The Bear’s Den: February 27, 2020

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

Last week, we went with videos that were world-class awful from the 1980’s. This week we are going to give you a daily two-for-the-price-of-none. Song one is an 80’s video classic, song two is just a great song and video recorded in the 1980’s (some may have been released right at the edge of the 90’s but they were recorded in the 80’s) but you will probably only remember it if you are a fan of the band/artist involved. Be aware some of these songs have political messages, feel free to discuss the songs (but not the politics... besides, these are politics of 35-40 years ago). Enjoy!

The Classic

It was a hit but has been mostly forgotten today... great song...

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

BEARRRSSSS

Allen Robinson is making his feelings on the proposed CBA abundantly clear - NBC Sports Chicago - Allen Robinson does not have time for this nonsense.

Matt Nagy hopes new staff sparks offensive revival - ChicagoBears.com - Matt Nagy is confident that a revamped coaching staff will help improve an offense that regressed in 2019: “We know offensively we struggled in a lot of different areas,” said the Bears coach, “but we’re about fixing it.”

Chalk Talk: Should Bears trade down in draft? - ChicagoBears.com - Senior writer Larry Mayer discusses whether the Bears should trade down in Round 2 of the draft, if they’ll have enough salary-cap space to make the moves they want to make in free agency and who will replace released starters Prince Amukamara and Taylor

Quick Hits: Cordarrelle Patterson’s role could expand - ChicagoBears.com - General manager Ryan Pace discusses expanding Cordarrelle Patterson’s role on offense, a position the Bears are seeking to bolster this offseason and more from the NFL Combine.

NFL Draft Deep In Tight End Options For Bears - 670 The Score - Bears general manager Ryan Pace holds his cards tight at this time of year, refusing to tip his offseason hand. But when it comes to the team’s pressing need at the position of tight end, he isn’t leaving any doubt.

Bernstein: Bears Great At Diffusing Responsibility - 670 The Score - Spreading the wealth is good for a balanced and diversified NFL offense, a multi-faceted attack that always has an opponent wondering who might have the ball next. The concept isn’t so good for a front office and coaching staff trying to explain their specific responsibilities.

Dannehy: Bears Need Speed - Da Bears Blog - With the release of Taylor Gabriel last week, the Chicago Bears need to be searching for speed at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis this week.

Are Bears GM Ryan Pace, Bulls coach Jim Boylen being honest? - Chicago Sun-Times - Pace’s thoughts on Trubisky, Boylen’s on wins and losses go under the microscope. Ken's Note: As I always advise, never believe a single word out of an NFL GM's mouth in February.

NFL free agency 2020: Bears’ veteran QB options fading - Chicago Sun-Times - Cam Newton is staying in Carolina, and Tom Brady seems likely to return to New England. Plus, the Bears have several aggressive competitors looking for QBs. And their pipe dream of landing Derek Carr won’t happen unless the Raiders snap up a coveted star.

Full NFL player membership will vote on new collective bargaining agreement - Chicago Sun-Times - If passed — and it will take a simple majority of all NFL players to approve it — the NFL will feature 17 games, an extra playoff team in each conference and labor peace through 2030.

Bears prepared for two realities as union debates NFL’s proposed CBA - Chicago Sun-Times - General manager Ryan Pace said his team was ready for two financial realities: one in which the NFL and the players’ union agreed on a new collective-bargaining agreement, effective immediately, and one in which it didn’t.

Chicago Bears Q&A with Brad Biggs - Chicago Tribune - Brad Biggs' latest Bears mailbag includes questions about the team's quarterback and salary-cap situations.

Zeglinski: The Bears’ Combine credo means nothing – The Rock River Times - Actions always speak louder than words. In the case of Ryan Pace, taking any of his utterances and extrapolating them into a cloudy fabrication, ignores the contextual ledger of his past work.

Column: Chicago Bears could target a QB in free agency - Chicago Tribune - A higher salary cap would give the Bears room to be more aggressive in free agency and perhaps devote more money to add a quarterback to the mix with Mitch Trubisky.

NFL Combine Report: Analyzing What the Offensive Linemen and Running Backs Had to Say - The Chicago Audible Podcast - Listen as the guys share their top takeaways from Day 2 at the NFL Combine including which prospects shared they have met with the Chicago Bears.

Bears Prospect Tracker from Day 2 of the NFL Scouting Combine - The Chicago Audible Blog - After another day at the NFL Combine, we gained some insight on the prospects, including which offensive linemen and running backs the Bears have talked to.

