Cut over that DJ Moore n Zode.
Touchdown, touchdown Bear. I am Jeff Jonihanlitz is not Donnie go hout what was like playing for Coachy Digg. I don't want to answer any questions like that pressure coming is a big trouble Doti Goos Montese Sweat.
Now, Bears, etc.
Brought to you by Geico with the voices of the Bears, Jeff Joniec and Tom Tayer. Welcome into episode one seventeen of The Bears et cetera podcast with Tom Tayr. I'm Jeff Joniat, getting you set. Four Bears and Niners were brought to you by Geico. Our special guest this week is former Chicago Bear usc Trojan and the color Analyst, the longtime color analyst of the San Francisco forty nine ers, the man we call t Rock, the man with the great hair and the big mustache.
She'd fit right in.
In any of Chicago's legendary figures with the big flowing mustache.
I don't know about the man bun, but it looks good on you.
Well before before this podcast is over, I'll take the man bun down just to satisfy you.
You lyrical gangster.
You know, here's my motto at my age, and Tommy will understand this maybe better than anybody.
If you got it, grow it, amen, Welcome, end to that tea Rock. You know, it's funny you kind of come across people in your lifetime that you're rarely refer to them as their name. And I was thinking about that this morning, Tim, that I don't know if in my lifetime I've ever called you by your real name, because everybody affectionately knows you as T Rock. So as people listen to this podcast and they hear us constantly refer to t Rock, no, that is Tim Ryan.
That's it.
You know how it was in old two point fifty North Washington Road, Tommy, if you didn't have a nickname by year two, you were getting cut. I mean it was pretty much that simple. So yeah, it's been going for a long time. The other day, you remember Eric Komero, who played with us, of course ninety two maybe or ninety one, I don't remember, but he was out at the game a couple of weeks ago and he nick told me he was coming.
So I hear him and he's in the end zone and I just rock.
I just hear him yell at right.
So I go over there and I was talking to Nick at the time in the end zone. So I go over there and chop it up with Eric. It was great to see him. Haven't seen him in a long time, and so it was good, and then played the game. Next day, I'm in the weight room and Nick comes in. I said, Hey, what's up, Nick? And he goes, it's up t Rock okay, And now every time I see Nick, it's like, t Rock, what's up? Man?
I go, hey, what's up? Bos? How you do buddy?
So kind of told him that story of getting nicknames, and it's kind of the same ere. There's some some good old days, that's for sure.
Yeah. So do you want to open up with USC? Notre Dame or San Francisco, Chicago?
Why don't we talk about Boise State. I'm pretty high on them right now.
Isn't there their running back in the Heisman Trophy County.
He's an absolute beast and my daughter's a senior up at Boise State.
So no, we're good. Yeah, we can go wherever you want.
The USC has been a lot like the forty nine ers this year that they obviously been unable to finish games and in big moments they've made big errors. And you know, Notre Dame, you Golden Domers, I'm never pulling for you, but I'm always pulling, But I'm always pulling for you.
Tom.
You know, that was a great football game and came down to the end in a couple of big errors. So they've had their challenges. This forty nine er team has clearly had their challenges finishing games. Well.
You know, you know one thing about Bassian.
Games that really get get you are the ones that you know, ten point leads in the fourth quarter are unable to hold on. And that's that's been unlike this football team over the last been pretty spoiled, you know, in four and a half of the last five six years.
You know one thing about that Notre Dame USC game. And I always tell people that if they want to go and see two games, that the atmosphere is unlike any others. It's either Chicago Bears, Green Bay in Lambeau or Notre Dame USC at the Coliseum. And as you know, a kid growing up in Joliet, from the Midwest, flying from South Bend to California just in awe of the presence of USC and the people on the sideline and
just all the fanfare that surrounded that game. And I still get that kind of emotional attachment to the Notre Dame USC game in the coliseum.
Well absolutely, I mean that we all saw the well it's probably eight milimeter clips when we were watching them on the old reels of those some of those legendary historical games.
And you'll probably remember your guys.
I remember Anthony Davis and some of those games, games that us he was able to come back great, you know inner you know, big cross country rivalry that's got so much tradition to it, and it means a lot. It doesn't matter if you you know what your record is, throw them out the window. That's that's the biggest game of the year. And everybody usually says, well what about UCLA, and I go, that's that's a big rivalry, that's crosstown rivalry. But when you talk real rivalry, it's and with USC
boosters and the alumni, it's about beating Notre Dame. And that's why I, you know, I probably have you know, a lot more fun talking about it if I was able to beat him. I was on four against the Irish and and we had good teams. And I'll never forget the two ten and oh teams in eighty eight. I think it was in first play the game, Tony Rice sixty five yard option around the corner and they
never look back. And Stan Smagala picked off Rodney team right before halftime and ticket in Frank Stams blew his shoulder. I mean, Chrystal out there with the skinny tape around his wrists, so mean, come on, man, you know t.
