Kyle Tucker signs with the Dodgers | Bears stadium news and the local media

Summary

Dan Bernstein Unfiltered – Episode Summary

Episode Title: Kyle Tucker signs with the Dodgers | Bears stadium news and the local media
Date: January 16, 2026
Hosts: Dan Bernstein and Matt Abbatacola
Podcast: Dan Bernstein Unfiltered (312 Sports)

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Overview

This episode sees Dan and Matt tackle two major stories:

1. The Los Angeles Dodgers’ blockbuster signing of Kyle Tucker and what it says about MLB’s economic system.
2. The ongoing Chicago Bears stadium debate, with sharp criticism of local media’s coverage and the public policy implications.

As always, the show zips between hard-hitting sports takes, audience feedback (Friday Feedback Friday), and their signature irreverent humor—including a lively “Top 10 Rams of All Time” segment and DBU’s betting picks.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Dodgers Sign Kyle Tucker – And MLB’s Broken System

[00:01–04:27]

• Big Deal Details: Kyle Tucker signs with the Dodgers for $240M over 4-5 years, with ~$57–60 million guaranteed in year one due to deferred money.
• Cubs’ Strategy: Dan notes the Cubs weren’t in on Tucker, but signings of Alex Bregman and Cabrera counterbalance fears about their spending.
• Dodgers as Villains? Dan argues anger is misplaced: “It’s not the Dodgers’ fault. Be mad at all the other teams for not doing the same thing.” (02:00)
• Matt’s Take: The envy is real, but the broken MLB system is the real issue:

  “The Dodgers are a team that looks at the luxury tax as a business expense. They don’t look at it as a ceiling...some of their luxury tax payments are more than a lot of teams’ payrolls.” (01:58)

• Callout to Owners:

  “Anybody rich enough to own a Major League Baseball team is rich enough to compete at Major League Baseball. Otherwise, get out.” – Dan (04:28)

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2. Chicago Bears Stadium: Media and Policy Critique

[04:26–11:13]

• Media Responsibility: Dan calls out Chicago sports writers for acting as PR for the Bears:

  “Stop carrying water for the Bears. Stop. It’s not your job.” (05:00)

• Public Policy over Team Interests: The focus should be representing taxpayer, not ownership interests:

  “If Indiana wants to do [a bad deal], go ahead. It changes nothing for me except that Illinois has much healthier public policy.” – Dan (06:10)

• George McCaskey’s Legacy at Stake?
  Matt ponders how McCaskey reconciles being “the guy who moved the Bears from Chicago,” especially given his personal touch with fans.

  “I just wonder…how he’s processing that mentally.” – Matt (09:43)
  Dan suggests McCaskey’s use of Kevin Warren as insulation, but ultimately “people aren’t going to say Kevin Warren marched the Bears across state lines.” (10:40)

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3. Friday Feedback Friday: Listener Emails & Voicemails

[12:29–35:16]

Emotional Reactions to Bears’ Playoff Win:

• Adam in Atlanta calls in, euphoric after the Bears beat the Packers in the playoffs for the first time since current Bear Cole Kmet was eight years old.

  “A fully grown ass man playing for the Bears was 8 the last time they won a playoff game.” – Adam (15:56)

• Stories of Bears fandom, anxiety, and catharsis, including a moving letter about sharing the playoff win via radio during an emergency.

“Unlikely Season” Analysis:

• Dave:

  “The Bears don’t do [normal comebacks]… This is like getting 15 fourth quarter game-winning drives in one season…What we’ve seen this year makes no logical sense. The 2526 Chicago Bears are the ‘Ames Window’ of football.” (19:14)

Stats Oddity:

• Matt:

  “160 to 0. The number of offensive snaps with the lead [for the Bears vs Packers this season]: none. But they’re 2-1 anyway.” (21:09)

Meatball Griff’s Epic Rant:

• Recaps the Bears’ wild comeback and pokes fun at Bears fandom:

  “Sure, they’ll probably be eliminated before the Super Bowl, but this season was still special and fun…We have earned a week of unbearable behavior.” (23:44)

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4. Bears Fandom, Generational Moments & Chicago Icons

[24:47–35:16]

• Listeners reflect on what makes this Bears team and season feel different.
• Behind City Traditions: Former Blackhawks/White Sox marketing pro explains why you don’t see Bears helmets on Art Institute lions until deep in a playoff run—teams have to pay, and logistics are “aggressively boring.” (35:08)

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5. Detached Fun: Deadhead Music, Dog Fights, and Top Ten Rams

[26:03–41:08]

• Music Geek-Out: Listener notes that Fox broadcast music during Bears games often features Grateful Dead tracks, partly to honor the late Bob Weir but also to spotlight new jam bands (Goose, Fish).
• Frank & Izzy: Quick comic detour as Matt’s two dogs interrupt, morphing into a banter about loyal but dumb pets.
• Top 10 Rams of All Time (absurdist rankings):
  • A highly eclectic list: Ram Man (He-Man), biblical rams, Ram Jam’s "Black Betty," Egyptian deity Amun Ra, Rammstein, Roger Ramjet, Ram Trucks, and more (full lists at [38:02–61:07])
  • Notable quotes:

    “Ram Man is described as a stocky warrior with poor verbal skills whose chief method of attack/defense involves using his head as a battering ram. Unsurprisingly, he’s a bit naive and gullible.” – Dan (44:13)

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6. DBU Picks: Divisional Playoff Bets & Player Props

[63:51–67:47]

• Matt’s Parlay:
  • Buffalo +1.5
  • San Francisco +7
  • Houston +3
  • Bears +3.5
• Dan’s Props:
  • Caleb Williams over 219.5 passing yards
  • Colston Loveland over 55.5 receiving yards

  “You know I’m the prop guy...win or lose, I think I’ll be good on these.” (66:37)

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7. Heated Rivalry (TV Rec)

[67:47–71:10]

• Dan gives a heartfelt review of the series “Heated Rivalry.”

  “Episode six is more of an epilogue...but there are some very, very subtle and sweet and intimate moments in the love story…My envy is whoever actually owns that lake house.” (69:18)

• Bonus: his wife Beth will “divorce” him if he doesn’t cry at the end (he did).

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Memorable Quotes

• Dan on MLB Ownership:

  “Anybody rich enough to own a Major League Baseball team is rich enough to compete at Major League Baseball. Otherwise, get out.” (04:27)

• On Bears Stadium Coverage:

  “Stop carrying water for the Bears. Stop. It’s not your job.” (05:00)

• On Bears Fan Euphoria:

  “A fully grown ass man playing for the Bears was 8 the last time they won a playoff game. Until tonight. Wow.” – Adam (15:56)

• On Newfound Bears Confidence:

  “It’s not closure. It’s not revenge. This is the beginning of a new, extremely earned level of confidence.” – Meatball Griff (23:44)

• On Media Music Choices:

  “It’s not just targeting a 56 year old white male with those timeless bangers—Jake and folks like him are shining a light on up and coming bands that are pushing boundaries…” – Listener email (26:03)

• On Ram Jam’s "Black Betty":

  “It’s a weird song with strange and abrupt stoppages… But it rocks out. Definitely rocks out.” – Dan (56:49)

• On Rambo:

  “The initial character of Rambo...is about alienation, about disaffection, the treatment of veterans...not just a jingoistic superhero.” (61:57)

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Notable Timestamps

• 00:01–04:27 — Dodgers sign Kyle Tucker, MLB economic critiques
• 04:26–11:13 — Bears stadium news, media responsibility
• 12:29–35:16 — Listener emails & voicemails: Bears playoff win reactions
• 24:47–35:16 — Bears fandom; explaining Chicago sports icons traditions
• 38:02–61:07 — Top 10 Rams of All Time (light interlude)
• 63:51–67:47 — DBU betting picks
• 67:47–71:10 — Heated Rivalry review

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Tone & Style

The show is candid, smart, and funny—unafraid to call out institutions, laced with local flavor and nostalgia, and full of affectionate but honest takes on Chicago sports and fandom. Both hosts riff with ease, and their audience feel is intimate yet unfiltered.

