ADVERTISEMENT

Bears

Definitely CTE. LOL
I disagree with Hub making his decision for MVP based on personal behavior. What Aaron Rodgers did wasn't a criminal offense. So, I don't think Hub should have based his decision on that. It should be based on what a guy does on the field. If a guy gets busted by law enforcement or popped for use of illegal substances, fine, go there.

I can't say I am a "fan" of Hub. Way back around 1987-88, I attended a luncheon that Hub spoke at. He really rubbed me the wrong way in that speech. I just thought the guy was full of himself.

However, in this case he has gone on the air and apologized and "owned" his behavior. I really respect that. So many people in the world we live in wouldn't do that and would blame someone or something else.

It's not just that Hub's reasoning is off, in my opinion. It's the idea he voiced it before he was supposed to. To me, that is just as troubling. The voting committee has rules and he broke one. A big one. He knows better than that.
 
  • Like
Reactions: markmacaluso
I disagree with Hub making his decision for MVP based on personal behavior. What Aaron Rodgers did wasn't a criminal offense. So, I don't think Hub should have based his decision on that. It should be based on what a guy does on the field. If a guy gets busted by law enforcement or popped for use of illegal substances, fine, go there.

I can't say I am a "fan" of Hub. Way back around 1987-88, I attended a luncheon that Hub spoke at. He really rubbed me the wrong way in that speech. I just thought the guy was full of himself.

However, in this case he has gone on the air and apologized and "owned" his behavior. I really respect that. So many people in the world we live in wouldn't do that and would blame someone or something else.

It's not just that Hub's reasoning is off, in my opinion. It's the idea he voiced it before he was supposed to. To me, that is just as troubling. The voting committee has rules and he broke one. A big one. He knows better than that.
I agree. Hub is a self important tool.
 
  • Like
Reactions: mchsalumni
Didn't Hub have a disastrous broadcasting inclusion during the televised FB State Finals just a few years back? Like with this Rodgers business, he went way out of his lane producing bad results.
 
Hub Arkush ... discuss ... (at your own peril?).
Think he got his hand caught in the cookie jar and he got called out. I'm sure he didn't think Aaron Rogers was gonna hear what he had to say.

I give him credit to owning it.
 
Hub Arkush ... discuss ... (at your own peril?).
Blew his chance with the part of the audience Venn diagram that is Justin Fields- skeptic and Covid-skeptic. Is one of the few local media that seems not to be on board the Fields express.
 
Is one of the few local media that seems not to be on board the Fields express.
Hard to fault him for that. Fields has not done much to prove he is unquestionably the future. Almost identical to Mitchell Trubisky’s first year stats.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Gene K.
No I get it. Look I’ve experienced mental illness in my own family and had to admit one of my own. Some on the doctors on this board are quick to diagnose CTE. I’ll let Roger Goddell and his staff of experts weigh in on AB. I’m just saying his behavior is nothing new but if he’s certifiable then I’ll be the first to eat crow. Until then the doctors on ET need to slow their roll.
A lot of people think he hasn't been the same since this hit:

 
  • Wow
Reactions: johnndoe
Hard to fault him for that. Fields has not done much to prove he is unquestionably the future. Almost identical to Mitchell Trubisky’s first year stats.

IMO
In the first year you give the rookie QB 3 years to prove he will make it in the NFL. In there first year I don’t expect him to be great but must show he is capable. The second year he must improve and be on his way to winning more games. The third year he must again improve and have potential to win and make the playoffs. If at any point I see him go backwards like Trubisky then it’s time to move on. The Bears are terrible about judging talent at the QB position and are slow to make a decision to move on. The Bears are awful at developing a QB which means the QB better have natural talent because he won’t gain it from the coaching. At least from what I have seen with the Bears over the past 40 years.
 
Bears could have been a 11 win team. They weren’t that far off. How crazy is that to think about.

I really don’t think they are that far away from being a 10-12 win team. They are however, pretty far away from a super bowl contender.
 
Bears could have been a 11 win team. They weren’t that far off. How crazy is that to think about.