Rock one quick thing about it. I was zero and four against USC also kind of were right. But the first play I ever played in my college career, I lined up as a full back against Notre Dame USC at Notre Dame and I blocked Chip Banks. So that was my introduction into college football, the first play I ever played. And it's you know, that memory will never
go away. And so when you talk about the names in your past history, you know I played or I didn't play against, But you know there was Charles White, there was Marcus Allen, there was you know, Bruce Bruce Matthews, Don Mosebar, all these great football players across the legendary landscape of USC that I'm super familiar with.
A game like that four times in your career help get you drafted second round for you, Tim, fourth round for ten.
Yeah.
True that And from what Tommy said, I remember my first game lineup. I know, Beerline was the quarterback my freshman year, played head up on Andy Heck when he was an offensive tackle, which is you know, we all know that he ended up moving to or was tight end before he was an offensive tackle, so he's a tight end at Notre Dame. We made the mistake I think up up in that game, I don't remember the score, but up by two scores and made the mistake upuonting
to Tim Brown twice. Not a good idea, and they beat us at the at the coliseum and Ted Tolner was fired after that game.
Well, one thing more about the USC angle. Caleb Williams gets his jersey retired last weekend, brought a Notre Damer with him and Cole Comet came out there. So that was kind of cool symmetry and great for Caleb because he was a great quarterback in college obviously at two schools, but well deserved.
Yeah, and I would say this, and you know, we I know Cole obviously don't know him, but his dad, Frank was with us way back in the day. You know, say what you want about the rivalry, and when you get on the field, guys are you know you're trying to win your period. I remember we got in a big fight with Notre Dame in my senior year when we were there.
But at the end of the.
Day, there's tremendous respect I think between the players, between the coaches, and just because we know what the rivalry means and we know whenever you go out there and play, the guys that are out there doing it are laying it on the line.
And so there's always been a.
Life Mike McGlinchey, I've never met, you know, Michael stone Breaker, you can go down the list. I've never met a Notre Dame guy I didn't appreciate being around.
Yeah, those are some good names right there.
We're brought to you by PNC Official Bank of the Bears with Tim Ryan just quickly before we get into the matchup and what's going on with the forty nine ers, reflections on your time in Chicago. Obviously you made an impact because everybody loves you. Whenever I bring you up, you know you weren't here that long, but you're here long enough to make an impact with people.
So that says a lot of by you.
Well, I appreciate it. A lot of good people there, you know.
I look at some of these facilities now, that and the one we're sitting out out here in Santa Clara, and I think of that old college at two fifty North Washington.
Road, and.
I'll never forget meeting rooms were downstairs under the weight room. You remember that. Tom and guys will do it course, and kyde Emrick wasn't real big on spot and dumbbells.
You just throw them to the floor when you're done with them.
Where to god, I'm like, something's coming through this ceiling, man, something is coming through this ceiling. No indoor, I mean Tommy practiced outdoors most of your career. I mean, we had no indoor facility. It didn't matter. One time I remember being out there and it was probably in late September, and Tommy, you'll remember this. You may have been one of the guys. I'm probably not knowing you went into the locker room. But the lightning was striking bro like
on the field. It was like the thunder and the lightning were simultaneous, and I'm like, oh no, this is We're out there hitting metal sleds and that. And I remember Fridge. I remember McMichael that Fridge like, no, hell no, we stayed out here and they went in like we weren't even out of individual yet and they went in.
They're like hell no. I think McMichael went in and Dicka got pissed. He's like a rag.
No one's gonna get struck by lightning out here. We're going to finish practice. Well, so we finished practice. I went home, laid on my couch, turned on the news. Uh, six people struck by lightning in the Chicago Land area today. I'm like, oh no, but had great times, man, had I don't I mean everybody, I just I related to what happens now. And it's such a show now and
it was a show back then. But with all the wives and all the family and all the people and the entertainment and everybody's got to have their fit and everybody's got to have you know, it's all it's pretty crazy. I don't know if we ever left the parking structure. It took about two hours after games of being under there, and it was always the same guys in the same old studs and their families that were down there.
But great memories.
And really really enjoyed, you know, certainly my first three years there when Dicta was there and and all the old boys from from the great teams. And then things started to change when Dave got there, and I was there for a couple of years after that, and and then I wasn't there any longer, but great memories. Would never trade him for anything, and you know, silver lining for me. And I hate that I didn't play nine ten years. I think health permitting, a lot of us
would have played longer. But I look at some of the guys that that ended up getting, you know, another handful of seasons that that can hardly move. So I I was very fortunate to get my ticket punched early with an injury and got out and you know, still got issues.
But what was it, feling pretty good about it?
What was the injury?
Neck?
Okay, neck, yeah, neck was And they didn't have the things, Jeff, that they have now. I mean John Lynch had real bad singers too, but and he was only three or four years behind me. But by the time towards the end of his career, they had procedures that they could go in there and surgically kind of repair those or if it's just you know, for those nerves and kind of clear things out a little bit. They had none of that back in the day, So it was Grin
and Barrett and I just couldn't do it anymore. But at the end of the day, I've been very fortunate to stay connected to the game and you know, do it in a different way. It's not nearly as fun, and as I tell people, it's a lot easier talking about it than doing It's damp sure.
