NEWSLETTER
Back-to-back days with temperatures hitting the 70s has me feeling good about spring.
And yet, I’m dreaming of summer and fall.
Not winter.
Not yet, anyway.
- The NFL schedule won’t officially drop until 7 p.m. CT tonight, but the rollout is an all-day thing today. And you can’t party all day if you don’t start early in the morning. Our friends at BN NFL have Holiday Games schedule nuggets, as well as tidbits regarding when and where Aaron Rodgers’ Jets’ debut will take place.
- As for the Bears, we know (thanks to an early Packers schedule leak) that the NFL’s longest-standing rivalry will open its next chapter in Week 1.
- I guess this is what it felt like when Babe Ruth called his shot:
- You’ll want to watch the entire episode of CHGO’s Bears After Dark show. Trust me on this one.
- I think I might play Lotto tonight. We’ll play Taylor Swift’s lucky number, my lucky number, and then see what happens.
- Brace yourselves! Football is coming:
- Surely, there’s an Icarus warning to be made here. Something about flying to close to the sun. But I’m going to ignore it, if only because I’d rather feel the burn and the adrenaline that will come from the free fall than feel nothing because I didn’t want to take the risk of feeling something no one has felt. It only feels scary because the potential is scary (but in a fun way). Give us Justin Fields against an Aaron Rodgers-less Packers squad. Test that new-look Bears defense against an inexperienced Jordan Love. Bring on the noise.
- Should we fear Jordan Love just because he’s a Packers QB? Heck no. Maybe he’ll prove me wrong. But what if he proves me right?
- The Bears will travel the third-fewest miles of any of the NFL’s 32 teams:
- Not going to Germany for a one-off saves some miles. But also, being centrally located helps matters. That’s one of the awesome things about Chicago. You can hop on a plane, go anywhere in the continental United States, and not be vigorously attacked by jet lag.
- Ken Fang (Awful Announcing) has a bunch of details regarding the new stuff in the NFL’s schedule release. My favorite tidbit is that FOX (which traditionally carries NFC games) and CBS (AFC games) are pretty much in a free-for-all with any and all afternoon games that are not plucked for primetime being available. I fully expect the Bears to be on FOX more often than not, but I can see CBS sprinkling a game or two that we wouldn’t have otherwise been expecting.
- Kyle Long is a Justin Fields believer:
- Watching replays of DJ Moore touchdowns and Eddie Jackson interceptions on these honking new video boards will be spectacular:
- Josh Schrock (NBC Sports Chicago) has five things he is looking at when it comes to the Bears’ schedule. I don’t know how you can limit it to just five. My list is in double figures.
- Post-draft BN power rankings from Patrick. And to prove he’s not playing favorites, the Bears aren’t No. 1. (BN NFL)
- Patrick Mahomes *AND* Lamar Jackson? The Chiefs might go 16-1:
- That one loss will come at Arrowhead against the Bears. Duh.
- Velus Jones is celebrating a birthday today:
- Jones’ rookie year struggles made him a popular target of criticism. Some of the critiques were fair, but some went above and beyond. I’m not here to police criticism. However, I am here to see how a player — one who had real struggles in big moments — tries to bounce back. Because of trades (DJ Moore, Chase Claypool) and draft picks (Tyler Scott), Jones went from possibly squeezing into a top-3 WR role to WR5-6 territory. Jones’ speed and playmaking ability give him a puncher’s chance. But he’s got some work too do.
- Ooh, I like the sound of this:
- Retiring Derrick Rose’s No. 1 at United Center isn’t something I’ve ever given serious thought to, but I guess it could be a thing:
- Michael has some suggestions on how Marquee Sports Network can improve its baseball broadcasts:
