This a useful guide for knowing the important stuff as you trek down to the lake and beaches in Chicago.
‘Tis the damn season, after all.
- Sometimes, sharing some Walter Payton clips at the top of Bullets is exactly what we need to get our day going:
- There isn’t a uniform combo I want back more than the Bears’ white-on-white outfits. They’re super clean. And the white makes both the navy blue and orange pop. Although it would look cool, part of me would be wary of adding a white helmet to that mix. Chicago’s football team taking the field looking like Stormtroopers would scratch a specific itch for me. But we all know how often Stormtroopers misfire and I’m not sure I want to deal with that on a given gameday. Nevertheless, the point remains that those all-white looks should come back into the mix.
- While drinking adult beverages and eating encased meats on a rooftop patio over the weekend, friends and I discussed the best uniforms for several teams across sports. That conversation had me wanting to re-share this post from 2021 that contained news that the NFL was set to allow alternate helmets for alternate and throwback uniforms starting in 2022. The Bears took advantage of that last year by debuting their orange helmets. No, they didn’t win a game while wearing them last year. But then again, they didn’t do much winning no matter what they were wearing. I hope they go back to the drawing board with an alternate look in 2023.
- Looking ahead to 2023, there are many non-believers who aren’t buying what the NFC North is selling. On the one hand, I suppose that makes sense after Aaron Rodgers left the division. With Rodgers getting a welcome to New York (Jets Version), it is easy to dismiss the North’s QB collection. But not for NFL media analyst Adam Schein, who ranked the North as the highest-ranking group of quarterbacks in the NFC. And I think you’ll like what Schein says about Justin Fields:
Fields is the most fascinating figure in this quartet, and not just because he took the league by storm last season with 1,143 yards on the ground, including a whopping 10 gains of 20-plus yards. In addition to his dynamic legs, Fields boasts a big arm and solid frame. Chicago upgraded his protection in free agency (OG Nate Davis) and the draft (OT Darnell Wright) while also nabbing him a No. 1 wide receiver via trade (D.J. Moore). It’s Year 3. It’s go time. And I’m a huge believer.
- Come one, come all! Jump on the Justin Fields bandwagon. There is plenty of room available.
- As for Jordan Love, Schein calls the Packers quarterback “the most questionable figure in this group” and that Green Bay’s one-year extension was an admission that no one knows what to expect. Hence, Schein has his doubts. For what it’s worth, he isn’t alone.
- Good luck to the new-look Bears defense, which Alyssa Barbieri (BearsWire) points out will face 11 receivers who rank in the top 32 of Pro Football Focus’ rankings. Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Tyrique Stevenson, and the rest of the secondary will have their work cut out for them in those games. But they’ll be up to the challenge, I’m sure. What’ll make those matchups fun is that each of Chicago’s starting CBs has something to prove in 2023. Maybe Jaylon will show he is deserving of a big contract (extension from the Bears? free agency deal from elsewhere?) soon. Perhaps Kyler will rise to the occasion and flash in a manner similar to how he did late in his rookie season. Tyrique has to prove himself as a rookie and will be tested often because that’s what happens with rookies.
- And because I know you’re curious, D.J. Moore lands at No. 16 on Sam Monson’s list at PFF. Monson puts Moore behind Detroit’s Amon-Ra St. Brown (15) and Miami’s Jaylen Waddle (17). It’s been a while since the Bears have had a receiver worthy of that kind of ranking. Let’s enjoy it while we can.
- I bet this will be fun:
- Jimmy G looks like someone Hollywood would cast as a quarterback in a romcom masquerading as a sports flick. So maybe it should come as no surprise that drama follows him. More from our friends at BN NFL.
- Marcus Stroman was a showman on Monday at Wrigley Field and I was lucky enough to witness it in person:
- What would’ve happened had Diar DeRozan been allowed to go to that Bulls-Heat win-or-go-home play-in game? The world will never know what that alternate universe holds. But what we do know is that the Heat are representing the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals. (BN Bulls)
- Now this is the type of content I need to inject straight into my veins between now and the NHL Draft: