B (2:53)

He wears funny hats. He's a funny hat guy.

A (2:57)

That looked like a. Like a sarcastically funny hat. Like, that looked like bad hat for the purpose of bad hat.

B (3:06)

I'm sure it's very trendy and stylish and he's young. I can pull it off. But yeah, it's just. I'm too old for. For that cool stuff.

A (3:12)

But see, that's what I was wondering. Is that actually a cool hat now, or is that like, bad hat? Like, when people were wearing trucker hats ironically and then they became cool?

B (3:22)

No, I think. I'm sure it's probably stylish and cool and like, you know, I look at the way younger people dress, like when they're. When they're actually dressed and not wearing pajama pants or sweatpants. And like, the pants are really big and flowy and they don't really kind of fit anymore, and everyone kind of looks big and boxy. I think that's kind of stylish and. And cool now, but certainly wouldn't work for me or for you. So no works. Works for pca.

A (3:47)

Certainly wouldn't work for me. And the ovation for Caleb Williams was terrific. And I want. I. This is something as we're. As I'm venturing into podcasting and trying and still, after what, five months now, really understanding the pace and the rhythm of what we do. I want to go back. It's like a hitting list. I want to go back to go forward. I want to go back to something that came up in discussion and give it a little more of a chance to breathe here, because I've actually looked a little bit at some criteria for what we were talking about the other day in this space, and that is the Bears as something we're not used to them being. And that's the cool team of the Bears being the. Whatever you want to call it, the it team, the team of the moment. And I think there's a really strong argument to be made. It's very hard to do this objectively, and that's completely understood. And I'll say that before we even get into the conversation that it's nearly impossible to just by definition rank teams objectively for how. How cool they are. But if we look at it and try to sort through what branding experts and marketing people might try to say is first of all, and you can, and you object to these if you want, if you think any of these are somehow off, the team's got to be good. Right? You can't. You can't really be. Unless there are some serious extenuating circumstances, you can't be bad and cool.

B (5:28)

Correct?

A (5:28)

Right.

B (5:29)

I would agree with that.

A (5:30)

Yes. I think you need to have there, as we were just talking about, there's got to be something stylish. And I. And I think this is maybe where the counter argument can come in here about your. Whatever it is, your color scheme or the. The fashion choices that you make, the way you actually build out the look of your brand. Then there's your. Your fan base, what's known about your fans. You have the individual players themselves. That's really important. Do you have tentpole stars for this, for your. For your movie? If you look at it like a, Like a movie franchise, Are you the Avengers? Are you fast and Furious? If you're starting this out and casting these roles, do you have people that can play some of these roles? And do you have a story? Does the team have a story to tell? Is there some kind of elevator pitch that makes them seem fun and different and compelling? And then it's about their. The history a little bit. What has been there, who has come before them. And obviously the Bears. If anything, I think the history might have. Might have held them back for a while. But as we look down these criteria, I think it's a compelling argument. I really do. The Bears clearly were good enough this year. They were ridiculously exciting. They were impossibly historically exciting doing what they did and when they did it in games. Caleb Williams is maybe the most unpredictable, exciting quarterback in the game. You know, Josh Allen has that reputation of the guy that can make any pass from anywhere on the field. Matthew Stafford has different arm angles, and Patrick Mahomes is Patrick Mahomes. But things are changing with. With Travis Kelsey probably not being there. And just because people are always looking for the next thing, what's next? There's something. You automatically lose points. It's almost like a half life when it comes to coolness, when something's been around for a while because it's always Next, next, Next. That whole punk rock aspect. Well, we. I was with that band when they were still jamming in their dad's garage before they got all famous for their plain Madison Square Garden, all that. And I think that that element is still there with Caleb Williams in a way that it's not for other people. I do think that their branding, the fact that they have gone so consistent and so classic with their branding is. Doesn't necessarily help with short term cool. But when you're able to show old highlights and guys are recognizable and the colors are identical and the logos are the same, maybe there's something to be said for that. And I think the fans have done a really good job this year, actually as much we tend to have fun with Bears fans and like to make fun of the dumb ones, but I think the Bears have done a pretty decent job. I thought the cheese grater thing, the guy who sneaked the cheese grater into the game was. It's drawn a lot of eyes. I think the Bears finally being quiet when their team has the ball has been a nice adjustment. But when I start thinking about next season, and I think I mentioned this when we brought it up before, you tell me because you've got younger boys running around the house where we used to say they're going to be on the COVID of every magazine. And then that all changed because national magazines became regionalized and every different one had covers for each individual market because they're trying to sell everything locally. And I understand that. Then it's like, are you on the COVID of Madden? Who's on the COVID of these video games? And I'm not sure what other measurements there are for that other than the way the league itself is marketing you. And it's my expectation that the league is going to push Caleb into next year and maybe more than just Caleb. I don't know who would be. Who's the second coolest player on the Bears? Colston Loveland right now? Is that, Is that, Is that the duo? Is that like ice and fire or. They'll come up with something. But you know, I think going into next year you're going to get, with apologies to Led Zeppelin, a whole lot of Loveland.

B (10:14)

Yeah, I just, I don't, I don't know, man. Maybe we look at. We're looking at different parameters and whatnot or different criteria for it. I just, I don't think, I don't think of Colson Loveland as a. Not that, not that he's not a cool guy, but I think like A bigger than life personality. Where Caleb Williams has that Colson Loveland was going about doing his job, learning his role as a young guy, maybe that develops more for him.

A (10:40)

His game is exciting though.

