Nagy on Tough Schedule, Re-Visiting Roots, What’s Up with PUP, Secret Weapon, and Other Bullets
The Cubs start a brief west-coast layover tonight in San Francisco. I refuse to call it a west-coast trip because I’m old enough to remember when west-coast trips consisted of a week’s worth of games during visits to San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego … and eventually Colorado and Arizona.
Nothing like an 8:45 p.m. CT start to make you thankful NFL’s primetime games don’t require a nighttime coffee to make it through the entirety of the game.
- Summer is over for Bears rookies, who report to camp today. Draft picks David Montgomery, Riley Ridley, Duke Shelley, Kerrith Whyte Jr., and Stephen Denmark join a slew of undrafted free agents as part of the first wave of players who are showing up for training camp. Veterans will follow shortly thereafter, then we’ll see them in action start on Saturday. Let’s go!
- The Bears are 45 days away from opening the season on primetime and I can just hear it now:
Just missing @carrieunderwood… pic.twitter.com/ZBi92xv0eX
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) July 22, 2019
- While talking about the “A**-Kickin’ Chicken” in a recent interview on NFL Network, Bears Head Coach Matt Nagy offered up his thoughts on the team’s schedule being loaded with primetime games. “You don’t want to be a team that has a bunch of 12 or 1 o’clock games. You want to have as many primetime games as possible,” Nagy explained. “We’re excited to be in that position and we have tons of respect for the teams we’re playing. We have a tough schedule, but our guys know that. We wouldn’t want it any other way.”
- I, too, wouldn’t have it any other way. When your favorite team is in primetime, it means that expectations are high. And when expectations are high, that means good things can happen — even when faced with challenging situations. The Bears figured to have a tough schedule last year, too. But they went toe-to-toe with every challenge and emerged with a 12-win season. This year’s slate of games has even more tough challenges. But once you’ve battled your way from worst-to-first, conquering tough times isn’t as difficult as it once was when the team was a down-on-its-luck also-ran.
- But seriously, look at all this potential primetime action the Bears will be a part of in 2019.
- Before jumping into primetime, they 2019 Bears started their journey in Decatur, Ill., where the franchise was born:
For Bears fans, 'Return to Decatur' celebrates where it all began; players, coach and team owner talk history https://t.co/MzbDncNe0Q
— heraldandreview (@heraldandreview) July 21, 2019
In honor of their 100th season of football, the @ChicagoBears returned to Decatur this weekend and gave head coach Matt Nagy and GM Ryan Pace a feel for where the franchise got it's start. Hear from both Nagy and Pace in this story by @WCIA3Bret. https://t.co/0cbHF6oA8Q
— WCIA 3 Sports (@WCIA3sports) July 22, 2019
This mom really just dapped up @LanceBriggs at the autograph signing 😂 pic.twitter.com/vq0D9LUPuJ
— Gordon Voit (@GordonVoit) July 21, 2019
- It’s gonna be a party, y’all:
Chance the Rapper will be a part of the NFL’s kickoff concert at Grant Park on Sept. 5 before Bears-Packers, per George McCaskey.
— JJ Stankevitz (@JJStankevitz) July 21, 2019
- I guess Chance the Snapper was unavailable. SMH. Where were you when an alligator went from Humboldt Park to Hollywood in the blink of an eye?
- It’s #PositiveVibesOnly for Chairman George McCaskey:
Chairman George H. McCaskey says the vibe heading into training camp is "all positive" but that it's time to get after it. pic.twitter.com/kUs0gcn8tG
— Chicago Bears (@ChicagoBears) July 22, 2019
- Can you imagine Akiem Hicks, but a better version? Ryan Pace can envision it:
- HEY NOW! Let’s not forget about nose tackle Eddie Goldman, who Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox circles as the Bears’ secret weapon. Goldman signed a multi-year extension before the start of the 2018 season, then rewarded the Bears with his best year yet. Nose tackles don’t get a ton of glory or rack up a bunch of stats, but he chews up space and makes a mess of things for opponents by pushing through into their backfield. So long as Goldman is doing work in the middle, the rest of the Bears can attack freely from the outside.
- You know summer is over when names you know are landing on the PUP list:
Notable players that have been placed on PUP to begin training camp, per source:
* Texans DE JJ Watt
* Texans WR DeAndre Hopkins
* Patriots RB Sony Michel
* Patriots WR Demaryius Thomas— Field Yates (@FieldYates) July 21, 2019
The #Lions have placed big-ticket free agent pass-rusher Trey Flowers on the PUP list.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 22, 2019
- In case you missed it, there is a good chance safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix opens his Bears career on the preseason PUP list. Jarrett Payton and Josh Frydman from CLTV’s Sports Feed chime in on what that means for Clinton-Dix and the Bears:
The possible trip to the PUP list for Ha Ha Clinton-Dix was part of the Bears' talk from the "Return to Decatur" event on Sunday's Sports Feed. Watch @paytonsun's full talk with @Josh_Frydman here: https://t.co/5vzMYCtCPo pic.twitter.com/FyGlWVtn1Q
— @CLTVSportsFeed (@CLTVSportsFeed) July 22, 2019
- At least there is SOME good news from the injury front:
God’s Wrath Watch: Anthony Miller, Trey Burton Set to Be Ready Bears Training Camp https://t.co/UeNPyOQOHP pic.twitter.com/MFOy6bE5HL
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) July 22, 2019