Nobody Really Likes Green Bay or the Packers (And Other Bears Bullets)

I did a fantasy football draft for a family friend at the last minute and probably gave him a better team than the one I gave myself drafting the night before. Using the 4for4 PPR rankings was helpful, particularly after I got down after Round 6. If they win the league this year, I’m gonna make them take me out to dinner. And if they don’t, uh, well, then they should’ve drafted their own team.

  • I’m a little under the weather to start Bears-Packers week. Yours truly is holding out hope that this is something that will pass quickly. It’s all hands on deck around here when it’s Week 1. With that being said, this is the kind of energy I need to kick-start my day. Take it away, Jaquan Brisker:
  • Brisker didn’t get to play in last December’s Bears-Packers game at Soldier Field, so this will be a new experience for him. It won’t be his first taste of the NFL’s longest-standing rivalry, as he played in the Week 2 game (10 tackles, 7 solo) in Green Bay. That was a wild environment in its own right. But being at Soldier Field in Week 1 against your arch-nemesis just hits different. Hopefully, Brisker will be doing a ton of hitting on Sunday for the Bears.
  • The Bears have been getting their licks in on the Packers this offseason. Defensive tackle Justin Jones threw some jabs. Tight end Robert Tonyan wistfully discussed how he dreamed of being a Bear (even while he was playing with the Packers). And now we have safety Jaquan Brisker checking in. But let it be known that it isn’t just active Bears players sounding off. Check out what University of Colorado star two-way player Travis Hunter had to say:
  • Travis Hunter isn’t NFL Draft eligible until 2025 and he is already cringing at the thought of having to play for the Packers. That makes him an honorary Bear in my book.
  • Side note: I wasn’t planning on watching any college football this weekend, but texts and tweets from friends were compelling enough to get me to check out the Colorado-TCU game. And I’m glad I did so. What an entertaining bit of football that was for us to watch! Although, seeing the Shohei Ohtani comps was wild when considering a Charles Woodson comp was RIGHT THERE FOR YOU. Charles Woodson was the reason I fell hard for college football in the first place. Playmakers going both ways and excelling on offense *AND* defense spoke to a young kid who would’ve rather been watching meaningful baseball in the fall but instead found himself watching college football on autumn Saturdays.
  • Are you going to the Bears-Packers home opener? Then I’d advise you to take public transportation if you can. Traffic downtown is going to stink and you’re not going to want to be stuck in it. With that in mind, the CTA is offering free post-game transit via the #128 Soldier Field Express bus, #146 Inner Drive/Michigan Express bus, and on the “El” if you hop on the Roosevelt Red, Green, or Orange Line trains. Be safe on Sunday, friends.
  • Sorry, friends. The Bears aren’t making an appearance on ManningCast this fall. These are the games that are getting the ManningCast treatment:
  • Last year’s Bears-Patriots game will always hold a special place in my soul for so many reasons (many of which go beyond the Bears winning on MNF and beating Bill Belichick, but that certainly helps keep the happy memories alive). Somewhere on the list was the enjoyability of the ManningCast, which I believe is still on my DVR.
  • If you’re a Bears fan who watches a bunch of NFL Network coverage of the league, then you might see some familiar faces joining their collection of analysts. Chase Daniel (Bears QB 2018-19), Leslie Frazier (Super Bowl XX champ), and Pep Hamilton (Bears QBs Coach 2007-09) are joining the team. I’ll be most interested in hearing what Frazier (who interviewed for the Bears head coaching gig that ultimately went to Matt Eberflus) and Hamilton (interviewed for the OC gig that went to Luke Getsy) will have to say on the Bears if and when the moment presents itself. (NFL Media)
  • In sharing a list of notable practice squad additions, ESPN’s Adam Schefter name-dropped a whole bunch of ex-Bears whose names took me on a trip down memory lane: QB P.J. Walker (preseason 2023), C Hroniss Grasu (2015-17), WR N’Keal Harry (2022), LB Nicholas Morrow (2022). Let’s give the Bears roster turnover some additional depth. How about Nicholas Morrow going from Bears starter and leading tackler to replacing T.J. Edwards in Philly to the Eagles practice squad? That’s a wild journey.
  • This is one of the wildest things I read over the weekend: Bears rookie defensive tackle Gervon Dexter Sr. is suing to nullify his NIL deal from when he was at the University of Florida. I’m no hot-shot, big-city lawyer, but it looks like Dexter signed a raw deal out in Florida. These NIL deals have the potential to be good for student-athletes, but it is evident that there are people who are going to be willing (and able) to take advantage of young people who don’t know any better or don’t have advisers who can assist them. The system needs tweaking. That much I know. (Sun-Times)
  • Justin Steele is an ACE. And he just might be authoring a Cy Young story:
  • written by

    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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