Still Gotta Come Through Chicago
What the hell do we do now?
Good Morning Chicagoans!
Table of contents (in no particular order):
-When were you told you could no longer play the children’s game?
-Sports updates around Chicago (there are some!)
-Chicago sports trivia
-Other things to look forward to in these trying times
Trivia: This player owns the Bear records for most Pro Bowls, most tackles, and is tied for most playoff starts. Who is he? (Answer at end of then newsletter)
I assume for a lot of you, your life has just indefinitely changed in some pretty significant ways. A lot of you have been asking me if the newsletter will be discontinued during the sports hiatus…
No sir. For the next (however many) weeks, it’s #StillGottaStayInTheHouse and #StillGottaComeThroughChicago. In fact, I’m thinking of sending more newsletters during the hiatus than I ever have. We’re gonna have some bored sons of bitches out there, aren’t we? Let’s get through this weird phase in all of our lives together. Last week (feels like a year ago), the comment section was more popping than it has EVER been. Thank you for those of you who joined me. Let’s keep that shit going.
As for the coronavirus, I recommend listening to your local governments and to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for additional information and guidance on the issue. I won’t be covering that here (not in a direct sense, at least), because I think about it by necessity (for my actual job) and stress about it after work. I’m looking for Still Gotta Come Through Chicago to be the escape from that for the next few months, and am really hoping everyone on the email list is down for that.
With that being said, this is a great time to spread the movement. Got some friends who are still looking for a sports fix or just some good banter with good people during this down time? Send ‘em over here. Hopefully I can look back in a few years at the disaster that was this pandemic and know there was a silver lining — that the newsletter continued and really hit its stride during this time period. Now who’s with me?
Me, for the next two months, shimmying past my dogs on the way to get a snack in the kitchen after I see a ceiling in the distance that I can conceivably hit with my hand to emulate a dunk:
It’s going to be a lonnnngggggg couple of months. That reminds me of being young, of course. But it also reminds me of when I was in high school and gave myself a goal of dunking by the time I graduated. This was based on the fact that I… could grab the rim? And completely ignored the other basic facts like…
that I’m a 6-foot white guy?
that you can’t just… practice jumping higher in your free time enough to all of a sudden be able to dunk?
My dad could dunk in high school, but he also tore his ACL while drunk at a party dunking, so I think when he procreated God was like… let’s make sure these morons don’t even have a shot at dunking.
This also, for whatever reason, reminds me of the movie Moneyball when the scouts tell Billy Beane that we’re all told at some point we can no longer play the children’s game, we just don’t know when. For some it’s at 18, for some it’s at 40. But we’re all told.
When did you have this moment? When you came to grips with the fact that you were the fifth best pitcher on your high school baseball team, and that brighter days probably weren’t ahead? Or was it when you went to clear out your football locker for the last time in college? Hell, it may have been after a stint in an NFL training camp. But we’re all eventually told, sometimes by ourselves, sometimes by someone else.
For me, I’d like to think that I was realistic about my chances at age 16 or 17. When I gained 20 pounds in a football offseason and was told to gain another 20, I thought… yeah this may not be sustainable for your boy moving forward. When my high school baseball coach junior year told me that he had no idea what he was going to do if our third basemen got hurt and I literally played third base… I realized that playing the children’s game may be coming to an end.
Probably the peak of my athletic career was in gym class in a period dedicated to playing pick-up basketball. By far the most fun I’ve ever had in a class I had to go to. All of the black kids in my class called me Dirk (as in Dirk Nowitzki), which could be viewed by some as a tad racist but for me was a helluva an honor. When that class ended, and I stopped showing up to history class in third period drenched in so much sweat that I’d have to find creative ways to itch my ass cheeks, I realized that most of the fun I’d had playing all three sports was probably behind me.
When I started typing this newsletter I didn’t know where I was going to take it… but I like where it landed… when did you realize you were no longer fit to play the children’s game? Feel free to be as depressing or humorous as you please and leave a comment. Let’s laugh on this weird ass Monday.
