Pro Football Weekly: Chicago

Oh boy, was that an ugly home opener, so we very quickly recap it and let you know what's next for the Bears with a Power Rankings of the key injuries and who steps up at those positions. Clarence Hill (@clarencehilljr), Cowboys beat writer for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram joins us in our 'Behind Enemy Lines' segment to preview Bears-Cowboys on Sunday night, while also telling a few Jerry Jones stories (10:07). We take time away from the Bears to discuss scary movies and this week's top TV shows (29:43) before wrapping up shop with our picks for Sunday's game (32:04).

Our loyal listeners know we give the briefest of recaps on the Podcast, so we quickly discuss the opener in Houston and the performances of Kevin White (not so great) and Leonard Floyd (pretty decent). (3:30) It's then on to the Eagles, and Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) from Philly Voice joins us for our 'Behind Enemy Lines' segment to break down Bears-Eagles (9:45). Jimmy talks Carson Wentz, Doug Pederson, the Eagles' defense and his cartoons on Twitter. Then Kevin and John preview Monday night's game from the Bears' perspective. Is it a must-win? We finish the show with our picks (40:15), and even some MarioKart discussion.

The NFL season is finally here! We preview Week One, Bears vs. Texans and go 'Behind Enemy Lines' with the voice of the Texans Marc Vandermeer (@TexansVoice) (8:00) to learn about the Bears' opponent. Vandermeer talks about Jadeveon Clowney, Brock Osweiler and has restaurant recommendations for Chicagoans making the trip. Then Kevin and Mark Potash of the Chicago Sun-Times (@MarkPotash) recap the flurry of roster moves this past weekend (24:4). Josh Sitton added? Robbie Gould released? Pernell McPhee on PUP? The guys wrap up the show with their picks for the Bears' season opener.

We're almost there. The regular season is so close! To get you set for the 2016 Bears season, Kevin interviews NFL Network analyst and Move the Sticks podcast host (and former NFL scout) Daniel Jeremiah, who gives his insight on Leonard Floyd and Kevin White, and Jay Cutler and the Bears' future at quarterback. Kevin then does his best to project who stays and who goes this weekend when the Bears make roster moves to get to 53 players.

The Bears are back from their week in Foxborough, and our podcast is back to analyze what we learned from the Bears' time with the Patriots. To help us do that, Patriots beat reporter for WEEI Christopher Price (@cpriceNFL) joins the podcast (2:12) to tell us about his impressions of Alshon Jeffery, Martellus Bennett, Shea McClellin, Jimmy Garoppolo and more. Kevin and John then discuss the Bears' current situation at cornerback with Kyle Fuller's injury (27:18), Jeremy Langford's big night and what's next for the Bears prior to their third preseason game.

The Bears have concluded their time in Bourbonnais and Kevin recaps the big news from training camp, losing Hroniss Grasu for the season, and what it means for Grasu and the center position. We then have player interviews from Bourbonnais with Ka'Deem Carey (07:44), who discussed his touchdown celebrations, and quarterback Brian Hoyer (20:03), who discussed Dowell Loggains and what he's learned about Jay Cutler. Kevin and the guys conclude the show with a preview of Thursday night's preseason opener against the Broncos (30:24).

We're back from Bourbonnais to recap the first five practices of Bears training camp. Who has stepped up? Who isn't injured? Kevin brings you interviews from Bears camp with inside linebacker Jerrell Freeman (3:30), tight end Zach Miller (9:05) and undrafted rookie wide receiver Kieren Duncan (18:05). Freeman talks about his favorite career tackle, Miller gives us his the secret to his hair and Duncan discussed where he gets his top-flight speed from as well as his journalism experience.We wrap up the show talking about the biggest news of the first week of camp and one final Bachelorette update.

We made it! It's finally training camp week! The Bears report to Bourbonnais on July 27 and we preview it with writer Dan Pompei (@DanPompei) of Bleacher Report and WSCR. Pompei discusses the differences in covering camp in 2016 to previous decades (9:45), previews some of the players to watch like Kevin White and Leonard Floyd (13:15), as well as position battle at safety. Dan also analyzes Alshon Jeffery's offseason (29:30) and what's to come for the top Bears receiver. Kevin then wraps up the show with #1 on 'Bear Necessities,' Jay Cutler, and gives listeners 5 unknown Bears to watch in camp (34:30). Plus, no 'Bachelorette' update this week, only Bears talk!

Summer is coming to an end in the NFL world with training camps beginning next week, so Kevin recapped the big news of the summer, or not news of the summer, with Will Brinson (@WillBrinson) of CBS Sports. They talked DeflateGate (3:45) and then Will clued us in on John Fox’s time in Carolina (12:30), what he liked about the Bears’ offseason. The guys chatted about the “Cutler Narrative” (19:30) and how fans view quarterbacks, then wrapped up with some pop culture and TV talk. We then went through our ‘Bear Necessities’, important Bears ranked 6 to 1, and of course Kevin had to give his Bachelorette update for the week.

The guys are back from a summer break to bring you another Bears Mailbag, as Kevin answers questions about the Bears' defense, including Leonard Floyd's expectations as a rookie and recent Pro Football Focus rankings of the secondary. Kevin and John go through the recent "Bear Necessities" series, counting down the most important Bears from 15 to 7 with a preview of the final 6. Of course, Kevin gives a Bachelorette update, which had some football this week! The guys finish up with some talk about Bourbonnais - including which writer is the best bags player - and about our new snapchat, bears_insider. 

