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Speaker 1: evening with my broadcast partner from news radio seven eighty
Speaker 1: and one oh five nine w BBM, Chicago Bears Super
Speaker 1: Bowl winner Tom Fair. I'm Jeff joni ac regular season
Speaker 1: opener in La coming up here on Sunday night. We'll
Speaker 1: have the pregame at four, kickoff at seven twenty and Tom,
Speaker 1: I know you are akin for some Bears football. Yeah, man,
Speaker 1: there's there's a lot of thought. There's thirty years of
Speaker 1: me thinking about opening weekends and how much they mean
Speaker 1: do a team. We gotta thank our producers, dam Breally,
Speaker 1: Jordan trud Up, Katie Tuber and the folks at the score. Inglewood,
Speaker 1: California will be the spot will be at at brand
Speaker 1: new Soapy Stadium. We didn't get to see it last year.
Speaker 1: We're gonna see it for the first time. We're here.
Speaker 1: It's fantastic. Players love it, coaches love it. Everybody who's
Speaker 1: been there loves it. And Tom, I'm sure there'll be
Speaker 1: plenty of Bears fans cranking it up. Tom. Now, let's
Speaker 1: talk about the injury news. It's Eddie Goldman. He's on
Speaker 1: that injury report, doubtful, did not practice since Monday when
Speaker 1: he tweaked his knee. You know, well, we'll see how
Speaker 1: it goes tomorrow. I'll see where he's at. But if
Speaker 1: if if he gets better tomorrow or on Sunday and
Speaker 1: or all that whole whole deal, then that'll be good
Speaker 1: for him and we'll get him out there. And if
Speaker 1: he's not, then it'll give an opportunity for other guys
Speaker 1: below him to, you know, to play a little bit.
Speaker 1: So that's where we're at with him and Tom. That's
Speaker 1: a knee that happened on Monday. Unfortunate given what we
Speaker 1: saw on ten snaps in the preseason finale from Eddie. Yeah,
Speaker 1: you know, listen, Matt, I'm all for Eddie Goldman. I
Speaker 1: think he's a heck of a football player. If he
Speaker 1: wants to be well, now, I gotta start thinking about
Speaker 1: the guys who are gonna be there in his place.
Speaker 1: And uh, you know that's the thing about a team
Speaker 1: sport moving forward. If you're in the locker room, hey man,
Speaker 1: this guy is still your buddy, still your friend. You
Speaker 1: want the best for him, You want him to get
Speaker 1: healthy to healthy along. But look who do I need
Speaker 1: their Sunday night. I need Angelo Blackson, I need Kiris Tonga,
Speaker 1: I need Bloo Nichols. I need every one of these
Speaker 1: guys to step up to the plate and fill the
Speaker 1: void that Eddie Goldman's gonna leave. And one of those guys,
Speaker 1: if Eddie is not able to play, will be Kiris Tonga,
Speaker 1: the rookie out of byu Man. Naggie's very high on
Speaker 1: what he's been able to do so far. If that
Speaker 1: is the case, after we get through the next two
Speaker 1: days with Eddie, Tonga would have a bigger role. So
Speaker 1: that'll be a good opportunity for him. But I do
Speaker 1: believe too, like that's a probably of all the positions
Speaker 1: on our team. That's something that we got a lot
Speaker 1: of depth at right now, which is good so when
Speaker 1: this stuff happens. So we'll see the next two days.
Speaker 1: But I feel I feel good with what Coach Trump
Speaker 1: has done with those guys, and then the other guys
Speaker 1: are gonna have to above it if that's the case,
Speaker 1: and that includes below Nichols, Tommy because he played some
Speaker 1: of that last year. Yeah, but you know, Jeff, these
Speaker 1: guys are going to be put in a position to succeed.
Speaker 1: They're not going to ask to do things that are
Speaker 1: unrealistic to their abilities, and blown Nichols is the guy
Speaker 1: that shows he has the ability, the athleticism, the strengthen,
Speaker 1: the speed to play up and down the line of scrimmage.
Speaker 1: When Kyrs is in the game, it's going to about
Speaker 1: him holding up multiple bodies to allow those linebackers to
Speaker 1: be free. They're not going to put him in an
Speaker 1: unrealistic position to try to do something that he's not
Speaker 1: capable of doing. But man, when he gets his snaps,
Speaker 1: he's got to bring it like he's never brought up before,
Speaker 1: because this is not a college game. This is the
Speaker 1: start of his NFL life. And when the Bears deal
Speaker 1: with Matthew Stafford and a Rams uniform, it's gonna look
Speaker 1: possibly a little different with that head coach. We'll get
Speaker 1: into all that coming up throughout the course of the show.
Speaker 1: Coming up in our next segment Bear Center Sam Mustafer,
Speaker 1: and then we'll be joined later in the program by
Speaker 1: La Rams analyst de Marco far on the radio side
Speaker 1: of things. For the La Rams, Tom Maestro's defense this
Speaker 1: year is Sean de Sy. He'll be in charge of
Speaker 1: stopping Matthew Stafford and that offense Sunday Night earlier today.
Speaker 1: Coach get a lot of good things to say so
Speaker 1: on the headset during the game, extremely calm, which I love,
Speaker 1: you know, just the players feel that when he's calling
Speaker 1: a play in to to whoever that is, it's a
Speaker 1: time during a game, regular season, preseason, they feel that
Speaker 1: they understand that. I liked that about him because he
Speaker 1: believes in what he's saying. And sometimes, you know, there's
Speaker 1: times where there's a couple of plays where in a
Speaker 1: row you're getting gashed and there's no panic. You know.
Speaker 1: I think that's where you feel the most is there's
Speaker 1: no panic. It's just nice and calm. But then if
Speaker 1: he needs to get on him a little bit, I've
Speaker 1: seen that dark side too. You got to have that
Speaker 1: dark side, and he has that, so I appreciate it
Speaker 1: about him during the season, or excuse me, during the week,
Speaker 1: what I see is somebody he'll come into my office
Speaker 1: and he'll give me a sheet of paper that is
Speaker 1: extremely detailed with how the day's gonna go right or
Speaker 1: what his coaches are doing. He's coaching his coaches too.
Speaker 1: You know, we all coach our players, but he's coaching
Speaker 1: his coaches. So I just for a first year guy
Speaker 1: doing it. This isn't something that he's been thrown into
Speaker 1: the fire. He's been prepping for this, and that's why
Speaker 1: he did such a great job in his interview, and
Speaker 1: that's why we believe in him and Tom. That's exactly
Speaker 1: the case. Sean decided super prepared, so nothing that he's
Speaker 1: doing is surprising anybody, but will be interested to see
Speaker 1: what it looks like. Yeah, you know, and I think
Speaker 1: he likes all the faces of Sean Decide. He talks
Speaker 1: about how prepared and how he can have a calm
Speaker 1: demeanor even if there's a big play going on by
Speaker 1: the opponent, how he keeps a really level headed performance
Speaker 1: in terms of what he's thinking, how he's got a
Speaker 1: good relationship and understands how to talk football with his players.
