Right, what justin middle of a field forty five fifteen bring Russ in front of them.
Leaving Lions in his way.
I am Jeff jonihacklitsus on donc Pour.
What was like playing for coache Gooddom.
I don't want to answer any questions like that. Sixty one yards?
What's Sunday stroll for? Justin Field? Ye Bears, et cetera.
With the voices of the Chicago Bears Jeff Joniac we're up to episode number thirty four. What a great number in Bear's history. Walter Peyton and the Peyton Center all in his honor. As we get you set for Bears Lions with Tom Thayer, I'm Jeff Joniak. We come to you each Tuesday and Thursday. We got the Lions on the schedule this week up at Ford Field. Can't wait
to bring that game to you and Tom. This would be the exact perfect game that Walter would have loved to play in the division raucus environment, on the road against a really good Detroit team right now, and in a game that could be very well won on the ground. Both teams are a very good run in the football. I mean it's gonna be a physical nasty game. He'd be delivering shots, he wouldn't be running out of bounds untouched.
Uh huh, it would be that kind of game. Are you feeling me?
Well, that's why you would need Walter Payton, because if there's not a guy that leads by example of physical style of play, you're going to have a really difficult time competing in this game.
And Walter Payton is the guy.
No one's too big, no one's too fast, no one's too tough. Walter Payton can show you examples of every single one of those things I just said, and he can be the leader in the clubhouse from beginning to end.
And Barry Sanders was that kind of cat too, man, that guy steel belted, tired legs, I mean, unbelievable, darting, quick suddenness that you think you had them but you didn't. Both in the Hall of Fame, both highly regarded, and it's and we're going to touch on his late part of his career anyway, documentary dropping soon on his decision why he left the game early. Lomas Brown, the former outstanding left tackle for the Detroit Lions and now in
the radio crew. Our good friend will join us as well. He's a great storyteller too.
Tommy love Lomas Brown. I loved him as a player. I love him as a guy within the division. I had tons of respect for He's a guy that was respected by the Chicago Bears when he played against him, played underneath some difficult circumstances for the Detroit Lions when they didn't have great crowd support and weren't a great team.
But he was still a Pro Bowl caliber player.
So I think that's why Lomuce brown And is still an endeared part of that organization.
For all your journeys ahead, go with a partner who's been on your team from the beginning, the one members and communities have trusted for over eighty five years, the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, always standing by you, with you, for you through it all. Let's get the status from Hollis and. The status is as we anticipated and probably expected, justin fields trending towards getting the start against the Lions in Week eleven after a four and
a half game absence. He was at the podium today. We'll hear from some of that in a moment, but overall, tom the thumb is ready to go. What are the challenges he faces with that recovery. He can grip the football and throw it. And what did you take away from his conference with the media today.
He doesn't have any challenges. He's not going to think about the thumb. It's not going to play and role of anything that Luke Getsy wants him to do. He's going to go out there and he's going to play
a Justin Fields brand of football. And I think that the experience that he went through on the sidelines of watching Tyson Bagent use the offense the way Luke Getsy got the team ready, listening to Luke Getsy coach on the sideline, and he says that he didn't interfere with Luke Getsy at all during the course of the game.
That he just sat back, paid attention.
To the game plan, and looked at as a student of the game. And I think that's probably some of the most beneficial parts of rehabilitation that you can go through.
And almost is the cliche with young quarterback to young players that may have had an injury and they get to watch and I always hear these questions, do you think you learned anything? It was it good for that player? It's only good if they take what they saw and apply it, though, And you know, and every quarterback and every player, regardless of position, does things a different way.
They handle things a different way. Do you think, though, in this particular instance, especially with timing of plays, release of the football, what you see sometimes is not what you get from a defense. Do you think those things could that gap be closed a little bit? Given how Beagent played the game?
Yeah, well, I think Justin made reference to the point saying, yeah, I watched the way Beige it used the information that he was fed, and how he looked at plays, and maybe some of the results of his reads, and the way he looked at the football out of his hands.
All those things can help you. It's the same thing, Jeff, if we are watching a team in preparation and we are playing against the defense, and maybe they had a Pro Bowl lineman on their football team, and you kind of watch some of their techniques and some of their fundamentals and the way they would go out and block whomever we are getting ready to play against, and you didn't necessarily try to emulate them. You tried to learn
from what you are seeing from them. And so I don't think there's a much difference in it, whether you're a quarterback or an offensive lineman or whatever position you play. And then they asked Justin about did you go back and study the games that you've already played.
And he said, no, I didn't.
I was looking forward and I was studying the next opponent.
I was taking notes.
I was giving Tyson any information that I thought that was beneficial.
To me that he could use.
So I liked Justin's approach moving forward through the injury, because there's nothing he can do about the past opponents.
You're not going to see again.
It's about going forward and watching the tape of the guys they're getting ready to play as if you were preparing to be the starting quarterback. And I think that's the role that Justin needed to be in the most.
Here's a chunk of the press conference with fields back of the podium with the media just as your.
Grip strinth doing right now on how you tinkered with glove tape.
Yeah it feels pretty good, you know. So I'm just getting back. Anything feels good to throw, arm feels fresh, but yeah, feel good, and you know, take it up today I practice, so we'll see how I was feeling on Sunday to whether I need tape or not. But I'll try to glove at first, just because you don't have to grip the ball as much, you know, without a glove or with the glove. So but I didn't really feel too comfortable with the glove on. So yeah, so you.
Want to play every game obviously, but now you're actually getting an opportunity to do so.
Just how excited are you about getting it back out there again?
Yeah, I mean, of course, I'm really excited.
You know.
I feel like the longer I was out, the more you know, I was I wanted to play. But I'm really excited to get back, you know, this week and get back on the field of the guys.
For sure. Playing against Carolina was there consideration.
Yeah, it was real consideration, but I wanted to play, but uh, you know, the head trainer said it was my best, you know, for the best for the future long term to just wait it out one more week, especially you know, coming out a short week and stuff like that, and you know, if it would have got hit or something like that, it probably would have postponed another two or three weeks.
So yeah, are you looking at these next seven games any differently for you even if thinking big picture of the evaluation of what the Bears are doing for you as a quarterback, or are you just kind of approaching them.
Okay, let's just try to win out these last games.
I mean, it just starts with Sunday and just taking the day by day. So yeah, I mean that's my focus right now, is just you know, focusing on Sunday, get prepared for that, you know, going out there, playing hard, playing to the best of my ability.
Justin in what ways are you going to have to make sure that whether you're in the pocket or running with the football, that it doesn't affect ball security.
I mean, I wouldn't be playing if it was going to affect that. So I don't see that see that as a problem. You know, comes Sunday.
So it's fair to say that this is the longest stretch within a season ever in your.
Football life that you haven't been able to play.
It might be close.
I'd say I missed about the same amount of time my senior high school. So yeah, pretty similar with those fingers, Yeah, with my index finger.
Yeah, what's just.
Been like kind of sitting impatiently, patiently whatever you want to call it for the last five weeks to try to figure out when the.
Opening was going to come in.
Yeah, I mean, of course, you know, when I was out, I was trying to you know, just you know, be the same leader I was when I was playing, you know, helping of course, helping Tyson out with you know, anything he asked for. I would write extra notes about scattering ports on bbs and safeties and linebacker and stuff and just send it to them.
But yeah, and you know.
Just being on the sidelines, I feel like you look at the game from a different perspective and you know, just kind of just seeing the game from a different view. So, you know, definitely learned a lot from you know, just being on the sideline and just just really just looking at the game from the sideline. Just body language, you know, just you know, different alignment cells and stuff like that.
So anything you need to be cognizant of if you get hit or sacked.
About protecting your hand.
Just protect the ball, that's number one. So my hand gets hurt in the process, it's sorry. The ball protected, you know, that's all that matters. But not really out there thinking about my hand. You know, if I was out there like it's like a mental block. There's no mental block with my thumb and you know, playing playing normal football.
So yeah, the.
Last time we talked to you, you said there was still a little bit of pain in your hand.
Is that all the way gone or is that something you have to play through?
Talking about last week.
When I first came back, Yeah, yeah, I mean it's not one hundred percent, but you know, feels feels good.
There's still a little bit of healing left, but it's stable.
Uh, you know, like I said, it's it's good.
There's huge implications for any player in their third season. What do you hope to prove individually during the final seven games of this regular season?
Just go out there and you know, win games. Not good to prove anything to anybody. I'm playing for my teammates, playing for the coaches, and you know, that's that's it, and everything else will take care of itself. So uh, you know, not necessarly trying to prove anything to anybody. Let's just go out there with my brothers and go out there and perform.
So, justin with regard to being an observer the last few weeks, was there anything you saw from Tyson pages that you can apply to your game.
Yeah, I mean I think really just looking at all quarterbacks, I feel like Tyson. Of course, Tyson quarterbacks run the league, quarterbacks in college, like, we all play the game differently, So you know, things that Tyson did well, you know, I'm definitely going to try to, you know, emulate that of course in my game. But you know, at the end of the day, we're different quarterbacks. We don't do
the same thing. So but of course there's bits and pieces that we do do differently that he did well on the field, and of course I'm going to try to, you know, add that to my game for sure.
Is there something in particular that really compliments the way you play?
Like you said, you are different quarterbacks, but sometimes that can emerge.
It too and it helps.
Is there anything he did he did he feel like can compliment your skills.
Yeah, a lot of stuff. For sure.
Most the experience I can kind of be on the sideline here coach gets call in those players, not in the moment where you got to kind of just go precurre to say that, to execute, actually be able to kind of evaluate why he's calling.
You have a different perspective or different experience here.
It that way.
I think the Sunday night game, I was trying to, you know, just play the game in my head. I think I got a call down from upstairs and saying that the camera kept showing me called the play calls, so I couldn't.
I had to stop doing that.
But yeah, I think, you know, just like you said, just seeing the game from a different perspective, and of course, you know, I don't want to mess with Luke too much during the game.
Of course he's locked in too, so.
Definitely just seeing what he's calling certain plays, and you know, there were a few times where you know, I wanted to ask him, you know, what were you thinking on display, like what was your mindset?
Like what was your goal?
And to call in his play, But like I said, I didn't want to mess with his mojo because he's he's locked in, you know, game that I think. I tried to talk to him one time, and I mean he just, you know, he's so locked in he didn't even hear me. But yeah, definitely, like I said earlier, just you know, seeing the game from a different perspective and kind of just a bigger picture of things.
When Tyson had some success, I think there were some people that wanted to create a quarterback controversy.
Did you hear any of that?
And then yeah, I mean, of course, But that's the world we live in nowadays. You know, everybody wants you know, everybody wants to cause a stir, cause media attention, boom boom boom, comments stories. So that's just you know, that's just what comes with it. But you know, I knew that was going to happen from the get go, So
it came to me as no surprise. But you know, like I said, I was coming in the building every day being the same guy was you know before I was hurt and you know, just trying to be the best leader I can be.
All right, So now he's got seven games knock on woods, stays healthy, to put some good things on tape and have people thinking that this is going to be something that we can expect consistently from Justin Fields.
Is this the most important part of his career?
It is, But it's not like he's just jumped out of an airplane and he pulled the ripcord on a parachute. It's more like you got to go out there and play football like you've been playing throughout your career. You have to understand the decisions you have to make according to the down and distance, run pass, RPO, play action pass, and Justin Fields has to continue on that trajectory of improvement that we all expect from him and I think
he expects from himself. Once you get back in the saddle again and you are the starting quarterback, you think of the those incremental times of practice between Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and the growth and development that you would like to show yourself each and every day. I think it's important that he has a solid performance this week in practice only because you're coming back from a thumb injury.
Team is healthy as it's been and it's going to be pretty much healthy all the way across the board. Still don't know about Tremaine Edmunds did not practice on Wednesday, but Nate Davis is back. He's going to get the start at right guard. That will move Tevin Jenkins to left guard, and unfortunately, as you indicated in Tuesday's podcast, this means Cody white Hair is not in that starting lineup. He's got to stay ready, of course, and he can
play all those different positions. That's something that you anticipated it does give the Bears that comfort that Nate Davis comfort. He's played that right side his entire career, so that's where he goes, and we certainly have seen the left guard spot handled by Tevin Jenkins.
How do you feel about this?
Well, you know, the most shocking thing that when I heard Matt Eberflus make the announcement that Nate is not going to be on a snap count. And when you are recovering from what they said was a high ankle sprain or an ankle sprayin, you.
Know how much conditioning were you able to do?
And so Nate has to go out on the field once he gets out there for the first play and play equally as energy g filled on the last play. And so that's something that I'll be paying attention to all game. Is do I think conditioning is affecting Nate's game at all? And if it's not, I think he and Tevin at the combination of offensive guards can really help this offensive line.
Listen, it doesn't take.
Away from my admiration for Cody Whitehair and what he's done throughout his career, and I got to imagine he'll be as ready as any player on that team to go in and play wherever they need him the most at a moment's notice. However, that's the challenges you go through as a football player throughout the course and time of a lengthy career.
Tay Foreman limited with an ankle, Sandborn limited with an ankle klip, Herbert limited with his return from an ankle injury is twenty one one day window coming off ir is still open. There's an anticipation that he could be back for this game. There would have to be a corresponding roster move, Cary blasting game expected back Terrell Smith back in the secondary of the young rookie who has
put on some good tape. So that's the story from Hallis Haws to get ready for a Lions team Tom that is on a six game NFC North winning streak for the first time since nineteen ninety five, a win for them, and that's seventh straight for the first time in division play since nineteen seventy. Things are turning in a right direction for the Detroit Lions. Let's pick it up with our friend Lolmas Brown, the former Lion left tackle and one of their radio analysts for the Detroit Lions Radio network.
Our good palace back. We missed him since last year.
Lomas Brown one of the analysts on the Detroit Lions radio network and does a lot of great stuff there in the Detroit area with Tommy and I here on the Bears, Etc.
Podcast.
So I don't know about you, but we we have now trickled into the podcast universe this year and Tom is actually having fun.
Lomas, he's having fun.
Well, I'm glad to hear Tom is having fun. Man. That's the old offensive lineman.
Man. We need to have fun in our ages right now. So I'm glad to see he's having fun.
They need to hear more of us offensive lineman.
That's right, that's where the wisdom come from.
You know, A long time ago, I was an intern. I was covering Brown's training camp you speak of this, and I did a feature you remember you guys all both Tom and I.
Had many a meeting with him.
But Doug Deacon, the former offensive lineman and former Browns analyst, and it was Bob Golick And I was a young kid intern and I was doing a story on the difference between offensive and defensive linemen, and these two got into a comedy act.
It was absolutely hilarious.
I hope to find the tape one day because you know, that kind of is the thought offensive lineman. You know, they're very cerebral. They have to understand a complicated playbook and defensive line just go get the quarterback. We both know it's not that simple on either side. But you have to be smart to play offensive line, smart football wise.
Oh yeah, absolutely, and Tom knows that. I mean, there's so many things that happens that goes on on the offensive line, even after the player is called. So you know's just so many integral parts of playing offensive line. And the thing about like you mentioned with the offensive line, always like to say, it's like a hand and a glove.
Everything has the work right for that play to go right.
Defensive linemen they could cover from for each other if they don't do the right thing.
So things happen a lot differently.
You can have a guy shift from a five technique all the way inside on you.
There's just so many different things that can happen that the offensive line, like.
You say, have to be rebuild and they have to be able to think things out and you have to be able to do it just like that.
So Lomos, I'm gonna ask you a question about it.
I guess we have to include a tight end position as part of the offensive line because I want to ask you a question about Dan Campbell. When you think about the way analytics has infiltrated its way into football, everything from the amount of time guys practice, how fast they run, and decisions you make. Dan Campbell goes completely against the norm last week and on fourth down he throws the ball.
That's a great question because you know again in the course of the game, and I know Dan has the trust of his team, and I'll say this, he's not like how he used to be. Someone asked me what's the biggest difference between him this.
Year and last year? And I would say he thinks things out.
The game has slowed down from him from a coaching standpoint.
So the directly answer.
Your question, no ether want us to go for it, and especially throwing for it. You know, I thought it was risky, but you know again and Dan, we trust and I was happy how things worked out. And I think what it does is it sends a message to not only you know, Tom, not only to the guys in that locker room, but to the rest of the teams around this league that you know that we're a team that's gonna go for things. We're a team that's going to play you hard, and you kind of, like
you say, kind of almost like a wild card. You really don't know what to expect out of a Detroit Lion team. And I'll say that on both all three sides of the ball, offense, defense, and special teams, because we do some things on special teams too.
So yeah, I'm glad.
It worked out, though. It always make things better, you know when it works out.
You know, Lomas, you had a chance to play against the eighty five Bears. Yeah, And a lot of the conversation about the eighty five Bears always started with the defense. When you talk about this version of the Detroit Lions, if we're going to have a conversation, are we going to talk about offense first or defense?
No, I think with this version that's a Oh, that's what's a good.
Question, that really is I think, Wow, I'm gonna say, you're gonna talk about the offense because of the consistency of the offense, how it's been consistent, and that's what we've been talking about pretty much for the last you know, leading into this year, coming out of last year and talking about this year, just how consistent the offense has been, the offensive line, the performance that Jamiir Gibbs and that David Montgomery is putting on the record, sending things that Ama Ross Saint.
Brown is doing, actually the.
Records, sending things that Sam Laporta, the rookie tight end is doing.
It's just a lot of things.
Great that's going on on the offensive side of the ball. To they sewell, not giving up any sacks of pressure, Taylor Decker going up against me, going up against some of the better pass rushers if you think about the Bolster and Khalil Mack and they held both of those guys and no sacks, no pressures, just they were quiet. So we I think that's going to get the head
lines because we've been talking about that much. But I tell you what, the defense, they're trying to make a little noise over there on the defensive side of the ball too.
Almas Brown, our guest, Aaron Bears, etc. Take a chance download the Bent Rivers app.
Today.
You mentioned the offense, and I got to talk more in detail about Jared Goff because you know, when he was at the Rams and was dealt. Everybody, I think assumed he was going to be a bridge quarterback to some draft pick in the future. I know the three of us talked about that. And look what he's done. He has protected the football. He is engineering offense that is top five or six in almost every major offensive category. He's got weapons, he's stretching the field, he's extending it
horizontally and vertically. They got a running game. And it's just how impressive has he been? And he's only twenty nine yet. So is he there to stay?
I mean, he should be.
I mean, if I'm the Lions, I'm trying to tie him up right now if I can. You know, I don't understand what else he would have to do. I mean, of course, and I take that back. Of course, we want to win, and we halfway through the season, so I know it's a lot of things left to do. But oh my goodness, like you said, from where he came from to where he is now, he's an extension of Ben Johnson out there.
On that field because he knows that playbook completely. It was a great.
Play, as you know, on that seventy five yard run from David Montgomery. He all the boot he checked out of what they were going to have, and check it too that run because he's seeing the three down line was just three down linemen and that defensive scheme that they had out there.
And of course, man, with our guys up front and with David, you're gonna take that all day long.
Tom knows it's already gaps there for you, so you gonna take that. And that's what Jared Golf did and it ended up being a.
Seventy five yard touchdown run.
So he knows the offense in and now he could get us in and out of a good, good place.
He knows just where the guys are gonna be at.
He knows, like you say, how to orchestrate these guys and put them in the right POSI.
You know, all the different motions and formations that we go in. It's a lot of movement up.
Front when you face a Detroit Lion offense, a lot of movement that Ben Johnson has.
So Jared has done a wonderful job.
And like I say, I don't know why, you know, maybe they start talking to him his agent behind the doors, but I think he's done what he needed to do.
To say, hey, I'm the quarterback of the Detroit Lions.
Well, miss Justin Fields expected a return for this game after a four week absence, really four and a half games since his thumb injury. What is he going to be looking at defensively from the Detroit Lions? And do you feel if there's anything that concerns fans about, you know, maybe going all the way and being the super Bowl representative in the NFC? Is that side of the ball the question mark?
Yeah, I think it is. And you know, we expect Justin Fields.
To come in and I really think we're going to get the best version of him. I think that sometime when the player is able to sit back and just watch, just sit back and observe and see things differently, see it from a different view, you know, just you know, see practice from a different view, hear things from a different view.
It can help a player, it really can.
And I think with Justin I just think this is something that I think coming back off his injury, watching the way that Tyson Badget play and I'm sorry some of the success that he had, I think Justin's gonna come back and show us the best version of this of himself.
So I'm a little nervous, you know, going into this game, because I really don't know what they expect. I mean, he's heard us in the past, and you know.
We hadn't been real, real good with quarterbacks that can buy time and help their off the line out.
With their legs. So you know, it'd be interesting to see.
The approach that Aaron Glenn takes to him and how if we're gonna finally be able to get that guys down on the ground because we get pressures on the quarterback, it's just that we haven't been able to get them down on the ground.
Well, Lomas, I'm a little bit nervous as well, and I'll tell you why.
I've been to every Chicago Bear Detroit Lion game in Detroit since nineteen eighty five, and I think last year it started to build an atmosphere that your indoor stadium could be a true weapon on behalf of the Detroit Lions.
So can you give us a description of what the.
Bear fans that are listening on the radio should expect inside that building Sunday?
Yeah, it is. It has turned into a home field of vantage and.
Really Tom even on the road, Oh my goodness, we take over stadiums now.
It's just been unbelievable.
Every stadium we've been in, we pretty much have taken it over, other than Baltimore. But I'll say this, there was still a lot of Lion fans in Baltimore.
They just really didn't have any reason to cheer. But it's been that way and it's definitely a home field of vantage twelfth man type of advantage here in.
Detroit. Now.
Dan Campbell, he has the pulse of this community, of this state, and everybody's balled in right now.
So you gonna see.
The best version of our fans as far as you know, bringing the noise. So yeah, I expect you guys come here and use the silent cap come here, and I know I'm quite sure. Uh Coach Eba Flues and that staff they practiced that all week long. But it's gonna be unbelievable. The fans are gonna be ready. Man. We're riding a winning streak after beating going out to LA and beating the Chargers.
Uh so the fans are rubbed up.
And as you know, we got this to be We got another game coming up on Thursday, Thanksgiving, so we had like three games and will be three.
Games in eleven days.
So hopefully, you know, they won't be too much on these guys body, and like I said, they could come out and give their best version of themselves on Sunday.
Oh so you played offensive tackle your whole career and you think of a couple of the defensive ends in this game. Montest Sweat is newly aboard with the Bears, and Hutchinson from the Detroit Lions. So hutch won't be able to hear the snapcount because the crowd's going to be so loud. Montest Sweat is going to be able to hear the snap count each and every play because the crowd will be silent.
For you, guys, as an offensive.
Tackle, who do you think has the biggest advantage the end that cannot hear the snap count or the end that can hear the snap count?
Oh? Wow, man, you've been coming? What man? What have you been doing? Man?
I mean you just bring in the a game with that said mentality. Wow, that's another great question right there. Wow. You know I would say wow, I would say probably the end that can't because you still don't know even if you hear it, they still don't know what it's on you see what I'm saying. Even if you and you can hear the cave, you still don't know what the snap count is on. So I would thank the guy that, uh that doesn't have it. I just think it would be right. Yeah, wait, am I saying that?
Right? I agree?
Okay, all right, I saw that mixing myself up a little bit.
Okay, I'm saying.
He gave you.
He gave you a little voodoo magic there, Tommy, he's trying to trick you up.
No, it's also you know, he knows the he knows the crowd support at home.
He's got a better understanding that that.
And then when Montes Sweat is newly aboard kind of thinking about the plate called in the huddle, the down and distance specifically, and playing against the Lions as a member of the Bears for the first time, you know, do you fall into that pattern of listening to the snap count or are you disciplined enough like Hutch at home where he knows he's not going to hear the snap count.
Yeah, tom think about this. You just got me thinking about something. Think about this now, you know they can't if you jump. You know what I'm saying, it's they're approach. They're in the neutral zone. So remember how back in our day, guys could twitch at you, you know what I'm saying in loud stadiums when you couldn't hear. Back in our day, guys could twitch at you and if you move, the pilody was on you. Now, these guys,
like I said, they really can't twitch. But I'm saying if they ended that neutral zone now then it's pretty much going against them if you move or jump out the way. So it's just how times have changed. And that's that's something else too. You know that should work in the advantage of Aiden hutcheson with you guys tackles not being able to hear.
So it's just amazing.
How times have changed from when we played to some of the things they get away with.
Wow, it'll be a great match up Aiden hud you sent and primarily of of the right tackle the Bears. Darnell right, the rookie who's done a nice job so far, would be a good match. All right, we'll let you go on this.
I know.
In addition to just the fact the Lions are winning, they're winning two years in a row of winning and trying to get to the playoffs with a really good balanced team. The other big story is Barry Sanders documentary that's coming out, So yeah, maybe you got a sneak peek a ready. I don't know, but that's your good friend. And is that a lot of anticipation to find out what the real story is behind his departure earlier than we all wished.
Yeah, I'm definitely curious about what he's going to say because you know, by us being teammates, you hear things, you.
Know things about him and everything.
So I want to see if it matches up to what I know the reason why Barry left, you know, left the game.
And you know, the one thing that I did knowing that, you know, my last year was ninety five with the Lions, and his.
Last year, of course was ninety nine with the Lion The one thing that I did know once he stepped the way, you know, he was gone. He wasn't coming back, because that's just how Barry was.
You know, he was a man of his word. He was the guy that was gonna stick to what he said.
And once he said he was done, I knew he was done because you know, it was all kinds of speculations that he was gonna come back, they were gonna trade them the Miami just all these other things. But I knew that just from knowing the type of person he was, because it's the same guy his rookie year. I tell people this all the time. He had a chance to win the Russian title. He only needed nine yards to win the Russian title.
We had a whole quarter to go.
Christian mccoyer from the Kansas City Chiefs, they were done, so we had just found out entering the fourth quarter. Berry only needed nine yards to win that and it was a two hundred and fifty thousand dollars bonus for him being the Russian chap. He refused to go back in the game, just we begged him. He would not go back in that game. So just what I'm saying, money accolates, things like that never motivated him. So, like I said, I knew once he left the game. You know,
everybody said Walter Payton's ruker. I knew they had nothing to do with it. I don't think they had a thing to do with it. So that was just Barry.
Well, that's a great story to wrap us up. We can't wait to see you on Sunday. Make sure you make sure you drop by, or we'll drop by and say thank you so much. Lomas Brown, I guess here on Bears.
Et cetera.
All right, how about that story on Barry Sanders as a rookie? Had you ever heard that story?
Now, I've never heard it, but I've always been kind of confused and interested in Barry Sanders in a couple of ways.
Is he quiet or is he an introvert? Is he super satisfied with his you.
Know what he was able to accomplish throughout his football career where he didn't need special accolades to be to convince himself that he had credible achievement. He's in the Hall of Fame. He's an incredible person, I understand. So it's great here in a story like that from Lomas, an actual teammate of his, one of his supporting offensive linemen, and for years after the fact, to have a little bit of that insight for.
US Bears fans. You can be there for live NFL Action all season long. Is the official ticket marketplace for the Bears and the NFL Ticketmaster as a wie selection of tickets available for every game. Find tickets today at ticketmaster dot com, Slash Bears, you won't find a ticket in Detroit this week.
I'm thinking I don't think so either.
And Jeff, when we are sitting there last year, up in that seven stories above the field, and I was listening to the crowd, I knew times were at changing And never in the history of my career there did I hear at Detroit Stadium as loud as it was last year. And I expect this year to be even louder.
And I think when Dan Campbell took the job at Detroit, even though they suffered through a difficult season his first year, he knew if he could get the building on his side, that it was going to be in every opponent weapon anybody who came into that building, it was going to be difficult for them to walk out, you know, walk out of there not feeling the effects of that crowd. So congratulations to them. But if the Bears are going to take control of that crowd, they're going to have
to have a super effective running game. They're going to have to play as physical and determined on defense as Detroit will, and then they're going to have to come out and they're going to have to shock the world.
Can't.
You can't give many extra possessions either. Can't do it this game. The protection of the football to me is the storyteller. You can't do it in this game that place, that offense, I mean, I mean there's a lot of you can't in this game, honestly, but that one, that one could kill you.
Well, what one key is you also can't have a special team play that results in the touchdown. To me, that's as much as giving them an extra possession, whereas you actually get the extra possession if you give up a significant play like that. So I think coach High Tower and his special teams have to be as stifling this week as they have been all season.
Yeah, Bears have nine defensive or special teams touchdowns allowed in the last two years, so that involves what twenty seven games. That's a lot right there.
You mentioned the running game.
Bears are one of five teams I don't know if you're aware of this top ten in both rushing offense and rushing defense their fifth offense, second on defense, first stop on the run. Over the last six weeks in the NFL, the Bears have gone three and three. The other four teams Cleveland, Detroit, Philadelphia, San Francisco. They're combined records, of course, twenty seven and nine, and the Bears sit here at three and seven. It does underscore that there
are other factors, not just the run. But it is a heck of a start in the rec direction if you continue to run the ball effectively and you continue to stop the run. Considering what the Bears could not do a year ago as the thirty one ranked run defense in the NFL.
Well for the last couple of years, the Bears have been able to run the ball successfully at home or on the road, and I think they have a nice stable of running backs that they can compliment each other
and run the ball equally as hard. This is probably one of the most interesting offensive line lineups that I'm excited to see since the season began, because of they've had so many injuries up until now, and then the thing that intrigues me most is have an eight rotating defensive lineman that can come and all play equally as well. And if you can keep fresh defensive linemen in the game rotating to support the linebackers and the defensive backs and make some of those tackles for loss, you know,
have a handful of sacks. They can go out there and they can play good deepen And so I guess I'm putting this game on the shoulders of the defensive line and the offensive line as much as I am any any other position, including quarterback.
Good news, 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 rollerbag. United Proud to fly the Chicago Bears, and you too. This is a game where you got a battle for the entire entire sixty minutes. I think Mike Evens mentioned that this is going to be a test man in that building, and you mentioned it not not just the impact of the crowd, but the physicality they can impose upon you.
So and I you know, and part of it's going to begin with somebody like David Montgomery. He runs hard, it doesn't matter who the opponent was. But you just wonder what he's gonna how he's gonna feel. After four years with the Bears, He's.
Done a great job.
He's got one k plus yard from scrimmage and six plus touchdowns each of his four seasons with the Bears. He's already got seven touchdowns this season coming off that big game last week, so he is a great one two punch inside out with him and Jamar Gibbs.
All Right, I got a question for you.
So your Bears win the coin toss, you want to give the ball to David Montgomery after all those glowing numbers you just gave me, the King of analytics, or do you want to do you want to put the Bears offense on the field first to try to squash the crowd noise and and uh, you know, gain change or take control of field position.
Well, I'm gonna, I'm gonna, I'm gonna, I'm gonna defer, and i'm gonna I don't like that.
I'm gonna give me. I'm gonna. I'm gonna give the ball to Detroit to start the game. All right, but the risk involved with.
The defense has to step up to the play, create a three and out and get good field position for your offense.
Listen, Tom, the defense the last six weeks playing tremendous football. The numbers say so they've been outstanding defensively outstanding, and you know, if you can somehow The thing is golf doesn't turn it over anymore, used to, doesn't do it anymore. So he's very protective of the football. And so you're going to have to make a special play to get the ball away from these guys.
What would you do?
I would kick the ball off to Detroit, and the first thing I would do is I would try to limit the success of the run on first down. And then I would try to make the first passing opportunities for Detroit as uncomfortable as I possibly could. And I would want Jared Goff to make him think that he's going to be pushed off of this spot. He's going to have to throw on the run. He's going to have to make too early or too late of decisions. I don't want him to have the timing of the
offense in his hand. And so I would kick off, and I would be the aggressor. From the first series.
Last four games against the Bears, eight touchdowns, no interceptionsed off.
At home.
His quarterback rating over the last seventeen games forty three touchdowns, seven picks, one to ten quarterback. He's just playing well. He's playing well. All right, Tom, I got a quiz for you, and we're brought to you by PNC Official Bank of the Bears. Can you name the quarterback in the NFL right now who is leading the league in
passing yards. I'm gonna give you a second, and if you want to go back to it as you think it through without looking at the Google machine, you go right ahead, we can.
I don't have Google's I mean, is it something as obvious as Jared Goff?
No, it's not, but he is fifth. Yes, to me, it's not obvious.
And you know, we study this game, we watch it and the first guy I was thinking about was Tua and Tua is third.
Then I thought, well you got Mahomes yeh, No, Mahomes CJ.
Strouds had an unbelievable start, So he's number two. Josh Allen is number four, and we're gonna get to Josh Allen more in a second. Sam Howell Sam Howell twenty seven eighty three and seventeen touchdown throws.
Sam Howe. I did not anticipate that answer, So yeah, did I You know.
But you know, how often does Eric the enemy their new offensive coordinator play caller. You know, for the beginning of a career with the new team and the Washington Commanders what is the disparity between run pass.
I'd have to see. I'd have to look that up.
Okay, Lomas mentioned Ben Johnson, he is going to be a head coaching candidate. One hundred percent was last offseason as well. Chose to take his name out of some of those openings and knew he had something brewing in Detroit and that's proven to be true. Outstanding play caller, But it's about all the weapons Aman Ross Saint Brown. Certainly he's on a tear with one hundred yard catches. Excuse me, one hundred yard games. You got the running game,
you got other receivers. But the guy that has really impressed me his tight end, Sam Laporta. And nobody's really talking about him. What is his impact and where is that impacting the Bears defense on Sunday with Sam Laporta.
Well, I mean he's a great immediate release for the quarterback. When you have a quarterback like Jared Goff who's not the most elusive when he's facing pressure, the guy that can get the ball out of his hands with less than two point two seconds is the tight end. And at the tight end position, nine times out of ten, you always have a size matchup, whether it's get an undersized linebacker who runs well or some type of the
safety position. And if you understand the catching radius of a talent to tight end, it sure opens up quick throw opportunities for you. And I think that's why the tight end has become such an attractive target so early in his career.
Fifteen yards among tight ends and the first ever tight end with thirty five or more receiving yards in each of his first nine games. You know he's from Illinois all that, he went to Iowa. So I I meet him at the combine and he super smart guy, super congenial. You could tell he's got a big personality. And I say, oh, you know you're from Highland Park. Did you grow up a Bears fan? He goes, no, I grew up in Highland, Illinois. I have no idea where it is, somewhere south. I
was embarrassed. He just called me out out right away. I thought he's an Island Park kid, but it slipped me. And Uh, that's why I like going to the combine.
Tom.
You never know what you're gonna learn when you talk to some of these guys. But excellent player. But uh, for for my money, as well as you know my favorite Bears player, right, that's what you always say, no disrespect to the other fifty two on the team. Cole Comet has been Yeah, real tight.
End you Notre Dame. And they got another one on the on the.
Lions roster, Tommy another one and he caught. He caught like seven balls at Notre Dame. He's got seven NFL touchdowns. So it's it's crazy. You guys are jeeping on churning them out and and you're gonna have your go to have a top top five potentially are a top ten pick from the offensive line and Joe Ault this year.
Yeah, and they got a good tight end.
They had Michael Mayer for the Raiders catch his first tight on touchdown the other day. They had Tommy Tremble from the Carolina Panthers that you unfortunately gave a bio state university.
Credit for developing him.
So I did I think tight end you is a Notre Dame as much as anybody else wants to claim it's their school.
Yeah, and sure indeed, but so he and Cole Cole and Mark Andrews the only two players this year with five plus receiving touchdowns.
The last two years.
All right, one more thought on the Bears. The linebacking crew Samborn's done a terrific job filling in and in base when he's out there in base and just being active on special teams. And Tremaine Edmonds is going to work through a knee. Maybe he plays this week, maybe he doesn't, But I feel t J. Edwards is playing at a pro bowl level. That's my opinion. I think he's.
First of all, he's leading the league in tackles, and he's just more and more aggressive as the season has gone on, as he adapts in this scheme.
Am I off on that?
Not at all?
You know what, We talk a lot about chemistry that needs to be developed by the offensive line if they ever get a chance to play together for a significant period of time. I think the chemistry developed from a linebackers forward to their defensive line is equally as important.
And I think that's one thing about TJ. Edwards.
The coaches understand how to use him the best, and he understands how the defensive line.
Up front is going to compliment him the most.