I really don’t think they are that far away from being a 10-12 win team. They are however, pretty far away from a super bowl contender.
Just as easily could have been a 3 win team. Too weak in the secondary to be an elite defense. Offense is quite a ways off
 
Again this playoff season, especially into the later rounds, it will become painfully obvious how far the Bears are away from relevance.
 
Who do you think takes over as GM and HC?

I bet the Bears are talking to Jim Harbaugh.
 
Last edited:
Who do you think takes over as GM and HC?

I bet the Bears are talking to Jim Harbaugh.
I think the no income tax states may have an edge with Miami taking additional advantage of the LV Raiders making in the playoffs this week (hence the quick hook of Brian Flores).
 
I think the no income tax states may have an edge with Miami taking additional advantage of the LV Raiders making in the playoffs this week (hence the quick hook of Brian Flores).
Dolphins owner has already said he doesn't want to take Harbaugh away from Michigan.

FWIW, he's a Michigan grad, the business school is named after him, and has donated 9 figures to the university.
 
George McCaskey's press comments tell you everything you need to know. He's still chairman and Ted is still a key part of the search team for the next GM and coach.

They think fans are incredibly stupid because they want us to believe that since now that the new GM will report directly to George "I'm not really a football guy" McCaskey instead of Ted, that it's going to be different this time.

Really, it will be different....trust us.
 
Get Harbaugh. He’ll knock heads in the front office and get things done.

He’ll develop Fields or get someone in that he can.
 
George McCaskey's press comments tell you everything you need to know. He's still chairman and Ted is still a key part of the search team for the next GM and coach.

They think fans are incredibly stupid because they want us to believe that since now that the new GM will report directly to George "I'm not really a football guy" McCaskey instead of Ted, that it's going to be different this time.

Really, it will be different....trust us.
I just watched his press conference. I have absolutely no faith in him to get it right . We are screwed.
 
I just watched his press conference. I have absolutely no faith in him to get it right . We are screwed.
We have all been to this movie before and it was old ten years ago. The only time that the Bears are going to become competitive is when the current ownership puts up a For Sale sign, and the Bears get new ownership.
 
NFL consultants all over America are getting excited about the opportunity to fleece the Bears once again.

Looks like Bill Polian will be the consultant they use, you would think they could find a coach and GM on their own.
 
Every time I hear George McCaskey talk, I want to slap that pencil neck in the head. What's even worse than his thinking Bears fans are stupid is, he is correct. A good percentage of Bears fans are, indeed, stupid. Stupid for believing the McCaskeys. Stupid for believing things will really be different...this time. And stupid for continuing to buy season tickets and going to the games. It's the same stuff regurgitated over and over again. Sure, it will look better at first. But we will all be right back here in three or four more years talking about the new coach and GM at that time, if nothing changes upstairs.

If I have said it once here on this board, I have said it a hundred times. Nothing is really going to change in this organization until the McCaskeys are removed. That has to happen first. Everything else is garbage and the tone deafness of the McCaskeys.

I was on the road yesterday morning listening to the Score and ESPN and some of the callers made me physically ill to listen to. Some of these clowns were so excited at the firing of Nagy and Pace. To the point where it was almost verbally orgasmic for some of them. OK great. Nagy and Pace are gone, Now what? Just hire two more guys, win a few more games at first, and then end up blowing the whole thing up again in a few years. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Haven't read today's Trib yet. But, I just read Rick Telander's and Rick Morrissey's columns in the Sun Times. Give those a read.
 
Last edited:
Would like to see them develop an advisory committee to help w these hires.

Former players, coaches, etc

Ex: Olin Kruetz isn’t ready to be a GM but would be great in this type of role.
 
Would like to see them develop an advisory committee to help w these hires.

Former players, coaches, etc

Ex: Olin Kruetz isn’t ready to be a GM but would be great in this type of role.

Teams with good ownership don’t use advisory committees, too many chefs in the kitchen will give you a bad dinner. Also the Bears have put together a committee and it is embarrassingly bad.
 
Would like to see them develop an advisory committee to help w these hires.

