Chicago Bears Left Empty-Handed: Breaking Down Kevin Warren’s Failure

Summary

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Dan Bernstein Unfiltered – Episode Summary

"Chicago Bears Left Empty-Handed: Breaking Down Kevin Warren’s Failure"

Podcast: Dan Bernstein Unfiltered (312 Sports)
Date: June 1, 2026
Hosts: Dan Bernstein with producer Bob Sirott

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Episode Overview

This episode delivers an unfiltered, deeply critical breakdown of the Chicago Bears’ massive failure to secure a new stadium deal under team president Kevin Warren. Dan Bernstein and Bob Sirott dive into why the protracted, embarrassing saga—marked by political missteps, failed negotiations, PR theatrics, and wasted millions—has climaxed with the Bears left “empty-handed,” their leadership in question, and their future as stadium owners more uncertain than ever. The episode also explores ripple effects for other Chicago teams, a lively analysis of the White Sox’s surprising season, NBA playoff brilliance, and a few personal anecdotes to round it out.

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Main Discussion: The Bears Stadium Crisis

Theatrical Failure at the Top

• [01:37] - [04:30] Bernstein launches into a scathing monologue on Kevin Warren’s “song and dance” and the infamous April 2024 press conference.
  • Warren’s reliance on staged events and performative gestures (like inviting Reverend Charlie Dates and invoking God) is derided as empty showmanship:
    • “Politics is not showmanship... Politics is hard work.” (Dan Bernstein, 05:15)
  • The point: Warren failed to understand Illinois politics—the need for alliances, backroom deals, and quiet, sustained lobbying.

The Hammond Bluff and Political Chess

• [05:00] - [10:00]
  • The “Hammond Option” (building in Indiana) never convinced anyone in power, leaving Bears’ threats toothless.
  • Sirott reads the Bears’ latest lukewarm statement:
    • “We will finalize our evaluation of both Arlington Heights and Hammond and remain on the late spring, early summer timeline...” (Bob Sirott, 06:14)
    • Both Bernstein and Sirott agree: If Hammond was viable, the choice would have been made—it's a bluff everyone sees through.
  • The blunder: Bears’ leaked, backchannel negotiations with Chicago undercut their position and killed political support for their preferred funding plan.

Internal Dysfunction and Warren’s Leadership

• [10:30] - [17:00]
  • Bernstein blames both Warren and ownership, especially George McCaskey, for the deep-rooted failure:
    • “George shouldn’t have needed to hire this con man to come in and do this stuff for him. He should have done it himself.” (Dan Bernstein, 11:14)
  • Franchise’s business shortcomings leave them desperate for public money and political favors.
  • Sirott highlights the risk of hiring Warren given his shaky track record in Minnesota and the Big Ten.

The Consequences: Lost Time, Money, and Position

• [20:24] - [25:58]
  • The Bears, despite owning the Arlington Heights land (and paying millions in taxes for a weed patch), are left without leverage or a clear plan.
  • Sirott identifies the team's major losses:
    • “Time, which equals a ton of money.” (Dan Bernstein, 20:54)
    • Potential inability to own their stadium at all, which would be a “major, major loss” for the McCaskeys’ fortunes and legacy.
  • Bernstein laments that years of effort led to “sound and fury signifying nothing”: no allies, wasted money, and no progress.

Political Fallout: Collateral Damage for Chicago Sports

• [22:12] - [26:16]
  • The Bears’ fumble also sank a legislative approach (“Pilot”—Payment in Lieu of Taxes) that would have helped the White Sox secure their own stadium deal.
    • “There was language specifically in there to help the White Sox…” (Dan Bernstein, 22:12)
  • Now, both franchises must start over with city and state politics.

The Endgame: Warren’s Fate

• [26:34] onward
  • Sirott: “Will Kevin Warren be fired before or after this all plays out?” Both agree—it’s just a matter of time.
    • “It’s a matter of when and not if the Bears move on from the failure of the Warren administration.” (Dan Bernstein, 26:40)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Warren’s grandstanding:
  “From the moment you rolled out that dumb ass press conference... Politics is not showmanship. Politics is hard work.”
  — Dan Bernstein, [05:15]

• On the failed Hammond leverage:
  “If Hammond was realistic, then your decision is made. You’re announcing today… It’s over.”
  — Dan Bernstein, [06:36]

• On Bears ownership:
  “If you take an income and put it in an S&P fund when George Halas was trying to move the team in 1975... [The family] never grew the business the way other owners did.”
  — Dan Bernstein, [11:48]

• On stadium ownership:
  “The whole point of this was owning your own fucking stadium. If that’s what they have to sacrifice… that’s a major, major loss.”
  — Bob Sirott, [25:58]

• On Warren’s leadership style:
  “Two commissioned bio pieces… had to show pictures of him with his Bible—I knew we had a con man on our hands… that is the last refuge of a scoundrel.”
  — Dan Bernstein, [40:10]

• Summary verdict:
  “It took years. You hired Kevin Warren and gave him years. You gave him years to do this. And it blew up in his face like an exploding cigar.”
  — Dan Bernstein, [26:16]

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Important Timestamps

• [01:37] – Lead-in to main Kevin Warren criticism
• [04:30] – Breakdown of Bears’ failed political strategy
• [06:14] – Reading/analysis of Bears’ mealy-mouthed public statement on stadium sites
• [10:30] – Discussion of internal disarray, Warren’s secret outreach, and its consequences
• [20:54] – Sirott and Bernstein enumerate what the Bears actually lost in the process
• [22:12] – Fallout for the White Sox and others as collateral damage
• [25:58] – Debate over whether the Bears will even control their own stadium
• [26:40] – Hosts agree: Kevin Warren’s dismissal is inevitable

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Other Sports Headlines & Segments

White Sox Surge, AL Weakness & Stat Talk

• [31:01] - [38:21]
  • Lively banter on the revitalized White Sox, with discussion of injuries (notably Murakami’s “hamstring tightness”), fresh talent, and why the current American League is full of weak teams.
  • Bernstein introduces “third order record” to evaluate if the team’s overperforming.
    • “By third order record, the White Sox are in first place with a record under .500. That’s not good nor bad. It just is.” (Dan Bernstein, 35:07)
  • Fun side notes about fan experience, player quirks, and optimism for White Sox postseason contention.

NBA Playoffs & the Wemby Era

• [42:02] - [52:57]
  • Deep admiration for Victor Wembanyama and what his ascension means for the NBA—“This Wemby thing, how amazing… He’s going to get better.” (Dan Bernstein, 45:56)
  • Recap of a thrilling Spurs series, Caruso’s heroics, and the strategic chess match between rising Western Conference teams.

Lighter Moments: Birds, Fandom, & Miscellany

• [53:41] onward
  • Bernstein recounts being attacked by red-winged blackbirds while fishing, complete with bruises—an animated story that brings some levity:
    • “Multiple hits to the head… They pecked, smacked, grabbed. Knocked my hat askew…” (Dan Bernstein, 55:03)
  • Sirott and Bernstein riff on birdwatching, backyard wildlife, and bird-related sports puns.
  • Sidebar: Hilarious debate over “Stan Van Gundy body pillow” at home, Bernstein’s household antics.

Oddball News & Picks

• [62:17] – Discussion of a Blue Jays outfielder being accidentally hit by a kid’s throw from the stands.
• [65:56] – “DBU Picks” segment: NBA Finals (Spurs in 5); light jokes about hockey ignorance (“Super Cup” instead of Stanley Cup).

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Episode Tone & Style

• Relentlessly honest and acerbic, especially about sports business and Chicago sports politics.
• Blunt language (esp. from Bernstein): repeated use of “fuck” and other expletives underscores his frustration.
• Energetic, rapid banter with frequent sarcasm and inside jokes.
• Humorous, human touches via stories from daily life, sports fandom, and random Chicago trivia.
• Engaging—no subject off-limits, from the future of the Bears to the perils of suburban fishing.

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Concluding Takeaways

• The central thread: The Chicago Bears’ stadium fiasco is a “massive failure” of leadership and strategy, with huge costs in time, money, and organizational credibility. Kevin Warren is roundly blamed, and his ouster is a matter of when, not if.
• Political ineptitude: The inability of the Bears (and especially Warren) to do real, unglamorous political work doomed the effort, torpedoed allied projects (like the White Sox’s stadium hopes), and left the team looking hapless.
• Chicago sports remain a wild ride: While the Bears flounder, the White Sox surprise, NBA storylines sizzle, and the show’s hosts remain as passionate, critical, and entertaining as ever.

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Transcript

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[Bob Sirott]

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered Unfiltered on 31 2Sports

[Dan Bernstein]

DBU on 31 2Brought to you in partnership with my bookie. I want you to picture this right now. I just want you to picture Kevin Warren. He's out of breath. He has just done his whole song and dance, his whole presentation, and now he stands up and he looks out at the audience and he says, the Aristocrats. Because folks, we are at the conclusion of what has been the Kevin Warren show and it has resulted in nothing but smoke and ruins and waste and degradation behind him. If they don't fire him today, the Bears will have to probably wait until whenever Chris Welch and the House decide that they're going to get around to discussing this and figuring out what the Bears are going to do on their time and their terms. What was Kevin Warren's job? All this. All this. And it's been royally fucked up with everything that happened and it's all his own doing. Politics is not just showmanship, especially in this state. When you took this job and you knew your one job, the biggest thing all the football stuff and all this orange tie and standing there after games. And from the moment you rolled out that dumb ass press conference In April of 24, April of 24 is when they brought out Reverend Charlie E. Dates. Who Kevin Warren brought out the right Reverend Charlie E. Dates. And they invoked God and they said, we thank you for all the people who will benefit from the Bears staying in Chicago. I don't know that you, God second, addressing God directly, played football, but I'm asking you to help us. Help us win some games, help us to get a Super bowl here, help us to play at a Super bowl and bring back the 1985 roaring, cheering fans we had for your glory. Glory and for our good. That was the April 2024 Kevin Warren designed press conference to bring out the reverend to ask God to keep the Bears in Chicago with a, with a stadium here. And everyone said, what the hell are you doing? I just watched, I just watched the video of my own response to it. And yeah, we said, what is this? Politics is not showmanship. Politics is not done through press conferences. Politics is hard work. And what you do over this time is every day you're building coalitions, you're getting dirty, you're rolling up your sleeves, you're sharpening your elbows, pick your metaphors, pick your images. It's boring, it's difficult. It's work, it's meetings, it's trade offs, it's negotiating. It is taking certain positions that when you choose who your allies are going to be and look down the line with foresight, who will be with this, who will be against this, where you're acting instead of reacting. And instead it was all showmanship. And when you say, well, why are you mad at Kevin Warren? Here's why. Nobody bought his bluff. Nobody. Well, we'll just. We have this viable site in Hammond. Go there then. Why haven't you gone to Hammond yet? Why haven't you even expressed an interest in going there yet? That comment that came out from the Bears, well, nothing has changed. We continue to evaluate our two options.

[Bob Sirott]

Here's their comment that came out today. Dan, earlier this morning, we will finalize our evaluation of both Arlington Heights and Hammond and remain on the late spring, early summer timeline that we have previously communicated. We will provide an update when we have a decision to share. Okay, so if Hammond was realistic, then

[Dan Bernstein]

your decision is made.

[Bob Sirott]

Your decision is made. You're announcing today that you're going to Hammond, right?

[Dan Bernstein]

It's over.

[Bob Sirott]

There's nothing further to evaluate. But we know it's not but it's a very clever statement. Very clever statement. It says we remain on the same late spring, early summer timeline. So something's happening where they're going to call a special session.

[Dan Bernstein]

Maybe not.

[Bob Sirott]

I think they will. Do you think they'll wait till the fall?

[Dan Bernstein]

They can wait till November, but it

[Bob Sirott]

gets harder in November because you need more votes in November. It's not just majority.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, they needed. Yeah, that's true. It's 60 now.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. So you need. It's 60 now. In the fall, it goes to 71. It's 36 in the Senate, 71 in the House. It gets harder in the fall.

[Dan Bernstein]

Kevin Warren, if you didn't have enough

[Bob Sirott]

votes on Saturday, you're not going to get more for the fall. So you're going to need a special session to get it done.

[Dan Bernstein]

He showed up and basically thought, we're the Chicago Bears. I'm just going to say, I'm Kevin Warren, here's my orange tie, and look at me reading my Bible, and I'm the Chicago Bears. So you guys compete. Everybody should be, should be competing with each other just to do my bidding. We're the Bears. And everybody involved is saying like, and what? No. First of all, that's not how this works. No. And now what? He also messed up the pilot bill. The pilot bill could have passed. They could have had it. The payment in lieu of taxes, everything. That was all. When last week, Pritzker said, yeah, we're just working, tying up some little things. They were. But it was Warren's off the books, back channel outreach to Chicago that apparently his bosses didn't know about. Weren't completely informed as to what was happening. The Bears officially said, oh, no, no, no, no. Those are just infrastructure meetings. There was nothing about a stadium deal with Chicago that was broached at those meetings. Those were lawyers. Those are lawyers talking about infrastructure. And then we hear Cunningham over the weekend tell us, wait a second. It wasn't just one meeting. It was multiple meetings that were held between somebody representing the Bears, somebody claiming to represent the Bears and the city of Chicago. And hey, if this falls through, Chicago's still alive. Chicago's still in this. Part of it was, nobody was buying your Hammond bluff and you needed more leverage and you went back to the well and that's what queered the deal. That's what made Pilate. That's what gave Johnson traction. That's what allowed him to say, hey, hey, hey, hey, we're still in this. Now let's rally around the city. And he got whatever he could muster up with his votes. It was enough to change the climate, it was enough to change the math. Because Warren apparently, and according to some who believe this was entirely without George McCaskey even knowing, was doing this with Chicago. And then McCaskey who went to Pritzker. We're down to two. We have two sites. This is all we're dealing with. It's you, it's Arlington Heights, and it's Hammond, and that's it. And then when Roger Goodell was in town, there's Roger Goodell touring the Hammond site, covering his nose. And then they're saying, look, we've got these two sites here and the NFL is. And then the NFL say, hey, come tell us what's going on. They keep calling them back there and they tell the NFL we're down to two. But really what was going on was there was a Bears delegation that we now have heard officially on the record, multiple meetings that the Bears went battling. Hey, we're not done with Chicago yet. The right hand's got to know what the left hand is doing. There's a lot of blame to go around for this thing crashing and burning the way it did. They are stuck with a big pile of shit right now. And that is because of the missteps of Kevin Warren.

[Bob Sirott]

Right. And what Kevin Warren did by doing that with Chicago and the mayor forced the Bears to come out publicly, make a statement. Hey, there's only two options, but.

[Dan Bernstein]

And then they also had to try to explain why there were reports of those meetings. And I guess they lied. Did they? But I don't even know if they knew they were lying.

[Bob Sirott]

So here's the thing. George McCaskey brought this guy in. He's not only team president, he's one of the seven members of the fucking board.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, you're getting me to my next.

[Bob Sirott]

And Pat Ryan and Kevin Warren.

[Dan Bernstein]

This is my next point here though, is that this George, from the moment one, George shouldn't have needed to hire this. This con man to come in and do this stuff for him. He should have done it himself. And the Bears are facing these problems for two reasons. One, they never made enough money as an organization, as a business. The George Hallis Virginia McCaskeys family business never figured out how to make money

[Bob Sirott]

that they're cash poor.

[Dan Bernstein]

They just aren't a big enough business. Invest, broaden, invest in other things. Expand your business. Do things with your money. If you take an income and put it in an S and P fund. When George House was trying to move the team in 1975 to Arlington Heights. Look at what it would have done in an S and P fund. Just. They never grew the business, the base of their wealth to be like other owners in the league. So that forces them to have to go through all of these, jump through hoops and go through loopholes to find the money to get this and the money to get that. And we can't afford this, and we can't do it like the big boys. And then when it comes time to actually represent yourself in the politics, George won't do it. You may hate Jerry Reinsdorf, but Jerry Reinsdorf personally was always, always, always involved. He's in Springfield. He's in these other cities. He's the one who says, I need help with this. How do we find help? What can we do? Here's where I wanna go. How do you help me get there? What can I do for you? He's there. The owner's gotta be there. When you add this extra layer. And all the money that's been wasted, all the money they flushed down the toilet, what did you hire Kevin Warren to do? He has spent a ton of your money. You've got a parcel of land, a giant parcel, land that you bought, that is still sitting there doing nothing. Doing nothing except growing weeds that you're

[Bob Sirott]

paying 3.4 million for, that you're paying

[Dan Bernstein]

taxes on through next year. And instead of actually doing the politics, it was press conferences, it was showmanship, and it was press releases, and it was hiring other vice presidents. What was this?

[Bob Sirott]

So I will say this, and we've said this before, that Kevin Warren was dealt a tough hand coming into this job because the land was already purchased. And he should have taken a different approach, but he didn't know better. Now, I will disagree.

[Dan Bernstein]

He was hired to know better.

[Bob Sirott]

I know, I know. But here's the thing. When you say that George should have done this himself, I was going to bring up Jerry, and George is not Jerry, okay? He's not. I disagree.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's got a law degree just like Jerry.

[Bob Sirott]

I. But he's. He's different personality. He's. He's built differently. He's wired differently. He's not going to do the business like Jerry does. So I disagree that. That George should have. Should have. When you said that George, for that himself, I disagree.

[Dan Bernstein]

But you got.

[Bob Sirott]

George should have brought someone in. He brought the wrong guy in, and he should have known better. That's where George is to blame. Talk to the Big Ten. Talk to people in Minnesota. Kevin didn't get that that stadium built. He was the cameraman. Talk to the people in the Big Ten, how he screwed the Big Ten over. Why was he hired? He hired the wrong guy. Not only the wrong guy, but he hired the guy that was going to fuck it up even worse. Walking into a difficult situation, he made it worse.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know why they have him around. I know that George wasn't happy with a lot with the back channeling of the city this late in the game, but you can tell what people think about the Hammond ruse because if you're going to go, that should be it. And it's like, okay, Illinois, that was your shot.

[Bob Sirott]

Be done today.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep, should be absolutely done. Done.

[Bob Sirott]

If that's a real viable option, that should be done today. Yet the Bears say we will finalize our evaluation on both Arlington Heights and Hammond.

[Dan Bernstein]

There's nothing more left to evaluate in Hammond.

[Bob Sirott]

There's nothing left to evaluate in Arlington Heights.

[Dan Bernstein]

You own the fuck land.

[Bob Sirott]

What is there to evaluate? And when they say we're going to continue on our timeline, Dan, it just tells me that a special session is going to come because again, that's the same voting protocol.

[Dan Bernstein]

Then I'm not sure that that's guaranteed because they don't have any leverage.

[Bob Sirott]

There is no guarantee. But once you. So my only question is, will Kevin Warren be fired before or after that? That. That's the only question left for me. I believe it will happen because your voting protocol is still the same. In a special segment, I don't know

[Dan Bernstein]

what Warren said his timeline was going to be to his bosses, but he

[Bob Sirott]

said shovels in the ground in 2025, Dan.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's what he said publicly. I don't know what he said. And I'm giving him every benefit of the doubt here. Well, of what he said to his bosses, that's too much. But man, I don't know how much leeway and I don't know what rubric you're using to determine every six months. Does he get a job review? Do you come in and say, look at the marking points. But if you hired him to do this, all of this sound and fury signifying nothing. They haven't made any allies. They haven't built a political coalition. It takes work. It's not just show. It isn't just meetings for the sake of meetings and press conferences for the sake of press conferences. The money they spent on lobbyists, the money they spent building out this whole comms program just for the stadium effort, hiring executive vice president after executive vice president to build all this out to get their stadium deal done. And then the best you could muster, the best was a very end 11th hour opportunity to again be a tenant somewhere.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

And it's too bad, but at some point George McCaskey needs to sit down with Kevin Warren and say, man, explain. No, I think, what are we doing here?

[Bob Sirott]

I think they're past that. Kevin Warren has to go. You're not going to have time to bring someone else in from the outside. George has to finish this himself now. He needs to.

[Dan Bernstein]

Or you got to bring Ted Phillips back, who at least was able to get something done even if that sucked. They had to get rid of. They had to get rid of Michael. They had to get rid of Michael to let Ted take over so Ted could deal with Mayor Daley. The Bears are always playing from behind on this. Cause they're too damn weird. And they haven't built out. If they had all the money, even if they were upper class twits, they'd be rich twits and they'd be able to have some power just because of their wealth. But they never broadened the business to be in a position to do anything other than need help and need favor and need extra financing and bonds and all this. They couldn't just build a place that they owned. They couldn't do it.

[Bob Sirott]

Right. And you just, all you have to do is listen to the politicians that have been around for decades and hear what they're saying about the Hammond site and the option of going to Hammond. Just listen and look at what the longtime Illinois Chicago politicians are saying about it. Look at, I read what anybody who

[Dan Bernstein]

has lived out there knows what the NBA has said about that site.

[Bob Sirott]

But you have to look at the politicians that have been in the game for this long and know, and they know that it was never real. So they're not going to bend over backwards to help for a leverage play that isn't realistic because it never was realistic.

[Dan Bernstein]

So basically Kevin Warren's bluff, the bad bluff, forced him to go back to Chicago secretly, which pissed off his own boss and then empowered the Chicago block of voting under Johnson to sink the pilot program. Right.

[Bob Sirott]

Which died on Saturday.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, if I have this right. Yes, if I have this right. The first Warren move didn't really sell anybody. It made a lot of headlines. But when we woke up this morning and the Bears hadn't announced they're going to Hammond, told you everything you need to know. Just, just like when they initially changed their timeline, when they could have gone to Hammond and then the Bear's like, oh, well, we'll wait until late spring, early summer. We're gonna, we're gonna move that. Why? Because it gave them more chance to get what they needed to stay where they wanted to stay the entire time, right.

[Bob Sirott]

Which is in Illinois, and move to Arlington.

[Dan Bernstein]

If they, if this all ends with somehow George McCaskey forced to take his team to a place he doesn't want to go, the NFL doesn't want him there. They don't want to be there. And it certainly sounds like the people in Hammond are starting to understand, like you're not hearing the pep rallies being held over there and you're not hearing the bloviating rhetoric coming out of those politicians right now because they know too,

[Bob Sirott]

George is not going to be forced to go somewhere he doesn't want to go. They're not going to Indiana, that it's not going to happen. I still, I believe that there will be a special session that will get called to talk just about this, to get this done now. I think, I think in the long run, though, Dan, what did the Bears lose out by doing this? Because I think eventually it will get done. They will move to Arlington Heights. They will build in Arlington Heights. What did the Bears sacrifice and lose because of this fumble?

[Dan Bernstein]

Time, which equals a ton of money.

[Bob Sirott]

But there's more to it, though. We just don't know what it is yet. But there's going to be more to

[Dan Bernstein]

it than just time, but the time because of inflation, because of building, I

[Bob Sirott]

get building in the long run, what did they lose out in the long run? There's something that they're going to have to sacrifice to get this process to move forward in Arlington Heights. What did the Bears lose and fuck up by having this fumble?

[Dan Bernstein]

It's ultimately going to be a financial penalty of some kind. I don't. I mean, goodwill is gonna come with wins and losses. If they win the super bowl dead, nobody cares where they're playing. And ultimately those of us who watch on TV don't really care where they're playing either. If you want to move to Indiana, fine. It doesn't really affect me. But good luck getting there from o'. Hare. Good luck making a dollar back on that. Nobody lives there. There just aren't enough people. You want your mixed use entertainment district in a toxic swamp built on human waste.

[Bob Sirott]

Right.

[Dan Bernstein]

No one wants that.

[Bob Sirott]

Or would you rather have it where it's easy to get to, easier to get to? People can use the train and public transportation just as easy to get there as well.