And when you look at his reaction time to the actual direction of the play, whether it's runner, pass, rpo, play action, whatever you want to say. TG Edwards has immediate reaction. And that's why when you look at the whole linebacking crew, they're all equally as.
Supportive of each other.
They all play on an uptempo style of play. But TJ, because he's been in there every single game, all three downs, it's evident and obvious he's really developing into this program.
Now, if Tremaine does not return, Noah Seowel will be in there. So Noah Seowell is playing linebacker and doesn't get a ton of snaps, but his brother is Penne Sewell, the outstanding right tackle for and so there's not It reminds me of the remember the Kyle Long Chris Long game when the Rams are still in Saint Louis. That Kyle was very edgy in that game, very very edgy.
I wonder what it's going to be like. I talked to him a couple of weeks ago because he has another brother that I think was on the Raiders or the Saints.
Saints Yeah, and I.
Wasn't sure and I talked to him in the lunch room about it, and yeah, he goes, yeah, it's kind of crazy that We've been blessed totally different players all all across the board. Penne is the biggest one, and he's playing an outstanding job right now. Right If you had a play Rick and you were playing defense at the time you had to tackle Rick as a fullback, what would your emotions be like leading into a game.
I would be emotionless.
I wouldn't think about it because I think that is just a distraction to what your real job is, and I think you're not going to have a chance of listening to the defense called in the huddle, pay attention to the down and distance, the hash mark, the time on the plate clock, and then try to keep your left eye on looking at your big brother to see how he played that play. You got to worry about
what your job is as a linebacker on that specific play. Yeah, I think it's emotional in some respects, but you also have to be a pre you have to be professional in all respects.
Yeah, that's a good point. Steinhoffel is an employee owned furniture in Mattress store. Visit any of their for Chicago locations in Vernon Hills, Christal Lake, Downers Grove, and Hardwood Heights,
or shop online at Steinhoffels dot com. We'll do a quick trip around the league and it involves the core back position because the unbelievable story that's developing in Cleveland that feels they have a championship caliber defense, which is really really good, but their quarterback now is out with a broken bone and his throwing shoulder, Deshaun Watson done for the year. They're going to start this week Dorian Thompson Robinson against the Steelers. They're not going to go
to PJ. Walker, who was with the Bears in the preseason and has started games this year for the Browns in the absence of Watson. But the craziest part of this whole story, Tom, do you know who the backup quarterback to start training camp in Cleveland was for.
It was Joshua Dobbs.
Correct, So Cleveland trades him to Arizona Cardinals of course traded him to Minnesota. Now he is tearing it up as a two game starter for the Vikings. Do you think for a minute Cleveland isn't bemoaning the fact that that quarterback they sent him away thinking that they were set at the quarterback position. It underscores this thought for me,
You're never set at quarterback. You're never set. You can pay a guy two hundred and sixty million dollars and he goes out in the fifth game of the year or in the twelfth game of the year when you're trying to win a Super Bowl and you're your sol So never ever, ever, ever think you're set at quarterback.
That's a perfect example.
They also had Tyron Taylor at one point.
Yeah, I mean, what's your feeling about that topic, what's you're feeling about that, because again, teams are falling over themselves trying to find the next quarterback, the great quarterback that's going to be leading you to Super Bowls annually or at least in the competition for it. And it's an exercise that is the most challenging of anything in sports.
It really is.
I know, I felt Joshua, they felt Joshua Dobbs was a commodity. But they were evaluating Deshaun Watson the whole time when they felt that he was going to be one hundred percent ready to go. They were trying to turn a quality backup quarterback into it asset. And so then they let him go to another team and they think, well, we can bring in a couple of other guys here after cuts and allow them to develop while Deshaun is playing.
So it's all these you know, guys trying to think down the road, how to create value, how to go and capitalize on somebody else's a player they cut, and.
But you agree with me that you don't feel ever comfortable even if you think you've got the guy, because this is the thing about it. You know, I don't care what team it is. Say it's a team like Detroit or the Bears that have had this roller coaster ride of trying to get to the super Bowl and trying to find the quarterback, and then you know, you think you have a championship football team and the quarterback goes and suffers an injury that knocks them out for
the rest of the year. I mean, I know there are other examples of this, sure in the past. But you just you better have a really good feeling about And I know some people say, there's not thirty two so how is there sixty four quarterbacks? Ninety six quarterbacks? So but you better feel really good about quarterback, you really do.
That decision the Cleveland Browns made is coming back to haunt them. But the decision that Sean McDermott made this week that is escapegoatle of a decision ever made in the history of football, the.
Firing of Ken Dorsey and then Frank Reich has now taken the play calling back again from Thomas Brown, so he's starting to call the plays this week for Bryce Young.
Frank Reich should have never given up the play calling because he has more quarterback experience than anybody else on that staff, including Josh McCowen. So frank Reich should he should have held his hold on it. He's the head coach, he's the decision maker, and he understands the development of a quarterback like that, so he should have never given it up.
All right, Tom, I think we covered a lot of bases. We'll talk to you next week after the Bear's hopeful victory against the Detroit Lions to Talk Down the Radio on Sunday. Our Next Bears, Etc. Podcast drops next Tuesday. We'll preview the app coming matchup against the Minnesota Vikings on Monday Night Football. Thanks for listening, everybody, Please subscribe now the Bears official app, Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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