My buddy Bryan stopped by for a visit that included some adult beverages, Christmas tunes, and the NBA on ESPN. We both expressed our issues with seeing LeBron James in a Lakers uniform. Moreover, there were issues with the Lakers’ uniform itself. Growing up, the Lakers wore two outfits – gold at home and purple on the road. At some point in the 2000s, they added a Sunday home white. They should have stopped there, but haven’t. Not only is seeing LeBron James wearing Lakers garb weird, not seeing the traditional home golds just doesn’t look right.
It’s something like that which makes me appreciate the Bears’ uniforms from head-to-toe. There’s nothing wrong with the injection of orange once in a while. The alternate throwbacks are a fan favorite. And even if they were to go with the white-on-white as they did long ago, if only for a moment, it would probably be met with a round of applause.
Hopefully, the Bears don’t do anything drastic to their uniforms in the years to come.
Speaking of uniform looks, few are as classic as the Cubs home whites with blue pinstripes. Leave it to the Chicago Sun-Times photo/illustration team to come up with this:
As for the players wearing Bears uniforms, I found this piece on Josh Bellamy’s fit from NBC Sports Chicago’s JJ Stankevitz to be a compelling read. Bellamy has clearly carved a niche as his teammates rave about his work ethic, football IQ, swagger, grind, energy, etc. in this story. Not only does Bellamy know his role, he thrives in it. He does the grunt work of a special teams player, he knows the offensive system and receiver route trees from all three positions, and how to bridge gaps between teammates. Stankevitz gets quotes from Mitch Trubisky, Prince Amukamara, Danny Trevathan, Mark Helfrich, and others. Bellamy’s influence casts a net far and wide throughout Halas Hall. It’s a nice story for a grinder type to finally get his due.
It’s fun to think about Bellamy as a survivor. After all, he is one of the few Bears to play for Marc Trestman, John Fox, and Matt Nagy. He has also caught passes from five different Bears quarterbacks since the start of the 2015 season, which is neat if you really think about it.
Here is a chart where I’m glad the Bears finish at or near the bottom:
I know one that comes to mind off the top of my head, but the Bears have dropped just four interceptions on defense this year. They have 26 entering Week 16. It’s a remarkable turnaround for a unit that struggled to create turnovers in recent years.
Khalil Mack pops up on Chris Wesseling’s list of top-10 NFL Defensive Player of the Year candidates. Even though the Mack for NFL MVP train didn’t go as long as we would have hoped, there is still an outside chance he lands the league’s top defensive honors for the second time in three years. While Mack faces stiff competition in Aaron Donald, Luke Keuchly, J.J. Watt, and others, his presence transforming the Bears defense and that group lifting the team from NFC North cellar dwellers to division champs might be the story of the year in the NFL.
Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton digs up every NFL team’s underrated building block for the future, which highlights safety Eddie Jackson as the Bears’ representative. The second-year safety has emerged as a Pro Bowler who has put an end to the revolving door of disappointing defensive backs who have come through Halas Hall in recent years. Jackson has stabilized the position and provided thrills with big-time plays in the clutch.
There are a handful of Bears players who could help you win a fantasy championship this weekend:
https://twitter.com/gmfb/status/1076112060122099712
What’s the bigger surprise for you: the Bears’ success or that they have multiple fantasy relevant players? It’s been a while since we’ve been able to talk about either. But still … I like the whole winning thing. It keeps me warm on a cold winter morning.
It’s crazy to think that a draft that produced a quarterback, running back, and safety who were key components to an NFC North winning team could have been that much better:
I’m still miffed at the Bears choosing Morgan over Desmond King, the University of Iowa cornerback/return specialist who caught my eye that season. But that’s water under the bridge. Even the best hitters make outs sometimes.
I wouldn’t want to run up on this group of monsters:
NEWSLETTER
