WEBVTT - Roschon Johnson impressing in pass blocking | Bears, etc. Podcast 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:03.600 Right, justin middle of a field for fifteen bring Russ 0:00:03.640 --> 0:00:04.120 in front of. 0:00:04.080 --> 0:00:05.720 A leading Lions in his way. 0:00:06.080 --> 0:00:08.119 I am Jeff jonah Ack Whitz. 0:00:07.920 --> 0:00:09.280 Is not Donig. 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:13.680 What was it like playing for Coche? Good do? 0:00:14.520 --> 0:00:16.560 I don't want to answer any questions like that. Sixty 0:00:16.600 --> 0:00:17.400 one yards? 0:00:17.800 --> 0:00:19.000 What's Sunday stroll for? 0:00:19.360 --> 0:00:23.720 Justin field? 0:00:25.320 --> 0:00:28.360 Yes, Bears et cetera brought to you by Miller Lte 0:00:28.400 --> 0:00:31.400 with the voices of the Bears, Jeff Joniac and Tom Thayer. 0:00:33.040 --> 0:00:35.800 We got a game this week, Big Tom Sayer, Jeff Joniack, 0:00:35.840 --> 0:00:39.840 and welcome into Bears et cetera preseason style Saturday afternoon 0:00:39.880 --> 0:00:42.199 and noone start against the visiting Tennessee Titans. 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:42.520 Yeah. 0:00:42.560 --> 0:00:45.440 I'm excited about it, Tom, I'm excited about real football. 0:00:45.479 --> 0:00:46.160 Oh me too. 0:00:46.440 --> 0:00:48.160 I mean, there are so many elements of the game 0:00:48.159 --> 0:00:49.919 that we don't get to pay attention to in an 0:00:50.040 --> 0:00:54.280 organize and control practice atmosphere. When you have a game, 0:00:54.480 --> 0:00:57.040 all doors are open. If you feel you have a 0:00:57.120 --> 0:00:59.920 vulnerability left in your game and the mental part of it, 0:01:00.040 --> 0:01:02.320 the physical part of it. If you're a player trying 0:01:02.320 --> 0:01:05.360 to gain confidence, here's either an answer to a question 0:01:06.040 --> 0:01:08.600 or part of the solution. Or something you have to 0:01:08.640 --> 0:01:10.800 work on. Then that's the same thing with the coaches. 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:13.280 You don't have a scripted practice down. You don't know 0:01:13.319 --> 0:01:15.760 what defense they're going to face on the offensive side 0:01:15.760 --> 0:01:17.920 of the ball, and vice versa. So I think it's 0:01:17.959 --> 0:01:21.440 a really important part of the preseason are these games 0:01:21.480 --> 0:01:21.880 they play. 0:01:21.959 --> 0:01:25.600 You know, I saw tweet earlier from Kurt Warner, the 0:01:25.600 --> 0:01:28.360 Hall of Fame quarterback whose career, obviously if you follow 0:01:28.400 --> 0:01:31.600 the story, was a miracle in many ways, wound up 0:01:31.600 --> 0:01:34.080 being a Super Bowl MVP and a Hall of Famer, 0:01:35.240 --> 0:01:38.320 advising or reminding those players who aren't getting a lot 0:01:38.319 --> 0:01:41.399 of snaps in practice right now, your time is coming 0:01:41.440 --> 0:01:42.080 on game day. 0:01:42.360 --> 0:01:43.080 You're gonna play. 0:01:43.120 --> 0:01:44.720 You may have not been getting a lot of snaps 0:01:44.720 --> 0:01:46.520 and reps in practice, but you're gonna play in these 0:01:46.520 --> 0:01:47.880 early preseason games. 0:01:47.640 --> 0:01:50.360 I'm telling you, you know, And sometimes you won't. And 0:01:50.400 --> 0:01:53.040 that's when you have to have a good convicted attitude 0:01:53.040 --> 0:01:54.960 that if I go back to practice the next day 0:01:55.000 --> 0:01:57.000 and I don't play in a preseason game, I have 0:01:57.080 --> 0:01:59.440 to give that same effort with the same confidence that 0:01:59.480 --> 0:02:01.920 I did up to that point. Remember, Jeff, we talk 0:02:01.960 --> 0:02:04.120 about it all the time. I didn't play until the 0:02:04.200 --> 0:02:07.120 second half of the last preseason game my rookie year, 0:02:07.320 --> 0:02:09.160 and I used to walk out of those games and 0:02:09.240 --> 0:02:12.520 tears for not playing. So I'm that same person that 0:02:12.680 --> 0:02:16.040 Kurt Is, But we had a different road to getting 0:02:16.040 --> 0:02:16.920 to where we wanted to. 0:02:17.120 --> 0:02:19.680 It's hard to imagine giving your experience and how long 0:02:19.720 --> 0:02:20.560 you played in this league. 