Speaker 1: The following is a presentation of the Chicago Bears Network
Speaker 1: and Chicago Bears dot Com. Download the Chicago Bears official
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Speaker 1: day and now welcome to Bears All Access. You're All
Speaker 1: Access passing to Chicago Bears football. Bears All Access is
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Speaker 1: Miller Lite and Hulu. It's gonna be with you, everybody.
Speaker 1: Jeff Joniac along my broadcast partner Tom there from news
Speaker 1: Radio seven eighty and one oh five point nine FM WVMN,
Speaker 1: Jim Miller of the former Bears quarterback and a member
Speaker 1: of that sirius XM NFL radio staff. Good to have
Speaker 1: you back with us as well as you listen in
Speaker 1: tonight for the next hour. Got a good show tonight, boys.
Speaker 1: We got Riley Ridley, the outstanding looking rookie receiver out
Speaker 1: at Georgia, joining us at about six h eight tonight.
Speaker 1: And then at the bottom of the hour, we're gonna
Speaker 1: be joined for a good couple of segments with Tom,
Speaker 1: your teammate jimbo Over tonight, the outstanding left tackle for
Speaker 1: your Super Bowl champion Bears. Good show today, Yeah, I
Speaker 1: can't wait. You know, I had a chance to catch
Speaker 1: up with him a little bit in this weekend. And
Speaker 1: you know, Jimbo and I go back a long way.
Speaker 1: We were seniors in college at the same time. When
Speaker 1: I was there, Notre Dame played Pitt and Pitt was
Speaker 1: number one in the country. Notre Dame played him Att
Speaker 1: Pitt and we kind of stolled one from him back then.
Speaker 1: And then we played in the Hula Bawl together out
Speaker 1: in Hawaii and had a chance to spend some time.
Speaker 1: And the day I met Jimbo, and the day I
Speaker 1: watched him practice all or played throughout a senior year
Speaker 1: and practice throughout that that All Star game, I knew
Speaker 1: that he was a day one starter, one of the
Speaker 1: one of the best in the history of the Bears. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you just wanted obviously with a great slate like Jim
Speaker 1: Bow And here we're celebrating the hundredth anniversary of the Bears.
Speaker 1: It was great to catch up with you guys a
Speaker 1: week ago. And then you know, guys like Riley Ridley,
Speaker 1: how can he make his impact? So I was like,
Speaker 1: he's an impressing early and here we're on the you know,
Speaker 1: the heels of training camp, which is just around the corner.
Speaker 1: Players have five weeks. Hopefully everybody's days out of trouble
Speaker 1: and does what they're supposed to do as they get
Speaker 1: focused on the season. But you know, there's still some
Speaker 1: outliers here. You know, we still have yet to really
Speaker 1: understand what's going to happen with the new replay rule
Speaker 1: and how that's going to go down, how coaches it's
Speaker 1: going to affect their coaching during the game. So there's
Speaker 1: still some things to really clear up as we head
Speaker 1: into the twenty nineteen NFL season. Jim, what are you
Speaker 1: hearing on that front, Well, it sounds like they're going
Speaker 1: to put it to the replay official. It sounds like
Speaker 1: the coaches do not want a part of it where
Speaker 1: you know, they would have to throw a challenge flag
Speaker 1: or have a challenge flag late in the game or
Speaker 1: a timeout in order to initiate the process. And that's
Speaker 1: how I thought originally, the coaches thought this process is
Speaker 1: going to go that it was just going to be
Speaker 1: initiated by the replay official. And I think it just
Speaker 1: if you just stick to the standard of that NFC
Speaker 1: Championship game between the Saints in the Rams where the
Speaker 1: replay official up in the booth. To me, it has
Speaker 1: to be so obvious and so egregious that you're going
Speaker 1: to initiate the review right in that game between the
Speaker 1: Rams and Nickel Roby Coben and the past interference call
Speaker 1: that wasn't called. Everybody in the stadium knew it was
Speaker 1: a penalty. Everybody watching at home knew it was the penalty.
Speaker 1: I even had Kyle Shannon, he said he was down
Speaker 1: in Mexico City, and a lot of the people that
Speaker 1: don't even understand the game, a lot of the Hispanics
Speaker 1: that were in the bar, they looked at Kyle Shanon
Speaker 1: and they knew it was a penalty, and they don't
Speaker 1: even know American rules of football. So I just think
Speaker 1: if you keep it within that standard, you know, I
Speaker 1: think that would be the level of where the replay
Speaker 1: official would initiate it where you're trying to write or wrong.
Speaker 1: Moving forward, I just hope they don't continue to overthink everything.
Speaker 1: You know, all this replay stuff. Oh catch, I mean,
Speaker 1: think about it's the most basic playing football, and we
Speaker 1: bastardized it for literally five to six years, where nobody
Speaker 1: knew what the hell of catch was and nothing aggravates
Speaker 1: time more than a wasted time going over this stuff. Right.
Speaker 1: You know, it seems like every coaching staff now has
Speaker 1: so many coaches. I mean, could you really designate one
Speaker 1: experienced guy and put him on the staff and be
Speaker 1: able to make a judgment yes, let throw the flag
Speaker 1: or no, don't throw the flag and be made within
Speaker 1: a matter of you know time, like you know, similar
Speaker 1: to the time that baseball managers and stuff have their
Speaker 1: chance to use the replay or not. Yeah, well, I
Speaker 1: hate I hate replay, so I wish it would never
Speaker 1: I never wish even showed up in the National Football League.
Speaker 1: So I've talked about that plenty of times. Hey, shout
Speaker 1: out to Josh McCollum. Fellas, he was nothing but a
Speaker 1: gentleman and a leader with the Chicago Bears and proved
Speaker 1: to be that way over the course of his sixteen
Speaker 1: year career. Announced his retirement today. He's going to become
Speaker 1: an analyst as well on ESPN and their football coverage.
Speaker 1: But gonna tend to his boys, you know, guy, his
Speaker 1: boys are high school quarterbacks. Now. He'll be forty around
Speaker 1: the fourth of July here, so next week, next couple
Speaker 1: of weeks, rather and after ten different teams putting it away.
Speaker 1: You know, whatever you want to say about Mark Trustman.
Speaker 1: Mark Trustman did a lot for that guy because he
Speaker 1: was on the cusp of his career ending and he
Speaker 1: was already a teacher. I believe in the comeback and
Speaker 1: not necessarily reinvent himself, but be taught of football in
Speaker 1: a kind of a different style that was able to
Speaker 1: carry through to the different systems he was able to
Speaker 1: play in towards the end of his career. I definitely
Speaker 1: think a class guy. And just how he represented himself,
Speaker 1: how he treated his teammates, I think was important and
Speaker 1: just you know, you just you need guys like that
Speaker 1: that said can fill all those type of roles. He
Speaker 1: could fill the role as a starter, he could fill
Speaker 1: the role as a backup, He could fill the role
Speaker 1: as a mentor. So I think what Thomas bringing out.
Speaker 1: I think if he wanted to embark on a coaching career,
Speaker 1: he could probably do pretty well. But it sounds like
Speaker 1: you're right, Jeff, he's happy teaching his boys how to
Speaker 1: play the position of quarterback. Yeah, and now I saw
Speaker 1: highlights of his game as a slot receiver for Detroit
Speaker 1: against the Patriots, in two thousand and six. I believe
Speaker 1: look very good. Catch him passes and great athlete. Underrated athlete,
Speaker 1: that's for sure. Coming up next a guy who's not
Speaker 1: an underrated athlete at all, Riley Ridley, outstanding rook. He
Speaker 1: come to the Bears and he'll join the program. Here.