[Dan Bernstein]

15 minutes from the airport?

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. Is that what you want? That's what you want?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. That's what the league wants.

[Bob Sirott]

If you're going to have other reasons to go there outside of the 17 plus playoff game for the bear season, yeah, you're not going to have it in Hammond.

[Dan Bernstein]

This is the other thing that I noted too. That screwed the White Sox. When pilot died, it screwed the White Sox. There was language in the Pilot bill payment in lieu of taxes. There was language specifically in there to help the White sox at the 78 to help Justin Ishbia whenever the time comes to help get the Sox new stadium built. That's dead. That sucks. The White Sox had they glommed onto this. If you weren't paying attention, the White Sox were doing some negotiating. The White Sox were doing, I don't know what is it called again, politics where there were carve outs. There was language in there for their own tax control. And it means more. It's one thing to deal with Arlington Heights. It's a small city, it's a suburb, whatever you want to call it. When you're dealing with the city of Chicago as a sports organization and you're trying to, with all the people that are handling these property tax and everything that goes into Chicago property taxes, when you have that taken care of legally already, that's a big step. That is a huge head start for the White Sox stadium effort. Now it goes back to zero. Now it all resets. And that means that if this structure that they offered at the end here, this structure of a stadium authority that has to be built from whole cloth somewhere, it would apply to the White Sox as well. And then do you get a situation where you're back in the same kind of deal that you've got with the rate, is there going to be a new body, a new authority created to help with this? I don't know how this works or if it immediately defaults to the old taxing authority. It was using a chunk of the amusement tax. You know, ultimately I like as far as protecting the taxpayers, I think government did its job.

[Bob Sirott]

They did do their job. And that, that could be that final thing that I was talking about with the Bears. What did they lose out on? And Dan, if they end up in Arlington Heights, which is the goal and is the site, there's nothing else to evaluate. If they end up not owning the building they're playing in, that could be just that very thing. I'm talking about the whole point of this was owning your own fucking stadium. And if that's what they have to sacrifice to get to Arlington Heights. That is huge for the McCaskey family. That's the significant part.

[Dan Bernstein]

There is a way.

[Bob Sirott]

The downfall.

[Dan Bernstein]

But it could have been structured like a Jerry Jones, like Jerry World, where it is publicly owned, only in name, and they don't actually charge rent or they charge a dollar in rent.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

But a municipality, an authority could make. Theoretically, the way I look at it is it would be only the building that doesn't pay taxes. Everything else would pay taxes.

[Bob Sirott]

Everything else pays full. Right.

[Dan Bernstein]

But only the building wouldn't. But that authority that owns the building could make that up by agreeing to a rent payment and agreeing to divvy up what you're gonna make from other events or what you're gonna make from parking. There is some power.

[Bob Sirott]

That's where that negotiation comes through, where it's like, all right, so it's not a football game, but you have a concert. We'll take 60% of that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Because if we're not gonna get tax money on the building, we're gonna take some more of what you're gonna pay in rent. And then the Bears have the same Bears problem they've always had.

[Bob Sirott]

Right. Oh, college basketball is coming through.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sure.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, we can do that. And we'll take some of that ticket as well.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep. We're entitled to that. That there isn't just this pure sweetheart.

[Bob Sirott]

But that was. The whole point, was to own it. And I've said it for years, since going back to days of the score, that one of the biggest travesties in sports is that the McCaskeys didn't own their own fucking stadium. If that's the end game for this, that's a major, major loss.

[Dan Bernstein]

This is a massive failure on the part of the Bears and a massive failure of. It took years. You hired Kevin Warren and gave him years. You gave him years to do this. And it blew up in his face like an exploding cigar.

[Bob Sirott]

He's a voting member of the board. That's the guy you gave that much power and control to.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. There's gonna be a lot more on this. A lot more. But bottom line to me is it's a matter of when and not if the Bears move on from the failure of. Of the Warren administration.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

Because it didn't work.

[Bob Sirott]

So again, and I. I've got. This is all just my. My feelings and speculation that something gets done in a special session, and it's still on the timeline of late spring, early summer. Summer comes around June 21st. It's June 1st. A day. Will Kevin Warren be here before, fired before or fired after. That happens.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, and I just would say this to the Reverend Dr. Charlie E. Dates, who was brought in for the invocation when this, this is April of 2024, when he said God is going to help the bears anytime now.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, that help would be great. And again, if they, and if you see it that they're going to wait till the fall session again, they can do that. It's not just a veto session. They can bring up new bills. That happens all the time. But the voting changes. That's what's significant about it. It goes from 30 to 36. It goes from 60 to 71. If you're having a hard time getting something across a line, you don't want to add the problem of needing more votes to do it.

[Dan Bernstein]

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[Bob Sirott]

Why? What do you mean?

[Dan Bernstein]

The blonde hair and the porn stache.

[Bob Sirott]

It's a good look.

[Dan Bernstein]

Is it? Yeah, like he's got the dark mustache and the. And the blonde hair going.

[Bob Sirott]

You know what's interesting? I was looking at fan graphs this morning and projected wars for the season.

[Dan Bernstein]

They have him as Colson Montgomery, but

[Bob Sirott]

no, they have Minecraft as the top war guy in their projections.

[Dan Bernstein]

Really?

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. They have Minecraft, Montgomery and then Mune Moritake. What's his name? Morakami.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, Murakami.

[Bob Sirott]

And he's hitting all the home runs

[Dan Bernstein]

and he's out for six weeks with what they say.

[Bob Sirott]

Hamstring.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hamstring. Tightness. That ain't tightness.

[Bob Sirott]

Tightness is not six weeks.

[Dan Bernstein]

No, that. That is a pulled hamstring is what that is.

[Bob Sirott]

Six weeks, a long time. That's a lot. That's a lot. That's a lot of baseball game.

[Dan Bernstein]

They said four to six, but it's all right. It's a. It's a. It's a first baseman.

[Bob Sirott]

It's the first baseman who's got like 20 home runs.

[Dan Bernstein]

I know, I know, but that's you. It's not. It would be way worse if it were Colson Montgomery. Way worse.

[Bob Sirott]

Well, yeah, because he's the shortstop.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, that's what I'm saying.

[Bob Sirott]

You can find. Minecraft's the second baseman.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, you can. You can find a first baseman who can be okay through this stretch as long as they're getting this kind of Pitching. And is this. Do we get David Sandlin again? Do we get to see if he can follow up that great start and make sure that he's not Jeff Pico, that he isn't just a one start wonder. But they're fun, man. And the vibe at the. At the stadium is great. And here's the thing, too. I think the Sox are so good that you missed your chance at having the park to yourself. Now there's going to be lines. You know, I always tell you my favorite, favorite time, but this is. This is. There are a lot of New Sox fans now because they were fallow for so long.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

That people are waking up saying, wait a second. And this is jump in. Jump in. You're certain. You're certainly not late to White Sox fandom at this point, as everybody's getting. I still have no idea who their center fielder is. This. Who is this Tristan Peters guy?

[Bob Sirott]

What do you mean, who is he?

[Dan Bernstein]

Who is he?

[Bob Sirott]

He's the center fielder.

[Dan Bernstein]

But who is he?

[Bob Sirott]

Tristan Peters?

[Dan Bernstein]

Where did he come from? What does he do for a living?

[Bob Sirott]

I.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's one. They made him up, I think. But there's still dudes that they made up who are doing things out there. I hope their defense is tight. I hope the pitching stays. I hope the bullpen can be good enough. Here's the best thing going for the White Sox, and this is just truth. And I know it doesn't take much to make. To make all of us White Sox fans angry. The American League blows. So many teams in the AL are bad. So if you're going to do the why not Us and the Central do it. I don't have a good answer to that. To the negative. Why not? Go ahead. Go ahead. There's nothing stopping you. Nobody says you can't. And every once in a while, you get a little taste of baseball magic. Seems like they got a little bit of that. So live it up. Let it ride.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. They had Montgomery. I'm sorry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

Montgomery slightly ahead.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

So. Yeah, you're right. Sorry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Montgomery's a hell of a player. Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, yeah. He sure is. So that dude. I mean that from the last half of last year to what he's starting off this year, that's.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know if they can keep it up. I don't. And I don't care right now because the fact that they're even here, the fact that they. That it's June 1st and they're a viable contender, however you. That that's already a win.

