Hype and Hope, College Football Upset of the Year, and Other NFL Week 1 Bears Bullets

Luis C. Medina Luis C. Medina
Sep 08, 2024
Sep 08, 2024
Chicago Bears team
Chicago Bears team

We have waited 245 days to see a meaningful Bears game. So what’s a few more hours?

  • If you haven’t crammed your eyeballs with enough pre-game Bears hype videos, here is one more for you spotlighting Pro Bowl cornerback Jaylon Johnson:

  • The hope is that rookie quarterback Caleb Williams becomes be the face of the franchise. And I don’t doubt that he will (if he isn’t already there at this moment despite his rookie status). But I don’t think any player on the roster better personifies what it means to be a Chicago Bears player than Jaylon Johnson. CB1 is everything you want from a Bears player: Confident, bold, fearless, skilled, and constantly playing with a chip on his shoulder. Johnson was here for the last Bears playoff team. And after signing a huge extension in the offseason, the Bears plan on Jaylon being here for the next.

  • Matt’s sharing of the hype vid where Caleb Williams gets the Michael Jordan treatment gave me chills. As it turns out, Caleb really wants to be like Mike. So much so that he even sought out MJ’s trainer, . Air Jordan’s ability to train body, mind, and soul helped him reach never-before-seen heights. There is a belief Chicago’s QB1 can do the same. The road to excellence begins in just a few hours.

  • This graphic and tweet were eye-opening:

  • Generations of football fans were fed nonsense that led to there being a stigma around having a Black quarterback. My hope is that there will come a day when those negative attitudes are completely eradicated.

  • If not for Caleb Williams, we’d be overly obsessed with Rome Odunze being set to make his Bears debut today. The Bears haven’t had a wide receiver draft pick with Odunze’s skills, versatilty, makeup, and upside. And I love that Pro Bowl receiver Keenan Allen sees a little of himself in Odunze. “He’s a little bit better than me when I came in,” Allen said . “He’s faster. He comes out of his breaks better than I did when I was that young. He looks like more polished than I was as a receiver.”

    • Rome Odunze Chicago Bears
    Bears WR Rome Odunze | © David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

    Empty stadiu𝐆m picks from the Bears beat are soooo back:

  • Seeing this tweet from The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain put some things in perspective for me. This is my 14th year writing about the Bears professionally online in some sort of capacity for some media entity. That blows my mind. As does the fact that this is Year 8 for Bleacher Nation’s Bears coverage. I’ve seen some things (and experienced so much more) in the first seven. I’m thankful for your readership and am glad you’re here with me on this journey.

  • If there is one thing we love around here, it’s when a directional school pulls off a crazy upset. And for Northern Illinois, it doesn’t get much better than knocking off Notre Dame on the road. MACtion is sooo back:

  • Let that Notre Dame loss serve as a reminder to never (ever!) overlook an opponent. I don’t care about their injury report, who’s not available, what the spread says, etc. — none of that matters when on any given day one team can take down another. Weird things can happen when that oblong-shaped pigskin hits the turf. I hope the Bears are prepared for what’s to come from a Tennessee Titans team that has been watching the Chicago football hype train operate at full speed all offseason long.

  • “Chicago has clung to a Bears team from nearly four decades ago. … And now, they hunger for more.” FOX Sports NFL’s Carmen Vitali sets the scene:

  • Who needs coffee when videos like the one above can be hooked directly to my veins?

  • It’s happening: for the Pittsburgh Steelers today. The road to Chicago’s former QB1 playing 51 percent of the Steelers’ snaps and netting the Bears a 2025 fourth-round pick begins today. Go get ’em, Justin.

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    Our hockey friends are excited for us today:

  • Dang. Chicago Sky star Angel Reese announces she will miss the remainder of the WNBA season. (BN Bulls)

  • Former Cubs all-star Ryan Dempster wants the Cubs to go big-game hunting in free agency this winter. I don’t imagine he is alone in sharing that sentiment.

    • written by

    Luis C. Medina, who you can find on Twitter at lcm1986, has been covering the Chicago Bears at Bleacher Nation since 2017. Since then, he has written about 3 head coaches, 5 play-callers, and 11 starting quarterbacks. Previously, Luis wrote about the Cubs and MLB at BN (2015-16) and worked in th⭕e Chicago Tribune sports department (2011-16). He also co-hosꦐted a Cubs postgame show, Outside the Ivy, in 2019.

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