WEBVTT - Erik Kramer's 'Ultimate Comeback' | Bears, etc. Podcast 0:00:00.160 --> 0:00:03.600 Right, justin middle to field forty five fifteen. Bring Russ 0:00:03.640 --> 0:00:06.160 in front of a leading Lions in this way, I 0:00:06.160 --> 0:00:09.280 am Jeff Jonian. Wlitz is not dog. 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:14.760 What was like playing for coach boddom Ah. I don't 0:00:14.760 --> 0:00:16.000 want to answer any questions like that. 0:00:16.160 --> 0:00:20.040 Sixty one yards? What's Sunday stroll for? Justin Field? 0:00:25.320 --> 0:00:25.400 Ye? 0:00:25.880 --> 0:00:29.600 Bears et Cetera with the voices of the Chicago Bears Jeff. 0:00:29.360 --> 0:00:33.839 Joniac Welcome back this week too. 0:00:33.960 --> 0:00:37.400 Bears et Cetera, Episode number thirty eight with Super Bowl 0:00:37.440 --> 0:00:38.680 winning Bears guard Tom Thayer. 0:00:38.680 --> 0:00:40.400 I'm Jeff Jonia. Coming up on the show. 0:00:40.400 --> 0:00:43.880 We got an extended conversation with former Bears quarterback and 0:00:43.920 --> 0:00:47.360 the franchise record holder in season passing, yardage and touchdowns 0:00:47.479 --> 0:00:48.440 in a single season. 0:00:48.880 --> 0:00:50.440 Eric Kramer, a good friend of ours. 0:00:50.479 --> 0:00:53.120 He's written a book called The Ultimate Comeback, Surviving a 0:00:53.200 --> 0:00:56.400 suicide attempt, Conquering Depression, Living with a Purpose. It's a 0:00:56.480 --> 0:00:59.680 riveting conversation, not an easy conversation. As long as we've 0:00:59.720 --> 0:01:02.200 known Eric, Tom, he has been an easy going guy 0:01:02.240 --> 0:01:05.560 and he's not afraid to give his thoughts on all 0:01:05.640 --> 0:01:08.840 things football, life and whatever. The pursuit of happiness. It 0:01:08.880 --> 0:01:11.040 seems like he's found his wheelhouse right now. He's doing 0:01:11.040 --> 0:01:13.520 a lot of good. This book is therapeutic for him 0:01:13.520 --> 0:01:16.440 for his personal struggles, not only with his own life, 0:01:16.480 --> 0:01:18.400 with his son losing his life. 0:01:18.760 --> 0:01:19.679 He's been through a ton. 0:01:19.959 --> 0:01:22.080 But the fact is there's some good stuff in here 0:01:22.120 --> 0:01:24.480 that you're going to take with you, no question about it. 0:01:24.600 --> 0:01:25.199 Yeah, Listen. 0:01:25.480 --> 0:01:28.000 I have a tremendous amount of respect for Eric Kramer, 0:01:28.080 --> 0:01:30.280 the football player that I knew when he played for 0:01:30.319 --> 0:01:33.720 the Bears in his perseverance to become an NFL player. 0:01:34.120 --> 0:01:37.120 But now after having a conversation about some of the 0:01:37.120 --> 0:01:39.920 struggles that he faced, I have more respect for him. 0:01:40.240 --> 0:01:43.360 I can't wait to read his book, and I think 0:01:44.080 --> 0:01:47.000 it should be recommended reading for a lot of people 0:01:47.080 --> 0:01:50.760 because to not only possibly help themselves, but maybe it'll 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:52.960 help that person help other people. 0:01:53.240 --> 0:01:55.240 For all your journeys ahead, go with a partner who's 0:01:55.280 --> 0:01:57.440 been on your team from the beginning, the one members 0:01:57.440 --> 0:02:00.360 and communities have trusted for over eighty five years, and 0:02:00.360 --> 0:02:03.400 Blue Shield of Illinois always standing by you, with you 0:02:03.960 --> 0:02:06.640 through it all. Jeff and Tom here the Bears around 0:02:06.640 --> 0:02:08.720 the bye week. So one of the interesting things that 0:02:08.760 --> 0:02:11.720 Matt Eberflu said at the podium on Tuesday after the 0:02:11.760 --> 0:02:15.079 Bears win in Minnesota, was that all the players had 0:02:15.080 --> 0:02:18.760 to meet with the physical training department, all that sports 0:02:18.800 --> 0:02:20.160 science before they left. 0:02:20.360 --> 0:02:21.079 You had to do it. 0:02:21.120 --> 0:02:24.680 So they want them to stay healthy during this time away. 0:02:25.360 --> 0:02:27.800 It is one week, but things can unravel in a hurry. 