All Access: Ridley here to compete

Jeff Joniac along my broadcast partner Tom there from news Radio seven eighty and one oh five point nine FM WVMN, Jim Miller of the former Bears quarterback and a member of that sirius XM NFL radio staff. Good to have you back with us as well as you listen in tonight for the next hour. Got a good show tonight, boys. We got Riley Ridley, the outstanding looking rookie receiver out at Georgia, joining us at about six h eight tonight.

And then at the bottom of the hour, we're gonna be joined for a good couple of segments with Tom, your teammate jimbo Over tonight, the outstanding left tackle for your Super Bowl champion Bears. Good show today, Yeah, I can't wait. You know, I had a chance to catch up with him a little bit in this weekend. And you know, Jimbo and I go back a long way. We were seniors in college at the same time. When I was there, Notre Dame played Pitt and Pitt was

number one in the country. Notre Dame played him Att Pitt and we kind of stolled one from him back then. And then we played in the Hula Bawl together out in Hawaii and had a chance to spend some time. And the day I met Jimbo, and the day I watched him practice all or played throughout a senior year and practice throughout that that All Star game, I knew that he was a day one starter, one of the

one of the best in the history of the Bears. Yeah, you just wanted obviously with a great slate like Jim Bow And here we're celebrating the hundredth anniversary of the Bears. It was great to catch up with you guys a week ago. And then you know, guys like Riley Ridley, how can he make his impact? So I was like, he's an impressing early and here we're on the you know, the heels of training camp, which is just around the corner.

Players have five weeks. Hopefully everybody's days out of trouble and does what they're supposed to do as they get focused on the season. But you know, there's still some outliers here. You know, we still have yet to really understand what's going to happen with the new replay rule and how that's going to go down, how coaches it's going to affect their coaching during the game. So there's still some things to really clear up as we head

into the twenty nineteen NFL season. Jim, what are you hearing on that front, Well, it sounds like they're going to put it to the replay official. It sounds like the coaches do not want a part of it where you know, they would have to throw a challenge flag or have a challenge flag late in the game or a timeout in order to initiate the process. And that's how I thought originally, the coaches thought this process is going to go that it was just going to be

initiated by the replay official. And I think it just if you just stick to the standard of that NFC Championship game between the Saints in the Rams where the replay official up in the booth. To me, it has to be so obvious and so egregious that you're going to initiate the review right in that game between the Rams and Nickel Roby Coben and the past interference call that wasn't called. Everybody in the stadium knew it was a penalty. Everybody watching at home knew it was the penalty.

I even had Kyle Shannon, he said he was down in Mexico City, and a lot of the people that don't even understand the game, a lot of the Hispanics that were in the bar, they looked at Kyle Shanon and they knew it was a penalty, and they don't even know American rules of football. So I just think if you keep it within that standard, you know, I think that would be the level of where the replay official would initiate it where you're trying to write or wrong.

Moving forward, I just hope they don't continue to overthink everything. You know, all this replay stuff. Oh catch, I mean, think about it's the most basic playing football, and we bastardized it for literally five to six years, where nobody knew what the hell of catch was and nothing aggravates time more than a wasted time going over this stuff. Right. You know, it seems like every coaching staff now has

so many coaches. I mean, could you really designate one experienced guy and put him on the staff and be able to make a judgment yes, let throw the flag or no, don't throw the flag and be made within a matter of you know time, like you know, similar to the time that baseball managers and stuff have their chance to use the replay or not. Yeah, well, I hate I hate replay, so I wish it would never I never wish even showed up in the National Football League.

So I've talked about that plenty of times. Hey, shout out to Josh McCollum. Fellas, he was nothing but a gentleman and a leader with the Chicago Bears and proved to be that way over the course of his sixteen year career. Announced his retirement today. He's going to become an analyst as well on ESPN and their football coverage. But gonna tend to his boys, you know, guy, his

boys are high school quarterbacks. Now. He'll be forty around the fourth of July here, so next week, next couple of weeks, rather and after ten different teams putting it away. You know, whatever you want to say about Mark Trustman. Mark Trustman did a lot for that guy because he was on the cusp of his career ending and he

was already a teacher. I believe in the comeback and not necessarily reinvent himself, but be taught of football in a kind of a different style that was able to carry through to the different systems he was able to play in towards the end of his career. I definitely think a class guy. And just how he represented himself, how he treated his teammates, I think was important and just you know, you just you need guys like that

that said can fill all those type of roles. He could fill the role as a starter, he could fill the role as a backup, He could fill the role as a mentor. So I think what Thomas bringing out. I think if he wanted to embark on a coaching career, he could probably do pretty well. But it sounds like you're right, Jeff, he's happy teaching his boys how to play the position of quarterback. Yeah, and now I saw highlights of his game as a slot receiver for Detroit

against the Patriots, in two thousand and six. I believe look very good. Catch him passes and great athlete. Underrated athlete, that's for sure. Coming up next a guy who's not an underrated athlete at all, Riley Ridley, outstanding rook. He come to the Bears and he'll join the program. Here. This is Bears All Access brought to you by IGS Energy, with Mike Chen and Adam Stezinski helping us out tonight.