Tee, right, I got a question about that. So you played for the Chicago Bears. You got drafted out of USC you were immediately accepted into the team. You are a high profile player, and then you went onto the national broadcasting scene with Fox and now you've been doing
the San Francisco games for quite a while. Do you still have any emotional attachment to the Chicago Bears, either when they're playing a game like last Thursday or a game that they're going to play against the team you broadcast for in San Francisco, Santa Clara, Yes, I do.
I don't you know.
I mean my jersey hangs up in my office and the relationships I have. And I know Brian mccaskey's still skating around there somewhere.
I don't know what.
I don't think he's taping ankles anymore, but I think he's doing something.
Yes, I do.
We went back for Robbie Gold's golf tournament. I don't know it's been years now, four or five years, but to see all all the you know, a lot of the guys, see butt heead see a lot of the guys I played with Big Kat Williams. Of course he was in golfing. He was just hanging out. Good to
see a lot of those guys. And I'll be honest with you, I pull for him every time they're playing, and I was pulling for him in these last three games, and I was pissed, like I'm pissed here when people get away with stuff like when your center's head got blown up on the block kick against the against the Green Green Bay Packers at the end.
Of the game. So yes, I do have an emotional vested interest in the is.
I like to say when I get my card every year from the Chicago Bears football Club.
It's your first stop in football after college, So your first professional stop, it's going to have some kind of impact with you, for sure. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois right here at home, driving access toward healthier communities, through it all all right through your eyes. You know, this is an interesting contrast in situations.
Here.
You got a team that was rebuilding. They got a quarterback they believe will be the franchise quarterback. You guys have a franchise quarterback. It appears that was a late, late round pick that was really successful at Miama mater Iowa State University. And yes, I am a cyclone and surrounded by great talent there that I've had multiple bites at the Apple and then a franchise like the Bears right now that has been it's been evasive to have that bite at the Apple, not since a really good
season in twenty eighteen. It just reminds me this. You can never take winning for granted, because even when you're winning and you don't finish and get that Super Bowl, there's an emptiness about it and that team. The window is what has been gigantically open, right, but then you start getting age and injury and now it's cloudy a little bit. Can you kind of take us through the perspective of two organizations in different places, but we're all trying to get to the same place.
Well, I'd start with two Crown Jewels and two teams.
That have fans across the world that care about them and have certainly have interest in them because of what they are, what their label is, what their brand is, how they play football, and of course out here with certainly more Lombardi trophies. But Chicago has been in a lot of big games and you know, as as hard as hell to win in this league. I don't care
who it is. It's every week and and the run that the forty nine ers were able to put together from nineteen and you know, so much of it is about is it's really at the end of the day, it's not about place, about players. It's about having the talent and about having finishers and guys that can go out there and win.
You know, it's.
There's no magic wand of winning or losing. I just always boil it down to one thing. Whip the guys ask in front of and you got a pretty good chance I mean, at the end of the day, to win games. But you know, when Kyle got here, things flipped and he was a great hire by by Jed York and you know, tried. You know, Jimmy Garoppolo came in because it was it was bad early obviously trying
to do it with with other guys. Jimmy came in here, and and Jimmy with that you know, that ability just to rip it and get it out quick and all those inbreaking routes over the middle of the field was really suited to his his style. Then some injuries started cropping up on him, but certainly to god us to the all the way to the to the Super Bowl and nineteen the twenty Super Bowl to play Kansas City.
Unable to finish that game. At the end, defense dropped the ball a couple of times in terms of the coverage, Jimmy overthrew Emmanuel Sanders and what possibly was was going to get over the hump at that point didn't happen. Brutal, But to have so many of those players still young and you know, Kittle, Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, all those
guys were still really really young. And then to go out and you know, the COVID year happened, and then Jimmy started having some injuries, some challenges started happening, some contractual issues, and then getting Trey Lance and where they got him, you know, set this organization back just because he wasn't ready to go in terms of the playmaker and a seamless playmaker and a great kid, but it was a challenge for him.
And so they've since moved on.
But it's been hall hard to recover from the draft picks that were giving up and how the draft situation was, and you know, during that, but still able to win a lot of games, get the NFC championships, you know, when Jimmy got hurt and Brock got in there.
And I remember when Brock.
Got here out of out of Iowa State and I watched him playing college. But I promise you he wasn't here a week in his rookie mini camp. And you know they always do, you know, they do one on ones and the scout team thirteen quarterback goes and throws linebackers on on uh running backs and tight ends when they do the one on ones, and I'm watching him, and that's usually there's going to be some space, you know, those those running backs coming out of the back for
one on one there's no lineman. Same with tight ends. But Brock's putting everything on the money on time. I'm like, holy cow. And then i watch him in some team stuff. He's out there with thirteam and with a lot of rookies, and it's the end of practice and I'm like, I'm looking around, I'm like, is that not the best quarterback we've had here since it was probably my eighth year at the time, I said, since I've been here in terms of reading the coverage and delivering the mail.