0:02:20.600 --> 0:02:21.519 Remember Bears, etc. 0:02:22.080 --> 0:02:24.959 Is brought to you by Miller Lite Tastes like Miller 0:02:24.960 --> 0:02:28.680 Time Chicago. Also coming up in today's podcast. An interview 0:02:28.720 --> 0:02:32.480 I did last week when NFL Network was here at 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:35.960 Hallis Hall and visit with Scott Pioli, the former executive 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:38.079 in the NFL with the New England Patriots and Kansas 0:02:38.120 --> 0:02:41.840 City Chiefs in Atlanta. Falcons on conversation about his career 0:02:41.880 --> 0:02:45.160 and his relationship with general manager Ryan Poll. Some good 0:02:45.400 --> 0:02:48.160 insight there into the Bears general manager. All right, so 0:02:48.320 --> 0:02:51.040 a lot going on. We had the family Fest at 0:02:51.080 --> 0:02:53.040 Soldier Field. How'd you think it all went? It was 0:02:53.080 --> 0:02:56.200 a good twenty thousand plus fans battling a few rain drops. 0:02:56.240 --> 0:02:58.800 Early Tony Medlin got all over me because I didn't 0:02:58.800 --> 0:03:01.000 bring a hat. My hair was and so he was 0:03:01.040 --> 0:03:03.520 worried about me. Yeah, you know, I really worried about me. 0:03:03.840 --> 0:03:04.919 He is, He's concerned. 0:03:05.000 --> 0:03:06.920 You know that it's the same concern he asked for 0:03:06.960 --> 0:03:08.800 you that he does for his players and the coaching 0:03:08.840 --> 0:03:11.040 staff and everybody. To have the right shoes on, the 0:03:11.120 --> 0:03:13.480 right equipment, you know, the same thing put a hat 0:03:13.520 --> 0:03:15.320 on if it's raining. But you know, when you look 0:03:15.320 --> 0:03:17.600 at the Family Fest, I have a certain appreciation for 0:03:17.680 --> 0:03:20.000 the fans that come out here. You know, they invest 0:03:20.040 --> 0:03:22.959 a whole Saturday and coming out to watch a Bears practice. 0:03:23.120 --> 0:03:25.040 But I think it's really important for the Bears as 0:03:25.040 --> 0:03:28.480 a team. You don't want questions coming up next Saturday 0:03:28.520 --> 0:03:30.679 at noon about where's my locker room? How do I 0:03:30.720 --> 0:03:32.600 get to the locker room, which is the best closest 0:03:32.600 --> 0:03:34.800 path to the field, what do I You know, Tony 0:03:34.840 --> 0:03:36.839 doesn't have time for these, The coaches don't have time 0:03:36.880 --> 0:03:38.800 for it. So you get those little things out of 0:03:38.840 --> 0:03:41.000 the way by having Family Fest. You know the route 0:03:41.000 --> 0:03:43.360 to get the Soldier Field, you know where you park, 0:03:43.400 --> 0:03:46.000 you know how you leave the stadium. So those little 0:03:46.080 --> 0:03:49.240 things that you don't want to spend any game day 0:03:49.360 --> 0:03:52.720 thinking about it. The Family Fest accomplishes a lot. 0:03:52.880 --> 0:03:53.040 You know. 0:03:53.120 --> 0:03:56.520 One of the takeaways from my perspective was about and 0:03:56.560 --> 0:03:58.480 we talked about it on the sidelines. We were able 0:03:58.480 --> 0:04:01.120 to stand there and watch up close. But you know, 0:04:01.360 --> 0:04:05.920 Dj Moore, the suddenness of that player making a catch, 0:04:06.080 --> 0:04:08.800 planning his foot and he's history, he's in the end zone. 0:04:09.520 --> 0:04:12.400 Chase Claypool's got some sudden news to him, Darnell Mooney's 0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:16.520 got some suddenness to him. And then Roseean Johnson likes contact. 