Still Gotta Come Through Chicago
Still Gotta Come Through Chicago
Week 29—The Saints went marching in, up and down, and out of Soldier Field
This week in Chicago:
Bears: Sunday vs. Chargers at noon
Bulls: Wednesday at Charlotte 6 p.m., Friday at Grizzlies 7 p.m., Saturday vs. Raptors 7 p.m. for home opener
Blackhawks: Tuesday vs. Golden Knights 7:30 p.m., Thursday vs. Flyers 7:30 p.m., Saturday at Carolina at noon
Trivia:
The Bears let up 36 points in yesterday’s loss to the Saints. When is the last time they let up 30+ points in Soldier Field?
Answer at the end of the Bears section…
This week’s thread:
You’ve just been granted 2 minutes with the Bears—both the coaching staff and the players—in the locker room after the game. What would you say to them?
Post here. Profanity allowed. Personal, non-football attacks are not permitted. Act accordingly.
What you’ve missed:
Make sure you’re following Still Gotta Come Through Chicago (@stillgottaChi) on Twitter. I’ll be posting non-newsletter content there throughout the week.
I had lots of fun polling the masses this week on a myriad of topics. Let’s get that follower account over 100 (25 away) by the end of today.
I also posted this farewell to one of my favorite Bulls of all time, Luol Deng, on Friday:
And also this great audio portion with Tom Fornelli of CBS on what to expect from the Big Ten the rest of the way:
Time stamps: Tom Fornelli gives his thoughts on Illinois (:15-8:00), Northwestern (8:15-11:30), Big Ten West best bets (11:30-15:20), Big Ten East best bets (15:20-18:40), Indiana (18:45-19:25), Rutgers (19:30-22:00), and conference realignment (22:10-23:40).
It’s especially fun to listen to after Saturday’s result in Champaign.
Hope you guys enjoy the above content and consider following the Twitter handle.
Intro:
Firstly, last week’s newsletter was read by more people than ever before, which is something I don’t take for granted and greatly appreciate. Let’s keep growing this thing…
As I announced on Twitter this past week, Still Gotta Come Through Chicago is organizing its first ever gathering. The party is technically pending, but the talks with Chicago bars are underway.
The great thing about gambling is that it creates rooting interests and brings people together. Forget the rest of the effects it has on people’s lives. The premise for the SGCTC party is this: Everyone bets on the Bulls season over for wins (31.5). WHEN they go over on that total, we will meet in person to celebrate over drinks at a Chicago establishment. And everyone else in the bar will be wondering why a bunch of people with Tomas Satoransky and Cristiano Felicio jerseys are wasted and yelling about the .500 Bulls. And it’ll be because they’ve won us money on their season total. Bet $5 or bet $5,000, I don’t care. Either way, it’ll give you a reason to root for the Bulls all season long, and a reason to celebrate a 32-win team, whether they’re in the playoffs or not. Send me your bet slips on email or on Twitter (I’ll retweet) and we can come to a definitive number on what number win will mark a cause for celebration.
If you have a recommendation for a bar, you can send that my way too. We can all yell STILL GOTTA COME THROUGH CHICAGO and take some shots at midnight. It’ll be the dorkiest degenerate party of all time.
Bears:
The Saints and Sean Payton were lucky to get away with a win today, folks. Had Mitch Trubisky and Adam Shaheen had five more minutes of game time, the Saints may have been in trouble. The Bears dominated the fourth quarter, but ultimately ran out of time.
The Saints are lucky that the Bears convert 3rd and short plays at a near-50 percent lower clip than the rest of the league. They’re lucky that the Bears only had 14 days to prepare for them and not 140. They’re lucky that we were missing Akiem Hicks, our defensive difference maker, and that they were only missing one of the best running backs in the league and one of the best quarterbacks of all time.
They’re lucky that they had possession for almost a full quarter more than the Bears did. Had they not, we may have cut into the 172-yard gap in total yardage between the two teams. Didn’t you see? The Bears offense was rolling in the fourth. If they had more time, they may have run the ball more than seven times, which was a franchise record low. If they had been granted that opportunity, they could’ve gained at least 20 yards on the ground. At least.
If this game had been later in the season, Anthony Miller may have had enough games under his belt to start running the routes. He did, after all, run the wrong one when Mitch Trubisky overthrew him on that third down. Just like he did in London, which ultimately cost the Bears a last chance at winning the game.