Former players, coaches, etc

Ex: Olin Kruetz isn’t ready to be a GM but would be great in this type of role.
I have worked in management the great majority of my adult life and have honestly concluded that committees are worthless. No one takes responsibility for the final decisions and consequently no one takes responsibility for the final outcomes.

Any good individual decision maker will seek information from various sources, but it is best to do so one-on-one rather than in a group environment. This prevents the development of group-think, which invariably occurs in a group environment. Group think in turn eliminates innovative thinking... genius if you will.

Matt Nagy was not a bad coach. He was not a good coach. He was average. The Bears made the playoffs in two of his four years and his overall record was 34-31. With new hires the Bears are as likely to get worse as they are to get better.

The truth seems to be that in the NFL a team needs two things to win championships; an elite quarterback and to stay relatively injury free. On very rare occasions it can also be done with an elite defense, but that does not produce sustainable success. Justin Fields has the raw tools to be an elite quarterback; but mostly being an elite NFL quarterback comes down to being an excellent rapid decision maker under duress. It likely will take another couple of years to see if he can be elite. If it turns out he is, Matt Nagy would have been just fine as the Bears coach. If it turns out Fields is not elite, the next coach will not be any more successful than Nagy was. As with much that takes place in society today, firing Nagy is merely placating the mob.
 
I have worked in management the great majority of my adult life and have honestly concluded that committees are worthless. No one takes responsibility for the final decisions and consequently no one takes responsibility for the final outcomes.

Any good individual decision maker will seek information from various sources, but it is best to do so one-on-one rather than in a group environment. This prevents the development of group-think, which invariably occurs in a group environment. Group think in turn eliminates innovative thinking... genius if you will.
I agreed with you on this until I heard the press conference yesterday. Their is zero trust in the bears leadership to make a solid hire. They simply just don't know football.

They need help.
 
I have worked in management the great majority of my adult life and have honestly concluded that committees are worthless. No one takes responsibility for the final decisions and consequently no one takes responsibility for the final outcomes.

Any good individual decision maker will seek information from various sources, but it is best to do so one-on-one rather than in a group environment. This prevents the development of group-think, which invariably occurs in a group environment. Group think in turn eliminates innovative thinking... genius if you will.

Matt Nagy was not a bad coach. He was not a good coach. He was average. The Bears made the playoffs in two of his four years and his overall record was 34-31. With new hires the Bears are as likely to get worse as they are to get better.

The truth seems to be that in the NFL a team needs two things to win championships; an elite quarterback and to stay relatively injury free. On very rare occasions it can also be done with an elite defense, but that does not produce sustainable success. Justin Fields has the raw tools to be an elite quarterback; but mostly being an elite NFL quarterback comes down to being an excellent rapid decision maker under duress. It likely will take another couple of years to see if he can be elite. If it turns out he is, Matt Nagy would have been just fine as the Bears coach. If it turns out Fields is not elite, the next coach will not be any more successful than Nagy was. As with much that takes place in society today, firing Nagy is merely placating the mob.
Nagy was good his first year when he came in and showed some creativity. Since then, his play calling was horrific, he showed terrible clock management on many occasions and a complete lack of ability to adjust to what an opposing defense was doing at halftime or at any point during games.

I don't disregard your points about the impact of having a really good (if not elite) QB but there are independent factors associated with the head coach that Nagy just plain failed at. I'm glad he's gone.

That said, none of us can ignore the failures of this team's ownership and I doubt those issues will be overcome no matter who is the next HC.
 
Nagy was good his first year when he came in and showed some creativity. Since then, his play calling was horrific, he showed terrible clock management on many occasions and a complete lack of ability to adjust to what an opposing defense was doing at halftime or at any point during games.

I don't disregard your points about the impact of having a really good (if not elite) QB but there are independent factors associated with the head coach that Nagy just plain failed at. I'm glad he's gone.

That said, none of us can ignore the failures of this team's ownership and I doubt those issues will be overcome no matter who is the next HC.
I wasn't a Nagy fan but I feel like they forced him to play Fields then fired him when he didn't win with him. I think with either of the other two QB's starting they win more games and he maybe keeps his job.
 