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For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

This wide-ranging episode offers biting insight into how money shapes modern sports—from MLB’s imbalanced economics to NFL owners leveraging stadium funding. Dan and Matt dissect media narratives and champion the fan/taxpayer interest, all while keeping the show’s trademark dry humor and irreverence intact. Highlights include passionate audience reactions to a historic Bears win, a playful duel of Top Rams in history, and a slice of Bernsteinesque cultural commentary—from sports betting to Dead tunes to the perfect lake house.

Whether you follow Chicago teams or just love unfiltered sports talk, this episode delivers.

Transcript

[Dan Bernstein]

Dan Bernstein, Unfiltered Unfiltered on 312 Sports. Dbu and it's brought to you in partnership with my bookie. It is Friday Feedback Friday, which we will get to in a moment, as well as our top 10 Rams of all time. A couple of headlines, just some news and notes. Kyle Tucker signs his massive deal for some deferred money, but looking like around 57 to 60. 60 million hard money for certainly the first year. 240 over what, five years? Four or five depending on some of the deferrals. So I let me just say this. We knew the Cubs weren't going to resign. Him getting Bregman, getting Cabrera has obviously certainly counterbalanced some of those. Those, those well set fears that the Cubs wouldn't spend. They did. They did spend. They just didn't spend on Kyle Tucker. For those who are angry with the Dodgers, oh, it's the Dodgers again throwing around this money. I would take that anger and instead direct it toward all the other teams in MLB who don't want to compete for players. It's not the Dodgers fault. The Dodgers aren't doing anything wrong. The Dodgers are getting players to make them better so they can go after a third consecutive championship. Be mad at the other teams, all the other teams for not doing the same thing.

[Matt]

It's a great point, Dan. And you're exactly right. And I'm not angry at the Dodgers. I am envious of the Dodgers. As a Cubs fan, I'm very envious. But I also, I also think it shows that the system within Major League Baseball is broken and needs to be addressed and fixed because it's not right. Yeah, every team does have the right to go out and spend as much money as they want and some teams have more money to spend than others. The Dodgers are a team that looks at the luxury tax as a business expense. They don't look at it as a ceiling to get up to as close as possible and not go over. And whatever they pay in luxury tax and it's some of their luxury tax payments are more than a lot of teams payrolls in Major League Baseball. They just look at it as a business expense in winning a championship. The system's broken, should be addressed. It really should. I'm not mad at the Dodgers at all, God bless them and I'm jealous of their fans. But it just, it's not right to have that in Major League Baseball.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, I think a lot of these lesser teams and cowardly teams and grifting teams want you to think that somehow it's beyond their ability to sign these players because they don't. They all have the money. Every team could do this and could offer more money for players if they wanted, and they could compete for World Series and they could make more money and they could be more valuable because they're more competitive. They choose not to. They choose not to play the same game. And I think part of the broken system is the whole idea of sort of capitalism for the. But not for me, which when they would rather take some of the payouts and just grift their way to the increasing value of their asset and increasing money for their ownership group rather than try to compete to win baseball games. And to me, the breaking of the system has been the lack of incentivization that owners have to compete with other owners when they'd rather all be part of a large club that just sits around and counts money.

[Matt]

Okay, you're not wrong with anything you said. But how much of a significant advantage do the Dodgers have with their TV money?

[Dan Bernstein]

They have more cash that's generated by their TV money. Much of that that they end up paying into the luxury tax. But all other teams could also spend money, even the Royals, the Reds, the Pirates, the Marlins.

[Matt]

I mean, they. They. They have the opportunity. I mean, they could spend. They could have a $700 million payroll. They wanted to.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sure, of course. And don't let them make you think that they can't.

[Matt]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, woe is us. We can't do this. We can't compete. Sure you can. You just don't want to. Anybody rich enough to own a Major League Baseball team is rich enough to compete at Major League Baseball. I'll say that again. Anybody rich enough to own a Major League Baseball team is rich enough to compete at Major League Baseball. Otherwise, get out. If somehow you're not making money and this is all some sort of giant losing proposition where the deck is stacked against you, then get out of it. Any other business in your empire, you'd be you. You would have been out of it. If it didn't make you money, if it wasn't incredibly valuable, you would have cut bait a long time ago. And the fact that you haven't proves that all of this, the poor mouthing is just that. All right, that's just what I believe. I will also say this. When it comes to wealthy people, and it comes to another headline, this is just a plea to my brethren on the front lines of Chicago media covering the stadium story. And I know we don't have a lot of hard news people out there. There's a lot of people who are content apparently to type up Bears press releases, stop carrying water for the Bears. Stop. It's not your job. It is not your job to frame something like what happened in the Indiana House yesterday. As a from the Bears perspective, take care of the taxpayer. It's part of our job in media, not just to represent the interests of the team in the way we report some of these developments and take their word and their opinion as the story represent the taxpayer's best interest. It may very well be the taxpayer's best. And in my belief as a resident of Chicago, a resident of Cook county and a resident of Illinois, the best thing that could happen to me as a taxpayer is the Chicago Bears play their games in Indiana and you have all of those goobers on the hook for this terrible, terrible deal. If they're dumb enough to want to pay for a stadium. If they are dumb enough to do what, like what Kansas is doing, going so deep into the red and taking money away from roads and schools and public health to pad the pockets of the Bears. If Indiana wants to do that, go ahead. It doesn't change a thing for me other than what I think leaving Illinois with much healthier, kinder, better public policy. But when you report this thing, report it also. Not just from the perspective of Kevin Warren and George McCaskey. And the Bears, regardless of win loss, record or anything else that's going on, report it for your readers, your listeners, your viewers as taxpayers and citizens. That's all I ask.

[Matt]

Two things there. One, I think the reason why it's happening like it's happening now is because of the win loss record, which is insane because of what the Bears are doing. People want to be on the good side of the organization. It is insane. And second thing I have for you is a question and I'm glad you brought this up again today because I had a question I wanted to ask you. I was thinking about it last night. If they were to move to Indiana. We know how much George McCaskey loves being a Bears fan and being out there with Bears fans. We saw him last week at the packers game. He was taking a group picture with some fans and a Packer fan came up behind and George actually stiff armed him, pushed him, like physically pushed him out of the way, which I thought was a really interesting move from a team owner to put hands on a fan. How do you think George McCaskey is reconciling the idea that he could be the guy that moves The Bears out of Chicago. I think that would, that would impact him mentally and also his legacy as well, too, as the guy who moved the Bears from Chicago. If that were to happen.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, that's up to him because it depends. If they don't have the money to actually build a stadium here, then that's fine. That if you got to take the Indiana state money and take it out of the pockets and out of the mouths of Indiana taxpayers, go ahead and do it. Go ahead and do it. It doesn't really change anything as far as I'm concerned when it comes to the Chicago Bears, the other Chicago Bears, they happen to be playing in another state that is going to. If they want to enact bad public policy in Indiana, they can do that. I don't want it done here and I don't know. But either he's got the money or he doesn't, and it's up to him that maybe he could take a slightly worse deal or spend more out of his pocket. That depends if that's what he wants. If that, if, if his legacy is more important, how he's remembered is more important to him than the dollars on the deal right now. That's completely up to him.

[Matt]

Yeah. Because I only ask that because there aren't many owners like George McCaskey in the NFL that get out among the people as frequently and as often as he does where he tries to come across as regular guy, a Bears fan, along with you. And you know, a guy like Jerry Jones doesn't do that and a guy like Jerry Jones doesn't care what you think as a Cowboys fan. George McCaskey, I get the impression cares what you think of him and the family and the organization as a Bears fan. And I just, I wonder, and you can't answer this, I wonder how he's processing that mentally that he could possibly be the guy that moves the Bears from Chicago.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know. And I don't know if that's why he wanted the insulating layer of Kevin Warren there. Because you notice on the stories that are basically reprinting a Bears press release on this Indiana story. Yeah, well, they are.

[Matt]

Yeah, I know, I know.