[Bob Sirott]

They're a viable playoff team.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

Which they should be. And I. Unless, unless it, it turns drastically bad. They should remain that way, given the nature and the state of the American League right now. I mean, it's. You're. You're going to be hard pressed to find other teams right now, in my opinion, that would land in those final, final wild card spots above the White Sox outside of maybe Texas and Tampa.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Bob Sirott]

So they're fighting for it.

[Dan Bernstein]

Let me, let me do this now and let me. People are asking, wait a second, Dan, what's that? What's that baseball stat you always use to determine is a team actually good? I like to use third order record.

[Bob Sirott]

Yep.

[Dan Bernstein]

This is what a lot of people who follow the game use as a. As a broad measurement of the quality of a baseball team relative to its competition, and that's good.

[Bob Sirott]

Clay Davenport.

[Dan Bernstein]

Clay Davenport. Go to clay davenport.com and you can find this. It goes all the way back here to 2004. If you want to look at the quality of this statistic Right now, for example, the White Sox are leading. The White Sox are a game out. They're at 32 and 27. They're even in the lost column with the guardians, who are at 34 and 27. The White Sox third order record based on runs scored, runs allowed, and the quality of the competition. The White Sox are 29 and 30. The Guardians are 29 and 32. By third order record, the White Sox are in first place with a record under.500. This is the snapshot. They are in first place. They are leading the division and should be leading the division with a record under.500. That's not good nor bad. It just is. But that is. That is your snapshot of them being good enough at the moment. Enjoy it. I think it's fun. Ride it out. Because weird things happen in baseball. And if you. Just to give a comparison, The Cubs at 32 and 28 at the moment, are 34 and 26 by third order record, which has them two and a half games out of the division. The brewers third order record is 35 and 21. 35 and 21.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

So that's just an example. But I. The Sox are a tune in. You've got. You've got to watch this through. They're certainly not out of games. They play expressively. And I hope the defense can tighten up a little bit because it's not great.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, yeah. I mean, the defense is a significant negative for them right now.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, it's bad. Yeah. But it doesn't matter at the moment. Can they make up the Murakami run production and over six weeks. Yeah. You can pitching continue? Yeah. No, that's. That's the question.

[Bob Sirott]

That's a big question.

[Dan Bernstein]

But part of the reason the pitching is great is you're facing a lot of offenses with only a couple of bats that scare you.

[Bob Sirott]

It's interesting looking at the third. Third order record as well, with. So The Braves are 40 and 20. And you see their. Their third order record is 37 and 23.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Bob Sirott]

The Dodgers are 38 and 21. Their third order record is 42 and 17.

[Dan Bernstein]

Right. It's a really valuable stat. That is if you check it. You don't want to look at it like every day after every game, but when you do check in every week or so, it is a well crafted tool to have a snapshot of the quality of your team. And what it tells you is the White Sox aren't good. Good. But they deserve to be around first place in their division.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

Which is fine. So enjoy. I'm just still pissed off that the Bears just made their stadium building process much more uphill than it otherwise would have been.

[Bob Sirott]

So that's a, That's a fresh restart. Because if you. If something does happen, say, in a special session, they're focused in on one thing only. And that will be the Bears.

[Dan Bernstein]

Correct. Only they're not gonna have.

[Bob Sirott]

You can't have a broad.

[Dan Bernstein]

And they were. See, they did the work. They actually did lobby to put this language in this bill that would help them. It was said. I think Cunningham did say, that this program, if there is any city, over 70,000 in Illinois can create a sports authority to do what they want. That the Sox could avail themselves of that. Yeah, but they're not threatening to go anywhere.

[Bob Sirott]

Right.

[Dan Bernstein]

They're saying, this is where we want to build. How do we build here? Which is really all the Bears could have done.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. See, I think Kevin Warren, if he didn't care about inflating his own ego and his own image, he could have come in and said he could have. White went right to Illinois lawmakers and said, hey, listen, they bought the land. They hired me. I'm here to build on the land.

[Dan Bernstein]

I know taxpayers aren't in a mood to give huge handouts to billionaires.

[Bob Sirott]

How do we. How do we. How do we work this out? How do we start this process? What do we have to do? Who do I need to know? Who do I need to meet? But instead, he just. It was all about himself, which he continues to do it and make it all about himself. When you see him in the locker room, when you see him on the fucking phone calls with draft picks. Not necessary, dude.

[Dan Bernstein]

I knew it when he got here. Like, I was really hopeful when he got here. Really excited that especially for the Bears to have somebody who could at least upgrade the quality of their business in general. But man, when he had the two commissioned bio pieces, both that had to show pictures of him with his Bible, I knew we had a con man on our hands. And I said it at the time because that is the last refuge of a scoundrel. And the moment, oh, look at this. And he is deep in prayer at the beginning of every day. I don't give a shit. It doesn't tell me anything about you. And in fact, it's usually a negative when you feel it's that important to show your piety because that is a bad sign. And now he's. He'd have to do a whole presentation to tell me why he should keep his job.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, I think. I think. I think that's. That's past.

[Dan Bernstein]

It better be. That's it. That's time. This failed. This failed.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. So again, the last question for me is when this session, special session comes in play whenever it does.

[Dan Bernstein]

If.

[Bob Sirott]

If. But I think it will. Okay. I think that's just. This is just my opinion. Last question is, will Kevin Warren be fired before or after that happens? Ever notice how life's best stories don't happen in your living room? They happen on the open road, out on the water or parked under the stars. At Progressive, they get that you want to focus on the experience, not worry about the what ifs. That's why they offer quality insurance designed for your ride, whether That's a boat, RV or motorcycle adventure with confidence. Visit progressive.com and see how easy it is to protect your favorite way to get away. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates not available in D.C. prices vary based on how you buy

[Dan Bernstein]

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[Bob Sirott]

I said that last week. If you're a head coach up for, like, a job, I'm glad. I don't want anything in the. In the west unless it's San Antonio.

[Dan Bernstein]

And if you're Chad Holmgren waking up this week, if you're Chad Holmgren thinking, welp, let's see, for the next 10 years, every May. Every single May, for the next 10 years, if everything goes right, I got to deal with this motherfucker, right? Good luck, son.

[Bob Sirott]

Who, by the way, is going to get better.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's 22.

[Bob Sirott]

He's gonna get better.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's the youngest. Like, he's. He's. You don't. He's 22. He's a child. He's gonna get better and stronger. He's gonna get bigger. He's gonna get better. He is. They were playing him at the point. They were playing Wemby at the point. It was. They just play so hard. And I'm so happy for Greg Popovich and because he has done some stuff with this team. He has been involved and one of the great people ever in sports. Pop, as prickly as he can be, one of the. One of the great people ever. I absolutely adore the guy. And I just. I think the world of the spurs team. And there's a reason why they keep producing coaches and players and both of these teams, too. Oklahoma City's got to decide who they're going to pay. And finally, the leave Caruso open strategy paid off because they did not back down. They said, we are going to rotate. And Caruso's guy was a helper. No matter how many shots he hit in previous games, they stayed with the percentages. And we pointed this out in game

[Bob Sirott]

one, remember, it was the game one,

[Dan Bernstein]

remember, in game one. And they lost the crazy Caruso game when he hit all the shots. And as soon as the spurs won that game, they said, okay, we can weather that storm. And no matter what, for the spurs, they had. They had some guys who didn't play their best here or there, and they made up for it. Whether it was champagne on a day when Visell is not hitting. De' Aaron Fox, that vet starting to feel a little healthy physically, it seemed needing, needing a pressure release when they couldn't. When he could go one on one and get a good shot, he could score a little bit, hit some huge shots for them. And I've just got to say this this was some of the most entertaining basketball and some of the. The first two games are the highest level of the sport of basketball I've ever seen played. And I can't wait the next decade, the next, if I am lucky to live to 67. 67. The next, the next decade to have what this could be. Once the Thunder decide who they're going to keep and who they're going to let go because they got some people to pay and I. Are you going to pay, Chet? Have you got to. Yeah, but there's other moving parts around here and they've got all the draft picks and they'll keep developing and they'll keep bringing people through this and they'll get J. Will back and they'll get Mitchell back and. But the. If you don't understand this Wemby thing, how amazing this is and where this is going and what. He's going to get better.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, that, that, that game, one of that series, probably one of the best without, you know, taking all the Bulls championship games out of it with watching Michael play. One of the, one of the best NBA games I've ever watched. That, that double overtime.

