Ben Johnson’s Wild Streak: His Starting QB Has Played EVERY Game

Summary

Forward Progress: "Ben Johnson’s Wild Streak: His Starting QB Has Played EVERY Game"

Chicago Bears Podcast with Dan Bernstein & Matt Abbatacola
Episode Date: June 19, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode finds hosts Dan Bernstein and Matt Abbatacola in the heart of the NFL offseason, examining the eerily quiet stretch for Bears news—and why that’s a good thing. They dig into Bears player stock post-OTAs, marvel at the unusual luck of head coach Ben Johnson having never started a backup QB, and pivot into a classic statistical debate, using a golf analogy to reframe how fans and analysts should assess quarterback risk and efficiency. As usual, the guys offer plenty of irreverence, humor, and side riffs to keep fans engaged during the NFL’s content drought.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. NFL Offseason Lull: All Quiet on the Bears Front [(01:54–05:14)]

• Bernstein notes it's the quietest time of year for NFL/Bears news and considers that a blessing:

  “If your team is not in the headlines here now, then that's a good thing.” – Matt [02:51]

• Both agree this is when beat writers should go on vacation—just like the neighborhood Chinese restaurant that closes for a month each June.

  “Good for them. That's good. It's so European. In Europe, like in August, everybody leaves. Everything shuts down.” – Dan [04:12]

2. Bears Players Trending Down After OTAs [(05:14–07:32)]

• The hosts review a fan article listing Bears whose stock has dropped:
  • Jade Walker – Not underperforming, but “other wide receivers really stood out and got the attention of Ben Johnson.” [05:53]
  • Kyler Gordon – Hasn’t shown up; possibly a “negative perception by the head coach.” [06:17]
  • Shemar Turner – ACL injury; must be ready for camp or risk losing favor.
  • Roschon Johnson – “I thought he was already on the way out...He’s still here, right?” [07:07]

3. Ian Wheeler Signs with the Buffalo Bills [(07:13–08:32)]

• Listeners flagged that oft-discussed RB Ian Wheeler, former UFL MVP, signed with Buffalo:

  “Ian, the Dr. Wheeler is going to get his shot with the Bills and I'm very pleased.” – Dan [07:32]

• Matt notes Wheeler will reunite with former Bears teammate DJ Moore.

4. Ben Johnson’s QB Luck: Head Coach Who Has Never Started a Backup [(08:32–10:52)]

• Matt highlights that Ben Johnson never lost his starting QB (Jared Goff in Detroit, Caleb Williams in Chicago) in four seasons:

  “In his years as a offensive coordinator in Detroit and his one year as the Bears head coach, he's never had to start a backup quarterback.” – Matt [08:32] “That is unreal...the combination of fortune meeting ability, readiness for the moment...” – Dan [08:58]

• Calculated: 68 straight regular-season games with a QB1 starter.

5. Tight End University & Offseason Antics [(12:02–15:44)]

• Three Bears TEs head to Nashville for “Tight End University”—a symposium started by George Kittle, Travis Kelce, and Greg Olsen:

  “A bunch of tight ends get together and they talk about things only tight ends understand… Drinking, golf. That’s gonna be a big part of it.” – Dan [13:33, 13:35]

• Playful speculation about rookie hazing and whether Sam Roush “has to sing the Tight End University Alma Mater.” [14:24]
• Jokes about standard concern: “Let's hope that no negative news stories develop from tight end U.” [14:59]

6. The Stats That ‘Actually Matter’ for Caleb Williams [(15:45–24:36)]

• Bernstein criticizes reliance on completion percentage, arguing for Adjusted Net Yards per Attempt (ANY/A) as a better indicator of QB success:

  “Adjusted net yards per attempt correlates more to success and winning because it correlates to scoring.” – Dan [15:45]

• Matt: “Caleb was right there outside of the top 10 last year among all quarterbacks... It's a good measuring stick to see his growth within Ben Johnson’s offense.” [16:42]

Golf Analogy to Football QB Play

• Dan shares a Golf Channel argument about Rory McIlroy, whose “fairways hit” isn't predictive—analogous to how “completion percentage” can mislead in football.

  “All I could think about was Caleb... for them, it’s like blast that thing as close to the hole as you can and then figure out the next shot.” [20:18] “Rory McElroy’s misses over that 327 yard distance are the equivalent of a 50 yard pass missing by 3ft on either side.” – Brandle Chamblee (via Dan) [21:43]

Should Williams Take More Risks?

• Debate whether it’s okay for Williams to risk more interceptions for bigger plays:

  “The answer might be yes, conditionally. That’s what year one should have been... had Ben Johnson been here, he might have said, ‘calibrate your targeting computer—let it fly this year, and if he makes mistakes, that's all going to make him better.’” – Dan [22:37–24:00]

7. NFL Bits & Offbeat Moments [(28:07–31:22)]

• Sauce Gardner’s Age Mix-Up: Some teams list him as 25 instead of 24; jokes ensue about him secretly being “62 and in wholesale furniture.” [28:32–28:43]
• Carson Beck’s Work Ethic:

  “He’s there at the facilities like 13 hours a day. And I love this. First of all, I didn’t know that Matt Schaub was the quarterback's coach.” – Dan [29:39] “As I continue reading on... he has access to Mike LaFleur. Like, does he? If you’re not a starter, you don’t get to talk to the head coach?” [30:54]

• Nathaniel Hackett’s Tenure: Jokes about his disastrous Broncos stint:

  “He arrived like, ooh, this is from the Aaron Rodgers tree... Then they realized, oh, he has no idea how to coach.” – Dan [31:22]

8. Chicago Food, Bargain Hunting & Life Updates [(32:48–39:15)]

• The last ten minutes devolve (as always) into lively Chicago food talk—chicken stroganoff, ribs, chicken Vesuvio, and discount grocery deals.
  • Memorable meal: “I had three McDoubles, a McChicken and a basket of fries... I made one ‘McQuadruple’.” – Dan [34:43–35:17]
• Ongoing bit about hunting for reduced-price food at the grocery:

  “I’m looking, actively looking for reduced priced items because of you. In the produce, there was... a box of sliced green apples... reduced down to $2.32.” – Matt [37:31–38:00]

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On the NFL Offseason Doldrums:

  “I am declaring... I'm calling a bottom. I’m calling a bottom on football content. Seriously... now football NFL content is a buy.” – Dan [39:57–41:10]

• On Ben Johnson’s QB1 Streak:

  “That is unreal... the combination of fortune meeting ability, readiness for the moment.” – Dan [08:58]

• On Analyzing Modern QBs:

  “Adjusted net yards per attempt correlates more to success and winning because it correlates to scoring.” – Dan [15:45]

• Rory McIlroy/Caleb Williams Analogy:

  “Blast that thing as close to the hole as you can... It’s not about the efficiency.” – Dan [20:18]

• On NFL Workplace Hierarchy:

  “He has access to Mike LaFleur. Like, does he? If you’re not a starter, you don’t get to talk to the head coach?” – Dan [30:54]

• On Food & Life:

  “That is the goal of the end of Ford Progress is to make people hungry or angry.” – Matt [39:15]

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• 01:54 – Offseason lull and positivity in quiet Bears news
• 05:14 – Recap of Bears stock risers/fallers post-OTAs
• 07:32 – Ian Wheeler to the Bills
• 08:32 – Ben Johnson’s record of starting QBs
• 12:02 – Tight End University preview
• 15:45 – The stats that really matter for QBs (ANY/A)
• 18:36 – Golf analogy: Rory McIlroy and Caleb Williams
• 22:15 – Should Williams take more risks?
• 28:07 – NFL bits (Sauce Gardner, Carson Beck, etc.)
• 32:48 – Food and grocery adventures
• 39:57 – Bernstein calls "bottom" in the NFL news cycle

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Tone & Takeaways

• Tone: Expert, playful, Chicago-accented, irreverent football banter—equal parts stats and off-the-wall riffs.
• Takeaways:
  • No news for the Bears is good news.
  • Ben Johnson’s QB luck is almost supernatural.
  • Stat-heads should look past completion percentage to more nuanced indicators like ANY/A.
  • Football risk, like golf strategy, sometimes means embracing imperfection for bigger results.
  • Tight End University could provide the only headlines until camp.
  • If you don’t get hungrier or angrier listening, you’re not a true Forward Progress fan.

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Next episode prediction: Something's gotta give—maybe courtesy of Tight End U, Nashville nightlife, or a surprise storyline to kickstart the NFL news cycle.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

Come on.

[A]

Forward Progress a Chicago Bears podcast with

[B]

Dan Bernstein and Matt Abeticola.

[A]

On 31 2. Forward progress is yours here on 3 1, 2. Sports and on this Juneteenth. Happy Juneteenth to all who celebrate. We are looking at what I believe may be the nadir of Bears and NFL content throughout the entire season. I I'm gonna call it. I'm gonna say that, that by the time we reconvene on Monday, we're gonna have a new a new news cycle of everything NFL Bears related. Because this is. This is a time where the Bears are not there. The house hall is quiet. I assume there are coaches and scouts all going about their work, but at this time, they're just hoping everything is cool in the world of the Bears. And indeed, it seems to be. For the most part.

[B]

Yeah, the Bears are. It's quiet right now. And that's a. That's a good thing because I think the the biggest stories that come out now are generally negative or bad, which you don't want. So if your team is not in the headlines here now, then that's a good thing. Also, it's. You know, NFL writers and reporters are scrambling and searching for anything that they could put up online or in papers

[A]

or know where they should be. They should be on vacation. This is. This is where NFL writers should say, hey, boss, you know, can I. Can I have a couple of weeks off? And they'll say, sure, because you've got a long season ahead of you. Just like. And let me shout out where I got. I got all excited to finally order Chinese last night, and I was going to walk over and get it, and then I got a voice.

[B]

Been that long that. Since I talked you into doing it when they were. Oh, it's been over a week.

[A]

Yeah, I know.

[B]

Two weeks.

[A]

So I wanted something at the, the. The little joint. The number one chop suey, rather than calling, was son. And. And I call and there's a voice message, and it says, we will be closed until June 30th or something from June 4th through June 30th. Okay. For a family vacation.

[B]

Perfect.

[A]

And I just, My first thought was, good for them.

[B]

Yeah, that's great.

[A]

That's good. It's so European. Like in Europe, like in August, everybody leaves. Everybody.

[B]

Everything shuts down.

[A]

Versus now people go on vacation.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I just thought that was the coolest thing. And it also means that they're running a nice, healthy family business and they know that, you know, the lane tech kids aren't there. They've looked at their numbers. They realize, you know what? Screw it, we're taking June off for a family vacation. I thought that was awesome.

[B]

Well, good for them. That's great. And Bears reporters, NFL reporters should take some time off as well before training camp starts in. What are we, a month away or so? Whatever that is when we'll have our next big news stories to talk about and look at.

[A]

Yeah. Just letting you know if you're. If you're around, you know, Roscoe Village, north center, and you're getting a craving for crispy Cantonese roast duck and shrimp toast. It's going to be July.

[B]

Well, there you go. So now you have that. You can mark it in your calendar when you come back and you can go there July 1st or. Yep.

[A]

I'm even more excited for it now.

[B]

So going through, I. I saw on, you know, there's so many different Bears websites locally and that are out here for us to consume bear stuff, and I saw one on On Bears, Bears goggles on. Yeah, I know, I know, Dan, but it was that I was just curious to see who these players were. It said four players whose stock had dropped after OTAs.

[A]

Who's, who's stocking and whose opinion is this?

[B]

It's. I'll get it.

[A]

I don't know. Stop.

[B]

Just stop.

[A]

Bernsteining.

[B]

Yes, just stop. Just don't be you for a minute.

[A]

Fine.

[B]

Because we, we remember Ben Johnson. He was buying stock for Luther Burden. And you, even, you, even Bernstein did that comment as well too. So here was, here was four players whose stock had dropped and the first one was Jade Walker. Not because of anything he's done poorly, but because other wide receivers really stood out and got the attention of Ben Johnson, including Thomas. Yeah. And Cleave Raymond. Second one. And this is not a surprise at all because we've talked about this guy in Kyler Gordon. You don't play, you don't show. Yeah. Not only has his stock dropped, but I think he has in, from what I'm reading, in my, my own opinion, a negative perception by the head coach and that's not good. Another one is Shemar Turner again dealing with the acl, just not being on the field. This is a situation where you better be healthy and the day training camp opens, man, you have better be ready to go. Because I think, I think if he isn't ready to go and doesn't start clicking immediately, he's gonna fall out of favor for sure. And then the fourth one he put was Roshan Johnson, who I thought he

[A]

was already on the way out.

[B]

He's still here. Crazy. He's still here, right?

[A]

He's still here.

[B]

So, you know, we'll see what happens and how that develops as far as who the third running back is going to be for the Chicago Bears. And which ties me into another note because a guy that we've talked about a few times, Ian Wheeler, he signed, he signed, he signed a one year deal with the Buffalo Bills.

[A]

Good. I was, I was going to bring that up. I am happy. And thank you to the, the numerous forward progress listeners who have pointed that out via email or elsewhere. Yes, Ian, the Dr. Wheeler is going to get his shot with the Bills and I'm very pleased.

[B]

So he leaves the Louisville UFL team. He is the United bowl mvp. I think he set a record for touchdowns scored in a game in the UFL and gets an opportunity with another NFL team and the Buffalo Bills and he can reunite with former training camp teammate DJ Moore. Right. And get out of there under under Josh Allen and see what he. So I, I wish him all the best, you know, unless when he. Unless they play the Bears at some point. But always liked Ian Wheeler and I'm glad that he has another opportunity in the NFL. So hopefully he does something with that. One other quick note on the Bears B. Ben Johnson. I saw. No, I was reading an article of Ben Johnson and saw this and I said, yeah, that makes.

[A]

That's.

[B]

That's accurate. In his years as a offensive coordinator in Detroit and his one year as the Bears head coach, he's never had to start a backup quarterback. He's had QB1 play every game for him.

[A]

Boy, is that lucky it.

[B]

How lucky it. That's the exact reaction you needed to give.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

That's. That's four years, right? That's three years with Detroit as the oc.

[A]

That is unreal. That is. Oh, and. And the combination of fortune meeting ability, readiness for the moment. That is when you really think about the context of that, that all of the numbers that are then ascribed to him. We get. Look at what Ben Johnson offenses. And nobody talks about it when they are asking, well, how many of these did he have his quarterback for when compared to other people? That is. That is all of them.

[B]

Is that remarkable? That's.

[A]

Yeah, it is. That is. Wow.

[B]

I think that because it was three seasons as the OC, right? Number three. Where I thought it was three, he was the OC for Detroit. And so what is that? 17 games and three. What is that? That's 51 games and then you get 17. So that's 68 regular season games. Is that correct where he's at QB one for every start.

[A]

Incredible. Yeah, he was the offensive coordinator 2022, 2023 and 2024. Yeah, he was the passing game coordinator in 2021.

[B]

So yeah, three seasons of Jared Goff and then he gets the one with Caleb Williams. So was that 68? If my math is correct, 68 starts with QB1. When we went through the season last year, how many, how many backup quarterbacks

[A]

of the Bears face.