This is Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to score. Hey, welcome back to Bears All Access brought to you by IGS Energy, a proud partner of the Chicago Bears, providing electricity, natural gas, and home warranty products over one million customers across the country. Learn more about IGS Energy at igs dot com. Jeff Joni Actomp there, Jim Miller. Another Bears

All Access show. As we traveled through the offseason now and summer vacation for everybody, and it's still a great time though to reflect on what's transpired and also look ahead to what these teams heading into training camp here in just about four weeks, four and a half weeks or so, we'll look like and where everybody's looking at. And I know NFL dot Com work down the Bears today, and a lot of folks have them as one of the top playoff contenders out of the NFC and just

out of the NFL picture period. And as you break it down, what are some things that really stick out to you guys about what we've seen so far. I got a question for you, Big Jeff. You said now that the players are on vacation, or now that they're on vacation, you didn't say players. I think in the player's best interest if they look at this next five weeks as a vacation, right, it really brought that many many times I do, and and it kind of it kind of bothers me just because this is when they

should be working their hardest. I know there was a player in the Detroit or in the Baltimore Ravens camp who didn't go to the OTAs, didn't go to any of the conditioning sessions, and then they didn't allow him

to practice because he was not in shape. I think if you look at this as a vacation or time off, yeah, you got to go out there and free your mind and you don't have to have the daily grind of sitting in meetings for three hours, but you got to stay into your information and you still have to stay

in try to gain strength and condition your body. So I'm I'm sorry to harp on it and sound like an old geezer, but this is probably the time then most guys in in the early era of football started or not didn't start, continue to work out their hardest leading up to the beginning events of You'll be happy to know. And Jimmy kim Hicks, you know, I talked to him the other day before they got out of here, and what are you what are you gonna be working on? What are you gonna do? And he goes, this is

where I sharpened my tools. This is where I defined my body and my strength for the rest of the season. So, yeah, the veterans, they're going to go back to work. Hopefully the young guys do the same gym. Yeah, and well, we say it every year, and I'm with Tom on this. I mean, this is not training camps, not some test you can just cram for. You know, I say that every single year, And Michael Pierce is who you're thinking of.

Tom and the Steelers have done it before. Remember the big nose tackle Casey Hampton couple a couple of years he came back, he was out of shaping. Mike Tomlin said, uh, you're on the side, big boy, because you're you're physically unable to perform. And they would let the player get himself in shape before they would leave him, allow him to practice, because why he's putting other players at risk.

And that's what John Harbaugh said about Michael Pierce. You come in overweight, you're out of shape, You're putting other players at risk. We can't have that. So it's not something you can cram for. You gotta stay on top of it. And I would think if you know, if you're serious about your craft, and you're serious about your love of football, and you're serious about your accountability with your teammates, I don't think the Bears should have any problem.

And you're serious about your commitment to your coach and organization, should that add that as well, because it really is part of your responsibility and you shouldn't need somebody there to babysit you. You're all grown men. Now take care of business and do what you gotta do. You know, you know too, Jim and Jeff and throughout the entire ty of OTAs with the exception of maybe a couple

of days there was no hot weather. This isn't something that they got kind of fed a little bit of eighty five degree practices and understood the challenge to them. So if they go to bourbon A at the end of July and all of a sudden they open up camp and it's eighties plus with full pads on, with that blue helmet, it's a completely different monster out there. And the less you are prepared, the less effective you're going to be on the field, and more likely it

is going to affect the way they evaluate you. And you know, and so I am a yeah, So you're not on your feet on a daily on a you know, as much as you are throughout practices, but you've got to be conditioning and you've got to be in the weight room and continue that strength goal. Well, this is different definition of professionalism. It also defines who really loves the game and who is just looking at this as a way to, you know, just get a paycheck. So

you do. It does sift its way through these guys then are not in that kind of condition and they all take you know, most teams any way have conditioning tests to find the where they're at after the five weeks. It'll be a rough training camp if it's not the case. Awaiting Riley. Ridley, the Bears rookie receiver out of Georgia,

joining the program tonight. Also at the bottom of the hour, Jim Covert the Bears outstanding left tack oh best offensive lineman as you could possibly find, number thirteen and the Bears one hundred is put together by Dan POMPEII and

Don Pierce until join us as well. You can also take your phone calls three one, two sixty seven, sixty seven if you got anything on your mind in terms of how so you never did answer the question because you know I use the word vacation, Sorry and so, but you know where the Bears are position right now?

