Caleb Williams leads Chicago Bears to 10 wins and first place in the NFC North

Summary

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered

Episode: Caleb Williams Leads Chicago Bears to 10 Wins and First Place in NFC North

Date: December 15, 2025
Host: Dan Bernstein
Co-host: Matt Abbatacola
Network: 312 Sports

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Episode Overview

This episode of Dan Bernstein Unfiltered captures a rare moment: unrestrained optimism and excitement about the Chicago Bears. Bernstein and Abbatacola reflect on an unfamiliar feeling—confidence in the Bears’ dominance after quarterback Caleb Williams leads the team to a resounding win and to first place in the NFC North. The show explores Williams’ growth, offensive coordinator Ben Johnson’s impact, the Bears’ organizational culture shift, nostalgia for past eras, and Chicago sports more broadly. The tone is candid, humorous, and deeply Chicagoan, blending sharp football analysis with relatable fan emotion and playful banter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Savoring the Bears’ Dominance

[01:33] Dan Bernstein:

• Bernstein opens in disbelief at how the Bears are not just winning, but winning big—beating a weaker team by 28 as heavy favorites.
• He urges fans to “savor it” and “enjoy this,” acknowledging how foreign it feels after years of Bears futility.
• The victory brings “first world football problems”—nitpicking risk levels of spectacular touchdown throws because the team is good enough for such analysis.

Quote:

“At some point as a Bears fan, your muscle memory... has atrophied to the point where being the bully, being the good team at home and dispatching a worse team... it kind of feels weird.” (01:36)

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2. Caleb Williams Maturing as a Franchise QB

[05:46] Matt Abbatacola:

• Stat line: 17/28, 242 yards, 2 TDs, 112.5 rating, 61% completions.
• Abbatacola notes Williams looked more “comfortable, in control, and confident” than ever before, with some receiver drops hurting his stats.
• Bernstein praises Williams’ improvement in “cadences” (drawing defenders offside), play-action fakes, and situational awareness.

Quote:

“It was the most comfortable, the most in control, the most confident I saw him play the quarterback position.” (05:57 — Matt Abbatacola)
“His cadences are getting better... The play-action game—his body control is better. Yep, it's definitely getting better.” (07:00 — Dan Bernstein)

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3. Ben Johnson’s Revolutionary Offense

[03:59] Dan Bernstein:

• Johnson is continuing to unveil new packages he’s “been sitting on since training camp,” showing deep preparation and opponent-specific strategizing.
• The offense is suddenly creative: heavy on motion, under-center, and play-action—each step forward increases win probability.

Quote:

“Ben Johnson... is playing a hand of cards... saying, ‘Okay, now it's time to reveal this.’ There's some next level stuff going on.” (04:27)

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4. Trust and Swagger: The New Bears Identity

**[12:40] – [13:13] Bears fans are feeling something akin to “Christmas morning”: eagerness, anticipation, and pride in waiting for the next game.

• Both hosts draw contrasts between the Cutler, Smith, or Ditka eras and today’s “swagger” and “quiet confidence” of this Bears squad.

Quote:

“It's not the same as the swagger that this team has, the quiet confidence... the loud confidence...” (13:15 — Dan Bernstein)

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5. Game-Changing Plays & Caleb’s Unshakeable Confidence

**[13:56]–[14:16] The hosts marvel at Williams’ second TD to DJ Moore—a “10% chance” throw into double coverage.

• Williams, unbothered, says simply, “I can make any throw.”
• The Bears have become a team whose highlight plays inspire awe, not dread.

Quote:

“Caleb was given the chance to say, ‘Yeah, I got lucky on that one.’ What was his response? — ‘I can make any throw.’” (14:13)

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6. From Chronic Bears Anxiety to (Guarded) Enjoyment

Throughout the episode, Bernstein and Abbatacola openly joke about their almost instinctual pessimism as Bears fans, expecting disaster and feeling undeserving when fortune shifts.

Quote:

“Maybe all these last things have been deposits to get a little bit of this back.” (16:51 — Dan Bernstein)

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7. Ben Johnson vs. Bears Coaching History

*[19:01–24:52] Lively debate about how Ben Johnson compares to Ditka and Lovie Smith.

• Abbatacola calls Johnson “the best head coach I’ve seen in my lifetime” from a game-planning and play-calling perspective.
• Bernstein adds nuance, noting that today’s coaches have more information and tools than ever.
• Both hosts revere Ditka for his era, but see Johnson as more modern, adaptable, and ego-light.

Quote:

“...As far as a game day coach, I will put anybody up against Ben Johnson as a Bears head coach, period.” (21:31 — Matt Abbatacola)

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8. Old Scars, New Perspective

**[17:30] The hosts reflect on maturing as fans and professionals—they’re enjoying the ride more now than during previous eras, even while maintaining their critical edge and humor.

Quote:

“We were different in covering the teams, in talking about the teams. Like, we didn't enjoy the games as much as we're enjoying them now... It's more fun to talk about the games.” (17:49 — Matt Abbatacola)

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9. Playoff Outlook and Emotional Reset

• The Bears have the hardest final stretch schedule but control their destiny—no more watching the draft order or “scoreboard watching because you need help.”
• Joy mixed with a longstanding hesitation: “nothing is guaranteed yet,” but this team has earned trust.

Quote:

“This NFC is damn tough, but it's in their control. That's the best of it right now.” (05:00 — Dan Bernstein)

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10. Expanding Beyond the Bears: Bulls’ Roster Reality Check

**[48:09–54:09] The Bulls segment is introduced as “close to a reckoning,” with Bernstein expressing pessimism about the roster’s construction and calling the trade deadline a pivotal moment.

• Vucević’s recent comments are seen as a “plea for help”—talented but ill-fit.

Quote:

“The roster’s fatally flawed and this trade deadline had better matter.” (51:00 — Dan Bernstein)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (With Timestamps)

• On the post-victory Bears feeling:

  “...your muscle memory is just has atrophied to the point where being the bully... feels weird.” (01:36)

• On Williams’ impossible TD to DJ Moore:

  “That shouldn’t... That shouldn’t work... But according to Next Gen Stats, it had like a 10% chance of working.” (13:56, 14:13 — Dan Bernstein)

• On Ben Johnson compared to Ditka:

  “...He makes Eberflus look even dumber.” (19:01 — Dan Bernstein)

• On enjoying football again:

  “We're fans again, more in a different way than we were back then.” (17:49 — Matt Abbatacola)

• On habitual fan pessimism:

  “I always think that you gotta pay the piper somewhere, that something horrible's coming your way... But maybe... all these last things have been deposits to get a little bit of this back.” (16:31–16:51 — Dan Bernstein)

• On Ben Johnson’s modernity:

  “If you took Ben Johnson... and put him on the Bears in 1982... he would have figured things out... If he had all the data that's available and all the tracking information and everything a coach has at their disposal right now, sure.” (23:05 — Dan Bernstein)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamps | |---------------------------------------------------------------|--------------| | Opening: Bears’ dominance/new feelings | 01:33–03:10 | | Nitpicking a great win & “good problems” | 03:10–05:28 | | Caleb Williams’ performance and development | 05:46–10:48 | | Ben Johnson’s offensive innovation | 03:59–10:48 | | Anticipation and Bears’ new “swagger” | 12:40–13:15 | | Reflecting on the “impossible” DJ Moore touchdown | 13:56–14:16 | | Changing outlook for fans and media | 16:21–17:49 | | Bears coaching discussion: Ben Johnson vs. Ditka/Smith | 19:01–24:52 | | Roster/coaching: evolution debate | 22:44–24:52 | | Bulls’ roster struggles and coming trade deadline | 48:09–54:09 |

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Overall Tone & Style

The episode is irreverent, warm, and honest—mixing “meatball” fandom with data-driven insight and trademark Chicago sarcasm. The hosts balance skepticism with a willingness to be swept up by the Bears' unexpected resurgence. The show is deeply personal and community-oriented, with references to family, old Chicago sports memories, and local color.