0:02:27.800 --> 0:02:29.480 You can gain weight, you can get out of shape 0:02:29.720 --> 0:02:31.680 in a moment's notice. I thought that was a pretty 0:02:31.720 --> 0:02:35.000 cool thing. But players are smart these days. They know 0:02:35.040 --> 0:02:37.480 what they have to do. But do you see benefits 0:02:37.480 --> 0:02:37.640 in that? 0:02:38.120 --> 0:02:41.200 Listen, there's a guy that I refer to a lot 0:02:41.240 --> 0:02:43.639 about health when I have a question, that's always Clyde 0:02:43.639 --> 0:02:46.600 Emeric and Clyde Emrick always used to have a saying, 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:48.799 it takes you two days to get out of shape, 0:02:48.800 --> 0:02:51.440 in two weeks to get in shape. So when you 0:02:51.520 --> 0:02:53.639 think about a period of time that you have off, 0:02:53.680 --> 0:02:55.640 and there's a lot of these guys that they don't, 0:02:56.040 --> 0:02:58.600 you know, get on a treadmill, get on a stationary bike, 0:02:58.680 --> 0:03:01.520 do something to keep on their feet a little bit. 0:03:01.720 --> 0:03:04.280 I'm not asking to go out and run miles and 0:03:04.320 --> 0:03:07.680 that type of stuff. However, you can't let the sport 0:03:07.760 --> 0:03:10.400 get away from you. In that period of time, and 0:03:11.000 --> 0:03:13.920 unfortunately sometimes it can mentally and physically. 0:03:14.160 --> 0:03:15.799 So the Bears have hit the by a week here 0:03:15.840 --> 0:03:18.519 after twelve games. We were going to do this exercise 0:03:18.600 --> 0:03:21.959 of you know, who's looked good offense, defense, special teams, 0:03:22.000 --> 0:03:24.720 and kind of do a player of the year type 0:03:24.720 --> 0:03:26.839 of things. So far, even though there's five games left 0:03:26.880 --> 0:03:29.600 and the team has rally to win for their last eight, 0:03:29.760 --> 0:03:31.600 they are four and eight. It's not the record they 0:03:31.639 --> 0:03:35.040 certainly wanted, nor what maybe some people expected, even inside 0:03:35.080 --> 0:03:38.280 and outside of the building, but that's the status that's 0:03:38.280 --> 0:03:41.960 where there are. They've overcome a bunch of injuries, nothing 0:03:42.000 --> 0:03:45.080 really seasoned ending across the board, but the offensive line 0:03:45.480 --> 0:03:50.000 has been a real you know, musical chairs even within games, 0:03:50.040 --> 0:03:53.800 and that has been something that I really impressed. I 0:03:53.800 --> 0:03:56.960 saw Chris Morgan the in the cafeteria this week before 0:03:57.000 --> 0:03:59.720 the bye week kicked in, and I said, man, I mean, 0:03:59.760 --> 0:04:02.120 you've wonders here trying to get these guys to all 0:04:02.160 --> 0:04:03.920 play together. When you want to have the same five 0:04:03.960 --> 0:04:06.680 start every snap and play every snap, it just doesn't 0:04:06.680 --> 0:04:09.240 happen anymore in the NFL. He goes, we got a 0:04:09.280 --> 0:04:11.480 lot more work to do, I mean, and that's always 0:04:11.520 --> 0:04:13.720 the case with offensive line. But are you impressed with 0:04:13.840 --> 0:04:19.000 what that unit has done despite some bumps along the 0:04:19.040 --> 0:04:23.920 way and managed to cobble what has become a pretty 0:04:24.040 --> 0:04:26.679 impressive line at key areas up front? 0:04:26.920 --> 0:04:27.080 Oh? 0:04:27.120 --> 0:04:27.400 I am. 0:04:27.640 --> 0:04:27.800 You know. 0:04:27.800 --> 0:04:30.400 I'm impressed with Chris Morgan with being able to move 0:04:30.440 --> 0:04:32.520 guys and shuffle guys in and out of the lineup 0:04:32.880 --> 0:04:36.520 in different positions and still have a solid, performing offensive 0:04:36.520 --> 0:04:38.719 line that started out pretty slowly. 