How do you guys feel after everything that's happened during this offseason now to take a deep breath for a minute, recalibrate where they position in your opinion, it's gonna start with Tom Well, you know, first of all, I can't be more impressed with the job that Ryan Pace did and the draft choices that I've seen go out there. They're gonna be able to compete at a really high level, and they're gonna compete for playing time instantly. This isn't a group of rookies that are going to come in

here and they're gonna be waiting in the wings. Oh, I'm gonna go through a rookie season and just sit in the background and kind of observe and learn. No, when you look at these guys, they're going to be expected to go out there within the first couple of weeks of training camp, and they're going to get their time in the preseason games to come out here and

push veterans and make this team better immediately. And you know, just you know, for my examples and when I had a chance to come in here after the Bears got beat in the NFC Championship game, there wasn't going to

be a lot of roster movement. But I think that has to motivate the guys that are going to have an opportunity to come in here and earn a position in a roster that you know is set for the most part, but you're still going to be able to come in here and have an opportunity to accomplish some big goals for yourself. If you're diligent about the effort you're going to put in, Um, I'll categories and just how it reflects with the whole division. Because I'm with Tom.

I think the Bears should be able to hit the ground running. I think they're much better team in a lot of areas, you know, even deeper in terms of their roster and what they'll be able to do and present. But as it reflex to the division, Minnesota I think can be a bounced back team with the moves that that that they did in the coaches that they acquired, Gary Kubiak, Rick Dennison, etc. Um. Detroit is a better team, but they've got a new offensive coordinator. How does that

all mix in? Will they should be able to hit the round running faster than say what the Bears did last year with a young quarterback where the Bears kind of turned the corner Week eight in Week nine offensively. I think Detroit will be able to do it, but it will have to come a lot quicker than the Bears turned their second half of the season around. And I would say the same for Green Bay because you've got a new coach trying to lay the foundation, so

to speak. Gentlemen, I don't know if you saw that article today. That's a big hiccup in terms of audibles. Here you've got a coach. I was gonna bring that later in the program, but it's it's worth talking about. Oh yeah, here you've got a coach at Matt Lafleur who believes in his system. Right. He believes that's the same system Kyle Shanahan was running down are in Houston under Gary Kubiak and all that they believe a lot

of that is the system. And it's either check with me, is whether hey, you got play A or play B in order to what the defense presented. And Aaron Rodgers kind of wants the ability to go off the cuff and be able to audible into anything. And that was one of the issues that Green Bay had under Mike McCarthy. So that I think is an issue for the football team. Yeah, well, we'll pick that up later in the program. Time enough,

kind enough, Rather to join the program. The fourth round pick of the Bears, Riley Ridley joining us on Bears All Access brought to you by IGS Energy, Jeff, Tim and Jim with you, Riley, thanks for checking in. How you doing? My men are doing okay, doing okay. In the final analysis. What'd you take away from the offseason program as you get ready now to dial up, refocus and get ready for training camp. Oh, right now, I'm

just trying to focus on getting better. I know we got some big conditioning days coming up, and I just want to be in tiptop shaped just to put my best foot forward. I'd like to hear that, Riley, hey, now that you had a chance to sit in the meetings and take it to the practice field. Is this system is there any similarities to your college system or is this completely different what you've learned thus far in your college? In college? Well, here the Bears, it's like

a West Coast type of offense. But uh, you know, the concepts and the route running and then things like that are more similar, uh, pertaining to the concepts like I said, and uh, you know, just being just being a young guy, just trying to learn it all for the first time. I mean, you gotta wipe your mind clean from college and you know the other things that you've learned, and you know, just focusing in on what's

at hand. Well, you're a different animal, Rightley. Jim Miller here talking to you again, and just just because of your name and you've you know, you've been associated with with pro football and even the program down there is a Georgia Bulldog. I mean, you're not the typical rookie, so to speaker, is how I view you? And is that a fair statement? And just how you approach everything

and how you go about your workman like approach? Uh? Well, I want to be the best I could be, you know, and the only way I could do that is to approach and prepare, uh for any any situation that I'm put in. So, uh that's my main goal. I just try to prepare and uh, you know, just be ready for whatever comes my way and just try my best at it. Bears fourth round pick Riley really joined the program here on Bears I'll access in Chicago Sports Radio

six seventy the score. Uh, the impact that your brother can't be understated. You know, Calvin, you looked at him as a mentor and and I'm sure he did the same as well. You guys are not that far as part in age. What's the lasting impression that he made on you as as a football player and how he's helped you? Oh, you know, just a just a change of being a pro uh, you know in college, he did really well, and you know he was a pro then and uh, but now it's just a big one eighty.

You can tell he's about his business. He takes things really seriously and now he won't think ain't done right. So when I've seen that and knowing that I want that type of lifestyle, there's a no random for me. I really look up to him for those For those reasons, I know that he's a smart guy, and you know,

