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Dan Bernstein unfiltered.
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Unfiltered on 312 Sports. It is Monday on Dan Bernstein unfiltered here on 312 Sports. You got enough 312 Sports in your. In your little YouTube window there? Yeah. Yeah, I wore this yesterday and yeah, I'm wearing it again.
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Did you wash it?
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No, it's brand new. Did you sleep in it? I only. No, I didn't. I only put it on for yesterday's game on forward progress. And I'm wearing it again today because I like it. And I want more of these to bring you all this cool 312 sports swag. I'm Dan Bernstein. That is Matt Abaticola. Today's episode is brought to you in partnership with my bookie. We're going to talk about the Bears win, the short term, the medium term, the long term, about the significance of that victory and how it happened. We'll also talk about the Cubs stubbing their toe a bit in their quest to lock down home field advantage in the wild card round of the playoffs. Also, look at their injuries and what's going on with their third baseman who made a choice yesterday.
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Yep.
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Ari Levy is going to join us. He is the owner of the Wiener Circle and he found himself in a little situation because Ari promised that his restaurant would be giving away free hot dogs tomorrow if Caleb Williams threw for four touchdowns. Caleb Williams through for four touchdowns. So we'll see if somehow the combination of the Wiener Circle and Vienna Beef is going to be able to take care of everybody. Ari is going to join us on Dan Bernstein unfiltered and we're going to have our my bookie DBU picks.
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Yeah. When Caleb had two in the first quarter, I was like, oh. Oh, Ari.
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Hey, man, that's why you do lost like this.
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It's great for his calls.
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I guarantee you he's happy. And he. He offered today to actually Poochie or somebody else with him. And I said, let me hold a job for more than a month and a half first. Let me just make sure that I can remain employed and certainly stay away from the Federal Comedy Police because we know that they're always circling and always listening. So you must beware. I'm not going to comedy prison because of.
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Not yet. Not today. No, not today.
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Not today, damn it. Not on the autumnal equinox. I hope that today you are feeling equinox.
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Oh, is today the first day of fall?
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Yes. Equinoxy, whatever it may be, whatever your pagan rituals are, it happens to coincide tonight. With the start of Rosh Hashanah. So to all who are celebrating the new year, what are we? 5784 something. I don't, I don't. I should know what year it is, shouldn't I?
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It's 2025.
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No, look it up. Look up lunar year, what year we're in or what year we're going to. 57 85, something like that. Whatever it's been, it's old, It's a long time ago. Whatever it is. I'm looking at the Bears victory on a couple of different levels here. One would be the immediate term and what it means. We discussed a little bit of that yesterday and then looking in a. Through a different prism. Let me explain. The first being they needed to put a floor in. They needed to determine where they are in the tiers of teams. Now they're probably a Blob team. And we always talk about the NFL in terms of the size of the Blob where most teams are in the blob of middle of the pack somewhere. And eventually maybe you get enough little velocity to be one of the teams that is in a low orbit around the Blob. And the real good teams, there's a bunch of 4, 3 and O teams, some of those will probably be. Have escaped velocity to be in a distant orbit from the Blob. And then the really bad teams sink to the molten core, through the mantle, down to the molten core of the Blob of bad. The Bears are not one of those teams. That's what they established yesterday. That if you're going to whatever your win total is, whatever you said to start the year when you looked at that schedule and you do the silly win, loss, win, loss, win, loss before you know who's hurt, which is just. It's a fool's errand to do, but everybody sort of mandatory. You have to do it anyway. And whatever number you. You got to 9, 8, 7. Yesterday was one of those. It was one of the wins in the list of wins. And that's good. They played well. Ben Johnson got to do some Ben Johnsony things. It was a big raucous home crowd. It made everybody happy. And Caleb Williams did. Now that's the second level. To me, the second level is who contributed. And for the first time in a while, you can really point to the fact that in a young man's game, there were a lot of young men out there doing the things that mattered. I think Luther Burden having that kind of game was really significant. I think Colston Loveland making that play. We will find out more about his hip injury. We did see him get up kind of oddly at one point and hope that he's, he's okay. That was a big deal. Obviously, the fact that Williams did well. Big deal. That you want to see improvement in young players in the larger picture of the Bears because that's the lifeblood of your team. The performance of these guys, especially guys on rookie contracts. You love to see that because that helps you save money elsewhere when those guys are contributing. That's the formula for winning in this league. And if you're getting there, that's great. I think the play of the offensive line was terrific, especially the left side. I think that Braxton Jones, even though the plan was, we're learning, the plan was to get him out of there a little bit late in games because the quality of his play in the first two had fallen off later. And Dan Roshar was talking about maybe trying to spell him to mix some people in. They didn't have to. He held up. He was fine. Tooney was too ne. He was terrific. And so that's all good. I still think the Bears are, I mean, they're, they're not bad bad. They're not great. It's still going to be really hard with this defensive backfield of theirs. Depending on how long Gordon and Jalen Johnson are out, that's going to be a headwind.
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Yeah. And they started to get pressure on Dak Prescott late in the game. There wasn't enough early in the game. So that, that's going to be an issue when you play better teams. Now. It's interesting, Dan, because there's been a lot of talk around the Bears these, these first three games and particular on our shows forward Progress and this particular show, Dan Bernstein unfiltered. To me, if you're looking at outcomes of games this season, it's a mistake, okay? If you're, if you're really riding the emotional roller coaster of wins and losses, it's a mistake in my opinion, because the outcomes of this season do not matter. The Bears were not going to win this division. They are not going to win this division. It's not going to happen this year. They're not competing in the playoffs this year. They're just not. This year is about Ben Johnson as a first year head coach and Caleb Williams together as his quarterback. Working together in his second year and developing and growing. Now, if I told you after they drafted Caleb Williams that 20 games into his career, the head coach after the game Said, I like the way that we got the plays in and out of the huddle quicker. He did a better job of getting the plays in, getting the calls in. Not what you'd expect from the number one pick overall in the draft. Okay. But that's where we're at. I think when Ben Johnson. We've discussed this a lot, too. I think Ben Johnson got here and realized that the lift that he was going to have is heavier than he anticipated or expected getting here. And that's fine. That's fine. It's where they're at. But you cannot live and die by outcomes of games this season. It's about Caleb Williams development and Ben Johnson's growth and development as a head coach.