I really don’t know how much I blame the McCaskey family. The vast majority of the ownership groups are not football people, they are owners. And they hire football people. We could have the McCaskeys hire a football person and that person can hire the general manager. I suppose an extra layer could help, but it can’t help that materially.

The NFL is a quarterback driven league. And the best franchises generally are good because they lucked into great quarterbacks. Two of the best quarterbacks in NFL history are third round (Montana) and sixth round (Brady) picks. If those organizations were so great at finding talent they would’ve picked them up in the second round at a steal…. Nobody knew they would be all-time greats. Other teams with great quarterbacks got them because they sucked so bad they got the first or second pick in the draft. And when that happens one team gets a Peyton Manning and another might get Ryan Leaf.

There are some general managers that are better than others are picking talent. And there are some coaches that are better than others at getting players to perform better and crafting systems at work around their players. But the vast majority of the general managers and coaches have just lucked into all star quarterbacks. Trubisky was almost unanimously rated higher by all general managers in the league over Mahomes. It figures the one time the Bears at a very high draft choice it cost us. Heck, the Bears lost a coin flip that would’ve resulted in them drafting Terry Bradshaw.

This is a long post to say that possibly 80% or more of the likeliness to win a Super Bowl is due to blind luck in selecting a winning quarterback.
 
But the vast majority of the general managers and coaches have just lucked into all star quarterbacks.


Yeah, you're right. Luck plays an outsized role in almost every aspect of life, including football. Some GMs, like the legendary Jim Finks who built the '85 Bears, do have a sharp eye for talent. But Finks was not infallible. Although he was urged by Bill Tobin to draft Joe Montana, he elected not to do it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: StormFire
I really don’t know how much I blame the McCaskey family. The vast majority of the ownership groups are not football people, they are owners. And they hire football people. We could have the McCaskeys hire a football person and that person can hire the general manager. I suppose an extra layer could help, but it can’t help that materially.

The NFL is a quarterback driven league. And the best franchises generally are good because they lucked into great quarterbacks. Two of the best quarterbacks in NFL history are third round (Montana) and sixth round (Brady) picks. If those organizations were so great at finding talent they would’ve picked them up in the second round at a steal…. Nobody knew they would be all-time greats. Other teams with great quarterbacks got them because they sucked so bad they got the first or second pick in the draft. And when that happens one team gets a Peyton Manning and another might get Ryan Leaf.

There are some general managers that are better than others are picking talent. And there are some coaches that are better than others at getting players to perform better and crafting systems at work around their players. But the vast majority of the general managers and coaches have just lucked into all star quarterbacks. Trubisky was almost unanimously rated higher by all general managers in the league over Mahomes. It figures the one time the Bears at a very high draft choice it cost us. Heck, the Bears lost a coin flip that would’ve resulted in them drafting Terry Bradshaw.

This is a long post to say that possibly 80% or more of the likeliness to win a Super Bowl is due to blind luck in selecting a winning quarterback.
I have to disagree. I put most of the blame squarely on the McCaskeys. They aren't a football family. Neither are some of the owners in the NFL. But, here's the difference. Most of the successful owners, if they aren't real football people, hire those who really are and then they put their trust in them to run things and, for the most part, leave them alone to do so.

And I want to make another important point. While some owners may not be true football people, the majority of them learn the game over the years and fix what's wrong. What have the McCaskeys actually learned since 1983? What and where have they changed? Why do they keep on doing down the same failed path over and over again?

On Monday George McCaskey (pencil neck) said he has this "team" of people searching for the next GM and coach. Five people are doing this search and only one of them is actually a football person. Bill Polian. That's the first problem.

Secondly, no matter who they find, George McCaskey has the final say in hiring these people to run the team. OK, he's one of the owners. Remember, he isn't a football guy and has said so. He is going to listen to four people as they talk to him about the candidates. Again, three of them aren't even football people.

Third, There is no doubt in my mind whoever coaches the team and whoever the GM is, they will have limited power. That's because I think the McCaskeys meddle too much in areas they have no clue about. Someone else wrote, Nagy was told to play Fields. I think that's true. I also think that order came from the top. Again, they were meddling in areas they have no clue about.

