I can’t get over the Kendrick Lamar concert that streamed last night on Amazon Prime. It was one of the greatest spectacles in the history of hip-hop — and perhaps music history. To give it some perspective, Kendrick’s show is headlining ESPN, Forbes, and the Associated Press (plus, others). And it blows my mind.
There are 80 days until the Chicago Bears kick off the 2024 regular season against the Tennessee Titans. This feels like a good time to remember some dudes who wore No. 80 for the Bears. It is a fine group, which includes Earl Bennett (2009-13), Bernard Berrian (2004-07), and MyCole Pruitt (2016). I bet those guys would all be great NFL Immaculate Grid answers. You can get a full list of dudes who wore No. 80 while in Chicago over at Pro Football Reference.
My favorite No. 80 is Curtis Conway, who wore it for the Bears from 1993-1999. Conway, a Bears first-round pick in 1993, played for Mike Ditka, Dave Wannstedt, and Dick Jauron. There aren’t too many players these days who are making it through three Bears coaches. Patrick Scales (Eberflus, Nagy, Fox) comes to mind among active players. But I digress. Conway tops my list of Bears 80s because he put up consecutive 1,000+ yard receiving years in 1995-96, which was pretty unheard of for this franchise’s receivers during my childhood. The kids today are about to be spoiled with the trio of DJ Moore, Keenan Allen, and Rome Odunze.
Who do I need to talk to in order to get these Bears hats back into circulation?
Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Daniel /Allsport
I’m sure we’ll eventually dive deeper into some Matt Eberflus stuff. But in the meantime, I enjoyed reading this Jason Lieser (Sun-Times) piece about how the Bears head coach has a real opportunity to put his own stamp on how the Bears look moving forward. Eberflus has coached through an uneven stretch of this franchise’s history. I don’t imagine it is easy to coach through a tear-down and live to tell about what it was like to come out on the other end. But how Eberflus handles things this year figures to tell us if he is here for the long haul.
If you’re looking for a way to fill time today, this Immaculate Grid challenge features the Bears:
Former Bears quarterback Justin Fields is leaning into Steelers culture:
“Me being in two different places now, I realize you don’t get this culture everywhere,” Fields said via the Steelers website (h/t SteelersDepot). “I think Chicago, they’re kind of changing the narrative now, but this has been the culture here for so many years. You can see it, just the way that we attack each and every day. Coach [Mike Tomlin], he stays on us about it, so I think just having that, reiterating that each and every day, that keeps guys on their toes. Guys are ready to compete each and every day.”
That’s a subtle jab, sure. But that’s nothing that Bears fans haven’t said about their own team. And that Fields mentions that this franchise is turning the culture speaks volumes. But it is also notable how the former Bears QB frames it in a way that reminds us how far behind the times this franchise has been. It’s never too late to change for the better.
This graphic has absolutely blown my mind:
Inspired by @TexansCap here, doesn't include 2024 yet because we still have several major deals to go…
QB market growth exceeding the rest of the league over the last 5 years (besides RT catching up to LT finally) and not stopping any time soon. Will there be a tipping point? https://t.co/V5yTI0a8qvpic.twitter.com/zqATcWZnqF— Brad Spielberger, Esq. (@SpielbergerBrad) June 20, 2024
Everyone has been seeing an uptick on payday in NFL circles. But no one has seen it as much as quarterbacks. I hope the Bears have a quarterback who is worthy enough of receiving a contract that reflects the growth at the position.
The Green Bay Packers kicking conundrum is among the reasons they didn’t beat the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs last year. In an attempt to not repeat history, Green Bay brought in a pair of kickers to give incumbent Anders Carlson some competition. But the summertime kick battle is down to two after the team waived Georgia’s Jack Podlesny, leaving Carlson and former Minnesota Vikings kicker Greg Joseph dueling for the gig. (Pro Football Talk)
I’m chuckling to myself thinking about how the Bears have the most stable kicking situation in the NFC North. The Packers, Lions, and Vikings are all having kicking competitions this summer. Meanwhile, the Bears are rostering Cairo Santos — who has made 91.8% of his field goals the last two seasons. Plus, he has improved on his long-distance kicking (which had been his biggest weakness). Santos has made 84.6 percent of his field goals from 50+ yards out over the last two years. To put it in perspective, Robbie Gould’s career success rate from 50+ yards was 70.5 percent.
Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in the Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.
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