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I want to square that. However, I the only. I'm going to push back a little on that because I think that the Bears should be held to a higher standard. I do think that that's sort of playing into the hands where when they signed Ben Johnson went out of nowhere. Oh, boy, they got him. My first thought was make the playoffs this year. And I've had to change that a little bit in large part because of injuries, primarily because of the defensive backfield injuries. That's fair and underwhelming play from the defensive line to start. But I don't think you go out and spend the money that you spend on the offensive line to allow this to be 100% already three games in, to throw up your arms and say developmental season, that even though I don't think they're that good, I want them held to a standard where just kind of working your way through this season after last season was a complete waste.
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Complete failure, total waste.
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Utter waste of a season that they're still making up for. I don't want to meander my way through this year developmentally when. When my belief is it's a league that wants you to be good fast and gives you every chance with good drafting and development.
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Right.
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To be good fast. So get on with it. Get on with it. Get on with it. And that's why this idea. If in fact Luther Burden wants to get 100 receiving yards every week, go ahead. I'm not saying that he has to sit back and wait his turn. If you want to supplant DJ Moore out there, go ahead. Cause it sure looked like that was happening yesterday, that they said, okay, D.J. we'll give you. We'll keep you involved, we'll keep you happy. We'll keep you concentrating by giving you a few handoffs right here. And we'll find you when you're open. You know that wide open back of the end zone. Great spot. Wide open the middle of his own defense. Great spot. But if Luther Burden wants to take that, I'm not worried about who's making what money. If other people want to outplay some of those people.
A
Yeah, and I agree with that, Dan. And the expectations for me, though, are not a team as a whole. I have high expectations for Caleb Williams. I have high expectations for Ben Johnson, which is why I was critical of both of them in the first two games of this season. And I was criticized for being too critical. You can't be that critical. Give it time. You don't even know what you're seeing yet in these, in these games. That's not true. That's not accurate. It's not fair. But now to be criticized that I'm not gushing with overwhelming joy that they beat a shitty Cowboys team. Like, you can't have it both ways.
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No, I think they deserve credit for making the Cowboys look that bad.
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They certainly do.
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I really do.
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Because all the hosanna's that they want me to give them, great.
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But that was an upset. The Bears were not favored. Technically, it was an upset in that game at home.
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Technically it was.
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Yes, it was an upset. And if you looked in the Tribune, I think all of their predictions, you know, Biggs and Sean Hammond and I can't keep track of everybody that is.
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I heard a lot of guys in town pick the Cowboys and a lot pick the Bears. I mean, some pick the Bears as well, too. I picked the Cowboys.
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Yeah.
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I thought, I thought the Bears didn't have a chance after what I saw their offense the first two weeks.
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So I think the Bears deserve credit. I really do. I think it's easy. It's easy after the fact to say they beat a crappy Cowboys team, but they made them look bad.
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They made them look bad and that's great. Yeah, they deserve credit. I gave them credit last night on the post game show. I'll give them all the credit today. Congrats to Ben Johnson. I'm glad he got his first win as a head coach. That's great. I'm glad the Bears won, but I can still be critical and happy they won the game. Of course, I can still say, well, there was some past, some passes that he missed that he shouldn't miss as the number one pick in the draft. And to hear like, oh, you can't expect a perfect throw every time. Why can't I? Why can't I expect perfection. Why is that unfair? To expect better performance from my number one pick on every goddamn play? Why is that unfair of me?
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I was arguing on not arguing, but having a discussion with my dad on text last night because he was. He was being effusive about the throw to Luther Burden. And he said, wow, look, a wonderful throw. And I said, that's his job.
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Correct?
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And he said, well, it was still a great throw. And I said, he is the number one overall pick.
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He's a Heisman winner.
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He's the. He's supposed to make that throw.
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He played big boy football in college. He's supposed to make that throw. He's the number one pick. And yeah, and it's great. Diggs falls down on Rome's first touchdown and he made that throw great. I'm not going to over celebrate that. I'm not going to over celebrate Luther Burden being wide open because the quarterback and the safety sat there in their lanes and didn't move or react at all. And they were lucky that Fleet, that flea flicker got off too, because if you saw it again, Swift got hit. That's why that ball went up in the air.
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Well, either way, I'm not going to do this again because you were making fun of me yesterday.
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I wasn't making fun of you.
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Yes, you were.
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I was not Just own it.
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Oh, I got.
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I'm the first to own making fun of you. I wasn't.
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It was funny. I have no problem with it.
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I know you don't.
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I just. It's okay. You were making fun of me.
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Maybe. I don't know. I don't. And maybe subconsciously I was. Maybe that's just my default because I.
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Was overanalyzing the timing of that lob for flea flicker flip back that allowed. See, what I'm thinking is that was silly.
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Yes.
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Okay, go ahead. It's not silly. Let me make the point again.
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Go ahead, make the point again.
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If in fact Swift makes the perfect little chest pass or underhanded toss right back to him, the moment Caleb's eyes come up, his decision is more difficult. We also know, will you grant me this, that so far this year, Caleb Williams has had numerous situations where his decision making has been in between.
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Correct.
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Where that's been an issue. Open. Not open. Pull the trigger. Don't pull.
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He's threeing what he sees. And sometimes it's too late.
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Right.
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Correct.
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Or too early in this case, because I think had the flip been better and his eyes were up earlier, Burden separation is less. And it Isn't. He's not as certain to make the throw because it was a pop up back to him. By the time he caught it, it was an easier read because Burden had a little bit more time to pull away from the do defender. That's what I was saying. That's what you were making fun of and I stand by it.
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Fine. I, I'll, I'll grant you that. Okay, you can, you can have that.
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Through with this guy then.
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But I still think if, if the pitch back is better and quicker, he, he should still make that dance.
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I will also say ideally, I'm not saying I wanted to happen every time. I'm not saying it's a strategy so.
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Next time it fails. I mean, like, well, Swift didn't get hit and the throw was too quick. The timing was off.