0:04:39.240 --> 0:04:39.440 You know. 0:04:39.560 --> 0:04:41.920 To me, I think I'm one of the guys that 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:44.719 needed to impress me the most throughout the season was 0:04:44.760 --> 0:04:47.520 going to be Tevin Jenkins, even though they just have 0:04:47.680 --> 0:04:51.839 newly drafted Darnell What Darnell right? Because Tevin He's played 0:04:51.880 --> 0:04:53.360 a couple different positions. 0:04:53.400 --> 0:04:54.640 He had the. 0:04:54.640 --> 0:04:57.720 Injury issue at the end of training camp, but Tevin 0:04:57.760 --> 0:05:00.640 had to come in and play like a high profile 0:05:00.720 --> 0:05:03.880 offensive lineman no matter where they were going to finally 0:05:03.960 --> 0:05:07.200 settle on what position he's going to play. Now it 0:05:07.240 --> 0:05:09.800 looks like he could have a career at offensive guard 0:05:10.279 --> 0:05:12.880 and he could be one of the better offensive guards 0:05:12.880 --> 0:05:16.119 in the division and have a really bright feature ahead 0:05:16.120 --> 0:05:18.760 of him. I'm not dismissing Nate Davis It's just that 0:05:18.880 --> 0:05:22.560 Nate Davis was an established veteran at the position, so 0:05:22.600 --> 0:05:25.279 you knew a little bit more about him. So Tevin 0:05:25.320 --> 0:05:28.400 has continued to impress me, and I hope he's the 0:05:28.440 --> 0:05:30.920 type of guy that can stay in that role for 0:05:30.960 --> 0:05:32.000 the next ten years. 0:05:32.160 --> 0:05:35.280 Darnell Right, we touched on in our last podcast, talked 0:05:35.279 --> 0:05:37.520 about we don't talk about him enough this season. You 0:05:37.520 --> 0:05:40.240 can look at the fact that, Okay, he's had some penalties, 0:05:40.600 --> 0:05:43.320 which rookies do, giving up according to the stats, sink 0:05:43.400 --> 0:05:46.320 seven and a half sacks this season. But we see 0:05:46.360 --> 0:05:49.520 a lot of bright spots with Darnell Wright against some 0:05:49.640 --> 0:05:53.360 really impressive defensive edge rushers that the Bears have had 0:05:53.360 --> 0:05:56.160 a face, not the least of which is Daniel Hunter twice, 0:05:56.279 --> 0:06:00.200 Carl Granderson from New Orleans, Cam Jordan had a deal 0:06:00.279 --> 0:06:03.120 with the folks up in Detroit, and Aiden Hudginson. He 0:06:03.120 --> 0:06:05.040 will see him again coming out of the bye week. 0:06:05.320 --> 0:06:08.479 Really good pass rushers over Max Crosby over the course 0:06:08.520 --> 0:06:11.440 of the season, I think, and we can't discount the 0:06:11.560 --> 0:06:14.839 run blocking as well, because he's super physical and big 0:06:14.880 --> 0:06:17.440 and nasty. He's a finisher. I think it's been a 0:06:17.480 --> 0:06:19.400 really good season for Darnell right. 0:06:19.520 --> 0:06:21.920 Well, you know the best thing about Darnell right there 0:06:21.960 --> 0:06:25.000 are no limitations to the future of his game. You 0:06:25.080 --> 0:06:27.120 can't sit there and say, Okay, we can only run 0:06:27.160 --> 0:06:30.560 behind him if he has a double team opportunity, or 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:33.039 if he's got a one on one matchup against the 0:06:33.040 --> 0:06:35.800 difficult pass rusher, we have to have a guy lined. 0:06:35.600 --> 0:06:36.280 Up next to him. 0:06:36.320 --> 0:06:39.200 No, if you run to run an outside sleep and 0:06:39.240 --> 0:06:41.760 feature him as the pulling tackle, you can do that. 0:06:42.120 --> 0:06:44.279 If you want to run a lateral screen that he 0:06:44.360 --> 0:06:47.440 has to get twelve to fifteen yards into position. 