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- [00:01]
Progressive Ad Voice
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- [00:32]
Dan Bernstein
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- [01:04]
Commercial Announcer
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- [02:05]
Matt Abeticola
I mean, if you're a Bears
- [02:06]
Progressive Ad Voice
fan, you're thinking Forward progress. Come on,
- [02:17]
Dan Bernstein
Forward Progress A Chicago Bears podcast with Dan Bernstein and Matt Abeticola on 312 sports.
- [02:27]
Matt Abeticola
We give you forward progress on 312 sports as we cover the Bears and the NF. A busy sports day here all of a sudden, and it's amazing that the Chicago Bears are not necessarily included in everything that's going on. But with the veteran minicamp having concluded, it is very, very clear that this is Ben Johnson's show. Man we are. It makes me contextualize everything that's going on now with draft picks, with roster decisions. I keep reassessing the power balance up there because we, you know, in just the football. I'm not talking about Kevin Warren and the clown show and all the stadium stupidity, just within the football stuff. That is the purview of most of what we talk about, that there is absolutely no question that you have the best of all worlds where you made a coaching hire and it's so positive and you're so excited about what more the coaching hire can mean that nobody is unhappy or surprised when he continues to assert more power and control. And so go ahead, keep it up. If we don't even hear from Ryan polls, except for a couple of times, that's increasingly okay.
- [03:54]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, it is okay. And we've always talked about, you know, hearing from the general manager, but he. Because the general manager's always been in charge and we know clearly that Ben Johnson is running the football side of things. And I, I know you said, you know, it's. It's not to deal with the clown. The clown show that's happening on the business side of stuff, but that, that's what. It makes it more unfortunate. It makes it more difficult to navigate and to understand and to really take a look at what's happening on the business side of things. Because the football side of things is so good, you know, and it's so positive. And to have an absolute shit show of what's happening on the business side.
- [04:36]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [04:37]
Dan Bernstein
When you actually have the football side going in the right direction. I know they're easy to separate, but one impacts the other.
- [04:44]
Matt Abeticola
I think they are. It's only, as we discussed. It's only really going to bug me if there are people who leave the organization or say, I can't wait, work with these people, or I don't want to play in soldier Field, that as long as they're in the organization. Yeah.
- [04:57]
Dan Bernstein
They.
- [04:58]
Matt Abeticola
I can deal with everybody else being a bonehead.
- [05:00]
Dan Bernstein
No, you're right. That's. I just keep telling myself that.
- [05:04]
Progressive Ad Voice
Right.
- [05:04]
Dan Bernstein
That as long as it doesn't force anyone to not want to be here.
- [05:08]
Matt Abeticola
Right.
- [05:08]
Dan Bernstein
The absolute clown show that they are.
- [05:11]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [05:12]
Dan Bernstein
And the board of directors. The absolute clown show that. That is. And Kevin Warren, the absolute clown show that he's been.
- [05:18]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, the poorly run business, the lack of money and everything else. I don't. I don't care. I don't care where they. If and if they want to play and televise their games from a Different studio. Fine.
- [05:30]
Dan Bernstein
Oh, you're right. You're right. And again, I just need to keep telling myself that as long as it doesn't force anyone to say, I don't want to be here. Now, the thing that worries me the most is that that lack of money and the fact that this is a, it's a billionaires game now, and they're not billionaires.
- [05:46]
Matt Abeticola
Right.
- [05:47]
Dan Bernstein
They don't have the money to compete in the league as it's structured right now. If that forces someone to say, I don't want to be here because of it, then yeah, you're right. That's. It's. Until that happens, the clown show can carry on. They can all pile in their little car and drive away. When they will.
- [06:06]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, they'll drive in a lot of traffic, but they'll drive.
- [06:09]
Dan Bernstein
So I want to talk to you about that real quick because I. Because you, you navigate and drive the city better than I do. And, and I don't, I don't necessarily.
- [06:15]
Matt Abeticola
True.
- [06:16]
Dan Bernstein
Well, you, you do. And you. So you know, I'm in Indianapolis this weekend for a baseball tournament. We're coming back up i65, where it connects into 90 and taking the skyway into the city. And I mean, I, I drive past the Hammond exit. Right. So that, that, I mean, that's where you would, you would. If you're driving from the city to go to a game in Hammond and you're gonna, you get, you get tickets to Crazy Kaplan's Fireworks Stadium and you're gonna go see a Bears game in Hammond, that's how you would drive in, Right. And you get off at that Hammond exit, correct?
- [06:50]
Matt Abeticola
I think so. Unless they're building a new exit or multiple new exits.
- [06:55]
Dan Bernstein
All right, so I'm assuming that the, the exit I drove past is the exit you would get off to go to a Bears game. I, I had to go through three different toll booths. Two of the three times I went through. So I'm in the easy pass lane because I have the thing on my window. I don't have to stop and use a credit card or throw coins in a machine. I can just drive. The gate goes up two of the three times I was in a car in line, didn't have the easy pass
- [07:23]
Matt Abeticola
all the time or it doesn't work. See, this has happened. I've been that car. When you just. And a lot of the Indiana side, not the Illinois side, but on the Indiana side, there are almost always some kind of technical issues there in one of those or another where it just doesn't Read your pass or the new sticker pass isn't picking up.
- [07:45]
Dan Bernstein
So, I mean, I. I haven't. I don't drive through that very often, but the times that I've had and maybe a half a dozen times in the last, I don't know, decade, it's never easy to get through the toll booths.
- [07:56]
Matt Abeticola
No.
- [07:57]
Dan Bernstein
Like, there's always issues. Okay. Then I go through and I'm going past, you know, I go past the. The rate field and where you have to go off to the left. Where if you want to get on to eventually, like 94. To get in the 294 or whatever, or 55. It's. It's basically just two lanes. Am I. Am I. That's correct. Right. Like, isn't there one lane for each wave? You want to go to 94.
- [08:24]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [08:24]
Dan Bernstein
Or 55.
- [08:26]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, I don't know about the 55. I don't know that I've ever done the 55 cutover, because that. That's relatively new to have it.
- [08:35]
Dan Bernstein
But they, But. But they line up side by side, and you either go right is 55, and then the left is the, like 1994 to eventually.
- [08:42]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, you mean like the. The Lakeshore Drive one.
- [08:45]
Dan Bernstein
The Lakeshore Drive. I'm coming up 90. I'm coming, you know, up. I 65. And I go through the skyway.
- [08:50]
Matt Abeticola
Right.
- [08:50]
Dan Bernstein
And I stay to the left because I want to eventually.
- [08:52]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I know what. You exiting the skyway, you're getting onto the Ryan. Yeah.
- [08:57]
Dan Bernstein
So if you. If you're leaving the stadium and you need to either get on. You want to get onto the ryan, or. Or 55, it's one lane each.
- [09:04]
Matt Abeticola
Correct.
- [09:05]
Dan Bernstein
Okay. I was just driving on a regular Sunday afternoon. Like, the Sox game was already going on, so there was no White Sox traffic.
- [09:15]
Matt Abeticola
This is just.
- [09:15]
Dan Bernstein
And there's no other. There's no other thing happening yesterday. Just driving on a Sunday afternoon at the same time, you'd be getting out of a noon football game. And if you need to get to 94 or to 55, you're going to be fucked on one lane each. All this extra traffic, then you have to navigate your way through the city. It was an absolute cluster is. Is all I'm trying to say. So unless there's something I'm missing and you're out there and you listening that. You're listening to Ford Progress and you drive that a lot more than I do, or you drive it regularly, or you plan on driving to Crazy Kaplan's Fireworks Stadium, for a Bears game. Tell me what I'm missing or what I don't know about how it's not going to be an absolute clusterfuck of traffic trying to get home from a Bears game.
- [10:05]
Matt Abeticola
Well, you won't have. I mean, like, you know, you're not going to have to worry about that because they're not going.
- [10:09]
Dan Bernstein
I know I won't, but I'm talking about people that are actually are going to do it.
- [10:13]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, well, they haven't really done a lot of that. You can add that into all the other work that hasn't been done.
- [10:19]
Dan Bernstein
So if you live in a southwestern suburb where you need to use 55, or if you live way up north where I do, and you're going to have to drive all the way through to get to Crazy Kaplan's Fireworks Stadium.
- [10:32]
Matt Abeticola
Yep.
- [10:33]
Dan Bernstein
Tell me, what's the best way to do that? How is that going to work for Bears fans that don't live downtown Chicago? Sure, if I'm driving to downtown Chicago, it was a super easy drive. If I still lived in river north or the Gold coast, it wouldn't be that big of a deal at all to drive. But what number of Bear fans are coming from a western suburb or a northern suburb to drive to Hammond, Indiana to go to a Bears game while you're paying all those extra tolls now, too? You're running through extra tolls that they're going to capitalize on and earn more money off of you to get to a shitty stadium in a shitty part
- [11:13]
Matt Abeticola
of northwest Indiana with nothing else there because they don't have the land for it.
- [11:18]
Dan Bernstein
Right?