I mean, this guy's just bang, bang bang. And it was like, yeah, no doubt.
You know some of the coaches, and then as the season got going, you know, a lot of scout team quarterbacks Jeff and Tommy knows this. They're throwing check downs, they're throwing you know, they want to look good too, and in terms out there taking their reps knowing they don't have a chance to play, Brock is ripping it into bracket coverage. He's trying to run the forty nine er offense. He's like he's trying to move Fred Warner out of the way. He's trying to control safeties with
his eyes. He's making high risk throws he's getting better, and it was like wow. So then Jimmy got hurt and tray Well Trey started the season, busted his ankle against Seattle. Jimmy's whole contract was a whole weird vibe. He was working out here, but it was weird. And he got back out there and then got hurt against Miami, and here comes old brock Purty, mister irrelevant, Miami dialed up.
I think thirteen zero blitz is out of him in the half of football that he played, and he busted almost every one of them with the ability to make plays. And then he just never looked back and just got better and better and better. You guys would love him. He's got a tremendous moxy to him. He's an ultimate competitor. He's a great person. He's loved in the locker room and he and he his rare talent is a he
moves better than people think. You know, he's short, area of quickness, he's got eyes and he's got that knack when he knows the guy's about to get there, and he can dip out even when it appears that he doesn't see him. But his greatest asset and I call him the you know, Intel next generation chip. He's he he just processes. He can read those coverages and and
that's the hardest thing I think in football. And you guys know, I mean, you love seeing a quarterback get off schedule and be able to make huge plays with his legs and put a lot of pressure on a defense.
But I think coaches would prefer.
Read the coverage, get it out on time, throw it to the receiver, let him run after the catch, and and Brock has been really, really good at that. Now this year has been very strange with the injuries, with contract holdouts, and then Ba came back and was just you know, because me, you don't I don't care what you do if you're not in training camp and you don't have Football is like anything else, any sport, anything. You got to get in your groove and it takes
muscle memory, and it takes reps. And he was just starting to look like Ba in practice Brandon Ayuk and electric routes and separation and and you know, using those long arms to capture the football, and then he had the catastrophic injury. So it's been it's been hard. It's been hard without McCaffrey really from the start. Now he is gone again, just when his legs were getting back underneath them the other night at Buffalo. So it's been a great run. It's not over yet. This team still
believes they can win despite all the injuries. There's a lot of character in this building. But the thing that's been the toughest I think to swallow. And you guys know, losing sucks. It stinks for everybody. How do you fight your way out of it when you got six days to get it right again? And everyone wants to knock that taste out of their mouth. The human tragedies Jeff, that this team has faced this year, it's been overwhelming
and it transcends football. You go back to Ricky getting you know, getting shot in the chest while getting robbed over the summer. Then Charvarius Ward unfortunately loses his child. Trent Williams just lost his It's it's like, oh my god, and and it just it's so much bigger than football. So it's you know, it's been, uh, it's been so searching season. And Tommy can remember when it was my
rookie year. We lost Fred Washington in a car accident a couple of days defensive lineman out of TCU, and those things will affect your will, affect your core and your soul. And so it's that's been a challenge. So you know, the mindset and the mental toughness, and you know the empathy and the sympathy and the support for those guys and what they've gone through. This has been a this has been a really challenging year.
Hey, t Rock. So you leave Buffalo the other night in the midst of a snowstorm, unbelievable conditions. So if you take the San Francisco forty nine ers that leave that airport with some question marks behind them, if you made this may be a hypothetical. If you take your injury report and you put all you make all those guys healthy on the active roster, is this a guaranteed Super Bowl contender? But because you don't have them on the roster, it's kind of some question marks going forward.
Oh, I don't think there's any question.
I mean, when you look at this roster, if the roster as a whole coming into the season with CMC healthy and without that you know that Achilles thing that he was dealing with. I you know, I don't think there's any question. I think they I think you just keep humming. Now again, it's hard as hell to win games. But what McCaffrey did for this offense, and yes he was the Rushie champion last year, but he was such a just a security blanket that wasn't just a dump off for brock Purty.
You knew if they.
Want to, if they want to play Man, McCaffrey's going to be open, period. And that's what a lot of teams started doing to the forty nine ers is you know, a couple of years ago, I remember that vividly the NFC Championship down in Los Angeles when the Rams went and won the Super Bowl.
At the end of the game, we had a lead.
Kross guitar dropped at interception and then they just started hitting us with different stuff. They were able to move the ball, but we could not finish because we couldn't. Forty nine ers really couldn't beat man coverage. McCaffrey got here. He unlocked the passing game click click, passing game unlocked. Because now you want to play Man. You know, you got to match up. You can go to every time if you have to. So not having him certainly was
hard losing a hard grave. You know, all those guys that are those are the guys you count on the studs, the stars. And then once BA went down, I mean it's been there's no question for every guy. Another question mark popped up, and that's that's where they're sitting. That's where they're sitting right now. By the way, Buffalo is the twilight zone. Man, what the hell's going on there? We're up in Buffalo, Tommy, we're ten miles you know
where the downtown the Orchard Park. I'm watching the weather for We're there for a day and a half. I'm going, where the hell's the snow. There's not a flake. There's not a snowflake in downtown Buffalo. We drive ten miles, there's three feet. I'm like, this place is whack.