B (10:42)

His game is exciting, but he's not that. That big kind of outlandish personality that I think kind of draws into, into that characteristic of being that stylish, cool kind of football player. He doesn't have that. Not that he doesn't have swagger, but he doesn't, he doesn't brag or boast or do anything extra. He just, you know, he might point for a first down and then that's about this. It's kind of like he does his job and yeah, he does his job and kind of goes back to the huddle and that's, that's really where he. Whereas and even with Caleb, I look at Caleb and Pat Mahomes as the two guys that are the most exciting, athletic, unpredictable quarterbacks in the league. And while they have egos and big personalities, it's not boastful or arrogant or comes off as unlikable at all. At least Patrick Mahomes, not to me. Maybe if you're a team, you root for a team in the NFC or the AFC West. Maybe you hate Pat Mahomes and you think he's an egotistical, arrogant prick. I just don't see that as an outsider looking in at it. And I like him. And again, I think he's one of the most athletic, exciting, unpredictable quarterbacks like Caleb Williams. And those two guys are 1, 2. However, whatever order you want to put them in. And then the gap down there is. It's a big gas, significant gap. It's not being a good quarterback or a great quarterback or quarterback. They make all the throws. There aren't any other quarterbacks in the league right now that can do it at the level that those two guys do it.

A (12:11)

Okay.

B (12:12)

So for me, Caleb is a big, A big like the style points and the star points. The fact that they're good, their story is, was great this year because of a first year head coach and the success they had. The development of Caleb Williams from where his narrative was nationally last year. Oh, it was a bad first, you know, number one pick overall. There was other guys behind him that are much better and there aren't. I'm not sure. And I'm sure the story has changed a lot of national perspective of guys that would say, yeah, I would take Caleb over Drake May or I would take Caleb over Bo Nix. I would take Caleb over Jaden Daniels.

A (12:47)

That's different, though. That's getting closer into the football side.

B (12:50)

You know, but it's part of their story. It's part of their story, though. Yes, it's part of their story. And to have that success from a second year guy who was really looked at as not very productive or good for being the number one overall pick last year from national perspective, based on what the commanders and Jaden Daniels did and then their history, while I think it's a negative deterrent to the Bear story, Caleb and Ben have broken that, that history. I mean, how many times have we watched a broadcast where it's like, oh, They've gone through 32 quarterbacks when they've had Aaron Rodgers and, you know, and Cleveland can do the same thing, but.

A (13:25)

It'S like, wait until next year.

B (13:26)

They've ended that, that story, that narrative for the bad history of the Bears.

A (13:30)

All right, so if you're marketing the Bears after Caleb Williams, who is the next player? Somebody who's going to be here next year for sure. Somebody who is a part of this. And if you had to start ranking and start saying, all right, well, this is, this is my core of how we're going to market this team. Who's next after Caleb? And maybe you have more than one answer, but I don't think it's really that easy right now because you'd immediately say it's Rome like that because of the draft, because of how it worked, because it was supposed to be Roma dunes. Right.

B (14:11)

I think. No, I. Because I think Rome still has to, has to, has to show more. I think Luther Burton has to show more. If I was going to put who's the next guy in line for me? And despite the season he had this year, it would have been Jalen Johnson because he's got that, that, that arrogance and swagger and rightfully so as a lockdown corner. I mean, remember we've talked about him as a guy that he can shuts down one half of the field. Now, he didn't have that productive performance year that we expected and wanted for Jalen Johnson. Neither did he. But I would have said he's the next guy after Caleb Williams because you need a guy that's got some personality and can back it up on the field and has done it and has proven it on the field. So it would have been Jalen Johnson for me. The offensive guys, you know, DeAndre Swift had a great professional and personal year, but he's just not that big. Yeah, he's not that personality, Kyle, manon, guy is not there yet. Defensively speaking, you would look at Montez sweat, but he just. He's not that guy. DJ Moore didn't have the kind of season that you'd want and never really has as far as being on winning teams to really carry that swagger with him. And then a lot of question marks about his year this year. I don't really Kyler Gordon, but again, he didn't have the productive year for me it would be. Jalen Johnson is number two.

A (15:29)

See, I disagree. And the reason I disagree is because it's all about offense. And especially with Ben Johnson being coached. The answer might be Ben Johnson, but he doesn't count because he's not a player.

B (15:42)

He.

A (15:42)

He's probably the second most. As far as Q rating would go, the second most marketable. I think that it has to be a target of Williams. And I think that's because of the. When they start talking about connection, you start talking about the kinetic imagery of a pass leaving the hand of one and landing in the hands of the other. And I think it was ideally, when you were casting this, when you were writing it all out, it was gonna be A Dunes A. And now it's not.

B (16:15)

Yeah. And I think if you're looking at it from that perspective, and I'm a marketing company and I'm coming out here to sell the Bears their campaign. Yeah. Then in that regard, it's Colston Loveland or Burden.

A (16:26)

It may not be Burden yet. Yeah. But Burden might be the answer just because of how electric he is. And, you know, I was thinking about these things. Everybody has seen it now. Everybody saw Kyle Menungai squirt the Gatorade bottle upside down. Right. We've all seen it. So Manung guy reaches up. This is in the middle of the packers game, the playoff game. It squirts it backward. Burden, if you haven't seen it, Burden starts cracking up. Burden is laughing. And this is the middle of a do or die playoff game. And Manungai realizes he made the mistake and is embarrassed about it. And Manon guy's like, we'll talk about that later. We'll talk about that later. And he puts his little, you know, the face mask thing on his thermal face mask and he pulls it up under his nose. Burden cannot control himself.

B (17:19)

Yep.

A (17:19)

Burden is laughing so hard. And he's like, no, no, no, we'll.

B (17:22)

Talk about it now.

A (17:23)

I'm. And he. He is just. He is genuinely laughing. And then later, he posted the video. Burden apparently went to Gatorade. Gatorade made a special Bears water bottle just for Kyle Menungai that says this side up on the top. And he made a locker room presentation to him. I think. I think Burden's got a little bit of what you're looking for. He maybe didn't feel comfortable completely leaning into it this year or the microphones didn't find him in quite the same way. And you could do with Loveland too. You can market Loveland as exactly what you described as the, well, you know, the Idaho Oshucks.

B (18:04)

Yeah, for sure.

A (18:05)

He, he might have this calm demeanor on the outside.

B (18:08)

Handsome kid. You can sell that.

