👋 Good morning!
If he plays for the Colts on Sunday, Philip Rivers won’t be eligible for the Pro Football Hall of Fame until 2031.
He’s currently a semifinalist for the class of 2026.
He hasn’t played a snap in the NFL since January 3rd, 2021, back when the league still operated on a 16-game regular season schedule. The ol’ gunslinger still eclipsed 4,000 pass yards in his final season.
Now Rivers is 44, a grandfather, and on track to start against one of the league’s toughest defenses.
Good luck.
Wear Your Heart on Your Head!
New headwear is now in the ALLCITY Store!
psst … hats make for great stocking-stuffers
Goin’ Nowhere Slowly
It took Caleb Williams and the Bears’ passing attack six attempts to finally connect in last Sunday’s loss to the Packers. Early missteps are nothing out of the ordinary for the Bears, but a missed opportunity to capitalize on C.J. Gardner-Johnson’s 28-yard interception return felt like an early turning point in Green Bay.
How can the Bears avoid those shortcomings on Sunday against a tough, yet extremely banged-up, Browns defense?
Three-And-Out: The Bears have not scored on their first offensive possession of a game since Week 9 in Cincinnati against the Bengals.
Oddly enough, their first possessions all season have yielded just three results:
Points (5x)
Three-and-out (6x)
Turnover on downs (2x)
That doesn’t really mean a whole lot on the surface, but it’s interesting to note that the Bears haven’t punted on their first drive after picking up at least one first down.
How can the Bears start on the right foot moving forward? It could be as easy as Williams getting something easy from the jump.
Williams on his slow starts: “It’s something you can practice. But it’s also something – I keep using these analogies and references – but sometimes just seeing the first basket go in and getting your first completion and seeing the pass being caught. Whatever pass it is, whether it's a deep shot, an intermediate, short, whatever it is. Finding that first completion and getting it into your receiver's hands or tight end and letting them go to work.”
Who’s Even Available? Receiver Rome Odunze and cornerback Tyrique Stevenson practiced on Thursday in a limited capacity. Nickelback Kyler Gordon did not. Educated guess? I’d be surprised to see Gordon return, at least for the regular season.
And then there’s the Cleveland Browns’ injury report. Holy smokes.
Right guard Wyatt Teller was already ruled out for Sunday. His backup, ex-Bear Teven Jenkins, was added to the report on Thursday with an apparent shoulder injury.
Additionally, left guard Joel Bitonio, right tackle Jack Conklin, defensive tackle Mason Graham, tight end David Njoku, receiver Cedric Tillman and cornerback Denzel Ward have not practiced this week.
I said yesterday that I don’t think the Browns are good enough to be considered a trap. Maybe that’s an overconfident assessment. But the reality is that Myles Garrett can’t do it all alone.
Garrett might have some game-wrecker plays on Sunday, but the Bears, aside from the pass rush, are the better team across the board.
Oh, the pass rush. Imagine the Bears’ defense with a player of Garrett’s caliber on the edge.
Errors & Omissions: A slight correction to the Connor Bedard “on-pace-for” stats from yesterday’s newsletter (hey—at least I caught these myself).
Bedard is still on pace for 52 goals and 63 assists.
However, he’d be the first Blackhawks player to reach:
52 goals in a season since Jeremy Roenick scored 53 in 1991-92.
115 points since Denis Savard scored a franchise-record 131 in 1988-89.
Signed: The Cubs agreed to terms with left-handed reliever Hoby Milner on a one-year deal worth $3.75 million on Tuesday. Milner, 34, spent the 2024 season with the Texas Rangers, appearing in 73 games with a 3.84 ERA. His 52.7 percent groundball rate was also a career best.
Before signing with the Rangers, Milner spent four seasons with Craig Counsell and the Milwaukee Brewers, where he made 220 appearances, racking up a 3.64 ERA with 217 strikeouts.
🐻 Hoge & Jahns
12:00 on YouTube
🏀 Bulls at Hornets
6:00 on CHSN
🏒 Blackhawks at Blues
7:00 on ESPN+ & Hulu
📺 CHGO Bulls
Postgame on YouTube
📺 CHGO Blackhawks
Postgame on YouTube
Something on your mind? Rate this issue and leave a comment, question or topic to discuss!
Talk to you next week!
– P.N.