Speaker 1: But you know, in the press conference to how I'm
Speaker 1: glad he talked about having the dark side, because that's
Speaker 1: a football dark side that's not outside the building. That
Speaker 1: just means when he has to bring a serious expression
Speaker 1: or serious conversation to some of these more experienced football players,
Speaker 1: that he has the ability and the willingness to do that.
Speaker 1: And every coach that I've ever played for has that
Speaker 1: side to him. Right. He's fiery, and that defense wants
Speaker 1: to play exactly like that. The personality will evolve, and
Speaker 1: it could start right away or it evolved throughout the
Speaker 1: game against the Rams. Certainly this is the case about
Speaker 1: this team. They want to take the ball away and
Speaker 1: they want to be aggressive. I think you're gonna probably
Speaker 1: see guys fly out of the football in a little
Speaker 1: different manner and maybe playing a little more tight coverage,
Speaker 1: don't you. I do, because I think Sean's been around
Speaker 1: for a while. He understands what this team has made of.
Speaker 1: He understands that he has experienced from the line of
Speaker 1: scrimmage all the way to the defense and backfield, how
Speaker 1: to put those guys in the best position. Defensively speaking,
Speaker 1: according to what he's seeing across the line of scrimmage
Speaker 1: or new personnel coming in. So I think Sean has
Speaker 1: a good coaching staff and he's got a really good
Speaker 1: work ethic that he's been able to build his own
Speaker 1: ability from. All Right, Coming up next, they're gonna be
Speaker 1: joined by Sam Mustaf, the Bears Starting Center. We'll talk
Speaker 1: with him for a couple of segments and a reminder
Speaker 1: that you can kick off the twenty twenty one season
Speaker 1: this Sunday night at our Miller Light Headquarters bar outdoor
Speaker 1: watch party in Logan Square starting at five thirty pm.
Speaker 1: Visit Chicago Bears dot com, Slash Fanzone Slash watch Parties
Speaker 1: for more information. With Tom There, I'm Jeff Joniak and
Speaker 1: this is Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The Score. Welcome
Speaker 1: back to Bears All Access brought to you by IGS Energy.
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Speaker 1: With Tom There, Jeff Joniac here on Bears All Access
Speaker 1: on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The Score. Welcome me in,
Speaker 1: Starting Center, Sam Mustaf, the Notre Dame grad Nice win
Speaker 1: by the Irish. The other day, my friend, Oh, that
Speaker 1: was close, close call against Florida State. Do you watch it? Yes, yeah,
Speaker 1: I watched all of them, very close, but good to
Speaker 1: see the Irish in the top ten. Sam, you're gearing
Speaker 1: up for a game against the Rams and start the season,
Speaker 1: and it's an important one for you as well, because
Speaker 1: you begin the season as the starting center in the
Speaker 1: National Football League. And I read this quote from your
Speaker 1: teammate on the other side of the ball, to Sean Gibson.
Speaker 1: He wrote a journal years ago, and this is what
Speaker 1: he said. Once you come out of the tunnel, there's
Speaker 1: just something I feel from the crown of my head
Speaker 1: to the soles of my feet. Once you go back
Speaker 1: in after that warm up and come back in for
Speaker 1: that four minutes right before kickoff, you just hear that atmosphere,
Speaker 1: whether home or away, the vibration of that stadium is
Speaker 1: something that you never ever ever be able to get
Speaker 1: anywhere else in America. Is that a proper way that
Speaker 1: most NFL players feel or do you have a different
Speaker 1: slant on it than this undrafted free agent like yourself
Speaker 1: out of Wyoming who's made a heck of a career
Speaker 1: for himself. Yeah, No, I believe that highlights, you know,
Speaker 1: the most important part of the game. I mean, it's
Speaker 1: a blessing to be out there and you know, you're
Speaker 1: grateful for every opportunity and you know to take in
Speaker 1: that moment and relish it and understand be where your
Speaker 1: feet are and that's crucial. And every time you get
Speaker 1: to go out there and play on Sunday, it's it's
Speaker 1: unlike any other experience. You know, Sam, we you know,
Speaker 1: because we went to Notre Dame, we got to play
Speaker 1: in something pretty unique atmospheres because we're not in a conference.
Speaker 1: We play all over the country. My sophomore year we
Speaker 1: played down at Alabama and I've never walked out to
Speaker 1: a Louder boo in my entire career. So I mean, seriously,
Speaker 1: do you feel the same about this away game atmosphere
Speaker 1: that to Sean talks about that you know uniquely enough,
Speaker 1: Soldier Field is always sold out, but here you're going
Speaker 1: into a hostile environment and but you've been through that
Speaker 1: your whole college career. Yeah, I think it is different.
Speaker 1: You know, it's unique because we're coming off of you know, COVID,
Speaker 1: this is the this is their coming out party, and
Speaker 1: then stadium it's a beautiful stadium, had the opportunity to
Speaker 1: play there last year. But you know, it's indoors. I
Speaker 1: mean there's a few little airways where sound could get out,
Speaker 1: but I mean, I'm sure the fans are going to
Speaker 1: be punts. It's actually an opportunity and it's gonna be great.
Speaker 1: It's definitely going to be loud. You know, like you
Speaker 1: said Notre Dame. You experience and things, but I'm not
Speaker 1: sure that you know the passion for, you know, getting
Speaker 1: out and finally being and able to go do things
Speaker 1: and support the support. The team will be matched like
Speaker 1: it will be this weekend. Tom Brady's been bringing it
Speaker 1: up all offseason and it does pertain to you. You
Speaker 1: and Brady have a lot in common. So I'm talking.
Speaker 1: I'm talking about the numbers changed for jerseys as to
Speaker 1: where they're lined up. You know, so Sam, you go
Speaker 1: to the line of scrimmage, you identify the linebacker and
Speaker 1: the responsibility when you guys are in every situation. So
Speaker 1: now because the numbers are different, Brady talks about being
Speaker 1: confused as to who's coming and who's not. Single digit numbers,
Speaker 1: blah blah blah. Have you taken that into account? Have
Speaker 1: you had to have a little bit of conversation with
Speaker 1: the responsible blockers on the line of scrimmage or the
Speaker 1: running backs to make sure everybody is aware of these
Speaker 1: numbers for changes. Yeah, you know it comes through film study.
Speaker 1: But like you said that, this is unique that we have,
Speaker 1: you know, no film these guys with single digit numbers.
Speaker 1: I mean, Danny just switched to number six today. So
Speaker 1: having a linebacker wearing a single digit number versus you know,
Speaker 1: anybody else, or having now Dbs coming into the box,
Speaker 1: Nichols coming into the box wearing single digit numbers. But
Speaker 1: you know, throughout my time playing Center, I've always tried
Speaker 1: to id based on numbers. So I try to help
Speaker 1: the guys as much as I possibly can. Sam must
Speaker 1: of Her our guest here on bears All Access. It
Speaker 1: is brought to you by IGS Energy. You know, forgive me,
Speaker 1: but the only number I care about right now is
Speaker 1: ninety nine. It's Jersey. I mean, what's what's it been
Speaker 1: like breaking that tape down of Aaron Donald. Um, he's
Speaker 1: a game wrecker, He's a monster, you know it been.