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Yeah. Just, just. I'm not saying that it would have been ideal had it. You want to coach that. It just so happened that I thought with the players involved the player. That's been a very coachy Bears thing to say this year to refer to the player, not the cart. That's different. I think that it actually worked out well for the Bears and I'm happy about all of it. In forward progress today, we're going to get into some of these things that can be optimized because I do think when we get in the weeds a little bit, we can look at certain throws and some of the connections that are made and not made and see it through Ben Johnson's eyes a little bit about what they want and what they don't. But it was a nice win that established the Bears at least as a team in the NFL blob that is capable of beating teams that are worse than they are.
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Yeah. For me, outside of Caleb Williams. So it's Ben Johnson's development as a head coach, Caleb Williams as the quarterback, and there's three other guys for me on this roster currently that I need to see. Development from Roma, Dunes A, Luther Burden and Loveland. That's it. Because when this team does compete down the road for a Super bowl, if they get there, if that happens and works out through draft picks and free agency, better free agency, signings as well. The guys in the running back room won't. Won't be a part of this roster, in my opinion.
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Oh, no. Bad.
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Yeah.
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So, I mean, I'm still not a Swift fan. Lethargic. I don't, I don't like his vision. I don't. I was too many times.
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He's a guy. He's A guy. And if he was more than a guy, he wouldn't be here right now.
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He's an expensive.
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That simple. Yeah, he wouldn't be here if he was more than a guy, he wouldn't be here on this roster.
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But is he a Minung guy?
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And then you could go through the roster and there's a whole handful of players right now that are playing and starting that won't be a part of a, of a playoff championship roster.
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I'm just surprised that you didn't have Javon Dexter on that list because I think he should be for.
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Okay, there are, there are defensive guys that I didn't, I didn't put down. I'm looking more at offense because we have Ben Johnson here. The reason he was brought in was to make this offense what a current NFL offense looks like. That's why I'm looking at that, at that development. Of those four particular guys, you know.
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The one guy in your group chat that hits a five leg parlay week one and then you hear about it the rest of the year. Hey, remember that time I hit the parlay? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
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Why is it Bob.
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Bob's good at this, okay? Because he listens to DBU picks. It could be you. Because my bookie makes it so easy to get in on the action with college ball. NFL super contests, survivor pools, all the spreads, the player props and in game lines you could want all under one roof. And if you are new to my bookie, we have a code for you. It is DBU for Dan Bernstein, unfiltered. And any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. So you make your play. If it doesn't hit, you get it right back. When you opt in using your bet back bonus token. No better time to jump in. There's no better place to play. Football is back. You know that. And it's autumn. The equinox is here. That means everything gets more footbally. And the pumpkin spice latte has already been out for like six weeks. So you can make some money with my bookie. The Cubs got swept by the Reds and it's probably kind of a bad idea when you're trying to nail down home field advantage. Do you have all the numbers in as far as games remaining?
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I do.
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Where we're at, the magic number to get that top wild card slot is it was two. I thought it was four.
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No, it was two. And then they go on, they lose four in a row to Cincy. So like, here's the deal. So the Cubs have A three game lead on the Padres right now.
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Okay.
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For that, that fifth spot. So they're, they're the fourth seed. The Padres are the fifth seed.
B
That should be plenty. That's, that's pretty much over.
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Okay, well, listen, so you go on a four game losing streak to the, to the Reds, which no one expected. That, that by the way, got the Reds into the final playoff spot. They own the tiebreaker with the Mets. So the Reds, if the playoffs started today, the Reds are in the playoffs.
B
This is actually a fun end of the season. You look at what's going on in the, it's very fun.
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So you have the, you have the brewers, the Cubs and the Reds in right now. If the playoffs started today.
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Okay, okay.
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They, they took, so they're tied with the Mets, but they own the tiebreaker. So the Reds, so the, the Cubs, I should say the Cubs have three games with the Mets that start tomorrow and then they have three games with the Cardinals. So that's how they finish their season out. Mets, Cardinals at home, six games. The Padres who took two out of three over the White Sox over the weekend. White Sox took the first game of that series. They host Milwaukee and Arizona. Now Arizona is still competing as well too. They are one game behind Cincinnati and the Mets. So they're still in it too. They're still chasing after something where the, the Mets and the Reds are still chasing as well to trying to, to stay where, where they're at. The Reds trying to, to hold on to that final playoff spot. So you have six games to go. You're three games up on the Padres. Be like, all right, what's the big deal? They clinched a spot. Well, again, it's either home field or not. Three games and six. It's still there. It's still there, Dan. They have to go out and win games. They can't show up and shit the bed again like they did against the Reds in a four game series. They can't do it.
B
I want to figure out when you start talking about who's going to be a part of this team when it matters. Kyle Tucker went to his special guru in Florida, right?
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So it's a physical therapist he'd used before while he was with Houston.
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Okay. We don't know why his calf tightness or pain has been lingering.
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We don't know.
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They have not told us exactly what the injury is.
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They haven't. So is there something greater?
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Is it, I'd just like to know what is the injury? Is there an injury?
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They're officially saying A left calf strain, as we all know. What a strain is. A mild tear.
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Well, that's. Yeah, well, a sprain can be a tear. A strain can be anything. Strain with a T just means generally overexertion or some kind of overuse injury.
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Okay.
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Like a sprained ligament means a tear.
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Now, if. If there's something more significant going on. They haven't said that, but that's. That's where we're at. And he wasn't receiving. He wasn't getting any better with the treatment. They said that the treatment's plateaued his recovery. That's why he goes and sees the voodoo doctor in Florida now.
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You got him a voodoo doctor? Maybe I said guru. I was trying to be nice. And you've got him, like, cutting up chickens and doing Santeria rituals on him. They could be.
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Who knows? So, yeah, so that's a question there. And when. When he's going to rejoin the team? Who knows? Who knows? You got six games to get this in line.
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All right. Daniel Palencia, he was certainly the man of the clubhouse celebration.
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Yes, he was.
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Both he and Carson Kelly win the celebration award. It was. So his shoulder looked okay when he was pouring stuff over his head. I guess they're going to try to see how that is. It's obviously better than what we thought it was going to be. And Miguel Amaya looks like he's coming back to some form as well.
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Yeah. Daniel Palencia pitched two days ago, Triple A Iowa. Most of his pitches. I mean, he averaged a throwing speed of 91 or 99.
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Okay.