[Dan Bernstein]

And I. And I think you're right. I think it does have to do with Hooray Bears. And everybody is going to sweep up in this Hooray Bears when it should be a much higher responsibility to understand what's good public policy and what's not and try to represent the taxpayer. But it's Kevin Warren's picture. It's not yet George McCaskey's. But you're absolutely right, Matt. At some point that that deflector shield ceases to be when it comes to your legacy. People aren't going to say Kevin Warren marched the Bears across state lines.

[Matt]

No, Kevin Warren's an employee of George McCaskey.

[Dan Bernstein]

They will say people will remember George McCaskey as having done it. I think your point's well made, and I think we should keep that in mind. All right, everybody is betting right now with the football playoffs here. My bookie is where you got to go because it turns bets into bankroll the NFL. Boy, we know I don't have to tell you that the NFL is, is. Is do or die everywhere. And this weekend's going to be incredible. And the weather just lends itself to sitting around and being on our and watching our televisions. It's going to be awesome. Maybe I'll make chili. College football is down to the last two teams. The Super Bowl's coming up. NBA is going college basketball. This is the time to get in the game. And you can do it with my bookie because of how easy they make it to play. It's one account. It's one wallet. You bet the spread, you can live bet the second half. You can hit the casino during commercials even because it's all in one place and you have the power. Go to MyBookie AG right now, use this promo code, DBU and get your first bet covered up to 500 bucks. If it doesn't hit, you've got a bet back bonus token to run it back. So don't just watch the playoffs. Make them pay with my bookie bet anything, anytime, anywhere, only at my bookie. Ready for Friday feedback Friday?

[Matt]

Yes, sir.

[Dan Bernstein]

I am, too. We love doing this. And I will say this week has been a little different because I think we started Saturday night with some emails that were coming in immediately that were going on that emotional roller coaster that the Chicago Bears have been all year. And the voice message that I chose, I want to say first that the voice message this was sent in via the app, the 312Sports app. It's in the Apple App Store and Google Play. So get the app if you haven't gotten the app yet. To be connected to all things 312Sports, DBU forward progress organizations win championships. You register your account and you can win great prizes. Right now you can win dinner for two at Morton's, the Steakhouse at the Smith in the heart of river north, and at our friends at Giordano's because right now you can celebrate Chicago sports with pizza honoring the 85 champs. A special 85 style deep dish with a. We just brought in four of those pizzas over with Sherman and Tingle when I was on with them at 8:15 with a big 85 on there. The number stenciled in parmesan on top paying homage to the historic year for the city's hometown heroes. Just enter the promo code. Eat on any reward for a chance to win. This voice message came in.

[Matt]

Oh, hey, by the way too 312app you can also get from the 50 there. We're on there now.

[Dan Bernstein]

I'm sorry.

[Matt]

I'll upload it and gone. And I wanted to ask for Giordano's pizza. So just Foster eight.

[Dan Bernstein]

What.

[Matt]

What happened to the rest of the fellas?

[Dan Bernstein]

No, there. So I had to come in and start here. It was George from Giordano's that came in and dropped them off. He was lovely. And, and I think Sherman and Tingle are working on them and then they're going to be brought out for the rest of us.

[Matt]

Okay. Oh, I thought Foster, it was just eating all four.

[Dan Bernstein]

No, he, I think he could polish off maybe, maybe two, three slices of one of the deep. They're huge. It's meatballs, pepperoni and giardiniera. And the deep dish is like I needed both hands underneath just to keep. Carry one of those pizzas in.

[Matt]

Yeah, I, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm alone for tonight. Tonight. Tomorrow Natalie's out of town with Lucas, so. And we were discussing before the show. I'm heading right up to Gurney this afternoon to grab my own Giordano to enjoy for the rest of the weekend myself. Get it? Yes. I can't wait. Cannot wait. And you sounded good there with Sherman and Tingle. I was in the car getting back or on the way to the ortho with Henry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Got to hear you.

[Matt]

With Sherman and Tingle. It's always good stuff. Thank you.

[Dan Bernstein]

It's Bernstein at 8:15 Mondays and Fridays. So this message was left in the wee hours of Sunday morning by an apparently happy, if a bit confused Adam in Atlanta.

[Adam]

It is 3:12am in Atlanta and I am still wired. I've lost my voice from how often I was screaming after the Bears game ended. But I'm just, I still don't know what to do with my hands. Guys, I, we.

[Dan Bernstein]

They beat the packers in the playoffs.

[Matt]

Like.

[Adam]

I don't know if you guys realize this or not because they didn't really talk about it. They talked about It a couple of times a few years ago, but before tonight, the last time the Bears won a playoff game, Cole Comet was 8 years old. A fully grown ass man playing for the bears. Was 8 years old the last time the Bears won a playoff game. Until tonight. I wow. And just seeing the social media reactions of everybody, just so happy. It's so nice.

[Dan Bernstein]

And the Cub sign, Alex Bregman. What the.

[Adam]

Maybe I'll write an email where I'll have like more cogent thoughts that aren't just me rambling, but oh my God, what a night.

[Dan Bernstein]

Bears. Yes. Yes. Thank you, Adam. And there were. There were several others that were expressing similar thoughts in similar ways. I thought that was representative of the Bears Zeitgeist.

[Matt]

Yeah. And Cole Comet is a grown ass man.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay, good.

[Matt]

Not a grown ass man.

[Dan Bernstein]

He's a grown grown ass man. Andrew sent a note. He said, guys, it's been great to be along on the magical Bears journey with you. For better or for worse, you've been part of most of my sentient existence as a Chicago sports fan. I still have trouble giving anyone named Bob the benefit of the doubt. Saturday night held several firsts for me as an attendee of live sporting events. First NFL playoff game. First Bears packers game. First NFL night game. I took my girlfriend to the game. She's also a huge Bears fan. We'd been looking forward to it. Early in the second half, my girlfriend received a series of phone calls regarding an emergency with her young son. Her son's fine. Before I go any further, we all got home safe. Nevertheless, we had to leave the game and go pick him up on the way home. We're listening to the radio broadcast of the fourth quarter, and I hope to never be driving at night during a Bears playoff game ever again. But this is a moment in time I will never forget. After we celebrated the win together in the car, my girlfriend expressed her sorrow at causing me to miss that incredible finish. I assured her that not only had we not missed it, but she got to experience the moment with her young son as well. After the game ended, I turned on forward progress as I normally would. And you shared an email from someone describing their own experience of the game at home with their nine year old daughter. That anecdote and the way you shared it made a huge difference on our drive home. It brought her to tears in a good way, and I want to thank you for that. It's from listening to both of you. When I was younger, I learned fandom can't defeat logic. Feelings cannot defeat facts. Listening to you. Now that I'm older, I'm learning it's okay to care deeply about the outcome of a game. I'm learning that one of the best parts of fandom is the ability to share the experience with others. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for sharing this experience with us and keep up the great work. Thank you.

[Matt]

Good email.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's a really good email. Here is Dave and Dave says it's me, Dave. It's me, Dave. Man Normal fourth quarter comebacks will typically involve your team going back and forth in a close game, then getting the ball one final time. Down six, two minutes left. They drive down the field. They use their timeouts properly. They put the ball in the end zone with 2 seconds left. It's a miraculous memorable win that probably includes one, maybe two huge plays at crucial moments which you can later point to as being pivotal, including mistakes made by the opposition. The Bears don't do that. They get outplayed for three quarters. They find themselves down multiple scores with less than 10 minutes left. They require multiple drives requiring multiple huge plays at multiple crucial moments. It's like having three fourth quarter comeback drives in one game. Countless moments, countless huge plays made. And the Bears have done that at least five times this season. This is like getting 15 fourth quarter game winning drives in one season. No wonder it's exhausting. And it's been so difficult to remember exactly what happened. Saturday night's game ended. I remembered maybe three plays from the fourth quarter. In reality there were probably 10 plus you could point to as being crucial. I'll be damned if I know what they were now. They've done that five or more times in a season, including twice against your hated blood rival. And what you end up with is probably the most unlikely season in Bears history and maybe even the most unlikely season in NFL history. What we've seen this year makes no logical sense. The 2526 Chicago Bears are the aims window of football. I know what is happening. Please do not ask me to explain it.

