The Bears’ Next Super Bowl Window is Here and Other Bullets

The Cubs’ All-Star representatives were booed in Cleveland yesterday. But as a wise man once said, “they don’t boo nobodies.” Today and tomorrow are two of the slowest sports days of the year, but we’ll make the most of them by keeping you company here.

  • It’s not usually a good thing to share a list with the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins, but I think Bears fans will be glad to do it on this occasion. Connor Orr of SI.com’s The MMQB places Chicago’s football team at the top of a list of squads entering a Super Bowl window. Orr cites the Bears’ supplementation of a highly paid and immensely talented defense with an offense loaded with home-grown, cost-controlled talent as something that has built a legitimate contender with talent across the board. And with quarterback Mitch Trubisky leading that group having two more years on a rookie contract and another on a fifth-year option, the Bears are in a great situation.
  • The lone criticism of the Bears here might be Orr’s assessment of Trubisky as being a quarterback who is “good enough to win games, but not dominant enough to force their hand on an early extension.” So much rides on Trubisky’s shoulders, but it doesn’t have to be that way. GM Ryan Pace has put together a team with talent at every level and given Trubisky a head coach whose offense allows the playmakers to do the dirty work. All Trubisky has to do is make sound decisions and accurate throws, then let his pass-catchers make plays. It seems simple enough … right? Go get ’em, #10.
  • As the Bears gear up for a season with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations, it’s neat that they are kicking off the festivities by going back to their first home. The Bears are going back to the place where their franchise was born for a celebratory event in Decatur on July 21, which includes a fan session featuring GM Ryan Pace and Head Coach Matt Nagy. It’s a nice touch for a franchise whose roots are in central Illinois, where George Halas helped found the Decatur Staleys, who would move to Chicago in 1921 and become the Bears in 1922.
  • Tickets for the event can be purchased here, with all proceeds benefitting the Staley Museum.
  • The answer is Allen Robinson, right?
  • Statistically speaking, the better answer might be Trey Burton. The Bears’ tight end was Mr. Reliable for Mitch Trubisky in the red-zone last year, with PFF noting that Burton posted the NFL’s fourth-best red-zone grade among players at his position. That’s pretty good. And when the company you keep in the top-5 includes Travis Kelce and Zach Ertz, you’re doing something right. Trubisky put up a 131.3 passer rating when targeting Burton in the red-zone last season, which is also good.
  • My gut says Robinson. The numbers suggest Burton. My heart feels full knowing that there are multiple options that don’t make me cringe.
  • Old-time, grainy, black-and-white football highlights will never not be fun to watch:
  • A 73-0 win in a championship game would be an absolute lock for the greatest moment in franchise history for most teams in the NFL. And yet, the Bears’ history is littered with so much greatness that you have to think about it, then vote for it.
  • Kyle Long was the two-sport star we didn’t know we needed:
  • How much time you got, my man?
  • (But seriously, ketchup is for dipping fries. Would you put ranch on a hot dog? Blue cheese? Of course not. So, then why put ketchup? I rest my case.)
  • Pens and pencils and games and luggage and a whole bunch more are deals of the day at Amazon today.
  • Happy (Supplemental) Draft Day:
  • If anyone needs me this afternoon, I’ll be watching highlights from my alma mater’s football national championship from 1983.
  • This is nice to see:
  • It’s never too late to give to a good cause:
  • It’s that time of the year, friends:
  • Well, that’s certainly interesting:
  • Even without Westbrook, the Bulls have been showered with love for their offseason efforts. It’s a refreshing change from the narrative we’re used to:
  • written by

    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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