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I was going to say, not 91, 99. He's. He's back in Chicago. They're discussing next steps, which most possibly will be activation for Palencia. Miguel Amaya is continuing to prepare for a potential return in. Down in Arizona. So, no, no word yet on his return what that. What that might look like.
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Boys, a lot of moving parts here, let alone trying to stack up what your bullpen is going to look like. I believe starting Tuesday in this series, it's an approximation of what we said the idealized starting rotation was going to be for a playoff series where it's going to be Kate Horton followed by Matthew Boyd, and then showed him in Naga. I think we wanted to transpose Imanaga and Boyd, correct?
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Yep. So as long as he doesn't give up solo home runs, we're good.
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Well, that's just kind of what he does.
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I know. I know he does, but he needs a. He needs to give up less.
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It's one thing that we've learned.
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I mean he does give up a lot of fly balls. He's a, that's, that's what he is and that's what he's going to be. But they're working on correcting or doing something to alter that. So it's not, not as prevalent against him. And giving up those solo shots. Luckily they are just solo shots. I think the 24, 25 of the home runs have been solo shots. Great. Fine.
B
But some are going to get let's give up less at some point before the playoffs start is that they have been studying what is going on with the quote unquote rising fastball.
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Well, I saw that article, that article you sent.
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Yeah, we know fastballs don't actually rise.
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Right.
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But there is something to late carry. There is. They have measured the vertical difference between what the batter's eye thinks a fastball is going to do and where it's going to be. And that optical illusion of a ball not dropping as quickly does give it the the same effect as what one would call a rising fastball because it did that backspin does help. And it is coached, it is taught, it is measured. And Shoda Imanaga happens to be a pitcher who uses that and gets some bad swings and gets pop ups and gets swings and misses because people don't really know exactly where that ball is going to be regardless of velocity.
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And one other injury update to Ryan Brazier. He will be rejoining the team for the final homestand.
B
And speaking of missing from the team, Matt Shaw took yesterday off to attend the memorial service cum pep rally in Arizona for his friend Charlie Kirk. And again I have to be very the flashing lights are saying beware the US Federal Comedy Police. I know that the US Federal Comedy Police is here. I understand that and several people. And look, it's when you go through whatever your social media is of choice, you're gonna get the opinions that find you there about all of it. All I will say is that questions are reasonable. I think that for people on the Cubs beat, it is perfectly fair to ask questions. Now this is two games that he's taken off. We know that just sort of putting things together that the day that Charlie Kirk was shot and killed, Matt Shaw was unavailable because for what they said were personal reasons. And I don't know the extent that he's a personal friend as long as it's pursuant to the Cubs rules on bereavement. And if this is something he is allowed to do and the Cubs allowed him to do he can do that. I also think that it is fair game for anyone on the Cubs beat if interested. If there is that curiosity there. And I don't know if the curiosity is there. I don't know if the fans would want to know which particular statements or which particular beliefs of his friend are important to him. Does he agree with or disagree with. If people want to know that, I think it's completely fair to ask those questions.
A
Yeah, no, I agree with you. I don't think that will probably take place, though. I think baseball will stay the main topic of questions and conversation. But, you know, we'll see.
B
But if the Cubs say it's going to, it doesn't mean that reporters have to. Must follow that. And I think that now that, that this has become public and fans like to know aspects about the players for whom they root. I think the bigger issue with Matt Shaw is he's got a hit.
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His bat. Yeah, that's. That's the biggest issue right there.
B
He's got a hit and he's not. And it appears, based on the analysis that Northside Baseball has done, graphing what he's doing with his swing, that he took that brief little spasm of competence where he was moving his contact point out in front of the plate, becoming a pure sellout pull hitter. And that's been overdone. Now he's gotten a little bump out of that and now the swing and miss and is up. The success is way down with that approach. And the advice would be it's probably time to let the ball get a little deeper in your swing to go back to thinking about using all of the field rather than just selling out for early contact point and elevation and power. Attack the ball a little bit differently because right now the Cubs have to consider, just be entirely. Don't get me wrong, entirely because of his significant drop in offense of going with somebody else at that position. You cannot have another automatic out in this lineup right now that is struggling to score.
A
Yeah. And it's hard with how good his glove is. I mean, he is exceptional, exceptional out in the field. But yeah, that. That offense is really, really a negative spot. Like you said, you just can't have that, that automatic out. Finishing up the, the baseball picture, though, the playoff picture on the AL finally have a team that clinched a birth in Toronto. They're two games up on the Yankees in the division. Cleveland is one game up. Detroit is one game up.
B
Cleveland, they're sweating it in Detroit right now.
A
They are. They're a game up on Cleveland Seattle with a huge sweep over Houston. They're now three games up on top of the AL west in the playoffs. The wild card, the Yankees on top. Red Sox are one game behind. So hopefully we're going to get that division around. Matchup. Yankees, Red Sox. Now Cleveland has overtaken Houston because they own the tiebreaker. They're tied right now. So Houston not even in the playoff picture as of today, if it were to start today. So it's Toronto, Detroit, Seattle, Yankees, Boston, Cleveland.
B
And how long is your Don Alvarez out with this ankle injury that happened when he was crossing the plate? Because that, you know, you take that bat out of that lineup and I.
A
Don'T know exact date, but I thought it was not good. Not good was the prediction.
B
Yeah. So yeah, this is fun. This is, it's nice to have. I didn't think this was going to happen quite the way it did and you never do. You never see it coming. But having meaningful end of season games is supposed to be the point. And once the playoffs expand and they will expand further and it's going to take away some of the meaning, a lot of the meaning of the 162. But this is a nice little balance. I've gotten used to the way the playoffs are now and it's good to have some games that have you paying attention to what's going on across the league, especially for younger fans to start to understand how interrelated some of this stuff is. It's enjoyable.
A
So here's what they're saying about him. They're classifying as, this is a very good medical term, pretty significant ankle sprain. But they are not ruling out a return before the regular season ends, which to me says it's going to be really, really, really tight. That that may not happen. Hopefully they can get in the playoffs without him, keep a spot and then get him for that divisional series.
B
All he's got to do is be able to swing a bat though. Yeah, I mean that's just. I don't know how. What it's doing to the actual swing. That's what I wonder about.
A
The same thing about Kyle Tucker.
B
Exactly the same thing. What can, can you just barrel up something up and get to first base or mince around the bases once the ball is over the fence?