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For Further Listening

• For deeper analysis of Ben Johnson’s offense & the new formation, listen to “Forward Progress,” referenced multiple times as the place for granular X’s and O’s.
• Bulls and NBA fans: tomorrow’s OWC episode will delve deeper into the team's looming crossroads.

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This summary encapsulates the major themes and tone of the episode, with memorable lines and clear segmentation, providing a rich account for those who missed the recording.

Transcript

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[A]

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered Unfiltered on 312 Sports. It's Dan Bernstein Unfiltered on 312 Sports. I'm DB. That is our senior executive producer, Matt Abaticola. And why not the Bears? You forget you're allowed. You know, at some point as a Bears fan, your muscle memory is just has atrophied to the point where being the bully, being the good team at home and dispatching a worse team and the game's over and it kind of feels weird. And the next day coming in and be like, oh, okay, like, I guess that can happen to the Bears. It's been so long. It's been so long since there's been that feeling of there's what were they? Seven and a half point favorites and they win by 28. The game's never in doubt, everybody's having fun, and in the words of Bernie Kosar, everybody goes home happy, happy, happy. And you're like, okay, I guess I don't want to use the word entitled, but I guess the Bears can do that again. And all I cared about was the reaction of the game.

[B]

They didn't.

[A]

Nobody went crazy because there's nothing decided yet. And of course this is all happening in a year where they're still only, what, a four out of five lock to make the playoffs. And four out of five dentists have, have approved the Bears performance. That last dentist. Don't, don't worry about it.

[B]

He's from Green. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

It's a Packers dentist. He doesn't even like it. But, but it's, it's okay. If it's a very strange feeling, I get it. Because the idea of being able to nitpick, you talk about first world football problems when we're questioning like the, the, the second touchdown to DJ Moore and people like, man, what a throw. And Caleb's like, yeah, I can make any throw I can. And it's like, yeah, I know, I know you can. But let's, let's talk about that. Let's look at what the percentage chance of making that throw and if we're there, if already we're sort of nitpicking the risk reward level of certain touchdown throws. That's a really good place to be. It's a really good place to be. And I'm very excited that a little later on today on forward progress, we're going to talk a lot about that formation they unveiled that apparently has been in their plan since training camp. But what it says about Ben Johnson and what it says about where this team has come offensively and how he just now is folding in an entirely new package of plays. It's not just one play, but this is, he's playing a hand of cards. And the way he's doing this about saying, okay, now it's time to reveal this, and now it's time to reveal this, there's some next level stuff going on, let alone just the, you know, the, the individual performances of everybody in the, the offensive line coming together. Savor it, savor it. Enjoy this. I don't know what's going to happen the rest of the year. They got some hard fought games coming up, man. This is, it's, they're not coasting here. This is There nothing is guaranteed yet. Nothing set. This NFC is damn tough, but it's in their control. That's the best of it right now, is you don't. You're not scoreboard watching because you need help. And we're not looking at them trying to have Lovey Smith help him get a draft pick. We're not that far removed from it. We're not that far removed being like, well, we got to watch all these last games because we got to see what other teams can win and lose and we're the draft. Who gives a about the draft right now? Who cares about the draft?

[B]

Well, what's great about it is that they are in control. And you win, you stay where you're at. It's just that simple. Go out and do your job. Go out and execute the game plan that you establish for each upcoming game. Now, the Bears do have the hardest schedule of any team in the NFL for the remaining three games.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Which is great.

[A]

Bring it.

[B]

No, I love it. I love that challenge. I know Ben Johnson loves it too. You Talk about Caleb Williams. 17 of 28, 242 yards, 8.6 average per reception, 2 touchdowns, 61% completion percentage. Still needs to get a little higher there, but I will say something on that rating of 112.5, I thought, and I said this in our postgame show, it was the most comfortable, the most in control, the most confident. I saw him play the quarterback position. I also thought that of the areas that need to be cleaned up and some of those passes that missed yesterday were not on Caleb Williams. It was the first time since the Giants game and the second time all year. I thought the receivers did more to damage his completion percentage than Caleb Williams did himself. That's significant and important to me.

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[B]

What was it?

[A]

151.

[B]

151. Okay. What's perfect?

[A]

Close enough.

[B]

Two, isn't it?

[A]

Yeah, something like that.

[B]

Like that one, two points.

[A]

And this is, and I think I mentioned this before about the numbers we've seen for to describe what Ben Johnson's doing. The just a regular pass play, simply simply pass or run. A pass play has a an expected points added of X. That goes up with taking the snap from center, that increases the epa. That goes up again when motion is added, that increases the expected points added. It goes up again when you add play action. So if you're saying it's a pass but it's under center, it comes off of motion and it comes with play action automatically. You're already more likely to win just by doing those things even before we know the result of the play that just by having those criteria describe what you're doing, you're more likely to win. And that's the basis of what Ben Johnson is doing here. And Caleb is getting all this stuff thrown at him. So sometimes you got to take these points in the season where you see something and give a compliment where it's due. I think he's getting comfortable with cadences. I do think his relationship with Drew Dahlman is part of that. And it's allowing, as we're going to talk in fine detail, as we're going to talk on forward progress. I think it's now allowing Ben Johnson to feel like he's got A base that he can start adding, that he can start saying, okay, you think you got film on us? All right. You think you got these formations down? Okay, all right.

[B]

Yeah. And he talked about from the start of the year the process having to get better. And the process has gotten better. And that process of getting the call in, receiving the call, delivering the call, breaking the huddle, getting to the line of scrimmage with time to evaluate, it's all gotten better. And that really is a progression of Caleb Williams and his ability here as an NFL quarterback. One thing that's interesting about that new formation, we'll talk about it more on forward progress, is the fact that it is brought out this late in the season, but it's shotgun, which is interesting because that's something he would have been really comfortable with earlier in the year, maybe develop more.

[A]

Isn't it, technically pistol, because you have somebody behind you.

[B]

Yeah, but he's still not under center point.

[A]

Correct.

[B]

That's the point where that's something that you could have brought in sooner if there are things off of it that he would have been more comfortable because it's more collegiate.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

But, but to do it late now and saying we're going to add this to it when you're getting better under center. I don't know.

[A]

Good point. Yeah, that, that is sort of counterintuitive to say he's developing all of these pro, pro, pro things.

[B]

So let's throw this in where he's not under center.

[A]

Yeah, it's, it's, it's interesting. Very, very good point. The. Well, wait and see on injury news, by the way, we're still trying to find out. And, and he doesn't speak till later. So if, if it's after 3 o', clock, if you're listening to this after 3 o' clock on this Monday, that I think the, the week. Some of the, the protocols for the week are messed up because they're, they're missing Saturday game. Yeah, right. Saturday night game. Oh, it's gonna be.