0:06:47.400 --> 0:06:49.080 To make the block, you can do that. 0:06:49.440 --> 0:06:51.360 If you want to put him one on one in 0:06:51.400 --> 0:06:55.080 a difficult environment like Detroit to face a premier pass 0:06:55.160 --> 0:06:58.800 rushers like Hutchinson, you can do that. So it's about 0:06:58.920 --> 0:07:02.479 building upon everything that he offers you and you're not 0:07:03.080 --> 0:07:07.040 limiting your offense because he has a deficiency, which he 0:07:07.120 --> 0:07:07.840 really doesn't. 0:07:07.920 --> 0:07:10.200 Bears fans, you can be there for live NFL action 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:12.680 all season long. Is the official ticket marketplace with the 0:07:12.720 --> 0:07:15.480 Bears in the NFL. Ticketmaster has a wide selection of 0:07:15.480 --> 0:07:18.640 tickets available for every game. Find tickets today at ticketmaster 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:22.440 dot com. Slash Bears, Who would be your offensive player 0:07:22.840 --> 0:07:24.840 of the year so far through twelve. 0:07:25.480 --> 0:07:29.000 You know, DJ Moore guy, you know, it's hard to 0:07:29.040 --> 0:07:32.800 ignore him. I think he's done a lot for the 0:07:32.880 --> 0:07:35.640 quarterback position. He's done a lot from the offense. He's 0:07:35.720 --> 0:07:39.840 had nationally televised games that were as as impressive as 0:07:39.880 --> 0:07:43.440 anybody else in the league. He's a super difficult tackle. 0:07:43.800 --> 0:07:45.960 He's another guy that you can throw them the ball 0:07:46.040 --> 0:07:49.040 downfield and he can make difficult catches. You can throw 0:07:49.080 --> 0:07:51.040 them the ball at the line of scrimmage, and he 0:07:51.040 --> 0:07:54.880 can break tackles. I think he's a super positive influence 0:07:55.040 --> 0:07:58.480 in the locker room, which is sometimes as equally as 0:07:58.520 --> 0:08:01.120 important as the way you perform on the field. 0:08:01.200 --> 0:08:03.920 He's an outstanding teammate, first and foremost. Everything they said 0:08:03.920 --> 0:08:07.160 about him is true. He's absolutely been the star player 0:08:07.320 --> 0:08:10.920 and certainly deserving of all the accolades he's going to get. 0:08:10.960 --> 0:08:12.720 He's going to have a great He's already over a 0:08:12.760 --> 0:08:14.440 thousand yards. He has a chance to put up some 0:08:14.480 --> 0:08:17.640 really significant numbers here offensively in Bear's history for a 0:08:17.680 --> 0:08:18.360 single season. 0:08:18.480 --> 0:08:20.680 This was a note from Chase Daniel. He's doing a 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:21.920 lot of quarterback analysis. 0:08:22.000 --> 0:08:25.080 I got to touch on Justin because his last seventeen games, 0:08:25.280 --> 0:08:27.320 of which you know the offensive line has had a 0:08:27.320 --> 0:08:29.960 lot of changes. DJ Moore was only available. This is 0:08:30.040 --> 0:08:32.080 dating back to last season, of course, or just twelve 0:08:32.080 --> 0:08:35.120 of those games. In that stretch, he's thrown and rushed 0:08:35.120 --> 0:08:39.840 for almost four thousand yards, eight rushing touchdowns, twenty five 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:44.320 passing touchdowns, twelve interceptions, so combined thirty three touchdowns. So 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:47.960 you put it in that context, he's put together some 0:08:48.000 --> 0:08:51.000 impressive numbers. Obviously the wins haven't been there collectively as 0:08:51.040 --> 0:08:53.840 a team. But how do you analyze that? Because we 0:08:53.880 --> 0:08:57.400 know his threat of run is one of his biggest superpowers, 0:08:57.679 --> 0:08:59.520 but we also know his deep ball also is a 0:08:59.520 --> 0:09:01.520 super power. Or if given the time and if you 0:09:01.520 --> 0:09:03.720 can see the field to make the play, what is 0:09:03.760 --> 0:09:05.200 your overall analysis of this? 0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:08.000 So to me, a quarterback position, no matter if you 0:09:08.040 --> 0:09:11.720 have the dynamic athleticism of Justin or you have the 0:09:12.800 --> 0:09:15.720 arm talent of Patrick Mahomes and some of the other 0:09:15.760 --> 0:09:20.000 guys around league. Josh Allen, it's more to me evaluating 0:09:20.520 --> 0:09:22.160 when you call a play and you get to your 0:09:22.200 --> 0:09:23.880 final drop step, what. 0:09:23.920 --> 0:09:24.400 Do you do? 0:09:25.080 --> 0:09:28.320 Are you locating the target according to the play called 0:09:28.360 --> 0:09:30.880 in the huddle and the coverage you're seeing, or are 0:09:30.960 --> 0:09:33.280 you pulling the ball down and trying to buy extra 0:09:33.360 --> 0:09:34.960 time to create that big play. 0:09:35.280 --> 0:09:38.720 So I still think Justin is a young, developing quarterback. 