0:04:16.520 --> 0:04:19.720 It appears the big running back with the pads on, 0:04:20.400 --> 0:04:21.720 he likes to deliver a shot. 0:04:21.880 --> 0:04:23.040 So I'm excited about that. 0:04:23.240 --> 0:04:25.440 You know, first of all the wide receivers, there's a 0:04:25.480 --> 0:04:27.520 group of guys that are very sudden. Then they have 0:04:27.560 --> 0:04:30.000 a group of guys that are very big and talented EQ. 0:04:30.160 --> 0:04:33.240 Saint Brown, Chase Claypool, just to mention a couple of them. 0:04:33.360 --> 0:04:35.640 So it gives a variety of options when you have 0:04:35.680 --> 0:04:38.120 a two or three man game to one side of 0:04:38.120 --> 0:04:41.000 the offensive formation for the quarterback and for Luke Getzi. 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:43.039 So I like what you see out of all those 0:04:43.080 --> 0:04:47.279 guys really puts a lot of you know, anticipation thinking 0:04:47.760 --> 0:04:50.839 on the defensive backs because they know how quickly these 0:04:51.120 --> 0:04:53.279 wide receivers can go in and out of their routes, 0:04:53.520 --> 0:04:56.040 and then when you look at Roshan Johnson, I'm really 0:04:56.080 --> 0:04:58.440 excited to see this guy in a full contact drill. 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:02.039 He's got running back in He's got the innate ability 0:05:02.080 --> 0:05:04.240 to predict where the hole is going to open up. 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:06.839 And I've seen some things in practice out of them 0:05:07.000 --> 0:05:09.479 that I want to confirm and verify in my mind 0:05:09.560 --> 0:05:13.120 before I go to the mic with them. However, everything 0:05:13.120 --> 0:05:15.640 that I've seen out of Rochon, I really like, I'm. 0:05:15.440 --> 0:05:17.880 You been teasing for a while about this. There's something 0:05:17.920 --> 0:05:20.480 brewing on rochan What do you keeping to yourself? 0:05:20.520 --> 0:05:24.040 Here is one thing that you always want to look at. 0:05:24.040 --> 0:05:26.359 To a running back that is so talented at the 0:05:26.400 --> 0:05:29.400 college level, and he can run away from defensive backs, 0:05:29.640 --> 0:05:31.880 he can see the hole and he can burst, but 0:05:32.880 --> 0:05:35.960 very seldom are they challenged with an extreme responsibility of 0:05:36.040 --> 0:05:39.760 protecting their quarterback. There's not a lot of blitzing on 0:05:39.800 --> 0:05:43.280 the inside where the top running backs are responsible for. 0:05:43.400 --> 0:05:46.120 And then when they are responsible, do they improve at 0:05:46.120 --> 0:05:49.760 that task. Rochean Johnson, I gotta say, is one of 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:52.920 the best pass blocking running backs I've ever seen come 0:05:52.920 --> 0:05:56.520 into the league as a rookie and it's fundamentally sound, 0:05:56.680 --> 0:06:00.839 it's sustaining, it's contact with feet. You know, when you 0:06:00.920 --> 0:06:03.920 have a guy like Walter Payton, he would explode into 0:06:03.920 --> 0:06:06.200 a blitzer and he would just blow him up before 0:06:06.200 --> 0:06:09.080 he could take another step. That's not always the way 0:06:09.160 --> 0:06:12.120 the job is done. Sometimes you have to anticipate the 0:06:12.200 --> 0:06:14.880 distance that's going to close by a linebacker and you 0:06:15.000 --> 0:06:18.080 got to be in a right fundamental, fundamental position. You 0:06:18.160 --> 0:06:20.440 got to be able to have some explosion into his 0:06:20.480 --> 0:06:22.760 body and then you have to shift your feet, just 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.880 like an offensive lineman doesn't his pass protection. And from 0:06:25.880 --> 0:06:28.080 what I've seen out of Roshan Johnson, it's not a 0:06:28.080 --> 0:06:30.719 common occurrence. I'm not sitting here bragging about one of 0:06:30.720 --> 0:06:32.839 these guys year and a year out. And when I 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:35.599 saw Rochan do it