[Matt]

I think the most amazing stat that I've seen about the three games against the packers is 160 to 0. The number of offensive snaps with the lead.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's amazing.

[Matt]

160 to 0. And the Bears are 2 and 1 in those three games. They've never had an offensive snap with the lead in three games. Dan.

[Dan Bernstein]

What a great stat.

[Matt]

That's insane.

[Dan Bernstein]

What a great stat. Yeah, that and you don't want that. You don't want to live your life like that.

[Matt]

Oh, that is.

[Dan Bernstein]

That is The Razor's damn edge. Man, that is wild. Here's a note from Meatball Griff, and Griff says, that's good. Meatball Griff says, yes, the Bears came back from 18 down. Yes, it was against Green Bay. Yes, it was in the playoffs. Yes, Caleb Williams did something that hasn't happened in this rivalry since color television was invented. And yes, even the Pope is from the Chicagoland area and is a Bears fan, which means this wind is now technically blessed by the Vatican. If you felt something shift in the universe around 10:30pm Saturday night, that was not the comeback. That was the Pope nodding solidly and whispering, finally. But before we declare a dynasty and rename Lakeshore Drive and start carving Caleb's face into Mount Rushmore with a giant cheese grater, let's take a collective breath and remember something. For Roughly the last 30 years, the packers have treated the Bears like half a timeshare property. They show up, they win, they leave. And we argue about quarterbacks and offensive coordinators like it's a hobby. Green Bay's own this rivalry so completely that most Bears Fans Under 35 Associate the term playing the packers with the term emotional damage. So yes, that night mattered a lot. It was a comeback in the playoffs against them. Caleb didn't flinch. D.J. moore broke reality. Loveland. The rookie is a folk hero, and somewhere cheeseheads everywhere felt a disturbance in the Force and don't know why. But let's be honest and serious. This win doesn't erase three decades of football mediocrity. Doesn't retroactively fix Rex Grossman. It doesn't heal the NFC Championship Game. What it does do is more important. It changes the sentence from we can never beat Green Bay when it matters to oh, so this is what it feels like. This is not closure. This is not revenge. This is the beginning of a new, extremely earned level of confidence. Yes, we will go full meatball this week. Be insufferable. Post the memes, buy the T shirts, the cheese grater foam headgear. Watch the highlights on a loop. Text packers fans things that will get us muted in our group chats. Light a candle, say a prayer. We have earned a week of unbearable behavior. But it's not the end of the story. This is the moment the Bears walked into the Matrix and realized there is no spoon. There is no curse. Sure, they'll probably be eliminated before they reach the super bowl, but this season was still special and fun to so many of us, even if our hearts and anxiety don't agree.

[Matt]

Good stuff, good stuff. And just to think the Bears and Packers now two seasons, five games, Bears are three and two. Just it feels nice. It feels nice to be competitive.

[Dan Bernstein]

Cam from Rolling Meadows says. The feeling this team gives me and so many others is indescribable. For once, it finally seems like we have the Goths. Whether it's the young hotshot quarterback or the new best young coach, there's certainly still things to improve. Play calling, pass rush. It's incredibly encouraging to see what they can do. Even down 21 to 3, I still had belief they could do it. They went out there and they shut so many people up. The fact that it feels like we can go out there and beat not just anyone but the packers on a given Sunday's awesome and the best part of the season isn't over. The squad's so fun to watch. All I want to see is more Bears football in the you just wanted the embarrassment to be over My Bears viewership may still be young. I recently turned 25 and have only really followed the Bears since they fired Lovey, but I'm hoping this young team writes so many wrongs and can finally compete for the promised land like many fans have waited for for so long. I'm excited to continue to listen to your Bears coverage and your other silly antics. Thank you Cam. And if at 25 you've already recognized the silly antics, then well done.

[Matt]

Congrats. Yes, congrats or I'm sorry.

[Dan Bernstein]

Whatever it is, pick whatever you want. This was sent in. See a name here. This says I caught your DBU chiming in on the discussion of the outro music you've been hearing. Cut to commercial breaks during Bears games. If the question is who is playing this music, the answer is clear. It's Deadheads classics like Shakedown Street, Saint of Circumstance, Playing in the Band, and Sugar Magnolia, just to name a few that have popped up over just this past weekend. It's not subtle. Once you notice it, it's a brilliant touch. What I love about Deadheads is we obviously adore the Grateful Dead, but at our core we're passionate fans of really good music. It's not about blind loyalty to one band. It's about appreciating live, improvisational artistry that gets your soul moving. Head to any concert where humans are jamming. Rock, jazz, bluegrass, Americana, electronic fusion. You're bound to spot some tie dyed, shirt wearing folks dancing like nobody's watching, fully immersed in the moment. That free spirited energy is infectious and the timing of this topic hit home for me coming a few days after the passing of Bob Weir on January 10, who was a cornerstone of the Dead sound, his legacy as guitarist, singer, innovator in the jam scene can't be overstated. NFL broadcasts across the board honored him this weekend with dedications carved out during games, subtle nods and the commentary, more Dead tunes slipping into the mix. That's no coincidence. And speaking specifically to Fox, I gotta shout out Jake Jolly, one of the key producers who personally curates those tunes for commercial breaks. He's a huge fan of Fish and the Dead. And like true Deadheads, his tastes run deep into all sorts of quality jams. And sure, like you said, Dan, some of these choices are just targeting a 56 year old white male with those timeless bangers. But it's missing the bigger picture. Jake and folks like him are shining a light on up and coming bands that are pushing boundaries and exploring fresh sounds. He's been infusing his eclectic knowledge into broadcasts for years during timeouts and transitions into mini concerts that reward attentive listeners. A few years back during the super bowl, he slipped in Hunger Sight from Goose while they were still building their cult following. Now Goose has exploded. They hold the record for the longest single show in Madison Square Garden history. He said the band paid an estimated $150,000 fine for playing past curfews. As it's moves like this that show how the production choices aren't just filler. They spotlight rising talents and keep the spirit of live music alive in unexpected places like sports tv.

[Matt]

Very nice. Nicely done. Hey, I'm going to step away for just one second. Keep reading the emails. I have visitors down here I need to get rid of.

[Dan Bernstein]

Visitors you need to get rid of? Is there an infestation?

[Matt]

Yes. Of two dogs fighting. I left the room. I left the basement door open.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's okay.

[Matt]

Frank, Izzy, come here. Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

They should meet. Frank and Izzy.

[Matt]

Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

I think Frank is much more our target demo.

[Matt]

Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

I love Frank. Frank. Frank's my guy, but they've got a great relationship. Let's. Hey, that's Izzy.

[Matt]

Izzy, say hi. Say hi.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hi, Izzy.

[Matt]

Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

Frank. Izzy's a.

[Matt]

Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, God.

[Matt]

Yeah, she's a. A blue heeler, so. Australian cattle dog. Yeah. Come here, Frank. Come here. Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

That means Izzy is smart and loyal.

[Matt]

Yeah. Smart and loyal and vicious.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah, Frank, I would say, is loyal.

[Matt]

Come here, Frank. And he's dumb as a box of rocks. Come here.

[Dan Bernstein]

But he's loyal. I didn't. I didn't say smart.

[Matt]

All right, I'm right here. Do your email. I'm gonna. I'm gonna get rid of these two.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt]

All right. Yeah. Because they're starting to fight. I can't have that background.

[Dan Bernstein]

A dog fight.

[Matt]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. Come arrest you.

[Matt]

It gets loud, right?

[Dan Bernstein]

I know you got.

[Matt]

Oh, yeah. No, I'm not like. I'm not taking bets on it. I mean, I could, I guess.

[Dan Bernstein]

You got all those pens outside in the back with the electric wires. Yeah, I know. I know what's going on out there by the back.