Speaker 1: He's worked hard, he's ear in that respect that you
Speaker 1: have to account for wherever he is on the field
Speaker 1: as a Oh, it's a very talented defense with a
Speaker 1: complex scheme and the ability to have a player like
Speaker 1: that at once in a lifetime. Generational tight talent definitely
Speaker 1: elevates that defense, you can see, elevates all the guys,
Speaker 1: and that's what great players do. Um, So yeah, I
Speaker 1: mean you see stuff on film and you're like, you know,
Speaker 1: not many people can do that to get through two
Speaker 1: and three guys on a consistent basis as well, Um,
Speaker 1: that's the key part. He's his ability to wreck a
Speaker 1: game and change the outcome of a game is definitely critical,
Speaker 1: and so too is Jalen Ramsey, but in a different way.
Speaker 1: He's just he's all over the place, so you have
Speaker 1: to identify him as well. Yeah. Absolutely, And but like
Speaker 1: we talked about before, you know, with the number switch
Speaker 1: the number five, it's different. You know, he's not number
Speaker 1: twenty now. So yeah, you, like I said, that's a
Speaker 1: complex defense with the talented guys, and they definitely play
Speaker 1: their roles very well. You know, Sam, your offensive line
Speaker 1: looks different with Jason Peters in there, but all along
Speaker 1: the front, you guys have a chance to be one
Speaker 1: of them. More are powerful offensive lines in the league,
Speaker 1: and so yeah, I listen, you have to respect Aaron
Speaker 1: Donald because he's put on you know, in the NFL
Speaker 1: what he's been able to do. However, you've got to
Speaker 1: have a lot of confidence that you're breaking the huddle
Speaker 1: with the guys you're breaking the huddle with and going
Speaker 1: to the line of scrimmage when you talk about Cody
Speaker 1: and James and Jason and Jermain Effetti, yeah, absolutely, I
Speaker 1: mean to be honest, like, I've played football since I
Speaker 1: was five years old, so you know, these opportunities, these moments,
Speaker 1: and you know, I can't speak for everybody on our
Speaker 1: offensive line, but I know those guys they relish the
Speaker 1: opportunities to go against the grades that should you train
Speaker 1: all off season for you know, most offensive line. We
Speaker 1: can't take a lot of time off is you know,
Speaker 1: there's a critical time to build strength, to build you know,
Speaker 1: skilled speed, whatever development you want to build during the
Speaker 1: off season. So you know, playing against the greatest players
Speaker 1: and arguably one of the greatest players of all the time,
Speaker 1: these are the opportunities that you transport. So it's definitely
Speaker 1: exciting and to be able to go to battle with
Speaker 1: those guys and you know, know and how they operate
Speaker 1: and we're it is definitely exciting. You know, the different
Speaker 1: combinations of the offensive line you played with last year,
Speaker 1: plus the different combinations of the offensive line you played
Speaker 1: with throughout training camp. That's how to be beneficial to you.
Speaker 1: Also because with the fragile COVID times, you know, some
Speaker 1: days you don't know who's going to be lining up
Speaker 1: to the right or to the left of you. Yeah. Absolutely,
Speaker 1: offensive line, as you know, it is all about communications.
Speaker 1: So you know, if we can get guys in there
Speaker 1: and you know we're not missing a beat, that's that's
Speaker 1: crucial for offensive lines development. And you know, I think
Speaker 1: having the opportunity to work with different guys throughout camp.
Speaker 1: You know, what's coach cass Steele and coach role to
Speaker 1: do with us is you know it we're able to
Speaker 1: come in and it's kind of a next man up mentality.
Speaker 1: So I do agree with you on that. All right,
Speaker 1: You've you've added some muscle and strength to your body diligently.
Speaker 1: We've talked about it at length, but now you've had
Speaker 1: plenty of time to see how that feels on the field.
Speaker 1: What did you think your preseason, your training camp and
Speaker 1: how do you feel right now. You know, I thought,
Speaker 1: I thought it was good. You know, there's always things
Speaker 1: you can work on, things you can improve on, but
Speaker 1: you know, Trending Camp went through it, and you know,
Speaker 1: I was able to work against very talented guys, talented defense.
Speaker 1: And then we got the joint practices with Miami, Then
Speaker 1: we played Buffalo, then we had Tennessee, so we got
Speaker 1: a mixture of defensive fronts that we were able to
Speaker 1: go against, a mixture of different types of body types
Speaker 1: that are going to line up as your your nose,
Speaker 1: your three techniques, different styles linebacker play, and then you know,
Speaker 1: some not exotic blitzes, but some different blitzes that we
Speaker 1: were seeing in games. So you know, it was cool
Speaker 1: to get out there and you know, feel my body
Speaker 1: had a new way and then just adjust accordingly during
Speaker 1: the season. You know, when when I was at Notre Dame,
Speaker 1: we used to get dressed in the acc walk out
Speaker 1: through the back parking lot, we're onto the practice field.
Speaker 1: So to this I feel like kind of a college
Speaker 1: atmosphere this year, when you're dressing your home locker for practice,
Speaker 1: you walk out on the practice field and you're ready
Speaker 1: to go to work. So wasn't a different in the
Speaker 1: transition of training camp at Hallishall than it's been when
Speaker 1: you go to Olive Bet or some of the other
Speaker 1: you know times that you've gone through training camp in
Speaker 1: your career so far, for sure. I mean, you know,
Speaker 1: the organization has done a great job of putting together
Speaker 1: a state of the our facilities. So now we have
Speaker 1: a lot of resources at our disposal to get warmed
Speaker 1: up in the proper manner, to stretching the proper manner
Speaker 1: so that we can get out onto the practice field quickly.
Speaker 1: I mean it's definitely different. Transitions are faster, so I
Speaker 1: mean there's more time for you to do things that
Speaker 1: are helped you going to be a better football player,
Speaker 1: whether that be nutrition, recovery, warming up, stretching afterwards over four.
Speaker 1: So yeah, it was definitely a different this year, Sam
Speaker 1: must have for our guests, We're gonna step away another
Speaker 1: segment with a Bear starting center coming up, number sixty seven,
Speaker 1: Getting Ready for the Rams with Tom Thayer. I'm Jeff
Speaker 1: Joni Akeen. This is Bears All Access on Chicago Sports
Speaker 1: Radio six seventy to score. This segment of Bears All
Speaker 1: Access is brought to you by athletical physical therapy. Visit
Speaker 1: Athletico dot com to request an appointment in clinic or
Speaker 1: virtually and start feeling better tomorrow. That's a good segment
Speaker 1: way with our guests, Sam Mustaferham Bears All Access with
Speaker 1: Tom there, I' Jeff Joniak were brought to you by
Speaker 1: igs energy feeling better. You know, what would you say
Speaker 1: to the fan base or those analysts out there that
Speaker 1: do question where the Bears are at on the offensive
Speaker 1: line from the simple word of continuity because these five
Speaker 1: guys haven't played together much in this preseason. How do
Speaker 1: you guys feel about it as an offensive line? Oh,
Speaker 1: you know, in just building working every day. You know,
Speaker 1: I always live by a quote that you know, it
Speaker 1: was really introduced to me during college. You either get
Speaker 1: better you get worse. So every day we're looking to
Speaker 1: get better. And whether that be one percent, five percent,
Speaker 1: at ten percent, every guy out there is just trying
Speaker 1: to get better and we're trying to build that continuity.