through some individual drills out in 0:06:35.600 --> 0:06:38.680 the practice field, it is as impressive as I've ever seen. 0:06:38.760 --> 0:06:42.120 Refreshed my memory. I want to say that Neil Anderson 0:06:42.200 --> 0:06:43.320 was pretty good at it was. 0:06:43.279 --> 0:06:46.479 He Neil Anderson was great at it all so, but 0:06:46.640 --> 0:06:49.240 he's following the immediate example of the guy in front 0:06:49.240 --> 0:06:51.320 of him. And that's the way Walter Payton went about 0:06:51.360 --> 0:06:54.599 his business in office of running Backs coach Johnny Roll, 0:06:54.640 --> 0:06:56.680 and that's the way he taught it. You go up 0:06:56.720 --> 0:06:59.560 there and you meet the linebacker in the hole. Nowadays, 0:06:59.600 --> 0:07:01.680 sometimes you don't have it because of the play action. 0:07:01.800 --> 0:07:05.080 Fake gives you a little hesitancy before you commit to 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:07.359 your block. And so what I've seen out a Roshan 0:07:07.720 --> 0:07:10.480 not only as a runner, his blocking is as impressive 0:07:10.480 --> 0:07:11.280 as that score. 0:07:11.400 --> 0:07:13.880 Huge savings on an impressive lineup, but items a jewel 0:07:13.920 --> 0:07:16.600 ast go for you. This handy app features hot digital 0:07:16.640 --> 0:07:19.120 deals on everything from premium produce and savory snacks to 0:07:19.200 --> 0:07:22.680 butcher fresh meat and more. Get additional details at jewelosco 0:07:22.840 --> 0:07:26.360 dot com. Jeff Joniac, Tom There. This is episode five 0:07:26.640 --> 0:07:30.720 of There's et cetera, Big Time. I gotta say, you 0:07:30.840 --> 0:07:34.120 came in a little, a little lame today. Bad shoulder? 0:07:34.120 --> 0:07:34.800 What's up? I know? 0:07:34.840 --> 0:07:37.600 I just my shoulder sore sometimes, you know, it's like 0:07:37.720 --> 0:07:41.120 one of those injuries they always make. They can feel 0:07:41.120 --> 0:07:43.680 it when it's gonna rain or that. Sometimes it's sore. 0:07:43.920 --> 0:07:46.440 And I so, my right shoulder hurts and I know 0:07:46.560 --> 0:07:49.800 exactly why it hurts. And when it started hurting. In 0:07:49.880 --> 0:07:53.320 nineteen eighty seven, I took a rep at left guard 0:07:53.400 --> 0:07:56.400 because Mark Bortz was kind of hurt, hurting a little bit, 0:07:56.760 --> 0:07:58.360 and so I was doing a one on one against 0:07:58.440 --> 0:08:01.800 Dan Hampton and he took an inside rip on me, 0:08:01.840 --> 0:08:05.080 which is to my right shoulder, and it tweaked my 0:08:05.280 --> 0:08:08.600 shoulder so much. And that one rep that I've remembered 0:08:08.600 --> 0:08:11.600 at the rest of my life and every time my rights, Yeah, 0:08:11.640 --> 0:08:14.760 I swear to God every time my right shoulder starts hurting. 0:08:14.840 --> 0:08:17.280 I told Hamp that this year when we are doing 0:08:17.280 --> 0:08:19.240 the show over the Marquee, I go, you know, Hamp, 0:08:19.400 --> 0:08:22.080 my right shoulder hurts today, and it's all because you. 0:08:22.600 --> 0:08:25.360 I've never had a problem with it, but that one move. 0:08:25.560 --> 0:08:27.480 You know, you go against the Hall of Famer and 0:08:27.560 --> 0:08:28.920 sometimes you get a little ding. 0:08:28.880 --> 0:08:32.640 All right, that's internal fire there, internal you know, you 0:08:32.720 --> 0:08:36.439 catch a friendly fire. How about anything that's ever happened 0:08:36.440 --> 0:08:38.920 that you're still feeling out from a opponent? 0:08:40.720 --> 0:08:44.280 Uh No, not really, not like that. 0:08:44.480 --> 0:08:44.679 You know. 0:08:44.679 --> 0:08:47.800 There is one time that I was playing against Pierce 0:08:47.840 --> 0:08:50.000 Holt and the San Francisco forty nine ers out in 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:52.840 the San Francisco field, and when I went to plant 0:08:52.880 --> 0:08:55.800 my foot and kind of stab at him, the grass 0:08:55.800 --> 0:08:58.520 gave way to my right foot and my hip kind 0:08:58.520 --> 0:09:00.960 of like popped out of place and then popped in place. 