A (18:10)

Yeah. When he gets the ball in his hands, look what he does in. I, I think it's all there. I think it's all there for a, an aggressive marketing push, not just by the Bears, but by the league to take advantage of everything that's going on. And Manungai himself, too. Manangai is smart and good looking and has the sort of the overachiever thing of being a seventh round pick, of being small, of being a little bit slower, of being the guy that nobody expected. And then he's out there like this tiny little battering ram, like I said, like a, like a, an overdeveloped gerbil out there just, you know, running into things and smacking people around. So he's, he's got it too. So there's, there's definitely something here. I would, I'd like to listen to any other team's argument. You find another franchise in the NFL right now and make the case and say this team, this coach, this situation is cooler than the Bears. I think it's an uphill battle for you.

B (19:16)

No, I, I agree with you on that. I still think, though, as I'm sitting here thinking through it, looking at what I've jotted down. If I'm this marketing company and I'm selling the 2026, 27 season for the NFL and I'm making the Bears my target as the face of the, the NFL, the team to sell. I think I'm going to stick with my original one too, of Caleb Williams and Jalen Johnson because the distribution and the equity within the offense this year was pretty extraordinary. And that's all based on Caleb Williams. And there isn't one guy that I need one of those offensive guys to step up to be the clear number one guy before I sell him. I'm still going to sell Caleb Williams and Jalen Johnson because this guy's going to score you the points and this guy's going to shut it down on defense. And coming off the year he's had, if he's healthy going into next season and fully back capable to what he can do, he's going to have a big chip on his shoulder to show that that was injury driven. And I'm still the best player on this team, defensively speaking. And I'm going to, I'm going to show it to you by shutting down every number one wide receiver I go against and taking care of one half of the field. It's his comeback year. That's, that's what I'm selling. I'm selling. I'm selling. Caleb Williams takes the next step, Jalen Johnson's comeback year, to show that he's the best defensive player on the team.

A (20:34)

And he says stuff.

B (20:36)

Yeah, yeah, that's what I'm saying. He has a personality and a little bit of a swagger and confidence. That, that isn't annoyingly arrogant where you don't, you don't. You can't like the guy. I love that he has that and you have to have that kind of confidence. And it's not, you know, Deion Sanders was one of the all time greats at doing it, but he was also. You hated Deion Sanders. Hated him. Unless he was on your team. You did not like Deion Sanders.

A (21:00)

I don't know.

B (21:01)

Oh, I think so. I think so. I think, I think he purposely did a lot of things to just really draw the ire and anger of opposite fan bases and did it really, really well.

A (21:11)

I guess it didn't work on me. I've always found him to be, to, to be one of the good guys. I don't think, I don't think Dion's a bad guy.

B (21:20)

I think a majority of people would disagree with you. I think NFL casual, NFL fans that didn't root for any team he was on would probably say that they hated Deion Sanders. And we're not even getting into like the white races part of it either, too.

A (21:33)

I was going to say the Carlton.

B (21:34)

Leave that alone.

A (21:34)

Yeah, the Carlton Fisk moment.

B (21:36)

We'll, we'll, we'll leave that.

A (21:37)

Remember, Remember?

B (21:38)

Y. Remember? Yes.

A (21:39)

The fucking ball out, you piece of shit. Yeah, yeah.

B (21:42)

So if I'm the guy in charge of selling it next year, I'm selling. Caleb Williams takes the next step and then Jalen Johnson comes back to show that he's the best defensive player on the team.

A (21:51)

Because I just think it's been a real long time. It's, it's been, it's been forever. Since the Bears were the it team and even when they were good with Cutler, having Cutler ruins all of everything.

B (22:01)

Yeah. I mean, it's like the fan base hated Jay Cutler.

A (22:04)

There's nothing. There's no charisma. It's just the. It's like a black hole. Charisma. Charisma, yeah. It just pulls all the joy and excitement and everything. And as somebody who's good at removing joy from things, believe me, I know when I see it. And to just suck that all the way through this singularity of gravitation and like all the fun and all the excitement. What do you think?

B (22:30)

Well, and I think one thing that's interesting too, when you look at it, you know, the Bears have had a lot of island games or primetime games because of the fan base, because of the draw the audience. It's going to be bring and the NFL smart and recognizing that. But what'll be different now and what'll be different moving forward is that other fan bases. When you see the Bears on an island game, NFL fans watch NFL games. But I think there's going to be an excitement and a people looking forward to watching. All right. You know, Thursday Night Football, it's. The Bears are playing the Patriots, and you're not a fan base of either one of those two teams.

A (23:05)

Yeah, but you're watching.

B (23:06)

Yeah, but you're watching with. Not. Not only just watching because it's the NFL, it's anticipation. Because I want to see what's Caleb William going to do in this game? How is Caleb Williams going to do something remarkable that not any other quarterback can do in the league, maybe, except Patrick Mahomes? And that's why I think. I think that's. That's the story to it.

A (23:24)

Yeah. It's been a long time since the Bears have had somebody like that. And even when you think about it, too, the idea of being good, there have been the Bears have had cool guys who were like, Jim McMahon, cool as hell, just not that good. You had the whole counterculture thing with him.

B (23:42)

This was the guy, headbands and all the controversy. Remember when they drafted him?

A (23:46)

Oh, and he gets out of the limo, drinking a beer, even though he went to byu. And he's the guy in New Orleans who's staying out late, mooning the helicopter. He's got Roselle on his. You know, he and Ditka would fight and yell it like, but he wasn't that good. There's a lot of guys like Joe Namath. Joe Namath was absolutely the coolest cat in the Room and just not that good, but cool. So to have somebody who is both is. Especially for the Bears. It's so rare here. It is so rare to have that. And even when the Bears were stomping everybody, the reputation was kind of like, oh, they're the team that stomps on everybody and sacks the quarterback and gives everybody concussions and leaves.

B (24:31)

But cool and good and likable, though. It's like the trifecta if you're. If you're marketing and selling that.

A (24:40)

And for a player, it's sustaining it. Without people turning on you. Yeah. Without everybody realizing it's enough of this and let's tear down the idol now that he's been built up, you know, it's a difficult thing.

B (24:53)

Yeah. No, I think. I think you're. I think you're. You're. You're onto something there. Again, I like the angle of looking at it as I'm a marketing company and I got to sell it next year, the NFL comes to me and says, what are we selling? What's our story? What's the main thing? What are you pitching? And. Yeah, and I would pitch that.