[B]

And how many times did you turn on a game and there was a backup quarterback playing? And he's never had that as an OC or a head coach.

[A]

Yeah, well, in the Ravens game, even though the backup quarterback was playing, it didn't. Didn't go all that well for your Chicago Bears.

[B]

That.

[A]

No, it didn't.

[B]

That was. That was one of his better, better performances for. Who is that? Huntley.

[A]

Tyler Huntley.

[B]

Tyler Huntley. Yes. Correct. So I thought that that little Note was pretty remarkable. That is your head coach, Ben Johnson. That is the only man of luck and good fortune.

[A]

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When his son was hospitalized for a

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viral infection, Juan started a GoFundMe to pay for medical expenses. It was 5k to pay the bill for my son and I need only 22 hours. It was amazing. People really trust on GoFundMe. How did Juan raise $5,000 in less than a day? He posted a short video on GoFundMe telling his story in 30 seconds. 30 seconds. Be specific, be quick and tell what are you going to be using the funds for. I was nervous to do it because it doesn't feel okay to ask money. But you shouldn't be nervous. Sometimes you just have to do it and see the results. We were able to save my son's life thanks to gofundme that we still have my son with us. Start your GoFundMe today at gofundme.com that's gofundme.com gofundme.com this message reflects one person's experience. There are three bears, tight ends that are going to be attending tight end university. And you say what is tight end university? Well, it's In Nashville. It was put together by George Kittle, Travis Kelsey, and Greg Olson, and it's just basically a symposium. It's a gathering. It's. Everybody gets to stay in hotels and hang out, play a little bit of golf, and they talk tight end stuff. It's a. It's a business convention is all it is. That's fine. And a bunch of tight ends get together and they talk about things only tight ends understand. I don't know if they have wonder.

[B]

I wonder if there'll be any drinking involved.

[A]

Oh, maybe just a little. I wonder. I think. Yeah, Drinking, golf. I think that's gonna be a big part of it.

[B]

In Nashville, you said, right?

[A]

Yeah. Maybe. Maybe going out and watching some music.

[B]

It'd be on Broadway. Yeah.

[A]

Well, especially if Mr. Kelsey is there, because he was just finishing up his bachelor party, if I saw it correctly, because.

[B]

Oh, did he really?

[A]

He's getting close to that time. And the. It's just funny to me. I wonder if they have, like, the y tight ends or in one point. No, no, no, no, no. You're an inline tight end. You don't get to come with the. With the u. Tight ends. The move. Guys, we're different. We're glorified wide receivers. It. Does Colston Loveland have to be like, hey, hey. What do you mean? I can. I can block, too.

[B]

Wait, does. Does Sam Roush get to go?

[A]

He's going.

[B]

Oh, he is going. So the gets to go.

[A]

Sam Roush is going to Tight End University, so I'm sure that it's going to be brutal hazing, the.

[B]

The.

[A]

All of the. The traditions there. I don't know what they make him sing the special Tight End University Alma mater. I don't know.

[B]

Well, I'm sure Coulson Love will be happy to sing again, because I don't know how his video went viral.

[A]

He can't wait.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So good luck to them. I. I expect nothing but hard work. And, you know, you get out what you put in of Tight End University. I've always said, you know, you've come this far. So, come on, you know, we're.

[B]

We're.

[A]

We're paying for this now, so we're gonna go there.

[B]

We're not.

[A]

We're not paying for you to play golf and jack around and drink in the hospitality suite. You better become a better tight end.

[B]

Well, let's hope that. No, there's no negative news stories that develop from tight end.

[A]

Use drunken tight ends. Take on Nashville police in standoff trucking. Tight end destroy local park I don't. I don't know what you're gonna do.

[B]

Wonder. We should, we should try to, like, submit an application for tight end. You see if we get around next year.

[A]

No, we'd be like Gronk trying to get the military insurance,

[B]

which I'm still trying, though, man.

[A]

I know he is. I know, I know. He's like the Trix Rabbit. That's what I said. That. That's. It's the same commercial. Silly Gronk. You can't have this insurance. Same damn commercial.

[B]

Yes, it is.

[A]

Now, this is going to sound weird, but our discussion about Caleb Williams and statistics that actually measure the quality of someone's quarterbacking. We talked about how they, they're hung up on completion percentage and they have 70% completions. And like, you can, you can complete passes if you want, but you can do that really inefficiently. It's just for him. I don't think it's a great stat. I know they've mentioned it. They want to point to it, but adjusted net yards per attempt correlates more to success and winning because it correlates to scoring. Yeah.

[B]

And if you're not, if you're just hearing about this for the first time, Dan broke it down pretty well yesterday on forward progress. If you haven't listened to that, take a listen to that. Because I think it's, it's something that we're going to hold on to and bookmark and use it moving forward. And, you know, Caleb was, was right there outside of the top 10 last year among all quarterbacks. And I think, I think it's a, It's a good measuring stick to see how successful and his growth is within Ben Johnson's office.