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:41.760 So to me, it's always going to be what do 0:09:41.800 --> 0:09:43.960 you do when you call a pass that has a 0:09:43.960 --> 0:09:46.720 certain drop to it, and what do you do in 0:09:46.760 --> 0:09:49.800 the timing of the ball of the pass, And so 0:09:50.440 --> 0:09:53.360 you know that that will be the way I kind 0:09:53.400 --> 0:09:56.120 of see the development of Justin. But it's hard to 0:09:56.160 --> 0:09:59.760 deny that he has all the traits that any offensive 0:09:59.760 --> 0:10:02.520 court Nator would love to have in their quarterback. 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:05.440 Miller Lite, the official beer of the Chicago Bears, tastes 0:10:05.480 --> 0:10:08.120 like Miller Time Chicago coming up in moments. Eric Kramer, 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:11.520 the author of a new book, The Ultimate Comeback. Defensively, 0:10:11.600 --> 0:10:12.679 who's your player of the Year. 0:10:13.120 --> 0:10:15.960 It's hard to deny what TJ. Edwards has been. 0:10:16.240 --> 0:10:18.559 He's done so the Bears have played twelve games, He's 0:10:18.600 --> 0:10:20.920 been in number one or number two in tackles and 0:10:21.040 --> 0:10:23.600 ten out of those twelve games. When you look at 0:10:23.600 --> 0:10:26.320 the numbers and what he's been able to put together, 0:10:27.040 --> 0:10:29.840 TJ is But you know, when you look at where 0:10:29.960 --> 0:10:33.560 Tremaine Edmonds is. I think the linebacker position as a 0:10:33.600 --> 0:10:37.160 whole is really developing into one. 0:10:36.960 --> 0:10:39.760 Of the strengths of this whole team overall. 0:10:39.800 --> 0:10:42.360 Right, I can't go anywhere else either. I mean, I'm 0:10:42.360 --> 0:10:44.920 going to give I'm going to give Jalen Johnson. He's 0:10:44.920 --> 0:10:48.040 having his best year as a Bear. He is limiting 0:10:48.080 --> 0:10:50.680 the amount of catch rate as high as any in 0:10:50.720 --> 0:10:53.000 the league. Now, starting to take the ball away, getting 0:10:53.000 --> 0:10:55.080 near the ball, and just got to keep making those 0:10:55.080 --> 0:10:58.280 interceptions and I know those are haunting him as well. 0:10:58.320 --> 0:11:01.439 How about special teams got to go Kai, right, I. 0:11:01.400 --> 0:11:05.000 Mean, of course, I mean the guy is money and 0:11:05.160 --> 0:11:10.280 he kicks in some difficult situations. Again, we talked about 0:11:10.280 --> 0:11:13.760 it the other day that as the weather deteriorates in 0:11:13.800 --> 0:11:16.840 this last half of the season, I still think that 0:11:16.920 --> 0:11:20.520 with the premier field conditions they now have at Soldier Field, 0:11:21.360 --> 0:11:23.240 I think he's going to have an opportunity to. 0:11:23.240 --> 0:11:25.680 Have an incredible successful season. 0:11:25.800 --> 0:11:28.560 Steinhoffels is an employee owned furniture and mattress store If 0:11:28.600 --> 0:11:30.760 is it any of their for Chicago land locations in 0:11:30.880 --> 0:11:33.679 Vernon Hills, Crystal Lake, Downers Grove, and Harwood Heights, or 0:11:33.800 --> 0:11:36.839 shop online at Steinhoffels dot Com when we come back 0:11:37.320 --> 0:11:41.080 after the buy five games left all outdoors, three at Soldier. 