We're there earlier this year.
That's why I liked that. They're you know, no dome on the new new facility either. They're gonna take advantage to that weather. You know that gives you, that gives you competitive advantage.
Right, Yeah, we'll put some heating coils under the new field of its field turf because that thing was that thing was like concrete and really and obviously the snow was a challenge with the footing and several inches of snow. But I think McCaffery heard his knee when he came down on that concrete on his right knee on the play that he almost busted right up the gut.
I think that's where the.
The I think I'm not talk to anybody, but I think that's where the injury happened. And he thought he could go another play and then and then just went down. But definitely is a tough place to play. I remember jumping in. The fans will remember this. I jumped off sides there in ninety one and Tommy will remember to
it was Jeff. It was ten ten, and there's a minute and this is when Jim Kelly and Buffalo they were going right, So it's ten ten, there's like a minute to go, maybe a little more before half or both.
I think both of us run defeated it. Maybe in week five.
I think both these were four to zero, and Kelly would call the offense from that little k gun from the line of scrimmats, and I'm like, I'm looking for every advantage. I'm not the fastest guy out there, right so I'm going I got my ear to the to the huddle, his little k gun, and I swear to god, I heard him say Monday and Monday in my mind met on one and so he calls it and I jumped. But back in the day, you had time to get back.
It wasn't just activate right. The offensive line just couldn't stand up and stick as they had to actually snap the ball. So I pulled back. I think clearly my helmet was still in the neutral zone. They snapped the ball, Kelly rips it, Mark Carrier picks it, takes it in the end zone for a pick six, nullified offsides.
Tim Ryan, Chicago Bears.
I'm like, and the it so first down Buffalo, and were backed up first down Buffalo. Three plays later, maybe Andre Reid deep post touchdown, seventeen to ten and a half. We get on the plane to go home thirty five to ten route and I got home and made the mistake, got my white Bronco and turned on six p't eighty and I'm like, everybody wanted me cut Tim Ryan lost this game. Get rid of this guy. They said he was a young Steve McMichael. He's not even closed.
It was bad.
But so yeah, that memory definitely popped out at high Mark Stadium the other day.
Well, it amazes me for both of you guys, because I've heard Tommy mentioned it all the time he gave up a sack or something. He thought, Oh my god, I'm gonna give up seventeen sixteen sacks this season.
Against Sam Clancy in Cleveland.
These these moments, they occupy space in your brain and you have it's such a vivid failure.
Right, It lingers for your whole life. Oh my god, you.
Never stop feeling it, Jeff. It's not just a memory in the memory bank. It transcends from toes to your top of your head.
Let me ask you this, and then Tommy, you know, time for another one here. By the way, it tastes like Miller time celebrate responsibly Miller Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Ninety six calories and three point two cars per twelve ounces the art of finishing, And no matter if you have a veteran team a young team, is it something you have to relearn every year as a unit as
a team. Excuse me to finish schemes because obviously that is what haunted what that's what's haunted the Bears so far here this year and to a certain extent a year ago as well.
What is the what is the key to unlocking that?
From your opinion, I don't know if there is a key to unlocking it. And the key would be you got the key in the door, you got to turn it and go in and finish, make the play. I mean, there's been a lot of opportunities. You guys know, you've been doing this for a long time. It's four or five plays a game. Either you make them or you don't. And you know, most of the time the great teams, Pat Mahomes usually going to make the play's he's a star,
and so again it comes down to the players. So the opportunities have been there, you know, for this team, it's been it's been strange because special teams had major challenges early in the in the year, certainly in the three games. I mean there was a point in the season you go back to the Super Bowl and the special team gaff and the Super Bowl, it was like eight of ten games there was a major special team
gaff in a big moment of the game. For a variety of reasons, and to me, special teams a big play in special teams is such a momentum getter like it. I mean, it's a huge play when it's a big play in special teams and it can flip the momentum and a heartbeat and momentum is crazy in this league. You guys know how important it is. It's hard to create it, and then when you lose it, it's hard to get it back, and you need a big play
to kind of swing the momentum. And you know, for one reason or the other, the forty nine ers just have not played complimentary football when when they have the momentum and then when they lose it. And a lot of those were special teams early in the year were unable to get it back and unable to get the go make a play, a big play when you needed to. I mean, I think about the Rams game early. It's real simple. Brock makes you know. Brock's going everywhere. He
sees Ronnie Bell getting down the scene. He just rips an absolute rope to him, and Ronnie looked like he was playing defensive back. He tried to catch it, but appeared he just batted it down. He just dropped the ball. He didn't he didn't make the play. So I think at the end of the day, the more you know the the more playmakers you have that make those kind of plays and are used to making those kind of
plays help you finish. And we certainly forty nine ers still have a lot of them, but for one reason or the other, it's you know, have not have not made those plays at key times. And I know your guy situation was a little different what happened the other game. The other I mean, I'm pulling, like I'm you guys know, I pulled for the Bears to win when when they're not playing the forty nine ers, and you know, coming off that that Green Bay game, and then of course
I want to see Detroit lose. I'm not a huge Lions fan, got a lot of respect for them and how they play the game, no question about it. But the debacle at the end of that game, I'm like, oh my god. I mean I was late going out to practice. I just had to sit and watch that. I couldn't believe it.