[A]

I think so, too. It's done as a plus stat. So it normalizes at 100 and every point above it as a percentage, above that league average. As far as the scoring environment, it's a, It's a really well constructed stat. Now, this was a top of mind for me yesterday for a very strange reason. But I found myself nodding along and thinking, boy, he could be talking about Caleb. And it was Golf Channel analyst Brandle Shamblee. I was watching this yesterday because, like I said, I got kicked out of the main room because Beth had the. We had mahjong at our house. So all the ladies are upstairs with their sparkling rose and their tiles and everything and laughing, and I'm downstairs in the basement. And I. And I said, you know, I didn't get to see a lot of the tournament today. Let me flip on golf channels. Full recap here. And it was great because I love Rich Lerner. He's. He's terrific. I've. Every time I've talked to him, I'm always. I always say, what a great guest. And there's Brandle Shambley and then the Irish guy, I think his name, Paul McGinley. They're doing an awesome job. So they go to Shamble and they're talking about Rory and Shambley, who is strident. He's got strong thoughts about things. I don't know him well, but I. He. All I ask is that. Have a thought and back it up. And he presented a case, which was this. He said, stop talking about fairways hit with Rory McElroy. That. He said that stat doesn't matter for him. He said it is not a predictive stat. It is not a correlative stat. He said there's Nothing about Rory McElroy hitting fairways at whatever the rate that corresponds with him. Winning, losing a tournament.

[B]

Yeah. Being successful.

[A]

Being successful. Right. And I thought, all right, okay, this should be good. And it was great. And he. And the graphics that they used, the visuals and the statistics made a point, which in general is this. McElroy out drives the tour average by about 25 yards, about 327 to like 302. And he made it. And he made a side case here about why he's driving the ball and how it's not the equipment. You know, comparing. When he first started, it's all him. It's all clubhead speed, it's all ball speed. They had all the stats to show that he changed his body. He optimized his swing. There isn't anything that he's done that other people can't also do. So he was arguing against the nerfing of the ball. A lot of people are for that to just make the ball fly less far. But then he says it's because McElroy hits it so far and keeps the missed fairways in such a narrow window. He doesn't spray those drives. Even if he misses a fairway, it's never by enough to ruin the math of being 25 yards closer to the hole.

[B]

Yeah. He's not in a hazard. He's not. He doesn't. He. But he doesn't make his second shot where he needs to recover.

[A]

Exactly.

[B]

He can still play the.

[A]

The hole that, that they're using all of the stats, like every shot. He said they've got the numbers.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

To say they've realized that Rory and his people said, look, you're, you obviously want to try to hit the fairway. It's probably better if you, but it's, it's fine if you don't because you're still within. He doesn't spray anything, you know, everything. He, he's, he drives the ball really far and straight enough that his, all of his average scoring and they, and they have it backed up with where the ball is, where the tour average is, and what the total number of likely next strokes is going to be down into the, you know, point, you know, 0, 0, 00 all the way out. So they can measure this down into fractions that over time add up. And it was, all I could think about was Caleb, all I could do. Like, yes, you're talking about Caleb Williams where it's not about the efficiency. Like if he could, he could easily hit a bunch of airways, he could hit three woods, he could dial down the swing. He could, he could try to. But, but for them, it's like blast that thing as close to the hole as you can and then figure out the next shot.

[B]

Yeah, because if you want, if you want him to throw under 12 yards, even under 10 yards, I mean, he can do this all day long. Any quarterback can do that. Of course, starting quarterback in the NFL, it's easier. Offense calls for chunks. The offense calls for explosive plays.

[A]

Worth the risk. Yeah, it's worth the risk. And, and then what they said was, I, I want to make sure I have this right. Brandle Shambley said that the equivalent, he even used a football analogy. He said Rory McElroy's misses over that 327 yard distance are the equivalent of a 50 yard pass missing by 3ft on either side.

[B]

All right, so let me ask you this question too, because we know Caleb Williams, from an historic standpoint was the least intercepted quarterback to start his career. I mean, historic numbers, are you advocating for a little more risk which may result in more turnovers from a guy who takes care of the ball really well?

[A]

See, I, it's funny that the answer to that might be yes, and it would be conditionally yes. And the way I'm going to split the baby on that is I think that that's what year one should have been. And the problem was under Eber Flutes, when you had lower expectations, you had the understanding of the, like the softer landing of a rookie year. It bothered me that they didn't sort of do more of that, that had Ben Johnson been here, he might have said, calibrate your targeting computer. Know what your arm can do? This is the time we're not expecting to win. The problem was last year. All of a sudden you're good. All of a sudden you're playing for something. You didn't have the luxury of last year being as much of a. You're learning on the job while you're trying to win. And while you're trying, everything is game planned, you know, to, to fully through because you're realizing, holy, we're. This, this all matters now. We're a contender. And, and I, I would, I would have loved it if they had been able to say, hell yeah, we're going to let it fly this year. And if he makes mistakes, that's all going to make him better. But they couldn't because they didn't fire the coach.

[B]

Yeah, I know. And, and I don't want to go back into it because we can't rewrite the past with it. And if you hire that, if you hired a new coach at that time, you don't.

[A]

It wouldn't be Ben Johnson.