- [11:19]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [11:20]
Dan Bernstein
So I. I guess maybe I'm just
- [11:22]
Matt Abeticola
adding this into all the other things that haven't been done. That's indication that they, they. There's no viable way of actually moving the Bears there at this point. There's no reason for them to go there. There's nothing really for them there. And not to mention, we can get into this later this week that now that we know the size of the footprint isn't what they thought, how their bonds are going to be valued. This is not. They're not just being given money by Indiana. These are bonds.
- [11:52]
Dan Bernstein
Right. There was that great email that came.
- [11:54]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah. The people who rate the quality of the bonds are basing a lot of the payoffs on not the stadium, but what else is built around it. So this is. Other people own that land that hasn't even been discussed yet. You can't just go take land that other people own.
- [12:14]
Dan Bernstein
Well, you can. I mean, You've done it before.
- [12:16]
Matt Abeticola
You can't unless you have an army, you can. It's called invading. It's called going to war. If you, if somebody, if they're, if somebody's going to war to take someone else's land, and it's happened here before in this country. They're going to conquer their land. Like, there's all kinds of things going on. But no.
- [12:32]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah.
- [12:32]
Matt Abeticola
And yours. Steve Greenberg of the Sun Times did a really interesting kind of drive with me to Hammond sort of bit last week in the Sun Times. And it's, it's. It was really the same thing. Just talking about, well, there's one dirt road that leads over here. Look, I've played Lost Marsh. I've, I've been there. I, I spent an afternoon there playing golf.
- [12:55]
Dan Bernstein
Okay.
- [12:56]
Matt Abeticola
So I know how you. That whole area to get. There's weird little roads and places to go. There's no way around any of that stuff.
- [13:04]
Commercial Announcer
Right.
- [13:04]
Dan Bernstein
I didn't think there was. So I guess I miss asking the question for people that maybe will have to navigate this drive or know the area better than I do. How are you getting back to a northern suburb or a western suburb from Hammond in time without being completely stuck in traffic? And again, this was just a regular Sunday afternoon. The Sox game, Sox Dodgers, were already well underway.
- [13:30]
Matt Abeticola
Well, they have to build some things. They'll need cloverleafs and flyovers, and if they really want to alleviate the traffic, they're going to need a lot of new roads.
- [13:38]
Dan Bernstein
Okay, well, good luck with that, because I think 294 construction still been going on, going on for 12 years. I mean, I mean, when's that going to get done? They're going to get that construction project on the highways done within a year or two. Good luck. Good luck with that.
- [13:53]
Progressive Ad Voice
That.
- [13:54]
Dan Bernstein
So I will say this, though, about, about the greater Indianapolis area. They really do have the roundabouts on a lockdown. They. They really. Those are really great. And they, they utilize them very well as well as 80s and religious radio really locked down in, in Indiana. It's just.
- [14:14]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, you did the, The. You seek and search on an actual radio. Yes, that's.
- [14:19]
Dan Bernstein
I was doing the seek and search, and it was either 80s or religious.
- [14:24]
Matt Abeticola
Okay, well, maybe they're combining it. Maybe it's a religion that worships 1980s music.
- [14:29]
Dan Bernstein
So I didn't find any 80s religious music.
- [14:32]
Matt Abeticola
Going to read from the Gospel of. Aha.
- [14:40]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, it was, it was something. So the radio selection was interesting. But the roundabouts, though, I really approve of those. So hopefully, in all this new construction and new highway development they're going to have for the Bear stadium in Hammond, they do implement and utilize roundabouts because they're very helpful.
- [14:57]
Matt Abeticola
Good. They will make you out and out. I spent the day away. Nothing for roundabout.
- [15:04]
Dan Bernstein
No.
- [15:04]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [15:04]
Dan Bernstein
Nothing. Okay. I had. I had pizza. There was a pizza place by our hotel that the boys ate at a couple different times. What do you think of the name of this pizzeria? It's called Hot Box Pizza.
- [15:17]
Matt Abeticola
Nope.
- [15:20]
Dan Bernstein
That's it. Nope. Nope.
- [15:22]
Matt Abeticola
That one.
- [15:22]
Dan Bernstein
Nope.
- [15:23]
Matt Abeticola
Not gonna eat it. Not gonna. Well, the.
- [15:26]
Dan Bernstein
No, it was actually really good. I was surprised how good it was. We got. We got a bunch of pizzas while we're watching the Wildcats baseball game.
- [15:34]
Matt Abeticola
So it wasn't like our, Our Bourbon A experience.
- [15:38]
Dan Bernstein
No, it was not even close.
- [15:39]
Matt Abeticola
Okay.
- [15:40]
Dan Bernstein
Not even close. But it just. I, like, I wanted to find someone like, in corporate and say, hey, are you. You understand the name Hot Box? Like, are you.
