The Bear’s Den, December 30, 2021

THE DAILY SPONGIE SPECIAL

BEARRRSSSS

Bears QB Justin Fields to return to practice - Chicago Sun-Times - That puts him on the right track toward playing Sunday against the Giants — but it’s far from a guarantee. Bears coach Matt Nagy said the Bears will spend the week monitoring how Fields’ ankle reacts to practice before making a decision on whether he can play.

Chicago Bears starter a toss up as Fields, Dalton practice - Chicago Tribune - New York Giants coach Joe Judge announced Wednesday morning that Mike Glennon and Jake Fromm both will play Sunday against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.

Chicago Bears Q&A: Will Nick Foles be back in 2022? - Chicago Tribune - Will the Chicago Bears seek a front-office structure like the Bulls and Cubs have used with success? Will Nick Foles return next season? Plus much more in Brad Biggs’ weekly mailbag.

Bears’ Justin Fields, Andy Dalton return to practice - RSN - Matt Nagy hasn’t had all his quarterbacks available since early December.

Olin Kreutz questions Bears, Matt Nagy personnel decisions in win - RSN - The Bears head coach may have fielded his best team, but what did we learn from that?

Bears’ Allen Robinson describes tough bout with COVID-19 - RSN - Matt Nagy’s WR1 was activated from the Bears COVID-19 list on Monday, but it may take time before he’s ready to play.

Dannehy: Structure Change Should Give Coach More Power - Da Bears Blog - The Chicago Bears should change the way their football operations are structured, but not in the way many fans are clamoring for. The President of Football Operations many seek, a position that does not include the duties of General Manager, is historically flawed.

Bears rookie QB Justin Fields returns to practice - 670 The Score - Bears rookie quarterback Justin Fields returned to practice Wednesday in a limited fashion.

Justin Fields’ health is Matt Nagy’s top priority - Chicago Sun-Times - With two games to go and nothing at stake, Nagy isn’t going to take any chances after Fields missed last week’s game with an ankle injury. "We want him to be extremely healthy," Nagy said.

The Bears need to clean house but probably won’t. Friends know this. - Chicago Sun-Times - The team needs to clean house but probably won’t. Another column in a loooooooong series.

POLISH SAUSAGE

No teams fired coaches before the opening of the early interview window - ProFootballTalk - When the NFL created for the first time a two-week head start on interviewing assistant coaches from other teams, the Monday after Week 16 became a potential hot spot for head-coach firings. And so, of course, no coaches were fired on Monday.

KNOW THINE ENEMY

Dalvin Cook shaken by season-ending injury to “true brother” Adam Thielen - ProFootballTalk - Vikings running back Dalvin Cook was cleared to return today from the COVID-19 reserve list, but he wasn’t exactly in a celebratory mood.

Aaron Rodgers: Playing next year will definitely be part of my thought process - ProFootballTalk - “I’m just enjoying this season for this season, and playing next year will definitely be in the thought process,” Rodgers said, via Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ON WINDY CITY GRIDIRON

Berckes' Visualize This: Coaching Candidate Flow Chart - Windy City Gridiron - Confused about what head coaching candidates are out there? Use this handy flow chart!

Berckes: Ten Thoughts on the NFL - Windy City Gridiron - Joe Burrow, the Bills are back, Ditka’s record, and losing John Madden

THE RULES

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Windy City Gridiron Podcast Channel which includes Bear With Me from Robert Schmitz, Bears Over Beers featuring Jeff Berckes & EJ Snyder (their BOB YouTube Channel can be found here), Bears Banter hosted by Bill Zimmerman, Rule of 3 with R. Schmitz, Danny Meehan, and Brandon Robinson, Bear & Balanced from Jeff and Lester A. Wiltfong Jr., and T Formation Conversation from Lester; EJ also co-hosts The Bootleg Football Podcast with Brett Kollmann; R. Schmitz has a film breakdown show on YouTube titled Run Pass Opinion; Will Robinson II has his WhiskeyRanger YouTube channel, and Steven’s Streaming Twitch Channel from Steven Schweickert.

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