The Bear's Den: June 27, 2016

Discussion Topic Of The Day: What's the most memorable in-person encounter you've had with a player (current or alumni) or coach of the Chicago Bears?

BEAR DOWN, CHICAGO BEARS, BEAR DOWN!!!!

BEARRRSSSS

Dobbrow: Can Cutler keep up with the Pace? - isportsweb - Ryan Pace has done his job well. He surrounded his talented-but-wildly-inconsistent quarterback with all of the support he could acquire. This sounds like a broken record, but now is officially the time for Jay Cutler to step up. Is Cutler still the man for Chicago and GM Ryan Pace?

Cox: Phil Emery’s fingerprints are still all over the Bears’ roster - Bears Wire - Many of the Chicago Bears' best players were acquired by previous general manager Phil Emery, which speaks to his ability to evaluate talent

Ottochain: 2016 is a make-or-break year for Kyle Fuller - Bears Wire - Chicago Bears corner Kyle Fuller has been inconsistent through two seasons, and year three will be huge to define his career moving forward

Robinson: Community Tailgate: Von Vs. Alshon - Pro Football Rumors - Von Miller and Alshon Jeffery might be the dominant NFL storylines over the next few weeks.

Infante: Fantasy football, buy or sell for the Bears - Cover32 - Fantasy football season is drawing closer, and millions of people around the United States are eagerly waiting to pick their squads and battle it out...

Cox: Sports Illustrated ranks Pernell McPhee as one of the NFL’s best edge rushers - Bears Wire - Chicago Bears outside linebacker Pernell McPhee was ranked as the seventh-best edge rusher in the NFL by Sports Illustrated. Ken's Note: I posted this instead of the original because the original is one of those clickbait slide shows we all hate so much.

Chicago Bears Salary Cap - Over the Cap - Chicago Bears salary cap, contracts, bonus money, dead money, and cap savings for every player in 2016 and beyond

Mitchell: Soft tissue injuries and what the Bears are doing to prevent them - Windy City Gridiron - Soft tissue injuries have plagued the Chicago Bears in recent seasons. In 2015 the Bears started a new program to reduce the problem. What are these injuries and how does the program work?

POLISH SAUSAGE

Bonesteel: NFL says it's 'monitoring' the post-Brexit situation in the United Kingdom - Chicago Tribune - The NFL has gone all-in on staging games in London, with the possible goal of putting a team there permanently one day.

Alper: Texans hope Jadeveon Clowney has already had as many injuries "as he needs to have" - ProFootballTalk - When the Texans took linebacker Jadeveon Clowney with the first overall pick of the 2014 draft, their hope was that he'd team with defensive end J.J. Watt to lift the team's defense to the top of the league. Injuries have kept that from happening.

KNOW THY ENEMY

Orr: Former Lions WR Calvin Johnson says he'll stay retired - NFL.com - Despite the legions of us hoping Calvin Johnson would walk back on his decision to walk away from football and gift us some more acrobatic touchdown catches, he put that possibility to rest on Saturday.

Huber: Packers Training Camp Countdown Is 30 Days, Turnover Margin Matters - Scout - The Packers have consistently did well under Mike McCarthy in the giveaway-takeaway battle, but their dominance has been slipping.

Carlson: Minnesota Vikings have 2 players in Fabiano's fantasy mock - TheVikingAge - Two Minnesota Vikings players were included in a one-man, ten team, ten round fantasy football mock draft by NFL.com's fantasy expert Michael Fabiano.

Twentyman: Lions expect Brandon Copeland to be a factor at DE - Lions.com - By switching to defensive end full-time, Brandon Copeland could see more snaps on defense.

Slideshow warning: New pics and video of Detroit Lions Cheerleader hopefuls at auditions - MLive.com - More than 300 women are are competing to become a Detroit Lions Cheerleader. Auditions are taking place at Ford Field through June 27, 2016. Here are pictures and video of some of the women who auditioned.Ken's Note: Yes, we all hate slideshows, and we all hate the Lions, but... but... CHEERLEADER PICTURES!

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