0:11:40.800 --> 0:11:42.280 Field, two on the road. 0:11:42.440 --> 0:11:44.800 One you're going to have to go over to Cleveland 0:11:44.800 --> 0:11:46.880 to take on Miles Garrett and that number one rank 0:11:46.960 --> 0:11:50.160 defense in the NFL, and then finish off against Green Bay, 0:11:50.200 --> 0:11:53.000 which I think will be an emotional game on mid 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:56.960 January at Lambeau in cold temperatures. I'm sure who knows 0:11:56.960 --> 0:11:59.000 you might have some weather for that one. You never 0:11:59.040 --> 0:12:01.920 know what's going to happen. Right there's five games to go. 0:12:02.040 --> 0:12:04.520 If you shorten it all up and give these guys 0:12:04.559 --> 0:12:09.800 some sort of carrot that beyond your own professionalism of 0:12:09.880 --> 0:12:12.880 showing up and giving full effort every single day for 0:12:12.960 --> 0:12:15.160 the rest of the season and playing those games and 0:12:15.200 --> 0:12:17.240 don't have your car running and the golf clubs in 0:12:17.280 --> 0:12:20.679 the back ready to go, you could make some magic. 0:12:21.000 --> 0:12:24.160 It could happen. There's nothing saying it can't. How do 0:12:24.280 --> 0:12:28.520 you look at this, because I'm choosing that approach for 0:12:28.600 --> 0:12:31.720 the final five games after you've split the last eight 0:12:31.800 --> 0:12:34.920 and weathered some serious storms injury wise, the loss of 0:12:34.960 --> 0:12:38.600 your starting quarterback and just the inability to finish games 0:12:38.600 --> 0:12:40.960 for the most part, until you did it against Minnesota 0:12:41.040 --> 0:12:44.400 by way of a thirty yard field goal by Cairo Santos. 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:46.640 Well, we're in the midst of an El Nino winter, 0:12:46.840 --> 0:12:49.600 so there's no guarantee the outside environment is going to 0:12:49.600 --> 0:12:52.280 be as hostile as we've seen it in the past. 0:12:52.320 --> 0:12:54.520 So maybe we'll get a stretch of some nice weather. 0:12:54.920 --> 0:12:57.720 But when you look at how young some of the 0:12:57.800 --> 0:13:00.960 key components of this team are, you don't have a 0:13:01.120 --> 0:13:04.520 chance to finish on a with your arrow pointed down. 0:13:05.080 --> 0:13:08.120 And it's like Coach Stanfeld, my offensive line coach, says, look, 0:13:08.160 --> 0:13:10.440 as long as your arrows pointed up, you're going to 0:13:10.440 --> 0:13:13.600 get coached. If your arrow starts pointing down, you got 0:13:13.600 --> 0:13:16.000 to look to be replaced. So I think that should 0:13:16.040 --> 0:13:19.880 be incredible incentive for all of these young guys on 0:13:19.920 --> 0:13:23.040 this football team, because there's not a player in my 0:13:23.160 --> 0:13:25.200 mind right now that I said, oh my god, this 0:13:25.280 --> 0:13:28.960 guy needs to be replaced immediately. So I think that 0:13:29.080 --> 0:13:31.960 needs to be the attitude that's inside that locker room 0:13:32.280 --> 0:13:35.760 about finish this finishing the season on a high note. 0:13:35.840 --> 0:13:39.200 Yep, Maddy Bruflus giving everybody painted footballs with the word 0:13:39.200 --> 0:13:41.280 finish on it because that was their go all week. 0:13:41.360 --> 0:13:45.200 They finally made that goal a reality against Minnesota and 0:13:45.240 --> 0:13:47.000 it should be a theme for the rest of the season. 0:13:47.320 --> 0:13:51.400 Take a chance download the Bette Rivers app today, as promised, 0:13:51.520 --> 0:13:55.040 our lengthy interview with former Bears quarterback Eric Kramer The 0:13:55.120 --> 0:13:59.080 Ultimate Comeback, his book It's Riveting Eric Kramer, our guest 0:13:59.080 --> 0:14:01.440 here on Bears. He's got a book out called The 0:14:01.520 --> 0:14:06.240 Ultimate Comeback, Surviving a suicide Attempt, Conquering Depression, Living with 0:14:06.280 --> 0:14:10.199 a Purpose. There's so much there and without having read 0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:12.960 the book just yet, but talking to people who have 0:14:13.120 --> 0:14:15.880 scanned it, it could be the precursor to a movie. 