[B]

So. Yeah, it just, it sucks. But you're right, though. I mean, the, the, the thesis behind it is absolutely correct. And in a perfect world, you get to hire Ben Johnson a year sooner and, you know, year one is that year, or if there was a different head coach available that would have been successful, but you're still not Ben Johnson. Yeah. So, yeah, it sucks, but it is what it is. And I mean. Yeah, and let's just, let's leave that there because it, it just. Yeah, it's terrible.

[A]

Right, but you know what I mean about, about.

[B]

Yeah, I know that. That's what year one should have been.

[A]

It should have been.

[B]

Let's learn each other. Let's figure it out. Let's see what you can do here. But instead, that kind of. It had to get. It was forced. A year. It was, it was, it was forced. Their relationship was, was forced to take that next step without having that, that honeymoon period, kind of.

[A]

But you also had it on hard knocks there. The people. You're sitting there at his desk. What are you. What are you doing wasting your time talking to an idiot?

[B]

Okay, yeah, let's, let's, let's get off of that. Let's get off. The assistant head coach of defense for the San Francisco 49ers. Let's leave.

[A]

Yeah, we, we had fun at his expense yesterday. Leave him alone. Let him do his assistant head coaching.

[B]

No, it's not even. Leave him alone. It's just for our own brains.

[A]

I know. Yeah, it's probably better for us, but I just thought that was cool, the idea. Very cool.

[B]

I love that analogy of a 50 yard pass, like missing. Yeah, that's really cool. Yeah.

[A]

Something like two or three feet. It's just like, like go ahead if you can. If and if distance in football, get closer to the other team's end zone, get closer to scoring. It's just like they're like, hey Rory. Yeah, Blast it as far as you can. And there's a really good chance your next shot is going to be very hittable.

[B]

Let's do it. No, that's good. I like, I like. Yeah, when you shared that yesterday with me but didn't get into all the detail with it, I was like, all right, I'm looking forward to hearing.

[A]

No you weren't. No, you see, you're lying.

[B]

No, I'm lying.

[A]

You were not looking forward to hearing.

[B]

It was cool. No, I was. I thought it was very cool.

[A]

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[B]

Okay, a couple other notes that I have to share for you. I don't know if you saw this sauce gardener thing. Did you see what's happening?

[A]

Oh, that. He's only like four years old.

[B]

No, he's 24.

[A]

I thought he said he was actually four.

[B]

Apparently everyone in the NFL with the exception of the Colts has him as 25 years old. And then he tells the media as he's talking, he's like, oh, by the way, I'm only 24. I don't know where y' all got that. I'm 25.

[A]

I know. And he was actually born Moishe Saperstein.

[B]

Okay. He's actually 62.

[A]

He's. He's 62. And he's been in the wholesale furniture business.

[B]

Right. They're moving into the front office. He's going to deal with numbers. It's fine. So.

[A]

Oh, boy.

[B]

But here's the thing, though. At 24 or 25, what does he fit for me? He fits my age criteria.

[A]

That's right. He's still young enough to play for you.

[B]

Yes. Born after 2000. Come on board. You're part of the team.

[A]

You can play for Maddie. No.

[B]

1998. Nope. Sorry. When were you born? 1987. My name is Caleb Theobar. Nope.

[A]

Yeah, your name is not on my room.

[B]

Where all the pitchers stand. Yeah, that room before Craig spins the wheel. You stay there. Don't come out anymore. Fine. Too old. Carson Beck. This was great, too. Carson Beck. He's talking about throwing. He's been doing a lot more above and beyond the expectations of what the Cardinals have for rookies. So he talks about his average day. He's there at the facilities like 13 hours a day. And I love this. First of all, I didn't know that Matt Schaub was the quarterback's coach.

[A]

Matt Schaub?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Wow. I didn't know that either.

[B]

So he. He spends extra time. The, you know, rookies are all done with their day and he stays and he talks with Nathaniel Hackett. And then after the thing, I. Hackett, he hangs out with Matt Schaub. And then in the story, dad, on espn, it says. And Carson Beck even has access to Mike LaFleur.

[A]

That's like beating the pulp.

[B]

It was so odd. Like, an odd way to phrase it. He has access to the head coach. I would fucking hope so.

[A]

Of the. To the team for which you play.

[B]

Yes. Hey.

[A]

Hey. Guess what? Guess what?

[B]

Today.

[A]

I don't know, honey. How was your day? I got to talk to the head coach of the team.

[B]

Like, is. Is Matt LaFleur. Michael Floor. Not. Not making himself available to the players.

[A]

Is it like Steve Harvey on the elevator at NBC?

[B]

Don't look at him. Talk to him.

[A]

Don't look at him. Do not make eye contact with him. You are not worthy to breathe that air on the elevator. There was. There were rules you could. Not.

[B]

So weird. Like, he has access to. Like, does he. If you're not a starter, you don't get to talk to the head coach.

[A]

And honestly, it sounds like you have to have an audience. You have to come in bearing gifts.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Kiss his ring and everything. I don't know.

[B]

Bringing Jardine air from back home. Like, here.

[A]

Hey, Pope.

[B]

Hey.

[A]

Look what I got.

[B]

Oh, it just. Yeah. So, yeah, two things jumped out of me. Matt Shop, first of all, and then I didn't know that he was a coach in the league. And then as I continue reading on. And he has access to Mike LaFleur.