[B]

So I'll tell you, and I told you this yesterday when the, when the bears were up 14. Nothing. I was already looking forward to the packers game. I was like, this game was over. And I am going to have a very difficult time getting through this week waiting for Saturday. I really am good. I know it's supposed to be. Oh, no, I don't mean it in like, I'm like anxious or distracted or nervous. I'm excited, you're eager. I can't wait for my team to play again. And like, how long has it been like that? Where. Where. It's not just a fluke season. I mean, it's legitimate. This is. This is a good football team. We hope it's a good football team. And again, it doesn't mean that it'll translate to anything next year. And it doesn't. And I'm not saying that I think they're the favorites or should be to win the super bowl, because they're not, and they're still not the best team in the nfc, but this is a good football team. I'm excited about this season. I can't wait for my team to play, and I want those days to go quicker and come faster because I'm that excited about watching this team.

[A]

It is. I hate to do the obvious here, but when you start talking about the Christmas morning feeling that you might have of running downstairs, or for some of us, it's the first night of Hanukkah when you light the candles and you get to decide if you're gonna open the big present. Yeah. And for those of us who grew up with some great Bears teams who were at least junior high high school, than that feeling of we gotta wait a whole week for a Bears game.

[B]

Right. That's where we're at again.

[A]

I know, but it's been forever.

[B]

Forever. I mean, decades, dude.

[A]

Forever. Where it's like, even under Cutler, when they were good, it was exciting and it was fun and all that, but it's not. It's not the same as the swagger that this team has, the quiet confidence that they have, the loud confidence that they have. Again, like, that's the. That's a Bears quarterback saying about a pass that had. If you looked at next gen stats, the second touchdown, the one, the impossible across his body into double coverage in the back of the end zone that he makes a DJ Moore, the still shot in the Tribune.

[B]

That's a really good picture you showed me.

[A]

Oh, my God. That. Come on. Like you.

[B]

That shouldn't. That shouldn't work.

[A]

No, it's not supposed to work. But according to next gen stats, it had like a 10% chance of working. You throw it 90 times and it only is complete 10. And he was given the chance. Caleb was given the chance to say, oh, yeah, I got lucky on that one. What was his response?

[B]

I can make any pass.

[A]

I can make any throw.

[B]

Yeah, any throw.

[A]

And we know you can. We know you can.

[B]

You know what's, what's weird? Can you think of a time in a Bears game that you've Watched where there were two passes that you just didn't know the outcome of the pass.

[A]

Not like that.

[B]

For a couple seconds.

[A]

Not like that.

[B]

It happened twice.

[A]

It happened on the dart that Shador Sanders threw to Jerry Judy right off his chest. And the makeup speed and makeup angle of Jalen Johnson allowed him to be there and make a terrific play. But that was a terrific pass. Great catch. Wait, who has. Who has the ball?

[B]

Right?

[A]

What happened? And two. And this is. This is now, like, we can go back to when our TVs were all horrible. And that was then because we couldn't see anything.

[B]

Right.

[A]

You know who. You couldn't even read the numbers half.

[B]

The time, but now it's like, it's crystal clear and still can't see, like, who. Okay, who caught that ball? Wait. Wait a second. Does. Wait, does Jalen Johnson have the ball? He does have the ball. And then it was like, all right, who caught that? That was intercepted. God damn it. Why was it.

[A]

Oh, it wasn't intercepted by this guy. It was intercepted by that guy. And then I. Then I saw. See, for me, it was the DJ on the DJ Moore one. It was. His body language looked out of place. I thought, ooh, he's really pissed he didn't get a flag.

[B]

The hopping.

[A]

Yes. My first thought. My first thought was, he's looking at the back judge like, how can you not throw that flag? Oh, no. He grabbed my arm. I'm like, wait, wait. Oh, he.

[B]

Wait, why'd the ball just come out of his hand? Oh, because he caught it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What?

[A]

Yeah, I know. Hey, man, it's the same game. And usually those things, any and I.

[B]

It never goes the best way.

[A]

I know. It's so embarrassing just the way I am. Maybe kind of hardwired for that to happen and just be like, what horrible fresh hell is this? What impossible thing has befallen the Bears? Now that has never happened to anybody, and yet it's happening to the original sin of Bears fandom. What did we do to deserve this? And then the fact that it's good and you're like, oh, okay.

[B]

Yeah, it's a delayed celebration at my house, that's for sure.

[A]

Well, yeah, it's. And this. This has all been a long time coming. And, you know, I don't. I don't generally, like, deal with this kind of success. Well, when it comes to sports teams, I always think that you gotta pay the piper somewhere that something horrible's coming your way. Some. Something bad's gonna happen that the. The karmic balance is ultimately gonna restore itself. But maybe that's what that's been. Maybe these have. All. All these last things have been deposits to get a little bit of this back.

[B]

And I think for us, too, we look back, and during the Lovey Smith era, those were good football teams, really good. I mean, you had hall of Fame.

[A]

Players with an identity, right?

[B]

With an identity. And. But we were different. And I'm going to speak for both of us. We were different in covering the teams, in talking about the teams. Like, we didn't enjoy the games as much as we're enjoying them now. And I don't know if it's because we're older, if it's the fact that it's kids, if it's. If it's our kids getting older, if it's, you know, what's happened for us professionally. I left. I, you know, eight years of sales, and I come back and do this. You know, you. You know, you have what happens, and now you're here doing this.

[A]

You can say it. I got fired.

[B]

A different perspective on things, like. But we're enjoying it more, and it's just. It's more fun. It's more fun to talk about the games. Well, together. It's more fun to watch the games. It's more fun to, like, do these podcasts and react to what we're seeing because we're. We're fans again, more in a different way than we were back then.

[A]

That's true. But I'll also say this, that even when the Bears are awful, this is fun to do instead of a real job. Let me just say, I mean, no matter what, they could be awful and down to their practice squad players and being over, whatever. It's still fun.

[B]

Well, we can go back to the first two weeks of the season where we thought this was gonna be a complete train wreck.

[A]

But the other thing was, and this is what people keep telling me, and people are like, hey, man, you. You picked a really good time to launch a new Chicago sports podcast network.

[B]

Yeah, that was deliberate. We've been waiting for this.

[A]

What did you know was coming?

[B]

Well, remember five years ago, we talked and you're like, should I get fired now? Right.

[A]

I'm fired. There's going to be this guy named Ben Johnson.

[B]

I'm like, let's wait. Let's wait a little bit, Dan, because there'll be better timing down the road to plan this. It's all delivered.

[A]

All right.

[B]

I'm dealing with this.

[A]

Here's what's going, Matty. Here's what's going to happen. I'm going to catch this fish. Just wait to hear me out. And you're like, no.

[B]

All right, tell me more.

[A]

Hear me out on this one. So I'm gonna take a picture of it. But this, you're right. I definitely think there's kind of an extra.

[B]

And then you were like, I'll do this on the air. And I'll be like, no, no, no. Go to social media.

[A]

Yeah, definitely. That way it lives forever.

[B]

Yeah, let's do that then. Then we'll. We'll launch this podcast network.

[A]

Okay, but it's the. And also just to see how, for me, the jarring difference between how I felt about Matt Eberfluss and how I feel about Ben Johnson. In some ways, maybe, maybe it's not fair that he makes Eberfluss look even dumber, but it was that first press conference when they hired him, and I. Everybody. You knew it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, my God, what did they do? This guy's an idiot and he's over promoted. What is he doing here? His own team was going to fire him. Nobody else was going to hire him as a head coach. Somehow the Bears ended up hiring a gu who sounded like a high school PE teacher. Nothing against high school PE Teachers, but he.