Speaker 1: This is Bears All Access brought to you by IGS Energy,
Speaker 1: with Mike Chen and Adam Stezinski helping us out tonight.
Speaker 1: This is Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to score. Hey,
Speaker 1: welcome back to Bears All Access brought to you by
Speaker 1: IGS Energy, a proud partner of the Chicago Bears, providing electricity,
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Speaker 1: across the country. Learn more about IGS Energy at igs
Speaker 1: dot com. Jeff Joni Actomp there, Jim Miller. Another Bears
Speaker 1: All Access show. As we traveled through the offseason now
Speaker 1: and summer vacation for everybody, and it's still a great
Speaker 1: time though to reflect on what's transpired and also look
Speaker 1: ahead to what these teams heading into training camp here
Speaker 1: in just about four weeks, four and a half weeks
Speaker 1: or so, we'll look like and where everybody's looking at.
Speaker 1: And I know NFL dot Com work down the Bears today,
Speaker 1: and a lot of folks have them as one of
Speaker 1: the top playoff contenders out of the NFC and just
Speaker 1: out of the NFL picture period. And as you break
Speaker 1: it down, what are some things that really stick out
Speaker 1: to you guys about what we've seen so far. I
Speaker 1: got a question for you, Big Jeff. You said now
Speaker 1: that the players are on vacation, or now that they're
Speaker 1: on vacation, you didn't say players. I think in the
Speaker 1: player's best interest if they look at this next five
Speaker 1: weeks as a vacation, right, it really brought that many
Speaker 1: many times I do, and and it kind of it
Speaker 1: kind of bothers me just because this is when they
Speaker 1: should be working their hardest. I know there was a
Speaker 1: player in the Detroit or in the Baltimore Ravens camp
Speaker 1: who didn't go to the OTAs, didn't go to any
Speaker 1: of the conditioning sessions, and then they didn't allow him
Speaker 1: to practice because he was not in shape. I think
Speaker 1: if you look at this as a vacation or time off, yeah,
Speaker 1: you got to go out there and free your mind
Speaker 1: and you don't have to have the daily grind of
Speaker 1: sitting in meetings for three hours, but you got to
Speaker 1: stay into your information and you still have to stay
Speaker 1: in try to gain strength and condition your body. So
Speaker 1: I'm I'm sorry to harp on it and sound like
Speaker 1: an old geezer, but this is probably the time then
Speaker 1: most guys in in the early era of football started
Speaker 1: or not didn't start, continue to work out their hardest
Speaker 1: leading up to the beginning events of You'll be happy
Speaker 1: to know. And Jimmy kim Hicks, you know, I talked
Speaker 1: to him the other day before they got out of here,
Speaker 1: and what are you what are you gonna be working on?
Speaker 1: What are you gonna do? And he goes, this is
Speaker 1: where I sharpened my tools. This is where I defined
Speaker 1: my body and my strength for the rest of the season. So, yeah,
Speaker 1: the veterans, they're going to go back to work. Hopefully
Speaker 1: the young guys do the same gym. Yeah, and well,
Speaker 1: we say it every year, and I'm with Tom on this.
Speaker 1: I mean, this is not training camps, not some test
Speaker 1: you can just cram for. You know, I say that
Speaker 1: every single year, And Michael Pierce is who you're thinking of.
Speaker 1: Tom and the Steelers have done it before. Remember the
Speaker 1: big nose tackle Casey Hampton couple a couple of years
Speaker 1: he came back, he was out of shaping. Mike Tomlin said, uh,
Speaker 1: you're on the side, big boy, because you're you're physically
Speaker 1: unable to perform. And they would let the player get
Speaker 1: himself in shape before they would leave him, allow him
Speaker 1: to practice, because why he's putting other players at risk.
Speaker 1: And that's what John Harbaugh said about Michael Pierce. You
Speaker 1: come in overweight, you're out of shape, You're putting other
Speaker 1: players at risk. We can't have that. So it's not
Speaker 1: something you can cram for. You gotta stay on top
Speaker 1: of it. And I would think if you know, if
Speaker 1: you're serious about your craft, and you're serious about your
Speaker 1: love of football, and you're serious about your accountability with
Speaker 1: your teammates, I don't think the Bears should have any problem.
Speaker 1: And you're serious about your commitment to your coach and organization,
Speaker 1: should that add that as well, because it really is
Speaker 1: part of your responsibility and you shouldn't need somebody there
Speaker 1: to babysit you. You're all grown men. Now take care
Speaker 1: of business and do what you gotta do. You know,
Speaker 1: you know too, Jim and Jeff and throughout the entire
Speaker 1: ty of OTAs with the exception of maybe a couple
Speaker 1: of days there was no hot weather. This isn't something
Speaker 1: that they got kind of fed a little bit of
Speaker 1: eighty five degree practices and understood the challenge to them.
Speaker 1: So if they go to bourbon A at the end
Speaker 1: of July and all of a sudden they open up
Speaker 1: camp and it's eighties plus with full pads on, with
Speaker 1: that blue helmet, it's a completely different monster out there.
Speaker 1: And the less you are prepared, the less effective you're
Speaker 1: going to be on the field, and more likely it
Speaker 1: is going to affect the way they evaluate you. And
Speaker 1: you know, and so I am a yeah, So you're
Speaker 1: not on your feet on a daily on a you know,
Speaker 1: as much as you are throughout practices, but you've got
Speaker 1: to be conditioning and you've got to be in the
Speaker 1: weight room and continue that strength goal. Well, this is
Speaker 1: different definition of professionalism. It also defines who really loves
Speaker 1: the game and who is just looking at this as
Speaker 1: a way to, you know, just get a paycheck. So
Speaker 1: you do. It does sift its way through these guys
Speaker 1: then are not in that kind of condition and they
Speaker 1: all take you know, most teams any way have conditioning
Speaker 1: tests to find the where they're at after the five weeks.
Speaker 1: It'll be a rough training camp if it's not the case.
Speaker 1: Awaiting Riley. Ridley, the Bears rookie receiver out of Georgia,
Speaker 1: joining the program tonight. Also at the bottom of the hour,
Speaker 1: Jim Covert the Bears outstanding left tack oh best offensive
Speaker 1: lineman as you could possibly find, number thirteen and the
Speaker 1: Bears one hundred is put together by Dan POMPEII and
Speaker 1: Don Pierce until join us as well. You can also
Speaker 1: take your phone calls three one, two sixty seven, sixty
Speaker 1: seven if you got anything on your mind in terms
Speaker 1: of how so you never did answer the question because
Speaker 1: you know I use the word vacation, Sorry and so,
Speaker 1: but you know where the Bears are position right now?
Speaker 1: How do you guys feel after everything that's happened during
Speaker 1: this offseason now to take a deep breath for a minute,
Speaker 1: recalibrate where they position in your opinion, it's gonna start
Speaker 1: with Tom Well, you know, first of all, I can't
Speaker 1: be more impressed with the job that Ryan Pace did
Speaker 1: and the draft choices that I've seen go out there.