[Matt]

All right. I'll be right back.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. Well, then while you're doing that, I will read this from Jim, but his friends call him Jim. The way the Bears attack on offense, it reminds me a lot of playing high level golf. Dan, I know you're a golfer. I like playing golf. I wouldn't call myself a golfer. I'm bad, but I enjoy it. He said. As an analytics nerd, I'm sure you have some understanding of strokes gained. If not the definition of strokes gained is how many shots a player gains or loses on the field for each shot. Compared to a benchmark, the PGA pros you're playing against would be the benchmark from the same spot. So it's shots gains or shots gained or lost from the same spot. Strokes gained is what you gain or lose versus the players you're playing against. In a given tournament, it's taught us distance is king, even if not in the fair way. Those leading the tournament and strokes gained and driving are always close to the top of the leaderboard. That's why speed training is so popular. Everybody swings as fast as they can because five yards further even in the rough gives you a statistically better chance of scoring lower than five yards further back in the fairway. This has become known as bomb and gouge. How does this apply to the Bears? Ben Johnson attacks a football game like a bomb and gouge golfer and is part of the reason Caleb's completion percentage is lower than expected. Ben likes to take huge chunks by scheming guys open. He doesn't like 50, 50 balls, he said, so he'd rather throw to the receiver he made wide open. The longer and more difficult a pass, the lower your completion percentage will be. However, when you add those passes up over four quarters or four rounds of a tournament for the metaphor, and suddenly you've amassed all these yards and points against your opponent. It's like how three point shooting became so prevalent in the NBA. As you've discussed, just keep shooting the three. You'll make fewer of them, but you'll end up scoring more points. This is my opinion on why so many of these football stats don't matter. They can indicate what a team's good at, but it doesn't guarantee success like a handicap in golf. Just because you're a five handicap doesn't mean you shoot five over every time. It's a measurement of your potential. And it reminds me of that famous Tony Wise quote, every sack is its own specific occurrence. Every play in football is its own thing, just like every shot in golf. I think that's well considered.

[Matt]

Yep, I like that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Now this email and we're going to close with this for Friday feedback Friday, unless you have something that you're saving.

[Matt]

I am not.

[Dan Bernstein]

And he has asked me to not include his name. So I'm going so I'm going to.

[Matt]

Say it right now.

[Dan Bernstein]

I've no, I've identified that it's a he, but that's all just says Longtime listener, second time writer Dan, you ready? Who you crap? And of mine when I was in college and you prefaced it by saying it's dense but it's good. And I was insufferable for a week after you did that. He said a little bit about me. I previously worked in marketing for the Blackhawks from 2008 to 2014 and then the White Sox 2014 to 2021 before pivoting to leading marketing for Chicago cultural institutions. So I felt uniquely qualified to give insight into your conversation about the Art Institute Lions and their Bears helmets. Okay, Dan, you're correct. If the Bears were to advance to the NFC championship, you will start to see much more the city's icons showing their support. But the reasons why are aggressively boring materials, bandwidth and fairness. So let me just say that this emailer is about to take the fun out of these civic Bears celebrations, even with the old standbys, the Art Institute Lions, the large brontosaurus jersey outside the Field Museum. I think it's Apatosaurus now, right? Do we go back to brontosaurus? He said after a season in the elements and fan interaction, they come back inside in bad shape if they're salvageable at all. Add in that most cultural institutions don't have enough tradespeople in the best of times that repairing and installation take days to coordinate, to plan and to execute. And that's if these places have anything at all. It's often up to the teams themselves to prefabricate and provide items at these landmarks. And that leads to whole other lines of conversation with the teams about how much they want to invest without A clear return. Things have changed slightly with social media, but for any bigger lift, most places, the willis tower spires, the Picasso statue elected official wagers with opposing cities and the like won't even engage until deep in a playoff run. One more win for the Bears and you can expect to see a flurry. He says, thanks for the pods. Great to have them on my drive home every afternoon. All right, thank you, sir.

[Matt]

All right, then. I get it.

[Dan Bernstein]

But like, I did not know that the teams had to pay for that stuff.

[Matt]

I didn't know either. The basically no idea.

[Dan Bernstein]

You could say, yeah, well, we'll put Bears helmets on the Lions if you give us giant helmets, right?

[Matt]

Yeah, I didn't know that. I guess probably should have thought of that, but didn't ever think that. Yeah, they'd have to pay for it. It's interesting, right?

[Dan Bernstein]

It certainly would make sense, I guess.

[Matt]

But maybe that's why they haven't been able to buy a stadium. All those years of providing helmets, they.

[Dan Bernstein]

Spent all their money on giant statue, lion statue helmets and now they're just out.

[Matt]

Sorry. They've run up a bill of $6 billion.

[Dan Bernstein]

Sorry, we're out of money.

[Matt]

New stadium, lion helmets. Yep. Let's go that route.

[Dan Bernstein]

If you need windows, you don't want to run out of money, you're going to call Chicago window guys because Russ Armstrong, the owner, is going to make sure that you get the best deal for the best windows. It's really that simple. With his price match guarantee, Russ and Chicago window guys can keep you from being one of the people that falls for one of these. Buy one free gimmicks that you hear. Russ is just going to give you the best product at the best price guaranteed. So call him 847-302-9171. You can see all his five star reviews at ChicagoNowGuys.com these are windows made locally at his factory here in Chicago. One of his people will come out and measure after you know what windows you want. And then his people will install all the windows. There's no third parties, no subcontracted labor. You're going to. Everybody in and around your house is a direct employee of Russ Armstrong. And Russ himself will come talk to you about what you need. So give him a call. Don't wait. Windows matter. I have learned this and it's why we are. That's why round two is here this week. They're coming in, so call them 847-302-9171 and check out all of Russ's five star reviews at ChicagoNowdownGuys.com each week, when the Bears have a new opponent, we take the name of that opponent and provide for you the all time top 10 of that particular mythical creature or animal concept, whatever it may be.

[Matt]

Yep.

[Dan Bernstein]

And this week it is the Los Angeles Rams. And therefore, it is time for us to present our results of the deliberations and voting of the committee that lives in Matt's basement alongside Frank and Izzy. And we compare that and contrast that with my list of the top 10 Rams of all time.

[Matt]

All right, so the committee gave me their list earlier today. They have three honorable mentions. The first one is Ram Restaurants and Brewery. Apparently it was a place that the committee liked to hang out at for beer before their nights out in Schaumburg years and years and years ago, they would go out with their friends and they like to start the night off at Ram restaurants. So it gets an honorable mention. Second honorable mention is Ram Trucks. Ram trucks.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. My number seven.

[Matt]

Okay. And then the third honorable mention for top ten rams of all time from the committee, the battering ram. The battering ram. Whether you look at like medieval giant battering rams or one used by local law enforcement pretending to be police officers.

[Dan Bernstein]

Today, or the one in that Sean Penn's character Steven Lockjaw uses in one battle after another.

[Matt]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

He goes back to his car to get it to open the door. So the battering ram reads the note that's left for him.

[Matt]

Very valuable tool and weapon. All right, so the battering ram gets an honorable mention. Number 10, bighorn sheep. You know, the males are called rams, but bighorn sheep, number 10 on the top 10 rams list. All right, number nine, the ram in the book of Genesis that was sacrificed by Abraham instead of killing his son Isaac.

[Dan Bernstein]

I have that as an honorable mention. Ever since I've been a little kid, I have found that particular Bible story incredibly troubling.

[Matt]

You should.

[Dan Bernstein]

It is always. It's really bothered me. And it so happens that the first rabbi at Temple Sholem, Aaron Petakowski, who's a lovely guy who I spoke to, that was his specialty in rabbinical school. That was his thing. He wrote some of the definitive stuff about that in the reform movement, about what he felt that meant. It didn't really help me. I still find it terrifying.

[Matt]

Well, it's a troubling story, yes. But the ram in Genesis, number nine, number eight, Amun Ra. And not the lion's wide receiver, but the Egyptian deity formed from syncretism of Aman, the God of er and Ra, the ancient sun God, becoming Egypt's supreme creator God, the king of the gods, often depicted as a man with ram horns. So Amun. Ra gets number eight.