[B]

It was great gig if you can get it. Yeah, but his.

[A]

His. The moment, the whole acronym and the hits principal and all that. And we knew.

[B]

We knew it.

[A]

Everybody knew it. Everybody knew it. And then you get this guy. Yeah, you get this guy.

[B]

I mean, you collapse in game one at home on Monday night, Then you get. You get motorboated by the Lions in game in, you know, game two. And it was like, all right, shit, maybe this guy's out over skis. Maybe he is like. Maybe he's a play caller. He's a coordinator. Is he. Is he really a head coach? And now he's easily the best head coach I've seen in my lifetime.

[A]

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Dude. What the best way. What do you mean, the best head coach you've seen in your lifetime?

[B]

From a guy who, understanding the game, calling the game, putting a game plan together.

[A]

Easy.

[B]

Who's better?

[A]

The bet.

[B]

Well, who's Ditka better? If Ditka was better, they'd have won more than one Super Bowl.

[A]

So don't tell me you're talking to me. But he. I know we've made fun football. We've made fun of Ditka a lot.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Over the years.

[B]

Was a really good coach.

[A]

He's become a cartoon character. But what he did with, with some of those teams to get them where they got. Considering everything that was going on, would.

[B]

Ben Johnson's ego ever interfere with the success of the football team?

[A]

I certainly hope not. And I don't think so.

[B]

No. Mike Ditkas did. I agree.

[A]

I agree these things, things are all true.

[B]

They should have one more.

[A]

They should have. And he told me that Ditka told.

[B]

Me one more football game.

[A]

Yes, well, more championships.

[B]

And yes, he made it, he made it about himself more times than he should have.

[A]

Yes, yes, yes, this is all true.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

But I, I don't want the. I know there are generations that only know Ditka as a logo and don't really because, you know, and his name is going to come up on forward progress today. But here's the thing, though, and his, some of his tactics.

[B]

Listen, I'm not, I'm not going to say that he wasn't a great coach. He was this guy as far as a game day coach. I will put anybody up against Ben Johnson as a Bears head coach, period.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But here's the thing too. That team from what, what Jerry Veneese did in the draft and putting that team together.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

I mean that was a Hall of Fame roster. Several spots.

[A]

Look at the drafts. Yeah.

[B]

I mean, dude, so like that, that benefited the head coach as well too, to have those guys now, now football is different then and it was more of a Neanderthal sport and you had to go out and load yourself up with a full, you know, full of stuff that wasn't, you know, that was going to make you bigger and better and faster and stronger.

[A]

They're still doing some of that.

[B]

And I mean, you had to buy into what, what that guy was selling and they all bought into it. So I mean, he was a motivator. He was a. Yeah. I mean he knew the game and the fact that he played it still holds the record for receptions of a tight end. That colcomer is now 34 receptions away. So don't like, don't come at me with all, you know, I'm talking shit about Ditka. You give me a comparison. I'm not, I don't mean you. Yeah, but you give a comparison. I'm going to say Ben Johnson is the best head coach.

[A]

I. Let me. I will also apply the same rule I generally apply to athletes. They get better over time. The average player is better every year. In every sport. The average player is better every year.

[B]

You're talking about like a replacement level player.

[A]

Correct.

[B]

And I think that Increases.

[A]

I think the average coach is also better every year. So I think if you took Ben Johnson and everything he knows about football and put him on the Bears in 1982, there would have been things and he would have figured things out and in offensive market inefficiencies and play calling things. If he had all the data that's available and all the tracking information and everything a coach has at their disposal right now, sure.

[B]

So it makes it like the technology, the understanding makes a difference. That's happened in every sport.

[A]

Just better.

[B]

Right.

[A]

They're just better at it.

[B]

Fine, I get it. But I'll still stick with it. I mean, I'll take that guy. To put a game plan together and execute something for a particular opponent on a particular Sunday. I'll take Benjamin.

[A]

Yeah, I'm not, I'm not doing a thing here. I'm not, I'm not trying to trap you in something here. But no, I, I do understand what you're saying. That there is a. To me, the word is trust. And where Lovey Smith really never earned it by anything that he said, where Lovie basically punted on a lot of the PR aspect and a lot of the frontman aspect of the job, he.

[B]

Tried to say less at every opportunity, which is fine. That's how he was.

[A]

That's a choice that Lovey was a. He spoke through the results and he never said much and that was just his way. And I get that. But part of what makes the NFL really fun is when your coach has a little bit more of a personality. It didn't have to be silly, didn't have to be goofy, but that when he's got a little swagger, it does make it more fun. And that is a huge part of it. Huge.

[B]

So let me, I'll just, I'll. I'll wrap it up with this. I fucking love Mike Ditka. I always will. I'll never forget what those teams looked like.

[A]

I'll never forget the way they thrilled.

[B]

The nation with their T formation. And I mean, being a 13 year old kid sick with the flu, watching that game alone, the super bowl by myself, because I, I was, I was isolated from, you know, being from family.

[A]

Oh, really? I didn't know that. That. I didn't. You ever told me that.

[B]

Oh, I'll never, ever forget it.

[A]

Were you quarantined for the Super Bowl?

[B]

I was, yeah. So I watched it by myself and. But I'll never. It was great. It was a great experience as a 13 year old kid. I'll never forget it, it also, I, I move, I jump ahead to 2016 and so sad. I, I, I, I did a self isolation for the World Series because I just couldn't be around anybody. But it was the same thing sitting on the floor in front of the TV watching it.

[A]

I did that for the Duke national championship as a senior. Everyone's like, we're going to campus. I said, you go ahead.

[B]

I did not want to be around anyone.

[A]

I need to be right here.

[B]

Because if it, if game seven didn't go the way I needed it to go, as a fan, I didn't want to be around anyone. And after the fact, like the celebrating part, I was, I was okay to be alone. I was fine with it. But yeah, and I'll never, so I'm never going to take anything away from Ditka. It's fine. It just, I think what it is, I am 100% full on all meatball for Ben Johnson. That's where I'm at.

[A]

Fair enough.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

When you start talking about feeling like a kid when Jason got home from college and I always will say, like, hey, what should I, I'm going to stop at the store. What do you want in the house? And he's like, I want a family sized box of Fruity Pebbles, whole milk and Dannon regular old fashioned coffee yogurt. Not Greek yogurt, not just actual coffee flavored Dannon coffee yogurt, which you can still find. So I go get that. And he said, well, what about other stuff? And I said, jason, we got another Omaha Steaks box. So the whole downstairs freezer is just full of stuff. And his eyes light up. And then I remember when I was a kid and we would get the Omaha Steaks box, no joke, we did because of our relationship, knowing people from Omaha. And my aunt, my dad's older sister, was friends with the second generation president and CEO of Omaha Steaks. So it really has been a family thing for a long time. So it's really, really cool to continue to be working with Omaha Steaks. And they've got a deal. Right now at this very, very, very moment, Omaha Steaks is delivering you the world's best steak experience. And you can shop right now the top gourmet [e-mail] and because you're listening, get an extra $35 off with the code Bernstein at checkout. So just my last name. And then you can have that same feeling of that big styrofoam box arriving. And then you open it up and you just start sorting through It. I'm gonna have this tonight. I'm gonna have this. I'm gonna hide the caramel apple tartlets because I don't want anyone else to know exactly where they are, and I'm burying it under other things in the freezer. So if you are a fan. Not just of steaks, too, because their burgers are fantastic. Two nights ago, I made the. And I did them in a pan with a little bit of grilled onions and did it ballpark style and just let them char. And I rolled them and let them sit there over medium heat until they're kind of blackened and popping and blistering on the outside. Oh, my God, it's so good. There's pork and seafood and as I mentioned, some of the great desserts. Right now you can save big on gourmet gifts and more holiday favorites with Omaha steaks. So visit omahasteaks.com and for an extra $35 off, use the code Bernstein at checkout B E R N S T E I N. Just my last name. Terms apply. See site for details. That's Omaha Steaks.com promo code Bernstein.