A
Just don't sashay around the bases will be fine.
B
Oh, you can't do that. It's bad things, bad connotations. Can you flounce? Can you say what was the other RuPaul? Sachet.
A
Flounces. Fine. Sachet. Not so much.
B
What was the other. What Was the other? RuPaul sachet. Shantay. Was that the word he used?
A
I couldn't tell you. What. What show was that? Was that.
B
No root. Not our shows. This is the root.
A
Oh, he wasn't a song. Oh, Oh, I have no big song.
B
Sashay.
A
Because RuPaul was never on Project Runway.
B
No, right. RuPaul was on Drag Race, right?
A
Oh, that's RuPaul's Drag Race.
B
Yes, it's his Drag Race. Okay, okay. I'm just. I think it was Shantay.
A
Can you.
B
Can you shantay around the bases?
A
I think sashay is fine.
B
Or is that from enchante? Like enchanted? I don't know.
A
I don't know. You're just making up movements.
B
I'm not making up movements.
A
Stop blaming RuPaul for your made up words.
B
It's all RuPaul's fault that Kyle Tucker is hurt.
A
Hey, so I'm almost done with the. The Netflix documentary Jerry Jones the Gambler and His Cowboys. So it's. It's longer than I. Than I thought it was.
B
Let me ask you this. Does it make you happier that the Cowboys lost yesterday?
A
It. You know, it's. It's weird. It doesn't. It doesn't make me happier. But here's the thing. It's really enjoyable. If you like football, you'll. You would enjoy the series. And it. At a certain point, it gets to a certain point in the Cowboys evolution with Jerry Jones as the owner, that you actually start to like Jerry Jones and then you get into winning the Super Bowls and all the. Especially the Michael Irvin stuff.
B
Yeah, but does it take him then.
A
From there you take it and you. And then you start to hate Jerry Jones again. But I will tell you this. What I've learned in watching this documentary, what I've learned about Jerry Jones and what he said yesterday after their game, he talks about the Cowboys. It's because you saw number four out there today. You saw what we're capable of doing in the run game as we evolve towards the playoffs. We have to get better defensively. Certainly is what. He said that to me. Just from what I've watched. Matty Berfluse will not make the season as defensive coordinator. He will not. He's not going. Jerry Jones will walk down and fire himself.
B
He's powdered toast, man. Again.
A
He's. He's not going to make the season.
B
I've got.
A
We saw that in the first game when I tuned into the radio broadcast and the sideline reporter was, like, asked about why were there too many men on the field. Who's in charge of counting that? You've guessed it, Matt Eber flu. Like it was set up. They knew. That's the reputation. Going into game one already after a preseason.
B
Do you think I have to break into the score to get my Powdered Toast man figurine back?
A
I don't know, but if you do, I'll go with you.
B
What did they do with my. Like, I had a locker. Like, I left. And there's a. There's a locker of my personal belongings.
A
They should have been returned to you.
B
They never gave it back.
A
You have to. They have to.
B
And there's a whole bunch of my stuff. I got Yvonne Calderon, baseball.
A
Your personal belongings have to be returned to you. That. That.
B
They took them.
A
Your last day of employment. Your personal belongings are yours to be.
B
They. They never gave them back. They've got them.
A
If they didn't allow you to collect them, then they should have been sent to you.
B
They didn't allow me to use them. That's what you're supposed to do. My whole locker. Like, I've got. I had a locker. They're filled with stuff. Yeah, I had clothes and.
A
I know.
B
Books, and they never gave it back.
A
Clearly concerned because it's been. How long now?
B
I don't know. Half a year.
A
You've made how many phone calls about him?
B
None.
A
Okay. Well, I think my lawyer.
B
Ladies and gentlemen, my attorney. Thanks a lot.
A
I was on your side until I thought, well, how hard have you tried?
B
Well, you're not supposed to say. You're supposed to say. Yeah, I know. You've been trying and trying and trying. Stonewalling you at every turn. Come on, man.
A
My bad. I'll get it for you.
B
I'll take care of it.
A
I'll make a call.
B
We'll do the Tom Cruise or, like, rip.
A
Oh, go outside the building. We can go outside Prudential. All right, so let's get.
B
Climb up to the sixth floor. Like, look in there.
A
No, let's get to the roof. We'll come down. Okay, from the roof, we'll go in through a window or use one of those special laser guns. And we'll use a big suction cup to take out the piece of glass.
B
Right. And we'll go through right by the Golden Tea Machine.
A
Fine.
B
And I'll go in and get my stuff in.
A
And we're taking the Golden Tea Machine, too.
B
All right. I just. I just want the powdered toast man. I want the figurine back.
A
All right. You've seriously had a whole locker full of personal belongings?
B
Yeah.
A
Okay.
B
I mean, nothing. It was usually stuff that like got sent to me and I was. And I could. Didn't have the heart to throw away. Like the people had sent me their books about their Cubs fandom. I wrote a.
A
Like you really care about that.
B
I wrote a self published book about my Cubs fandom.
A
Hey, stop making fun of my books.
B
I always felt bad, you know, so.
A
My Year with Mike Quaddy. Have you read that yet?
B
I've not read My Year with Mike Quaddy. I don't think Mike Quaddy's read it yet. But it was always like, my grandfather loved the Cubs and now he's dead and I went to his grave and the Cubs won and he's still dead and all this stuff.
A
Still loves the Cubs, right?
B
He still loves the Cubs even though he's dead. It was always something like that.
A
You know, I saw. I saw a really funny video today on my walk over to the. To the office here today. And yes, it was about. Ever since the Cubs won the World Series. It tore like a.
B
Like there's a big hole in the space time continuum.
A
Yes. And everything's all gone to shit now because of it.
B
Oh, it's like, it's not wrong. It's like Donnie Darko or what is it Back to the Future two, when Biff ends up being in charge of everything. Bet on the thing.
A
Yes.
B
And it's.
A
That's what it is. It's all the Cubs fault.
B
Okay, fine. Well, as long as they can pull things back together.
A
But if you, if you do go to a Cubs game, where do you eat?
B
Where do I eat?
A
Yes.
B
When I go to a Cubs game. Well, I. I eat at Wieners Circle.
A
Well, you better, mister.