Speaker 1: They're gonna be able to compete at a really high level,
Speaker 1: and they're gonna compete for playing time instantly. This isn't
Speaker 1: a group of rookies that are going to come in
Speaker 1: here and they're gonna be waiting in the wings. Oh,
Speaker 1: I'm gonna go through a rookie season and just sit
Speaker 1: in the background and kind of observe and learn. No,
Speaker 1: when you look at these guys, they're going to be
Speaker 1: expected to go out there within the first couple of
Speaker 1: weeks of training camp, and they're going to get their
Speaker 1: time in the preseason games to come out here and
Speaker 1: push veterans and make this team better immediately. And you know,
Speaker 1: just you know, for my examples and when I had
Speaker 1: a chance to come in here after the Bears got
Speaker 1: beat in the NFC Championship game, there wasn't going to
Speaker 1: be a lot of roster movement. But I think that
Speaker 1: has to motivate the guys that are going to have
Speaker 1: an opportunity to come in here and earn a position
Speaker 1: in a roster that you know is set for the
Speaker 1: most part, but you're still going to be able to
Speaker 1: come in here and have an opportunity to accomplish some
Speaker 1: big goals for yourself. If you're diligent about the effort
Speaker 1: you're going to put in, Um, I'll categories and just
Speaker 1: how it reflects with the whole division. Because I'm with Tom.
Speaker 1: I think the Bears should be able to hit the
Speaker 1: ground running. I think they're much better team in a
Speaker 1: lot of areas, you know, even deeper in terms of
Speaker 1: their roster and what they'll be able to do and present.
Speaker 1: But as it reflex to the division, Minnesota I think
Speaker 1: can be a bounced back team with the moves that
Speaker 1: that that they did in the coaches that they acquired,
Speaker 1: Gary Kubiak, Rick Dennison, etc. Um. Detroit is a better team,
Speaker 1: but they've got a new offensive coordinator. How does that
Speaker 1: all mix in? Will they should be able to hit
Speaker 1: the round running faster than say what the Bears did
Speaker 1: last year with a young quarterback where the Bears kind
Speaker 1: of turned the corner Week eight in Week nine offensively.
Speaker 1: I think Detroit will be able to do it, but
Speaker 1: it will have to come a lot quicker than the
Speaker 1: Bears turned their second half of the season around. And
Speaker 1: I would say the same for Green Bay because you've
Speaker 1: got a new coach trying to lay the foundation, so
Speaker 1: to speak. Gentlemen, I don't know if you saw that
Speaker 1: article today. That's a big hiccup in terms of audibles.
Speaker 1: Here you've got a coach. I was gonna bring that
Speaker 1: later in the program, but it's it's worth talking about.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, here you've got a coach at Matt Lafleur
Speaker 1: who believes in his system. Right. He believes that's the
Speaker 1: same system Kyle Shanahan was running down are in Houston
Speaker 1: under Gary Kubiak and all that they believe a lot
Speaker 1: of that is the system. And it's either check with me,
Speaker 1: is whether hey, you got play A or play B
Speaker 1: in order to what the defense presented. And Aaron Rodgers
Speaker 1: kind of wants the ability to go off the cuff
Speaker 1: and be able to audible into anything. And that was
Speaker 1: one of the issues that Green Bay had under Mike McCarthy.
Speaker 1: So that I think is an issue for the football team. Yeah, well,
Speaker 1: we'll pick that up later in the program. Time enough,
Speaker 1: kind enough, Rather to join the program. The fourth round
Speaker 1: pick of the Bears, Riley Ridley joining us on Bears
Speaker 1: All Access brought to you by IGS Energy, Jeff, Tim
Speaker 1: and Jim with you, Riley, thanks for checking in. How
Speaker 1: you doing? My men are doing okay, doing okay. In
Speaker 1: the final analysis. What'd you take away from the offseason
Speaker 1: program as you get ready now to dial up, refocus
Speaker 1: and get ready for training camp. Oh, right now, I'm
Speaker 1: just trying to focus on getting better. I know we
Speaker 1: got some big conditioning days coming up, and I just
Speaker 1: want to be in tiptop shaped just to put my
Speaker 1: best foot forward. I'd like to hear that, Riley, hey,
Speaker 1: now that you had a chance to sit in the
Speaker 1: meetings and take it to the practice field. Is this
Speaker 1: system is there any similarities to your college system or
Speaker 1: is this completely different what you've learned thus far in
Speaker 1: your college? In college? Well, here the Bears, it's like
Speaker 1: a West Coast type of offense. But uh, you know,
Speaker 1: the concepts and the route running and then things like
Speaker 1: that are more similar, uh, pertaining to the concepts like
Speaker 1: I said, and uh, you know, just being just being
Speaker 1: a young guy, just trying to learn it all for
Speaker 1: the first time. I mean, you gotta wipe your mind
Speaker 1: clean from college and you know the other things that
Speaker 1: you've learned, and you know, just focusing in on what's
Speaker 1: at hand. Well, you're a different animal, Rightley. Jim Miller
Speaker 1: here talking to you again, and just just because of
Speaker 1: your name and you've you know, you've been associated with
Speaker 1: with pro football and even the program down there is
Speaker 1: a Georgia Bulldog. I mean, you're not the typical rookie,
Speaker 1: so to speaker, is how I view you? And is
Speaker 1: that a fair statement? And just how you approach everything
Speaker 1: and how you go about your workman like approach? Uh? Well,
Speaker 1: I want to be the best I could be, you know,
Speaker 1: and the only way I could do that is to
Speaker 1: approach and prepare, uh for any any situation that I'm
Speaker 1: put in. So, uh that's my main goal. I just
Speaker 1: try to prepare and uh, you know, just be ready
Speaker 1: for whatever comes my way and just try my best
Speaker 1: at it. Bears fourth round pick Riley really joined the
Speaker 1: program here on Bears I'll access in Chicago Sports Radio
Speaker 1: six seventy the score. Uh, the impact that your brother
Speaker 1: can't be understated. You know, Calvin, you looked at him
Speaker 1: as a mentor and and I'm sure he did the
Speaker 1: same as well. You guys are not that far as
Speaker 1: part in age. What's the lasting impression that he made
Speaker 1: on you as as a football player and how he's
Speaker 1: helped you? Oh, you know, just a just a change
Speaker 1: of being a pro uh, you know in college, he
Speaker 1: did really well, and you know he was a pro
Speaker 1: then and uh, but now it's just a big one eighty.
Speaker 1: You can tell he's about his business. He takes things
Speaker 1: really seriously and now he won't think ain't done right.
Speaker 1: So when I've seen that and knowing that I want
Speaker 1: that type of lifestyle, there's a no random for me.
Speaker 1: I really look up to him for those For those reasons,
Speaker 1: I know that he's a smart guy, and you know,
Speaker 1: I just want to follow in those little foot stuff. Hey, Riley,
Speaker 1: when you come to a new team and you're trying
Speaker 1: to develop a relationship with the quarterbacks, m that you
Speaker 1: get to play with here with the Bears, is what
Speaker 1: is gonna decide your faith? Quicker? Is it? Is it
Speaker 1: the route running or understanding coverages at this level? Uh,
Speaker 1: with no doubt, I think it's both. But for the
Speaker 1: main part, I don't say it's just being consistent, being
Speaker 1: able to do it on an ind and out day basis,
Speaker 1: no matter the weather, no matter what's going on the
Speaker 1: circumstances that it's just being consistent. Uh, Well, let alone
Speaker 1: come with the route running and you know, catching the ball.