Best answers will be highlighted in the next newsletter.
Hit the right button at the bottom of the newsletter to leave a comment.
There’s a few very important updates on SGCTC-related fronts.
First and foremost!
Ladies and gentlemen, sadly, the NBA season has been indefinitely suspended. Last night, the CDC recommended that the United States avoid gatherings of over 50 people for the next 8 weeks. That rules out NBA games, even without fans. With two teams, officials, and vital arena staff alone that’s over 50 people. There’s no way that the NBA plays any games until mid- to late-June at least. When they do return, their goal will be to finish the season in the most efficient way possible. That means that the regular season won’t be completed.
And what does that mean? Our Bulls over bets? CANCELLED! It’s not lost on me how depressing it is that that the only possible way — with nearly a quarter of the season left — that we could not lose exorbitant amounts of money on our Bulls over 31.5 wins bets was for the season to literally be fucking suspended due to a global pandemic. But hey a win is a win — or in this case — a non-loss is a non-loss.
If your bookie hits you up about that, tell them that they should actually be giving you money.
“You telling me you didn’t see Coby White heating up bro? He was starting! The Bulls were for sure going to hit the over! I mean, I guess I’m cool with us just calling it even, but that’s me doing a favor for YOU man, not vise versa.”
There’s no doubt in my mind that Jim Boylen tried to hold practice this last week.
“We’re not going to stop teaching because of some sniffles, are we Pax?”
I also am absolutely positive Boylen is the guy who goes into work coughing and sneezing all over the place saying that he’s just gotta get over the hump on the cold he’s had, that he’s been wearing an extra sweatshirt to bed so that he can “sweat it out.”
This is the good news for bettors, the bad news is we’re going cold turkey, ladies and gentlemen.
Don’t let anyone tell you you’re a bad person because you’re devastated there is no sports to watch (and bet on). Obviously all of these leagues made the right decision. Obviously, when people are dying and our health system is at risk of being overrun, sports are trivial.
Still, having something as anxiety-inducing as a global pandemic surfacing and also having your outlet for relaxation being taken away from you is just tough, man.
I don’t think people truly understand what it means to sports fans when they lose sports. They didn’t just lose a hobby. It’s not like you just told me I can’t rollerblade for a few weeks. I think about sports all day every day without meaning to. When I come home, I watch sports all night, even when there’s nothing good on. If I’m trying to get some late-night work in, I watch SVP on SportsCenter. That shit calms me before I head to bed.
Half the time I meet up with my friends, it’s because there’s a game on. Now, we’d probably meet up anyway, but there’s nothing like a “who wants to come over for the game?” text.
That’s what we’re losing — a part of our social fabric. It’s like when someone returns home from war (stick with me here) and they miss it. Do they miss the violence and the horror? Of course not. But they miss the relationships and the times they had on the way. That’s how I feel. I want the option to text my buddy about the Bucks chances to win the championship on a Wednesday night. I want the option to eat dinner in front of the television and watch a game where I don’t care who wins.
Thank god we’re all socially isolated, because small talk would be taking a massive hit too. If we all return to work before sports comes back, the weather better be fucking volatile.
Day 3 back to work with no sports:
“How ‘bout that weather, huh?”
“Dude it’s like 55 degrees and partly cloudy. It’s April. What about the weather?”
“It’s just crazy man. Weather, what a concept.”
If anyone doesn’t understand why you’d be so upset about losing sports, find out what they do every night of their lives, and ask them what they’d do if you took away the ability to do that. What if you couldn’t watch your favorite shows? What if you couldn’t eat your favorite dinner? What if you couldn’t play XBOX all night?
That’s what we’re losing, it ain’t just “sports”.
Bears
The Bears re-signed Danny Trevathan! Amidst all this chaos, the Bears were actually able to make a move that was worthy of a text to friends and family.
"Bringing Danny back is a key re-signing for us," Bears general manager Ryan Pace said in a statement. "Not only is he a great inside linebacker and great leader on our team, he is a big part of our culture. We are proud to have him under contract in Chicago for three more seasons."