I just want to follow in those little foot stuff. Hey, Riley, when you come to a new team and you're trying to develop a relationship with the quarterbacks, m that you get to play with here with the Bears, is what is gonna decide your faith? Quicker? Is it? Is it the route running or understanding coverages at this level? Uh,

with no doubt, I think it's both. But for the main part, I don't say it's just being consistent, being able to do it on an ind and out day basis, no matter the weather, no matter what's going on the circumstances that it's just being consistent. Uh, Well, let alone come with the route running and you know, catching the ball. But I feel that being consistent is more important to the quarterback knowing that you know your assignment, you're being

the right place you'll catch the ball. It's more eye open into a quarterback to be consistent. Well, as you got five weeks before training camp, Well what do you think you direct your most attention to? Is that the playbook is a conditioning? Is it strength training? What do you think is your biggest focus as training camps just around the corner. Well, you know, training camp isn't easy, so you want to go in with a full of mind. You want to be able to tack everything, but not

at once. You wouldn't be able to take a thing out of time, one thing, one thing out of time. You stay so for the first probably a couple of days. Uh, you know, I'll just work on my playbook and you know, as I get my feet wet and get things going, and I'll start working on my route running, you know, and throughout all this, I'm just I just want to be consistent, and you know, just have my number called

and give performed. Riley Ridley our guest. You're on Bears All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to score. How have you taken to the Bears Playbook is it fit your skill set. Excuse me, how have you taken to Matt Naggie's playboo? Does it fit your skill set? I believe so. Uh. Coach dagg is a google when it comes down to play calling and different types of you know, routes and that goes with plays and you know it's what routes can get open with different coverage.

So you know when you have a coach like that, that can give you a man zone telling and just the formation and it's more, you know, it opens a lot for you. No matter who you want, the matter your assets or whatever your skill is, your you will be able to perform. Hey, Riley at the excuse me, at the end of OTAs, when I watched you out in the field, I didn't see a fourth rounder. I saw a guy that was you should have been drafted a lot higher. When you did get drafted, did you

go were you a little bit disappointed? Going, Hey, I know I'm better than this, and now it'd be kind of fun that you have a lot of people in front of you to prove that you are right and maybe they missed a good opportunity. Uh, well, I wasn't. I wasn't just disappointed. Uh I was a little upset, yeah, but uh, but not disappointed because you know this, this is the opportunity of a lifetime and I get the experience,

you know. So it's and the thing about football is, you know, as a player, you get to decide your face, you get to decide your work ethic, you get to decide the things that you can't control, you know. And one of the things I said when I got drafted was I controlled whatever I want, you know what I mean. I'll be able to go in and work my tail off and maybe one day I have a starting spot for the Chicago Bears. But as long as I put good tape on, then I should be all right, you

know what I mean. And that's that's my mindset, and that's the things that I'm gonna straight too. Well from from your standpoint here, you know, I look at that roster, just the receiving core unit alone and just how it is. I mean, legitimately, there's eight guys there that can play, and then doubt and the coach is pretty intense as while we look at Coach Fury and maybe just talk about that room overall, how you guys are hoping each

other out, but yet it's still competitive. But yet you guys are leading and on each other to help each other to get better. H But yeah, I say that, I say because because of that is because you know, God's leaning on each other just to learn something. I mean. You can watch guys go all day, you watch the good things that you can do, and you can correct yourself off those their wrongs. So you know, you want to be able to like support others. But at the

end of the day, we all know that. You know, it's a business, and you know, the best man wins, and you know, and that's how I feel about what coach first preaching in the room. You know, the best ill play and you know, we all just got to go out and have fun, you know what I mean. And at the end of the day with the Bears organization, that's what many of the guys like to do. They like to have fun while working, so it makes things easy.

Bears fourth round wide receiver Rady really joined the program getting ready for training camp, his first NFL version of it. He's heard all the stories and witnessed the first hand with his brother Calvin and the Atlanta Falcons. You know, one thing playing at Georgia And as players get to the NFL, there are a lot of skill position players. It depends on what day, you know, who's gonna get the number caught in that very much is the way

the Bears and Matt Naggie look at their offense. But boy, if you were to take your numbers at Georgia and flex them out and look at how many touchdowns per catch or how many catches you know, and how many yards you really made the most of your opportunities. Was that internal pressure you put on yourself that you knew you weren't going to get as many targets, but you had it. When you did get the chance, you had to go big. Oh well, you know, as everybody knows

obviously George's running school. But uh, you know when you when you run the ball, well it freezes up passing. And uh, you know, when you do get those opportunities, don't matter if there's ten opportunities, if there's three, if it's two, This is want to take the most out of it. You know, you're putting good things on film, and that's just the main key and a lot of what level you're on, you want to put good film out there. You know, you just want to be able

to be able to contribute for your team. Hey, Riley, what the impression you take away from the weekend. You had a chance to look at players from the fifties up until the teammates that you're gonna have this year, What was What was that like to look at the initial fan support that's gonna be as it's gonna be a college atmosphere around here, because the fans do an unbelievable job of supporting you at training camp, on the road,

and at the home stadium. Right. Um, well, for me, you know, it's I don't really get too far until you know, when I'm playing. I don't get too much into the crowd or anything like that. But the fans here are awesome. Um. I mean I go anywhere and they see me. You know, they introduced themselves. They like, you know, take pictures or whatever the case may be. But they're really true got hearts and uh you know, they breathe this stuff down here in football, and uh

you know it's it's it's in the city. You can feel it when you're going around. You know, you just want to be a part of that. You want to be able to go out and contribute, you know, and just get the city on your back and have a lot of fun. Well, it's gonna be a lot of fun being a Bear, Riley Ridley. We'll look forward to you coming back at training camp and bourbon A here in five short weeks. Enjoy enjoy your time. Riley Ridley, our guest here on Bears All Access. Coming up next,