[A]

The thing is still working. Nathaniel Hackett, who. Who had one of the most expensive, explosively horrendous coaching tenures with the Broncos. You remember what the. He. He arrived like, ooh, this is from the. The tree. The Aaron Rodgers tree. We're going to bring him in, and the tree will grow here. And then they realized, oh, he has no idea how to coach.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Remember that, like, in games, he, like, is wearing the headset sideways. Hello. Right. And so they hired a guy to coach. They hired a shadow coach to coach for him during.

[B]

It was a headset with. No. With no wire. Didn't attach. Right. And then they.

[A]

Then they had to fire him. And, like, how's that coach going for you who isn't really coaching that you had to hire a coach for? I don't know. Not great. I believe. Hey, it's good to be white.

[B]

Well, I just. I just love that. That the rookie quarterback has access to the head coach. That's great.

[A]

It's really good. That's nice that I. I did not know that Mike LeFleur had that kind of status in the business. I. I guess he does. I guess when you're named LaFleur and you can Just kind of walk right in there and be like, I'm. I'm in charge of the Cardinals. All right. Pretty cool. Maybe he gets to live in Cliff Kingsbury's giant modernist house.

[B]

Oh, I. I ran back my meal last night, too. I wanted to tell you.

[A]

And we did chicken stroganoff.

[B]

I did it again last night, and it was. It was perfect. I nailed it this time. I didn't. I didn't. I liked it last time, but this was much better. I. I started with leeks, and I cooked the leeks down really slow in butter and then added the chicken in and then brown the chicken, took that all out, and then threw in my shallots. Cook those down a little bit with a little bit of butter, and then put everything back in together. Then the flour, and then I got my. Oh, and I did. I did beef stock this time with the chicken.

[A]

Interesting. Now, did you use sour cream or creme fraiche?

[B]

I did sour cream.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Sour cream and Dijon. Yeah, yeah. And then what I did, too, is I took about a cup of the beef broth and mix that in with the sour cream and the Dijon and whipped it really good instead of adding the sour cream into it and trying to mix everything.

[A]

Yeah. So.

[B]

But, yeah, it was. It was perfect.

[A]

That sounds really good.

[B]

It was good.

[A]

That's. I haven't even started to fetishize my dinner for tonight of what I'm gonna do. I just. I know. I looked at the Visa bill, and we're ordering out way too much. I'm family. Order that. We're all. We're all. No more defaulting to, like, oh, I didn't get anything. I'm just gonna order dinner. That's enough. That's enough. We're gonna.

[B]

What do you do tonight? You gotta go to the store and find something.

[A]

I mean, I always go to the store and find something, but. And, you know, I'm also thinking if. If. If I catch a big freshwater drum today, I may just put it in a bag and haul it home and cook it.

[B]

Well, what's your day like? Do you have time to do. To do ribs? Sounds like ribs. Sound good.

[A]

I just did ribs.

[B]

All right, then how about chicken Vesuvio?

[A]

I. I do that once every 10 days, no matter what. Yeah, that's. That's an in. That's a rotational automatic.

[B]

Oh, I know. You should do. Do sloppy Joe's tonight.

[A]

I did McDonald's last night, so I kind of had the. You know, the sweet tasting. I had three McDoubles, a McChicken and a basket of fries.

[B]

So you did the three McDoubles. The made in the two.

[A]

No, here's what happened. I was going to do that, but as I was walking home from McDonald's, it smelled too good. So I ate one of the McDoubles on the walk home. And then when I got home, like, the five minutes later, I decided to take the two McDoubles and I made one MC quadruple.

[B]

Oh, okay. Yeah, that's good. And then how many fries? The basket again.

[A]

Okay, Basket of fries.

[B]

So basket of fries and three McDoubles

[A]

and a McChicken anime.

[B]

Anime chicken.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Wow, that's a lot of food. Someone who said earlier on DBU, they. They don't know how you're not 600 pounds. It's because we only show your top half. Your bottom half is like 450. So it's just.

[A]

That's why, to answer that question, who is Terry's guy? Houston was David Aldridge or Howard Eskin. He always. Terry always referred to some. Some guy who was like that, who always looked normal sitting in an anchor desk. And then when they'd get up, there would be, like, something completely mismatched walking out from underneath the desk.

[B]

That's you.

[A]

So I forgot who it was. Yeah, you can.

[B]

Oh, I know. Oh, you're very fit, Dan. We know.

[A]

I'm all good. I only eat one meal a day, so it's a giant meal.

[B]

Right. Which is why it's three McDoubles and a McChicken. Yeah. I don't know what to suggest for you tonight. If you're not going to eat out. I don't know what you want to do. What do you feel like cooking?

[A]

I'm not sure. I kind of. I wouldn't mind doing fish. I wouldn't mind doing, like, a. Like a spicy. Like the. The. The Prudhomme seafood magic seasoning. Like something like a blackened. Maybe like blackened shrimp. Like get good big tiger shrimp.

[B]

That'd be good.

[A]

Do them on the grill, maybe.

[B]

Yeah, you should do that.

[A]

I could do the tequila lime shrimp. That.