[B]

Let's say if Ben Johnson was the Bears head coach in the early 80s through their super bowl run. Okay, do you think Jim McMahon stays as the quarterback, the starting quarterback?

[A]

No.

[B]

Yeah, right.

[A]

No.

[B]

He find he finds another quarterback.

[A]

Yeah, but if you look at some of those. Look at the drop backs, though, the seven step drops.

[B]

Oh, it's.

[A]

It's. It's almost unrecognizable. Some of the stuff that they're having the quarterbacks do. No, but, you know, but you can't rewind, and you can't do that because Bill. Bill Walsh was like, wait a second. If I get rid of the ball earlier, then the short passing game really becomes like a run game. And it was all happening in front of us at the time. You can't do stuff like that. It's like, well, I know you can't. What if Attila the Hun had an airplane?

[B]

Uh oh.

[A]

What the hell is that? What if Genghis Khan had submarines? You know, you can't do that.

[B]

And what if they were made of brick?

[A]

Wait, I had that, didn't I? Yes, you did. You.

[B]

Brick submarines.

[A]

Yeah, I don't think that was a good plan.

[B]

There's downfall.

[A]

Damn it, Mr. Furer.

[B]

Yeah, but it was happening. Yeah, right. Yeah, right. It was unfolding as the Bears were making that championship run.

[A]

We can't skip steps in evolution at that point. Which is what, remember? And the rivalry With Walsh is what created the fridge because they put Guy McIntyre in the backfield. They beat the Bears 23 to nothing, and he came back. Oh, you're going to put a fat guy in the backfield? I got to. Right.

[B]

If the quarterback drops back less, gets rid of the ball quicker, makes a shorter pass. What does that look like?

[A]

Hey, so here was my Heisman ballot. Okay.

[B]

Yes, it was.

[A]

Mendoza Pavia saying. That was my Heisman ballot. Mendoza Pavia saying. So have at me. But I will tell you the highlight of the weekend. First of all, the Mendoza victory speech. He's just. He's full of water, man. He's got so much. Yeah, he's got a little trubisky in him, too, with his speech pattern.

[B]

He seems like a real good kid, though, and I hope he does really well.

[A]

I do, too. He and his backup brother Alberto. But now, now I want to get to what I really want to talk about, and that is the Flying Pavia brothers.

[B]

Yeah. I will just say I'm really happy that. That he did come in second place. That he finished second. I mean, that's a huge achievement for that guy at that school to be like, second in Heisman voting. That is. That's huge.

[A]

Did you see him standing next to Jeremiah Love?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know how tall Jeremiah Love is?

[B]

Like five, eight?

[A]

Well, no, I think. I think Jeremiah Love is six feet or six wide. Oh, is he.

[B]

Oh, is he that tall?

[A]

Well, Pavia Pavi is my height. Yeah, Pavi is like 5, 9. He's probably like a half an inch taller than I am. I probably shrunk. I probably.

[B]

If he's 5, 10, he's lucky.

[A]

Come on, man.

[B]

If he's that.

[A]

If you. If you haven't seen the video of it, flanked by his brothers as they are walking in, the number of people my age who've made reference to the video for the Bee Gees staying alive, as all their respective manes of perfectly coiffed hair are flouncing behind them, backlit by golden light. And you can tell by the way they use their walk, their women's men, their Pavia men. The Pavia men are. And the gold chains. And yesterday on Forward Progress, I compared them to Belarusian mobsters because I couldn't quite think of anything. It's the fashion choice, and I'm in no position to necessarily criticize anyone on fashion because today is the day on Sprockets. Wendy Dance.

[B]

Oh, you got your turtleneck on.

[A]

It's cold.

[B]

Yeah, it's very cold.

[A]

It's cold. This is Usually my under layer for like spring fishing. But they that them walking in the room was priceless. And then I was looking at my email yesterday and one of our listeners said, hey, have you seen this thing was named James. And he's like, do you see this Pavia stuff? And there was a link and I sent him a note back. I'm like, yeah, thanks. I have seen the Pavia video. And then I clicked on it.

[B]

Is it the out celebrating video?

[A]

It's the one in the club where he's got like a sign that says what? Fuck Indiana. Fuck the voters. What you got 170 first place votes. I voted you second. Why are you mad at me? There's plenty of good reasons to be mad at me. You're Diego Pavia. You're the. You're the. You're the shrimp quarterback of Vanderbilt and you're mad at me for voting you second. What I do to you. All I did was make fun of your drunken brothers.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

You keep getting arrested for being drunk and stupid.

[B]

It was a good run my one year following Vanderbilt.

[A]

No, you gotta stick with him now. You own that.

[B]

Well, they have. They did get one of the best recruits in.

[A]

No, no, no, no. Forget the recruits. You own the Pavias.

[B]

No, I'm.

[A]

You're in charge of Diego Pavia. No, it didn't.

[B]

Contract expired.

[A]

I had it.

[B]

No, it expired on Heisman night.

[A]

Reviewed by a team of attorneys.

[B]

I did all I could and I.

[A]

My.

[B]

I was able to get him to be voted second in Heisman voting.

[A]

So you're declaring victory.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

You've done enough. And you're.

[B]

What I did for him.

[A]

You're walking away.

[B]

Look what I did for Vanderbilt football.

[A]

And you're walking away now?

[B]

Well, no, Mike's over.

[A]

But you're keeping Vanderbilt football or the Pavia contract is over.

[B]

We're in. I'm in negotiations right now with Clark Lee.

[A]

We love Clark.

[B]

Yeah, I may end up. He may be my guy and then I'll stick with Vanderbilt.

[A]

We'll see. Well, speaking of the.

[B]

Because Notre Dame is still calling me speaking of contracts. They need some help. They said they need some PR help. I don't know if I can do that.

[A]

Charge them more because Michigan needs help. Michigan needs a lot of help. But Pavia isn't going to play a down in the NFL, so why not? Instead of saying fuck everybody, I'm getting screwed. You still got to go to like all the. Some. Some showcase bowls here.

[B]

And if he's playing the Senior bowl.

[A]

And great and probably you're going to become an all time Winnipeg Blue Bomber. I don't know who the all time leader of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers is in the quarterbacking statistics. Who is the guy. Who is trespassman's guy? Anthony DeCalvo.

[B]

That sounds right.

[A]

Right? Or, you know, there's. There's been all sorts.

[B]

I want to make a bet with you.

[A]

You'll challenge Henry Burris records. This is not anything close to an NFL player. You want to bet that he play. I don't think he'll play it down in the NFL.

[B]

I'm trying to think if I want.

[A]

To make that bet and there's a lot of bad quarterbacks in the NFL.

[B]

If he'll.

[A]

If he'll.

[B]

All right, here's the bet. Is this for dinner?

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Bet is dinner.

[A]

All right.

[B]

He takes. He'll take at least one snap in an NFL regular season game.

[A]

At least one snap as quarterback in.