Jim Covert will join the program. This is Bears All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy to Score. The Chicago Bears Network presents Inside the Bears, brought to you by Verizon. Anthony Adams and Laurencecreten cover the world of Bears football on it off the Field every Sunday night at ten thirty five pm on Fox thirty two Chicago, or watch anytime at Chicago Bears dot com or on

the Bears official app. Welcome back to Bears All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The Score, brought to you by Igs Entergy, Jeff Toom and Jim and joined by Jimbo Covert kinde enough to join us tonight, Jimbo. Good to see you over the one hundred weekend and seeing you out of practice up at Hallishaw, Thanks for coming out and join it. How'd you enjoy the whole festivities? Hey, guys, Yeah,

good evening. It was. It was a great time. I Uh, I thought, uh, you know, getting the chance to see all the guys again, and you know, I thought the Bears did a great job on putting the whole thing together and flying everybody in so um I got a chance to play golf as well, and just it was just a great weekend all around. So it was again, I was just I was really looking forward to spending

time with the guys. That's that's really what I went for. Jimbo, just a go down memory lane a little bit because I it's always talked about the eighty three d the eighty three draft. You know, you define the success of that draft because as many guys as they get draft in the first round, you were a pick that could not fail. There wasn't a guy behind you that was going to play as well as you. And then to go out there and kind of help continue the development

of that offensive line. Did you feel that pressure when Dicko and that these guys went and made that pick or did you know day one that you were going in there to take that job and keep it for quite a while. Tom when I came in the day I got drafted. Excuse me. Mike went and see Mike and he said, the job jurors. So you know, I think there's a certain amount of pressure and just fulfilling those expectations, you know, And I, uh, you know, it wasn't like I had to go into camp and beat

somebody out. I mean, the job was mine, So you know, I had high we had high expectations of me, as I did myself, but you know I had to fulfill those as well. And you know, we had a great court, young quarterback and Jim McMahon and obviously Walter Payton, and a lot of pieces there. You know, hil he was there, but he was backing up Danny Neal and Horn was there and back and so we had a bunch of guys there that were ready to play, excuse me, but we didn't, you know, just didn't gel as a unit.

And I think eighty three was a united every you know, we all were kind of jumbling around. Different guy was the only guy that started all sixteen games. Eighty three just because of a lot of different you know, issues with injuries and guy shuffling in and out, trying to find the right combination of guys that could win for you. So um, but I just think the eighty three draft

you were part of that as well. You didn't join us for a couple of years later, but I think that draft really was the draft that you know, made us super Bowl champs and kind of carried us throughout the eighties because you know, we had so many great players that made the team and then you came on board a couple of years later, and I just think it just helped us, you know, kind of win a lot of games in the eighties, and I think people,

you know, that draft really stands for something that you know, has really catapulted the Bears to Super Bowl success. Well, Jimbo, Jim Miller here, good to talk to you. And people don't realize freedom Pa. My wife's from Beaver County. There's a lot of good players from Beaver County and that whole area and just growing up how you ended up as a as a pit panther, because I you know, I do think that as something you know, it's molded you.

There's been a lot of great players to come out of that area of Western Pa that have become very prominent football players in the National Football League. Maybe just talk about your past a little bit. Sure, yeah they you uh yeah, I mean I was I was really lucky. I had great high school coaching, and you know, I grew up in a kind of a steel mill area, and you know, right across the river from all Equippa. Of course, that's where Mike Dick is from, and Tony Dorset.

And you know you got Mike Lucy from Ambridge and Joe Namath from Beaver Falls, and you know Durrell Reeves from all Equippa and John Gilbert. So, um, you got just got a lot of guys that uh, you know kind of it's a rich tradition in Western Pennsylvania football. And you know you kind of see the stuff like you know, um, the Tom Cruise movie when he was back in Pennsylvania, all the right moves. I mean, that's kind of where you grew up, and um, football was

a part of your life, you know. So I mean I was lucky enough to have great coaching and and I played for a small high school, um double a high school. I think it was only five hundred kids of my entire school. So you know, to get noticed there with the big you know, quad A schools was kind of difficult, but um, you know, we had a good senior year when undefeated, and uh, I think that had a lot to do with me getting to you know, the notice that I had, and uh, you know, for me,

it was easy. My dad. I got drafted, I mean I got I got I got recruited by a lot of schools. But my dad said, you know, you've got three choices, Pit, Penn State, or Notre Dame. I know, tom like, but um, that's the only place he would only three places he allowed me to kind of think about. I didn't visit Notre Dame, but I did Pit, and I canceled my Penn State visit after I went to Pit and just felt that was the right place for me.