Speaker 1: But I feel that being consistent is more important to
Speaker 1: the quarterback knowing that you know your assignment, you're being
Speaker 1: the right place you'll catch the ball. It's more eye
Speaker 1: open into a quarterback to be consistent. Well, as you
Speaker 1: got five weeks before training camp, Well what do you
Speaker 1: think you direct your most attention to? Is that the
Speaker 1: playbook is a conditioning? Is it strength training? What do
Speaker 1: you think is your biggest focus as training camps just
Speaker 1: around the corner. Well, you know, training camp isn't easy,
Speaker 1: so you want to go in with a full of mind.
Speaker 1: You want to be able to tack everything, but not
Speaker 1: at once. You wouldn't be able to take a thing
Speaker 1: out of time, one thing, one thing out of time.
Speaker 1: You stay so for the first probably a couple of days. Uh,
Speaker 1: you know, I'll just work on my playbook and you know,
Speaker 1: as I get my feet wet and get things going,
Speaker 1: and I'll start working on my route running, you know,
Speaker 1: and throughout all this, I'm just I just want to
Speaker 1: be consistent, and you know, just have my number called
Speaker 1: and give performed. Riley Ridley our guest. You're on Bears
Speaker 1: All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to score.
Speaker 1: How have you taken to the Bears Playbook is it
Speaker 1: fit your skill set. Excuse me, how have you taken
Speaker 1: to Matt Naggie's playboo? Does it fit your skill set?
Speaker 1: I believe so. Uh. Coach dagg is a google when
Speaker 1: it comes down to play calling and different types of
Speaker 1: you know, routes and that goes with plays and you
Speaker 1: know it's what routes can get open with different coverage.
Speaker 1: So you know when you have a coach like that,
Speaker 1: that can give you a man zone telling and just
Speaker 1: the formation and it's more, you know, it opens a
Speaker 1: lot for you. No matter who you want, the matter
Speaker 1: your assets or whatever your skill is, your you will
Speaker 1: be able to perform. Hey, Riley at the excuse me,
Speaker 1: at the end of OTAs, when I watched you out
Speaker 1: in the field, I didn't see a fourth rounder. I
Speaker 1: saw a guy that was you should have been drafted
Speaker 1: a lot higher. When you did get drafted, did you
Speaker 1: go were you a little bit disappointed? Going, Hey, I
Speaker 1: know I'm better than this, and now it'd be kind
Speaker 1: of fun that you have a lot of people in
Speaker 1: front of you to prove that you are right and
Speaker 1: maybe they missed a good opportunity. Uh, well, I wasn't.
Speaker 1: I wasn't just disappointed. Uh I was a little upset, yeah,
Speaker 1: but uh, but not disappointed because you know this, this
Speaker 1: is the opportunity of a lifetime and I get the experience,
Speaker 1: you know. So it's and the thing about football is,
Speaker 1: you know, as a player, you get to decide your face,
Speaker 1: you get to decide your work ethic, you get to
Speaker 1: decide the things that you can't control, you know. And
Speaker 1: one of the things I said when I got drafted
Speaker 1: was I controlled whatever I want, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1: I'll be able to go in and work my tail
Speaker 1: off and maybe one day I have a starting spot
Speaker 1: for the Chicago Bears. But as long as I put
Speaker 1: good tape on, then I should be all right, you
Speaker 1: know what I mean. And that's that's my mindset, and
Speaker 1: that's the things that I'm gonna straight too. Well from
Speaker 1: from your standpoint here, you know, I look at that roster,
Speaker 1: just the receiving core unit alone and just how it is.
Speaker 1: I mean, legitimately, there's eight guys there that can play,
Speaker 1: and then doubt and the coach is pretty intense as
Speaker 1: while we look at Coach Fury and maybe just talk
Speaker 1: about that room overall, how you guys are hoping each
Speaker 1: other out, but yet it's still competitive. But yet you
Speaker 1: guys are leading and on each other to help each
Speaker 1: other to get better. H But yeah, I say that,
Speaker 1: I say because because of that is because you know,
Speaker 1: God's leaning on each other just to learn something. I mean.
Speaker 1: You can watch guys go all day, you watch the
Speaker 1: good things that you can do, and you can correct
Speaker 1: yourself off those their wrongs. So you know, you want
Speaker 1: to be able to like support others. But at the
Speaker 1: end of the day, we all know that. You know,
Speaker 1: it's a business, and you know, the best man wins,
Speaker 1: and you know, and that's how I feel about what
Speaker 1: coach first preaching in the room. You know, the best
Speaker 1: ill play and you know, we all just got to
Speaker 1: go out and have fun, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1: And at the end of the day with the Bears organization,
Speaker 1: that's what many of the guys like to do. They
Speaker 1: like to have fun while working, so it makes things easy.
Speaker 1: Bears fourth round wide receiver Rady really joined the program
Speaker 1: getting ready for training camp, his first NFL version of it.
Speaker 1: He's heard all the stories and witnessed the first hand
Speaker 1: with his brother Calvin and the Atlanta Falcons. You know,
Speaker 1: one thing playing at Georgia And as players get to
Speaker 1: the NFL, there are a lot of skill position players.
Speaker 1: It depends on what day, you know, who's gonna get
Speaker 1: the number caught in that very much is the way
Speaker 1: the Bears and Matt Naggie look at their offense. But boy,
Speaker 1: if you were to take your numbers at Georgia and
Speaker 1: flex them out and look at how many touchdowns per
Speaker 1: catch or how many catches you know, and how many
Speaker 1: yards you really made the most of your opportunities. Was
Speaker 1: that internal pressure you put on yourself that you knew
Speaker 1: you weren't going to get as many targets, but you
Speaker 1: had it. When you did get the chance, you had
Speaker 1: to go big. Oh well, you know, as everybody knows
Speaker 1: obviously George's running school. But uh, you know when you
Speaker 1: when you run the ball, well it freezes up passing.
Speaker 1: And uh, you know, when you do get those opportunities,
Speaker 1: don't matter if there's ten opportunities, if there's three, if
Speaker 1: it's two, This is want to take the most out
Speaker 1: of it. You know, you're putting good things on film,
Speaker 1: and that's just the main key and a lot of
Speaker 1: what level you're on, you want to put good film
Speaker 1: out there. You know, you just want to be able
Speaker 1: to be able to contribute for your team. Hey, Riley,
Speaker 1: what the impression you take away from the weekend. You
Speaker 1: had a chance to look at players from the fifties
Speaker 1: up until the teammates that you're gonna have this year,
Speaker 1: What was What was that like to look at the
Speaker 1: initial fan support that's gonna be as it's gonna be
Speaker 1: a college atmosphere around here, because the fans do an
Speaker 1: unbelievable job of supporting you at training camp, on the road,
Speaker 1: and at the home stadium. Right. Um, well, for me,
Speaker 1: you know, it's I don't really get too far until
Speaker 1: you know, when I'm playing. I don't get too much
Speaker 1: into the crowd or anything like that. But the fans
Speaker 1: here are awesome. Um. I mean I go anywhere and
Speaker 1: they see me. You know, they introduced themselves. They like,
Speaker 1: you know, take pictures or whatever the case may be.