- [15:49]
Matt Abeticola
Did you.
- [15:49]
Dan Bernstein
Did you go that deliberately?
- [15:53]
Matt Abeticola
No, I'm out.
- [15:54]
Dan Bernstein
Hot Box Pizza.
- [15:55]
Matt Abeticola
Okay.
- [15:56]
Dan Bernstein
But it was good. And then the. There was a place called Jack's Donuts right next door that had very good donuts. And. Oh, I gotta tell you about my. My Jimmy John's experience. Hank wanted Jimmy John's, so I'm like, all right, there's one right there.
- [16:08]
Matt Abeticola
Do you do what I do on. On sports trips where I'm. Yes, dad, especially. Especially hockey dips. Like, what it could be. We're driving. He's like, can we get five Doritos Locos Tacos?
- [16:21]
Dan Bernstein
Yes, yes. Whatever. Whatever you want.
- [16:23]
Matt Abeticola
Whatever you want. And you want to eat it in your pajamas in bed. Fine. Fine.
- [16:27]
Dan Bernstein
Absolutely. That's exactly what we did. So he wants a Jimmy John. So we walk over there. It's right out, right outside our parking lot of the hotel. And it's 5:30, 6:00 clock at night. And the guy behind the counter is like, it's. It's going to be at least 30 minutes. We have to make bread.
- [16:42]
Matt Abeticola
I was like, make bread?
- [16:44]
Dan Bernstein
You didn't make bread? Okay. I'm like, all right, that's. We did well, so hang on. So that's, that's what I'm thinking. And so I, I, you know, look at Henry. He's like, I don't want to wait. I'm like, all right, so let's go. So we leave and I'm texting my buddy. So one of our other teams in our program at Slammers is at a hotel across, like, the big parking lot. So there Was we were at a Holiday Inn and there was like a Hilton Garden thing, whatever, right? You could see it. So they're there. Our team's over there. Their team's over there. So I text my buddy and I'm like, hey, we just went to Jimmy John's and the guy didn't have any bread. And he's like, oh, that's unusual. I go, yeah, a little bit unusual, but whatever.
- [17:19]
Matt Abeticola
Sandwich shop.
- [17:21]
Dan Bernstein
So 20 minutes later, he texts me, he goes, hey, I know why there was no bread. And I go, oh, why is that? He goes, was our team just ordered like 40 subs and he just got delivered.
- [17:30]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, thanks.
- [17:30]
Dan Bernstein
I was like, oh, okay. Well, now that makes sense. And so apologies to the guys at Jimmy John's for. My initial thought was like, why the don't have any bread made, Right? Well, they did have bread made, and then there was a guy who ordered it all. Okay, okay, okay. That was. That was. That. But that was a first for me, going to a. Going to a. Like a sandwich shop and then saying, we don't have any bread.
- [17:50]
Matt Abeticola
Sorry, I would love to make you a sandwich. Believe me, we'd love to, but we can't because we don't have bread.
- [17:57]
Dan Bernstein
Don't have any bread.
- [17:58]
Matt Abeticola
No. Well, at least there was the Taco Bell that I went to where they gave me tacos with no meat.
- [18:03]
Dan Bernstein
That was in the back of my car, actually. I was driving you. We were together, and you got a dozen tacos and six didn't have meat.
- [18:11]
Matt Abeticola
Can I have the 12 tacos special? Six, no meat.
- [18:14]
Dan Bernstein
Yes. You had a shell. Hard shells with lettuce, cheese, and tomatoes. And you're like, six. Six of these don't have meat as you're eating them in the back seat. And I said, do you want to go back? And you're like, no, this is fine.
- [18:26]
Matt Abeticola
I didn't want to deal with it at that point.
- [18:28]
Dan Bernstein
You ate lettuce tacos. Yeah.
- [18:29]
Matt Abeticola
Live to fight another day. You know, it just. It was locale. I got a free locale meal out of it.
- [18:34]
Dan Bernstein
You're just crunching away on hard shell tacos with no meat.
- [18:37]
Matt Abeticola
What are you gonna do?
- [18:39]
Dan Bernstein
What you. What you could do is go back and be like, hey, you guys forgot something. Oh, what? Do we forget the tomatoes? I'm sorry, do we forget the cheese? No, no, no, no.
- [18:49]
Matt Abeticola
There were no tomatoes. I did not order them with tomatoes. It is just that, the shredded cheese and lettuce.
- [18:55]
Dan Bernstein
So. Okay, it was just lettuce and lettuce and cheese. Okay.
- [18:58]
Matt Abeticola
Yes.
- [18:58]
Dan Bernstein
But I was proud of you, though, for not wanting to go back. That you were. You were just drunk enough to enjoy lettuce tacos.
