Happy 4th of July, Bears fans. Just 69 days until the regular season kicks off.
Pretty nice, eh?
- Not only did the USFL re-boot complete its first season, it did so in thrilling fashion. With Birmingham clinging to a three-point lead in the game’s waning moments, this interception delivered victory:
- After taking a rest day following my weekend travels, I tuned in for the final few minutes of the game and found myself entertained. Thus, proving that a competitive football contest that has the game hanging in the balance at the end of it will always have some level of intrigue. Who knew the USFL title game would be this compelling? Few things draw like the unscripted drama that football – at any level – can bring. And, at minimum, it was nice to whet my football appetite with a thrilling finish.
- Now that the USFL’s first season is over, I wonder if we’ll see any of those standouts end up in NFL camps. Maybe a receiver like Victor Bolden Jr. — who won the USFL Championship Game’s MVP — would make sense as a Bears target? Bolden went for 6 catches, 64 yards, and a touchdown to win the MVP to close out a season full of highlights:
- Side note: It would be nice to see the NFL use some of these camera angles and other innovations in their next season. There is always room to improve the TV product.
- Alex Ballentine (Bleacher Report) comes through with a list of USFL players who might be worth taking a flier on for NFL teams in need of help. To be clear, I wouldn’t put unnecessarily high expectations on any of these players (should they make the jump into the NFL). HOWEVER, a team like the Bears should be targeting any number of candidates to round out the depth. And if the team hits on a lottery ticket, then so be it. But you can’t cash a lotto ticket if you don’t play. With that being said, we’ll keep an eye on if anything shakes out in the free agency market now that the USFL’s first season is in the books.
- Ha! This meme is EVERYWHERE:
- I see Mark Grote chose to share violence on the holiday weekend:
- This feels like a fun time to note that Mitchell Trubisky was 4-0 against the Vikings (in games he started and finished) after the Bears jettisoned John Fox and his staff after the 2017 season, Trubisky’s rookie campaign. And, in case you missed it, Chicago’s football team pushed Matt Nagy out the door to start its offseason. So while I won’t predict the Vikings are about to go winless against Justin Fields, history has an odd way of repeating itself.
- It’s been a fun few years for the Bears-Vikings rivalry. The Vikings reportedly were eyeing drafting Justin Fields, only to fall short with a futile trade-up attempt and watch him go to the Bears after a successful draft day trade. And let’s not forget how Minnesota was hot after Ryan Poles, but saw the Bears hire him to be their GM instead. It truly is objectively hilarious that the Vikings wanted Fields and Poles, but got neither because of the Bears. IF anyone needs me, I’ll be making July 4th cocktails with Vikings fan tears.
- But seriously … please celebrate responsibly, friends:
- Soon, Stacey King will be able to deliver that memo Goran Dragić should’ve gotten years ago:
- Alex DeBrincat is good at hockey. So, naturally, there are a bunch of teams who have an interest in acquiring his hockey skills via trade:
- What the what?