Tony

Nice feather in Poles cap to have drafted an All-Pro as well as acquiring one for a 4th rounder

25% of the league is now looking for a new HC after McDaniel just got fired in Miami. Additionally, I believe if Ben Johnson were available this cycle, he’d be the No.1 choice for every team looking for a coach.

I think a few things can be true at once. On one hand, expectations change for teams quickly in the NFL. Many didn’t think the Bears would win 8 games this year, but when they held the No. 1 seed late in the year, your view of what can be accomplished in a given season changes. And because fortunes can change so quickly in the NFL, you need to capitalize on the opportunity when it’s there. So I think it’s fair to “criticize” a team that now has raised the level of expectation for fans. On the other hand, I think there are plenty of “fans” that simply don’t want to admit they were wrong, pegged the Bears as a bad team before the season started and simply want to be proven “right”. It’s the day and age we live in and just have to accept people are going to make fools of themselves. I view things this way: If the Bears lose to the Packers on Saturday, it will be very disappointing and being honest and frank about where this team needs to make improvements will be justified. However, I will still acknowledge the leaps this franchise made over the last calendar year in finding the right coach, seemingly finding a QB they can build around, and being excited about what Year 2 under Ben Johnson will look like, on all sides of the ball. His first draft proved to be pretty fruitful and adding in another class should be a welcome addition, or them taking a big swing at a DE in the trade market. But next season, and basically the two years following (the years that span Caleb’s rookie deal), it’s Super Bowl or bust. They are basically right on schedule. This was the come up year, but next year it’s all-in.

There have been way too many games lately where it seems like Caleb has about 80 yards passing when they go to halftime. Usually the 4th quarter heroics seem to balance it out in the final box score, but to your point...they gotta put up some points in the 1st half.

Honestly really like getting the Packers. Not only is it probably the best matchup for the Bears, but if they win...everything else this season is truly gravy. If they lose, it will be pretty heartbreaking, and hopefully it's a kick in the ass to put them over the top in the offseason.

They play like this in the post season and it’s going to be curtains very early for this team. Not ready to pass any judgements as the defense hasn’t been THIS bad the entire year, but it’s trending in the wrong direction.

I mentioned it during the game, but there was a play on third down where he missed Loveland while rolling out of the pocket. Collinsworth said something to the effect of “We have seen Caleb make some absolutely out of this world throws this year, a few of them in this game, but he’s gotta be able to hit the easy ones, something he has been inconsistent on thus far and a reason his completion percentage is around 56% on the year.” And I don’t disagree with any of it. There have been a ton of improvements from Caleb and I’m happy where he is right now..but that area does have to improve, and believe it will

Best tweet I saw last night

Captured my feelings pretty well

Damn! That was a great watch though, honestly not even upset

Collinsworth nailed it on that 3rd down from Caleb. He’s gotta hit the easy ones.

It’s kind of football 101. If you are playing a good offense, you have to disrupt it. The Bears don’t have any disrupters. Offense like the 49ers isn’t making a ton of mistakes if they aren’t forced into them. It’s why the Bears need to make a big swing for Myles or Maxx in the offseason.

Which can always be done in the NFL. There is always a way to kick the can down the road, restructure deals. Usually at some point, there needs to be a "reset" to get rid of a bunch of bad money, Poles did that first year he got to the Bears (to fix the cap he inherited from Pace) but windows open and close so fast in the NFL, they have to take advantage now. You'd have to give up some serious capital to acquire a Garrett or Crosby, but the hope would be you're picking between 27-32 in the first round the next few years. There is no better time than this offseason to go all in.

All correct. They are seemingly one year ahead of schedule, which isn't a bad thing, but the window is now wide open for them, and they have to take advantage. Caleb will be entering Year 3 next year. His Year 3, 4 & 5 is the window. If he continues to progress, they'll be giving him a mega deal at some point, which will make things much harder to navigate. They have to take advantage during this window. It's why I'd bet good money that the Bears end up with one of Garrett/Crosby/Hendrickson in the offseason. All would come at different costs, but if Garrett, or even Crosby were on the 2025 Bears, I think they are considered a Super Bowl favorite this year. It's such a glaring need at an impact position. The time to make the big swing is here, to try and put this team over the top and make a run for the next 2-3 seasons.

Good for the Sox. Very low risk involved in a deal like that.

I went out of my way to try and find Joniak’s call and I agree, he didn’t capture the moment. I like him a lot, think him and Tom are fun together, but he didn’t bring it on the call like normal.

OH MY GOD

When they were down 10, they were still headed in the right direction, don’t let a few chodes in here make you think otherwise. They played like s%*# for most of this game, but the season on a whole has made a ton of positive strides. I still have questions about Caleb long term, but I want to see what the team looks like after a full year of install from BJ. I still have the utmost faith the right guy is leading this team.

This team doesn’t quit

I wanted them to go for two

100% Absolutely ready to move forward with Rome and Burden next year.

Get fucked. Thanks.

Thanks, Nostradumbass

And then a fucking drop, these stupid assholes

Really inexcusable. It seemed like it sucked the momentum away from everything. He got way too cute on the biggest stage, no other way to say it. Everyone deserves heat this week, they didn’t come to play