[B]

An NFL regular season game. I won't even. I'm not talking preseason.

[A]

The odds might be on your side. Yeah. If we actually looked at guys who were in the Heisman finalists, even Danny Werfel. A lot of these. I mean, yeah, there's some wanky bad.

[B]

Guys that have played in the NFL.

[A]

Who's the guy from Ohio State? Troy Smith.

[B]

Troy Smith, sounds right.

[A]

Yeah, there's a lot of bad.

[B]

But this guy, Colt McCoy, didn't he play NFL?

[A]

Okay, I'll make the bet. Just for. Just for shits and giggles. Yeah, sure.

[B]

I'll say he takes. He'll take at least one snap in the NFL regular season game.

[A]

And not as a gimmick. Not like he's Eddie Gaydell.

[B]

He's the quarterback.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

He's the quarterback. Ed Gein. What did you say? Eddie Goodell. The St. Louis Brown.

[B]

Oh, the commissioner.

[A]

That's Roger Goodell.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

No, St. Louis Brown.

[B]

So many names.

[A]

Bill Vex, first thing. So I will. I will. Okay. I'll say he never place it down for dinner. Yes. Okay.

[B]

Tacos somewhere?

[A]

Whatever you want.

[B]

Yeah, no, no, we'll tacos somewhere.

[A]

Whatever you want. But. But his brothers on either side. So it's Roel and Javier.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So if you know the story of the pop, you know that his brothers go to games and they drink too much and they get arrested because that's what they do. And the reason. The reason given is that Albuquerque is Grand Theft Auto in real life. In real life. And that's just what they know. It's what they do. It's who they are. And that's how they properly represent Albuquerque. I have not asked the powers that be in Albuquerque how they feel about that, but that's what they say.

[B]

Well, we did have the one emailer who reached out to Albuquerque who said it's pretty close.

[A]

That it is that bad. Yeah, Yeah.

[B]

I still have a hard time seeing that.

[A]

Would we know that's like, wouldn't that be common knowledge if Albuquerque really were that lawless? If it was because he made it sound like it's Mad Max Fury Road.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Which would be kind of cool.

[B]

That would be cool if there really was a place like that in the States.

[A]

Yeah, that would be really awesome. But. All right. I just think if Roel and Javier want to be, always have your personal police force that can follow them around and make sure if they're going to be drunk and stupid, that they aren't harming anyone else.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, you would think that, like, a reasonable person would say, why would you have that behavior after the Heisman vote? Like, you still have stuff ahead of you to conquer or accomplish or try to at least. But then that same reasonable brain would say, well, if that person was there speaking truth into his ear, they would have been saying that you got no chance. No, I mean, they would have been saying, like, maybe your brother shouldn't be doing this, or there would have been other things to kind of put an end to prior to that.

[A]

Or maybe they would have told him that, you know, stop chasing your dream of being. And maybe D1 quarterback.

[B]

Maybe he's.

[A]

Maybe he's.

[B]

Maybe he's fooling all of us and he knows it's all a big bit, and he's just going, you know, in hard. Here's what I'm gonna do next. I'm going to pull out a big sign and F this and F that and.

[A]

And then he's going to get the Diego Pavia show. It'll be the next Don Francisco on Sabado Gigante.

[B]

Yeah, maybe Hard Knocks will follow Diego Pavia.

[A]

Maybe. Who knows? Maybe he wants to be a reality star.

[B]

Yeah, maybe they follow his brothers.

[A]

You know, stranger things have happened.

[B]

Pavia brothers.

[A]

Hard Knocks Rangers, or just the Pavia brothers. Here they are. Let's go live to Roel. Well, no, let's not.

[B]

Oh, I mean, yeah, you could make a reality series out of his journey to the NFL. Somebody will pick that up and.

[A]

Well, they're doing the. Is it Cam Ward? They're doing like a. Oh, I saw the two star.

[B]

I saw that. I kind of half, half saw that. What? Yeah. What Was that?

[A]

I think it's his story is what it seems to me. If you're looking for a personal gift for somebody to whom you are very, very close and you don't quite know how to do it, I've got an answer for you. And it is an aura frame, a digital picture frame, an aura frame that you can load up with something personalized, a lovely photo, for example. It's great for grandparents, for pictures of the kids. It is great for somebody who has a beloved pet. And from what I've been hearing from, if you go, say on a fishing trip with your guys or you go on a mountain climbing trip or some special travel, a lot of people are buying experiences now. And you say, well, we have this wonderful experience. There's nothing tangible. That's where an aura frame comes in. Because you got a phone full of terrific professional quality pictures. Now, because your phone is so good, why not make that? Rather than having to look at your phone or call it up on your computer, you can have that in your office, in your living room. It can be given as a personal gift to say, hey, remember this time that we had. That's what an aura frame can do. And you can continue to add and edit pictures from your phone all year long. Every frame is packaged in a premium gift box with no price tag. For a limited time, you can save on this perfect gift by visiting auraframes.com to get $35 off Aura's best selling Carver Matte frames named number one by Wirecutter by using the promo code DBU at checkout. It's a U R A frames.com promo code DBU. The deal is exclusive to listeners. Frames sell out fast, so order yours now to get it in time for the holidays. You can mention us at checkout. That always helps the show. But once again, it's aura or a frames.com promo code DB.

[B]

Yeah, and if you're like a social media influencer like Dan, you can put all your photos on a frame and then give it as a gift. So you're like your loved ones can just look at pictures of you all day.

[A]

Pictures of me?

[B]

Yeah, just doing like, you know, the kissy face and selfie.

[A]

Yeah. All my, like my influencer things.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

My travel influencer stuff where I've gone to all these scary, dangerous places and taken selfies of myself. Like on the rim of the Grand Canyon.

[B]

When you sent me all those pictures from Wayne when you were fishing in Wayne, Illinois, you could have put those on an aura frame.

[A]

I could have. And I Went to the Jewel parking lot.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

See if there was a horse there that had a case of the stripes.

[B]

Carcass.

[A]

They just left it. Oh, wow. I guess it's still here. Sorry, horse. I did go fishing in Wayne. You did? I had a lovely day there. I may do that again because I'm not alive. No. And I have to. It's the time of year where I have to do fishing visualizations. And you can't fish now. I mean, I could.

[B]

You know that Little Hank pointed out to me yesterday, the. The pond. The one. The larger pond right by my house.

[A]

The one that's on the same side of the street.

[B]

Same side of the street.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Someone that was doing ice fishing in there. There was a big hole. Yeah.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, I. Yeah, I didn't.

[A]

Wait. There was. There was a big hole. You saw somebody ice fishing?

[B]

No, there was a.

[A]

Someone had been.

[B]

Someone had been ice fishing.

[A]

Yeah. That's dedication. I guess if you're at like a suburban canal pond doing that, I guess it freezes over fast enough, you can have safe ice.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Put your skates on, man. Get out there.

[B]

Someone walked out and fell through, and it made a perfectly circular hole.

[A]

A cylinder shaped person. Oh, great. Time to be out of the ice, I guess. Bloop. Oh, yeah. Play pond hockey. Get those little goals out there. You don't even need a goalie. And, you know, get little three on three going.

[B]

Well, there's a house right behind that pond, and they do an ice rink every winter in their backyard.

[A]

I know a lot of people do stuff like that. It's just. It's gonna melt now. You can't really do it anymore.

[B]

It's gonna be in the 40s this week.

[A]

Yeah. Don't go ice fishing this week. No, too wet. It'd be the wettest ice.