A (25:08)

Coach. Yeah, Coach. And it's the. It's the quarterback. And this is. All the narratives are about quarterbacks. Whether we like it or not, the broadcasts end up being all about the quarterbacks generally. And that's right. I think your secondary guy is probably somebody for whom the quarterback is looking downfield. Can he. Can he find him? Can he make that literal connection that. That satisfying connection we always discussed during training camp why even when it's Bears against Bears, fans root for completions Just because naturally you want that closure. You want that things come together and that even if it's your defense knocking it away, nobody cheers for the defense.

B (25:48)

Well, okay, just real quick here and like a final point of this exercise, just looking at other teams who could be, you know, in consideration for a cool team.

A (25:58)

The Giants.

B (26:01)

Okay, so I'm just going to go through here. Patriots. Yes or no?

A (26:05)

They don't want to be Bills? Not now. No, I think they had it.

B (26:11)

Maybe Dolphins, maybe a couple of years ago, had the opportunity.

A (26:15)

Jets?

B (26:15)

Absolutely not. Steelers?

A (26:16)

No.

B (26:17)

Ravens?

A (26:18)

No.

B (26:18)

Bengals? No. Browns?

A (26:21)

No.

B (26:22)

Jaguars? No. Because no one cares about Jacksonville.

A (26:25)

Right.

B (26:25)

The Texans, the Colts, the Titans, the Broncos, Chargers. I mean, Chiefs probably were the cool team for a stretch. I mean, how many. How many divisional. I mean, how many AFC championship games they go to in a row?

A (26:43)

A lot of this is first blush. A lot of this is that the immediate sense that you get the Total nebulous schema that you get. Does it say, are you compelled? It's like, ooh, do you get a sense of, like, that little, like, frisson when you think about the team? I would say Raiders. You don't. The Giants have a chance, but they hired the wrong coach.

B (27:04)

Let's see. Eagles. Eagle. And we'll get to the Giants. Eagles.

A (27:07)

Yeah.

B (27:08)

No, Cowboys Commanders. I mean, because the Cowboys, their.

A (27:13)

Their main.

B (27:14)

When you think of the Cowboys, what's the first thing you think of?

A (27:16)

The owner.

B (27:17)

Yeah. Is Jerry Jones. Commanders. Okay. Why do you think Giants. And I agree with you, though, that it's. They have the wrong coach, though?

A (27:28)

Because especially with Scatter Boo coming back, that you had something there with Dart and Scatter Boo. And now, at least when you're going to. You're going to try to energize the offense a little bit and do things a little bit differently. You've got the power of the New York market. You have a young, exciting quarterback. And Scatterboo is just a blast because he's just, like, hitting run into things. Take ball, run football, football, football, football. There's a little something there, but they don't have the right coach for it.

B (28:03)

Yeah. And I'm interested to follow that story because, you know, hearing that press conference and talking about the hierarchy and how it's going to work. I don't know if it's going to work.

A (28:14)

No.

B (28:14)

I don't know if that's gonna. I don't know if it's gonna work.

A (28:17)

Can we save this for fp?

B (28:19)

Sure.

A (28:19)

Okay. I want to save this.

B (28:21)

Yeah. Because I had in my notes anyway. So we'll do that.

A (28:23)

Yes.

B (28:24)

All right, so we have the Bears, Packers.

A (28:29)

Vikings.

B (28:30)

Oh, Lions. Not potential, you know. Yeah, not anymore. But it was there with Dan Campbell. But again, that was more the. Was more the coach than it was the players. Panthers. No, but Buccaneers. Buccaneers have potential with Baker Mayfield, but they need to be better. They need to be better than they are. Yeah.

A (28:54)

They've got potential.

B (28:55)

I love what happened with Baker Mayfield and our guy, the Orlando Ledbetter. Remember our guy, Orlando Ledbetter?

A (29:03)

Yeah.

B (29:04)

So it was those two interview.

A (29:05)

He sounded like he was on a windswept hill.

B (29:08)

Yes, yes.

A (29:09)

He was out on the moors.

B (29:11)

I'm like, hey, I'm jumping to try this new guy today, so let's just go with him. Like, oh, boy.

A (29:16)

Good guy, by the way.

B (29:17)

Oh, great guy. Great guy. But I loved. I love Baker Mayfield's tweet about. I'll see it. See it twice. Next year, coach.

A (29:23)

And thanks, coach. Yep.

B (29:25)

Shipped me off like a piece of garbage.

A (29:26)

Yeah. Never said anything to me.

B (29:28)

Falcons no, Saints no. Seahawks just don't have the quarterback.

A (29:35)

Well, he's pretty good.

B (29:36)

No, he's. He's really good. But like, is he.

A (29:39)

Yeah, but we.

B (29:40)

Is he going to feature Sam Darnold somewhere and people are going to be like, oh, my God, I want to hear more from Sand Darnold or see Sam Darnold.

A (29:47)

They had that little thing with. With when they had. Before we knew Russ was corny when it was like Russ and Pete Carroll and Marshawn lynch, like. Yeah, they were. They had it.

B (29:58)

They had it.

A (29:58)

Yeah. And the fans and the new building and Beast Quake and all that like that. They're never going to top that.

B (30:04)

All right. What about the Rams or the. I think the Rams are just. They've just been consistently good for years and that story kind of. That's. That's their storyline now. Just consistently good with Matt Stafford until he retires and Sean McVeigh and sharing.

A (30:17)

A market with another team changes the dynamic. Yeah.

B (30:21)

49Ers cardinals. Yeah. Yeah. You'd be hard pressed to make another. Another argument there. May maybe the. That maybe the Giants. But I think we'll talk more about it in Ford Progress. I just, I'm. I'm really curious to see how that all unfolds. My. My. My spidey sense went up quite a bit. It was tingly, really. Listen to the press conference. Yeah, I just, I don't. Yeah, well, again, we'll get into it. We'll get into it later.

A (30:47)

I hope he knows what town he's in when he's telling people what matters and what doesn't matter. That's the one thing I'm like, ooh, you're. You're lecturing people who don't really want to. To have one from you right now.