Speaker 1: But they're really true got hearts and uh you know,
Speaker 1: they breathe this stuff down here in football, and uh
Speaker 1: you know it's it's it's in the city. You can
Speaker 1: feel it when you're going around. You know, you just
Speaker 1: want to be a part of that. You want to
Speaker 1: be able to go out and contribute, you know, and
Speaker 1: just get the city on your back and have a
Speaker 1: lot of fun. Well, it's gonna be a lot of
Speaker 1: fun being a Bear, Riley Ridley. We'll look forward to
Speaker 1: you coming back at training camp and bourbon A here
Speaker 1: in five short weeks. Enjoy enjoy your time. Riley Ridley,
Speaker 1: our guest here on Bears All Access. Coming up next,
Speaker 1: Jim Covert will join the program. This is Bears All
Speaker 1: Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to Score. The
Speaker 1: Chicago Bears Network presents Inside the Bears, brought to you
Speaker 1: by Verizon. Anthony Adams and Laurencecreten cover the world of
Speaker 1: Bears football on it off the Field every Sunday night
Speaker 1: at ten thirty five pm on Fox thirty two Chicago,
Speaker 1: or watch anytime at Chicago Bears dot com or on
Speaker 1: the Bears official app. Welcome back to Bears All Access
Speaker 1: on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The Score, brought to
Speaker 1: you by Igs Entergy, Jeff Toom and Jim and joined
Speaker 1: by Jimbo Covert kinde enough to join us tonight, Jimbo.
Speaker 1: Good to see you over the one hundred weekend and
Speaker 1: seeing you out of practice up at Hallishaw, Thanks for
Speaker 1: coming out and join it. How'd you enjoy the whole festivities? Hey, guys, Yeah,
Speaker 1: good evening. It was. It was a great time. I Uh,
Speaker 1: I thought, uh, you know, getting the chance to see
Speaker 1: all the guys again, and you know, I thought the
Speaker 1: Bears did a great job on putting the whole thing
Speaker 1: together and flying everybody in so um I got a
Speaker 1: chance to play golf as well, and just it was
Speaker 1: just a great weekend all around. So it was again,
Speaker 1: I was just I was really looking forward to spending
Speaker 1: time with the guys. That's that's really what I went for. Jimbo,
Speaker 1: just a go down memory lane a little bit because
Speaker 1: I it's always talked about the eighty three d the
Speaker 1: eighty three draft. You know, you define the success of
Speaker 1: that draft because as many guys as they get draft
Speaker 1: in the first round, you were a pick that could
Speaker 1: not fail. There wasn't a guy behind you that was
Speaker 1: going to play as well as you. And then to
Speaker 1: go out there and kind of help continue the development
Speaker 1: of that offensive line. Did you feel that pressure when
Speaker 1: Dicko and that these guys went and made that pick
Speaker 1: or did you know day one that you were going
Speaker 1: in there to take that job and keep it for
Speaker 1: quite a while. Tom when I came in the day
Speaker 1: I got drafted. Excuse me. Mike went and see Mike
Speaker 1: and he said, the job jurors. So you know, I
Speaker 1: think there's a certain amount of pressure and just fulfilling
Speaker 1: those expectations, you know, And I, uh, you know, it
Speaker 1: wasn't like I had to go into camp and beat
Speaker 1: somebody out. I mean, the job was mine, So you know,
Speaker 1: I had high we had high expectations of me, as
Speaker 1: I did myself, but you know I had to fulfill
Speaker 1: those as well. And you know, we had a great court,
Speaker 1: young quarterback and Jim McMahon and obviously Walter Payton, and
Speaker 1: a lot of pieces there. You know, hil he was there,
Speaker 1: but he was backing up Danny Neal and Horn was
Speaker 1: there and back and so we had a bunch of
Speaker 1: guys there that were ready to play, excuse me, but
Speaker 1: we didn't, you know, just didn't gel as a unit.
Speaker 1: And I think eighty three was a united every you know,
Speaker 1: we all were kind of jumbling around. Different guy was
Speaker 1: the only guy that started all sixteen games. Eighty three
Speaker 1: just because of a lot of different you know, issues
Speaker 1: with injuries and guy shuffling in and out, trying to
Speaker 1: find the right combination of guys that could win for you.
Speaker 1: So um, but I just think the eighty three draft
Speaker 1: you were part of that as well. You didn't join
Speaker 1: us for a couple of years later, but I think
Speaker 1: that draft really was the draft that you know, made
Speaker 1: us super Bowl champs and kind of carried us throughout
Speaker 1: the eighties because you know, we had so many great
Speaker 1: players that made the team and then you came on
Speaker 1: board a couple of years later, and I just think
Speaker 1: it just helped us, you know, kind of win a
Speaker 1: lot of games in the eighties, and I think people,
Speaker 1: you know, that draft really stands for something that you know,
Speaker 1: has really catapulted the Bears to Super Bowl success. Well, Jimbo,
Speaker 1: Jim Miller here, good to talk to you. And people
Speaker 1: don't realize freedom Pa. My wife's from Beaver County. There's
Speaker 1: a lot of good players from Beaver County and that
Speaker 1: whole area and just growing up how you ended up
Speaker 1: as a as a pit panther, because I you know,
Speaker 1: I do think that as something you know, it's molded you.
Speaker 1: There's been a lot of great players to come out
Speaker 1: of that area of Western Pa that have become very
Speaker 1: prominent football players in the National Football League. Maybe just
Speaker 1: talk about your past a little bit. Sure, yeah they
Speaker 1: you uh yeah, I mean I was I was really lucky.
Speaker 1: I had great high school coaching, and you know, I
Speaker 1: grew up in a kind of a steel mill area,
Speaker 1: and you know, right across the river from all Equippa.
Speaker 1: Of course, that's where Mike Dick is from, and Tony Dorset.
Speaker 1: And you know you got Mike Lucy from Ambridge and
Speaker 1: Joe Namath from Beaver Falls, and you know Durrell Reeves
Speaker 1: from all Equippa and John Gilbert. So, um, you got
Speaker 1: just got a lot of guys that uh, you know
Speaker 1: kind of it's a rich tradition in Western Pennsylvania football.
Speaker 1: And you know you kind of see the stuff like
Speaker 1: you know, um, the Tom Cruise movie when he was
Speaker 1: back in Pennsylvania, all the right moves. I mean, that's
Speaker 1: kind of where you grew up, and um, football was
Speaker 1: a part of your life, you know. So I mean
Speaker 1: I was lucky enough to have great coaching and and
Speaker 1: I played for a small high school, um double a
Speaker 1: high school. I think it was only five hundred kids
Speaker 1: of my entire school. So you know, to get noticed
Speaker 1: there with the big you know, quad A schools was
Speaker 1: kind of difficult, but um, you know, we had a
Speaker 1: good senior year when undefeated, and uh, I think that
Speaker 1: had a lot to do with me getting to you know,
Speaker 1: the notice that I had, and uh, you know, for me,
Speaker 1: it was easy. My dad. I got drafted, I mean
Speaker 1: I got I got I got recruited by a lot
Speaker 1: of schools. But my dad said, you know, you've got
Speaker 1: three choices, Pit, Penn State, or Notre Dame. I know,
Speaker 1: tom like, but um, that's the only place he would
Speaker 1: only three places he allowed me to kind of think about.
Speaker 1: I didn't visit Notre Dame, but I did Pit, and
Speaker 1: I canceled my Penn State visit after I went to
Speaker 1: Pit and just felt that was the right place for me.