Is brock Perty still playing for a new contract?
Well yeah, because he doesn't have one. I don't know if you know this, He's got a deal next year. They're they're all playing for new contracts. Tommy, I don't know what's going to happen contractually with him. It's been hard for him with all the moving parts, you know, with the with the way the weapons have gone this year, with the injuries, and it's been a challenge not having McCaffery out there, and he has still played good football.
It's hard to evaluate off.
That snow game in Buffalo, I mean in terms of throwing throwing the football, and then he missed the week before with with the shoulder injury. The question is probably at this point, is he, you know, the sixty million dollar man, and I don't know how they're gonna how they're going to handle that. So, yes, he's playing for
a contract. Yes, eventually he'll get a contract, but I don't think it's certainly not like as if this team right now was, you know, sitting at ten and two and and things were looking great with with all the weapons and the health of the football team, then I would say, and Brock was playing with those same players the way he's been playing the last season and a half, I'd say it's probably a lock. I don't know what the situation is now, but I know they love him.
And I know he loves it here and there's still a lot of I think to me, still a lot of football to go before before they reached that point in their decision.
Tom, certainly I was going to kick out of talking to t Rock. Tim Ryan right to go down memory, and he and I outstand much like yourself, football lifers who are great analysts. They know the game extremely well, well spoken, and always get a charge out of it. Listening to him, he gets very fired like you. He gets very fired up on his calls.
You know.
It's kind of something I was interested to see how the love of the team is transferred because Tim is a Chicago Bear, drafted Chicago Bear, he came in and joined the locker room kind of seamlessly, and then getting out of it and going with the San Francisco forty nine ers. You know, for me, I've been a Bear my whole life. I grew up a Bears fan, and I've never been, you know, had the love for another
team like I do the Bears. And it would just be weird when now he's broadcasting a game against the Chicago Bears for a team that he didn't play for, but a team that he works for. So I find that there's really a fine line there. But Tim's a pro, He's one of the best of the best, and I'm like you, I enjoy talking to him every time.
And an interesting matchup on Sunday. Because this is a forty nine er twon. I just looked at this too, the NFC West, Tim does not have one team in it that has a five hundred or better record within the within the NFC, they are all two games under five hundred at least in the NFC, Yet they're all battling for that division.
Now.
The forty nine ers have really been washed out by injuries that the talent is not the same. It's definitely not the same. The defense has undergone some changes just on free agency alone. Then you add injuries into it, and of course the prime positions of Ayuk and McCaffrey, two guys at last year, you know, tore it up. This year, they'll in their season with ninety combined touches.
That's it, did you? Yeah, Well, they started the season some awkwardness with the contract negotiations they were going through, trying to figure out what's going to happen with brock Purty in the long run, and then you have Acajeffrey injury that he has to go to another contrary to go and try to get it all figured out. Some of the injuries don't surprise me for that team because I've been suspicious to some of their guys like Bosa McCaffrey anyway, So I'm not sitting here totally.
Please.
It's just unfortunate. And when you look at four and eight against five and seven, the teams are really comparable in every other way you want to look at this matchup. But for the Bears team that is not won on the road.
They did win in a neutral site game in London, obviously, but they're owing five the forty nine ers three and three at home with a well thought of head coach and Kyle Shanahan. One thing you know with him, the defense is gonna play tough and hard and take the ball away and they're going to run the football somehow, some way. So they're not only down McCaffrey, they're down Jordan Mason. He goes on IR that came after our
podcast on Monday. So they're talking about a rookie, Isaac Garronado, former Wisconsin, former Louisville running back, big run this season for a touchdown super fast, and they're bringing guys up off the practice squad. So but Shanahan always gets you to run. He runs the football.
You know, I think the NFL right now, this era of team is fortunate to have a practice squad because the Bears bring guys up from the practice squad. Every team in the NFL brings up guys from the practice squad. But they're very fortunate to have guys at position positions like that that have been inside the building and they know the offense, they know the terminology, they know the play.
So it's not like it's gonna be a seamless transition to a practice squad player from a guy that you paid a tremendous amount of money to be one of the main stays on this football team. But the guys are ready in every one of these practice squad guys that get an opportunity to play in the regular season, they should be having sleepless nights right now with excitement
and anticipation. So you're it's kind of interesting because you know, we don't know what to expect from the broadcast booth and I will see it come Sunday.