B
I mean, because even if I don't go to a Cubs game, I can eat there. Like I said, I used to live right there. And you used to live there at Wieners Circle. No, I lived at Clark and Deming. My first apartment in Chicago was at Clark and Deming. And I always worked late because I was covering the Bears and covering the Bulls. Especially the Bulls. And I get home late and it.
A
Was always, you're making this business, mister.
B
You're never gonna make it. And Wiener Circle was open, so I would go there and my favorite thing, I would get a. A char burger and sometimes a char dog and cheese fries, because that was my thing. And meanwhile, Wiener Circle's got some work to do. And I think they're trying to get this figured out at the moment. So joining us right now on Dan Bernstein Unfiltered is Ari Levy. He is the owner of Wiener's Circle in Chicago. Ari, thank you for joining dbu. How are you?
C
Doing great. Thanks for having me.
B
Yeah, doing great.
C
Scrambling. Scrambling for tomorrow. Got a lot to figure out.
B
Okay, so how do we figure this out? Is Vienna Beef going to do you solid? Are you looking for a little bit of help here when it comes to what is an increasingly expensive product?
C
I think so. Tim o', Brien, if you're listening, we could use the help. That's the CEO of Vienna or Fred Markoff who's our rep. Great people. And we priced it out at about a 5% chance and tried to motivate Caleb and the Bears and happy that we. That we did so. Not going to take credit for the victory but you know, which is having fun and yeah, trying to figure out how, how we can get enough hot dogs today. That's the reason we did it for Tuesday rather than Monday because the. You have a special, special delivery at some point today to prep for tomorrow. And I think, I think both Vienna and Rosen's buns are going to come through with some free.
A
There we go.
B
Nice. So tell us exactly how is it going to work if somebody is listening right now? Wait a second. I could, I'd love to get in line for one of these free hot dogs. What is, how does one avail themselves of this terrific opportunity and your generosity?
C
So it's a one free hot dog per person and you know, we hopefully ordering enough that it should last until the late hours, but it'll be, you know, for first come, first serve and yeah, one per person. All the other menu items will be for sale like normal, but hoping, you know, hoping, hoping that. Hoping to give one away to everyone. So just trying to support the community.
A
So Ari, what was the, the. The genesis behind this? Why do it? And then as you're watching the game yesterday, Caleb has two touchdowns in the first quarter. What's going through your brain?
C
I was hoping it happened frankly, both as a Bears fan and just for the fun publicity of it all. You know, it's the least we can do to support the Bears and the community. The genesis of it was we saw a tweet before Thursday Night Football that said it went viral. It said if Ali Gordon, who's the biggest, the backup running back on, on the Dolphins, if he has a touchdown tonight, I'm going to call my ex girlfriend who's about to get married and tell her that I love her. I don't know. It was some. Some random Twitter account, and so. And then saw another one that said, if Dalton Kincaid gets two touchdowns, which he also did. You know, I can't remember what they said they would do, but we're like, let's. Let's get in on the action, do something that's somewhat improbable, but fun and. But also achievable. And, you know, thought. Thought it might rain a little bit yesterday. Knew that the Dallas defense was pretty porous, to your point, about Eber flutes and. But their personnel also, so, you know, thought it was. There was a chance and. And they did it. So we're just happy to get in on the action.
B
Well, I thought it was great that Caleb actually made mention of it when the question arose. He's like, yeah, I. I know. And he. He said the other. You're welcome, Chicago, for your free hot dogs. Obviously, it would be great if we could get a moment where the Bears quarterback responsible for it could show up and get his free hot dog. Is it. And Tuesday's their off day, so that's.
A
To me.
C
I didn't know. That's great. If anyone knows his manager, please, please reach out to them. We sent him a message on Instagram, and that would be amazing if he showed up. But that was the highlight of the whole thing, was the press conference where the guy. The reporter, asked him a question, and his response was just. That was great.
B
I want the record to reflect that you were kind enough to offer to bring along some of your perhaps more notable staff members as a part of this appearance today. I'm thinking I need to hold a job for more than a few weeks before I take on that kind of risk, and especially now with the Federal Comedy Police out circling and there's a special dispatch. There's an actual special Federal Comedy Police unit that is. They just march right out in front here, waiting.
A
Waiting for you. I don't think comedy would have been the concern. And swearing is okay, so we would have been fine.
B
I don't know.
A
They're gonna. We would have been fine.
B
They might come.
C
Maybe some nudity. Yeah, it's. You never know. You never know. Sometimes they make me do the lights for the chocolate shake. So, you know, it's. It's a little. Always a little surprising when you're there.
B
What do you mean they make you do it? That is, you.
C
I think you just gotta flick them on and off.
B
Yeah, you're. I think you should be honored to do it. What is. What's your order when. When you. Depending on the circumstances. If it's. If you're a typical Wiener Circle customer, it's. I don't know. I mean, I know that we've had some, you know, some food there and that you just sort of covered the table with everything. But if you have to say, look, this. Your. Your absolute go to last meal.
C
Last meal. I would just. Just a Chicago style char dog with the sport peppers and all the toppings or the cheddar burger. Our cheese is not Merck's. I like to say it's like the source farm. It's what crude oil is to gasoline. Verne's cheddar is to Merck's cheddar. It's the refined or the unrefined. It's the crude oil version. Anything with the cheese. But then, embarrassingly, I'm not a vegetarian, but what I get there typically is I really like the beyond burger with mustard and grilled onions. And I think it tastes really good. But. But you know, the classic is the Chicago style char dog, which would probably be my last meal, and the French and the cheese fries.
A
So, Ari, if there are, you know, Bears fans out there that are in the suburbs that have, you know, maybe they don't get into the city. They've never been to Wiener Circle before. Why is it important for a Chicagoan to get out there to see you guys? And why is it important for you to be an important part of the community?
C
You know, it's just in this difficult times, it's just fun to have a light source of comedy. You're right. Comedy has been canceled in a lot of ways.
A
Just be careful.
C
Not much about what we. What we talk about. We've tried to be, you know, equal opportunity roasters, but, you know, people will label us and we've.
B
It's.