- [19:05]
Matt Abeticola
I guess. So, you know, I'm. I'm. I'm. And that was before I, you know, figured out actually before I had the tools to actually deal with some of the things that used to stress me out. I'm actually better about that now that I can. I can take a second and I can say, is this worth really getting this riled up over or is it not? And can I control my response to it in a way that ends up making me and maybe everyone else happier?
- [19:30]
Dan Bernstein
Well, you had a tool. You had a tool back then that you don't utilize anymore. And that tool back then was alcohol.
- [19:36]
Matt Abeticola
That's. Yeah. I don't. Not. Not. I don't really. And you didn't. You always had, you know, a fifth of. Of rum. That was always there.
- [19:44]
Dan Bernstein
Yes. Just for you to drink in the back seat. Yes.
- [19:47]
Matt Abeticola
It was just generally there. Yeah, it's there. It's fine.
- [19:53]
Dan Bernstein
Oh, man.
- [19:55]
Matt Abeticola
What? And that's why traveling was fun.
- [19:57]
Dan Bernstein
No, just that night, that was. That was. That was quite the night. That was something, man.
- [20:03]
Matt Abeticola
I think I handled it brilliantly.
- [20:04]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, you. You. Yeah, you were an all star that almost got shot.
- [20:08]
Progressive Ad Voice
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- [20:41]
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- [21:42]
Dan Bernstein
Have you, have you, have you followed anything? Are you still following this? That Tony Farmer on, on social media, he's still, I mean, he's all over the variable Rossini thing and he's not, he's not going to let it go. And I'm glad he's not because I enjoy reading what it is he's doing.
- [21:59]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, he's a little more into it than I am. And I don't, I don't, I don't know, because there's a lot of people that can put stuff out there and, and be noticeable who aren't well sourced. And I'm not. The answer is I'm not sure. But I'm certainly happy to add in whatever information we describe, whatever value to it emerges over time.
- [22:21]
Dan Bernstein
So we know that the Athletic is doing this, this deep investigation internally, and I guess they're supposed to release their findings on June 17, which, regarding what
- [22:32]
Matt Abeticola
really had been going on with their reporting, how Diana Rossini went about her business, what there has been to know about, at least under their auspices, whether or not it conformed to the expected professionalism. And I don't know what they're going to release.
- [22:50]
Dan Bernstein
Right. So he put out on X, he posted this. Former NFL linebacker levar Arrington speculated yesterday on God that the Athletic may not be able to release all it knows about Diana Rossini, quote, it might be too big, unquote. So he and he actually released the transcript and audio from Levar Arrington's podcast talking about the Rossini variable thing and the athletics findings where he does say it might be too big. And this, he follows up saying, this is 48 hours after Mark Schlerith said he thinks the entire league is nervous. So he posted a question slearth on X, said, hey, it's time to get your questions in. And Tony Farmer asks him about it. And his exact response was the entire league is nervous about what the findings might be. Now, I still don't believe that there will be enough released to cause any kind of concern or questions or demand any type of response from the NFL. I think this is going to get covered up and hidden up if There is stuff to do.
- [23:57]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, I'm just. I'm kind of in between on this because when you look at other stuff in the feed, there's a lot of stuff about, like, what a great UFC fight last night and.
- [24:07]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I know, but I mean, but like, this beginning, this is stuff that, I mean, this isn't his own work or his own words. This is what Mark Schler had said. And you're going off of what lavar Arrington said. And he, again, he posted the transcript and the audio. You can hear him talk about it.
- [24:22]
Matt Abeticola
I'd love to know what else the league is. Is muttering about nervously right now of who is waiting for. For a shoe to drop other than Mike Vrabel.
- [24:36]
Dan Bernstein
Right, Right. Because that, that's. If it's just Mike Vrabel, this isn't. This isn't a story.
- [24:42]
Matt Abeticola
If it's just Vrabel and she tells the story and it's worse than we thought. Vrabel's still not getting fired.
- [24:48]
Dan Bernstein
Right.
- [24:48]
Matt Abeticola
And, you know, that's clear.
- [24:50]
Dan Bernstein
A guy like Mark Slearith, who, I mean, he's. He's locked in on stuff. He's locked in on the NFL stuff. And for him to say that he thinks the entire league is nervous, and for LaVar Arrington, another NFL guy, to say that it's just too big for them to release everything
- [25:13]
Matt Abeticola
for them to. Too big for them to really. They don't have to. They're not a. This isn't a governmental entity. They don't.
- [25:20]
Dan Bernstein
Private business. Right.