[B]

Just go regular fishing. Right.

[A]

Actually, you could do actual fishing. And some might. Do you see that the University of Michigan has now hired the firm of Jenner and Block to come in and tell them what the hell is wrong with them. And what a great racket for Jenner and Block. The Blackhawks hired them.

[B]

Oh, that's right. That was where it was from.

[A]

The. That was the firm that went in and the Blackhawks. Like, look, our organization is really screwed up. Can you come in here and tell us what's wrong? Yeah. It's gonna be the X number of dollars per hour of all of these lawyers involved. I mean, the price tag on this. Millions and millions and millions of mills. Untold millions to do this. And Michigan, how They haven't completely fired Ward Manual yet is beyond me. How you haven't at least suspended your athletic director, at least to say, hey, whatever you've been doing for now, stop.

[B]

I thought he was fired. So he was just.

[A]

Well, they reported he was fired. I had heard from some sources that there was all that going on to try to get him out of there. So I don't know if they're stuck in limbo. I don't know if the initial reports were just simply wrong on that day when it came out, and there was one that was somebody claiming to be a Michigan insider who said he was fired and he wasn't. So as of now, he's still the athletic director.

[B]

How far is Ann Arbor from. Was it East Lansing? Are those the two cities the schools are in?

[A]

I've never made the trip. Okay, but something in the water, you think?

[B]

No, I just think if maybe someone from Jenner and Block maybe just take a ride down. And leave your card with Michigan State. Yeah, just leave the card. Say, in case you guys need me down the road, give me a buzz.

[A]

Well, it's kind of solid idea because you already have.

[B]

It's the sales guy in me. Just thinking ahead.

[A]

Smart. You know, you're cultivating new markets and new opportunities. I like that. Because you already had Mel Tucker there, who was whacking off when he was talking to the sexual harassment advisor.

[B]

Am I doing it right?

[A]

Right. And then his excuse. Like, I thought you liked it. Mel, we need you to leave now. So then they hire the guy who oversaw years of abuse and hazing. Yeah, I maybe drive down sexual abuse.

[B]

Into the AD's office.

[A]

That's the guy we want. Let's hire him.

[B]

Like, hey, you know, hey, I happen.

[A]

To be in town.

[B]

You know, it's like, I'll leave my card for you. Okay, here's what we can do. Here's a packet of. Are what we can.

[A]

I keep getting texts from. But your loan from a company. No, not the $64,000 loan. I keep getting those.

[B]

Did you ever take that or.

[A]

No. Voicemails. No. They keep saying that the loan process, it's in the final stages of processing. They just need a little more information from me, and then they'll give me my loan. But I got my ducts cleaned at one point for the house. I'd never done it. We had the house.

[B]

Oh, like the air ducks?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Not your pet ducks.

[A]

Well, they're constantly in need of cleaning because they're always getting into scrapes and they're always having Wacky antics. That leaves them. They're always getting into pie fights.

[B]

You do have wacky ducks.

[A]

I do.

[B]

I know.

[A]

And they get into these comic pie fights all the time. But the ducts.

[B]

Okay, so you got your air ducts.

[A]

And now they always text me. We're around. We happen to be in your neighborhood.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[A]

You gotta do it like once every 20 years or something like that.

[B]

Well, you probably should do more than that.

[A]

Well, no, the one. The washing machine one. The dryer one. Excuse me. The dryer one, you gotta always do. But the other stuff, like, he cleaned it out. I said it was 19 years of the house. Like, how are the ducks? They're fine. So what did I just pay you for?

[B]

So he wants to combine do it again.

[A]

Yeah, they said they're in the neighborhood. I can just drop by and clean all my ducks. It was like somebody just said, hey, you know, I'm here if you, you know, I got brownies.

[B]

Is there a stop option on the texting or is there a way to opt out?

[A]

You know, that's a great question, a.

[B]

Way to opt out.

[A]

But I feel bad because they're so nice.

[B]

Okay, well then just get in the text.

[A]

I think they'd be sad if I opt out.

[B]

Okay, then don't do that.

[A]

You know, I always feel bad about that. I never feel bad about when talking to Russ Armstrong, because Russ is the guy who's making my windows. They're almost ready. They're almost. But what I told Russ, by the way, I said, put me later on the list. If you have other actual take care of your other customers first. Don't worry about me. I can be a lower priority. And then he's going to call and his people are going to come out and they're going to install the windows. And I'm going to be happier in my house because my experience, Russ did a bunch of windows in the rooms where we spent a lot of time on the first floor. And it makes a ton of difference. Huge difference. So for this round, he did the same thing. He comes out and then they had. Camille came out and measured and he's like, all right, here's what we got to do. Let's get him in this way for the front and this and this. And we'll paint these and we'll do these all custom made. All of these perfect low emissivity double pane windows with the polymer stopper in between that doesn't rust, and it helps the window deal with weather on its own. He'll match any price. So don't fall for these. Buy one, get one free sales gimmicks Russ number 847-302-9171. Check out his five star reviews. ChicagoNowinDowGuys.com, best product, best price guaranteed. And when you're getting quotes because you should ask those other companies whose prices Russ will match, ask them who's installing the windows because they won't know. See, Russ knows. Russ's people do all of this. There's no subcontracted labor, so you can rest easy knowing that these are all Chicago Window guys, regulars in and around your house doing that. So whether your windows are old, cracked or falling apart or just plain broken or it's just time. Call Russ Chicago Window guys. He's got you covered. New windows make a difference. It is time. 847-302-9171 I don't know what to say about your Chicago Bulls right now other than we're getting close to a reckoning. We're getting close to a crisis point. They finally, finally, finally were able to scratch and claw and fight to get a win over a terrible Charlotte team. And then they drop one to the Pelicans where it wasn't the way they were shooting the ball. They took a little, as they often do, they get down, they work and they work and they work and they scramble back to a four point lead. Then the other team gets interested and blows their doors off and it just keeps happening. We're going to talk a lot tomorrow on OWC about where they are and what's going on. And I think tomorrow on OWC I'm going to rescind a rule that we had about doom spiraling because we got to be honest about where the Bulls are right now. I do not think it's Billy Donovan's fault. The roster's fatally flawed and this trade deadline had better matter. And some of the rumors that I'm hearing about one of their targets had better not be true.

[B]

Oh no. Which one?

[A]

That's a tease for tomorrow's OWC because there is a name out there that and it's a move that I do not want them to make. So I wish I had an answer for some of this. I still think there are valuable pieces on the Bulls. I really do. I think there's some valuable pieces there, but the it's not working. It's not working. And whatever they're trying to do, I don't know what happened to Kobe White, but he's not the same player I thought he'd Just be an ideal fit with Josh Giddey. But. And I still think he could be, but something's just kind of not right there. Julia Poe wrote, you know, another terrific piece. She is killing it. By the way, the stuff that Julia is doing for the Tribune, that piece about the Northwestern kid, is it Pat Spencer? Is that the guy's name? The former lacrosse player was great. And the piece, the access that was given by Vuch to talk essentially, it sounded to me like a plea for help from Vuch. Get him out of here and get him to a place where he can have his deficiencies minimized on a good team because he can still contribute. He's still really talented. And even when he was benched for Nick Collison, he was still the first guy up off the bench. The first guy stayed involved in the game and never has sulked. But I think his time here is about done. And it's very, very hard for him in this up tempo offense that they're running to get up and down the floor and up and down the floor when foot speed is just not his thing and he doesn't protect the rim. So this is the big. Some big decisions have to be made here by a lot of people, including Michael Reinsdorf. And there we've had a large enough sample of games here that it's getting exposed. So this is time to take stock in a year of a wide open east. The moment this league got some film on the Bulls, the moment there was an understanding of what they were trying to do, it's like, oh, they're doing this now. Okay. And these other, other teams they play just have so much young talent where you can envision what they're going to be. Even the Pelicans, did you say? Okay. Jeremiah Fears, man, Bulls don't have anything like that. That's a rookie. It's a rookie out there carving you up. And it's every game, every game the other team's got some second unit too. He's like, damn, look what they have. That could be something. That could be something. And the Bulls don't have those guys.