C
It's. It's. But we're just trying to try to have fun. Yeah. Be the sort a voice of the communities. Say things that are. That other people might be thinking that they're. They're too afraid to say and to just have. Yeah. Fun, fun promotions like this dress up for Halloween. You know, have fun with the likes of Ed Sheeran and Jason Kelsey and other. Other. And Marshawn lynch was probably my favorite hour there ever. Just have. Have those people in and laugh. I mean, like I always. I'd like to say it's a non for profit that pays in laughter. And you know, laughter for me and I think for a lot of people is among the most underrated. Underrated things in life. And so just trying to bring, bring a, bring that sort of energy to the community.
B
Here's to more of that and good luck with this nice fun little bears supporting loss leader. Enjoy.
C
Thank you. Free Danny, Free Bernstein already.
A
Here we are. All right, Ari, thanks. Take care. All right.
B
That is Ari Levy, the owner of Wiener Circle.
A
That's fun. That's fun. That's fun what they do. And if you're, you know, even if you're, if you've been in Chicago your whole life, you may not, you may, you may be in the suburbs, you may not be very familiar with Wiener's Circle. You've never gotten out there. You have to do it. You have to go one time just to experience the whole thing. It really is.
B
I have a special date today at 3 o'.
A
Clock.
B
You know my. I have a special date. I'm celebrating the autumnal equinox. You know who's coming over to my house?
A
I have no idea.
B
Russ Armstrong.
A
Oh, that was tomorrow. That's today.
B
Oh, Russ is coming over.
A
I thought Russ was coming over tomorrow.
B
Russ is coming over today. And the reason I'm thinking of Russ is because here on the autumnal equinox, it means that it's gonna get cold. And you know what room in my house gets really cold? The bedroom. For whatever reason, when it's cold out, we get, we're. And I, you know, it's just, it's not so much that it's the temperature that bothers me. It's every time I hear the heat come on. And also actually every time I hear the air conditioning come on. Cause the insulation in that room is bad. Cause the windows are. Because we've never swapped out the original builders windows for Russ's windows. You know what? We are changing that. The owner of Chicago Window Guys, Russ Armstrong is coming out today. Maybe you want the same thing. Maybe you need a couple of rooms done or just the basement area. Sometimes if you have a newborn and you've got the crib in that room, it's a really good thing to get a little better climate control there. I know that's something we went through at our old place. And it's important to know that good windows not only can save you a lot of money, but. But they can just make everything easier on you. And you're messing with the thermostat a whole lot less. Russ's windows have a lifetime guarantee with parts and labor. So even if your kid throws a baseball through it, Russell replace it absolutely free. His factory's Right here in Chicago. He custom makes the windows. There's no third party labor involved in installation. It's all his guys doing it. 847-302-9171 check out the five star reviews. Chicagowindowguys.com so I mentioned to Beth, I said, hey, don't forget we need to clean up room. Cause Russ is coming over in the bedroom today. So then I think, well, what do I have to put away? Is there anything in the bedroom that's gonna be embarrassing? So you know the guy in the gimp suit that I keep in the chest.
A
Yes.
B
That occasionally I hang him from the ceiling and he makes all those weird gibbering noises.
A
Yes.
B
I locked him in the giant trunk there. So he might be kind of like rattling around inside when Russ is there.
A
Just let Russ know so he's not frightened.
B
Yeah, no, I know. But I don't think he's gonna get out. And I don't. They haven't really. Because you know what? The comedy police don't care. It's really. I'm not worried about the actual police knowing that I've got the guy trapped in a trunk in the bedroom. So as long as the comedy police aren't, you know, aren't there, I'm probably okay. So do I need. I can leave the mirrors on the ceiling, the pink champagne on ice, all that. We're probably still good. Okay. Just making sure. 847-302-9171. And check out Russ reviews at Chicago Window. Guys.
A
I guess it depends what Russ is expecting from you today.
B
He doesn't expect much from me.
A
Okay, well, then you probably can take the mirrors down and the pink champagne.
B
Yeah, he know. I think he knows better.
A
You don't need a stack of quarters for the vibrating bed?
B
No, it's free.
A
They.
B
When they put it in, they took that part out. It's like when you have a pinball machine in your house.
A
You just. Okay.
B
You can just add credits. Yeah, yeah, it's same deal.
A
Hey, I saw this earlier today. Kevin Fishbane on his Twitter. The Cowboys only had one QB hit against the Bears yesterday. The fewest the Bears have allowed in a game since week 16 of 2023. It was only the fourth game since 2013. The Bears had zero turnovers and allowed zero sacks.
B
Wow. Good job.
A
Yeah. Isn't that crazy?
B
Yeah. Good job, Bears.
A
One, one. One final note on Bears. On the Bears game itself, when the Bears were at fourth and goal right before the past to DJ Moore.
B
Right.
A
On that long drive.
B
Right.
A
Why are we still telling the crowd to quiet down on fourth down at.
B
Home because we're stupid, okay? Because people are dumb, okay? That's always the answer.
A
Like why. Why is that still happening?
B
Because people are still dumb.
A
Hey fans, quiet down so the offense can make a play. We. Please, quiet.
B
Just let them get the call in so DJ Moore can be wide open. Not anybody within 30ft of him.
A
You got him? You got him? What about him?
B
Forgot him. I. I got a little too shy, shallow here and he got behind me and then.
A
But let's, let's just be aware of. Of the, of the down and the situation and we don't need players to keep telling us to stop. Stop being loud.
B
If you're waiting for Sunday to start betting, you're missing half the fun and half the money. Because college football is already cooking upsets, blowouts, wild covers. Maddie's guy, Diego Pavia. 4 and oh, let's go.
A
4 and oh, let's go man.
B
And yeah. Tulane kind of took it in the old right there. I think that's not fun. My bookie lets you hit it all. Game lines, player props and more. Everything you need before the pros even kick off. So when Sunday's here, you're already up because you won all the college stuff. My bookie's got it all under one roof. You can win big on the NFL super contest and survivor pools. If you're new to my bookie, use the code. It's DBU and any bet you choose up to $500 is fully covered. You make your play. If it doesn't hit, you get it right back. When you opt in using the bet back bonus token. It's my bookie. Where betters win together. Bragging's good, but cashing in is better.