0:09:01.360 --> 0:09:03.880 And I remember saying, God, if you know we had 0:09:03.920 --> 0:09:06.200 an off week or something at the end of the season, 0:09:06.240 --> 0:09:07.400 I go, I don't you know, if it was a 0:09:07.400 --> 0:09:09.320 week away, I don't know if I'd be able to play. 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:11.600 That's one thing I do remember, But that was because 0:09:11.600 --> 0:09:12.959 of crappy field conditions, all. 0:09:12.880 --> 0:09:15.600 In a day's worktime, all in a career's work There's 0:09:15.600 --> 0:09:18.800 plenty of guys out here feeling the pain as well, 0:09:18.840 --> 0:09:21.360 and they're playing right now because once camp starts, you're 0:09:21.400 --> 0:09:23.439 never healthy the rest of the year, one hundred percent anyway. 0:09:23.480 --> 0:09:25.599 Your body never feels as good. Now, well, how do 0:09:25.640 --> 0:09:26.240 you overcome that? 0:09:26.760 --> 0:09:31.000 You know, I think you're healthy, but you have body soortus. 0:09:31.040 --> 0:09:32.959 That's just a part of it. And they have one 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:35.640 of the best training staff's training rooms in the NFL, 0:09:35.920 --> 0:09:37.720 where if you have something they have to bring to 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:40.000 the attention of one of the trainers, they're going to 0:09:40.040 --> 0:09:42.360 be able to help you out. And so that's just 0:09:42.480 --> 0:09:45.560 part of the game. And when Matt talked at the 0:09:45.559 --> 0:09:49.560 podium last year about developing callousness within this team, that's 0:09:49.600 --> 0:09:51.720 part of the callous is that you have to develop. 0:09:52.040 --> 0:09:54.000 You're not always going to feel great. You're not always 0:09:54.000 --> 0:09:56.160 going to feel one hundred percent. So when you do, 0:09:56.360 --> 0:09:59.280 you got to go out there and give your best effort, effort, 0:09:59.320 --> 0:10:01.719 and you know what, we still have the same expectations 0:10:01.720 --> 0:10:03.760 for you. We're not going to let you miss blocks 0:10:03.840 --> 0:10:06.880 or tackles or plays because you got an Awi. 0:10:06.640 --> 0:10:09.400 Panc Bank, a proud sponsor as well of Bears, et cetera, 0:10:09.520 --> 0:10:12.280 brought to you by PNC official Bank of the Bears. 0:10:12.320 --> 0:10:14.000 As I alluded to it at the top of the show, 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:17.160 Scott Pioli and I sent down the former NFL executive 0:10:17.200 --> 0:10:20.400 to talk all things football and all things Ryan Poles. 0:10:20.640 --> 0:10:24.120 A comprehensive look from his perspective on the Chicago Bears 0:10:24.120 --> 0:10:26.080 in the NFL in general. Kind of enough to join us. 0:10:26.120 --> 0:10:29.040 Scott Pioli one of the premier executives in NFL history. 0:10:29.040 --> 0:10:31.320 And I say that because for those who don't know, 0:10:31.600 --> 0:10:34.719 you were named executive at the decade in the two 0:10:34.800 --> 0:10:36.199 thousands to twenty ten. 0:10:36.320 --> 0:10:37.600 That's significant, right there. 0:10:37.640 --> 0:10:40.480 A lot of Super Bowls, a lot of touchstones, and 0:10:40.600 --> 0:10:43.200 now spreading the knowledge on NFL ago. Yeah, but you 0:10:43.240 --> 0:10:46.440 know what still spreading the knowledge on NFL Network, Serius 0:10:46.679 --> 0:10:49.600 XM and all things football because you love this game. 0:10:49.640 --> 0:10:51.400 I love this game. Thank you for so much, so 0:10:51.520 --> 0:10:54.480 much for the kind words. Yeah, I don't like this game. 0:10:54.520 --> 0:10:55.360 I love this game. 0:10:55.400 --> 0:10:57.720 I love the history of the game. I love the 0:10:57.800 --> 0:10:59.800 history of the people that allows I mean, look at us, 0:10:59.800 --> 0:11:02.959 we're sitting here in a room talking about and everyone's 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:05.120 doing across the country, and it's and it's because of 0:11:05.120 --> 0:11:08.720 the people before us. You know, I love and respect 0:11:08.720 --> 0:11:12.360 this game on a level that you know, even when 0:11:12.360 --> 0:11:14.079 you end up working in it, whether you're a coach 0:11:14.160 --> 0:11:16.640 or a GM or scout, all of us were fans 0:11:16.679 --> 0:11:18.960 of this game as boys. And you know, it's interesting. 