These are the people who let Wilber Marshall go when he became too expensive. Then watched him become another first team All Pro player and watched him win another Super Bowl.

What makes you think Patrick Mahomes would be as good or as successful as he is now, if he was in a Bears uniform? I don't think he would be. I said during the Trubisky years, Tom Brady couldn't win with this team.

But the McCaskeys aren't stupid. They know people are going to come out to watch the team. They know there will always be a waiting list to purchase season tickets. I don't care if I offend anyone here. But, people who have and continue to renew their season tickets are saps. It is a waste of money. But, more importantly, it's a waste of time. You can get money back. You can't do that with time. I don't think I watched one entire Bears game this year. I have this problem with wasting time watching bad football. And it's been that way for most of 30 years.

The McCaskeys are running a clown show. And George McCaskey and Ted Phillips are the main clowns.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: markmacaluso
Third, There is no doubt in my mind whoever coaches the team and whoever the GM is, they will have limited power. That's because I think the McCaskeys meddle too much in areas they have no clue about. Someone else wrote, Nagy was told to play Fields. I think that's true. I also think that order came from the top. Again, they were meddling in areas they have no clue about.
George was asked this question during his presser. And he answered that Nagy came to him and asked him if he should start Fields (week 3ish). George told Nagy that he doesn’t want to get involved in football decisions, ecspecially QB decisions.

This is actually quite mind boggling. After watching that presser and it being so evident that he knows nothing about football…why is the HC asking him about who should play QB???
 
Good coaches help make good QBs what they are. It’s not solely on the QB.

Good coaches set the QB up for success. They run plays to their strengths.

Nagy was terrible at developing QBs, coming up w game plans and play calling. Just brutal.

Never designed runs for Fields. Brutal GL play calling. Brutal 4th down play calling.

Hes the reason our QBs suck. It’s that simple.
 
I really don’t know how much I blame the McCaskey family. The vast majority of the ownership groups are not football people, they are owners. And they hire football people. We could have the McCaskeys hire a football person and that person can hire the general manager. I suppose an extra layer could help, but it can’t help that materially.

The NFL is a quarterback driven league. And the best franchises generally are good because they lucked into great quarterbacks. Two of the best quarterbacks in NFL history are third round (Montana) and sixth round (Brady) picks. If those organizations were so great at finding talent they would’ve picked them up in the second round at a steal…. Nobody knew they would be all-time greats. Other teams with great quarterbacks got them because they sucked so bad they got the first or second pick in the draft. And when that happens one team gets a Peyton Manning and another might get Ryan Leaf.

There are some general managers that are better than others are picking talent. And there are some coaches that are better than others at getting players to perform better and crafting systems at work around their players. But the vast majority of the general managers and coaches have just lucked into all star quarterbacks. Trubisky was almost unanimously rated higher by all general managers in the league over Mahomes. It figures the one time the Bears at a very high draft choice it cost us. Heck, the Bears lost a coin flip that would’ve resulted in them drafting Terry Bradshaw.

This is a long post to say that possibly 80% or more of the likeliness to win a Super Bowl is due to blind luck in selecting a winning quarterback.
I agree with your views. This morning I watched the entire George McCaskey press conference. He came across as intelligent, articulate and logical. Ryan Pace was the "football person" upon which he relied, and he gave Pace the freedom to make those decisions that Pace believed would help the Bears succeed. There is no evidence supporting the assertion that Bear's ownership meddled with the football related decisions.

As an organization the Bears have been fairly average over the last fifty years. They have won one Super Bowl. There are 12 franchises in the league that have won zero Super Bowls. There are five others, besides the Bears, that have won one. Fourteen teams have won more than one Super Bowl. The Patriots have won the most, but, as you pointed out, all their wins have been with the same elite quarterback (selected in the sixth round of the draft).

An NFL team is in the business of selling success to its fans. In the absence of success it must at the very least sell hope. That is why Pace and Nagy have been fired. With a clean slate Bears fans can at least maintain some hope that the team will improve over the next few years.
 
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT