Legacy Panel - 06' NFC Championship

through in that game. I mean, there's your rookie year, first game, Devin coming into the stadium at Lambeau with Lovey Smith and the crew getting ready for after a playoff season in two thousand and five. A lot of good things happened, Rex going deep, a couple of big catches, Mussin, Muhammad, Bernard Baron, A lot of good stuff happened in Lambeaux. So I started out out, Roberto Garza, did that game set the tone for the season, no question about it.

When you step on the field against the Green Bay Packers, And I said the temple like Devin did, and with that offensive line and obviously that great defense man that that's that's a bar pretty high and go out there and try to win football games from the beginning of the season, and we're able to do that all year. Devin, first game, really you're taking it to the house. I mean, that was something that puts you on the map right away. The teams started changing the way they looked at you.

Then as a return man, I would say, so, you know, coming into from college, you know and things I didn return game. They pretty much said it with applausible O Mama to come in to the league and to come into the league the first my first game and make a statement to say, hey, this is a guy that

did all of the turn of the callege. I want to do the same thing when once I got to the NFL, and I knew the only way to do that was to set it out the first lay the game, the first game, Hey all on the the walk down that ramp, when you go to that lambeau Field at the start of the open the first game of an NFL season, how nerve racking? How special is that feeling to start that whole trip, well, especially at Green Bay with your rival or you want to go out there

put on a show. And we had a special feeling going into that season, right we knew we were gonna be pretty good and we wanted to prove that to everybody. And I think the score was twenty six zero or something like that, and we put on him and a lot of it was how good that defense was a run game and then this guy was electric. So it was so fun to be a part of that team and to go out there put it on Green Bay like that. We made a statement early that that we

knew we were gonna be pretty good. Patrick, same theme, same theme, you know, like Oland, I'm gonna piggyback on one old and said two thousand and five, we were pretty good, but we were young, and we knew we had talent coming up, and we knew everybody was getting a year older and getting a year better, and going through that training camp, like you said, we were pretty

confident we were gonna be pretty good. We felt like we could be pretty good, and to go into that game and do what we did, I think we proved it to ourselves and that started that run of what seven wins in a row, and that's that's what started it. Right there. Charles loves defense and everybody in it thrived you guys like today's Bears if twenty eighteen number one in the league, and takeaways number one and three and outs number four, and scoring defense thirty four interceptions, defensive

touchdowns galore. Nine defensive Pro Bowlers from that era of Bears football. What made that defense so unique and special? I think it was just the mindset that Coach Smith set for us. Like Coach Nagi says he has a good culture, I think Coach Smith said, uh, he said the tone. He had a really good culture for US. Hall of Fame. Brian Urlacher, what a great leader. And you know, when you're in that huddel and you make

a mistake, Brian has no problem cursing you out. And I don't like to get cursed out, so I just try to do my job. I think after you you have a fast start, does the pressure build for that season? You know, because I don't know if what was love you a guy that put pressure on you, or did you guys put pressure on yourself? I know because I always hear you guys talk about how close that locker room was. So was it putting pressure on yourselves or was it something that just came with the season. It

was a little bit of both. I think coach Smith was he was a defensive head coach, so he expected the defense to do more. Um. I remember one game he goes, hey, defense, if we don't score, we don't win. If we don't score defensive touchdowns, and we're not winning this game. So y'all need to we need to score, you know, we need to score some points. The offensive players in that room, there were not It was a defensive meeting. It was a defensive meeting. But that's just

kind of that was a guy love he was. He was defense wins games. You know, he was old school. You know, there's that saying offensives take his defense wins games. But that that's just kind of the that's just that's where all the money was, Tom, I mean, all the salary cap was on the defense side of the ball. They better score and Roberto and old you know, it became almost a medium mock that Love. He would say, hey,

we get off the bus run of the ball. But was that a message to you guys, it's not your shoulders? And did you embrace that? Did you love when he said that? No question about it. You know, obviously Harry Heaston was a coach who was not here, um, and we have Thomas Jones, Ruben Brown, Fred Miller, John Tate. I mean the offensive line. All we wanted to do was double team people, and that was the mindset from

Ron Turner, from coach Lovey. You know, we had that defense, So go out there and move the football, double team people, move off the line of scrimmage, and let Thomas Jones go out and do what he does. Obviously, when you run the football, you control the game and all the defenses fresh. We have more first downs and able to keep the ball away from the other team and then keep those guys fresh, and I guess anybody, they're gonna

create turnovers and get to the quarterback. So when you they tell you, hey, running the football, that's what we wanted to do in a way. Yeah, you know, Jeff, we just had all the components, right. So we did have a good offensive line, Ruben Brown and like guards just said, but we also had des Clark and then Moose Muhammad who would control the middle of the field.

But nar Burying would take the top off of any defense, right, so as soon as the guys started crowding us, we had a guy who could go deep and you know, and laid in that playoff run. But nar Burying had a lot of big games there and he was, you know, whenever they would come down and with Cedric, Bens and Thomas running the ball and Rex would hit Bernard and that would give us more room to run the ball. So we had all the components that year to be

a strong running team. You know, Patrick, you probably you lose special teams as well as anybody when you got to play alongside a guy like Devin Hester. When you guys were sitting in the meetings and devising a scheme for Devon, did you understand the greatness that you were witnessing and to be a part of and developing. Yeah,

there's no doubt about it. And you know, having Dave Toby, our special teams coordinator, knowing that we had a special talent, he was able to cultivate that room to understand that, hey, we got to make the most of this. And guys loved blocking for Devon. The funny thing is Tom that guys were begging to get on the punt return team. Peanut, you were on the punt return team. You know, guys

wanted to be on the kickoff retern team. They wanted to be out there when he had the ball, and we understood that we got the special one, you know, and guys were fighting to get out there, and you know, you were part of a two starting cornerback wanting to be on the punt return team. Yeah, I mean I don't think I was. I don't think I knew I was witnessing greatness because I was always blocking for him,

just running down the field. And then a lot of the I guess touchdowns you have, I don't even celebrate with you because I'm so damn tired. I'm trying to catch my breath. You like, roll the one you rolled like eight nine times. I was like, yeah, okay, I'm tired. I gotta go back out to those defense Devin. You know, and all the returns, there's an obvious point of attack that you try to pay attention to and they try

to develop for you. But I asked you last night, how how far of recognition did you say, okay, I'm gone, Even when you saw the blocks unfold in front of you, or you saw that one crease that you needed as a returner, it was always like the first ten yards and my mentally, if I can get the first ten yards to get the head of a fourhead of thing running. That is, that's where all the grinding the grid is when the first ten yards of returning, and if I can break free through the the rest of the work

is easy. You know. So I was built around but coach Dave with a great group of guys, and like these guys, say Man and special team co day with the Jeans. When it came to returns, he spend day out and day in and day out to prepare my opponents instead of them. And so when I got to the meetings on moneys and toolsdays and Wednesday, he pretty much broke down every single thing front and longest now but to the direction of the punt. And it made

it so much easier for me, tom Um. What made it so special too, It was a funny story is that when the defense would come off the field, you could see it during the special team's sideline copy. They wouldn't go and get the sideline adjustments. They would turn around them and wait for the punts. And you could hear Bob Babbitts, the linebacker coach or whoever, yelling get over here, and they're like they're like, no first stand

right here. We gotta watch this and then all of a sudden they you know, and then they go back and get the adjustments. But that's how special that is one of the greatest compliments of people you pay attention to on the field. Well, maybe you should be sitting on the bench, but if you're playing against the Barry

Sanders or something, you always wanted to watch him. And I think Devin contributed that type of greatness to the Chicago Bears that if he if he was gonna get turn the kick returning, gonna return a punt, You're not going to the the concession stand, You're not going to the bathroom. You're waiting to see what Devin does it. Man, you

take your time. And like I said, I gotta give a lot of credit to our defense because our defense put us in so much good field position to be able to call to return, you know, and we had offensive pinning back to their ten fifteen yard line, so when there was time to play the ball, you didn't

have no choice but to kick it. You know. We didn't allow you know, a lot of offenses across that fifth yard line, so that for as a returner, it was like the green light for me back to the old line from it the game, and then we got a couple of photos about you guys. You did everything together. How critical is that? Well, when you play offensive line, the line is usually better than the sum of its parts, right, So you gotta like you gotta be working as one unit.

Everybody's got to see everything through Harry heastand always said through one set of eyes. So we all got to see everything the same way. And so that's why we would eat eat, we'd eat breakfast together, eat lunch together, hang out, walk to the meeting room together, and just kind of build that culture of always always seeing everything together, always doing everything together. That way, we were always on

the same page. But you know, being an outsider looking in, I admired that so much because I used to We sit on the bus waiting to travel and then you see the offensive line filter out and everybody waiting for each other, kind of reconnecting in between each snap. You know, Roberto, you guys all he meant so much to each other. But it spills on because then it's the same challenge. You bring it to the practice field. If one guy's

gonna show up, we all better show up. And I think it's important to show that aspect of the offense, no question, because we have to work together as a unit, and that chemistry is built day in and day out, and the expectation that the line set together. You weren't You didn't want to be the guy that didn't do it right. So when we walked in together, it was we're doing everything together. We're making all the right adjustments, everything that Olden is telling us to do, okay on

this play. We gotta do this okay, so let's do it together. And that doesn't come just on the football field. It starts in the locker room. It starts walking in

the plane together, walking through practice together. You know, everything that we did helped us be better football players because we built that friendship, but also that expectation that this is the way it's going to be done and you have to do it at this level day in and day out, and that tempo and that culture was set by Olden, by Ruben Brown, by Harry heastand by the guys that been around and been doing it year in

and year out. We step on that football field, you know, I was the youngest guy there and I was like, man, I gotta keep up with these guys. You know, and I got to do my job to the best of my ability, and that was set by spending all that time together because you wanted to go out on the football field and perform for your teammates. Guards. One story I love telling about you guys and what you're talking about.

You know how you guys always together that if any of any of the offensive line route was gonna be late to a meeting, nobody would go in. So everybody was late because we didn't find everybody right, whole team. So wait on everybody. Wait who came up with that idea. I'm guessing him there was there anybody that was ever late. There were a few guys we had to go get out of their house a couple of times after a late night. We had to go get him. So so

we get there all time. But I don't want to say any names and put them out there, but there we had a few guys who were, you know, repeat offenders. We had to always go get them. We're looking out for them. Oh, and what did you appreciate about this man in the weight room? Guards in the weight room, Well, well, guards are in the weight room. You know, he's legendary. Now at hallis Hall and that's that's just the truth. That's how strong this man is. But that's just who

he is. Like what I appreciate about him was is he's the same guy every day. He works hard in the weight room, he works hard in the meeting room. He shows up every day. He's ready to compete, and like, like, I know, you might walk into the way room with Garza, are you better be ready to get it on because he but he does everything like that and that's what

you appreciate about him. Hey, Charles, I think I read where you went to eleven different schools as a youth, but you played twelve years for the Bears, which one shape who you are today more. I think the eleven different schools just being in different environments, different situations, moving all over the world, living overseas, living in Europe as a young kid. It allowed me to get out of

my shell. No pun attended, but it is just it's just it allowed me to get out of my shell and really, um, open up, talk to people, ask questions, you know, just be a little bit more open asking questions and stuff. A Devin. So your freshman year, you return a kickoff opening kickoff against Florida for a touchdown. You return the opening kickoff in the Super Bowl for a touchdown? That a super impressive Like which one did?

Did one shape you more than the other? Did you like you learned that you had the ability that early in life, and then that transferred all the way up into the NFL level. I think it pretty much started um in my youth days playing just backyard football. UM we would play, UM we did. We couldn't play anything like Brad, so we we would call it throw off and so we would throw the ball off and well played two hand in touch. And it was like every time I got back there, I were running back on

two hand in touch. So I think from that point on it I grew a passion and I love for that, the return game, and it just really just a sale the old I got. All I know is all these years after that, every single time I go to the scouting combine and you say you're with the Bears, Where were you when when Devin returned the opening That's how significant of a play never happened before since the opening kickoff.

For me calling the game, I never even anticipated It's bad on me made that one cut and I started thinking oh boy, well, how am I gonna capture this moment at the Super Bowl? But wow? Was that not the moment one of the biggest memories in our lives. But in order to get there, in order to get there Bears going undefeated to Arizona, things didn't go that well.

Matt Leinert started that game, and it was having a field day for a time, and then we go to halftime, come back, that's got the most physical half you've ever played it. We will win this game if you hit somebody in the mouth. And that starts with Keygoff to hit us in the monk ke goof return to hit us in the mouth. Keygoff hit me mout and I didn't do nothing about it. This happened to change physical. We're gonna get physical. We're gonna get up with him.

We'll get no personal follows. Give me between the whistle, get up. Who will win this game? I promise? Yes. Hey, I like to tell I like to tell everybody, Jeff, Only the defense was listening when I was talking. The offense wasn't listening to me. But one the performers that that game, we remember standing on the sideline and as an offensive lineman, you guys are talking about hess and this is honest, and guards will tell you this. With offensive line, we'd stand there about where he would catch

the ball. So we got to witness him because on kickoff return we're standing close to him, and on punt we're watching him. And if he caught the ball in the middle field, honestly, I'd walked to the bench because he was gone. He would see it on the special team's film. It was I'd walk away. I'd walk away and be like field goal, it's an extra point, like it was over. But that game was. It was amazing, and we as an offense witnessed it right because we

weren't doing much. And you know, it was Mike Brown taking the ball back. It was her lacker pulling it out to these twenty two tackles and Peanut and and then and then we're on the field and I look at Ruben Brown and I'm like, it's he's gonna take this back, like that's insane if he takes and sure enough, and we're just laughing on the sign like this is insane, man, And and it was, you know, it was. It was an amazing game to be a part of the Oh did you so first of all, it does give you

a little goosebump. Yeah, yeah, how could it not? Right? Did that movie? Right there? Her to see yourself in the end result, all these years later, it's just fun to see being a room with these guys, you know, like being back here and just you know, I'm thinking, what the hell am I talking about? But no, it were It was cool, it was, but that was like that was just a special team, Like that's really what everybody believed. Like we just we never thought we were

gonna lose a game. We never thought there could beat us. You know, we had a couple of key injuries that everybody knows about who were really key players for us. But when we were our full fifty three and that full fifty three squad was there, Jeff, we felt like

we were unbeatable. Like we literally felt like that. And that's you know, and then like we didn't even know what we had in this guy, and when he showed up and on as an offense, we're getting a ball on the other side of the fifty every time because nobody wanted to kick to him anymore, right, so they just squim it and we get good field position every play. Yeah, affected all three phases, every every blade of grass on the field because of Devin and your defense taking the

ball away and setting you guys up. Tom, I just you know, it's neat to see h because you don't really get inside a locker room to see people address their team. And we are always lucky enough to be addressed by Walter Payton, and everybody understood the message and he was trying to say when I was reading about you, one hundred and eighty two starts for the Bear, second

only to the great Walter Payton. That's pretty amazing to have your name in the same sentence is Walter Payton after what he's accomplished and what you are, and then still the message you get to deliver to your teammates. It's got to be important to you. Being a spina Chicago Bear obviously means the world to me. Obviously, when your name is mentioned with Walter Payton, I mean we you know you play for the Bears. Tom, Jeff been part of organization for years. The Chicago Bears organization is

a charter franchise. It's just different, right, It's a it's a different place, it's a different history. It's what the NFL really is about so to be a part through love football, be a part of this organization. And then like they say Walter Payton and then they say your name, and you know half the nature you say, well, who the hell is that? But that's okay. You know that you're still You're still after I'm still getting mentioned, right,

So that's pretty cool. Really, you know, Patricks, A lot of numbers we've been spewing up here ideas are reading a by you two thousand, two hundred and eighty two snaps without a botch. That's pretty impressive because when you talk about long snappers over the history the NFL, there are guys even I mean, right, but you know, only a Chicago does a long snapper get love like this. So we're up here a couple of segments ago and Dick Buckus is talking about how he snapped extra points

and field goals and during his career. But then you kind of turned it into a perfected technology of science. And I think you know, you had the same obligations to what your job was and the kickers and punters that you developed throughout your career. That's time I kind of got lucky in nineteen ninety eight when I got drafted that the NFL was transitioning to the long snapper being one of the fifty three positions or one of

the fifty three voster spots. So I came in as an officive lineman had great You know, I wanted to play on line, but it's not gonna happen when you line up next to these guys. But I had the skill of long snapping. Unfortunately, that became a job in the NFL when it did, and I just took a lot of pride in it, like my mom and dad for the natural ability, and just followed these guys work

ethic and it turned into a long career here. You know, you think about that team when we were talking about how good they were, right, and that theena doesn't get mentioned is like Pat won't say it, but most of us on his teammates know he's the best long snapper ever to play the game. We know that, Okay, And then you got then you got Robbie Gold, Right, Robbie go I mean you can argue he's the best kicker embarrassed history. He was on that team. Brad Maynard, who

was an ultimate professional. He was a punter. Right, you got a guy who created a peanut punch. I mean everybody does that. He changed the whole game, Like, that's the kind of guys that were on that team and it was amazing. And oh, by the way, patrolling the middle of the defense number fifty four, Ryan or Lacker also. I mean we can go on and on, but but that's right. You know, the peanut punch has become significant, teaching it everywhere here we go. It still amazes me

to this day. In one game you had you knocked out what four? Oh yeah, yeah yeah four? Uh what was that, Tennessee? How did you? How? I mean, how does this happen? How's this happened? They don't hold on to the football. That's not what happened. They don't hold on to it. They don't. I just I don't know, man, I just Gil Bird used to always say this football is worth millions, Go get it, go bring it back. So I just yeah, I'm gonna go get it. Yo.

Bird was one of the bed It's pretty easy. Hey, Charles, if we took those fumbles and he took a still shot before it happened, could you explain to us like what you were thinking or was it completely ad libbed when you approached the offensive ball carrier. As I'm running up to the ball carrier, I'm assessing how he is holding the football. If it's here, okay, I'm gonna punch it from the side. If he's here, well then I

can punch from coming from up top. And it's constantly moving like this, so you kind of have to time it up to when you have to, you know, make your make your punch. Well we're talking about that thinking process is a half a second? Oh yes, second, I mean it's super quick. I'm just waiting. I think the best one of the best punches I've ever did was I think it was two thousand and seven. It was against the Detroit Lions. As Soldier Field tell back, he

came to the Bears, Kevin Kevin Jones. Yeah, he's running running, and it was a toss and there was an offensive lineman. I jump out of a way and I wait, I wait, and then I punch and then the ball came out. And it's just I had a knack for knowing when to win to shoot my punch, you know. And I got lucky forty four times, all right, I mean it's an incredible number. But It's an incredible number, you guys.

You know, Oh and and roverto you guys got a lot of extra possessions, and he got possessions taken away from you. You got Devin's return for touchdowns that you go back to the bench or else you got Charles out there after you're come off at ten, play drive and all of a sudden he gets you another return from you guys. So you know, you had some possessions taken away by Devon, but you got a lot of

extra ones from Peanut. Absolutely. Man, that's when you have guys like that, you want to get back on that football field and can and try to score, you know, And then we have an offensive line that can double team people. You have Thomas Jones, Cedric Benson, and then you have those guys. It's just like, man, let's go out and run power. Let's go out and run a week ice and go out there and try to work with that defensive line. Yeah, I love you. Obviously preached takeaways.

I mean I mean running to the ball, taking the ball away. You guys delivered. It's one thing to say it and okay, this is what I want you to do, But you guys did it and you were great at it? Why and did Devin's return ability maybe give all you guys this desire to take it and score because Vash you, Mike Brown, defensive lineman, erlak or Briggs, guys all score. I think when you're a head coach, the greatest compliment your players can give you is they want to play

for you. And I think collectively, defensively obviously whold all fifty three guys, we really wanted to play for Coach Smith and whatever he was preaching, we were buying. Whatever he was selling, we were buying. We believed it. We believed in him. He was a great man, great Christian man. He believed in us. He treated us like men. I learned a lot from him and I love him just I mean just he was he was. He was a

great guy. Still is a great guy. I think for me Um coming in my rookie year, Um, Coach leg the first impression I got from him was he treated everybody like a man. He wasn't the coach that gonna say I'm checking curfew, I'm checking to see what he left it up to the captains, which is old and lack and those guys say you guys here, you take the total of this team. And that's what I love about love it like he he wasn't the dominant free

he allowed everybody to do their job. And when you have a coach like that, you don't you don't want to do nothing wrong. For he did micro manage us. He let us be men, He let us do our job, and he trusted us. The other thing about him was he was the same every day, so we knew what we were getting every day. And you know people said, show more emotion. Well if he showed this emotion up

or down, we felt it. You know, we felt it in holl Us all but going into that workspace every day and you knew what the expectations were because he was the consistent man every day and it made it easy for us. The most ever heard him yell, I don't know what game. It might have been, like the Arizona game, and he said, freaking that was we're freaking we're getting We're freaking getting our butt. That was it.

But you know he had that was it. He had a lot of good enforces in the locker room between the role in between her locker lance and the rest of the crew. I mean he had guys that he knew that there was you know, there was jack and around going on. Right, you guys had the crew that would take care of it. Great enforces for baseball. So Lovey screams at me one time I did something that practice. I can't share it here, but he says, old and

Jimminy Christmas. Right. So, I mean, I'm eating dinner at the at camp and the wife comes up and she's like, I heard you got a Jimmy Christmas out of love you and I go yeah, she goes, you know, that's as far as he goes. Right. Oh, how how critical was it in terms of aiding your head coach to have There was no leadership void in that locker room. It was Olden Crutz, it was Brian Erlacker, and you guys played off each other beautifully. How important was that

to that team? Well, that guy right there, Brian Urlacker, Now he was a superstar, but he was the most humble superstar you've ever met. And he everybody was the same to him. So when he acted like that, when he worked hard every day, when he treated hibody respect, when he demanded out of himself, what a rookie should be doing you had you just fell in line, Like, how how could someone act like they were a superstar if Brian Rlacker wasn't acting like that in a locker room.

So we we all followed that man's lead and he led us. But our locker room now we a team that that we had like fifteen to twenty leaders on that team where all these guys are leaders now like Latina, And if one guy fell out a line, he was gonna hear from like thirty different guys. It was gonna be a problem, Like that's not the way we do

things around here, you know. So, uh, leadership in that locker room, especially that year was very you know, I really appreciate Brian because I was reading about how he talked about how important your offensive line was to his development. And if you guys would have went out there and pussy foot around in the in training camp when one's against ones and stuff, it would be different for him.

But he got to appreciate your you guys, because you were helping him develop into the player that he ultimately became, No question about it. When you're facing that defense, how can you not get better? Right you're facing Peanut or Lacker that defensive line, Tommy Harris Tank like, you're getting better,

You're getting each other better. So when we get step on the football field, like, how can you not go out there and perform at that level because you're going against the top rated defense, You're going against the best linebacker in football and doing it the right way, performing like Olden said defense or like who was saying it Olden on the offensive side. And there's guys out there doing their job each and every day, and that's what

made that team special. And you talk about the way we were in the locker room, it made it fun because you go out there and everybody did the same thing every single day and go out to put the work in to go out there and be great on Sundays. One of the things you quickly learn covering sports for as long as I have and following teams, the personality that develops really in the off season, whether it's in the weight room, you hear about it or you see

it yourself. Is a great team of characters. So we could talk all we want about the sixty three team we just heard with, you know, and we're gonna beet more of those guys here in the coming hours. The eighty five team. There is a team of characters too. There's a team of great personalities, the highjinks, the good times. You know, this is that's the part that really pushes

a team into a different dimension. You gotta win, of course, but it is important, like welcome to jam Rock, everybody, I'm gonna stils some flipping fingers, all right, tell us about this Damian Marley classic. Internally, take this because we just talked about this like an hour ago. It was like, you know, back when we actually had two days, camp was long, so you had to get somewhere to get everybody going, and forget about how brutal it actually was

to go out for the twenty fifth practice role. And like guardians said, it was hell going against this defense every day. We you know, we couldn't do much against him, that's how good they were. But so we played jam rock in the locker room and there was a lot of weird dancing that would go on a lot of locker rooms, slamming, h maybe some coffee tossing, une baskets flying all over the place. There's videos of it, and it might come out nowadays that there's on social media.

It'll be very embarrassing, but it was just a way that we would just go crazy, have fun and it gets back on that field and we go get it. And Porte Medlin are equipment manager. He had to clean all this stuff up and he hated it. He would have an idea when it was gonna come and he would start cleaning up the locker room, taking out the baby powder, take up the coffee machines, you know, so we wouldn't wreck at all. But we'd always surprised them on the right day for room crash. It was beating

on the locker room their head. We went on and had a great day. It's hard to like, we wish they had a video of it because it's hard to explain what we were doing. But we were basically being a bunch of ten year olds in the room going crazy, but really just trying to have fun within it again, right, because football can be a tough sport. Sometimes hitting each other can be tough. You can get tired. So just trying to inject energy into the room, I enjoy each

other and go and have fun. A precursor to clubbed up right, Yeah yeah, yeah, you guys could have done it, yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, we Jeremyrod first, then clubbed up. Yeah, yeah, yeah, there you go. All right, let's enjoy the conversation about the NFC title game. Let's roll those highlights. I believe that every time you guys moved down and you're retired and we talked to Hey, what was your your most memorable moments, it's this game. Tell us why start, Rubbertum?

I mean to have the opportunity as Soldier Field to go out there and play to win the NFC Championship and to go to the Super Bowl. I mean, what other feeling do you want? Um? And the way we did at that game, you know, running the football up and down that field, double team. We talked about that offensive line, We talked about that running game and defense giving us a football. When you think about that year, how special that was to get that feeling at Soldier

Field in front of our fans. I mean, there's no greater moment in my career that I was able to live in that day at home, the snow started coming down. I mean, it's just a special, special day. Charles. I remember it a little differently. I was so amed, so geek, my gym was pumping, and I was gassed by the second play of the game, I think I gave up like a thirty forty yard pass and I was tired, and I was like, oh my god, I'm not gonna

make it. I'm so tired. I'm so tired. And the other thing I remember is Reggie Bush waving bye bye to Lack as he was trying to run them down. Huge mistake, and I think that pissed everybody off. And then next thing I remember, the snow was falling down. I'm hugging Brian, I'm hugging everybody, missus McCaskey. Brian. You know, he's holding up the NFC championship trophy. I mean that that was That was great, and that was early in

my career. It was. It was awesome. Pat Um In nineteen eighty five, I grew up Mary at a Georgia I became a Bears fan, and you know, that's kind of the first time I understood what the Super Bowl meant and to be able to be a Chicago Bear and know we're going to go back in that fourth quarter day and then that fourth quarter we kind of knew we were going back. You know, you still got to finish the game, but you just got to truly

that's Hey, you're killing guards over here. I've never seen that. Hey, my kids are here. I don't want to seem act. You guys can't act like that at home. You've lost him. You've lost him right now? All right? That right there? Is that not a shining moment. Oh my gosh, Devin

that day, tell us about it. It was for me, it was a humble experience, you know because just going into that game, you know, I kind of listened to some of the older guys and it was like, man, d has you know charit to this moment, you know, because you know, we have guys that played ten, twelve years and never experienced this moment. And for you to be here, your rookie year and to charity, you know, see everything that's going on right now, and to be

able to make it to the super Bowl. And we knew when we played Seattle that if we beat them, the Saints, we knew it was gonna win that game. And that's the mentality we had going into this game that we knew once we got past Seattle, they weren't gonna stop. But we was automatic going to the super Bowl. Hold yeah, like like you know what has said, Seattle's game. I think I forget sometimes too how hard of a

game that was to win. It was over time. They were beating us lay right, and the defense like holds on. It comes up with stops and Hess, you know, returning kicks and Grossman hits Rashid Davis laid in overtime on a third and ten. It was a tough game to win. And then we had Drew Brees, you know, Marquise coasting Reggie Bush to do some McAllister Sean Payton, and a lot of people didn't think, you know, we could beat them.

And I remember trying to find a game of them on grass because most of their games the last part of the year were all on turf, and I watched him on grass, and I remember coming upstairs and I told my wife, I said, get ready to go to the super Bowl. They can't beat us in Soldier Field. They just can't, right, And luckily it came true. But

you know, that was two thousand and six. I think it was me and Pat's ninth year already with a ninth year in the league right around there, and you know, we were a big part of Chicago, and all of a sudden we're winning, and the snow starts coming down, right, and now I'm like, this is a movie, right, And then missus mccassie's holding her dad's trophy in her hands, and it was just unbelievable. It was. It was a surreal scene to be a part of at Soldier Field.

I know it was the same thing that happened in the sixty three Championship Games. Snow started falling. Well, you know what it's it's it's neat for us to see because to be able to have that celebration at home, in front of a stoled out stadium and everybody staying in their seats to take part of the celebration. Because earlier in the eighties, you just went into the locker room after the Super Bowl, both teams just escort left

the field and went in the locker room. There wasn't that celebrate, that lingering celebration that you could share with your teammates and share with all the people that have played an important role in you getting there, and then have him a chance to see you. And then as you saw all and wearing the hat, I mean, what better is that they'll go into the locker room with fifty year closest work at work, you know, your coharts

at work, and be able to celebrate that moment. I remember being in the locker room after that game, and I was sitting with Thomas Jones, this guy, one of my favorite players on the football team, Thomas Jones a man now and we're trying to figure out, you know, how this is gonna work, and you know, who are

you playing? Who's gonna be It's gonna be the Colts, And just seeing the awe on his face and how happy he was to be a part of this organization because his career was star crossed until that time, and he was like an offensive lineman to you guys. Really, yeah, you know, Thomas was a huge part. A guy who doesn't people knew how good he was. I don't know

what people know. How big of a part of our locker room he was, How big of a leader he was in a huddle, how he demanded he demanded professionalism from everybody, and he wanted to play hard, he wanted to win, and he always injected energy to everybody. His personality and who he was was a real big part of our team and our offense. You know, I remember telling Thomas Jones wants them. A few times. I talked him walking down the hall after one of his games.

I said, you know, Walter Payton would be proud of you. And you think about his contribution of that team, his dedication to be and prepared to be able to take and deliver the abuse of the game, and it's the same thing with Walter, and I find there's a lot of incommon with those two guys. That Walter would have been proud of Thomas Jones and his efforts. Let's talk about some other guys, because again there's great names on this team. So we'll try and take him off as

quickly as we can. Here, Ottawa Agilia, Uh, what about him? He's important on your defense? Sorry, sorry, Doza, No, no, I think away he was great. I wish he was serious. Saw him last night. His ability to take the double teams and he played that six and non technique Friller well. During that time, during that season, we had got him from Miami and oh five of my mistaken and he

fell in love with this team. It was like he had been drafted there and he blended in with us and he was again another another character, another big kid with us and just a dominant player. Rex Grossman, you know, Rex Rex was He wanted to win so bad and he wanted to be really good, and he had a lot of guts. Man. He'd sling it like he wanted to sling it. He wanted to go to Super Bowl.

He led our huddle a lot of times if you really go back and look at those playoffs, and that year he made a lot of big throws that got us into that super Bowl. And I had had a tremendous amount of respect for Rex. I thought that he had a great year from two thousand and five going all the way through two thousand and six. He was actually that year. In two thousand and six, he was the first time in my career with the Bears we had a guy start all sixteen games, and it was

just good. They have the same quarterback for the whole season. Get comfortable with one guy, and he played at a pretty damn high level that year. You touched down him, but I think he was another ideal fit for the personality and we all loved him. Rube Ruben Brown. He was a special character and no doubt about that. But you know, before he got here, he hadn't gone to eight straight Pro Bowls in Buffalo. One of the greatest

left guards to ever play the game. And the character side, he's just one of those guys that came to work every single day. Man, it didn't matter what Rubin did the night before. He was going to step on that football field and somebody was gonn getting double team day in and day out. And when you have leaders like that, they've been doing it for ten years, day in and day out. Man, it's hard not to sit there and

sit there and on and follow that guy. But when he stepped on that football field and he started yelling, somebody's about to go down. I think the thing I remember most about Rube was we used to always break it down on Space Mountain, Space Mountain, because after you win a Super Bowl, what do you do? You go to Disneyland? Right, So week one, Game one, we're going to the ship this the year Space Mountain on three

one two, three Space Mountain. Like for me, Game one, Week one, I knew we were going to the super Bowl. And that's rue. He would always say it. He would always just say it in the back of bus two. We're going to the super Bowl. We're going to the super Bowl, and the more you say it, you start believing it. And it started happening, and he was going to the ship. Yeah he was. He was a big part of it. I mean he was a He would just say it every day, We're going to the Super Bowl. Man.

As we kept winning and when we were doing obviously we did. Hey, Devin, you were kind of your own leader because it's kind of unique. You're not playing with five offensive lineman, you're not playing with four dbs. And what you were able to accomplish. Who was your influence, either on the team or it could have been somebody

outside the doors of the Chicago Bearers. I would say for me, like my locker was across from Oland though, and so you know me as a rookie, I just I paid attention to those guys and I was trying to figure out how do I become a pro, Like how do I fit in on the team, what's my part? What do I need to do to be on these guys level? And I would sit and I would watch the old lineman and how old was just that leader

where he didn't speak a lot. It was times where they would watch, don't get mad at me, the offensive line, but they would sit there and watch oldand and see what he put on for practice, and put on exact same thing. Oland would go get spattered. They all will be right behind Old again spattered. It was just that type of leader, like where he didn't say much but his present speak for a seven. So I would I would bust my tail to try to live up to

my my position that I played. I would want to make sure that when it was my time to be called that I would step up and may play. It was times where like we would win a game and you know, it would be like one or two balls, I wouldn't feel comfortably. So the next morning, like on Mondays when we had a day off, I would be out there catching for the four hundred five hundred balls and I would see Old and would come and say, Hess, what the hell are you doing out here? Like it

was been time where he said that way. I'm like, man, listen you just in my mind, I just I want to be like you guys. I want to fit in well. I Tony Medlin might have told me story, did you m You know, when you're an offensive lineman, you like old gear. You like gear that's fitted to you that you put a lot of time and break in. Now I hear that you needed everything new every game? Is that true? Yeah? Most definitely. Team man can tell you that I had to have new please every game, and

I had to win them on fast Friday. If they wasn't broken in, I wouldn't putting them all. So you know, I was everything was. I always felt you look good, you played good, you feel good. Everything had to fit right, you know. And that uh and that went over the Saints. Roun Turner called eight straight runs the Thomas Jones. He got uh sixty nine yards and a first touchdown of

the game in a sixteen nothing lead. If that could have happened in the Super Bowl and more of a dedication to the run, I think many of us believed it could have been a different outcome. Very possibly. The running game was cooking, was it not? Is everybody leaving before we answered this question, I'll answer it. Yes, Yes, we wanted to run the ball more, but you know, uh so I was all at this, although that's only as far as I'm going with that stage. I don't

want to run the ball more, that's fair. But two guys we didn't say much about yet either that had a major impact obviously Tommy Harris, Big Mike Brown, I know, I crushed him both. They couldn't play in that game. Tell us about their impact on that team, and certainly we all love both of those guys. I can't say enough about Mike b Uh. He was like that that that captain or that that second lieutenant you know Brin was you know, bron was a captain and he called

the defense closed left, close left. And Mike Brown, you know, he'd being at back big time, big time and look, I'm sorry, sorry, clothes right, clothes right. You know, Mike Mike Brown was that like he was that good assistant who saw everything. He knew his place, he knew his role. You know, whenever Brian would make a mistake, Mike b was always right there to correct him, you know. And Tommy Harris, I mean the way he came out, the

way he hit the league. Being a three technique, he was so fast, and that Tampa two defense that we had, it's built around the three technique, and in my opinion, I think that year before Tommy was hurt, he was, if not the best three technique in the league. He was so dominant and he was fast and he could run you know, and I think it we took a big blow on defense not having two of our Pro bowlers not play in the Super Bowl, and I think

I think Mike be. I don't think it's a stretch to say that if Mike b stays healthy his whole career, he's at the Hall of Fame. Severyone to putt in the jacket on with Brian Urlicker, that's how good Mike Be was. And I'll argue with anybody. I honestly feel if those two guys are healthy, Tommy Harris, like Peanut says, is the best three techniquely, I think he had nine

sacks before he gets hurt in that game. I think against the Vikings, if we have those two guys, we are wearing rings today those that's how good those two guys are. And I want I wanted to pick it back a little bit off the Mike Brown and Um telling me because I my rookie, I had the chance of sparons been in the meeting room with Mike Um.

I was a DV and I talked to Mike last night about this and I told him, like, the passion that you had for this game was incredible, you know, Mike Brown passion for the game, Like I believe he got hurt early in this mid season and we were in the meeting and we was joking around a little bit and he stood up and tears just went to flooring, and he went to talking about how we playing and

we're not living up to our expectation. We can be so much better, and the way he is playing it and looking at his face and looking at the tears running out of her face. From that moment on, I said, this guy here loves the game football so smart that the game intelligent when it comes to football, and a great athlete. All Right, we have remember that we got questions from the fans. It can bring those guys out

and before we do the sting of that loss. Does it still live with the other day, that Super Bowl loss? I still have it. That's the whole game. I've only seen my highlight of Mews stripping the ball and Devin running it back. That's about all I know about that game. I have still not watched the game to this day. I think that's what stings you the most, is like these guys deserve rings. You know that hurts that the city deserved the championship with that team. That's how good

that team was. Brian Herlocker deserves a damn ring. Lovey Smith deserves a damn ring. I think that's you lose that game. And what really pisces me off is when Peter Tilman walks in the room without a ring like that. That's what bugs me because he deserves and Berto guards and deserves a ring. Ruben Brown deserves a damn ring. That's how good a football players. That's how good that team was. But h in a word, and I won't use the word before, it sucks. It really sucks not

to lose that game. It stings all the time. I'll never forget holand you may have forgotten this, but I was on the team playing with you. Flying back. You came up to me. I was just out of the window and you said, don't worry, Joniac will be back. And that's it seems to be the time. I mean, you know, professional sports if you don't get it, but boy, you gotta taste of it. You think you're gonna be back,

and it's it's hard. You enjoy the work getting there, and then once you get there, yeah, you think that it's gonna be attainable again. But it's the most difficult league in the world to try to repeat or get back to it. And because there's so many interchangeable bodies, like you mentioned the guys that you had injured at the time, if you have those guys healthy, there is no doubt that this is Everybody up here is wearing rings from that game. And it's a sad event, but

it also kind of molds your character. That's why every one of you guys are up here. You're not up here because you're losers. You're up here because you're leaders. And that's the great thing about the effects it has on you. I got a lot better for you. That was the same thing, Wall, That was the same thing that Brian said. Though. You know, as they're you know, kneeling the ball. You know we're in the hold of

when Brian goes he take this thing. You know that pain that it sucks at eight, remember that because we're gonna be back. Like it was just the character the leadership of us trying. He was trying to hold us, bring us together. You know, it was just terrible. They are leaders, but more importantly there bears. They're bears, all right, Questions up this ought to be good. This sot to be good. Jog your memories quickfellas. Javier from Chicago wants

to know your favorite locker room story. So step up. We got about six and a half minutes. All right, I'll just go with our We used to play dodgeball in the locker room. And it started with Brian or Locker of course, being our leader, who went to Dick Sporting Goods or whatever and brought in six to eight you know, those little rubber dodgeballs, and he lined up the launder bends across the the locker room and he said, all right, defense on this side, offense on this side.

We're playing dodgeball. And this is on a Saturday. After I walk through, when you're finally putting the you know, crossing the tes dot in the eye, everybody's gotta get focused. And all of a sudden, we're playing dodgeball. And we were right next to the coach's locker room and it is, like Olan said, ten year olds playing around and we're having a good time. I think we got a Jimminy Christmas out of Lovey Smith. When he came in there,

it wasn't happening. So he calls us in or calls a couple of guys in and says, guys, we can't do that. You know, it's time to focus for the game. So we go out and win I think forty one or whatever game it was. But we go out and have a big win. So that next Saturday, we walk in the locker room. Everybody looks at Brian, like, what are we doing. He's like, we're playing dodgeball. So we played dodgeball in the rest of the year every Saturday. Remember the soccer game we used to play. Someone bought

us soccer ball. We all thought we were soccer players, right, and somebody about the soccer ball, and we used to try to see how many kicks we could volleys or whatever. And we would count one, two, and we go in a big circle. I think we got up to like sixty or something like that, the entire locker room from one end to the other, and we got sixty and we eat once again. Little kids destroyed the locker room. I think only got mad at me because I ran up to Clyde and he had to checks and I

was like, we did it. He threw the checks with flying in the air. I was like, oh, my bad, My bad. Yeah, that's a good one. Anybody else that that takes the cake? All right? Which bears? Alum? Were you looking forward to meeting this weekend? The most Jessica and Elmhurst would like to know. You guys have met a lot of these guys before. So mine was Dick Buckets. I've never met him before, and I last night, I went total fanboy, went over there and introduced myself and

just wanted to shake his hand. You know, he's wearing his gold jacket and that's one of the most iconic bears and we've got a lot of them and that that's that's that's why I wouldn't get a picture with Dick Buckets. But I didn't. I was I was like, I was like, Ah, should I get a picture? Should I not get a picture? Can I get a picture? Is he gonna think it's weird? Should I be a fan? I don't, So I didn't. I got scared. Well, Tim and Tire interviewing with U with Dick Buckets. He referred

to him as mister Buttkiss the entire interview. The first question I asked him was did you meet Sylvester Stallone before he made Rocky because in you look in that movie when the dog was named but kiss. I mean, I mean, what spells out great And it's better than being, you know, having a bulldog named after that movie. And he says, yeah, he ran into him and asked him where his residuals were. Well, how flattering is it when

young guys come up to you? I mean, Devin, you get it all the time, Peanut Oland, I'm certain you guys do. Young guys coming up to you and admiring you your abilities and your accomplishments. Oh, it's it's an honor, you know. Um, Like you say, we at one one point of time within their shoes, you knowing to see guys you know that come up to me and say, hey, I was playing with you when you on a video game where you played for the NCAA. You know, it

makes you feel old, you know. But at the same time, yeah, guess and I was a fan of yours when I was in the fifth grade and they in the NFL, and not like you're thinking about fifth day, it was in the fifth grade. So how like, you know, it makes feel old, but at the same time, it's it's a humbling spirit, you know. They have guys to look up to, you like my my guy that I wanted to look for was Jimmy Man, and I just wanted because I only seen the wild side of him, you know.

So when I seen him with his wife, I was like, you know, let me see do he had that that that husband life? Because I always seen him as a party guy, you know. So when I seen him with his wife, hug and the kids, and I said, Okay, he has a sense of side of life, you know.

So I mean for me, my guy with Jimmy Man, but for the kids, younger guys growing up, you know, it's an honor, you know, Devin, I remember being in the film room once and you were making a copy of your high school All Star game you played in. You've always been surrounded by greatness and All Star players and players that live up to but you've always been one of the best. And it was interesting to see some of the names that you were pointing out that

had great football accomplishments. Most definitely, you know, it's um you know, growing up in Florida, it's night like Chicago. We we have football year round, so you know, you get a lot of talent in that area. You know, and guys, I played with a h in high school All Star game. You know, thirty four percent of the guys made it to the NFL, you know, so and and became great players and NFL Pro Bowlers and Super

Bowlers and stuff like that. So you know, for me to grow up in that type of environment, it's just like playing for the Bearls in two thousand and six, like you had to carry your weight, you get left behind, all right, you're we got about a minute to go here. So the twenty nineteen Bears off of their playoffs season, as guys who were in summer position oh five, you got to oh six, you go to the Super Bowl? What advice do you have for the twenty nineteen Bears?

And how do you feel about the direction under man Nagge? Many of you guys your analysts in the media now and you've done it. You're a part of it. Do you think we'll start with on there? They're they're on the verge right up being very very good. They're close and their defense is really really good. And I guess the only advice you'd give a team like that is pay attention to the details, because that's what wins and loses.

Pay attention to the little things, pay attention to your locker room culture, make sure everybody's always moving in the right direction, and everything's always about winning and nothing else. We just want to be here, We want to win, and make sure you're doing all the little things it takes to win, because that's really what gets you to

the Super Bowl. Roberto, I think no question. I mean when you look at what they're doing, showing up for work every single day, and Mannage is saying that culture of the right way is the only way, and I think that's what Ollen is talking about, is showing up and doing the little things, the little details. You gotta taste of it now to get them to get that big chunk. You gotta go out there and do it and pay and pay the price. Hit the reset button.

Last year was last year. Don't think you're gonna go back just because what you did last year. You gotta redo that. You gotta target on your back and everyone's gonna be coming for you. You gotta remember how hard it is to win twelve games. You know, it seems like it's easy because you got some big wins in there, but remember how hard that was, and then try it out working, Devin, I would say, Man, let the leaders be leaders. You have one or two, two or three

leaders on the team. Clear Mac the quarterback, continue lead the team. You know you you sold yourself how good you can be. You know. Now, let's let's put it all together. Let's come together the team, and let's work hard. Let's work even harder during the all seasons so when the season comes we can roll it in and they're fast. It's hard for teams to lose two or three games in the early season because then you get down on yourself. Start off fast, start off, start punt points on the board,

start setting teams out early. And it only comes a habit later on in the season. I say, and that's my biggest goal, to let those guys know to start fast. That way, it becomes creative habit, create a good vibe in that locked room. Later on in the season. It had become second nature. Tom great advice across the board. All right, we're out of time from ntle Garza, Charles P. N Tilman, Pat Mantale, Devin Esther and Olden Crows. Thank you guys,