If it was later in the season, Mitch may have eclipsed 38 games as a starter. Surely, he’ll have it figured out by then. That’s the amount of games Deshaun Watson played in college, and he was firing on all cylinders by then! In fact, in those 38 games, he won a championship, threw 90 touchdowns and 32 interceptions. That’s why he’s been successful in the NFL, he’s got the experience that Mitch doesn’t. Eight games from now, you better watch out for Mitch. The days of throwing the ball away on 4th down will be over then!
“You’re gonna have to live with the consequences that come with it. That’s how I see it,” Watson said before the 2017 NFL Draft. “I try to stay in my lane. I try not to take the path. I respect Mitch and what he’s done and all the hype he’s getting, but at the same time, my result speaks for itself. I feel like I’ve accomplished everything that I could. I guess if that’s who they’re gonna roll with, so be it.”
And if it wasn’t for the gosh darn media, the Bears would be just fine.
If there were no newspapers or websites, this team would be able to throw the ball down field and run for 100 yards per game no problem.
I can’t remember a worse game, expectations considered, in a long time. The second year of Trestman yielded some dreadful losses, but none like this. The Bears were 4.5 point favorites by game time and got dominated from start to finish. Without a special team and garbage time touchdowns, the final score would’ve looked a lot worse, and would have been representative of the actual game we all saw.
Matt Nagy and his staff had two weeks to get ready for this game. Then they had two punts blocked and rushed for 17 yards. The problems are so abundant it’s hard to put the onus on one person or group. Is it Mitch Trubisky? Well, yeah. Is it Nagy’s play calling? Has to be. The offensive line? They’ve been dreadful. The special teams? They couldn’t tackle or block. They realistically should’ve given up two touchdowns on their own today.
The defense wasn’t good and it’s clear they miss Hicks. But I still stop short of blaming the defense when it comes to diagnosing this team’s issues. They’ve been out there on their own basically for two years now. No NFL team can expect one phase of the game (or even two, shout out 4th phase) to win games regularly for them in 2019.
If I had two minutes in the locker room with the team after the game, I’d excuse Allen Robinson and Danny Trevathan to the hallway first. They’re the only ones who were living a #SGCTC lifestyle today. They came ready to play. The rest of them, well, they let the Saints march all over them.
Trivia answer:
If you want to zag and be the one person in the office with a glass-half-full outlook today, go ahead with this one. The last time the Bears let up 30+ points at home was last year to the Patriots. A punt was blocked in that game, too. And the Bears record after that game? It was 3-3, just as it is now.
Bulls:
If you told me in March that by October 21st I’d be more excited about the Bulls than I’d be about the Bears—or for God’s sake, the Cubs—I’d fight you on whatever street we were standing on. But as you can tell from the words above, things are starting to look that way.
The Bulls opener is included in my betting advice below (I think I was undefeated on NBA picks last year) and I’m already planning a party based on their win total. Now let’s get something clear: The Bulls are not going anywhere this year. They have no wing depth, they’re young, and their coach thinks that milk is the best way to cure injuries. But they have a legit point guard now in Tomas Satoransky, which should significantly help the players on the team who can actually play, such as LaVine, Markkanen, Wendell Carter Jr. (if he’s not hurt, which he probably will be), and Otto Porter. They have a veteran piece in Thaddeus Young. Those two upgrades alone should be enough to make this Bulls team watchable and competitive.
They play two of the worst teams in the NBA in their first couple of match ups (Hornets and Grizzlies), which will be a good way to measure how the rest of the season will go. I’m bullish on the Bulls in 2019, as I’ve made a little too clear. Just don’t come asking for money when my pockets are lined with my winnings from betting on the Bulls to make the playoffs and their season win total.
If they go 2-0 to start the year and bring this pregame video back for the opener, I may have to take out a loan to put a down payment on some season tickets.
#SEERED
Thanks to all of you who read my farewell to Luol Deng last week. If you haven’t, you can here. I almost cried writing it at 1 a.m., so the least you can do is take a look.
Blackhawks:
The Blackhawks bounced back from a rough start this week before losing to the Capitals at home last night, 5-3.