[Dan Bernstein]

Even the last game, the shot making. Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

Caruso finished with 31 points in 32 minutes.

[Dan Bernstein]

How about the shots SGA was making too?

[Bob Sirott]

Then he was 8 of 14 from the three point line, 11 of 19 from the field. So 31 points in 32 minutes. And he noticed. I didn't even look at this last time when it happened, what his plus minus was, what was zero.

[Dan Bernstein]

He also missed a bunch of bunnies. He, Caruso missed a bunch of contested layoffs.

[Bob Sirott]

You put those numbers up, your plus should be big.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

And it was zero.

[Dan Bernstein]

And by the way, not only is Steph Castle a badass, how many offensive rebound. He's one of the best offensive rebounding. Guards. Yeah, man attacks. They. Their guards guard the basket. Their guards rebound.

[Bob Sirott]

Well, your guy, your guy Devin and then Dylan Harper, I mean they're all just going to get better.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, Dylan Harper is. That's a rookie. Yeah, that's like. It's one thing that Wemby's 22. Dylan Harper's a rookie out there in the conference finals.

[Bob Sirott]

He played 47 minutes that first game and dropped 24.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's a rookie.

[Bob Sirott]

Yes, he was a plus 14 guy. How did I miss that? Look at that, a zero.

[Dan Bernstein]

I mean you see a lot of. And Caruso's diving and jumping and catching everywhere. Running with his bald head on fire. God. And climbing over every screen. And those two Teams were anticipating. They knew every offense. They knew every single play.

[Bob Sirott]

And Caruso was guarding Wemby for. And, like, held him nothing for like five minutes.

[Dan Bernstein]

How about Hartenstein, too? I love.

[Bob Sirott]

He comes out there to fight.

[Dan Bernstein]

I love the strategy. And. Well, he. They basically sent him out there to box.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

And he. He picked up Wemby the moment he was in the arena. Like, Wemby comes walking out of his car. Yes. He comes walking into his car and Hartenstein's in front of him and punching him and pushing and punching and pushing. And to sit courtside for one of those games. Boy, Ben Stiller and Spike Lee and those guys are going to get their money's worth in this series. They're going to get there. I just. Hey, Ben, I love you. Chill out. I love. That's my goal for this series. Just relax. You're a celeb. I know you love the Knicks. I know, but the running around and high fiving everybody and the whole thing. And I can. You know how I can tell? Because I look at the expression on your wife's face. And every time she goes, there we go. Okay, okay. And she's awesome too, by the way, so I trust her. That when. Hey, honey. Honey, it's good. Just sit down. I know, but we're on television. It's okay. You know what was on the other night? Starsky and Hutch, like.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, the movie. Yeah. Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

I underrated it. I think it's fun.

[Bob Sirott]

I don't think I can watch it. I think I'll go back and watch it.

[Dan Bernstein]

I saw it one time and then it was on again and it's like.

[Bob Sirott]

It's okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's pretty funny.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. From what I remember is that it's something I don't want to go back to.

[Dan Bernstein]

I didn't think so either. But the plot is nonsense and it's not really well directed. But it's actually. The script is kind of sweet, the way everything plays out. All right.

[Bob Sirott]

I'll have to go back and give it a whirl.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's really, like, good natured. And there's some very funny bits in there, especially if you knew the actual show.

[Bob Sirott]

I do love funny bits.

[Dan Bernstein]

But if you did know the show, Starsky and Hutch, you get a much richer experience if you know what the references are. And the stuff about the Gran Torino and his perm and Richard Roundtree is the angry police sergeant doing that bit. But yeah, so that was my little Ben Stiller experience. But man, this NBA Finals, when we do our DBU Picks. I'm going to tell you exactly how I feel about this NBA Finals, but I'm having a blast. I'm sorry the Western Conference finals are over. I really am. That was. I'm going to look forward to that. Everybody. Calendar year. All right. Every year, pencil that in for appointment viewing. I can't wait to see a third and think 10 years. He's only 32. In 10 years. Victor Wembanyama is as old as Ian Hap.

[Bob Sirott]

So you're saying he could win beyond that. What did he say the other day? That he's. He loves it. He's addicted to it.

[Dan Bernstein]

This.

[Bob Sirott]

And he wants to do it for the next 15 or 20 years.

[Dan Bernstein]

LeBron. And they make so much money that they don't have to keep going. That's the thing about LeBron.

[Bob Sirott]

Still playing.

[Dan Bernstein]

That guy's worth gazillions of dollars. He's worth as much as a planet. He doesn't have to like. Come on. So Wemby in 10 years will be as old as Ian Happ.

[Bob Sirott]

Good luck, everybody.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, what does he do? Everything. How tall is he? He's nine feet tall.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

Some of those. Some of the rebounds he gets. Where you just. Where Hartenstein. Do you know how big these people are? Do you know how big these people are? Where they were like, he. They don't have a shot at a rebound because he's standing there in an NBA game.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. That's the thing about it, is that he. It looks effortless at times, which is that. That's what's. That's what's frightening about it.

[Dan Bernstein]

How about the step back from 26 with the little dribble. Hesi step back. I mean, at 7:5, like seeing.

[Bob Sirott]

Seeing Steph Curry shoot from a distance, it looks effortless.

[Dan Bernstein]

It is.

[Bob Sirott]

But Wemby does everything, and it looks effortlessly.

[Dan Bernstein]

It looks like somebody playing Nerf hoop. Yeah, you said that. How about that first shot that he hit off the glass, that very first field goal last night?

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

When I saw it, I'm like, ooh, that's a weird. Oh,

[Bob Sirott]

Saturday.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, Saturday. He just would. With the smooch with the kiss. Just right. Just perfect. And if he gets. If he starts using that, you're done. Yeah, you're done. Come on.

[Bob Sirott]

Well, good luck again. I'm not looking for jobs in the west if I'm a coach.

[Dan Bernstein]

And you saw that Sweeney, the defensive assistant, looks like he's finalizing a deal with Orlando. So meanwhile, the Bulls very, very quiet on the coaching search front, and we wait to hear More. And I'm not hearing stuff in the, you know, the back chatter as much either, that they're doing what I always like to be, interviewing everybody. Find out everything. They're just doing it very, very quietly right now. I'm recovering today because I was attacked by birds yesterday. Both Saturday and Sunday. I fished the river.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. Tell me this story, because it's the first thing. You walked in today, and you're like, I'm so sore.

[Dan Bernstein]

I'm hurting.

[Bob Sirott]

Like, what'd you do?

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, I fell down twice. But I fall down a lot on this particular fishing route because I'm climbing in places I'm not supposed to climb. It's, you know, it's urban fishing, and there's bridges I've got to kind of, like, swing under and fences I got to get through and rocks I gotta step on and places I have to go to get to the fish.

[Bob Sirott]

All right, but do you feel like if there are places you shouldn't be going to in your advanced age, is it wise to be doing this?

[Dan Bernstein]

Now you sound like my wife, which is why she follows me on Find my Friends.

[Bob Sirott]

She sounds like an middle aged Italian man.

[Dan Bernstein]

She worries that. She's like, oh.

[Bob Sirott]

So she's monitoring in case the dot

[Dan Bernstein]

doesn't move, in case I fall in or something.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

She's worried that I'm gonna hurt her.

[Bob Sirott]

So it's moving too fast. Because you're in a river. If it's not moving, you're dead.