Speaker 1: And that comes with communication, It comes with film study,
Speaker 1: it comes with you know, trusting where each other is
Speaker 1: going to be at. So it's been good to work
Speaker 1: with those guys and you know, just being surrounded by
Speaker 1: guys who have a lot of NFL experience. Game time
Speaker 1: experience has definitely been helpful for me as a young center.
Speaker 1: Saman You know, you guys probably got the perfect compliment
Speaker 1: of running backs for your offensive line. When you look
Speaker 1: at Dave Montgomery, Damon Williams and Khalil Herbert and stuff.
Speaker 1: When you talk about being powerful upfront and powerful from
Speaker 1: the backfield, it's got to be a good good just
Speaker 1: a combination of running backs. Oh yeah, I ultimate respect
Speaker 1: for those guys. Their communication and their ability to see
Speaker 1: holes and hit it and go downhill is awesome. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, the way they run and makes you want
Speaker 1: to block art as an offensive lineman. Um, you know,
Speaker 1: uniquely enough for me. Uh. You know, I came in
Speaker 1: with Dave, so we have a very good relationship, and
Speaker 1: then actually Khalil's lockers right next to mine in the
Speaker 1: locker room, so you know, I'm able to talk with him,
Speaker 1: and then Damian we just related on the idea that
Speaker 1: we were both undrafted, so the hunger matches there. So
Speaker 1: all those guys are great guys, and I can't wait
Speaker 1: to block for him then them throughout the season. You know,
Speaker 1: it's the first time I've ever heard anybody refer to
Speaker 1: him as Dave? Yeah, but my whole life since when
Speaker 1: he was in college, do you call him Dave? Yeah? Yeah,
Speaker 1: he doesn't object clearly, right, I don't. I don't know
Speaker 1: if you've ever heard it, Jeff, of anybody referring to
Speaker 1: him to day. But it's kind of you know, when
Speaker 1: you grow up in a locker room with guys that
Speaker 1: are specifically you know, how we know them by their
Speaker 1: formal names, and it's kind of a insight into the
Speaker 1: relationship that you have, and it's it's cool that you
Speaker 1: can go that direction. Absolutely. What do you call Khalil?
Speaker 1: Just how? You know? It's interesting because do you ask
Speaker 1: him questions about defenses? You know? Is there that kind
Speaker 1: of conversation? And you know he's a guy that doesn't
Speaker 1: like to talk a lot, you know, but he's a
Speaker 1: super nice guy. Every time you see him, he's got
Speaker 1: a smile on his face. He gives you a hello,
Speaker 1: how you doing? But you know he doesn't look like
Speaker 1: love talking about himself. He lets his actions speak louder
Speaker 1: than his words, and um, well do you get into
Speaker 1: that mindset of one of the premier pass rushers in
Speaker 1: the NFL? Yeah, absolutely, you know, just trying to see
Speaker 1: different types of things and understanding, you know, where our
Speaker 1: weaknesses at as an offensive line, um, you know, understanding that.
Speaker 1: You know, as a premier pass rusher, he he has
Speaker 1: a knowledge and understanding of the game. And then on
Speaker 1: top of that just his experience. Um, you know that's
Speaker 1: invaluable to us. And you know, really across the front,
Speaker 1: you know, we have a bunch of guys we can
Speaker 1: ask the types of questions see you like where where
Speaker 1: where do you feel that I'm leaning at her? Where's
Speaker 1: where's my leverage point? Or on this play? You know,
Speaker 1: what are you feeling? How can I clean that up?
Speaker 1: Am I getting you any tips or anything? Like? Is
Speaker 1: it passed? Rundown? So yeah, that's definitely awesome. You know,
Speaker 1: I've heard this said by scouts often, uh, with guys
Speaker 1: that are are really dominant, strong, et cetera. Like we
Speaker 1: hear Aaron Donald is just uber strong and you and
Speaker 1: you can feel him. You can certainly feel Khalil, you
Speaker 1: can feel a team. I'm sure you can feel Eddie
Speaker 1: and below as well. But do you sense and time
Speaker 1: you can jump in on this too? Over your course
Speaker 1: your career, do you feel the difference in guys when
Speaker 1: you line up against them and try and block them
Speaker 1: from your positions. Yeah. Absolutely, Um, you know, some guys
Speaker 1: are better at using their hands and levers and other guys. Um,
Speaker 1: some guys are gonna get get on you fast. Some
Speaker 1: guys will you know, worked edges more. And so that's
Speaker 1: something that comes to film study and you know kind
Speaker 1: of you know, placing guys into like folders in your mind,
Speaker 1: like understanding on by week basis, this is a type
Speaker 1: of guy I'm going up against. And then you know
Speaker 1: you've got opportunities like this week against a generational talent
Speaker 1: where he kind of fists in every folder. There's there's
Speaker 1: a bunch of different things he can do to affect
Speaker 1: the game and to get you off your game. Yeah,
Speaker 1: in my career, when we played against Keith Millard when
Speaker 1: he was the defensive MVP of the league as a
Speaker 1: defensive tackle position, he had superior quickness that if he
Speaker 1: didn't get your hands on him, he was gone. But
Speaker 1: then you play against a guy like Pieris Holt, who's
Speaker 1: not really that well known that played for the four
Speaker 1: forty nine ers, who was one of the most dominantly
Speaker 1: strong players I ever faced in game to game competition,
Speaker 1: and because you don't play against them that much, you
Speaker 1: better keep that, Like Sam said, you better keep him
Speaker 1: in your folder to understand when you come up against
Speaker 1: him again, he's going to provide kind of, you know,
Speaker 1: a physical type of presence that you don't face very often. Yeah, absolutely,
Speaker 1: I agree you. Like you said, you have those unique
Speaker 1: guys that you know when they hit you, you feel it,
Speaker 1: and you know when I get you get their hands
Speaker 1: on you. And then like you said, you have those
Speaker 1: quick guys, the shifty guys, the ones that you're you're
Speaker 1: gonna have to get on fast or try not to
Speaker 1: give him as much space as possible. Hey, Sam, do
Speaker 1: you remember that first start last year for you against
Speaker 1: the Saints? Because it was because Cody had a calf
Speaker 1: and ended a streak of seventy two straight starts for him.
Speaker 1: He's had unbelievable success in that regard and durability. And
Speaker 1: where your mind was at then compared to where is
Speaker 1: it at right now, it was just like it is now.