Speaker 1: So I ended up there. Jimbo coverd our guest on
Speaker 1: Bears All Access number thirteen and the Bears top one hundred.
Speaker 1: Does that resonate with you? Thirteenth all time in one
Speaker 1: hundred year history of Bears football? You know, Jeff, I don't.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's it's kind of hard to to comprehend
Speaker 1: sometimes when you think about it's just I mean, I
Speaker 1: think that you know, Damn Pompey and Dawn Pearsons their
Speaker 1: remarkable job to pick one hundred guys out of a
Speaker 1: hundred years of professional football in Chicago. I mean, just
Speaker 1: think about the thousands and thousands of guys that you
Speaker 1: know pass through here. To pick a hundred guys out
Speaker 1: of that's a difficult job in itself, and then they
Speaker 1: start ranking them, um, you know, in different positions. I
Speaker 1: think is extremely difficult on top of that, and then
Speaker 1: when you get down to the top twenty five and
Speaker 1: then the top ten, I think it makes it even
Speaker 1: a lot more difficult, you know. So there's an argument
Speaker 1: I guess on every one of those guys from twenty
Speaker 1: five in right that you want if you wanted to
Speaker 1: have it, you could so, uh, you know, higher or
Speaker 1: lower or whatever. I don't know, but I was just
Speaker 1: thrilled to be part of it. And you know, you're right,
Speaker 1: it's hard to come apprehend that type of uh, you know,
Speaker 1: to be ranked at high, but I'm certainly appreciative. Hey, Jimbo,
Speaker 1: people always want to know, Hey, who's the toughest guy
Speaker 1: you ever played against? But how long did it take
Speaker 1: you to recognize Richard Dent? Had talent that if he
Speaker 1: started to cultivate his ability, that this guy could be
Speaker 1: something special. Well, I mean from day one and training camp, Tom,
Speaker 1: I mean he was liked and I think, you know,
Speaker 1: I think when we were rookie, he was probably about
Speaker 1: I don't know, two hundred and thirty pounds or something
Speaker 1: like that maybe, but he could fly. He had an
Speaker 1: incredible first step, you know, and when he came in,
Speaker 1: you know, he's a typical college you know, defensive lineman.
Speaker 1: Then you know, had tried one move and you know,
Speaker 1: if he didn't get that move on you, that was
Speaker 1: pretty much done. I mean, you could shut that off.
Speaker 1: But then when you know, when you look at a
Speaker 1: guy like Dan Hampton, who you know, does an under
Speaker 1: arm at a club that a spin, I mean you know,
Speaker 1: he'll do three pass for us, moves in the same
Speaker 1: pass for us, and mean if he doesn't get what
Speaker 1: he wants. And so that's what pro pro guys do.
Speaker 1: And so when Richard learned off of guys like that
Speaker 1: and Jim Osborne and Mike Hardenstein and you know a
Speaker 1: lot of older guys, and he learned how to rush
Speaker 1: the passer, I mean he became downright dangerous pretty quickly.
Speaker 1: I mean you could see the the you know, how
Speaker 1: much better he got, you know, just from the time
Speaker 1: training came to the end of the year, you know,
Speaker 1: and then eighty four boom. I mean he hit the
Speaker 1: ground running. So I mean he's a remarkable guy and
Speaker 1: learned how to play the run a lot better as well,
Speaker 1: because you really have to do that at Tennessee State,
Speaker 1: you know. I mean he's just rushing the passer. So um.
Speaker 1: I mean he is, you know, one of the greatest
Speaker 1: defensive ends that ever played. And I played against a
Speaker 1: lot of them, and he is, so I mean, I've
Speaker 1: you know, it's hard to rank a guy that that
Speaker 1: good when you play against him all the time, you know,
Speaker 1: because it's not in game conditions. M But I mean,
Speaker 1: he's one of the best guys I ever played against,
Speaker 1: or not, it's not the best guy ever played against, well,
Speaker 1: Jim Bow. There was energy about those mid eighties teams,
Speaker 1: the eighty five Bears, and there's still a lot of
Speaker 1: energy about the great teams you've played on. But there,
Speaker 1: you know, I think there's some similarities. I'm sure you
Speaker 1: witnessed it coming in town, going to practice. There's a
Speaker 1: lot of energy about this year's team and what, you know,
Speaker 1: how they can piggyback off the success of last year,
Speaker 1: maybe maybe could What did you glean when you when
Speaker 1: you kind of see the inner workings of this team
Speaker 1: and what Matt Nagge is is trying to accomplish and
Speaker 1: the organization overall, well, I think the expectation is there.
Speaker 1: You know, they're gonna win and they're gonna go to
Speaker 1: the super Bowl, and you know, anything short of that's
Speaker 1: going to be a disappointment. I think that's the I
Speaker 1: think that's the attitude they should have. You know, Tom
Speaker 1: or will call when he came in, it was his
Speaker 1: first year with the Bears. But you know, we were
Speaker 1: through eighty three eighty four, we got embarrassed out in
Speaker 1: San Francisco, and on the plane on the way back home,
Speaker 1: we all kind of sat there and said, Hey, I mean,
Speaker 1: this is never going to happen to us again. I mean,
Speaker 1: we got downright embarrassed. So it wasn't we weren't never
Speaker 1: going to be in that position again. So, you know,
Speaker 1: it just started right after that. And I think if
Speaker 1: you remember in the beginning of the season, we had
Speaker 1: the same type of attitude. I mean, guys got up
Speaker 1: and said, Hey, no more failure. We're gonna win the thing.
Speaker 1: And that's the attitude you have to have it. I'm
Speaker 1: seeing it now today with those guys, and that's the
Speaker 1: attitude they need to have. They can't, you know what
Speaker 1: I mean. It's a long season. I get it, but
Speaker 1: I mean, but you got to put together a string
Speaker 1: of wins and you've got to get out there and
Speaker 1: get a playoff spot. It's all about control in your division.
Speaker 1: And you can control that, you can control the next level.
Speaker 1: And I'm seeing it now and I like the attitude
Speaker 1: that Matt has and they's bringing to this team. Jimbo
Speaker 1: coverd I guess Jimbo canging on for another segment, will
Speaker 1: you buddy? You bet all right, Jimbo Cover when we
Speaker 1: come back, I remember the All eighties NFL team by
Speaker 1: the PO Football Hall of Fame board and many other
Speaker 1: accolades in a great career. This is Bears All Access,
Speaker 1: brought to you by IGS Energy. Back in the minute.