- [25:21]
Matt Abeticola
It's a private business. And they can just say, here's what didn't conform to our standards, here's why we made the decision that we did, we were correct in doing so, etc. We're going to change the questions that we ask internally of and look at our processes and our practices for finding out news. I don't know where that's going to go, but we don't have any sort of objective organization that is doing. And no subpoena power, so you can't make people tell you stuff.
- [25:52]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. But it's still curious to hear, like, you know, guys that know the NFL well, that have been a part of it for a long time, that now cover it and talk about it, say things like, the entire league is nervous, or there just might be. It might be too big to release everything. Oh, I see that tweet now where it just says, I just became a UFC fan. Yeah.
- [26:10]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah.
- [26:11]
Dan Bernstein
Questionable.
- [26:12]
Matt Abeticola
You know what I mean?
- [26:13]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I know.
- [26:14]
Matt Abeticola
Like that. That's why I'M I'm generally loath to be like, first of all, people who are still actively using the platform is all. It's also a red flag just because of what that. What the platform has become, that people who have. Who are still engaging in that and doing so actively. I mean, I'm still on there. I wish I didn't have to be, but I still am. For marketing purposes, I would love to be able to not be, but I'm always. People who are excitedly and proudly and happily on there are already. It's already a strike against.
- [26:52]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. So here was the question he asked of Mark Schlerith. How concerned do you think the Patriots are about the Athletics investigation into the Rossini conduct? Mike seemed to leave the door open at his presser to taking more time away. And then his response was, I think. And this is Mark Sloth. I think the entire league is nervous. About what? Well, again, to the question the Athletics investigation into it. But yeah. But yeah, about what? I think the entire league is nervous.
- [27:23]
Matt Abeticola
I'd like. This is. It's all titillating and dramatic. I'd like to know more about what specifically this is or if people are just kind of playing along saying, well, we don't know. It could be this. It could be that. Is this based on what you actually know or is it just based in general on a subject that. That is doing a lot of clicks
- [27:47]
Dan Bernstein
for a lot of people. Right. Or is it. Is it based on being part of the NFL circle and having heard things and the different rumors that were out there and saying, oh, yeah, I, you know, who knows. Who knows what. What it's through. But I just think it's interesting that you have a couple. And again, the lavar Arrington thing was the most interesting thing that I've heard that he's done with this and again posted the transcript and the audio. So if you do want to hear that, you can, okay, have that there to take stuff.
- [28:12]
Matt Abeticola
I know it's not over. I know it's definitely not over that until she comes out and says, here's my story, here's what happened from my perspective. And this is the. My last shot to sell a book or sell something or sell TV rights to whatever it is that until that happens, we know that this isn't over.
- [28:34]
Dan Bernstein
Matt Bowen on espn, he, he listed all the. All eight divisions in the NFL and ranked them by their quarterbacks.
- [28:43]
Matt Abeticola
So you take all the totality of the quarterbacks of a division.
- [28:47]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. So you take all four quarterbacks in the division and then he Ranked the divisions. Okay. And I don't want to go through the whole thing. I just want to ask you this, though, because I thought this was interesting. If I give you these two sets of quarterbacks. Caleb Williams, Jared Goff, Jordan Love, and Kyler Murray. So Caleb Goff, Love and Murray, would you take that group over Dak Prescott, Jalen Hurts, Jaden Daniels, Jackson, Dart. So who are you taking? Prescott, Hertz Daniels and Dart, or Caleb Goff, Love and Murray,
- [29:32]
Matt Abeticola
Prescott hurts. Daniel. I'm gonna. I'm gonna take the NFC North.
- [29:40]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I am, too. I am, too. Yeah.
- [29:42]
Matt Abeticola
Especially because I want nothing to do with dart.
- [29:45]
Dan Bernstein
That was. That was the biggest thing for me, was not one. One. I'm not wanting dart. And the second year that Jaden Daniels had and the injuries as well, too. So it was funny because. So. But when Bowen ranked them, he had. He had the NFC north as fourth and had the NFC east as third.
- [30:08]
Matt Abeticola
I disagree.
- [30:10]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I do, too. I do, too. I. I didn't question anything else that. That he did, but that one, I was like, oh, I could flip flop those really easy. And matter of fact, I would flip flop those.
- [30:20]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, I don't really think that's difficult. I don't really think of quarterbacks. It's sort of arbitrarily grouped in terms of division. Question is, do we.
- [30:28]
Dan Bernstein
June 15th.
- [30:29]
Progressive Ad Voice
Right.
- [30:29]
Matt Abeticola
But sure. But also, do we take Kevin O' Connell at his word about what's going on with the. The competition as he's tied himself in knots trying to explain what's going on in their quarterback competition when the answer should be, we got Kyler Murray and he's going to start.