Speaker 1: And I know that sounds cliche, but every every day,
Speaker 1: you know, I get an opportunity to walk in this
Speaker 1: building and you know, be a professional football player for
Speaker 1: an occupation is I mean, this is the best job
Speaker 1: in the world. And I'm sure a lot of people
Speaker 1: who say that about their jobs, you know, whatever that
Speaker 1: they're passionate about. But you know, football has been my
Speaker 1: passion since I was a kid, since I was able
Speaker 1: to understand what the game was. And you know, against
Speaker 1: the Saints last year was an opportunity and against the
Speaker 1: Rams this weekend, it's the same opportunity. I get to
Speaker 1: live out my dreams on a daily basis. So you know,
Speaker 1: I look at it like that, and I feel like
Speaker 1: when you're grateful for the opportunity, no matter the outcome,
Speaker 1: you just get back to work. Sam, Do you feel
Speaker 1: a certain more of a sense of responsibility because now
Speaker 1: you're not an undrafted free agent from Chicago from Notre
Speaker 1: Dame that you're the starting center for the Chicago Bears. Uh.
Speaker 1: You know, you have had a great training camp and
Speaker 1: you went out there side by side every single day
Speaker 1: with Cody and the rest of the crew. But you know,
Speaker 1: it is you have a different responsibility on you now
Speaker 1: than you do. You know when you showed up at
Speaker 1: the Bears. Absolutely, I think that expectation is different, and
Speaker 1: you know, that's that's something you want. You want a
Speaker 1: different expectation. And oh, he's just undrafted guy. You know
Speaker 1: what can he do at You know, he's serviceable. We
Speaker 1: can just put him in and he'll he'll play his role.
Speaker 1: Like I enjoy having the expectation that. You know, it's
Speaker 1: my job to put guys in the right position so
Speaker 1: they could do that their jobs. It's my job to
Speaker 1: get the offensive line together and working together on the
Speaker 1: same page. It's my job to get the protection on
Speaker 1: the right uh page. I like that responsibility. And you know,
Speaker 1: when you're successful, you probably won't get credit for it,
Speaker 1: but and then when you're not successful, you're definitely gonna
Speaker 1: We like to have a little bit of fun in
Speaker 1: the final couple of minutes here, So these are quick hitters.
Speaker 1: Here we go, a quick five pack. Last gift you
Speaker 1: gave somebody's gift. I gave somebody man, I got an
Speaker 1: edible arrangement during training camp. I like it less those things. Yeah,
Speaker 1: if not football, then what the public office? Maybe? And
Speaker 1: I think that would be cool. Wow, I like that.
Speaker 1: I could I could picture him in that role. He's
Speaker 1: a smart man. But you know, let's let's talk about it. Yeah,
Speaker 1: let's talk about a fifteen years later after an NFL
Speaker 1: career shipwrecked. Shipwrecked on a deserted island. You got your food,
Speaker 1: you got your water. But what two items you have
Speaker 1: to have with you? Two items have to have with him? Oh? Man, Yes,
Speaker 1: I guess a Bible. You know you can continue to
Speaker 1: read that. I'm pretty religious. Um, I think can I
Speaker 1: bring a person? Or it has to be object? I'm
Speaker 1: thinking item. It could get a little dicey. We start
Speaker 1: thinking about people inflated football. Be good, you know, mark
Speaker 1: it up with some sand and snap it into the
Speaker 1: palm tree. You know they're accurate. Sam, there's a picture
Speaker 1: of Time put on Facebook the other day of his
Speaker 1: four year four year old nephew. He had him long
Speaker 1: snapping at four years old. I laughed my rear end
Speaker 1: off on that one. All right, last last one? What
Speaker 1: animal would you compare yourself to? It sounds like combine questions,
Speaker 1: doesn't it. Yes, Yeah, if I got invited, I would know,
Speaker 1: I would know that they were coming. That's a good
Speaker 1: enough answer right there. Right? What a snub? What a
Speaker 1: snub that sticks in your crawl a little bit? Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's all good. I'm here now exactly right. We should
Speaker 1: nothing but the best. Your class guy, excellent character guy
Speaker 1: in a big part of the Bears future. So play
Speaker 1: with some fire against the Rams on Sunday night and
Speaker 1: good luck. Absolutely, thank you guys. Coming up next, Tom,
Speaker 1: Bears All Access will be joined by DeMarco Far, one
Speaker 1: of the radio analysts for the La RAMS radio network,
Speaker 1: to break down Bears Rams Sunday Night at Inglewood, California's
Speaker 1: Sofi Stadium. Now break here on Chicago Sports Radio six
Speaker 1: seventy the Score. This segment of Bears All Access is
Speaker 1: brought to you by CDW people to get it with
Speaker 1: Tom Thayer Jeff Joniac previewing Sunday night's kickoff seven twenty
Speaker 1: in LA at Sofi Stadium, joined now by the RAMS
Speaker 1: radio analyst de Marco Far, a long time friend of ours.
Speaker 1: And I understand you'd like a piece of time yet
Speaker 1: is this true? Of course? Yes, yes, we we're natural enemies.
Speaker 1: We have to get this on. You know this? Yeah,
Speaker 1: I got three plays and then call the paramedics. Right,
Speaker 1: do you have anything? You have any replacements in that
Speaker 1: body of years yet? Because he's got a couple of hips,
Speaker 1: you know which side that's the sun I'm going to
Speaker 1: I can still get I can still get out of
Speaker 1: my stance, you know, So we'll make a show all
Speaker 1: of it. Well, you're ahead of me. I can get
Speaker 1: in a stance. I just think it out of it,
Speaker 1: So believe it or not, this is the fourth consecutive
Speaker 1: season Bears and Rams are going to party a little
Speaker 1: bit here, and this is the primetime game on Sunday
Speaker 1: Night football. So do we got a brewing rivalry here?
Speaker 1: I mean a lot of changes on both sides. Though
Speaker 1: I always considered Chicago a rival I really have. I mean,
Speaker 1: especially when the team was back in the Midwest. I
Speaker 1: mean it was the team to the north, so there
Speaker 1: was always a battle. We played each other like it
Speaker 1: was a playoff game. The fan bases naturally don't get along.
Speaker 1: Now they really don't get along. So yeah, I always
Speaker 1: considered this kind of a mini rivalry. It's it's always
Speaker 1: fun when you get the Bears, because look, you know
Speaker 1: what should get and when you see that sea on
Speaker 1: the helmet, it's gonna be tough, it's gonna be physical.
Speaker 1: You're gonna feel it the next week. So it's always
Speaker 1: fun to play the Chicago Bears. Always fun to play
Speaker 1: them week one too, at least get it out of
Speaker 1: the way, DeMarco. When you look at guys like Leroy
Speaker 1: Glover or John Randall yourself, you know, the six one
Speaker 1: frame and now the most dominant defensive lineman in the league,
Speaker 1: and Aaron Donald, do you think when you look at
Speaker 1: guys of that size, they kind of change the narrative
Speaker 1: that it's not always necessarily about the biggest guy, but
Speaker 1: it's about the best guy. Oh yeah, and I got
Speaker 1: Aaron by a quarter of an inch just you know,
Speaker 1: just a little bit. You know, I can see over
Speaker 1: the top of his head. But no, we talk about
Speaker 1: this quite a bit. You know, being short or undersize
Speaker 1: is actually a benefit sometimes when you can play to it.