They beat the previously undefeated Oilers 3-1 and the Blue Jackets 3-2 in OT before the loss to the Capitals on Sunday. The loss did include this beautiful pass from Alexander Nylander to set up Drake Caggiula for the equalizer:
The Blackhawks bizarre schedule will diversify finally at the end of this week. The team opened in Prague, and will eventually play seven straight home games before heading off to Carolina for a noon Saturday game. They haven’t yet capitalized on the home-ice advantage (2-3-1), so two home wins in a row feel almost imperative at this point.
Baseball:
Read last week’s newsletter if you haven’t yet. Tom Fornelli (CBS) and Patrick Nolan (Sox Machine) gave their wish lists for the Sox offseason and Cooper Rushing and DOM Frederic gave their wish lists for the Cubs.
The Cubs brought Houston Astros bench coach Joe Espada back for a second interview during his short break between the ALCS and the World Series. Espada has apparently impressed the Cubs, and a job that once looked like David Ross’s to lose might actually end up being won by Espada.
Here’s Cooper Rushing’s (@RushingBaseball) intro to Espada from last week’s edition:
1996 Drafted by A's 45th overall
2006 Marlins Class-A - Hitting Coach
2007 Marlins Class-A-Advanced - Hitting Coach
2008-2009 Marlins Minor League - Infield Coordinator
2010-2013 Marlins - Third Base Coach
2013 Puerto Rico National Team World Baseball Classic - Coach
2014 Marlins Class-A Advanced - Manager
2015 Yankees Front Office - Special Assistant to GM Brian Cashman
2016 Yankees - Infield and Third Base Coach
2016 Gigantes de Carolina (LBPRC Winter Ball) - Manager
2017 Puerto Rico National Team World Baseball Classic - Coach
2018 Astros - Bench Coach
Espada’s long history of versatile roles within the industry has caught the eye of some of the brightest minds in the game. His nearly annual promotions with the Marlins are telling, especially considering he was poached by the Yankees and then again by the Astros.
He is one of the few candidates that has playing experience, managerial experience, MLB clubhouse experience, front office experience, AND is bilingual. Clearly he would be very capable of being a conduit from the front office to the clubhouse and has inside knowledge of how two of the best MLB organizations operate. It also doesn't hurt that he was a coach for Puerto Rico in the 2017 WBC - a team that had Javier Baez on its roster.
Cubs-related Fun Facts:
Espada was the hitting coach for former Cub Chris Coghlan two seasons before he won the NL ROY.
While Espada worked as Marlins third base coach, former Cubs bench coach Brandon Hyde and former Cubs hitting coach John Mallee each occupied their same roles with the Marlins.
Poll results:
Betting pick:
I don’t want to talk about the fact that I was dumb enough to think that the Bears—off a bye week in a must-win game against a team without its two best players—would cover a three-point spread this week. That’s on me. Record: 14-8.
This week’s pick:
Bulls +1 at Charlotte for the opener.
Historical perspective:
Since 1995, the Bears have made the playoffs just five times. They’ve won three playoff games total, two of those coming in the year in which they lost the Super Bowl. The Cubs, once considered one of the worst organizations in all of professional sports, have made the playoffs eight times in that period, winning seven postseason series, without counting Wild Card wins. The Bulls have made the playoffs 14 times and won 17 total playoff series in that time frame. The Blackhawks have made the playoffs 12 times and won 14 playoff series. The Bulls and the Blackhawks each won three championships during those years as well. The Cubs, one. The Bears, none.
This exercise is completely void of nuance, given that it’s much harder to make the playoffs in football and baseball than it is in hockey or basketball. It also is an arbitrary start date, a selfish pick based on the year I was born. And the Bulls should not be given credit now for what they did with Michael Jordan in the latter half of the ‘90s.
But as I sat eating cookies by myself last night trying to make sense of what I had just watched, I realized that my judgement had been clouded based on the Bears 2018 season. The Bears are not a good organization. They’ve regularly failed us miserably, and last year was such a surprise that we all temporarily forgot about it. In the last 25 years, the Bears are the least successful organization in the city. I did not include the White Sox above, because while I do follow them, I did not grow up a fan. They have also been dreadful, but at least a chunk of that can be wiped out by 2005.
The fact is that the Bears have been the least successful franchise in Chicago for a few decades now. Hopefully they right this ship, but if they don’t, it won’t be that far of a departure from the status quo of the last quarter-century.
Make sure to post on this week’s thread. Make sure to tell your friends about the newsletter. Make sure to follow us at @stillgottaChi on Twitter. Thank you for reading as always. Next week’s letter will be the best one yet.