[Dan Bernstein]

Ooh, I like it.

[Matt]

Number seven. This is Chrismalas, the winged ram with the golden fleece in Greek mythology that was sacrificed to save some kids. You can look up the story if you want. The Fleece. The Golden Fleece hung in a sacred grove that became the target of the story of Jason and the Argonauts.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right, there you go.

[Matt]

That's number seven. Number six, Ram from Tron, the movie. Tron.

[Dan Bernstein]

Ram. Oh, is it Random Access Memory?

[Matt]

Yep. The blue character that befriended Tron and helped him escape the life cycle grid gets a number six nod here from the committee. Number five is Los Angeles Ram Merlin Olson, 15 year defensive tackle, went to 14 Pro Bowls. He was a successful broadcaster and actor. After his sports career, he sold America flowers. But here he gets the nod for being alongside Dick Enberg on NBC and calling Super Bowl 20, where the beloved crushed the New England Patriots 46 to 10. So, Merlin Olson, number five. All right, number four. Do you know this name, Dan? Andy Ram.

[Dan Bernstein]

Andy Ram.

[Matt]

Yep.

[Dan Bernstein]

No.

[Matt]

Retired Israeli professional tennis player known for his successful career as a doubles player. He amassed a record of 331 and 233, earning 19 career titles, and reached a world ranking of number five in July of 2008. Andy Ram, doubles player. Nothing for you, huh?

[Dan Bernstein]

No.

[Matt]

Okay. Number three. Aries, the first zodiac sign symbolized by the Ram. People with his birth sign are known to be bold leaders, pioneers, fiercely independent. Birth dates of March 21 to April 20. Number three, the zodiac sign of Aries. Anything? No, I mean, that.

[Dan Bernstein]

That's. It's really inarguable with its importance.

[Matt]

Yeah. It's not on your list, though. No. No crossover. There's one so far. All right, number two. Do you know the name Samuel Buckram?

[Dan Bernstein]

Samuel Buckram. Yeah, Samuel.

[Matt]

And his nickname was Buck. Samuel, Buck Ram. No, nothing for you.

[Dan Bernstein]

Nothing.

[Matt]

All right, hang on. Here, let me. Let me pull this. This guy up.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay.

[Matt]

All right, so he's an American songwriter, producer and arranger. He was born in not a ranger, but an arranger. He was born in Chicago in 1907, died at the age of 83 on January 1, 1991. He was one of BMI's top five songwriters in the first 50 years of their existence, alongside Paul Simon, Kris Kristofferson, Jimmy Webb, and Paul McCartney. He's best known for his long association with the Platters. He also wrote and produced and arranged for the Penguins, the Coasters, the Drifters, Ike and Tina Turner, Ike Cole, Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller and Ella Fitzgerald. He and many others. He was also known as Andy Rand, Lynn Paul, or Gene Miles. But Samuel Buck, Ram, American songwriter.

[Dan Bernstein]

Wow. Okay, today I learned good one.

[Matt]

And the number one Ram of all time for the committee on the top 10 rams of all time list. Ram man from he man, masters of the Universe. I like to call him CTE man, but it's Ram man, number one on the Rams all time list.

[Dan Bernstein]

My number six.

[Matt]

Your number six.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right. My. My number six indeed is Ram Man.

[Matt]

Was Deed a part of the committee's childhood? Ram Man?

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, Ram man is described as a stocky warrior with poor verbal skills whose chief method of attack defense involves using his head as a battering ram. Unswervingly loyal to the people of Eternia, at times questioning the loyalty of newer heroic warriors. He is also a bit naive and gullible.

[Matt]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Because his brain is full of proteins.

[Matt]

Yes. There's a reason for CTE Man.

[Dan Bernstein]

CTE Man. All right. My list is quite different.

[Matt]

Okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right. Obviously. Well, we will start with the honorable mentions. Honorable mentions for random access memory. In general, the idea of Ram and I had both biblical rams, actually. I had the ram that appears in the thicket that keeps Abraham from offering Isaac. And there's another ram in the Bible. Ram is the son of Hezron and an ancestor of David. And his genealogical lineage and descendants are recorded in Chronicles and the book of Ruth. And in the New Testament, his name is given is Aram and Arni, which is the Greek version. So we have those two rams. We also have ramekin, which is that little circular dish with the ribbing on the outside that is used for, like, condiments, sausages, creme brulee, be in a. In a ramekin. So I had that on there as well. I also have a couple of dancehall reggae songs, because there was a time when the word ram was a descriptor for dancehall parties that meant ramping or excitement. So there was the dancehall, sort of proto dancehall superstar Tiger, who had a song that I used to listen to called Ram Dancehall. And then there was Papasan, who had a song called Ram Dance man, or also, as he would say, Ram Dansman. But those were both noted reggae dance hall artists. I went through a bit of a post college phase when it was pretty much all I was listening to for some reason. Don't ask why. Last honorable mention is Orcus. And if you are a Dungeons and Dragons player. The mere mention of Orcus should shake the depths of your soul. If you would read the monster manual, you knew that Orcus was a demon prince and a purported primordial that served as master of the undead. From the depths of the abyss. He returned from Undeath, but he's not technically alive. The demon Lord of Undeath was the staunchest advocate for stagnation, seeking to exterminate all life, to darken and desolate all worlds, until all that remained in his static reality were undead, moved only by his will. Also known as the Blood Lord. That inspired dread in the hearts of even gods. Known as the shadow that was. And he was the picture of demonic. An imposing picture of vaguely humanized humanoid form. Standing 15 to 20ft tall. His frame was a twisted fusion of corpulence, muscle and rot. Bloated flesh. His physique was marked by the horned, desiccated head of a ram. Orcus the foul and the hideous. Also an honorable mention.

[Matt]

He's ugly.

[Dan Bernstein]

The ugly, yeah, but don't mess with him. And he. The Wand of Orcas. I think without his wand, he's probably not as dangerous. It goes for all of us.

[Matt]

His friend Juan.

[Dan Bernstein]

Not Juan. Juan.

[Matt]

Oh, I thought Orcas had, like, a dude named Juan that rode with him.

[Dan Bernstein]

He might.

[Matt]

Yeah. I am Orcus. And I am Juan.

[Dan Bernstein]

Who's that? That's Juan. What's he doing here? Don't worry about it.

[Matt]

You said, Wanda.

[Dan Bernstein]

He did not have an assistant named Juan.

[Matt]

Juan.

[Dan Bernstein]

Okay. But I like. I like the fact I am Demon Lord Juan. You. You good? Yes, I am good. All right. Okay. Number 10 on my list of all time Rams, the video game rampage. And I liked it, but in retrospect, I hate it because it never did anything. You'd pump quarters into the damn thing and it would be fun for a while, but I never thought you could really win it. It was just a quarter sucking machine. Quarter sucking machine. And you'd be one of the characters and you'd be the wolf or the gorilla or whatever you were. And you'd punch things and things would break and you'd eat things and then you get electrocuted and then you put more quarters in. So I don't know what the purpose was, but that's my number 10.

[Matt]

It was just destruction. I think that was the purpose.

[Dan Bernstein]

I think that's all it was.

[Matt]

Yeah, that's all it was.

[Dan Bernstein]

Number nine, Mola Ram. R A M. Mola Ram. You know who that is, right?

[Matt]

Nope.

[Dan Bernstein]

Mola Ram from Indiana. Jones and the Temple of Doom.

[Matt]

Oh, okay.

[Dan Bernstein]

You know him from his ceremonial headdress with the shrunken head and the horns on it. Mola Ram, the thuggy high priest. He is also, and I did not know this, he is named after an actual Mola Ram who was an Indian painter who originated the Garhwal school of miniature painting. He was also a poet, historian and diplomat who lived from 1743 to 1833. That is the actual Mola Ram, who, along with the fictional Mola Rahm, checks in at number nine.

[Matt]

And that's the dude that would pull the hearts out of people's chests, correct? Yeah. Okay. Yeah.