Speaker 1: If you're quick, if you're a load of the ground,
Speaker 1: if you're strong like Aaron, I mean, you have the
Speaker 1: natural role leverage. What are we always trying to do
Speaker 1: in the trenches? Low Man went, Well, if you're already
Speaker 1: down there and you can get lower, you're gonna win
Speaker 1: most of the battles. No, what separates him from everyone
Speaker 1: else that I've seen? And this is no disrespect to
Speaker 1: John Raynold, to Warren Sap, to the shorter defensive tackles too,
Speaker 1: Guys like me. I've never seen anybody this strong in
Speaker 1: my life, regardless of position, regardless of sport. I've never
Speaker 1: seen somebody so strong like Aaron. And his body fat
Speaker 1: is down. He takes care of himself, so he's quick,
Speaker 1: he's low to the ground, he's got the natural leverage.
Speaker 1: Plus he can absolutely move you even if you get
Speaker 1: position on him. So it's tremendous. But I did tell
Speaker 1: Aaron this in the beginning of training camp. You're gonna
Speaker 1: get a lot of small guys murdered because they're gonna
Speaker 1: draft people that look like you thinking they can they
Speaker 1: can do what you do, and they're just absolutely gonna
Speaker 1: get crushed doing it. But yeah, he's special. He is
Speaker 1: definitely once in a lifetime, so you appreciate what you
Speaker 1: see out of ninety nine. Is he an all five guy?
Speaker 1: Can he rush against any offensive lineman up and down scrimmage?
Speaker 1: The only guy that in history? And I was at
Speaker 1: the Pro Bowl when Isaac Bruce went in, so I'm
Speaker 1: not the Pro Bowl the Hall of Fame when Isaac
Speaker 1: Bruce went in, So I'm seeing all these legends up there.
Speaker 1: And I started doing that with Aaron thinking about you
Speaker 1: know how many Hall of Famers the Rams actually have now,
Speaker 1: and you start and probably end with maybe Johnny Hecker
Speaker 1: down the stretch, maybe Matt Stafford if he can finish
Speaker 1: up with a couple of rings. But the only guy
Speaker 1: that came close as far as versatility as where he
Speaker 1: can attack from was Bruce Smith. Bruce Smith can attack
Speaker 1: you from the nose, out to the left or right end,
Speaker 1: same with Eron. Wherever he lines up, that guy is
Speaker 1: under pressure and there he's a threat to the quarterback.
Speaker 1: He is absolutely special. You'll appreciate this because you love
Speaker 1: the game. You clearly chart the history of the game,
Speaker 1: you file the history of the game. He's told the
Speaker 1: story many times, and for the sake of the audience
Speaker 1: in Chicago, let's hear it again because he's got a
Speaker 1: great Bruce Smith's story. So oh, I'm sorry. I didn't
Speaker 1: mean to bring up bad stuff. No, it's good stuff.
Speaker 1: It's funny. Listen to this one. I was out in
Speaker 1: pregame snapping punts and Bruce Smith and fred Smerlass walked
Speaker 1: to the center of the field and they told me
Speaker 1: that I have to stop cutting guys, that there's no
Speaker 1: place in the game for it, and so I told
Speaker 1: Difko what they had said to me, and I, you know,
Speaker 1: so the very first play the game, he called one
Speaker 1: of those counter ots, the counter tray that the Redskins
Speaker 1: called it, and so my responsibility was to pull from
Speaker 1: the right guard position over to the left and cut
Speaker 1: Bruce Smith. And I did it the first play of
Speaker 1: the game. So I feel respected that they had to
Speaker 1: come out and say something about it. But yeah, you know,
Speaker 1: that's part of the process of offense and defensive line play. Yeah,
Speaker 1: it's funny. I was just watching those documentary on like
Speaker 1: New York and the New York Mafia and how the
Speaker 1: police felt about them. It's the same how I feel
Speaker 1: about you. Said, you do what you have to do,
Speaker 1: try to catch us. We do what we have to do,
Speaker 1: break break the rules. So you gotta cut me, then's
Speaker 1: your business. But I'm just gonna let you know it's
Speaker 1: your quarterback that's gonna pay the problem. DeMarco far guests, rams, analysts,
Speaker 1: and a heck of a football player as well. All right,
Speaker 1: you brought up Matthew Stafford. We know him well, we
Speaker 1: know everything about him. You could possibly know. Seet him
Speaker 1: twice a year and respect everything he does. He will
Speaker 1: challenge dbs in the tightest of windows and make a receiver.
Speaker 1: I feel that they can fight for the football, but
Speaker 1: his weaponry has never really been complimented consistently. With a
Speaker 1: run game and with cam Akers going down, do you
Speaker 1: feel the Rams can still have the threat of a
Speaker 1: running game? Or as I read this week, there's talk
Speaker 1: that you know, people are thinking, wow, he could throw
Speaker 1: for six thousand yards this year because this is what
Speaker 1: your head coach may want. I read that too, and
Speaker 1: you know, I hate the high expectation. That really makes
Speaker 1: me nervous. There's nowhere to go but down. But you know,
Speaker 1: I've watched the Rams prepare for Matthew Stafford a few
Speaker 1: times and through a few different head coach and they
Speaker 1: all have respect for him and his game, and you
Speaker 1: could go I could go through my notes and it's
Speaker 1: pretty much the same stuff over and over again. He
Speaker 1: could throw it anywhere. He's got a hell of a whip.
Speaker 1: He's smart, he's tough. He's a five star athlete. So
Speaker 1: to beat Detroit you definitely have to get pressure on him.
Speaker 1: Easier said than done. So seeing him up close and
Speaker 1: in person, he's the first and only quarterback I ever
Speaker 1: wanted to see go through individual droom because he is
Speaker 1: that impressive. Watching him warm up, watching him talk ball
Speaker 1: with receivers with the head coach, and seeing that joy
Speaker 1: he has in trying to figure out how to beat
Speaker 1: a defense or tweak a play here or there. That
Speaker 1: is good stuff. That is inspiring stuff. If you're a
Speaker 1: defender watching that, you feel pretty good about the work
Speaker 1: you're gonna do. If we give the ball back to him,
Speaker 1: there's a good chance for coming away with six, seven points.
Speaker 1: We may be ahead by halftime. Now we can just
Speaker 1: start rushing the past. That's the stuff that excites people.
Speaker 1: But yeah, I could see what this receiving war with
Speaker 1: Robert Woods, Cooper Cup, Deshan Jackson, who can still run,
Speaker 1: Tyler Higbee. I think the tight end is in that
Speaker 1: second group, that second tier elite tight end. So and
Speaker 1: I think there's more there for each guy. You just
Speaker 1: you weren't going to be able to see that. With
Speaker 1: Jared Goff, I think he had maxed out the offense.
Speaker 1: But with Matthew Stafford, the offense suddenly turns vertical as
Speaker 1: well as east and west. Sean McVay with his offense
Speaker 1: and that wing team principle. Get you look in one way,
Speaker 1: attack you back. That stuff is dynamite. Now add vertical
Speaker 1: to that. There's no way you can't attack a defense
Speaker 1: or if you find a weakness, go at it. And
Speaker 1: you have a guy that can put it just about anywhere.