0:11:19.000 --> 0:11:21.840 I told the story. I love this franchise, I love 0:11:21.840 --> 0:11:24.480 this organization, I love the city. Well, part of it 0:11:24.520 --> 0:11:27.360 goes back to again, I am a complete sap for 0:11:27.400 --> 0:11:30.440 the history of the game. But you know, throughout my 0:11:30.720 --> 0:11:33.600 entire football life, meaning when when I was a player 0:11:33.760 --> 0:11:37.439 in Pop Warner in high school or junior high, high school, 0:11:37.679 --> 0:11:41.200 and college, I wore number fifty one my entire life, 0:11:41.679 --> 0:11:46.240 and it was because of Dick Buckets. He was, you know, 0:11:46.360 --> 0:11:48.800 watching him on NFL films when I was you know, 0:11:48.840 --> 0:11:51.240 when they'll give you go oh, my gosh, and and 0:11:51.320 --> 0:11:53.200 what gave me goosebumps, and like, I'm not a I'm 0:11:53.240 --> 0:11:55.760 not a fanboy in the sense where you know, there 0:11:55.800 --> 0:11:57.559 was never a point in my life where I met 0:11:57.800 --> 0:12:00.800 celebrities or athletes and was kind of taken back. It's 0:12:00.800 --> 0:12:05.200 only happened twice in my life, and the first time 0:12:05.320 --> 0:12:06.960 was when I met Jim Brown when I worked with 0:12:06.960 --> 0:12:10.720 the Cleveland Browns, and a year later we were actually 0:12:10.760 --> 0:12:14.560 playing the Chicago Bears. And I don't know if you remember, 0:12:14.559 --> 0:12:17.360 but in the old Cleveland Municipal Stadium, all the radio 0:12:17.520 --> 0:12:20.200 was done up on the roof right and that's where 0:12:20.240 --> 0:12:22.640 we watched the game from too, and I knew Dick 0:12:22.679 --> 0:12:24.760 Buckets did the radio, and I was making. 0:12:24.720 --> 0:12:26.440 Sure that I was around. I was like, I got 0:12:26.440 --> 0:12:27.320 to meet Dick Buckets. 0:12:27.360 --> 0:12:31.640 And but the history of this organization and the McCaskey family, 0:12:31.679 --> 0:12:36.920 the house famidly, this entire there's so much history here, 0:12:36.920 --> 0:12:39.880 and again, if you love and respect the game, it's 0:12:39.920 --> 0:12:42.440 not just about the now. It's about understanding how we 0:12:42.520 --> 0:12:46.199 got to where we were and the endurance that families 0:12:46.240 --> 0:12:51.600 that are at the heart of this game it's you know, I. 0:12:51.960 --> 0:12:52.360 Just love it. 0:12:52.360 --> 0:12:56.319 And again I could say City, Gallimore, I mean, Gail Sayer. 0:12:56.679 --> 0:12:58.760 I know those are big names, but they're you know, 0:12:58.840 --> 0:13:01.920 Doug buffoone. There were when I turned on TV as 0:13:01.920 --> 0:13:05.000 a kid and saw the Bears. I mean, I understand 0:13:05.000 --> 0:13:05.920 what you know. 0:13:06.280 --> 0:13:08.000 You knew there was a butt kicking gonna go on. 0:13:08.160 --> 0:13:12.439 You may not win, but somebody was gonna leave the game. Yeah, absolutely, 0:13:12.480 --> 0:13:14.320 well you'll be I wish you were around when this 0:13:14.360 --> 0:13:16.079 happened because you would have got a huge kick out 0:13:16.120 --> 0:13:19.920 of it. The late Gail Sayers and I sat down 0:13:20.600 --> 0:13:23.000 and went through his six touchdown game with the old 0:13:23.080 --> 0:13:27.040 tape in a studio. Yes, broke down every run. Now, 0:13:27.080 --> 0:13:30.400 he he he didn't have complete memory, but I'll tell 0:13:30.400 --> 0:13:32.200 you what. He lit up when he said, look how 0:13:32.240 --> 0:13:34.560 I ran because it literally looked like he made cuts 0:13:34.679 --> 0:13:37.720 in mid air. It did, and it felt and looked 0:13:37.720 --> 0:13:39.320 like when you watched it on tape. And I was 0:13:39.400 --> 0:13:42.040 I had the clicker, so I was in charge. That 0:13:42.120 --> 0:13:46.480 was fascinating. And then but comic was yeah, canas combat. 