[Dan Bernstein]

Number eight, Ram Golf. The Ram Golf company now does a lot of very like basic direct to consumer beginners stuff. They're one of these sort of retired ish brands like McGregor that you may see for kids sets or for stuff that you would buy at a department store or something like that. You still see Ram Golf, but for a long time, Ram Golf was a. Was a material player in the golf world. Tom Watson used Ram. They were. They created the very first Surlyn covered ball, which became the standard after some of the actual rubber balls. And it was actually Ram Golf was founded in Chicago apparently, and they purchased a golf ball plant in 1964 and developed the first Surlyn covered golf ball. But they had Tom Watson, Raymond Floyd, Nick Price, and there is even Fred Couples using some of his clubs. And the name still exists. So Ram Golf number eight. Number seven, as we mentioned, Ram trucks. Number six, as you said, was Ram Man. Number five is the German industrial metal band Rammstein. Rammstein, what does that mean in German? It means ramming stone or battering ram, which is probably a fair way to describe some of their music. It's intense and it is unapologetically German. And while they have been accused of being all things, they've been accused of being right wing, they've been accused of being left wing provocateurs. They have been investigated for the meanings of their lyrics. They insist that they are apolitical, but they have certainly carved out a unique place in what is the genre of new Deutsche heart or industrial metal. And that is the band Rammstein Number four. Do you remember a cartoon, Roger Ramjet?

[Matt]

I do, actually. When you immediately, immediately thought of that.

[Dan Bernstein]

When you said that. Roger Ramjet.

[Matt]

Yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

It ran from 1965 to 1969 and I had seen it here and there in repeats. And it was a. Well, whatever. It wasn't obviously the first airing, but they would. The cartoons Continued to air. It was very much of its time. But Roger Ramjet, very patriotic and a true American hero out to save the world with his proton energy pills. He's voiced by Gary Owens. So you know the voice, the voice is the same as Powdered Toast man. And he was the announcer for Laugh In. And he was. You would, you would know the voice of Gary Owens. And I want to say he did Space Ghost. He did Space Ghost and Blue Falcon. So he was the incredibly recognizable voice of Roger Ramjet. And that they, I love the. They would have the silly names for the villains. Like their one woman was named Jacqueline Hyde. There was Dr. Franken Schwein, Count Bat Guy, the Sexy Senorita Tequila Mockingbird. They had some fun with that.

[Matt]

Was that Noodles Romanoff?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, it was. You get Noodles Romanov, which is one of my favorite Stouffer's side dishes that got discontinued. But yeah, I love it. Yeah, Noodles Romanoff was the pint sized gangster.

[Matt]

That's great.

[Dan Bernstein]

That is true. So, yes, Roger Ramjet and his arch enemy, Noodles Romanoff. He checks in at number four. Number three.

[Matt]

Hang on one second, hang on one second. I got to do this.

[Dan Bernstein]

What?

[Matt]

This Roger Ramjet. I always wondered like, what was up with the, the, the hat thing, the hood thing? Cuz, like, did you have a lot of hair?

[Dan Bernstein]

Roger Ramjet?

[Matt]

Yeah, look, look at the picture on the screen.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hold on, I gotta.

[Matt]

Yeah, go to your screen.

[Dan Bernstein]

Hold on.

[Matt]

Okay, yeah, well, you had like a, like.

[Dan Bernstein]

No, it's a helmet, it's not hair.

[Matt]

But it's soft though, wasn't it? I don't know, but it looks like it's just all full of his hair. Like he has like a white hoodie and it just pulls up over his.

[Dan Bernstein]

Head like one of those rasta expando dreadlocks.

[Matt]

Like, doesn't it?

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know. Did he ever take it off?

[Matt]

Not that I can remember. Because it doesn't really look like a helmet. It looks more like a. I think it. Maybe it was meant to be a hoodie. I don't know.

[Dan Bernstein]

I don't know. I think it's supposed to be a helmet, Roger, but I'm not. But I'm not certain.

[Matt]

That's really good.

[Dan Bernstein]

Number three. One of the one hit wonders in the history of rock and roll. And the reason they were a one hit wonder was because apparently their guitarist and lead vocalist was a bit of a. Bit of a strange man. Ram Jam and their famous remake of the lead Belly song, Black Betty. Oh yeah, you know Ram Jam, for sure. And when you listen to that song, it's weird. It's a weird song with strange and abrupt stoppages in it and a very odd sort of major chord country sounding breakdown at one point. But Bill Bartlett was the guy who found. They found this Lead Belly song and they decided to do their own version of it. It became a massive hit. And that was it.

[Matt]

That was it.

[Dan Bernstein]

And that was it for them. And all the members of the band scattered in their separate ways. But it was 1977 and 1978. Ram Jam, you hear it all the time. You hear it from the other side of this wall on 971 the drive. They could probably give you all the trivia about Ram Jam, but that's number three.

[Matt]

So that was a remake. Yes, Ram Jam did a remake of. Yeah, I'm not even sure if I knew that, to be honest with you.

[Dan Bernstein]

It was Lead Belly.

[Matt]

Yeah, I'm not even sure if I knew that.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, it was good because some of the lyrics got them in trouble. Black Betty down in Alabama, Black Betty had a child Bama Lamb. And at least Lead Belly was black. But there were some people like, hey, why are these white guys singing about all this stuff? Yeah, the appropriation. They're like, oh, it's just a remake of a song. And it didn't. But it was interesting. It rocks out. It really does.

[Matt]

Sure does. Yeah, it sure does.

[Dan Bernstein]

Definitely rocks out. Helps.

[Matt]

Had a few beers in you.

[Dan Bernstein]

They had it together for at least one song. Now, number two. And I only do this because I couldn't wait to read some of this stuff. Number two is the album Ram by Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney. It is Paul McCartney's second album after leaving the Beatles.

[Matt]

Beatles.

[Dan Bernstein]

So it's before Wings became a thing. This was 1971. After the album McCartney, he put out the album Ram, and the release coincided with a period of acrimony between McCartney and the other former Beatles. This was after all the stuff in the courts to dissolve the Beatles partnership. And there was a belief that this is where he was settling scores and taking his shots. The album cover is Paul McCartney on a farm with an actual ram holding the horns of the ram. I don't know why it's called Ram. The only song you've probably ever heard of from this album. Well, maybe there's a. There's a couple. The three singles were uncle albertadmiral, Halsey, the Backseat of My Car, Eat at Home, and then Another Day. It's just Another Day, that one. And I bring this to you because of these excerpts from the critical reception. Okay, bring it on. Upon its release, Ram was panned by music critics. McCartney was particularly hurt by the harsh reviews, especially as he'd attempted to address the points raised in criticism of his earlier album McCartney by taking a more professional approach. In his review for Rolling Stone, John Landau called RAM incredibly inconsequential and monumentally irrelevant. He criticized its lack of intensity and energy, adding it exposed McCartney as having quote, benefited immensely from collaboration, unquote, with the Beatles, Particularly John Lennon, who he said held the reins in on McCartney's cutie pie, Florid attempts at pure rock music. And apparently it was Lennon who kept McCartney from going off the deep end that leads to an album as emotionally vacuous as Ram. Playboy accused McCartney of substituting facility for substance and compared it to watching someone juggle five guitars. It's fairly impressive, but you keep wondering why he others. Alan Smith called it an excursion into almost unrelieved tedium and the worst thing Paul McCartney has ever done. The Village. The Village Voice described it as a bad record, a classic form, content mismatch.

[Matt]

Oh, boy. So they loved it? Basically, yes.

[Dan Bernstein]

Wow. Lennon. John Lennon described it as Muzak. To my ears. Ringo Starr said, I feel sad about Paul's albums. I don't think there's one good tune on ram. He seems to be going strange.

[Matt]

That's dope.

[Dan Bernstein]

Nope. So that's number two. Number two is the album Ram number one. The greatest Ram of all time, and is specifically a one version of this Rambo. John Rambo in the novel by David Morrell. He doesn't have the name John.

[Matt]

That.