Speaker 1: So I see why six thousand yards would be on
Speaker 1: the tongue of a lot of people. But I would
Speaker 1: say this, it's going to be a whole lot tougher
Speaker 1: to keep the Rams out of the end zone this
Speaker 1: year than it was last year and the year before.
Speaker 1: Heyd if Aaron's the best of the best up front
Speaker 1: is Jalen Ramsey. The best of the best in the
Speaker 1: back end. Tom My Goodness, he's a freak. And I
Speaker 1: hate even to say that because that doesn't do it justice.
Speaker 1: When you see him, he looks like a small outside linebacker.
Speaker 1: That's the best I can describe him. Like if you
Speaker 1: saw him put his left foot forward, put his hands
Speaker 1: down and act like an outside backer, it would look
Speaker 1: natural on his body type. So that's one thing. He's
Speaker 1: got these long arms, long legs, His hips are above
Speaker 1: everyone else's in the drill or in the group. And
Speaker 1: then you watch him in one on one. He's technically
Speaker 1: perfect in man coverage and zone coverage. He does everything right.
Speaker 1: He asks the right questions, and he plays it right
Speaker 1: to the rules, and if there's a flag or a question,
Speaker 1: he will go and ask the guy what did I
Speaker 1: do wrong? And he's always trying to improve it and
Speaker 1: get better. Now, this is what separates him from the
Speaker 1: other freaks. This guy is one aggressive. I mean he's
Speaker 1: the most violent player the Rams have on defense and
Speaker 1: that includes ninety nine. I mean, this guy doesn't turn
Speaker 1: it down, guard, tackle, running back, receiver, anybody in his
Speaker 1: area that he needs to come up and tag, he
Speaker 1: does it, and he does it with violence. So I
Speaker 1: can't believe Jacksonville let a guy like that go. I'm
Speaker 1: so happy he's here. You don't want to have to
Speaker 1: face it. I'll say this in training camp, and this
Speaker 1: is with all due respect to all the Rams receivers.
Speaker 1: Jalen Ramsey came into camp looking for a challenge, and
Speaker 1: I would say was over after the first practice and
Speaker 1: a half. I mean, he went through these guys and
Speaker 1: shut things down. Have you ever seen a quarterback or
Speaker 1: a cornerback force a no throw in a one on
Speaker 1: one situation in camp where he could not throw it.
Speaker 1: I've never seen that before. I mean, that's how tied
Speaker 1: he was to Jashan Jackson. So he's unbelievable. If you
Speaker 1: couple that with instant pressure and Aaron Donald, I don't
Speaker 1: care who's coordinating your defense, you've got a pretty good
Speaker 1: chance on game day to be Bertie dang good. All right,
Speaker 1: our last question for you, I'll give us your eyeballs
Speaker 1: on the Bears and what you're looking at, and is
Speaker 1: there anything in the form of kryptonite rams that the
Speaker 1: Bears possess. Well, I think it's the same with Matt Stafford.
Speaker 1: You everyone knows Andy Dalton and you know how he's
Speaker 1: going to attack you, and how he's supposed to look,
Speaker 1: what the good Andy Dalton looks, and how you can
Speaker 1: force the bad one. So I don't think that's, you know,
Speaker 1: rewriting the rule book there. But I guess the question
Speaker 1: is when do you bring in fields. That's what everyone
Speaker 1: wants to know, And if you're smart about it, you
Speaker 1: bring him in when in a situation where he can
Speaker 1: attack you and you can't attack him, like have those
Speaker 1: little packages. So that's going to be interesting. What happens
Speaker 1: with him around the goal line or in the red zone.
Speaker 1: That's the type of stuff you can't game plan for
Speaker 1: when you have that sort of athlete. So that definitely
Speaker 1: makes you nervous. And then on the other end, Khalil
Speaker 1: Mack is enough to scare you to death. You know,
Speaker 1: he's an ambient guy. He keeps you up at night.
Speaker 1: So all this talk about Matt Stafford and six thousand
Speaker 1: yards could be over in one miss block or even
Speaker 1: if you get a pad on him and he beats
Speaker 1: you and he gets to the quarterback and bang, they're
Speaker 1: going your starter. So all those things start to work,
Speaker 1: and you guys are huge upfront. Running the football has
Speaker 1: been it's it's it's been just a mess for the
Speaker 1: Rams trying to run through that big defensive line. So, uh,
Speaker 1: Chicago's defense gives you pause. Khalil Mack definitely gives you pause.
Speaker 1: And when do you use fields? That's that's got to
Speaker 1: keep everybody up at night when you're getting ready to
Speaker 1: play the Bears. Right now, Well, man, it never sleeps
Speaker 1: because clearly he's got the juice, he's got the energy.
Speaker 1: Two hours behind us out there in California, DeMarco fire
Speaker 1: we really appreciate. We always look forward to talking to you.
Speaker 1: We'll see out in Cali. Can't wait, walking man, Yeah,
Speaker 1: just make shirts from the thigh down though, every chance
Speaker 1: I get. We'll continue out with Bears All Access after
Speaker 1: a break on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy the Score.
Speaker 1: Welcome back to our final segment here on Bears All
Speaker 1: Access with Tom Fair. I'm Jeff joni Ak. We've had
Speaker 1: a real full program tonight with Sam Mustafer and we
Speaker 1: just gotta finished listening to DeMarco Far, a fun young
Speaker 1: guy in the radio business and an outstanding defensive lineman himself.
Speaker 1: So let's talk about some keys to beat in the Rams,
Speaker 1: Big Tom, What are you gonna do about Aaron Donald
Speaker 1: and Jalen Ramsey first and foremost, and then we can't
Speaker 1: forget about Leonard Floyd. Yeah, but you know one thing
Speaker 1: about it, Aaron Donald is the guy that you have
Speaker 1: to have the most concerned about because he's the guy
Speaker 1: that's closest to the football and the closest to the quarterback.
Speaker 1: But rarely is he going to have an opportunity to
Speaker 1: just be blocked by one person. Maybe away from the
Speaker 1: point of attack, maybe on play action, but that's part
Speaker 1: of the game you face. So when you have an
Speaker 1: opportunity to have those bread and butter, those physical, dominating runs,
Speaker 1: then you got to take advantage of those. You got
Speaker 1: to use those two big, strong bodies up front. Don't
Speaker 1: worry about blocking the second level until you get that
Speaker 1: first level block. And that's Aaron Donald. Look Leonard Floyd.
