas from LeBron...
D'Angelo Russell must make four 3-pointers to beat his prop when the Los Angeles Lakers play the Denver Nuggets on Thursday at 10:00 PM ET, in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs.D'Angelo Russell's Three-Pointer Prop Odds...
To beat his 3-point over/under, Michael Porter Jr. must make three from downtown on Thursday, when his Denver Nuggets face the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs, tipping off at 10:00 PM...
On Thursday at 10:00 PM ET, the Denver Nuggets face the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs, and Jamal Murray's 3-pointer prop for this clash requires three treys.Jamal Murray's Three-Pointer Prop Odds...
Nikola Jokic's Denver Nuggets meet the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday at 10:00 PM ET in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs, and to beat his 3-point over/under, he needs to make two from downtown.Nikola Jokic's...
The Los Angeles Lakers play the Denver Nuggets at 10:00 PM ET on Thursday, in Game 3 of the opening round of the NBA playoffs, and one of the 3-pointer props available for this clash requires just one trey from...
I knew Dan Straily was pitching in Korea, and I knew there was a time in relatively recent memory that he was trying to come back to MLB. But sometime between then and now, he fell off my radar as...
If you're looking for chaos on NFL Draft day, you just might get it. And leave it to the script-writers to get a team out in Hollywood involved. Here is a scoop from The Athletic's Dianna Russini, who hears the...
The Kansas City Royals are on the road, opening a three-game set against the Detroit Tigers on Friday, April 26 at 1:10 PM ET.Tigers vs. Royals Series Info Royals @ Tigers Time: Friday, April 26 at 1:10 PM ET Tigers...
NEWSLETTER