[Dan Bernstein]

Was given to him for the movie so they can play. It was based on When Johnny Comes Marching Home. The character John Rambo, who has become an iconic American idiom, has been perverted not only by the movies, by the portrayal by Sylvester Stallone, but he became a cartoon character, the initial character of Rambo from the book First Blood, and carried well into the first movie. It is about alienation, it is about disaffection, it is about the treatment of our veterans. And it's a rumination also on PTSD and mental illness and the responsibilities of governments when they send people into war and ask them to kill. Rambo was a troubled, homeless, former Green Beret and Vietnam War veteran who, unfortunately, since in the various sequels, simply became a jingoistic superhero. But he wasn't to begin with, and he did. There was a lot more depth to the character, the significance, the meaning of. Of the character and the suffering of the character. But just because in large part of what that the sort of mythical size of what he is, what he's become, my number one Ram is the character Rambo.

[Matt]

Rambo.

[Dan Bernstein]

What I learned was based on the name of an apple. There's something called the Rambo apple that stuck in the mind of David Morrell, and that's why he used the name for his character. But those are my top 10 all time Rams.

[Matt]

There you go. Nicely done.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right, should we do DBU picks?

[Matt]

Yeah, we can do that for sure.

[Dan Bernstein]

Well, because I. We can, but I kind of think we're supposed to, which is.

[Matt]

Yeah, yeah. All right, go ahead, fire away.

[Dan Bernstein]

Let's. I don't want to inconvenience you.

[Matt]

No, you're not inconvenienced.

[Dan Bernstein]

If you don't wanna. If you don't feel like it.

[Matt]

I do wanna.

[Dan Bernstein]

I just.

[Matt]

I thought maybe you might want to do the read right. There might be a nice little break for the. Ready?

[Dan Bernstein]

Yeah. See, it actually is because DBU picks are presented by my bookie. And the thing about my bookie, especially this time of year, is all that you have at your fingertips. And that's because football is live. NFL's everywhere. This weekend is for a lot of people. This is the weekend for football. We know college football is down to two teams. I think Indiana will be the one left standing. And if you don't like it, fade me, bro. And the super bowl is around the corner as well. And that's really the peak of betting at Large point. My bookie is built for it. Same account, same wallet. Sports casino reloads, live bets, everything you need in one place. Go to MyBookie AG right now. Here's the code for you. DBU for Dan Bernstein. Unfiltered, your first bets, covered up to 500 bucks. If it doesn't hit, you've got a bet back, bonus token. And that way you can make it unhappen, you can run it back. Maybe you won't need it because your bet's going to hit. Build a bankroll in January, ride it through the super bowl. Bet anything, anytime, anywhere, only at my bookie.

[Matt]

All right, I'll start us off with our DBU picks for today. And I have a divisional round parlay of the games that are happening this weekend. So there are four games, and I'm going to give you my four winners. And you know, we've gone over this and over it and the. The crack research team, we've. We've argued it different points and.

[Dan Bernstein]

And like I said, I need that team to research my crack.

[Matt]

When they're. When they're. Yeah, when we're done with. With. With this. This weekend here, I'm going to send.

[Dan Bernstein]

Them over to your house whenever they get the chance. Because I discovered it the other day, I realized I have this huge crack in my ass, and I.

[Matt]

They'll. They'll be in the garage, and you can. You can just get in the garage anytime you're. You're available and go check out your crack. All right, so we are going to go three road teams and a home team in this 14 parlay. We are taking Buffalo plus one and a half, San Francisco plus seven, Houston plus three, and the Bears plus three and a half.

[Dan Bernstein]

All right, say that one more time. Just everybody has it.

[Matt]

Buffalo plus one and a half, San Francisco plus seven, Houston plus three, and the Bears plus three and a half. Okay, putting all four of those together, and even without the oblique injury to Sam Darnold, I would have taken San Francisco to win that game outright. So Buffalo, San Francisco, Houston and Bears are the four winners.

[Dan Bernstein]

For my DBU picks, I am going to look at a couple of player props because you know that I'm. I'm the prop guy. That's where I like to do some of my work here. And I think this sort of takes outcome out of it for the Bears game because I think win or lose, and alas, maybe more likely if they indeed lose, I'm going to take Caleb Williams over 219.5 passing yards, and I'm going to take the emergent. Colston Loveland over 55.5 receiving yards. I saw those. And I said, well, I don't, you know, win or lose, I think I'm going to be good on these. The only thing that's going to take me out here might be injury, but again, Caleb Williams over 219.5 passing yards. Colston Loveland over 55 and a half receiving yards. And those are our DBU picks presented by my bookie. Lock in your picks now with my bookie. Bet on anything, anywhere, anytime. And just let me also say this. I did finish heated rivalry.

[Matt]

Oh, you did? Okay, so you did. You finished the episodes five and six.

[Dan Bernstein]

Yes, I had a great time watching is a very, very sweet love story. And I'm not sure where it goes from here, but what it did, how it wrapped some things up. I would say the climax of the series is the end of episode five. Episode six is more of an epilogue denouement with a separate resolution at the end that feels equally Important, but it doesn't have. You don't burst into tears like you do at the end of episode five. But there are some very, very subtle and sweet and intimate moments in the love story in the final episode. It's beautifully shot and there's no spoilers here. But all I can tell you what I came away with, you know, so Beth couldn't wait. What'd you think? What'd you think? What'd you think? And I said, well, don't. Don't make me pass a test here for my answers. Because at one point when I was. When we were watching episode five together and I was crying, and Beth goes, okay, good. And I said, what? She goes, well, if you didn't start crying, I was going to divorce you.

[Matt]

Oh, wow.

[Dan Bernstein]

And I said, all right. Well, I passed then. Good, I'm glad. So then I was worried about the last episode. I said, don't watch it with me because I don't want to be self conscious of how you're judging my reactions.

[Matt]

Right.

[Dan Bernstein]

But I came upstairs after. She's like, what'd you think? What'd you think? And she was a little disappointed when I said, the absolute star of the final episode, that. What blew me away and what emotionally impacted me more than anything else is Shane Hollander's lake house. The character built it himself on a lake in Ontario. And that's the most vivid image that I take away, maybe from the entire series, is my envy of whoever actually owns that lake house. Really, in real life. It is like. And some of the, like, it's such a stylish series. Everybody's gorgeous, all the clothes and there's so many beautiful apartments, and there's just a lot, There's a lot to look at all the time. And this, that, that lake house is just. I just wanted to be there. I, I didn't need anything, anything else other than that place and some fishing gear and you can leave me there.

[Matt]

Good to go. All right, I'll check it out. Just to see the lake house.

[Dan Bernstein]

Oh, my God. It's, it's. It's. I don't know how many millions of dollars that is. I don't know where it actually is, but. Oh, boy, is it a thing. But it's, it's great. I really enjoyed it. I, I could not recommend Heated Rivalry more just as it's, it's six episodes. It's. It's an easy full watch and, you know, you know, I'm not a binge watch guy. I don't sit there and plow through stuff like that. But I, I really had fun. It's a lovely story and, and it is also my hope that it can set a tone for what should happen in professional sports.

[Matt]

Alrighty.

[Dan Bernstein]

There, that's that. Hey, thanks so much also to our, our sponsors. We know that we do this in partnership with my bookie and the Chicago Window guys, Russ Armstrong and all his people. 847-302-9171. Do check out the five star reviews that they have at ChicagoNowdownGuys.com Next time we do DBU, we'll have a Bears outcome.

[Matt]

A Bears win, you mean?

[Dan Bernstein]

I hope so.

[Matt]

That'll be on Monday. We'll be discussing the Bears win and the championship game at Soldier Field hosting The San Francisco 49ers.

[Dan Bernstein]

There it is.

[Matt]

All right, we'll see you Monday. Have a great weekend. Make sure to join us for forward progress and our post game show around 8:30 on Sunday night after the Bears victory over the Rams. We'll talk to you then. Take care. Have a good time.

[Dan Bernstein]

Bye bye.

[Matt]

Say bye bye now.

[Dan Bernstein]

Bye bye now. Dan Bernstein, unfiltered unfiltered on 312 sports.