Speaker 1: He's capitalizing on the fact that Aaron Donald's in the middle,
Speaker 1: but they'll get him blocked. And Ramsey he's at the
Speaker 1: third level. He's not at or near the a scrimmage,
Speaker 1: So if he makes a tackle on a run play,
Speaker 1: it's an eleven or twelve yard game. Congratulations. The thing
Speaker 1: about it is it's gonna be more of Andy Dalton
Speaker 1: having his sights on Jalen Ramsey when he goes to
Speaker 1: a pass play that's concentrated in his area. Well, they
Speaker 1: do move him around. They could put him at the
Speaker 1: line of scrimmage and that's something that they like to
Speaker 1: do as well. Put him in the slot. He may
Speaker 1: be lined up across from somebody face to face. We'll
Speaker 1: see you mentioned Andy Dalton. We had a chance to
Speaker 1: sit down with him and it's a portion of an
Speaker 1: interview you will hear on Fox thirty two Chicago on
Speaker 1: Bears Game Day Live, we get rolling from La will
Speaker 1: be up bright and early time with that and Andy
Speaker 1: Dalton with lots to say about his career, where it's gone,
Speaker 1: where it's headed. All right, Andy, who is Andy Dalton
Speaker 1: at the age of thirty three and twenty twenty one
Speaker 1: compared to that rookie in twenty eleven. You know, there's
Speaker 1: a lot more experience, that's for sure. Yeah. I've been
Speaker 1: through a lot in my career, been through a lot
Speaker 1: the less couple of years, and so you know, I
Speaker 1: feel like I'm in a great spot right now, so
Speaker 1: excited looking forward to the year and looking forward to
Speaker 1: what we've got as a team. Anytime a new quarterback
Speaker 1: comes to town, everybody wants to try and figure that
Speaker 1: quarterback out. What makes him tick, what's he all about?
Speaker 1: Does he fit here? And what would you say to
Speaker 1: those folks that have those questions? Because the one thing
Speaker 1: I've learned about you in the short time we've had
Speaker 1: conversations is that your competitive fire should not be underrated.
Speaker 1: Do you think that's a fair trek down the road
Speaker 1: for you? Yeah, I would say I'm a really competitive person.
Speaker 1: And you know, for me, I want to be the
Speaker 1: best player that I can be to help this team win.
Speaker 1: And so you know, I hold myself to a high standard.
Speaker 1: There's an expectation and I'm doing everything i can to
Speaker 1: meet and exceed those expectations. So you know, I think
Speaker 1: that's kind of where I'm at, and you know I'm
Speaker 1: ready to get started this year for sure. Andy, what
Speaker 1: do you do in those times when no one's around,
Speaker 1: no one notices what's going on that makes you who
Speaker 1: you are today? I would say that there's a lot
Speaker 1: of time spent, you know, studying the game, studying what
Speaker 1: we're doing, studying to make sure that I know that
Speaker 1: I can react quickly to whatever's going to be going
Speaker 1: on during these games. And I think I can pull
Speaker 1: from experiences, I can pull from just the amount of
Speaker 1: games that I've played, and I think that's gonna help
Speaker 1: me out this year. You know, I read a mel
Speaker 1: Kiper profile of you coming out in the draft. It
Speaker 1: just he just did two words smart and accurate. Is
Speaker 1: that proving to be true over your eleven years? I
Speaker 1: would say so, I would. I would if there's a
Speaker 1: couple you know, things that I feel like that I've
Speaker 1: been really good at I'd say it's both those things.
Speaker 1: Just being able to react quickly, to be able to
Speaker 1: get the bottom of my hands and to get the
Speaker 1: ball to our guys in space and on time. So
Speaker 1: I think that's all part of it. And you know
Speaker 1: it's you know, allowed me to play this long and
Speaker 1: she helped me play as long as I want to play.
Speaker 1: So what is the key really for Andy and terms
Speaker 1: of what his strengths are, because he does get rid
Speaker 1: of the ball quickly, really quickly. If you get the
Speaker 1: open man, he's going to give you a chance to
Speaker 1: make a play on the ball. But what else that
Speaker 1: you're looking for from him? The intangibles even for this game,
Speaker 1: you know, confidence when he breaks the huddle, he knows
Speaker 1: exactly what he said according to the couple plays that
Speaker 1: he's going to call, and then get a look across
Speaker 1: the line of scrimmage and get an understanding both analytically
Speaker 1: and where the defense is structured, where they can show
Speaker 1: their vulnerability or show their strengths. And that's what it's
Speaker 1: going to be about. His site line is going to
Speaker 1: play an important role and then be the self confident
Speaker 1: guy that Andy Dalton is when We got to meet
Speaker 1: him a couple of weeks ago and bears all access.
Speaker 1: That's one of the things that struck me about him.
Speaker 1: And he's got a great self confidence and he's got
Speaker 1: to continue to believe in himself up until, you know,
Speaker 1: through Sunday through Sunday Night and the rest of this season,
Speaker 1: and you know, he's got to perform like he has
Speaker 1: as a long tenured quarterback. I know you're dying to
Speaker 1: see the running game, you know. I think that's the
Speaker 1: best way that you can challenge Aaron Donald and the
Speaker 1: rest of that defense. If you want to get physical
Speaker 1: with these guys, that creates fatigue in the defense and
Speaker 1: allow your offensive line to play with confidence, and then
Speaker 1: spill that running game over to play action pass because
Speaker 1: I do think those are two of the best elements
Speaker 1: that this offense can do and can pull off repeatedly.
Speaker 1: So if you want to see a tired defense in
Speaker 1: the third and fourth quarter, you got to run the
Speaker 1: ball right at him in the first and second quarter.
Speaker 1: And I will say this, I'm extremely impressed with the
Speaker 1: display of power that I've seen out of Jason Peter
Speaker 1: since he's come aboard. I know he's now where he
Speaker 1: is going to be in three or four weeks. However,
Speaker 1: if you want to develop a bread and butter part
Speaker 1: of your offensive line, Cody Whitehair, Jason Peters, look at
Speaker 1: those guys for your goal behind. All right. Lastly, you
Speaker 1: can put it in a bottle and put it in
Speaker 1: the water and come back in. You'll still see it
Speaker 1: fifty years from now. You gotta tackle well, you gotta
Speaker 1: hit the quarterback. You gotta hang out of the football,
Speaker 1: you gotta take the ball away, you gotta win the trenches.
Speaker 1: There you go, Bears win. It's not so simple, though,
Speaker 1: is it. Well, you know the two is you got
Speaker 1: to limit their success on special teams. The last thing
Speaker 1: you want to do is give these guys some type
Speaker 1: of special return that creates attacking field position and wants
Speaker 1: and looks and make Matthew Stafford looking into the end
Speaker 1: zone from the first down play. Ye Rams really struggled
Speaker 1: on special teams a year ago, thirtieth in the league
Speaker 1: according to Rick Goslin's Dallas Morning News special teams rankings.
Speaker 1: They've added Joe D. Camillus now to the coaching staff
Speaker 1: as the special team's coordinator. Former Bear special teams coordinator
Speaker 1: been around a long time, Tom, We're out of time.
Speaker 1: Thanks to our guests tonight, Sam Mustafer and DeMarco far
Speaker 1: and our producers Damn Billy, Jordan Trudup, Katie Tuber and
Speaker 1: the folks at the Score. We'll talk to you on
Speaker 1: Sunday night, four pm. The pregame game seven twenty the
Speaker 1: kickoff on NewsRadio one oh five nine WBBM TIM. That's
Speaker 1: it for us. Thanks for listening to everybody. This has
Speaker 1: been Bears All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy
Speaker 1: The Score. Thanks for listening to this Chicago Bears Network
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