0:13:46.520 --> 0:13:49.440 But but Gus agreed to do a long interview in 0:13:49.480 --> 0:13:51.600 a hotel room in the city and we sat there 0:13:51.679 --> 0:13:55.559 for almost five hours, going through every step of his life. 0:13:55.960 --> 0:14:00.160 And these are rare things that not every organization has. Right, 0:14:00.240 --> 0:14:04.000 you don't have that history starting in nineteen twenty, but 0:14:04.360 --> 0:14:05.760 you embrace every second of it. 0:14:05.840 --> 0:14:06.160 I too. 0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:08.840 You know, we practiced against the Patriots years ago when 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:12.160 John Fox was head coach, and I took the chance, 0:14:12.320 --> 0:14:15.199 if I may say, of Santa Lolo to coach Belichick 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:16.800 as we're walking off the practice field, and you know, 0:14:16.840 --> 0:14:18.800 and he's always dialed in, so I have to respect 0:14:18.800 --> 0:14:20.760 that as a coach. I just introduced myself. I go, 0:14:21.000 --> 0:14:22.720 I love the history of the game. I try to 0:14:22.720 --> 0:14:26.160 collect books on the NFL. Stopped in his tracks and 0:14:26.200 --> 0:14:29.560 he starts telling me about the convergence of West Coast 0:14:29.600 --> 0:14:32.920 offense after World War Two at the Great Lakes Nabel and. 0:14:33.120 --> 0:14:35.200 Where his dad was coaching, yeah, and playing. 0:14:35.440 --> 0:14:39.080 So I love connecting those dots. It's I think you 0:14:39.160 --> 0:14:41.440 when you the passion of the game never goes away 0:14:41.480 --> 0:14:43.480 if it's instilled in you, and it was at a 0:14:43.560 --> 0:14:45.960 young age by my dad and clearly was you. 0:14:46.120 --> 0:14:48.400 And that's one of the We could talk about this 0:14:48.440 --> 0:14:49.640 all day, but that's one of the keys to a 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:52.840 relationship with Bill Belichick. And Bill and I when we met. 0:14:53.920 --> 0:14:55.840 One of the things we talked about, just very naturally 0:14:55.880 --> 0:14:57.360 was the history of the game, because he had asked 0:14:57.360 --> 0:14:59.200 me questions, and I knew. I grew up in New 0:14:59.280 --> 0:15:01.840 York and he and I knew every Giant from the 0:15:01.920 --> 0:15:04.120 late sixties to the early seventies, but then even the 0:15:04.160 --> 0:15:08.960 ones before my lifetime. So it's it's again having the 0:15:09.000 --> 0:15:12.440 context of the history and and and the respect for 0:15:12.560 --> 0:15:14.800 this game because that we enjoy so much, is just 0:15:14.880 --> 0:15:18.240 always remembering where we came from. It was funny, I was, I'll, 0:15:18.720 --> 0:15:20.480 I know, we've got questions to get through. But I 0:15:20.560 --> 0:15:22.720 mentioned to someone yesterday how the last time I was 0:15:22.720 --> 0:15:28.520 at Bears camp was in Plattville in the Cheese League 0:15:28.920 --> 0:15:30.560 when I was with the Cleveland Browns YEA, and I 0:15:30.600 --> 0:15:36.720 was there ninety four w It was those practices were 0:15:36.880 --> 0:15:39.800 out of control, out of control. They were out of control, 0:15:39.960 --> 0:15:41.960 because remember we're supposed to have that one last big 0:15:42.000 --> 0:15:45.160 practice canceledmag it was canceled. Each team had to have 0:15:45.200 --> 0:15:48.520 inner squad scrimmage. But I mean, people, I mentioned the 0:15:48.560 --> 0:15:50.400 Cheese League, and like all the guys looked at me, 0:15:50.440 --> 0:15:54.280 like the Cheese League. Yeah, there were eight NFL teams 0:15:54.280 --> 0:15:56.760 that chose to go to Wisconsin or Minnesota right on 0:15:56.800 --> 0:15:58.600 the board. I think they were in man Cato, I 0:15:58.640 --> 0:16:01.760 think maybe, But I mean the Jacksonville Jaguars bought their 0:16:02.120 --> 0:16:02.840 their training campus. 