B (31:01)

Well, hey, how cool does this Vegas get when they get Fernando Mendoza?

A (31:07)

He's not cool at all.

B (31:08)

No, not at all. Likable kid, but man, he's. Yeah, he doesn't seem. He is a dork. And I think. I think he's a self admitted dork too.

A (31:17)

Oh, I know it. I like. I like guys who are dorks. Like, I think it was Joey Harrington was the first guy also bad. He should have said that too. He's like, yeah, he's like, I'm kind of a dork. And I thought that was great.

B (31:27)

And then I think Harrington made our bottom Lions list, didn't he?

A (31:30)

I think he did yeah. So the football playoffs are in full swing. In my bookie is where you turn bets into bankroll. Everybody is enjoying sports wagering. You know, the NFL is in do or die mode. Some people say this is the best week of the NFL, even better than the super bowl championship week. The Super Bowl's around the corner. And let's not forget basketball because of what's going on in college basketball, NBA ball. Bulls had a fun game. They've got all this fun Derrick Rose stuff coming up. If there ever was a time to get in the game, it's now. Because my bookie makes everything so easy. It's one account, it's one wallet. Oh, and by the way, all of our Bulls props from yesterday came in. Every single one cashed. You had the Vuch rebounds and the Bulls giving the points. I had the blocks by Brook Lopez, which he got almost instantly. He came in in like five minutes, got three blocks, and then I had Kobe White's threes and he wouldn't stop making threes. All I needed was three and I think he had six or seven. So the my bookie account that you have allows you to bet the spread live, bet in the second half or during commercials. You can go into the casino virtually all in one place and you have that power. When you go to MyBookie AG right now and use our promo code DBU for Dan Bernstein unfiltered, then your first bet's covered up to 500 bucks. If it doesn't hit, you've got a bet back bonus token and that allows you to run it back. That way you don't just watch the playoffs. You make them pay. Bet anything, anytime, anywhere. Only at my bookie.

C (33:08)

If you're shopping while working, eating, or even listening to this podcast, then you know and love the thrill of a deal. But are you getting the deal and cash back? Rakuten shoppers do they get the brands they love Savings and cash back. And you can get it too. Start getting cash back at your favorite stores like Target, Sephora and even Expedia. Stack sales on top of cash back and feel what it's like to know you're maximizing the savings. It's easy to use and you get your cash back sent to you through PayPal or check. The idea is simple. Stores pay Rakuten for sending them shoppers and Rakuten shares the money with you as cash back. Download the free Rakuten app or go to rakuten.com to start saving today. It's the most rewarding way to shop That's R A K U t e.

A (33:54)

N rakuten.com the White Sox have traded Luis Robert. After all the talk and all that time and the number of times his name had surfaced and it was a matter of would they hold him and bet on a resurgence this year to try to move him at the deadline. Ultimately they were never able to recoup the value that he once had. And they, they held him too long is what happened. To get value for him. I don't know if they just wanted to, to do right by him by keeping him around. I think it's great that he can go to the Mets and get another shot. But all I'll say is he is for, for now a perfect symbol of squandered opportunity. He is unrealized potential wrapped up in a perfect baseball body. All that excitement and I put myself back in my shoes. When they signed him, I think it was 2017 and what mattered so much about Luis Roberts signing was he could have signed it. This wasn't a draft pick that had no choice. He was the guy in the international market. He chose the socks. And then we started seeing all the pictures of him and all the highlights and you're just looking at this, at this action figure. I'll never forget when we had Jason Benetti on talking about Robert and the potential and what he looked like and what he saw in him and Benetti, the two comps that he had. The first athletic comp that he had was Terrell Owens. When he talked about his, the way he moves and how he's built. He compared him to Terrell Owens and the other one was an Under Armour mannequin, right? He looks like the Fox football robot kind of thing like that. An Under Armour mannequin. Those images of are still just so vibrant in, in my mind when, when he mentioned that and the numbers on, on Robert they kind of sum it up. Slash line of 259, 313 and 455 for a 111 OPS Plus. Last couple years he's been a below water player. Everything peaked in that year. Well in even though his, his season of 2021 when he was 23 years old. God, he compiled 3.7 war in 68 games.

B (36:52)

Yeah, that's they. That's when they. That was 2020 or 2021? 2021. So that's when they went to. That's when they lost to Houston in the playoff. Was that the 93 win season?

A (37:04)

That was the 93 and 69. Yeah. And they lost three to one. To the Astros in the division series. That's when we saw Garrett Crochet being bedeviled by ground balls and an lost.

B (37:19)

Wild card the year before. And then, yeah, that 93 win season, they scored the most runs offensively for the team since 2008. Playoff team. Yeah. And that was, it was a team that you expected to just continue to climb.

A (37:32)

Robert slash line that year. 338. 378. 567. An OPS of 946. An OPS plus of 154.

B (37:44)

Yeah. They were then derailed by injury and by the hiring of Tony La Russa. Why he was even there. It was just an absolute mistake by Jerry Reinsdorf. But yeah, but he's the final piece of what was that, that, that window that, that group of players. And if you're, if you're, if you're just hearing about this or you haven't looked into it at all, you just don't care. Don't worry about what they got in return. It was, it's a salary dump. It's to get rid of $20 million off the payroll. I think he has a $20 million option next year, team option next year with like a $2 million buyout. That's all it is.

A (38:19)

Well, while we're doing it, we might as well let you know that the Mets sent back infielder Luis Angel Acuna and minor league right handed pitcher Truman Paulie. Well, Acuna is indeed the younger brother of Ronald Acuna Jr. But Acuna is. He's already 23. Correct. And he played for the Mets last year. 234. 293, 274.

B (38:48)

So second baseman.

A (38:50)

Well, he said yeah, they're going to play him all over the place because it's not like the Mets need a shortstop and he has been a shortstop. He's been playing some outfield in the Venezuelan Winter league, so we'll see where he fits in. But they, it's, they get a shot to roll the dice with him and then Paulie is Truman Paulie.

B (39:08)

Great name by the way.

A (39:09)

Truman Paulie.