- [30:45]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. And as. As Bowen, when Matt put it down in his article, he had Dak, Hertz, Daniels, and then he had. I'm sorry, Caleb Goff, Love. Then he had Murray slash McCarthy as the Vikings representative? I just, on my own, I took McCarthy out of it because it's. I mean, Murray's the guy. So if I'm naming the four starters, it's Murray, Love, golf, Caleb, obviously. And would I take those four over Dak, Prescott, Hurts, Daniels and Dart, which I would. And I was just curious to see what your. How you would. How you would. You would pick it looking at those eight quarterbacks.
- [31:23]
Matt Abeticola
Yeah, I think that that's pretty easy to do. I'd take McCarthy out of there because I don't think it's. It's. If it's Murray slash McCarthy, that's the biggest gift that the Vikings have given anybody else.
- [31:34]
Dan Bernstein
It really is.
- [31:35]
Matt Abeticola
And I don't know if they just feel they have to do that right now, But I think McCarthy is very quickly becoming a distressed asset for them that is going to be best off getting a fresh start somewhere else.
- [31:47]
Dan Bernstein
Agreed with that.
- [31:47]
Matt Abeticola
That would be my thought on that one.
- [31:49]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah. And I really don't think you bring Kyler Murray and even though it was so cheap, extremely cheap, as far as NFL quarterbacks go today, you don't bring him in to compete for the job.
- [32:00]
Matt Abeticola
No, he wouldn't have signed. You haven't told him like, hey, come on in, give it a shot, see if you can beat these guys out. No, he's making a life decision and he's, he's making a professional decision. There's. I. No, no, no.
- [32:17]
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- [33:17]
Matt Abeticola
Also, by the way, kudos to Caleb Williams for shrugging off all the stadium stuff. I don't know how he really feels about, you know, working for for idiots. And he may feel terrible that he, that his boss is in his bosses work for idiots, but it doesn't seem to affect him. And he basically said wherever the field is 100 yards by 53 and a half. Whatever it is, I'm going to be there and I'm going to be doing my best for the Chicago Bears wherever they tell me to play. Good answer.
- [33:45]
Dan Bernstein
I saw you got to do. I saw. Speaking of Caleb, I saw a headline. Help me make sense of this because maybe I'm wrong. Something about Caleb might demand his new contract at the end of the regular season before the playoffs start. If they make the playoffs.
- [34:02]
Matt Abeticola
Why?
- [34:04]
Dan Bernstein
Because he's not going to want to go into the postseason without the big contract. What in risk injury? I saw a couple different headlines. I mean, I never heard of that.
- [34:15]
Matt Abeticola
That he's gonna, he's gonna hold what
- [34:19]
Dan Bernstein
he would hold out the postseason for the kind. Isn't. Isn't it. If the Club has a fifth year option in 2028. Right. I mean, he's right under contract through 27.
- [34:30]
Matt Abeticola
Right. They want him to tear that up. I don't.
- [34:35]
Dan Bernstein
I don't know. I didn't, I didn't quite get the.
- [34:36]
Matt Abeticola
I would need to know a lot more before I react to that. Unless there's some loophole that allows somebody to say, that's it. I'm not quarterbacking you. Wait. When you talk about the damage that would do to relationships with teammates and everybody else and everything that's said about all the hard work they put in for building toward the playoffs, then he's like, well, screw you guys. What.
- [34:59]
Dan Bernstein
What am I. No, I. I see. Yeah.
- [35:02]
Matt Abeticola
I would need to know considerably more.
- [35:08]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, I. It was just the headline. And I'm like, what does that mean? Because he's under contract through K. Chicago Bears could. Okay, here was the headline. Chicago Bears could lose Caleb Williams for playoffs without new contract.
- [35:21]
Matt Abeticola
Who wrote that again? Where is this at? This is.
- [35:26]
Dan Bernstein
Oh, I don't, I don't know what this is.
- [35:29]
Matt Abeticola
Is that Crazy Person illustrated or is it Shy city bad sports thoughts.com city sports. I don't know.
- [35:40]
Dan Bernstein
The Chicago Bears will have 18 games for Caleb Williams to play under his rookie contract for sure. He'll become eligible for new contract. He'll become eligible for a new contract immediately after the Bears finish their Week 18 contest at the Vikings. Okay. So if he becomes eligible.
- [36:03]
Matt Abeticola
Okay. This isn't even really worth the time.
- [36:05]
Dan Bernstein
Mike Florio. Pro Football Talk argued that the new half billion deal that Patrick Mahomes signed with Kansas City will be a talking point for Williams.
- [36:16]
Matt Abeticola
Okay.
