Pixote

Not sure how many of you are familiar with a website called "Heavy." I love that the articles are always solid, more often backed up by statistics than unfounded opinions. Today, there was another feel-good article that had any Bears fanatic dreaming of the coming season. How The Bears’ Offense Is Set Up To Take An Exponential Jump In 2026 Good Site for Bears' News: Heavy on Bears

If he could make the easy throws, just imagine what his completion % would be? More important than his Comp. %, we might actually be able to sustain drives, score in the first three quarters, give our defense a chance to get a breather, and avoid the need for Caleb to revert to the Ice Man (although it is fun to see frost on his beard).

I don't recall seeing this here, and too lazy to review, but it just adds to the adrenaline running through Bear fans' veins when you see something like this. I'm referring to the on-the-dime completion to Rome during Thursday's OTA @ Halas Hall, which Case Keenum says went 67 yards in the air. Not bad since Caleb was scrambling and actually threw off his back foot. ;-)

Or possibly June 1st surprise cuts?

They (the 2 authors of the article) were suggesting it would be a 'trap game.' If we lose a game this year because the players thought they could take a game off and win, I would be all ugly on BJ and his staff. BJ should have these guys fired up. Trap games are, IMO, the fault of the HC & staff for failing to sense their team's mood and motivate them. I'd be totally disappointed if the players don't show everyone we deserve their respect.

Very impressive. Looking good. I may have rushed to judgment. He looked to be in terrific shape & working hard.

Always seems to happen. Players get the big money guarantees on their first major contract after their rookie deal, and suddenly, they have soft tissue issues that keep them from earning the extension. If we're going to take a step forward to the Super Bowl against a strong schedule, we need all hands on deck.

A bit early, but what else can we do to kill time waiting for camp to open? There was an article on NFL.com predicting the outcome of every regular-season game to be played in 2026. The authors of the predictions were two guys I'm unfamiliar with, Ali Bhanpuri & Tom Blair. These guys were generous with their predictions for the Bears. One had us at 10 wins; the other at 11. Both had us winning the NFC North title again. One had us going into the playoffs as the #2 seed; the other as the #3 seed. What really surprised me was how optimistic they were compared to so many other doom-and-gloom predictors. Yet they both had the Bears losing to Carolina in our season opener. If we lose our opener, I would be so depressed. Carolina??? Seriously? Your prediction?

I'm with you 100%. I've always been a big fan of Booker. I was expecting him to hit 10+ last year, but then he got injured. If he stays healthy, he will finally complement Sweat. I also agree we will, because of the speed we have added to our defense, see multiple players contributing 4, 5, or 6 sacks. (I would still love to see them sign a vet edge to rotate with the young lads.)

Personally, I believe Braxton will come back strong and have the best year of his career. Dare say a top-tier L.OT. It will put us in a fantastic position when Ozzy returns.

The Bears play the toughest schedule (based on last year's results), but at least we stay home. No overseas games for the Bears. GOOD! 2026 international games: 🏈Week 1: Rams/49ers (Australia) 🏈Week 3: Ravens/Cowboys (Brazil) 🏈Week 4: Colts/Commanders (London) 🏈Week 5: Eagles/Jaguars (London) 🏈Week 6: Texans/Jaguars (London) 🏈Week 7: Steelers/Saints (France) 🏈Week 9: Bengals/Falcons (Spain) 🏈Week 10: Patriots/Lions (Germany) 🏈Week 11: Vikings/49ers (Mexico)

Just read this article, and I'm totally pumped for 13 personnel packages this year. Why Bears rookie tight end Sam Roush fits head coach Ben Johnson’s vision Great article on Roush, best I've read since we drafted him. Goes into a ton of detail on what to expect from him. Tough kid. Missed 1/2 of 1 practice the entire time at Stanford, and only because they forced him to leave the field with a temperature of 102. On an assigned chip block, he managed to "chip" his man so hard that he was propelled back into a DT, and he got 2 pancakes on one block. It details how we had great success running 13 personnel last year. I'm surprised BJ didn't call it more often. After reading this article, I have no doubt we will more than double the number of 13 personnel plays.

We are going to lose more than usual to other teams needing depth on their active rosters.

For so many years, many of us have pointed out examples of the NFL's bias against the Bears. From refs calling penalties against the Bears that were bogus. To the penalties committed by the opposition that the refs never called. And then they rob us of two 3rd round compensatory picks from the Ian Cunningham signing with Atlanta. There is an article on SI com that gives some interesting data to back up our claims: Link to article: Stunning NFL Penalty Data Suggests There is Bias Against the Bears It starts off wth this paragraph and then continues to break down the statistics. "The Chicago Bears have a league-worst -795 net penalty yardage gap since 2022. From missed Caleb Williams hits to the 'Bears Tax,' see the data that proves the NFL bias." An excellent read during a time we are starving fr Bears' info:

Not so sure about your assumption. If I remember correctly, Loveland was recovering from shoulder surgery and could not fully participate in preseason camps, making it difficult to learn what is described as a difficult system to master. Burden also lagged behind in learning the system because of a preseason injury. Time lost in preseason camps is difficult to make up for during the season. I'm guessing both would have been far more active starting game one if not for their lack of preseason prep. I pray our team can stay healthy this year.

Watching the video, I was surprised by the highlights for TE Roush. All the hype was that he was the best blocking TE in this year's draft class. What I saw was a big target with good hands. Great pickup for 3 TE Sets, valuable backup for Kmet & Loveland, and a (reported) strong blocker for pass pro and run plays. I feel a lot better about this pick by RP/BJ after watching the video.

Some more love pouring out of rookie camp for Dillon: Dillon Thieneman Is Already Making News Headlines for the Bears The BJ quote about Dillon in the article I loved:

Sons of Bears Pro Bowl linemen Kreutz, Williams participating in rookie minicamp C Josh Kreutz and DE Jai Williams.

Yeah, Vikes are looking tough. They won 9 with crap at QB last year. As you said, Jennings is a keeper. Now we have to hope QB Murray sucks because if he turns the page, the Vikes will be tough competition for the NFCN title.

Contract years are quite an incentive, giving a guy a chance to earn a few million extra on his next deal. My money is on Braxton as our starter but then may want too much to resign 2027. I also suspect, if for no other reason, Dexter is going to have a 10+ sack season as a IDL. ;-)

This brought back a flash of one of my favorite Bear memories of the past. Remembering Keith Traylor (DL 340? Pounds) returning an interception down the sideline. He ran it back quite a distance, well over 50 yards (can't recall exact length or if he scored) I remember creating an image with Acrobat of him with a turtle running beside him to protect him from being tackled

Damn, that really sucks. I thought he would be a sleeper last year. Then he sits out with the personal issue. I again had hopes he would shine this year. Obviously, unresolved. I would love to know just what caused this mess.

Turner has better tape as a DE than he does as a DT. His versatility was one of the positives on is resume. That's why I have always questioned, with the abundance of bodies inside, why they didn't try him on the edge?

Bradbury is what? 31? If he goes down, who would take his place? Protecting Caleb has to be our #1 priority. So if they panicked and drafted who they thought was the best option at Center a bit early to avoid another team from grabbing him, so be it. We needed an option who could start day one if Bradbury got injured in preseason.

Ozzy looks mighty fine. Seems to be ahead of the rehab schedule.