Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
A few weeks ago, I wrote a very angry column about the Chicago White Sox having fallen out of first place in the AL Central. I said they had choked, claimed that even if they made the playoffs, I didn’t see anything coming out of it, and even called out a couple of guys by name that had been struggling down the stretch.
Needless to say, I sit here today feeling like an idiot.
As I write this on Wednesday afternoon, those same White Sox have won their first four playoff games, all on the road, and have done so in incredibly impressive fashion. Later this afternoon, they’ll have a chance to sweep Cleveland to clinch a playoff series at home for the first time in 120 years and play for a chance to appear in the World Series. Hopefully by the time your eyes are reading this sentence, that series will be over.
It would be impossible for me not to mention my favorite team in the world as they make some noise in the playoffs for only the second time since I’ve been born, but I don’t want to wax too poetic just yet. There is hopefully a lot of baseball still to be played on the south side of Chicago, and I don’t want to get too ahead of myself. I’ve loved what I’ve seen so far. Seriously, if you’ve seen me out covering a game over the last week I’ve probably looked like I’m auditioning for Smile 3. Go White Sox. I’ll be saving my full thoughts on this season and run after a World Series champion is crowned.
Instead, I’m going to switch gears. I’m going to stay in Chicago but head on down to the shores of Lake Michigan and talk about what’s been going on at Soldier Field. The Chicago Bears now sit at 3-1, with all three wins coming from different quarterbacks. Technically, since Case Keenum took the first snap against the Jets last week, he has two wins, but for the sake of this argument I’m going to give that dub to Tyson Bagent.
Three QBs, three wins, one constant. Ben Johnson is already one of the very best coaches in the NFL. It’s such a refreshing thing to see as a Bears fan, considering the guys we’ve had leading this franchise over the last decade and a half.
Lovie Smith was the first coach I can remember. I was much younger, and did not know nearly enough about football as I do now, but I always thought he was just fine. Won a lot of games, coached in a Super Bowl, was likeable enough, at least I thought so, and was consistent enough to never really bottom out.
Then of course, he gets fired and the carousel begins to spin. Marc Trestman. John Fox. Matt Nagy. Matt Eberflus. Some had their moments, some brought this franchise down to depths that would make Mike Ditka sick. Four coaches, eleven and a a half years, two playoff appearances, no playoff wins, and a whole lot of top 10 picks.
All of that to say that it feels so good to have a competent leader in charge of that locker room. We knew about Johnson’s offensive wizardry from his time as a coordinator in Detroit, but there were a good chunk of people who wondered if he had what it takes to handle the additional responsibilities of being the top guy. All it takes to dispel that line of thinking is by watching just one of his “Good, Better, Best” postgame speeches or by listening to just one interview of his players talking about him. He has that team wrapped around his finger in the best way possible.
Through 23 games of his tenure in Chicago, Johnson has won 15 games including the playoff victory over Green Bay last year. That’s already more than Eberflus, Fox and Trestman all had in their multi-year stints. In less than a season and a half, he has turned the Bears from the laughing stock they had been for over a decade to a team that is respected across the league.
While Johnson has already found ways to win, and win convincingly, with three quarterbacks already this season, it’s no secret that Chicago’s best chance of keeping that winning going deep into January is with a healthy Caleb Williams. The head coach-quarterback marriage is the most important relationship in all of sports, and by all accounts, this one seems to be pretty healthy. With these two leading the charge, the future is looking bright for Bears fans.
Between the White Sox, Bears, Missouri getting a big homecoming win over Florida AND my picks bouncing back to the tune of a 4-1 week, it’s been a solid stretch for ya boy. Let’s hope we can keep it rolling for the rest of Soxtober.
FAVORITE FAVORITE
Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Dallas Cowboys (-8.5)
This is a pretty lopsided spread in the first of three primetime games I’m picking this week, which is something that usually goes against my formula. But, I also tend to love home teams on Thursday nights, especially when they’re going up against an undrafted rookie making his second start on a short week. The Dallas offense has been excellent all season long. The defensive side is where they have struggled. If they can’t contain Jalon Daniels and a putrid Bucs offense, then they might be a lost cause. Cowboys roll at home.
The Pick: Cowboys -8.5
BIG DAWG GOTTA EAT
Baltimore Ravens at Atlanta Falcons (-3.5)
This is one of those lines that feels pretty crazy to me, so I’m probably going to get duped and totally read it wrong. However, Lamar Jackson is not an underdog in this league very often, especially against an NFC team. The Falcons have strung together two really good performances in back-to-back weeks, but I don’t think they’ve done so against a team this talented. Bijan Robinson is awesome, and I feel horrible picking against a man carrying my fantasy team, but I can’t go against the Ravens in this spot.
The Pick: Ravens +3.5
BEAR DOWN
Chicago Bears (-2.5) at Green Bay Packers
A game unlike any other in the NFL. The Bears have already announced that Tyson Bagent will start this one as Caleb continues to recover from his hamstring injury. The fact that Chicago will be starting their backup in this one and are still favored by nearly a field goal on the road is very telling to me. It’s no secret that the Packers have not enjoyed the best of starts this season, especially offensively. Still missing Micah Parsons as he recovers from his torn ACL, linebacker Edgerrin Cooper is out for the rest of this year with a torn Achilles. In years past I would be a homer for picking the Bears in this game no matter what, but I genuinely believe they are the superior team this year. This would be another huge win to notch, especially while giving Williams another week of rest.
The Pick: Bears -2.5
THIS IS OUR COLTS
Indianapolis Colts at Pittsburgh Steelers (-2.5)
The Colts picked up a win across the pond last Sunday morning, defeating the Commanders and covering in the process. Now they head onto the road to take on a Pittsburgh team that I really can’t figure out thus far, and I’m not sure they can either. They’re 2-2 but have looked both dreadful and solid in the process. I definitely lean more toward the team being bad rather than good, but the extended rest from having played last Thursday as well as the long travel week Indy has had could play a factor in this one. Add in this game being in Pittsburgh, and I think that’s just enough in their favor to get this done.
The Pick: Steelers -2.5
GAME OF THE WEEK
Buffalo Bills at Los Angeles Rams (-3)
This is going to be one heck of a game. You have the last two MVPs facing off. You have a pair of teams that each have Super Bowl aspirations. You have some of the most electric players in football on both offenses, and both defenses have shown just enough liability for this to be a fireworks show. Like I said with Lamar earlier, it’s not often I get to take Josh Allen as an underdog, and I have a really hard time not doing so. Again, I think this is going to be a really high-scoring game that could go either way, but I think Allen finds a way after coming off of a loss last week.
The Pick: Bills +3
I definitely have some confidence back and feel like I’m seeing the board a bit better after last week. Could this be the beginning of a run for the ages?
Cheers.
Last Week’s Record: 4-1
Season Record: 9-11