[Dan Bernstein]

When we're in the. We were in the bathroom and she was looking at me.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. What is that card on your arm? I kept wanting to ask you.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's a fall.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

Then I did that. So there's. And I can't even show you what's. You'd be so grossed out if I showed you what's on my hip right now. And this is one of these bruises that's gonna get like. And blood's gonna drip down.

[Bob Sirott]

That's what's falling.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's from the birds.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay. Oh, okay. Yeah. Tell me about these birds. Who attacked you? Why did the birds attack you?

[Dan Bernstein]

Red wing, blackbirds.

[Bob Sirott]

It's not the guy that works here.

[Dan Bernstein]

Not bird.

[Bob Sirott]

He didn't attack you.

[Dan Bernstein]

I wouldn't want to be attacked by him.

[Bob Sirott]

No, no.

[Dan Bernstein]

He beat me to death with his.

[Bob Sirott]

He'd talk you to death with his voice.

[Dan Bernstein]

97.1fm the drive.

[Bob Sirott]

All right, so it wasn't bird here. No.

[Dan Bernstein]

Byrd.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay. No.

[Dan Bernstein]

No. He'd. He'd clobber me. He'd wreck me. The. These Are red winged blackbirds. And I apparently got too close to a nesting site and not happy. Mama and papa both coming after me. Multiple hits to the head. So they pecked you pecked, smacked, grabbed. Knocked my hat askew, Hit me in the back of the head. And then what happened was the male screaming, screaming, screaming turns and comes right at my right, right at my face, just as I was casting. And all of a sudden I hear. And I dove out of the way right where I was standing, and a huge, jagged point of a rock that was pointed up, and I landed on it, and it was really, really like. I knew it when I did it. I'm like, oh, that's a bad one. Ow, ow, ow. That's bad. Very lucky I didn't land on the actual hip proper. And it was just in the meat of the side of my quad.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

So, I mean, it'll be fine. But I felt like Tippi Hedren. I had to dive out of the way.

[Bob Sirott]

So did you see these red winged blackbirds? Did they just come out?

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, they're all over the place.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay, but did you see before they attacked you?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay. All right, well, here, I'm gonna. I know if you're. If you're watching on YouTube, I have a picture, but so if you're just listening on a.

[Dan Bernstein]

On a.

[Bob Sirott]

On a podcast, I apologize.

[Dan Bernstein]

Usually they scream and they scream and they scream and they make their little distress noises and they. And they yell and. But they don't. This time, they were hitting me.

[Bob Sirott]

So look at the bird on the screen. I mean, this. This bird is smoking. He's smoking a heater. So why would you mess with that kind of bird?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, that. The. The mama was worse. This guy. That's the male. Yeah. And the female looks nothing like it.

[Bob Sirott]

So I know that you're an avid bird watcher as well, too. I. I am not. When you said red winged blackbird, I knew exactly what you meant, because there's red wing blackbirds that have a nest at Butler Lake Park.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

It's an area that we watch there too, so. And one day, walking on my.

[Dan Bernstein]

On my.

[Bob Sirott]

On my walk that I used to go through Butler Park, I got a little too close because they're right on the edge of the lake and they have their nest. And one popped out. I didn't see. It just popped out. And I. I remember it because I saw the wing and I was like, that's interesting. I wonder what that bird is. So as I avoided it quickly and ran through the area, I googled to see what it was. So that's what attacked you?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes.

[Bob Sirott]

Birds that smoke cigarettes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, I don't know if Mama was.

[Bob Sirott]

I don't know why there's cigarette smoke coming out of that bird's mouth, but. But that's what attacked you.

[Dan Bernstein]

I think it's because it's sitting on.

[Bob Sirott]

And it's pecking you with its beak

[Dan Bernstein]

and hitting me with wings and talons and everything else.

[Bob Sirott]

Flying you?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, yeah. And like, multiple. And they hit hard, too. I don't weigh very much, but I think they.

[Bob Sirott]

You have a bruise on your hip from one of these birds?

[Dan Bernstein]

I have a bruise on my hip that was caused by me having to dive out of the way from the one going right at my eyes. Like, hitting the top of my head is not that big a deal. But when you're flying directly at my eyes and I'm diving and covering up and. Yeah, yeah. So. And the question to be asked is, are you gonna go back to that spot?

[Bob Sirott]

Of course you are.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hell yeah, I am. Right? Yeah. I'll have you know what I'm gonna get, though? I'm gonna get, like, either the. Like a cheese grater hat.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

I think that's what I'm gonna have to wear. So I'm gonna wear a giant foam cheese grater.

[Bob Sirott]

What's your. What's your. Your wife's verdict on.

[Dan Bernstein]

On this idiot?

[Bob Sirott]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's always the verdict. Meanwhile, I buried the lead. The Stan Van Gundy body pillow.

[Bob Sirott]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Made it home, so.

[Bob Sirott]

I hope so.

[Dan Bernstein]

So on Friday. Well, she. She's not here. I put the picture on my Instagram story.

[Bob Sirott]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Beth commented on my Instagram story, and she said, do not fucking bring that home.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, too late.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, that's what I said. I'll show you the. I said, too late because it was already in the car.

[Bob Sirott]

Why didn't she want you to bring it home?

[Dan Bernstein]

Because it's not going in our bed. She goes. She said, we already have enough crap in our house. We have to take stuff out of our house, not bring stuff into our house. So I said, you don't really get a say in this. Stan's coming home, and we're part of a throuple now, whether you like it or not.

[Bob Sirott]

Were you drunk when you said that to her? No.

[Dan Bernstein]

I walked right in the door, and I propped him up and set him

[Bob Sirott]

in front of me.

[Dan Bernstein]

And I said, welcome. Stan is in the family now. And she said, no, he's not.

[Bob Sirott]

This is not gonna end.

[Dan Bernstein]

So she said, don't put it in the basement. Do not put it in the guest room, she said, because occasionally if you're snoring in the middle of the night and you're not waking up, I'm gonna go down there and sleep. And I'm not kicking him out of bed. So I said, no, you're not. So he's in Jason's bed while Jason's gone. But Beth left for New York. She's got a big industry event in New York.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

Should I take a picture of Stan in the.

[Bob Sirott]

And you should be shirtless, smoking.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes. Post coital cigarette. But it's just. But it'll just be Stan and me.

[Bob Sirott]

Well, you know, you need a picture of you, Stan and Maggie the dog tomorrow. That's Maggie.

[Dan Bernstein]

Maggie tomorrow.

[Bob Sirott]

That's good sleeping for you right now, isn't it?

[Dan Bernstein]

Is that perfect?

[Bob Sirott]

That's good stuff.

[Dan Bernstein]

I have to have Zoe take the picture. She's not going to want to.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, she won't want to see you without your shirt on. Red wing blackbirds. They're. They're. They're nuisance birds.

[Dan Bernstein]

Damn. Tell me.

[Bob Sirott]

Aggressive nesting feeder monopolization.

[Dan Bernstein]

Robert. Feeder.

[Bob Sirott]

No.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Oh, yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

So they keep other birds away, out of your backyard feeders. Agricultural damage. They're notorious for raiding crops.

[Dan Bernstein]

We should have put them in our top 10 Raiders.

[Bob Sirott]

Could have been.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Bob Sirott]

We have a bird hotel in our backyard that's been there since we moved in.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Bob Sirott]

Previous owners had it and I thought about taking it down like we first moved in. And I was like, yeah, I'm not. I don't know how to. I don't want to pull it out of the ground. And it gets used, though. So now I'm glad that we kept

[Dan Bernstein]

it in there because.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah. Yeah. We see birds flying in there nesting, and they pull things out from other areas and fly them into the hotel.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, keep your eye open for a Cooper's hawk because if they know there are songbirds there, they will.

[Bob Sirott]

No, I'm going to keep my eyes open for one of these fuckers.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, they'll be there. But a Cooper's hawk will find them and eat them and blow them up. And that's always fun to watch. I will say we almost had the baseball trifecta.

[Bob Sirott]

What was that?