And they just added is he Abanaconda from the New York Jets, another guy that had sowed some promise as a young player. Uh and uh Patrick Taylor former Green Bay Packers. So same same family of offenses coming coming to town to take on the Bears on Sunday in uh In, Why don't I keep I keep wanting to say San Francisco, but Santa Clara.
Good new Chicago.
United Airlines is getting brand new planes with all the bells and whistles, like Bluetooth connectivity screens at every seat and room for everyone's roller bag. United proud to fly the Chicago Bears and you too. All right, let's hit the podium this week. Thomas Brown with the head coaching title right now. A couple of things that he kept saying in this news conference, and he said more than once. Here is the violent nature by which he wants this
team to play. And I don't want perfection, I don't need perfection, but I need excellence.
I'm glad you brought that up, because perfection in football is in pops. He said, if he wanted a nitpick, he could look at every single play and make a correction. And that's the same for every single football team. Since the beginning of this sport, and I'm glad that Thomas Brown didn't stand up there and say a bunch of unrealistic things that led to false belief. I enjoy everything he said since the first moment I got to hear him after the elevation to offensive coordinator, and I enjoyed
him just as much as a head coach. And I think the first time that he stands in front of the entire team and delivers that message, I do think it'll filter through the minds of the defensive players and understand what their obligation and commitment is to this football team. And he understands that his obligation and the commitment to this football team is to make this offense the best possible offense that they can be.
Interesting enough, though, he's also asked about you know, how does this change Caleb's development? And you know, now that he's looking over the whole thing, I'm not the sole person charge of Caleb's development. There's Caleb, and there's other coaches and teammates and growing together. So that's another strong statement by Thomas Brown.
Right.
You know what I like about Thomas Brown, Jeff, is this is not something that he's given the questions beforehand to be prepared for, and you can hear the voices of the members of the press fighting for that next question. And so to me, you know, I may be over thinking it, but again, I love his delivery of what he says. I like the fact that he weighed in at two twenty five and now he's what two o eight or two three two o three, and the way
just kind of slips away. And so he can think out of this this box of football exclusive and he can he can have the analogies of life along with football, and I do think that's an important way to go about football business. And I'm glad I had to hear it, and I'm super excited for him.
He made us laugh, but he said he's not an entertainer. He's not here to entertain. He's to engage.
And we talked about that in the podcast Monday.
And he does a great job of that. All right, So now let's flip it over to Caleb Williams, because Brown is asked for something that is simple in a statement, but not necessarily so simple is and this happened when he became offensive coordinator. Blind trust, have blind trust in him because they didn't know each other very well, they
didn't speak to each other very much. Wasn't part of the chain of command in that regard even though he was passing game coordinator and understanding that, you know, Caleb knows other people in the building better, but just have that blind trust and I got you. How significant is that statement of I got you, because that's what he's saying, Caleb, just trust me.
I got you.
First of all, if I could go into depth about the Caleb presser was I was not excited about it, but that one question, specifically, it was one of the most honest answers I've ever heard of a subject that sensitive because Caleb didn't just come out and say, you know, a cliche answer about it. He understood that there's building blocks and he had to get through a level of this trust that I think at this point in his this season, he has all the trusts in the world
and Thomas Brown. He trusts his coaching, he trusts his suggestions, he knows the confidence that he's going onto the field with and he has to me. I think he's has this development of respect for what Thomas Brown is doing for the football player. Caleb Williams as much as he is the person what didn't excite you. I didn't like all the questions about the soap opera of what's been going on the last couple days. That's not Caleb to answer.
That's answers of either guys that have been through those types the experiences before, guys that have been around the NFL a little more. And I think it's excuse me. I think it's a waste of time for Caleb not to be talking about the San Francisco forty nine ers, and I think it's unfair to him. So I'm glad that that press conference of the week is over with because now everything from free practice to first snap of the game, it's all about the forty nine ers.
Here's something I really thought showed the confidence level of by which he carries himself in this building. On the Daily brought up the fact that they played hard, tough, close finishes with the three division opponents. Okay, and the quote our record doesn't say how we fight, and that is a significant delineation. This is not a team that crawled into a hole and didn't play for anybody. They played for each other and they continue to do so and I expect them to in the final five games,
no matter who's running the show. And I just think that's the type of people that are in that locker room. That's just my opinion. But I like that he said that the leader and the CEO of the football team at that podium right then and there said what he needed to say.
The dude's never disappointed me one sentence that's ever come out of his mouth since the beginning of time. And I love listening to Caleb. He's authentic, he's real. He thinks about his answers. If they ask him a question that he needs a little time, he'll repeat the question so he has time for that to resonate in his mind before he answers. And like I said, he doesn't say anything in cliches. He says things in well thought
out sentences. And so as much as I like Thomas Brown from everything that we've heard from him out of the podium, I like that as much from Caleb. Since he's been at the podium, we have a lot more experience with Caleb sitting standing up there. But now Thomas Brown is an incredibly meaningful position for the Bears organization. What Caleb is as well Bears fan.