0:14:15.920 --> 0:14:19.840 Your life has been an unbelievable roller coaster ride, thank God, 0:14:20.040 --> 0:14:23.240 and for us who love you, it is way up 0:14:23.280 --> 0:14:25.640 on the high tracks right now. So I don't even 0:14:25.640 --> 0:14:28.440 know where to begin, but let's begin the fact that 0:14:28.600 --> 0:14:32.040 you were a football player, come out of California looking 0:14:32.080 --> 0:14:34.480 for an opportunity, and you had to go the long way. 0:14:34.480 --> 0:14:36.160 You got to you had to go the hard way, didn't. 0:14:35.960 --> 0:14:41.040 You more than once? But yeah, yeah, and so but 0:14:41.360 --> 0:14:46.320 you know, like like it's often mentioned, you know, through 0:14:46.320 --> 0:14:51.480 adversity you can't really achieve and become who is a person? 0:14:51.560 --> 0:14:54.560 You want to become as you look backwards, you have 0:14:54.640 --> 0:14:57.520 to go through adversity. Like the people that are born 0:14:57.640 --> 0:15:01.600 into perfectness, which there isn't any but the people that 0:15:01.640 --> 0:15:05.800 are born in the front of the line and don't 0:15:05.920 --> 0:15:10.520 encounter adversity early will encounter it later and then won't 0:15:10.520 --> 0:15:12.880 know how to handle it purple like people like me, 0:15:13.040 --> 0:15:17.600 who's every guy in the world encounters it all the time, 0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:22.560 and so it becomes part of life, really, and which 0:15:22.600 --> 0:15:26.720 is fine because that kind of helps tone who you are, 0:15:27.400 --> 0:15:30.200 not only in what you do, but as a person. 0:15:30.360 --> 0:15:33.400 Pierce College, I never even heard of it JC then 0:15:33.320 --> 0:15:36.520 the NC State because they looked good in basketball. You just, hey, 0:15:36.560 --> 0:15:38.880 I'm gonna throw my head into that ring. Then as 0:15:38.880 --> 0:15:41.080 a senior, the ACC player of the year a hail 0:15:41.120 --> 0:15:44.240 married to beat South Carolina and you're now ranked fifteenth 0:15:44.240 --> 0:15:46.400 in the nation and you go undrafted. 0:15:46.440 --> 0:15:47.840 Did you think you were gonna get drafted? 0:15:47.840 --> 0:15:49.720 The Saints signed you, then you wound up with the 0:15:49.760 --> 0:15:52.360 Falcons and then off to the CFL before you even 0:15:52.400 --> 0:15:53.240 got to the NFL. 0:15:53.880 --> 0:15:57.600 Right, So no, I did not think I would get drafted. 0:15:57.680 --> 0:16:00.600 It was funny though, that because the draft back then 0:16:00.760 --> 0:16:04.160 wasn't what it is today. It was not on the ESPN, 0:16:05.600 --> 0:16:09.120 and so I basically and it was all done, I 0:16:09.160 --> 0:16:14.400 believe in one day. I remember late that day or 0:16:14.440 --> 0:16:17.920 whenever it ended, and so they had twelve rounds. Back then, 0:16:19.000 --> 0:16:22.240 I got a call from Ray Perkins saying, we're thinking 0:16:22.240 --> 0:16:25.920 a draft and you or the quarterback that just played 0:16:25.960 --> 0:16:30.680 for him at Alabama, Mike Schulett, And so they took 0:16:30.760 --> 0:16:34.880 Mike and and so you know, I ended up getting 0:16:34.880 --> 0:16:37.000 a free agent try out with New Orleans, which the 0:16:37.120 --> 0:16:38.360 day I got there, I knew I was going to 0:16:38.400 --> 0:16:41.120 get cut because back then there were no such thing 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:45.240 as a practice squad, and they had two guys, so 0:16:45.400 --> 0:16:50.720 By Bavier and Dave Wilson. So any event, Uh yeah. 0:16:51.120 --> 0:16:55.160 So I was back in school and probably you know, 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:57.400 I was gonna graduate, and I was helping out with 0:16:57.400 --> 0:17:00.520 the football team, and I get a couple of calls 0:17:00.520 --> 0:17:04.959 to go playing a strike, and so I did, and 0:17:05.160 --> 0:17:08.280 end up going to Atlanta. Played in three games, didn't 0:17:08.280 --> 0:17:10.200 play all that well in the first couple, played well 0:17:10.240 --> 0:17:12.520 in the second one, with third one, I mean, and 0:17:12.560 --> 0:17:14.359 they ended up keeping me. And then you're right, the 0:17:14.400 --> 0:17:18.080 next year I got cut, ended up going to Calgary 0:17:18.080 --> 0:17:21.879 because back then that was the only team when I 0:17:21.880 --> 0:17:25.120 see a team. One guy. The head coach there, Larry Carherrett, 0:17:25.359 --> 0:17:28.640 was the brother of bil KERR Herrick, Northern Saints personnel director. 