So I ended up there. Jimbo coverd our guest on Bears All Access number thirteen and the Bears top one hundred. Does that resonate with you? Thirteenth all time in one hundred year history of Bears football? You know, Jeff, I don't. I mean, it's it's kind of hard to to comprehend sometimes when you think about it's just I mean, I think that you know, Damn Pompey and Dawn Pearsons their remarkable job to pick one hundred guys out of a

hundred years of professional football in Chicago. I mean, just think about the thousands and thousands of guys that you know pass through here. To pick a hundred guys out of that's a difficult job in itself, and then they start ranking them, um, you know, in different positions. I think is extremely difficult on top of that, and then when you get down to the top twenty five and then the top ten, I think it makes it even

a lot more difficult, you know. So there's an argument I guess on every one of those guys from twenty five in right that you want if you wanted to have it, you could so, uh, you know, higher or lower or whatever. I don't know, but I was just thrilled to be part of it. And you know, you're right, it's hard to come apprehend that type of uh, you know, to be ranked at high, but I'm certainly appreciative. Hey, Jimbo, people always want to know, Hey, who's the toughest guy

you ever played against? But how long did it take you to recognize Richard Dent? Had talent that if he started to cultivate his ability, that this guy could be something special. Well, I mean from day one and training camp, Tom, I mean he was liked and I think, you know, I think when we were rookie, he was probably about I don't know, two hundred and thirty pounds or something

like that maybe, but he could fly. He had an incredible first step, you know, and when he came in, you know, he's a typical college you know, defensive lineman. Then you know, had tried one move and you know, if he didn't get that move on you, that was pretty much done. I mean, you could shut that off.

But then when you know, when you look at a guy like Dan Hampton, who you know, does an under arm at a club that a spin, I mean you know, he'll do three pass for us, moves in the same pass for us, and mean if he doesn't get what he wants. And so that's what pro pro guys do. And so when Richard learned off of guys like that and Jim Osborne and Mike Hardenstein and you know a lot of older guys, and he learned how to rush the passer, I mean he became downright dangerous pretty quickly.

I mean you could see the the you know, how much better he got, you know, just from the time training came to the end of the year, you know, and then eighty four boom. I mean he hit the ground running. So I mean he's a remarkable guy and learned how to play the run a lot better as well, because you really have to do that at Tennessee State, you know. I mean he's just rushing the passer. So um. I mean he is, you know, one of the greatest

defensive ends that ever played. And I played against a lot of them, and he is, so I mean, I've you know, it's hard to rank a guy that that good when you play against him all the time, you know, because it's not in game conditions. M But I mean, he's one of the best guys I ever played against, or not, it's not the best guy ever played against, well, Jim Bow. There was energy about those mid eighties teams, the eighty five Bears, and there's still a lot of

energy about the great teams you've played on. But there, you know, I think there's some similarities. I'm sure you witnessed it coming in town, going to practice. There's a lot of energy about this year's team and what, you know, how they can piggyback off the success of last year, maybe maybe could What did you glean when you when you kind of see the inner workings of this team and what Matt Nagge is is trying to accomplish and the organization overall, well, I think the expectation is there.

You know, they're gonna win and they're gonna go to the super Bowl, and you know, anything short of that's going to be a disappointment. I think that's the I think that's the attitude they should have. You know, Tom or will call when he came in, it was his first year with the Bears. But you know, we were through eighty three eighty four, we got embarrassed out in San Francisco, and on the plane on the way back home, we all kind of sat there and said, Hey, I mean,

this is never going to happen to us again. I mean, we got downright embarrassed. So it wasn't we weren't never going to be in that position again. So, you know, it just started right after that. And I think if you remember in the beginning of the season, we had the same type of attitude. I mean, guys got up and said, Hey, no more failure. We're gonna win the thing. And that's the attitude you have to have it. I'm seeing it now today with those guys, and that's the

attitude they need to have. They can't, you know what I mean. It's a long season. I get it, but I mean, but you got to put together a string of wins and you've got to get out there and get a playoff spot. It's all about control in your division. And you can control that, you can control the next level. And I'm seeing it now and I like the attitude that Matt has and they's bringing to this team. Jimbo coverd I guess Jimbo canging on for another segment, will

you buddy? You bet all right, Jimbo Cover when we come back, I remember the All eighties NFL team by the PO Football Hall of Fame board and many other accolades in a great career. This is Bears All Access, brought to you by IGS Energy. Back in the minute. Join us for the PNC Chicago Bears five K Saturday, July thirteenth and finish on a historic Soldier field. Register now at Chicago Bears dot com. Slash five K before

prices increase. Jim Covert kind enough to join us for another segment here tonight on Bears All Access, brought to you by IGS Energy a Lot with Mike Chenet, Adams Zinsky, Jeff Jonniac, Tom Thair, and Jim Miller. Jimbo, I know you're very close to Dan Marino. Obviously you guys played together at Pit. But just going through some old stories that I hundred up today from the internet. I don't