Steinhoffel's a proud partner of the Chicago Bears. This Bear season, Steinhoffels partnering with Special Spaces Illinois, creating dream bedrooms for children battling cancer. For every false start caused by the Bears defense during a home game, Steinoffls donates one thousand dollars to Special Spaces Illinois shop in store and online at Steinhoffels dot com. All right, let's talk about this matchup with the forty nine ers. What are your expectations
on what we'll see from from San Francisco. With Brock Purdy shaking off that shoulder injury, his numbers are down.
He turns the ball over, they have some problems.
If he doesn't turn over the ball, they usually are pretty successful offensively.
But you know, having Brock Party in the lineup, I still think you're going to see a fast twitch misdirection offense. You're going to try to get the Bears defensive players a step or two off balance in the wrong position, are moving in the wrong direction, and that's when you take advantage of it with some of the weapons they have, you know, the and the other receivers in the backfield.
Because we almost have to address the positions by positions other than Kittle because we don't know who's going to be there. But I don't think the offense maneuverism will change at all. So I do think it's about Eric Washington and the Bears defense understand what the down and distance is, understanding where they are in the field, understanding the different formations they're seeing, and then commit to what
your job has been asked for in the huddle. If they don't try to over and outthink themselves, I think the Bears defense could play a really good game against San Francisco, and I do think that they could get into the space of Rock Party and maybe block some passes or get a pick or two.
Juwan Jennings the new top dog in terms of receiving. He's got career highs right now, been a big part of Rock Party in the passing game. Deebo Samuel also not getting the ball as much as a and back over the last three weeks. We'll see if that changes
with their running back issues going on. Defensively, another player goes on injury reserve upfront, so that that front very different from the team that took the field last year in the Super Bowl Tommy, but still the ever present danger of a Fred Warner and Leonard Floyd.
Leonard Like, I'm happy for Leonard Floyd, I really am.
He's had a heck of a career. He really has. He's had a heck of a career. He continues to sack the quarterback he has.
You know, there's about five or six guys in the last four or five weeks that we look back and go, Wow, these guys have had a career even though they started with the Bears. I'm not gonna pull for Leonard Floyd come Sunday, right, I'm gonna pull for the offensive tackles and the tight ends to block him like they've never blocked him before. But I do think that there are question marks in the front of the San Francisco defense.
But I think Fred Warner, as you mentioned, he can make up for some of those misalignment making sure everybody is the position they're supposed to be before the snap of the ball. He's going to be a quick read to breaking down what this offense is gonna challenge him with.
But now it's about the center and the guards and the running backs and anybody who has a blocking assignment to Fred Warner to make sure you get to him quickly, sustain the block, and try to keep him off the path of whomever the ball carrier is running back to receiver all right.
Time for our Geico gives you more football stat of the day in our podcast number one seventeen. The San Francisco forty nine ers six and a half sacks for Floyd. I don't know if Nick Bosa is gonna play or not. He's got seven sacks and he's the biggest threat, obviously third in their all time sack list. I know you haven't loved him as a player, or was that Joey which one?
Injury wise? You know Nick Bosa. It's Nick Bosa more because I don't want to allow him to do what he wants to do, and that's runoff field and rush the passer. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to run the ball at him as many times as I can. Point of attack, you know that play that you love, that twenty eight and forty nine crack whatever they call it, and come in with suspect yeah, the toss crack and have an unsuspected blocker hit him
from the blind side. So I am never going to allow a player that does something great allow him to do that to me repeatedly, and whether it's from my era at Lawrence Taylor to this era of Nick Bosa, I just don't want to give him the freedom to rush the passer with the assistance of crowd noise.
Jeff more in that Geico stat because you've been asking for it so much. And I did interview him for our TV show, Bear's Game Day Life coming up not this week but next week. So Keenan Allen double the targets the last three weeks, double the production. And I think he's in a really good place. So DJ's in a good place. He's getting his targets. Now, he's getting fed. Keenan's getting fed, Rama Doonday's getting fed, Cole's getting fed. Everybody's getting fed.
Right, you know, and there too is. Let me tell you, there's nothing like an afternoon game on the West Coast to make sure that you're awake and ready to roll, that the temperatures are really comfortable, it's a natural grass field, and there's a lot of elements pointed in your direction to make a favorable performance for the Bears. So if we can get the Bears defensive line in tune with Brock Purty and we can have Caleb Williams. You talked about the stats of such an impressive numbers into the
third and fourth quarter. If this Bears team could start a little bit faster in the first and second quarter, then it's going to change the way that Eric Washington is going to be able to call a more aggressive approach from the defense. So there's a lot of things that they have, you know, pointed in a positive direction for the Bears.
Have a newer gently used coat land around. We'll head to your local jewelasco until February tenth and donate one of your newer gently used coach to the thirty sixth annual Bears Coach Drive help keep you warm this winter. That's going to wrap us up for our podcast special. Thanks to our guest t Rock, Tim Ryan, San Francisco, forty nine ers analyst and former Chicago Bear defensive tackle, and for Tom there, I'm Jeff Jonahyah.
Thanks for listening and please.
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