[Dan Bernstein]

When I was fishing? Baltimore oriole. Oh, cardinal. But I did not see a blue jay. There's often blue jays there. But I almost. I almost had Oriole Cardinal blue jay. I had.

[Bob Sirott]

I had a male and female cardinal in my backyard last week.

[Dan Bernstein]

All the time that I spotted. And they will Wake you up.

[Bob Sirott]

Speaking of the baseball trifecta, there's. I don't. Did you see this story? I couldn't. When I saw the headline, I had to read it. Oh, did you see this? What happened to Jesus Sanchez? The Blue Jays.

[Dan Bernstein]

Remind me.

[Bob Sirott]

Toronto Blues outfielder. Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesus Sanchez.

[Dan Bernstein]

The kid threw the ball at him.

[Bob Sirott]

Was injured by a ball thrown from the bleachers Sunday, sustaining a bruise to his wrist that forced him to leave the game.

[Dan Bernstein]

And I was thinking about this. How do you parent that? Like, first of all, did the kid. Was this a home run ball? All right.

[Bob Sirott]

No, it wasn't. So here's what happened. So the. The mishap occurred in the sixth inning of Baltimore's 9 to 5 victory. So you get your.

[Dan Bernstein]

Your bird game.

[Bob Sirott]

During a stoppage in place, Sanchez glanced up at the fans in the right field bleachers. Not long after that, a ball soared from the stands and plunked him in the wrist. I wasn't trying to play catch right there. Sanchez said through an interpreter. I just looked at them and they thought maybe that I might want them to throw that. They want me to throw them a ball. It was a complete misunderstanding. So he looked up, the kids saw him. He's like, oh, he's looking at me. He wants to play catch. And he threw the ball.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sometimes they'll do that. Sometimes they'll play catch.

[Bob Sirott]

Right, With a kid.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah.

[Bob Sirott]

And it hit him in the. Cause he wasn't expecting it and didn't see it. And it hit him right in the wrist. And he had the.

[Dan Bernstein]

Bad. For the kid, like he's. He just injured a player. Like how old a kid?

[Bob Sirott]

It doesn't say how old.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's. I'm wondering, how do you. How do you tell the kid the truth? Like, yes, you just injured a major league player.

[Bob Sirott]

It hurts a little bit, but thank God it's nothing bad or fracture, he said. He said, I'll be all right. An Oriole spokesperson said in a statement that the club has identified the fan and removed them from the ballpark while we conduct a thorough investigation.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, if it was. If it was nothing but a misunderstanding.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, you never know when you're gonna get the ballpark out, says John. John Schneider. He was kind of talking to a. I think it was a 12 year old kid in a playful manner, like almost, hey, let's pay catch. And I think the kid took it literally. But if they kick the 12 year old kid out in his family, that's not good.

[Dan Bernstein]

I was thinking like, get the kid A gift or something, you know, make him. He's got to feel awful.

[Bob Sirott]

Hey, kid, you hurt one of the players. Here's a gift.

[Dan Bernstein]

But still, like, we're sorry for the miscommunication or we're sorry that your experience here at the ballpark didn't end well. We know you didn't mean any. He wasn't. It's one thing if the kid's like, hey, fuck you.

[Bob Sirott]

Right?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. But he didn't, you know.

[Bob Sirott]

Well, kid's lucky. Didn't happen at the rate injured a sock player.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, people would have killed him.

[Bob Sirott]

Would have got skinned alive,

[Dan Bernstein]

burned at the stake by the 108ers.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, no, the 108ers wouldn't have done that. They wouldn't have. No. It was like all the engagement parties would have found him and they would

[Dan Bernstein]

have him out of spit and eaten him.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, they would have served him up as the engagement party meal. What are you cooking there? Ah, 12 year old.

[Dan Bernstein]

Mmm. Fresh. Fresh meat. Good. This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try [e-mail] Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states. Hey, every sports fan has an angle. A team you trust, a favorite you want to fade. A player you think is due. Maybe you feel something coming and before everybody else sees it, well, jump on it. That's where my bookie comes in.

[Bob Sirott]

Jump on it. Jump on it.

[Dan Bernstein]

Jump on it. My bookie gives you one place to turn opinions into action. Whether you're watching the playoffs now, whether you're getting ready for the World cup. Use the promo code dbu. Because everybody's got a World cup opinion especially and that's really the hot thing right now. Maybe you can look at the odds and you can see that there is something that doesn't look quite right. Well, just do it. Whether you want to follow the match live, you can bet on that. Opening whistle to final kick. It's the World Cup. It comes around once every four years. So don't just watch it from the sidelines. Get in on the action at my bookie. DBU is your code. Must be 21 plus. Please gamble responsibly. That leads us to DBU picks presented by my bookie. And I can get in my bookie plus 275 for the NBA Finals to last five games. And I'm taking it. I'll give the Knicks one. And maybe they surprised me. Nick's been really good. They've had, in some ways, a historic playoff run with their point differentials and the number of games that they won and how few they've lost. But I think spurs in five is a pretty good bet. And I'm going to go with that because you remember, and maybe we need somebody to remind me when I bet the spurs over this. When was over the winter. At some point mid season, right before the All Star break, I took. I think I took spurs and I got either 8 to 1 or 11 to 1. Something like that.

[Bob Sirott]

Yeah, I don't remember exactly.

[Dan Bernstein]

I remember, but I got a really nice number on the spurs winning the NBA title and I took it over the winter. But I'm also going to take the series, going five games to get those nearly three to one odds.

[Bob Sirott]

So spurs and five.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yep.

[Bob Sirott]

All right, I'm going to give my two picks here for the finals. I'm going to take the spurs to win. I didn't put specific game numbers on it, but it's a negative 204. I know, but they're going to win, so I'm going to do that. Okay, then, for the. On the hockey side of things, Dan, you want my hockey thoughts?

[Dan Bernstein]

Does that start tonight?

[Bob Sirott]

Sure.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know. Just tell me. I know.

[Bob Sirott]

I don't know. Why, why, why would I know?

[Dan Bernstein]

Because you're Captain Hockey Face tomorrow.

[Bob Sirott]

Oh, tomorrow, June 2nd.

[Dan Bernstein]

So tonight we just got socks.

[Bob Sirott]

Okay. Yeah, tonight's just socks.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right, six. That's okay. Back on my schedule as long as Stoney's talking.

[Bob Sirott]

So the. What's the winner? Winner gets the Super Cup. What is it again?

[Dan Bernstein]

Stanley.

[Bob Sirott]

Stanley Cup.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, you're going to piss some people off with that, bruh.

[Bob Sirott]

So I think the winner of this year's super cup in the National Hockey League will be the Vegas Golden Knights.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's not what you called him before the show. Hey, hey, ring the bell. Good kid. Hey, hey,

[Bob Sirott]

It's a better name. Okay, Right. It is the Golden Knights, isn't it?

[Dan Bernstein]

I thought so. It's not what you called him before, but that's okay.

[Bob Sirott]

So what did I call him before, Dan?

[Dan Bernstein]

You called him the golden showers plus

[Bob Sirott]

121 to win the Super Cup. Stanley Cup. Stanley.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, Stanley. It's Lord Stanley. It's a Lord Super.

[Bob Sirott]

And then the spurs get Lord o'. Brien Ring. Right.

[Dan Bernstein]

Larry. Larry o'.

[Bob Sirott]

Brien.

[Dan Bernstein]

Larry. They win the.

[Bob Sirott]

Larry, you know what I got confused about? Because I was singing my bookie song

[Dan Bernstein]

so it's all you do. My bookie, my bookie Wherever I go I know he goes My bookie and

[Bob Sirott]

me we like to pee on a tree hey.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hey. Oh, wait.

[Bob Sirott]

Sorry. That wasn't a tree. Sorry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sorry.

[Bob Sirott]

Nor was it a treat.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right, that's it.

[Bob Sirott]

She's got big thighs.

[Dan Bernstein]

This has been DBU attacked by birds312 brought to you in partnership with my bookie, Wee

[Bob Sirott]

Dan Bernstein.

[Dan Bernstein]

Unfiltered unfiltered on 312 sports.