Speaker 1: Join us for the PNC Chicago Bears five K Saturday,
Speaker 1: July thirteenth and finish on a historic Soldier field. Register
Speaker 1: now at Chicago Bears dot com. Slash five K before
Speaker 1: prices increase. Jim Covert kind enough to join us for
Speaker 1: another segment here tonight on Bears All Access, brought to
Speaker 1: you by IGS Energy a Lot with Mike Chenet, Adams Zinsky,
Speaker 1: Jeff Jonniac, Tom Thair, and Jim Miller. Jimbo, I know
Speaker 1: you're very close to Dan Marino. Obviously you guys played
Speaker 1: together at Pit. But just going through some old stories
Speaker 1: that I hundred up today from the internet. I don't
Speaker 1: know the story, but it was alluded. There's a pinball
Speaker 1: machine story about your apartment in Pit with you and
Speaker 1: Dan Marino. Care to care to elaborate? Um, well, we're
Speaker 1: we're at a parliament off campus, Danny and I am
Speaker 1: guy named Paul Don's offensive line coach in the league
Speaker 1: and for a long time, and uh, Paul and I've
Speaker 1: bounced this bar called Thursdays, and the owner um a
Speaker 1: liking to us, and uh, you know, gave us a
Speaker 1: pinball machine that we had in our apartment. So, UM,
Speaker 1: I was pretty good at pinball because I grew up
Speaker 1: and had to misspent hours in the bowling alley down
Speaker 1: there in the railroad track, So I was pretty good
Speaker 1: at it. And Uh used to beat Danny all the
Speaker 1: time on it a lot, and so we'd have challenge matches.
Speaker 1: The three of us would get in there, and then
Speaker 1: he accused me of fixing machines. So I could, you know,
Speaker 1: So it didn't till you know, which I did do
Speaker 1: that a couple of times. Yeah, but it was It
Speaker 1: was a lot of fun. So we had a we
Speaker 1: had a great set up when we were seniors in
Speaker 1: Shadyside and uh fully stock bar beermeister a whole nine yards.
Speaker 1: It was. It was pretty good. It was perfect. Jimbo.
Speaker 1: I never realized how important that eighty five game was
Speaker 1: the Dolphins until I went down there my last year
Speaker 1: and played with the Miami Dolphins. Does Marino is is
Speaker 1: he still wear that around as a badge of courage
Speaker 1: or a badge of honor to you that that's the one,
Speaker 1: that's the thing he did to all of us. Yeah,
Speaker 1: he did. He did it a couple of times when
Speaker 1: we were together. And uh, you know on a ring
Speaker 1: it said eighteen and one, and he goes, uh, see
Speaker 1: that one, that one is mine. He can't take that away,
Speaker 1: And I said, what would you rather have bro the
Speaker 1: one of the ring? Well, hey, I mean, he's one
Speaker 1: of the best year all time passes of all time.
Speaker 1: When you look at Marino and I go back to
Speaker 1: that fake spike game up and when he beat the Jets.
Speaker 1: I mean, there's so many great things that And obviously
Speaker 1: for being a friend of yours and playing with him
Speaker 1: all those years, did did you have any idea playing
Speaker 1: with him at pitt that he would be considered one
Speaker 1: of the all time greats and here were now currently
Speaker 1: already in the Hall of Fame. Oh sure, Jim, I
Speaker 1: mean you could see it. I mean our senior year,
Speaker 1: he had a great junior year. You a freshman sophomore
Speaker 1: year as well, and I've got a great junior year
Speaker 1: and then senior year kind of been let down. But
Speaker 1: you know it was one. It wasn't him. It was
Speaker 1: a lot of things. It was the guys around him.
Speaker 1: You know, Um, that's a lot of drop balls. You know.
Speaker 1: It was just it's just one of those things that happened.
Speaker 1: And then then he comes out in the postseason and
Speaker 1: he ends up being MVP of the Hula Bowl and
Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl. So your MVP of both of those
Speaker 1: bowl games and you still get drafted the last quarterback
Speaker 1: which is really hard for me to understand. And you know,
Speaker 1: all the rumors that were out there were unfounded, and
Speaker 1: uh and we're you know, really put his stock back.
Speaker 1: But you know what, he ended up in the best place,
Speaker 1: ended up in the best place for him. And uh,
Speaker 1: you know, playing for a guy like Don Shula and
Speaker 1: I think the rest of history. So I mean, you know,
Speaker 1: it was hard for me to understand how he got there,
Speaker 1: but it's the best place he could be. Jimbo. One
Speaker 1: of the first meetings at the Hula Ball, when Jackie
Speaker 1: Cheryl was addressing the team, he says, man, we got
Speaker 1: Dan Marino playing quarterback. We're not going to run the
Speaker 1: ball very much, so just get ready of the past
Speaker 1: block and hey, that's what we did, and that's why
Speaker 1: he was MVP. Yeah, we were at a two point
Speaker 1: stance most of that game off our middle, which was
Speaker 1: a lot of fun, you know. Um and uh, it
Speaker 1: was kind of hot too, if you remember time, so
Speaker 1: we didn't want to be doing too much run blocking anyway.
Speaker 1: So there was a lot well, you guess more than
Speaker 1: made up fourth though when you got to the Bears,
Speaker 1: because you guys were a dominant run team. Your first
Speaker 1: four years led the league in rushing. That offensive line
Speaker 1: was superb arguably best in the NFL history, certainly the
Speaker 1: best in Bears history. And then you know, underrated that
Speaker 1: continued into the late eighties and early nineties, finishing the
Speaker 1: top three in those years top two and eighty nine
Speaker 1: and ninety third and eighty eight. Both of you, how
Speaker 1: how significantly proud of you are of that accomplishment to
Speaker 1: lead the league in rushing and be such a dominant
Speaker 1: running team during this time. Well, from my perspective, you know,
Speaker 1: I just think that, you know, I think we set
Speaker 1: an all time record. I think the only ones that
Speaker 1: tied I saw are the Bears from like the forties
Speaker 1: or something like that. So, you know, it just has
Speaker 1: never been done before. Other than that it was a
Speaker 1: different game then because they threw the ball ran the
Speaker 1: ball so much back then as well, but and then
Speaker 1: really hasn't been done since. So when you see all
Speaker 1: the names of the you know, offensive lines, like you know,
Speaker 1: the Hogs and all the teams that get all the
Speaker 1: you know, the recognition, I mean, we got way better
Speaker 1: stats and way better records than any of those offensive lines,
Speaker 1: and I think Tom will agree with that. So it
Speaker 1: always kind of threw me for a loop that our
Speaker 1: guys didn't get the recognition as an offensive line that
Speaker 1: we deserved. I think it really was because just of
Speaker 1: the perception that you know, Walter didn't have an offensive
Speaker 1: line for so long and that he did it all
Speaker 1: on his own, and then you know, when we all
Speaker 1: started to get there and he still was putting up records,
Speaker 1: you know, way into the you know, eighty six eighty seven. Mean, so,
Speaker 1: I mean, you know, that's my perspective, which is unfortunate
Speaker 1: that that was kind of the perception of the You
Speaker 1: know what it was neat for you too, Jimball, is
Speaker 1: you've been blessed with some of the best offensive line
Speaker 1: coaches in football history. When you had Joe Moore in college,
Speaker 1: then you moved on to Dick Stanfeld Hall of Famers,
Speaker 1: and you told me the other day of practice that
Speaker 1: Harry Heastan is a disciple of your of Joe Moore,
Speaker 1: which it kind of gives you an understanding why Harry
Speaker 1: does a good job of developing talent, just like you know,
Speaker 1: coach Stanfeld. No matter if you were Boortzy converted defensive
Speaker 1: lineman six seven like Van Horne, or the ability Jay
Speaker 1: or else. Even the built of Kurt Becker. He molded
Speaker 1: you into an offensive lineman that best suited you. He
Speaker 1: didn't try to change what your your asset was as
Speaker 1: a football player. No, Dick was the best, and I
Speaker 1: think that, you know, the best line coach I ever had.