What’s the deal look like?
The deal is for three years, $21.75 million, according to Ian Rapoport. With incentives, the deal could be worth $24 million. He’ll receive $14 million in guaranteed money. I haven’t been able to find exact, year-by-year details, but I assume they loaded the money on the back two years of the deal, given how tight things are going to be cap-wise next year.
The cap is set to be $198.2 million, which is a 5.3% (about $10 million) increase from last year. That’s the lowest jump in the league cap since 2013, so things will be as close to the line as expected for the Bears.
It also means that Nick Kwiatkoski, the polish hammer, will no longer be with us moving forward. We all loved how the guy stepped in and dominated when no one thought he could last year, but the Bears signing Danny clearly means that Kwiatkoski is getting PAID this offseason.
If he’s getting PAID PAID, like more than what Trevathan got (which is what I expect), then this is absolutely the right move. Just because Kwiatkoski is a white linebacker doesn’t mean the Bears should pay him like he’s Brian Urlacher, and let’s remember the Bears weren’t willing to pay Urlacher, like, $5 million in his final year.
Trevathan has proven he’s an elite linebacker and has been a large part of the Bears defensive success over the last four year. Even before Khalil Mack got here, the defense was noticeably better when Danny was out there.
The issue is, of course, whether or not he is reliable from a health perspective. He’s played 46 of 64 possible games since he arrived in Chicago, missing seven games last year. In 2018, when everything went right from an injury standpoint, he played all 16. He had 102 tackles then, and had 70 in a shortened season last year.
He turns 30 in a few days, which isn’t ideal, but he’s also a lot younger than I feel like people realize. There are plenty of examples of productive linebacker on the wrong side of 30. But again, in order to be productive, you need to be on the field.
There’s also no way to measure the on-the-field impact he has outside of football. He’s one of my favorite Bears for a reason. He busts his ass, he plays hard, and he’s all about being a Chicago Bear. When those guys get to stick around, even if it’s not a good deal (I think it is), you gotta celebrate.
If you polled Bears fans before the season, I doubt many of them would’ve believed he’d be back in 2020. It’s a pleasant surprise. It’s sad to see Kwiatkoski go, but if the Packers want to pay him $40 million, they can have at it.
If you don’t know why I love the guy so much, listen to him mic’d up against the Packers in 2018. Some major SGCTC vibes in here. Holy shit, I miss football. This will help you get through Monday, I promise.
Elsewhere in the league, the Titans just paid Ryan Tannehill nearly $120 million for an average of over $29 million per year. I’m fully aware of the stretch he had in the back half of last season, but really? $120 million?
All of a sudden $17 million or $20 million for Andy Dalton or Derek Carr, respectively, sounds like a pretty good deal.
The NFL and the NFLPA also just agreed to deal that will promise labor peace until 2030. It includes a lot of changes that will impact the league in a big way:
There are now 17 regular season games, as opposed to 16 (this won’t be in effect until 2021, most likely)
The playoffs will now include 14 teams as opposed to 12 (this will most likely be in effect for 2020)
We briefly talked about what the second change would’ve meant for the Bears in the past. When the Bears went 10-6 in Lovie Smith’s last year, they would’ve made the playoffs under the new format. That would’ve undoubtedly changed the course of Bears history. The Trestman years, at the very least, would not be a part of our collective sports fandom trauma.
I’m not sure whether I like either of the changes, but more meaningful football is always good from a fan perspective. More playoff teams is also probably a good thing from the Bears perspective. Think about how much this immediately helps the Bears playoff chances for next year? Don’t check my math, but I think that already gives them a 14% boost.
For where the Bears are right now, that’s crucial. Let’s say they do pick up Carr or Dalton in the offseason, and let’s say they trot out Mitch Trubisky for the first few games. The Bears fall to 1-3 and then hit their stride late in the year with the new quarterback. With 12 playoff teams, it’s hard to recover from a bad start. With 14 teams, there’s always hope. Hope can be good or bad — we witnessed the bad in a big way during the latter half of last year.