know the story, but it was alluded. There's a pinball machine story about your apartment in Pit with you and Dan Marino. Care to care to elaborate? Um, well, we're we're at a parliament off campus, Danny and I am guy named Paul Don's offensive line coach in the league and for a long time, and uh, Paul and I've bounced this bar called Thursdays, and the owner um a liking to us, and uh, you know, gave us a

pinball machine that we had in our apartment. So, UM, I was pretty good at pinball because I grew up and had to misspent hours in the bowling alley down there in the railroad track, So I was pretty good at it. And Uh used to beat Danny all the time on it a lot, and so we'd have challenge matches. The three of us would get in there, and then he accused me of fixing machines. So I could, you know, So it didn't till you know, which I did do that a couple of times. Yeah, but it was It

was a lot of fun. So we had a we had a great set up when we were seniors in Shadyside and uh fully stock bar beermeister a whole nine yards. It was. It was pretty good. It was perfect. Jimbo. I never realized how important that eighty five game was the Dolphins until I went down there my last year and played with the Miami Dolphins. Does Marino is is he still wear that around as a badge of courage or a badge of honor to you that that's the one, that's the thing he did to all of us. Yeah,

he did. He did it a couple of times when we were together. And uh, you know on a ring it said eighteen and one, and he goes, uh, see that one, that one is mine. He can't take that away, And I said, what would you rather have bro the one of the ring? Well, hey, I mean, he's one of the best year all time passes of all time. When you look at Marino and I go back to that fake spike game up and when he beat the Jets.

I mean, there's so many great things that And obviously for being a friend of yours and playing with him all those years, did did you have any idea playing with him at pitt that he would be considered one of the all time greats and here were now currently already in the Hall of Fame. Oh sure, Jim, I mean you could see it. I mean our senior year, he had a great junior year. You a freshman sophomore year as well, and I've got a great junior year and then senior year kind of been let down. But

you know it was one. It wasn't him. It was a lot of things. It was the guys around him. You know, Um, that's a lot of drop balls. You know. It was just it's just one of those things that happened. And then then he comes out in the postseason and he ends up being MVP of the Hula Bowl and the Senior Bowl. So your MVP of both of those bowl games and you still get drafted the last quarterback

which is really hard for me to understand. And you know, all the rumors that were out there were unfounded, and uh and we're you know, really put his stock back. But you know what, he ended up in the best place, ended up in the best place for him. And uh, you know, playing for a guy like Don Shula and I think the rest of history. So I mean, you know, it was hard for me to understand how he got there,

but it's the best place he could be. Jimbo. One of the first meetings at the Hula Ball, when Jackie Cheryl was addressing the team, he says, man, we got Dan Marino playing quarterback. We're not going to run the ball very much, so just get ready of the past block and hey, that's what we did, and that's why he was MVP. Yeah, we were at a two point stance most of that game off our middle, which was

a lot of fun, you know. Um and uh, it was kind of hot too, if you remember time, so we didn't want to be doing too much run blocking anyway. So there was a lot well, you guess more than made up fourth though when you got to the Bears, because you guys were a dominant run team. Your first four years led the league in rushing. That offensive line was superb arguably best in the NFL history, certainly the

best in Bears history. And then you know, underrated that continued into the late eighties and early nineties, finishing the top three in those years top two and eighty nine and ninety third and eighty eight. Both of you, how how significantly proud of you are of that accomplishment to lead the league in rushing and be such a dominant running team during this time. Well, from my perspective, you know, I just think that, you know, I think we set

an all time record. I think the only ones that tied I saw are the Bears from like the forties or something like that. So, you know, it just has never been done before. Other than that it was a different game then because they threw the ball ran the ball so much back then as well, but and then

really hasn't been done since. So when you see all the names of the you know, offensive lines, like you know, the Hogs and all the teams that get all the you know, the recognition, I mean, we got way better stats and way better records than any of those offensive lines, and I think Tom will agree with that. So it always kind of threw me for a loop that our guys didn't get the recognition as an offensive line that

we deserved. I think it really was because just of the perception that you know, Walter didn't have an offensive line for so long and that he did it all on his own, and then you know, when we all started to get there and he still was putting up records,

you know, way into the you know, eighty six eighty seven. Mean, so, I mean, you know, that's my perspective, which is unfortunate that that was kind of the perception of the You know what it was neat for you too, Jimball, is you've been blessed with some of the best offensive line

coaches in football history. When you had Joe Moore in college, then you moved on to Dick Stanfeld Hall of Famers, and you told me the other day of practice that Harry Heastan is a disciple of your of Joe Moore, which it kind of gives you an understanding why Harry does a good job of developing talent, just like you know, coach Stanfeld. No matter if you were Boortzy converted defensive lineman six seven like Van Horne, or the ability Jay or else. Even the built of Kurt Becker. He molded

you into an offensive lineman that best suited you. He didn't try to change what your your asset was as a football player. No, Dick was the best, and I think that, you know, the best line coach I ever had.