[B]

Yeah, I know. They drafted. What's his name, Noah and Sangay.

[A]

Noah, Sangay for the year and very, very far away. Maybe he ends up being some. But you can't really see it from here.

[B]

Yeah, that's years away.

[A]

It's years. It is years and a lot.

[B]

Who won the NBA?

[A]

I think we got the Finals, right?

[B]

Was the Finals coming up. That hasn't happened.

[A]

Yeah, it's the spurs and the Knicks Is that right? Because the Spurs.

[B]

That sounds right.

[A]

The spurs beat.

[B]

I heard a couple. I heard a little bit of those games on the radio the other day.

[A]

Really?

[B]

Yeah. You saw us in the car. My 11 basketball games.

[A]

See Wemby starting to talk some trash out there too. Wemby is. He's feeling it. And why shouldn't he? There is a great video that's making the rounds. That is. It's an animated video that's helping explain how Wemby shrinks the court. He's act. The game he's actually playing is, if you like, the average NBA player. He's compared to the average NBA player. Wemby is playing on eight foot rims on a 60 foot court. He's playing on eight foot rims.

[B]

That's a bit of an advantage, right?

[A]

The number of touches he has, not just above the rim, but at like 11 and a half and 12ft off the floor. What he's doing aerially and what all teams are doing now, just the Bulls are so much on the ground and other teams are playing the above the rim game. People think about it, think it's all just dunks and put backs and alley oops. It's defensively too. It's what you're taking away. It's where you're affecting space. And Wemby is a marvel.

[B]

Well, the spurs won that game.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

That's what I'm saying. He was talking trash to kill Just Alexander.

[B]

That was their second loss.

[A]

He was talking trash to Caruso.

[B]

Yeah, I was listening. Game in the first half and I was in the car and they were up. They were up a lot. They rubbed double digits.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Right away. Holy crap. Yeah. So you got the spurs and the Knicks.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Man, I can't wait to. What? When is that?

[A]

Stop. Okay, stop. I know you're kidding. I'll watch it. You won't. Is it tomorrow night?

[B]

Tuesday sounds right.

[A]

Yeah. They wouldn't do it up against Monday Night Football because that wouldn't make a whole lot of sense.

[B]

Although. Are you. Are you. What are you going to do on Christmas day? You got three NFL games, five NBA games. Is that correct? There are five NBA games and we.

[A]

Have Jason's 21st birthday to celebrate.

[B]

So you have eight professional sporting events and Jason's birthday.

[A]

Well, it's a bigger day for us on the 20th on Saturday because it's Tulane and Ole Miss in the playoff.

[B]

That's right. That's. Oh, then we get NFL.

[A]

Yeah. So we got. We got Tulane in the playoff right into the Bears and Packers. So we got a lot of going on. He's trying to set up his work schedule now that he's home to make sure that he can plan around some of this stuff. But I just told him to. And I'm sure this will come up, but I just want him on his 21st birthday to not do what his father did. Don't end up soaked in your own vomit in the back of your friend's hatchback and then dumped on the driveway.

[B]

Oh, that's where they left you.

[A]

Well, they didn't leave me with the sun coming up. Six in the morning sun is rising on June 25th, and they had me on my own driveway in a pool of my own puke, and they were taking pictures of me.

[B]

That's what friends are for, apparently.

[A]

Yeah. Right.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I'm still hearing stories about what happened that night. Yeah. And then it's your kid and you want to tell them all. Talk about good judgment and all these things, like, well, what did you do on your 21st birthday? And I told him exactly what happened. I said it started with a 24 ounce Long island iced tea and went downhill from there.

[B]

My 21st, I had a beer with.

[A]

Dinner, but that was a big deal for you.

[B]

Yeah, that was the first beer I had ever had, so.

[A]

Really? Yeah.

[B]

I didn't start drinking. I was like 25.

[A]

What kind of beer was it?

[B]

I couldn't tell you. I don't even remember what restaurant I was at. I could tell you, but I'd have to kill you.

[A]

All right, time for our DBU picks that are presented by my bookie. I had a little hiccup by Shador Sanders. Bets only. I only got half of that and my NBA Props. I had my first off night on NBA Props back on Friday, but we're getting back at it today.

[B]

My meatball picks all hit.

[A]

They did the meatball parlay.

[B]

I had the Bears meatball parlay. Bears minus seven and a half. Denver plus two, Rams minus six. It all came through.

[A]

All right, well, I. On tonight's game, we have Miami at Pittsburgh. And I believe it's going to be cold In Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh 7 and 6. Miami 6 and 7, I believe. But Pittsburgh still looking at another, you know, typical Mike Tomlin team year. I'm going to take Aaron Rodgers with their sort of rejuvenated passing game. I'm going to take Aaron Rodgers over the 1 1/2 touchdowns. And I'm also just on a hunt on a hunch. I'm going to take Miami tight end Darren Waller over 27 and a half receiving yards. Darren Waller over 27 and a half RECEIVING yards. Aaron Rodgers over one and a half touchdowns.

[B]

And I'm going to go with the Steelers minus three hosting Miami. So I'll go Steelers minus three. You got your Steelers picks there, too.

[A]

Lock in your picks now with my bookie. Bet on anything, anywhere, anytime. And that's Dan Bernstein, Unfiltered, brought to you in partnership with my bookie and also brought to you today by Russ Armstrong and all the good folks at Chicago Window Guys.

[B]

And make sure if you have not gotten the 312Sports app, you do that. If you're still waiting for some reason, you can get it at the Apple App Store, Google Play, get the app, download it, register, and then you're all good to go. The promo code, because we have lots of good stuff going on there.

[A]

Yep. We've got Chicago Firehouse, restaurants, Smash Burger, Giordano's, and now tickets for Guns N Roses and Public Enemy together. I'm not making that up. It sounds like I made it up.

[B]

No, it does, but it's not made up.

[A]

It's not made up.

[B]

It's legit.

[A]

So you can win that in the app with the reward code, Bears. And also you can listen to the show and watch the show and leave voice messages for us and all the stuff we do on Friday. Feedback Friday.

[B]

Yeah, because we actually played a couple of the voice messages last Friday for Friday Feedback Friday. So you can interact there with the voice message stuff, which is a great part of the app.

[A]

Yeah, whenever. And they're always coming in. During the Bears game, they were coming in. And I try to get back to everybody on it, but some of the regulars. I'm not going to send you a note for every single thing you send, but there's.

[B]

Because you'd be talking to Strangles the whole time. No, it isn't just you wouldn't do anything.

[A]

But by the way, Strangles went to beer church. Did you see that?

[B]

Oh, I did see his email.

[A]

Yeah. So he said he was great. So thanks for the note. Always great to send people out there. So that's DB Dan Bernstein.

[B]

Unfiltered. Unfiltered on 312Sports.

[C]

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