Bears fans likely will not even acknowledge Brian Daboll on the sidelines at Soldier Field as head coach of the Giants on Sunday. But let the record show, once upon a time they wanted him to be on the other sideline as much as they wanted Ben Johnson last January. Daboll was the coach many Bears fans had to have after Matt Nagy was fired following a 6-11 season in 2021. His mentorship and development of Josh Allen as the Bills' offensive coordinator was even more dramatic tha

Some guys have “it.” And some guys don’t.  Jay Cutler had tremendous talent but couldn’t buy a break. Even when he was in the right place, it seemed like the wrong time. In 2011, Cutler was leading the Bears (7-3) to their fifth straight victory that would stamp them as a legitimate threat to the 10-0 Packers, when fate intervened. With the Bears leading the Chargers 31-20 in the fourth quarter and about to put the hammer down at the Chargers’ 30-yard line, Cutler’s short pas

Seven players who made the biggest impact in the Bears' 47-42 victory over the Bengals on Sunday at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati: 1. Kyle Monangai Forget all the gobbledygook at the end, the seventh-round rookie from Rutgers was the dominant force in the game with 26 carries for 176 yards (6. 8 avg.) in his first NFL start. Monangai had room to run — due credit to Joe Thuney, Drew Dalman, Jonah Jackson and the Bears' offensive line. But on several occasions Monangai himself

Gale Sayers played just 68 games with the Bears — tied for 231st on the Bears' all-time list Among those who have played more are Markus Paul (70), Bruce Herron (71), Zack Bowman (73) and Craig Steltz (77). But his impact on the Bears and the NFL was indelible — he scored 18 touchdowns of 50 or more yards in his first three seasons with the Bears. His knee injury against the 49ers in 1968 shortened his career — but even as a shell of his former self, Sayers still led the NFL

When Zach LaVine returned to the United Center on Wednesday night with the Sacramento Kings against the Bulls, his performance was all too typical. He led his team with 30 points, shot 12-of-19 from the field (63.2%) and had a season-high game score of 24.1. Yet his on-court scoring differential was minus-23 points and the Kings lost 126-113 — never closer than 10 points in the fourth quarter. It was just one game, but still a snapshot of LaVine's confounding NBA career — no

For a player who was on the street after being traded by the Eagles in March and cut by the Texans and Ravens already this season, defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson is an intriguing acquisition by the Bears. Not only can he provide needed help on the field — he led the Super Bowl champion Eagles with six interceptions last season — but Gardner-Johnson is the edgy kind of player the Bears' locker room needs. There's a fine line, of course, between the volatile personality of

Bears coach Ben Johnson learns a little bit more about the roster he inherited every day. He’s about to learn a lot more.  After the Bears had penalty issues yet again in a 30-16 loss to the Ravens on Sunday — 11 penalties for 79 yards, including two more false starts — Johnson all but threw his hands up and put the onus on his players and presumably team leaders to solve the problem.  “We’re here as coaches — we’re gonna help support, we’re going to challenge these guys and

The Bears have lost to some pretty modest NFL quarterbacks over the years, but in winning with the Ravens on Sunday, Huntley joined Foley as quarterbacks with single-digit NFL victories to beat the Bears twice. Foley, a seventh-round draft pick by the Jets in 1994, deserves special mention. He was 2-7 in nine NFL starts, and both victories came against the Bears — in 1997 with the Jets (with veteran Neil O'Donnell finishing) and in 1999 with the Seahawks. He joins the Chiefs'

Seven players who made the biggest difference in the Bears' 30-16 loss to the Ravens on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium: 1. Tyler Huntley With all the tumult over Lamar Jackson's status, starting the more mobile Huntley is place of Cooper Rush as Jackson's replacement was an underrated winning move by Ravens coach John Harbaugh. Huntley's accuracy was mildly unexpected (17 of 22, 186 yards, a 116.9 passer rating), but the bigger surprise was his ability to avoid the big mistake a

When reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose suffered a devastating knee injury in the first round of the playoffs in 2012, I wrote a column in the Sun-Times imploring him to avoid the temptation to rush back. "If Rose is ever ahead of schedule, here's some layman's advice for his doctors: Don't tell him," I wrote. "Don't give Rose anything that's going to encourage him to come back sooner than he should." It seemed like sound advice at the time, but it was completely

The Bears are down to three players from the Chicago area — tight end Cole Kmet (St. Viator), linebacker T.J. Edwards (Lakes) and offensive lineman Kiran Amegadjie (Hinsdale Central). Two years ago they had six — Kmet, Edwards, Jack Sanborn (Lake Zurich), Robert Tonyan (McHenry), Dan Feeney (Sandburg) and Doug Kramer (Hinsdale Central). This week's Bears scrapbook takes a look back at the Bears best hometown players — one of many NFL lists headed by the great Dick Butkus:

The Bears at 4-2 with a four-game winning streak and the 10th-ranked scoring offense in the NFL are 6 1/2-point underdogs to the Ravens, who are 1-5 with four straight losses and the 32nd- (and last) ranked defense in the NFL, on Sunday at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore. Oddsmakers obviously are presuming that Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson will return after missing two-plus games with a hamstring injury. Jackson, a two-time league MVP and at 28 arguably the most dynamic run

Seventh-round running back Kyle Monangai  is the Bears’ rookie of the year through six games. Is that a good thing?  Probably not, when the Bears’ top three draft picks in Ben Johnson’s  first season as head coach were offensive players — tight end Colston Loveland  (first round, 10th overall), wide receiver Luther Burden  (2-39) and offensive tackle Ozzy Trapilo (2-56).  All four players — even Monangai — were considered potential breakout performers based on Johnson’s histo

Seven players who made the biggest difference in the Bears' 26-14 victory over the Saints on Sunday at Soldier Field: 1. Nahshon Wright On a day when virtually every Bears defender made a key play that contributed to the victory, Wright made the impactful with a nifty interception of a Spencer Rattler pass and 38-yard return to the Saints 30. It set up a four-play touchdown drive, with D'Andre Swift scoring on an 11-yard run to give the Bears a 13-0 lead. Wright has been main

The Caleb Williams vs. Spencer Rattler showdown of former Oklahoma quarterbacks and teammates was overshadowed this week by Williams vs. Troy Aikman, Dennis Allen vs. the team that fired him and the “Are the Bears for real?” storylines ahead of the Bears' game against the Saints on Sunday at Soldier Field. And the reality that there was no juice in that angle. Both quarterbacks downplayed the matchup, probably because their relationship was ultimately awkward at Oklahoma. Rat

Are the Bears on the verge of something special under Ben Johnson? Their 25-24 victories over the Raiders and Commanders in back-to-back games have referenced some glorious — or at least encouraging — moments in recent Bears history:  Two of the most exciting back-to-back victories since Mike Brown beat the 49ers and Browns with Pick-6s in overtime in 2001 — sparking a 13-3 season and a playoff berth. With 25 points in back-to-back games, the Bears are averaging 25.2 points

Seven players who made the biggest difference in the Bears' 25-24 victory over the Commanders on Monday night at Northwest Stadium: 1.  D'Andre Swift He's the Edwin Jackson of the Bears — it seems like every time critics write him off for disappointing performances, he comes up with a big game that makes you think he's a keeper after all. With a lot of help from a determined offensive line, Swift came up with his biggest game with the Bears at a critical time — 14 carries for

While the arrow is pointing up four games into Ben Johnson’s first season with the Bears, replicating his success on offense with the Lions already seems a little more difficult than Johnson might have anticipated.  And Caleb Williams isn’t the drag on progress. The former No. 1 overall draft pick still has a long way to go, but has made reasonable if not impressive growth under Johnson. When Johnson became the offensive coordinator of the Lions in 2022, he inherited Jared Go

The Ben Johnson honeymoon is going strong. But as much he's been a breath of fresh air as the Bears' head coach, you still have to call...

The Bears are 2-2 under Ben Johnson, which is the same record they had after four games last year under Matt Eberflus. And their...