You know, I love Dick Stample, but Joe Moore was, you know, the best, and you know, learned off of Dan Radakovich and all those steel are great offensive lines, and you know Harry's a disciple of that, and I mean you could just see it in the way those guys coach, and when I was up at practice on the field, you know, Harry uses a lot of the same terminology. So it's a little deja voot. It was fun Watson the guys, and they're really responding on that

type of coaching as well. So you know when you're seeing those sons of good techniques because quite frankly, and I know Tom probably see obviously sees a lot more than I do and watch there's a lot more. But you see some of the offensive line technique around around the league and it's pretty horrid. I mean it really is. I mean, ever since they went to all this zone blocking everything. They just get five of the biggest guys and kind of sidestep guys. I mean you never see

anybody stepping up field as much anymore. You know, it's all kind of a running back looking for softness. They don't really do a lot of a point attack stuff and hit you know, hit holes, a lot of trapping plays. I mean Tom and Sports he used to pull you know, fifteen times a game. I mean, if you ever see a garget out in space, you know, he probably fall down. We'll be able to make the corner. So it's a

totally different game now. That's why it's always fun to go back in time and watch some of those YouTube games. You can see them, many of them, and see what it was like. It was outstanding to watch physical brand of football. Jim Ball, thank you so much by the time tonight, Have a great evening and best of luck you back, guys. A nice chatting with a nice chatting with jimbo Covert outstanding six pick in the eighty three

draft by the Chicago Bears. One segment to go here on Bears All Access with Jeff and Tom Jim Miller. I'm Jeff joni Ac Here's radio excuse me, Tick seventy the school back. In our final moments of tonight's program, Out of Here at the top of the hour, Jeff, Jonyac, Tom There and Jim Miller with you on Bears All

Access brought to you by Igs Energy. Great conversation with jimbo Covert feel strongly about you know, a couple of things, And I was going to bring up to him about his injuries that really complicated his career and forced him to stop playing with his back injuries. But how an athlete that elite level has to deal with the body

not responding the way you want. And you guys have certainly had severe injuries in your career as well, So how do you manage that and balance that out with a love of the game and what you've put into it and what you get out of it. To have that be the reason you can't continue, Lane, Well, you don't think about that when you're going through it. You're just so committed to the game, committed to making your get yourself ready in the offseason to be prepared for

what the season. You know the tot it'll take on you. And you know, since Jim has retired, he's at a knee and an ankle replacement, which was I was shocked to hear and shocked to see when he showed me the pictures of it. But he looks great. You wouldn't be able to tell if he ever looked at him.

And I think that's a lot of what the guy's got to do is when you do go through the trials and the injuries that you face during the season, it's about what you continue to do in the afterlife to make sure you stay active in whatever way you can, because that's the thing that's going to help you the most as we get into our late fifties and early sixties and such. Yeah, and unfortunately, you know, it's it's it's very rare that a player gets to really dictate,

you know, their own terms. You know, here you got Rob Gronkowski's retiring so young as a tight end and he goes out on top as a as a world champion. But think about him. He's had four back surgeries, he's had a torn ACL he's had numerous elbow surgeries. Um, but here he was able to do that, and that's just it's few and far between that you're able to do that, especially go out you know, winning a Super

Bowl ring. But it says a lot about a player, the injuries that they overcome, and probably Jimbo covert overcame quite a bit. And you know it just to me, it speaks about the player and how much they want to be on the field for their team, their coaches, the organization, all those things for the love of the game. They'll sacrifice quite a bit in order to to to really give it up for their teammates. Any time. Do you remember him going into that WrestleMania two back in

eighty six. I was there, Oh okay, and Mark Boarts went there as the first time I got to see um Andre the Giant in person and a lot of the other guys that were wrestled in that in that WrestleMania, and um, you know, Jimbo was a great high school wrestler. I'm sure he could have wrestled his way through college. But I you know, I say that the best players

that I played with were great wrestlers. But Jimbo, you know, he was that size, he had that persona, and he was the type of guy that fit into that WrestleMania perfectly. And it was a lot of fun going there, and you know, seeing the hype of that those events on that night. Yeah, and unfortunate when he got there. Right, don't mess with Jimbo. That's pretty much in the message. Jimbo was a bad dude, There's no doubt about it.

And you know, I got introduced to that in college and watched the way that his offensive line that he played with that Pitt, the way they walked to the line of scrimmage almost looked like they were the Steelers. And they had greatness up there with Ron Sam's and Bill Freylick and other offensive lineman that played fort at Pitt at that time. And Joe Moore was a great offensive line coach and he developed talent where I think all five of the guys went on to get drafted

and have successful NFL careers. All Right, fellas, we're out of time. Three shaated. Another one bears all access in the books. Jim Big, Jim Miller Ticket, he's there up there in Michigan, and Tom we'll see you around. That's gonna do it tonight. Thanks to Mike Chen and Adam Fazinski for helping us out. Cheane Rearden is always as well, and our guests Riley Ridley, the Bear's fourth round pick at receiver and Jimbo Covert, a great in Chicago Bears history.

That'll do it for you tonight on Bears All Access on Chicago Sports Radio six seventy The score, Good night,