The Bear’s Den, July 7, 2020

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

Day Two of Western Themes week...

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

BEARRRSSSS

Bears Banking on Past Scouting of Tackle Jason Spriggs - SI.com - The great hope by the Bears for their swing tackle is he stays on the bench and isn’t necessary.

One Version of How Patrick Mahomes Would Have Done as Bears QB - SI.com - Every Bears fan goes back to the day when Ryan Pace traded up to draft Mitchell Trubisky, and they suffer each time the fact he passed on Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson is discussed.

OPINION: Realistic Expectations for Cole Kmet’s Rookie Season - On Tap Sports Net - The first time I came on the airwaves and claimed that Cole Kmet was an NFL talent was September 25, 2019 on our Irish On Tap postgame recap of the Georgia Game. This also happened to be after Cole spent the first few weeks of the season out with an injury, and made his season debut against the number three team in the nation. As someone who covers Notre Dame and the Chicago Bears, I instantly identified the fit early last season and now we’re here.

Here’s what Bears could buy with Patrick Mahomes’ new $500 million extension - NBC Sports Chicago - A lot! They could buy a lot. Like, so much.

Chicago Bears training camp preview: QB competition between Mitchell Trubisky, Nick Foles - ChicagoBears.com - There promises to be a slew of intriguing storylines to follow in Bears training camp. But none will garner as much attention as the battle for the starting quarterback position between Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles.

This week in Chicago Bears history: July 6-12 - ChicagoBears.com - With the NFL set to celebrate its 100th birthday on Sept. 17, 2020, take a look at what transpired this week in Bears history, including the day that offensive lineman Cody Whitehair was born.

Bears Eager To Get Healthy Hicks Back With Defense - 670 The Score - With the Bears’ playoff hopes on the brink late last season, defensive lineman Akiem Hicks gave the team everything he had. Chicago needed to win its final three games and gain a few breaks along the way if it was to sneak into the playoffs, and Hicks was eligible to return from injured reserve late in the year.

POLISH SAUSAGE

Winners and losers from Patrick Mahomes’ contract extension - NFL.com - Gregg Rosenthal reveals the winners and losers from Patrick Mahomes’ contract extension. What’s ahead for Deshaun Watson? Did the Cowboys wait too long to pay Dak Prescott?

The preliminary Patrick Mahomes contract details - ProFootballTalk - The numbers on any given contract don’t become official under the actual contract can be inspected and analyzed. For now, here’s the breakdown of the Patrick Mahomes contract that is making the rounds.

Patrick Mahomes deal has $477 million in “guarantee mechanisms” - ProFootballTalk - More details are emerging regarding the Patrick Mahomes mega-deal. And they are confusing.

Patrick Mahomes tweets “here to stay” to chase “a dynasty” - ProFootballTalk - The Chiefs won the Super Bowl in February. Patrick Mahomes agreed to a 10-year deal Monday, the richest in NFL history.

Report: Patrick Mahomes extension not tied to percentage of cap - ProFootballTalk - One of the questions we had in response to the news of Patrick Mahomes‘ agreement on a 10-year extension with the Chiefs was whether the quarterback’s compensation will be tied to a percentage of the salary cap.

Power 5 decision-makers remain in wait-and-see mode - ProFootballTalk - Power 5 decision-makers are targeting the end of July to determine if the season can start on time, Heather Dinich of ESPN reports.

Patriots QB Cam Newton: 'I'm getting tired of being humble' - NFL.com - There's no understating Cam Newton's motivation as he prepares for his first season outside of Carolina. The newly signed Patriots QB took to Instagram Sunday night to express and show how hard he's working to prove doubters wrong.

Bear named “Bruno” by social media sedated and transported to safety on Sunday by MDC staff - Missouri Department of Conservation - The roving bear that is suspected to have traveled several states has been released safely outside the urban area.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

Former Detroit Lions 2nd-round pick Teez Tabor waived from 49ers - Pride Of Detroit - The former Lions draft pick will have to find yet another home.

2020 Detroit Lions worst salary cap hits: Nick Williams - Pride Of Detroit - Nick Williams could be a great story, but the Lions are putting a lot of faith in one year of production.

Is there a Vikings player that deserves a ten-year contract extension? - Daily Norseman - I can think of one. . .I think

Which player would you take from each Vikings division rival? - Daily Norseman - Let’s do some damage, shall we?

Two potential training camp cap casualty wide receivers could intrigue Packers - Acme Packing Company - What potential camp cuts from other teams could bolster Green Bay’s receiving corps?

Packers Rivalry Rankings: Where do all 31 teams register on fans’ hate-o-meter? - Acme Packing Company - We ranked every team based on the level of rivalry they have with the Green and Gold.

WINDY CITY GRIDIRON MADDEN INVITATION

Do you want to do more officially sanctioned WCG Madden stuff? Or just enjoy the game?WCG now has an official Madden Discord server! Feel free to offer suggestions, updates, or anything to help the internet’s best Bears community have the best Madden community as well! Invite link is here.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Berckes' Chicago Bears History by the Decade: The Cutler Era - Windy City Gridiron - Episode 12 of our limited podcast series Halas to Mack: Chicago Bears History by the Decade reflects on the one, the only, Jay Cutler and his cast of characters

Wiltfong: Bears vs Packers is the best rivalry in the NFL - Windy City Gridiron - It’s Rivalry Week at SB Nation, so let’s talk about the best rivalry in all of sports, the Chicago Bears vs the Green Bay Packers.

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.

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.; EJ also co-hosts The Bootleg Football Podcast with Brett Kollmann; R. Schmitz has a film breakdown show on YouTube titled Run Pass Opinion; and Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert.

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