- [36:16]
Dan Bernstein
And his discussions this winter, he noted Williams has been focused on the business realities of the league. This means the Bears might have be ready to give Williams a new deal before the postseason.
- [36:28]
Matt Abeticola
Okay.
- [36:29]
Dan Bernstein
No, they don't.
- [36:30]
Matt Abeticola
No, I'm turning off your computer after the moment. This, you know, you're, you're, you're getting, you're. Nope. Nope. Where do you find these things?
- [36:42]
Dan Bernstein
I just, I was, I just looked up Chicago Bears and News. I always like to see what, what's out there. And unfortunately, that was, that came my direction.
- [36:51]
Matt Abeticola
All right.
- [36:52]
Dan Bernstein
Well, I, I didn't even read the story. I read the headline and was like, nope, that's it.
- [36:56]
Matt Abeticola
I've led you guys this far, and
- [36:58]
Dan Bernstein
now I'm out of here.
- [36:58]
Matt Abeticola
Don't give me a half a billion dollars right now.
- [37:01]
Dan Bernstein
That's right.
- [37:02]
Progressive Ad Voice
Got it.
- [37:02]
Dan Bernstein
We have a. We have a playoff game next. Next Saturday. Nope.
- [37:05]
Matt Abeticola
No, I don't.
- [37:06]
Dan Bernstein
I don't.
- [37:06]
Matt Abeticola
I don't. Hope you like Tyson Bagent.
- [37:08]
Dan Bernstein
Yep.
- [37:09]
Matt Abeticola
That's your starter.
- [37:10]
Dan Bernstein
Because I'm eligible for a new contract a year early.
- [37:13]
Matt Abeticola
I want it now. Yeah, I want to. There's no fifth year option for me. You're tearing this thing up. You're gonna be half a billion dollars and you get TYSON B.
- [37:20]
Dan Bernstein
The fifth year option is 20, 28. Right. So he's, like, under his rookie deal through 27, so I don't know. Anyway.
- [37:29]
Matt Abeticola
Okay. I don't know where you find these things, but good.
- [37:32]
Dan Bernstein
Good luck to you.
- [37:33]
Progressive Ad Voice
Well.
- [37:33]
Dan Bernstein
Oh, God. You know what it was? It wasn't regular Google and it wasn't racist.
- [37:38]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, it wasn't racist Google?
- [37:39]
Dan Bernstein
No, it wasn't racist. It was stupid Google.
- [37:41]
Matt Abeticola
Stupid. Stay away. Stay away from racist Google. Stay away from stupid Google.
- [37:45]
Dan Bernstein
I got to get that app off my phone. It says right here, stupid Google.
- [37:49]
Matt Abeticola
Let's check Stupid Google where it's. It's organizations you've never heard of saying things that are wrong and stupid. Perfect. Just what we need here.
- [37:59]
Dan Bernstein
All right. Hey, remember, you can email us anytime. Dan at 312Sports and Matt at 312Sports. And help me out with. With your drive home from a Bears game.
- [38:09]
Matt Abeticola
Help me out, theoretical Bears game.
- [38:11]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, you go to Hammond, you're at Crazy Kaplan's Fireworks Stadium.
- [38:15]
Matt Abeticola
You're just saying if you're coming off the Skyway, if you're taking the Skyway home, there are two lanes at the end. There's one that merges with the Ryan and one that takes you to 55.
- [38:25]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah, and you're. You're side by side for a little bit and there's the signs and says, you know, 94 and then 55 and it's one lane each.
- [38:33]
Matt Abeticola
Oh, I've had some long days coming back from. From Michigan, some long days coming back from. From Saga Tuck or wherever. And you are backed up, backed up, leaving the Skyway right there. Yeah, that's. That's an issue. Unless they make some changes to some things. Of course it is. I thought that went without saying, but
- [38:51]
Dan Bernstein
as it sits right now, though, let me know what you would do because I'd be curious for all you fans that are going to drive to Hammond to see the Bears play, in their new stadium in Indiana, which is apparently going to happen for sure.
- [39:01]
Matt Abeticola
So.
- [39:02]
Commercial Announcer
Okay.
- [39:02]
Dan Bernstein
It's a done deal, apparently.
- [39:04]
Matt Abeticola
Sounds good.
- [39:04]
Dan Bernstein
Yeah.
- [39:05]
Matt Abeticola
Well, that'll be a done deal on this. Forward Progress. Thank you. Chicago Bears and NFL podcast. He's Matt. I'm Dan. 312 sports for progress is stopped.
- [39:24]
Dan Bernstein
Forward Progress, a Chicago Bears podcast with Dan Bernstein and Matt Abeticola on 312 Sports.