B (39:10)

Yeah. That doesn't single a guy right now. He's a Ivy League Harvard guy.

A (39:15)

It doesn't sound like a baseball player. I gotta figure Truman Pauly.

B (39:19)

Oh, I think it definitely. It sounds like an Ivy League baseball player for sure.

A (39:22)

Sounds like a fed governor. It sounds like the guy who speaks at like the St. Louis Economic Club and they quote him talking about where he might, how many interest rate cuts might be coming.

B (39:37)

Again, Ivy League, Harvard guy. Yeah, for sure.

A (39:40)

Yeah. So he was at Class A St. Lucie in a 208 era. But that's another one. Another lottery ticket they have there. Yes, but it really is. It's kind of too bad because I personally was so smitten by Luis Robert. He just. He looked apart and could run, and when he made contact, the ball jumped off his bat the way he was a predator in the outfield, just tracking things down. And then things just kind of got weird with him. The injuries were weird. Remember when his eyes weren't working and he couldn't see the ball? And they said that he wasn't.

B (40:19)

Which is the problem, by the way.

A (40:19)

He wasn't getting enough electrolytes in his. Wasn't that what it was? Remember, they said he had some sort of nutritional issue that was affecting his vision.

B (40:29)

I don't remember the fine details of it all.

A (40:32)

Yeah. And then. And then it was any number of those soft tissue injuries between.

B (40:37)

Yeah. And here's how you can tell you. It was. It was significant. As a lifelong Cubs fan, I remember being pissed that he picked the White Sox. Sox. Oh, like, that was like, really like, why. Why would you want to go there like that? That's how much I admired his. What I thought was his potential at the major league level. That I was. I was. I was. And I can't recall many other times where I'm pissed about a team or a player going to the White Sox.

A (41:01)

And then right after the Sox picked him up, every time you would see him, like, pictures from Cuba or of him working out somewhere. He never had a shirt on, and he was. He was always constantly showing himself off and. And just he. The gold chain, like, no shirt, a bunch of gold chains. And he's. He's got, like, compression shorts on. He's just hitting baseballs 520ft. And you got to watch those videos to keep you warm during winter.

B (41:32)

So now he joins. He joins the Mets, who again, have an option to keep him next year. $2 million buyout after the 2026 season. Who knows if there'll be baseball, but that's. You know, he's part of a roster now that has a significant overhaul. Part of a virtually new Mets team with the exception of Lindor and. And Juan Soto. So we'll see how that all fits in. If he can stay healthy and play and can contribute to a team that was 83 wins last year and just.

A (42:00)

Missed the playoffs, I'm rooting for him. I hope he does well. I hope the change of scenery and the you know, going in there with a clean slate, no history, no expectations. He, he's not sort of carrying the, the weight of a rebuild on his shoulders, his, his considerable shoulders, but he will. He still got an opportunity at 28 to have a nice last or, or next act of his career. And I certainly wish him luck. If you need windows, you need to call Russ Armstrong. He is the Chicago window guys. And when you call Russ, he'll say, all right, well, let me measure, let me come out and let's talk. And you sit down and he explains windows to you. Not only does he explain the actual nuts and bolts of why windows are constructed the way they are and what they actually do and what it's good to pay for, what it's not good to pay for, he'll explain these deals that other window companies are offering and he'll debunk some of these myths about buy one, get one free and what really constitutes the best product. And the other thing is, as you're pricing windows, you'll find that Russ is different in that when you ask him who's installing my windows, he'll be able to name them. A lot of people in his position, his competitors can't because they use subcontracted labor, they use third parties, and he has no idea who's going to be in and around your house. That's not the case with Russ. Russ has all his people. It's his factory. He'll custom make the windows at his factory here in Chicago. He'll match any price. Give him a call, 847-302-9171 and check out his five star reviews@chicagowindowguys.com I have recommended Russ to co workers, to friends, to neighbors. I think I put the, the information in our like homeowners association website because we all have similar homes and the similar builders windows and Russ's windows are way better than those. And that's why I have been more than satisfied with the experiences that I have had with Russ and Chicago window guys. And you will be too, when you call 847-302-9171 and check out the five star reviews at ChicagoNowBeyond.com congratulations to the newest members of the baseball hall of fame. Couple of center fielders, Carlos Beltran and Andrew Jones.

B (44:30)

Yeah, I sent a text to our guy, BMAC, Bren McCaffrey, because, you know, you remember his love for Carlos Beltran.

A (44:36)

Yep.

B (44:37)

Loved Beltron. So had to congratulate him. And then I don't know if you, if you saw in social media at all. BMAC and Katie had their second. Second baby earlier this month. Yeah. They had a little boy. So now they have a Danny and a Jimmy.

A (44:50)

Well, I got. They got one great name there, Danny McCaffrey. And those are. Those are both good athlete names. Yeah, they are.

B (44:58)

Danny McCaffrey. Jimmy McCaffrey. Yeah.

A (45:01)

Yeah. And maybe you can trick them into thinking they're actual McCaffreys. And then they know, say, well, they. He might. He might look slow and bad, but he's not. He's just, you know, just wait because he out. We outworks everybody because he's a McCaffrey. They could do that. Danny and Jimmy.

B (45:15)

Yeah. Brendan could sell that. He and. He and CMC are brothers.

A (45:19)

Right. It's like the other Mike Champion we were talking about yesterday.

B (45:22)

Right.

A (45:22)

It's like there's another offensive coordinator who happens to be named Mike Shanahan. Not a bad name to have. And he'll probably be big because BMAC is big, you know, so they can. They can put that all together and have guys named McCaffrey and people. It's like. It's like that guy, lad McConkey. You knew when lad McConkey came out just by nominees be a football player. Nominative determinism. You knew that that guy was going to be like an overachieving football player. And like Hunter Renfro. There's two guys named Hunter Renfro.

B (45:53)

You know, when you brought up Mike Shanahan, I was looking at Mike Shanahan's coaching career and his history and stuff. I didn't know that he was the real Mike Shanahan.

A (46:02)

Oh, yeah, he's from here.

B (46:03)

I didn't know he was an Oak park guy.