Good News
Both Blackhawks Owner Rocky Wirtz and Bulls Owner Jerry Reinsdorf did the right thing and will be paying all of the United Center employees for the games they’ll miss while the seasons are paused. Good on them. That means, for the Hawks, that all of those hard working arena employees won’t have to worry about putting food on their tables for the foreseeable future. For the Bulls, that means that Reinsdorf’s minions will be able to continue making money for doing just a tad less than they do on a regular basis.
When I worked for the Bulls, there was a guy who would film Jim Boylen’s press conferences with a camcorder every single night. Like one of those mini cameras that have awful quality that you wanted to get for Christmas in the 8th grade. I have no idea why he did it and I never saw it get put to use after the game.
They’ll miss out on the free popcorn, but at least they will still be getting paid.
(Just a joke)
Good news!
The penguins at the Shedd Aquarium are also allowed to wander around because there are no visitors allowed. That is freaking awesome:
And finally… “The Last Dance”, the Jordan documentary that was set to come out this June, is now being advertised as “Coming Soon” and not “Coming This June.” I know there’s a lot of logistics to work out, but there’s absolutely no common sense reason that it shouldn’t be moved up. Talk about a morale booster during the NBA hiatus.
When they inevitably do move up the release date for this, SGCTC will be the go-to spot for reactionary content. There’s going to be some big plans in the works.
What else am I considering doing during the hiatus?
Re-watching regular ass ‘90s Bulls games. I’ve done this my whole life, but can now justify watching them on weeknights without missing a Hawks or Bulls game.
Should we all re-watch the Celtics-Bulls 2009 series, AKA the best non-finals playoff series of all time?
The 2016 World Series games are still too stressful for me to watch. But what about the Sox 2005 world series?
I’m thinking about crowdsourcing the best Chicago sports trivia questions from everyone to get a more extensive trivia game to keep everyone busy
Send me any other ideas or thoughts — in the comments, via text, or via Twitter.
Let’s get through this, and while we’re in our homes, nothing changes. STILL GOTTA COME THROUGH CHICAGO! I love my readers. Stick with me here and let’s fill this void with the best stretch we’ve ever had.
Trivia answer:
Mike Singletary owns the Bears tackle record with 1,488 total. He made 10 Pro Bowls and started in 12 Bear playoff games. #BEARDOWN.
Remember to hit the right button to leave a comment. Let’s get more comments than we’ve ever had and chat throughout the day — I’m counting on you.
I reach a mental crossroad every time I think of the Bears QB situation. At this point with Mitch being sub-par and most of Chicago having lost hope, what is the front office trying to accomplish? Do we try to reenact the Sexy Rexy days and find a Carr or Dalton reliable enough to let the defense and playmakers do their thing? That seems like the temporary "we need to win it all THIS year" response. Or do we look for a Jalen Hurts type player in the draft and hope we hit the lottery? That seems like the long-term strategy and hope that the current Bears stay in their primes long enough for Hurts to settle in (an extra year or 2). The most frustrating part is how successful the rebuild has been for everyone except the QB position (with a horrible O-line). Even as I comment on this I think about how perfect the situation could be given Mitch's age compared to the rest of the team. And just like that, I am back on the wagon. Mitch 2020. Fuck.
For me I think it was senior year of high school baseball. I always thought I was a solid lefty specialist that could come out of the bullpen at any given moment, even if it was to just get one batter out. I was always being asked to warm up when our starter got in trouble which made me think I could still play maybe at a small D3 school. The problem was i never actually got into the game lol. He would go from our one big righty pitcher to the next big righty pitcher. If we didn't have a big righty to go to he would put in the other lefty on the team (Ian Luttrell). Thats when i realized maybe i'm not cut out to play anymore.
As the year went on it became more fun to sit on the bench and chew seeds than get into the game. I would actually dread non-conference games knowing i had to play. When sitting on the bench shooting the shit became more fun than getting in the game you know its time to hang it up.