The Bears can be aggressive in NFL free agency if they bet on new CBA - NBC Sports Chicago - A new CBA, coupled with new TV deals, could explode the NFL's salary cap in the 2020s. And that could mean big things for the Bears in free agency this year.

Bears’ Allen Robinson, Packers’ Aaron Rodgers weigh in on proposed CBA - Chicago Sun-Times - The proposed Collective Bargaining Agreement would bring labor peace — and major changes — for the next 10 years.

Can Bears solve tight end problem with St. Viator and Notre Dame alum Cole Kmet? - Chicago Sun-Times - Cole Kmet, a kid who grew up cheering for the Bears and dominating at St. Viator High School, might be the best tight end in this year’s draft.

Bears GM Ryan Pace not worried about salary cap - Chicago Sun-Times - Pace knows he doesn’t have much salary-cap space, but doesn’t think he needs it as badly as he did in recent years. Ken’s Note: If $27M is “no money”, then give me “no money” please!

POLISH SAUSAGE

Report: Colts have interest in Philip Rivers - ProFootballTalk - Melvin Gordon has said he thinks Philip Rivers will go to the Colts, and he’s not alone in that opinion. It makes too much sense with the Colts admitting all options are on the table at quarterback, and Frank Reich and Nick Sirianni having worked with Rivers in the past.

Franchise tag window will open Thursday as scheduled - NFL.com - The franchise tag window is set to open on Thursday, NFL Network’s Judy Battista reports. It will open as a CBA vote is still being waited upon.

2020 NFL franchise/transition tag primer: No-brainer candidates? - NFL.com - Tag! Who’s it? Gregg Rosenthal explains the difference between the franchise and transition tags — and identifies the players who are most likely to receive one of the two designations in the coming weeks.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

Rickspeak: NFL Combine edition - Daily Norseman - The Vikes GM had his NFL Combine press conference, and said a lot without saying anything

Aaron Rodgers is pushing hard for stronger player protection in CBA talks - Acme Packing Company - Count the Packers star quarterback among prominent NFL players opposed to the CBA that recently passed a player rep vote. Rodgers pushed hard for more concessions to offset a longer season.

From magic shakes to PB&Js: OL discuss their favorite cheat and bulk foods at the Combine - Acme Packing Company - From massive fast food orders to disgusting creations, linemen do it all to keep their weight up.

Aaron Rodgers explains his opposition to proposed CBA - ProFootballTalk - Like other high-profile players who are against the proposed CBA, the Packers’ franchise quarterback has shared his opposition to the deal. Unlike those other players, Rodgers’ position has extra credibility because he’s involved in union leadership, as the Green Bay player representative.

Tua Tagovailoa receives ‘overwhelmingly positive’ medical report at Combine - Pride Of Detroit - Good news for Tagovailoa. Good news for the Lions.

Detroit Lions admit they’re exploring all options—including trades—with Darius Slay - Pride Of Detroit - They aren’t shopping him, but they’re looking at their options.

IN CASE YOU YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Zimmerman: What Ryan Pace really said about Mitchell Trubisky at the Combine - Windy City Gridiron - The overreactions to Ryan Pace’s words are out of control

Infante: Ranking top 10 prospects at each position pre-Combine - Windy City Gridiron - As this year’s Scouting Combine gets kicked off, let’s take a look at the top 10 players at each position before they hit the field in Indianapolis.

Wiltfong: Whitehair and Daniels are staying put at center and left guard - Windy City Gridiron - On the latest Bear Download podcast from Dan Wiederer and Brad Biggs, they interviewed Chicago Bears head coach Matt Nagy from the NFL combine, and while much of what he said was just a rehashing...

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

Windy City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bear With Me from Robert Schmitz, Bears Over Beers featuring Jeff Berckes & EJ Snyder, and T Formation Conversation from Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.; Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert; and Robert Zeglinski’s The Blitz Network

THE RULES

Windy City Gridiron Community Guidelines - SBNation.com - We strive to make our communities open and inclusive to sports fans of all backgrounds. The following is not permitted in comments. No personal attacks, politics, gender based insults of any kind, racial insults, etc.

WCG CONTRIBUTORS BEARS PODCASTS & STREAMS

Windy City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bear With Me from Robert Schmitz, Bears Over Beers featuring Jeff Berckes & EJ Snyder, Bears Banter hosted by Bill Zimmerman, and T Formation Conversation from Lester A. Wiltfong Jr.; Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert; and Robert Zeglinski’s The Blitz Network

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