A (46:05)

Yeah.

B (46:05)

Had no idea.

A (46:07)

Really?

B (46:07)

Yeah, I didn't. I didn't. Yeah.

A (46:10)

I always thought that was kind of part of the thing because didn't he coach at one of the directionals?

B (46:15)

Right.

A (46:16)

Wasn't that the whole, like Sean Payton played for. I don't know. I forgot because Peyton was from here, too. And then there was Eastern or Western Illinois where they played for each other. And that's.

B (46:25)

Well, he went to East Leiden High School and then he went to Eastern Illinois for college.

A (46:29)

Yeah.

B (46:30)

Oklahoma, Northern Arizona, Eastern Illinois. He was the OC in 78, Minnesota, Florida, and then became wide receivers coach for the Bronco in 94. 84.

A (46:42)

And then started to figure some things out there.

B (46:46)

Yep. And then he went to the Ray. He was the Raiders head coach first.

A (46:49)

Bad. That was that. Yeah.

B (46:51)

Then back to Denver.

A (46:52)

That's the argument. He's the argument for. For somebody being a terrible head coach in the first go around at a good one in the next.

B (46:58)

Yeah, for sure.

A (47:00)

That's the, that's what Matt Nagy's hoping people are thinking.

B (47:02)

So.

A (47:03)

Yeah.

B (47:03)

So congratulations to Andrew Jones and Carlos Beltran on getting into the baseball museum.

A (47:09)

Yeah. And Andrew Jones. The offensive numbers are good. The defense is just incredible. And I don't know that we still can contextualize and really understand defense. A lot of that is just kind of what you had seen that we will always see highlights of spectacular plays in center field. But the thing about Andrew Jones is he didn't have to make spectacular plays. He was just there. He would be there.

B (47:34)

That's just how good he was.

A (47:35)

He would be there to catch the ball. And you didn't need the Jim Edmonds stuff out there diving and flopping and running into things and doing all this like, wow, what a web gem. No, he didn't really need him because he would zoom over to the baseball and catch it. But absolutely with casual ease.

B (47:55)

Yeah.

A (47:56)

Absolutely deserved for these guys. And, and you know how I am with the hall of Fame. I can't. I would be pretending if I was giving you hot hall of Fame takes. Cause I don't really understand it anymore. And I've stopped caring because there's no real rules when, when Harold Baines is in the hall of Fame and Bobby Gritch isn't and Lou Whitaker isn't and you've. You've got these committees that put in pretty much anybody if you're just kind of around long enough and then you're starting with like which of the known performance enhancing drug abusers are out or in and who's getting votes and who's not. Andy Pettit is somehow allowed for it to not matter and David Ortiz has it not matter. Willie Mays has it matter even though he was in a noted amphetamines user. So do whatever you want, celebrate whoever you want. I it. I know they love it because once you can write HOF next to your signature, you get a lot more money. When you head out to Rosemont and sit at a card table and start signing things as your eyes glaze over. It's a great way to make a living.

B (49:04)

Yeah. Good for them on it. And congratulations again. Like I said, making it to the baseball museum.

A (49:10)

Yes. That's all it is, is a baseball museum in upstate New York. Why bet the playoffs anywhere else when my bookie gives you everything you need to get paid? It is as we mentioned, it is peak betting season. If there ever was a time to get in the game, it's right now. Because my bookie makes it so easy to play one account, one wallet. You can bet the spread, you can do sports, you can do casino, you can do reloads, you can do live bets. It's the same account, same wallet, everything in one place. So my bookie's built for whatever you want, however you're comfortable. Go to MyBookie AG right now. And our promo code remains the same. DBU for Dan Bernstein, unfiltered. And your first bet is covered up to 500 bucks. And then if it doesn't hit, you got a bet back, bonus token and you can run it right back. So build a bankroll in January, ride it through the super bowl. Bet anything, anytime, anywhere. Only at my bookie. I mentioned that we hit every Bulls bet that we made with our DBU picks that are brought to you by my bookie because the the Bulls had an easy one last night. Thanks. Yeah. Well, Ty Lue late called off the dogs, but the Bulls improved to 14 and nine at home with a 138 to 110 win. That's a lot of damn points, including 45 points in the second. And how do you do that? Well, by shooting 57% from the field and with more than half of your field goal attempts being three pointers and making 25 of 47. 25 of 47. Kobe White was 6 of 10. So many of them late. Modest Bouzelis had a really good game. He was tough, attacking, aggressive. And Boozelis finish with 21 points including four of eight three pointers. You had IO Dumumu was four of five from three point range. Kevin Herder trying to get his stroke back. He was 4 of 8. Not bashful, shooting his way out of it. I love to see it. Trey Jones had 15 points and 10 assists, eight rebounds. Also a terrific game for Tre Jones, who the more you watch him, the more you really appreciate his game. And he's. He's a perfect second unit point guard on a really, really good team. I will say that running through my mind last night was when. When Desumu hit that 43 like trade him now. And Kobe White when Kobe was bombing with trade him now. You got these opportunities. He might not have trade both of those guys, but I sure hope that that that Arturis Karnashovas is picking up the phone when people are calling and trying to restock some of this draft capital. Even the way Vuchevic is playing. He's had good legs lately. He's been moving well. He had two block shots. He got the rebounds you needed. But, but Vujevic has been, in the last three games or so, he's been, he's been moving a whole lot better. And if he wants to show that he's got enough legs and enough offense to maybe help a contender as, as a, a bench player, as a role player, somebody who could get some buckets on his own, you know, get some rebounds, make his free throws, I. They've got to do something here. They've got to kind of pick, you.

B (52:37)

Know, they're not going to. Right?