A
Yeah. Vanderbilt with the 70 to 21 win over Georgia State. Pavia 18 of 24, 245 yards, a touchdown. Rushed for 86 with another touchdown. It was just. It was unbelievable. 70 to 21 was the final for the Vanderbilt Commodores to go 4 0, baby. And they're going to climb up that, that those rankings as well too.
B
It is time now for DBU picks presented by my bookie. You can lock in your picks now with my bookie bet on anything, anywhere, anytime. Matt Abaticola, you start.
A
You know I gave you a parlay issue that hit too. Hope you hope you did it. It was the Eagles minus three, the Commanders minus three and a half even without Jaden Daniels. They both win those games. And the Eagles Rams game was the one where there Was a blocked field goal and a few.
B
Fatty McFaddy with the block field goal.
A
The one with the fatty McFaddy that ran it back though. Yeah, but there was six. Five or six.
B
He looked after.
A
Yeah, he did. He looked. What did you say that next gen stats.
B
Yeah, he's. It's like the fastest a 300 pounder has moved in the measurable era.
A
Yeah. If someone was even chasing him, I don't think they would have caught him. I mean, he was flying down the.
B
Field and what do you do when you catch him?
A
Hold on. What do you go for the ride?
B
What do you do?
A
So I gave you a parlay. That pit that hit yesterday, the Eagles minus three commanders minus three and a half. Tonight we're looking at Monday night football, Lions at the Ravens. We're going to take the points with the Lions plus four and a half and then we are going over the 53 and a half. That's going to hit pretty easy. So I'm taking the Lions plus four and a half and the over at 53 and a half.
B
I missed my parlay that I gave you last week by a mere 12 yards. We got that one 30 something yard completion to Colston Loveland. So that put that over. I thought after the 10 yards that Cole Comet got on the touchdown, all he needed was another 12. And it never came because the Bears were able to run the ball because they were leading. So we didn't have. There was. There was one where he was open and it was thrown instead to Zacchaeus. So I was like, oh, there it was. There was. There was my chance. But I'm going to give you another receiving prop for tonight's game and it's because I like saying his name. I noticed that Isaac Tesla has an over under receiving yardage of 13.5 yards.
A
This needs one catch.
B
And looking at his averages, can Isaac Tislaw get one catch? I say yes. So I can say his Isaac Tislaw.
A
As long as you say it like that for the rest of the season.
B
Yes, we're good to go. I'm betting on him. I'm betting on my guy. There's too many A's. Too many A's, I, S, A, A, C, T, E, S, L, aa. That man's got. He's got a lot of A's.
A
So he has. So it's 13 and a half yards.
B
Yep.
A
That's it.
B
That's it.
A
Okay.
B
But he doesn't play all that much and it needs one catch. So it depends where you are in the game. It's gonna be a tight game is your opponent's really good.
A
He'll get it.
B
Just get that one. Whatever you got to do. So that's what when he's in the game, throw it to him. Throw it to Isaac Tesla. What?
A
Nothing.
B
What?
A
It's I mean it's the name is one thing, it's the face that goes with it is another. When you say it.
B
DBU picks are presented by my bookie. Lock in your picks now with my bookie. Bet on anything, anywhere, anytime. And if you want a deep dive into not only the Bears but the NFL as well, we've got that coming your way today as well with forward progress. Thanks to everybody who joined the little post game thing that we do yesterday that was always terrific fun. Thanks to Ari Levy for joining us today on DBU and we will catch you tomorrow.
A
Dan Bernstein, unfiltered unfiltered on 312 sports.
Podcast: Dan Bernstein Unfiltered
Host: Dan Bernstein with Matt Abbatacola
Date: September 22, 2025
Episode Theme: The Chicago Bears’ upset win over the Cowboys, player development, Cubs playoff drama, and a local hot dog giveaway after Caleb Williams’ stellar game.
This episode is a classic mix of Chicago sports passion and sharp analysis, centering on the Chicago Bears' unexpected win over the Dallas Cowboys. Dan and Matt dissect the win's significance both short- and long-term, debate reasonable expectations for this Bears season, and spotlight key player and coaching performances. They also cover the Cubs’ late-season stumble in the playoff race, discuss key injuries, and welcome Ari Levy, owner of the famed Wiener Circle, to talk about their Bears-inspired hot dog giveaway. Plenty of the show’s trademark banter, irreverence, and a steady stream of memorable one-liners keep things lively.
Timestamps: [02:53]–[11:56]
Dan Bernstein frames the win as a "floor-setting" moment:
Player development as the main storyline for 2025:
Realistic expectations and accountability:
On the “NFL Blob” and Tiering:
Timestamps: [10:01]–[14:19]
High standards for Williams and Ben Johnson:
Breakdown of a notable play:
Timestamps: [15:34]–[16:50]
Timestamps: [17:00]–[27:33]
Cubs stumble—urgent need for wins:
Injury concerns:
Performance struggles and tough personnel questions:
Timestamps: [36:06]–[43:23]
The origins and logistics of the giveaway:
Why do these fun Chicago stunts?
Why Wiener Circle matters:
Timestamps: Spread throughout, highlights noted below
Funniest recurring motif:
Quotable Banter:
Timestamps: [27:33]–[29:49]
Timestamps: [49:01]–[52:09]
“They needed to put a floor in. They needed to determine where they are in the tiers of teams. Now they're probably a Blob team…”
—Dan [03:00]
“If you're really riding the emotional roller coaster of wins and losses, it's a mistake…this year is about Ben Johnson as a first year head coach and Caleb Williams together…developing and growing.”
—Matt [06:30]
“I want them held to a standard where just kind of working your way through this season after last season was a complete waste.”
—Dan [09:01]
"Why can't I expect perfection? Why is that unfair?”
—Matt [11:56]
“He is the number one overall pick… He is supposed to make that throw.”
—Dan [12:12]
Ari Levy (Wiener Circle):
On the crowd noise at Soldier Field:
This episode delivers everything classic “Dan Bernstein Unfiltered” – irreverent honesty, Chicago sports expertise, spirited debates about what fans should really expect from their teams, and hilarious asides. The Bears-Cowboys upset anchors the discussion, but listeners get rich perspective on what this win means going forward, why development trumps record in 2025, and how even a local business like Wiener Circle chips in to celebrate the Bears’ rare bright spot. Whether you’re a Chicago diehard, stats-head or just love great sports radio chemistry, this one’s for you.