We reflect on the great defensive mastermind Buddy Ryan to open this week's podcast with guest Paul Pabst (@PaulPabst), executive producer for the Dan Patrick Show. Pabst talks about the ESPN 30 for 30 on the 1985 Bears, what that team meant to him, then reflected on Matt Forte's interviews on the Dan Patrick Show, his time living in Chicago, being a Cubs fan, Chicago pizza and much more. Kevin wraps up the show by revealing Bears ranked 20 through 16 in our 'Bear Necessities' series, which fans can read at profootballweekly.com/Bears.

It's Mailbag time on the Chicago Football Podcast! Kevin answers your Bears questions about the running back depth, Vic Fangio's exotic schemes, undrafted rookies with the best chance to make the roster, the secondary and much more. We also talk about John Fox's hair, then Kevin gives a Bachelorette update and then we close up shop talking about the O.J. documentary. We cover all the bases on the CF Podcast!

It's summer vacation time! For the Bears, that is. Minicamp and the offseason program came to an end this week, and Kevin recaps the big stories (Alshon Jeffery). Kevin talks with Comcast SportsNet's Moon Mullin (@CSNMoonMullin) (8:34) about what we can glean from the past few weeks of watching the Bears in shorts, the changes in covering the team over the years and some of the position battles to watch in Bourbonnais. Then we have an interview with new defensive end Akiem Hicks (27:54), who calls himself the strongest player on the team. Kevin puts a bow on the Bears' spring practices with some Jay Cutler talk and looking ahead to Bourbonnais in six weeks.

Player interviews are back on the Chicago Football Podcast, because Kevin hit the record button! Rookie CB Kevin Peterson discusses his motivation after not getting drafted, what he’s learned at the corner spot, his affinity for Russell Westbrook and more. Then, third-year defensive tackle Will Sutton describes what he’s learned at the nose tackle position and why he’s always the first one out of the tunnel before games. Kevin and John break down the roster battles at the CB and DL positions, as well as recapping this week’s OTA. The guys conclude the show looking ahead to next week’s veteran minicamp and the return of Alshon Jeffery. Minimal ‘Bachelorette’ talk this week, we swear! 

We've got another Bears OTA to recap, but no player interview — Kevin explains why, with an apology, but to make up for it, we have Melissa Jacobs (@thefootballgirl) of SI.com as a guest (5:34) to talk about her articles on Art Briles, Ray Rice, a 22-week NFL season, as well as life being married to a Bears fan (16:51) and, most importantly, if Bears fans should root for Aaron Rodgers' brother on the Bachelorette (23:48). The guys then make fun of Kevin for his TV habits and conclude the show with a breakdown of the upcoming competition amongst the Bears running backs.

We can talk football! Well, sort of. Kevin recaps the highlights he can report from the first open OTA to the media and puts in perspective these non-padded practices in May. Then we get to know two new Bears — safety/return man Omar Bolden (7:34) talked to Kevin about his experience with Denver last season, his brand #PositiveLiving, the Lakers and even dental floss. Rookie tight end Ben Braunecker (21:41) discussed life at Harvard, his hometown of Ferdinand, Ind and explained why it's ridiculous when someone says he's "too smart" to play football. 

We got to watch some (sort of) football last weekend at Halas Hall, as Kevin recaps Bears rookie minicamp. We played an interview with new QBs coach Dave Ragone (3:15) and talked with friend of the program Pat Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times (14:15) about the quarterbacks and some of the undrafted rookies Bears fans should monitor this spring and summer. Sixth-round pick DeAndre Houston-Carson went one-on-one with Kevin discussing blocked kicks and famous William & Mary alums (36:00). Next week, OTAs begin, so stay tuned to the Chicago Football Podcast!

On Part II of our "Getting to know the rookie Bears" Podcast, we interview experts on the four remaining Bears picks. Former Georgia QB and current color commentator Eric Zeier (2:20) talks first-round pick Leonard Floyd, FloridaGators.com senior writer Scott Carter (@GatorsScott) (13:24) breaks down third-round pick Jonathan Bullard. Then two head coaches wrap up the draft — William and Mary's Jimmye Laycock discusses sixth-round pick DeAndre Houston-Carson (23:56) and Western Michigan's P.J. Fleck tells us about seventh-round pick Daniel Braverman (34:44). We wrap the show with some analysis of the 2016 draft class.

In Part I of our special 'Get to know the rookie Bears' podcast, we have 5 guests to talk about 5 of the 2016 Bears draft picks. We open with Kansas State offenisve line coach Charlie Dickey to discuss second-round pick Cody Whitehair (2:39). West Virginia play by play man Tony Caridi (@TonyCaridi) is next to talk about inside linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski (10:20). CaneSports.com writer Matt Shodell joins the podcast then to analyze safety Deon Bush (22:48). Staying in the secondary, Northern Iowa defensive backs coach Brandon Lynch gives his insight on cornerback Deiondre' Hall (33:11), and Indianapolis Star writer Zach Osterman (@ZachOsterman) concludes the show with his thoughts on running back Jordan Howard (42:51).

In our final pre-draft podcast, we get the nitty-gritty nuts and bolts on Bears targets from former NFL player and current SB Nation writer Stephen White (@sgw94). Stephen breaks down Ronnie Stanley (5:16), Jack Conklin (10:15), DeForest Buckner (13:32), A'Shawn Robinson (17:58), Shaq Lawson (20:40) and Leonard Floyd (25:37). We conclude the show with Kevin's 7-round Bears Mock Draft (34:30) and a preview of our draft coverage.