0:16:03.000 --> 0:16:05.680 Saints took the Saints up there. That was my first 0:16:05.760 --> 0:16:09.480 year covering NFL was the eighty five Bears as a young, 0:16:09.560 --> 0:16:12.120 pimply faced kid who was scared the death of Steve 0:16:12.160 --> 0:16:14.280 McMichael and Dan Ampton to go up to interview him. 0:16:14.520 --> 0:16:16.720 But the present day Bears hope to have that same brow, 0:16:17.720 --> 0:16:20.200 the same growl, you know, get that defense taking the 0:16:20.200 --> 0:16:20.760 ball away. 0:16:21.520 --> 0:16:22.720 Lots to talk about. 0:16:22.440 --> 0:16:25.120 But everything goes back the arrow points to QB one 0:16:25.600 --> 0:16:28.200 wearing that number one. And you know, we touched on 0:16:28.240 --> 0:16:30.800 this in just some casual conversation and I get I've 0:16:30.800 --> 0:16:34.080 got become kind of opinionated about the whole, you know, 0:16:34.320 --> 0:16:38.120 just because Jalen Hurts and Josh Allen made the jump 0:16:38.200 --> 0:16:40.560 from year one to year two and then year two 0:16:40.560 --> 0:16:42.880 in the takeoff year three and by the way, they 0:16:42.920 --> 0:16:45.400 happen to get Stefan Diggs, they happen to get AJ 0:16:45.520 --> 0:16:47.440 Brown and the Bears get CJ. 0:16:47.640 --> 0:16:51.280 Moore. It's amazing. 0:16:51.880 --> 0:16:55.760 Now it's almost every fan, every media person think it's 0:16:55.760 --> 0:16:56.440 an automatic. 0:16:56.960 --> 0:16:58.360 Every story is different. 0:16:58.680 --> 0:17:02.800 Explain why I'm glad we talked a little bit about this. 0:17:02.880 --> 0:17:05.680 I'm so glad we're visiting this now because I think 0:17:05.680 --> 0:17:08.439 it's so unfair right now to justin fields when you 0:17:08.480 --> 0:17:10.560 hear those kinds of things and when you make comparisons, 0:17:10.640 --> 0:17:16.880 Because when you make comparisons on certain small data points 0:17:17.200 --> 0:17:21.920 and don't look at those data points in context, there's 0:17:21.960 --> 0:17:23.560 a lot of mistakes to be made, and there's a 0:17:23.560 --> 0:17:26.640 lot of expectations that can be created that are unfair 0:17:27.280 --> 0:17:32.200 and just very unfair. And to me, I've always believed 0:17:32.240 --> 0:17:36.800 that player development, particularly at the quarterback position, is circumstantial. 0:17:37.400 --> 0:17:40.240 And I say circumstantial in the senses of what is 0:17:40.240 --> 0:17:42.199 the rest of the roster, like, what are the teachers 0:17:42.240 --> 0:17:44.439 around the people who is raising this, what are the 0:17:44.480 --> 0:17:46.879 circumstances that they come into, who are the people that 0:17:46.880 --> 0:17:49.280 they're around, what is the talent like that they're around. 0:17:49.359 --> 0:17:52.359 I mean, Jalen Hurts, he has a lot of talent 0:17:52.359 --> 0:17:54.600 around him. And oh, by the way, he's had consistently 0:17:54.640 --> 0:17:57.399 one of the best offensive lines in the National Football League. 0:17:57.560 --> 0:18:00.480 The Bears are not there yet. Are the Bears. Are 0:18:00.480 --> 0:18:05.119 the Bears getting better? Have they improved their receiving room? Absolutely? 0:18:05.359 --> 0:18:07.320 Have they improved the tight end room by bringing in 0:18:07.400 --> 0:18:11.600 Tunyan who can also compliment Coleman. Absolutely. We don't know 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:13.879 what their running game is, although the rookie from Texas 0:18:13.960 --> 0:18:17.200