0:17:28.720 --> 0:17:31.040 So anyway, yeah, I went up there and played in 0:17:31.080 --> 0:17:33.720 their last six games. I remember getting there on like 0:17:33.760 --> 0:17:36.680 a I don't know Wednesday or something. Met with Larry 0:17:36.880 --> 0:17:39.679 and he hands me a playbook and he says, all right, 0:17:39.680 --> 0:17:43.879 if you have any questions, come back tomorrow. So I 0:17:43.960 --> 0:17:46.120 go back to the hotel with a you know, six 0:17:46.160 --> 0:17:49.960 inch playbook. I was very average to below average up there. 0:17:50.280 --> 0:17:52.440 The end of that first year along with the second year, 0:17:52.520 --> 0:17:55.600 was only contract I had prior to that season. In 0:17:55.720 --> 0:17:58.800 nineteen what would have been nineteen eighty eight nineteen eighty nine, 0:18:00.320 --> 0:18:03.360 we have an inner squad scrimmage and that same head 0:18:03.400 --> 0:18:08.080 coach decided to make it a live on the quarterback scrimmage. 0:18:08.760 --> 0:18:13.399 So up there in Canada and the CFL, you get 0:18:13.440 --> 0:18:17.200 to have X amount of American players, which I want 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:20.840 to say is six or seven. But if you have, 0:18:22.400 --> 0:18:25.800 it could be an American guy that has a parent 0:18:27.200 --> 0:18:31.920 who was born in Canada. So we had our left 0:18:31.960 --> 0:18:35.120 tackle had never played left never played offensive line before 0:18:35.119 --> 0:18:37.120 in his life he would. I don't remember his name. 0:18:37.480 --> 0:18:40.680 He was a tight end that played at Oklahoma State. 0:18:41.000 --> 0:18:43.440 I want to say, the third play or fourth play, 0:18:45.440 --> 0:18:48.760 I'm dropping back and I throw a pass and Stu Lair, 0:18:48.920 --> 0:18:53.280 who's Canadian, great guy. There's no way Stu would have 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:56.320 tackled me. No way, because the ball is gone as 0:18:56.320 --> 0:18:59.600 he's going by this guy, this left tackle, he clips 0:18:59.640 --> 0:19:03.600 him from behind, had a paulting stew into my left knee, 0:19:04.160 --> 0:19:07.600 torn PCL. Done for the year. Yeah, it took me 0:19:07.800 --> 0:19:10.720 basically calling all the NFL teams, Detroit is the only 0:19:10.720 --> 0:19:11.600 one gave me a callback. 0:19:11.680 --> 0:19:13.520 When you look at your life and you think about 0:19:13.560 --> 0:19:15.719 going to New Orleans and thinking, Okay, I'm not going 0:19:15.800 --> 0:19:18.240 to make this team. When you look at all the 0:19:18.359 --> 0:19:21.080 events that have taken place in your life, both good 0:19:21.119 --> 0:19:23.280 and bad, do you see a lot of things in 0:19:23.320 --> 0:19:28.520 your life in hindsight now that maybe you avoided or 0:19:28.600 --> 0:19:33.080 you didn't consider reality even you know, something like the 0:19:33.600 --> 0:19:36.159 trying out for a quarterback in New Orleans. Do you 0:19:36.200 --> 0:19:38.719 have hindsight that you see a lot of the events 0:19:38.720 --> 0:19:39.960 that have taken place. 0:19:39.960 --> 0:19:41.720 Yeah, in a good way, you know, kind of like 0:19:41.760 --> 0:19:43.639 a lot of people will look back on their lives 0:19:43.640 --> 0:19:46.879 and say, you know what, despite this, despite that, I 0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:50.040 wouldn't change the thing. Well that guy's met. Yeah, I 0:19:50.040 --> 0:19:53.359 think a lot of that goes into helping you. It helps. 0:19:53.560 --> 0:19:58.360