A (52:38)

We've made this bet. Yeah, we've made this bet. And I should mention too, we're going to talk about this at length as we get into this and all the cool stuff that's going on with the Derrick Rose number retirement coming up this Saturday, when organizations win championships a little bit later on, that's going to be dropping late this afternoon, a brand new owc. If you're a Chicago Bulls and NBA fan, make sure you stay tuned for that one last piece of NBA news. Nobody likes to hear I told you so. But let the record show that we called it when NBC announced that Michael Jordan was going to be a special contributor, he was going to be part of the NBA on NBC Redux. This new version of NBA and NBC Round Ball Rock is coming back. They're putting the band back together. And here it comes, the. Remember that announcement? Michael Jordan's gonna be a special contributor. Oh, my goodness. Well, you know what happened. Here's what special contributor has meant. Mike Tirico and NBC went to Jordan's house. They set up, they did one interview. They slobbered all over him. Jordan used that interview to tell you everything he doesn't like about the modern NBA. These players are soft. I'd kick all their asses. All this, the load. Management is stupid. I played every game. These guys suck. I didn't suck. Get out of my house. That was it. Because according to awful announcing here, it says the excitement to see Michael Jordan on NBC has now given way to confusion and disappointment. And that's only been exacerbated as NBC confirmed, Mike Tirico specifically, that the one interview with Jordan is all that NBC currently has from their quote, special contributor unquote.

B (54:46)

It's, it's really. It was a ridiculous move. I don't understand who made the decision, why they said, we're going to pay this guy a dollar. After we watched the second clip and saw that they were in the same clothes when we were like, all right, this is the same interview. And then we guessed that they did one interview, which we end up finding out that that's all they did. I just. I don't understand. Because he did nothing to help the product on NBC at all.

A (55:12)

If they could justify whatever ratings bump they know that they've received and they can sell off of that ratings bump, there's. There's no way it is. The actual dollars are worth whatever they.

B (55:27)

Paid to do that unless they got a ton of upfront money. When. When it was heard, oh, Michael Jordan's going to be here without. Without being told what he was going to do. He didn't know what it was going to be like, but it's like, oh, Michael Jordan's part of what we're doing. Yeah, I want to be a part of that. I'm going to hear, here's however many millions or whatever people gave up front to be a part of NBC's coverage of the NBA because Jordan was now involved. And I love Michael Jordan. I do. And yeah, you make the faces all you want, which I think is fucking insane, but you can make all the faces you want and shit all over Michael Jordan the player and say that LeBron's better. You can. You did. You raised. You raised your eyebrows.

A (56:02)

He's just never been a good commentator.

B (56:04)

But that's. But when I say, I love Michael Jordan, it's his playing time. I don't give a shit about any athlete outside of what they do in their sport. I don't. I don't care. It's the sport. And the guy is the best basketball player to ever play the game, period. He is. He is. And we can. We can agree to disagree. It's fine. He is.

A (56:21)

He. He was just not.

B (56:23)

Yeah, whatever. I know you can. You can make all you want. Yes.

A (56:26)

Players will always get better.

B (56:27)

He's the best player I've ever seen play the game. So that's just that simple. Yeah, he's the best player to ever play the game, period.

A (56:34)

That's not true.

B (56:35)

But he is, though. But he is. It's just that simple.

A (56:38)

For the other guy that does everything better.

B (56:39)

That's your opinion, my opinion. And you can have yours, and I'll keep mine. And mine's right, yours is wrong. But the fact that he did nothing to help the product better and make it better, I mean, is a joke, right? Not only did he. Did he got to help the product, he actually talked shit all about the product.

A (56:56)

That's the funniest part. These guys are terrible.

B (57:00)

They rescue you.

A (57:01)

They're soft, they're weak. I wasn't. Get out of my house.

B (57:05)

Like, is there somebody, like, in charge that's gonna get, like, somebody else should be fired? Because it's like, what was this? Why did we do this?

A (57:13)

Maybe their numbers say, no matter what it's worth, I guess maybe they walked out of that interview and they're going through. Do we have any stuff we can use? Yeah, I guess.

B (57:23)

But, yeah, I just. I would love to see. Yeah, I would love to see the impact on it. Like, what, like what, What. What was his actual impact? And. Yeah, and I think the fact that people pony money up front is all that mattered.

A (57:34)

I think that's a great. I didn't really think of that. That maybe they. They got it all paid for. They got their check, they got whatever they were going to get. Everything else is gravy. And they don't owe any make goods because they figured out a way to arrange the verbiage so they didn't promise too much. Paying back make goods.

B (57:54)

Yes. And maybe no one from NBC gets fired, but the people that throw, they throw up ad money. Maybe some of those guys get fired. Like, hey, boss, we got this great idea. Jordan's back. We're gonna. We're gonna pony up all this money for it. Yeah. So, yeah, I just. Man, it's. It's too bad. I think it's just too bad because again, not only did he not help your product, but he actually. He just. He just shit all over it.

A (58:16)

And you're NBC and you're. He was the reason why people watch the NBA on NBC. He made the NBA on NBC. And Ahmad Rashad and Willow Bay and all the stuff that that was. And here he is again. And all he has to say is that your product sucks.

B (58:32)

Now these guys are no good and they take too much time off. And I'm better. And I'm still better now today. And I could play today and kick all their asses and get the hell out of my house. Mike Tirico. Yeah.

A (58:44)

That he has his security people hustle everybody out. Kicks to Rico in the ass.

B (58:48)

Not even, like, packing up their equipment. They're just throwing shit out the front door. Yeah. Wires out the front door.

A (58:54)

Your van. Get out of here. I need a cigar. Get out. This week, Chicago honors a legend. Derrick Rose's jersey goes to the rafters. And Giordano's is celebrating a moment that means everything to this city, from MVP chants to unforgettable nights at the United Center. This one's for Chicago. It's Derrick Rose's jersey. Retirement homegrown legend, a Chicago icon. And we'll be celebrating all week with Giordano's as the Bulls honor one of the greatest to ever wear the jersey. Dubbed the MV Pizza. The new pie is a Giordano's salute to the youngest MVP in NBA history and one of the city's most influential sports figures. The MV Pizza celebrates the Chicago native's hefty career with the Bulls by stacking two layers of Giordano's signature pepperoni and topping it all off with a drizzle of homemade Calabrian hot honey. Order yours now@giordano's.com and that is today's Dan Bernstein Unfiltered presented in partnership with my bookie, Dan Bernstein.

B (60:04)

Unfiltered Unfiltered on 312SP.