[B]

I do like that, too.

[A]

That sounds good. Really good. With the. With the Patagonian red, maybe I'll do tequila lime charred shrimp with a little bit of like a. Like a. Like a rice. I don't think about it. I'll think about, like, a citrus rice or something.

[B]

There you go. All right.

[A]

There.

[B]

All right. Yeah, there.

[A]

And then. And then. And then what I'll do is I'll think about doing that, and I'll go to the Store and I'll go, it's so expensive. I'm gonna do something else. And then I end up buying a sandwich.

[B]

All right. Or you have to see if there's any discount shrimp that are crawling away.

[A]

Oh, discount shrimp tastes better.

[B]

Oh, I did get, I did get reduced priced mushrooms again.

[A]

So again, they were still there.

[B]

Yeah, dude, got another one.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, Maybe that's, maybe that's the key. Maybe if you. You're not gonna be able to replicate it because you're not gonna be able to have discount mushrooms again. Yeah, well, good work.

[B]

I'm always looking for, oh, you know what I got yesterday. You're gonna love this too, because now, now I do this. I'm. I'm looking, actively looking for reduced priced items because of you. In the produce, there was a. It was a Kroger brand box of sliced green apples individually packaged with a little caramel sauce. Yeah, it was five. Five of those packets. Yeah, box.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Five little servings and it was reduced down to $2.32.

[A]

And remember, those apples are treated with some kind of natural preservative so they don't turn color. Those will last a little bit longer than just an apple that you would cut up and like put in the Ziploc in your fridge.

[B]

Yeah, for sure. So I got that for $2 and 30. I didn't even want them. I just, I walked.

[A]

Oh, you gotta get that.

[B]

That's past that. Yeah, that in the, in the produce. That, that, that area that it was in. And I saw reduce. I, I look for the reduced.

[A]

I know that sticker.

[B]

What is it? Yeah, so I saw it. I was like, all right, what's 232? What's in this box? Oh, green apples and.

[A]

Okay, well, that's like when you go by the pre mades and there's like five of those huge meatballs and it's got the reduced sticker on it. It's like 560 instead of 10 bucks.

[B]

So Hank loves salmon and he had salmon the day before, so I didn't get it. But there was one at the produce because I went and got some chicken salad and there was a salmon that was reduced price. Just one salmon Filet for a $38 bang. Yes. And I almost still bought it, but I'm like, no, if he's not going to eat it, so.

[A]

Well, he should understand that in, in this economy, you eat whatever is. Is, is put.

[B]

I know, but he just, he had

[A]

salmon the night before, so I can't have too much farm raised salmon. It's good for you. Usually. Not bad stuff in there, so.

[B]

All right. Hopefully people are hungry now or angry. That is the goal of the end of Ford Progress is to make people hungry or angry.

[A]

Both.

[B]

Not angry. We don't want people.

[A]

Yes. That's what's gonna happen. Stop talking about food. These guys are stupid. I hate their bears takes. And now I'm hungry as. Yeah, yeah, that, that's what we want.

[B]

All right. Well, hopefully you're hangry now.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

All right. Go fishing. Are you fishing?

[A]

I'm gonna try. It's been slow.

[B]

Yeah. We're gonna run to the card shop and then we're gonna go to the carnival.

[A]

You have a card shop and carnival afternoon?

[B]

Yes, sir.

[A]

Damn. All right. That's living.

[B]

Yes, it is.

[A]

Have fun. That is forward Progress, a Chicago Bears and NFL podcast. It's. This is it, though. I'm declaring. I am, I am declaring. I'm calling a bottom. I'm calling a bottom on football content. Seriously, that I'm not.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

This is now a buy situation for football content. And maybe I'm predicting that something, some. There's going to be some horrible headline between now and maybe. I'm telling you, it's going to be tight end university international incident.

[B]

All right, so you think June 22, that the, the news cycle will rebound and provide the NFL bountiful amount of content.

[A]

Yes. A cornucopia of NFL content maybe based on, on something unexpected and untoward that happens in Nashville at tight end university. Maybe, maybe it's a golf incident, maybe it's a drinking incident or both.

[B]

I, I, I still think we're weeks away, but I'm, I'll, I'll take your.

[A]

I'm calling bottom. That's what it is.

[B]

All right, well, you got it. You got bottom, mister.

[A]

Yes, sir.

[B]

What did you call again?

[A]

I called bottom a bottom in the market.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[A]

I'm putting in the. This is, you know, this is like cnbc. This is my bottom. Call that now. Now football NFL content is a buy. I don't know what I'm talking about. I don't. I'm like Jim Kramer. I gotta roll up my sleeves and hit things and point to things.

[B]

Yeah, you need noise makers and stuff.

[A]

Honk, honk. And then, and then nobody does the homework to realize the stocks I recommend all tank.

[B]

Yeah, right.

[A]

Yeah, Perfect.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Just don't follow up anything. Don't verify any of these things. And buy this, buy this, buy this. Honk, honk.

[B]

Right. So buy NFL content because it's on the rise. Coming. It's coming.

[A]

Thanks to tight end university. Forward progress. Chicago Bears podcast with Dan Bernstein and Matt Abeticola on 312 Sports.