Speaker 1: You know, I love Dick Stample, but Joe Moore was,
Speaker 1: you know, the best, and you know, learned off of
Speaker 1: Dan Radakovich and all those steel are great offensive lines,
Speaker 1: and you know Harry's a disciple of that, and I
Speaker 1: mean you could just see it in the way those
Speaker 1: guys coach, and when I was up at practice on
Speaker 1: the field, you know, Harry uses a lot of the
Speaker 1: same terminology. So it's a little deja voot. It was
Speaker 1: fun Watson the guys, and they're really responding on that
Speaker 1: type of coaching as well. So you know when you're
Speaker 1: seeing those sons of good techniques because quite frankly, and
Speaker 1: I know Tom probably see obviously sees a lot more
Speaker 1: than I do and watch there's a lot more. But
Speaker 1: you see some of the offensive line technique around around
Speaker 1: the league and it's pretty horrid. I mean it really is.
Speaker 1: I mean, ever since they went to all this zone
Speaker 1: blocking everything. They just get five of the biggest guys
Speaker 1: and kind of sidestep guys. I mean you never see
Speaker 1: anybody stepping up field as much anymore. You know, it's
Speaker 1: all kind of a running back looking for softness. They
Speaker 1: don't really do a lot of a point attack stuff
Speaker 1: and hit you know, hit holes, a lot of trapping plays.
Speaker 1: I mean Tom and Sports he used to pull you know,
Speaker 1: fifteen times a game. I mean, if you ever see
Speaker 1: a garget out in space, you know, he probably fall down.
Speaker 1: We'll be able to make the corner. So it's a
Speaker 1: totally different game now. That's why it's always fun to
Speaker 1: go back in time and watch some of those YouTube games.
Speaker 1: You can see them, many of them, and see what
Speaker 1: it was like. It was outstanding to watch physical brand
Speaker 1: of football. Jim Ball, thank you so much by the
Speaker 1: time tonight, Have a great evening and best of luck
Speaker 1: you back, guys. A nice chatting with a nice chatting
Speaker 1: with jimbo Covert outstanding six pick in the eighty three
Speaker 1: draft by the Chicago Bears. One segment to go here
Speaker 1: on Bears All Access with Jeff and Tom Jim Miller.
Speaker 1: I'm Jeff joni Ac Here's radio excuse me, Tick seventy
Speaker 1: the school back. In our final moments of tonight's program,
Speaker 1: Out of Here at the top of the hour, Jeff, Jonyac,
Speaker 1: Tom There and Jim Miller with you on Bears All
Speaker 1: Access brought to you by Igs Energy. Great conversation with
Speaker 1: jimbo Covert feel strongly about you know, a couple of things,
Speaker 1: And I was going to bring up to him about
Speaker 1: his injuries that really complicated his career and forced him
Speaker 1: to stop playing with his back injuries. But how an
Speaker 1: athlete that elite level has to deal with the body
Speaker 1: not responding the way you want. And you guys have
Speaker 1: certainly had severe injuries in your career as well, So
Speaker 1: how do you manage that and balance that out with
Speaker 1: a love of the game and what you've put into
Speaker 1: it and what you get out of it. To have
Speaker 1: that be the reason you can't continue, Lane, Well, you
Speaker 1: don't think about that when you're going through it. You're
Speaker 1: just so committed to the game, committed to making your
Speaker 1: get yourself ready in the offseason to be prepared for
Speaker 1: what the season. You know the tot it'll take on you.
Speaker 1: And you know, since Jim has retired, he's at a
Speaker 1: knee and an ankle replacement, which was I was shocked
Speaker 1: to hear and shocked to see when he showed me
Speaker 1: the pictures of it. But he looks great. You wouldn't
Speaker 1: be able to tell if he ever looked at him.
Speaker 1: And I think that's a lot of what the guy's
Speaker 1: got to do is when you do go through the
Speaker 1: trials and the injuries that you face during the season,
Speaker 1: it's about what you continue to do in the afterlife
Speaker 1: to make sure you stay active in whatever way you can,
Speaker 1: because that's the thing that's going to help you the
Speaker 1: most as we get into our late fifties and early
Speaker 1: sixties and such. Yeah, and unfortunately, you know, it's it's
Speaker 1: it's very rare that a player gets to really dictate,
Speaker 1: you know, their own terms. You know, here you got
Speaker 1: Rob Gronkowski's retiring so young as a tight end and
Speaker 1: he goes out on top as a as a world champion.
Speaker 1: But think about him. He's had four back surgeries, he's
Speaker 1: had a torn ACL he's had numerous elbow surgeries. Um,
Speaker 1: but here he was able to do that, and that's
Speaker 1: just it's few and far between that you're able to
Speaker 1: do that, especially go out you know, winning a Super
Speaker 1: Bowl ring. But it says a lot about a player,
Speaker 1: the injuries that they overcome, and probably Jimbo covert overcame
Speaker 1: quite a bit. And you know it just to me,
Speaker 1: it speaks about the player and how much they want
Speaker 1: to be on the field for their team, their coaches,
Speaker 1: the organization, all those things for the love of the game.
Speaker 1: They'll sacrifice quite a bit in order to to to
Speaker 1: really give it up for their teammates. Any time. Do
Speaker 1: you remember him going into that WrestleMania two back in
Speaker 1: eighty six. I was there, Oh okay, and Mark Boarts
Speaker 1: went there as the first time I got to see
Speaker 1: um Andre the Giant in person and a lot of
Speaker 1: the other guys that were wrestled in that in that WrestleMania,
Speaker 1: and um, you know, Jimbo was a great high school wrestler.
Speaker 1: I'm sure he could have wrestled his way through college.
Speaker 1: But I you know, I say that the best players
Speaker 1: that I played with were great wrestlers. But Jimbo, you know,
Speaker 1: he was that size, he had that persona, and he
Speaker 1: was the type of guy that fit into that WrestleMania perfectly.
Speaker 1: And it was a lot of fun going there, and
Speaker 1: you know, seeing the hype of that those events on
Speaker 1: that night. Yeah, and unfortunate when he got there. Right,
Speaker 1: don't mess with Jimbo. That's pretty much in the message.
Speaker 1: Jimbo was a bad dude, There's no doubt about it.
Speaker 1: And you know, I got introduced to that in college
Speaker 1: and watched the way that his offensive line that he
Speaker 1: played with that Pitt, the way they walked to the
Speaker 1: line of scrimmage almost looked like they were the Steelers.
Speaker 1: And they had greatness up there with Ron Sam's and
Speaker 1: Bill Freylick and other offensive lineman that played fort at
Speaker 1: Pitt at that time. And Joe Moore was a great
Speaker 1: offensive line coach and he developed talent where I think
Speaker 1: all five of the guys went on to get drafted
Speaker 1: and have successful NFL careers. All Right, fellas, we're out
Speaker 1: of time. Three shaated. Another one bears all access in
Speaker 1: the books. Jim Big, Jim Miller Ticket, he's there up
Speaker 1: there in Michigan, and Tom we'll see you around. That's
Speaker 1: gonna do it tonight. Thanks to Mike Chen and Adam
Speaker 1: Fazinski for helping us out. Cheane Rearden is always as well,
Speaker 1: and our guests Riley Ridley, the Bear's fourth round pick
Speaker 1: at receiver and Jimbo Covert, a great in Chicago Bears history.
Speaker 1: That'll do it for you tonight on Bears All Access
Speaker 1: on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The score, Good night,