Patrick we've done it the season is here uh what what year is this for you on the beat with the Bears uh my first game of any kind with the Bears was the regular season opener in 2013 so me and Mark Trestman started on the same day wow okay and you are still there uh he is not is this a different beat for you I think you know why I'm asking when it comes to quarterback play is this feel like a bit of a different job for you heading into this season it isn't for a lot of reasons number one is that Caleb Williams is a legitimate American celebrity already you know he is probably the first college player to fully Embrace nil this the guy was doing Dr Pepper commercials two years ago I like to tell people this he had his own bobblehead night at Dodger Stadium there you go that's a celebrity right there and for the Bears to be inheriting kind of a fully formed you know quantity is something very new uh also the excitement level that he has uh that he has created around uh because of his celebrity but also because of what he does on the field um that is very different here and then you know you sit there and Cole KT said it the other day my God you know there are plays where Keenan Allen's the third option and boy that's different than anything the Bears have ever had too you know you combine that with hard knocks you combine that with the extra preseason game this year you combine that with the fact that all eyes are going to be on the number one overall pick in the draft and yeah yeah it's a lot different than you know uh John Fox and Mark Trestman and a lot of Matt naggie tenure here as well you know it's interesting you bring up the bobblehead because when I talk to people around the program at USC and I asked him you know is Caleb Williams misunderstood nationally and they said yes and they said if you look at the kind of teammate he is they used the bobblehead uh at at Chavez rine where he brought his offensive lineman with him when he won a Heisman Trophy he brought his offensive lineman with him I think that those that you talk to closer to the program has worked out more or seemed to be more truthful about who Caleb Williams is nashley than the conversation that was surrounding him yes I think that's true uh Bears players that I have talked to since the day they drafted him have talked about how surprised they were that he was just a normal hardworking football player and you know there's a lot of stuff that's abnormal about him I mean this the guy who was you know taking media training you know in his teens in high school this is the guy who lived on his own in high school so it could be closer to uh to to school um that is a little different but boy the Bears really like him inside these walls and uh boy if he can win some games I think they'll like him even more you know I asked him the other day about Bobblehead Day I'm like just what was that like and he was and I think his answer was it was freaking sick I think was his answer which you know he was a guy who was tickled by not only the gesture that the Dodgers had but you know kind of putting them up uh and put his lineman up is Chavez R insert sarcasm font here how fat and out of shape is Keenan Allen you know he's not and I don't you know I have I have suspicions of kind of how this got started I think part of it was I think there was a typo in the Bears uh weight uh listing at some point this uh during the preseason and I think that that uh um set off this you know dumb little bears Twitter you know conspiracy theory you know I'm not in the business of disproving people who don't know what they're talking about so it's nothing we've really attacked here but I can tell you that I've seen him in practice and he looks like Keenan Allen and you know uh father time may catch up to him uh but I don't think uh anything about his diet or his body shape is going to catch up to him Keenan Allen last year he was second in the NFL in completion percentage in throws under 2 and 1/2 seconds that's a really great stat if you have I don't know an underperforming offensive line would that be your biggest concern for a position group for the Bears at the at the o line offensive line and defensive line yes um you know they need they're happy with the depth on the o line but I think that's something you say when you're not necessarily thrilled with the starting five and uh they need more depth on the defensive line which is I think something you say when you are happy with the starters that you've got the Bears uh need everybody to stay healthy obviously you can make that case for any team in the league but if you look at the different sets of O linan the Bears have' had to use in Matty bro's time here it's in the high teams that's crazy um so just that continuity will help them you know of course you've got Nate Davis and K Jenkins two guys who haven't been known for their durability that's part of the issue here but uh I I think that's that's where I would be the most concerned followed by the fact that you know they've known for you know you know 10 months now that they needed somebody to rush opposite montz sweat and they really haven't found anybody you know they're relying on Demarcus Walker who's a pretty good player and then a lot of just role players behind him you know I wouldn't be surprised that that's something where if the Bears halfway through the season are feeling pretty good about themselves uh that they can move on that at the tread dead deadline if we look back to week one last year the Bears they just looked IL equipped they did not look prepared uh they were they were manhandled by the Packers got off to an 0 and four start have you seen a different training camp this year from e flu have you seen actual changes or have we just watched the roster drastically improve the roster is healthier and I think part of that you know goes back to mat bro and what their training staff has been able to put together uh you know I you know have a pretty good feeling you know as we sit here now that their first injury report which comes out in a couple hours is going to feature nobody who is out that's really good news considering that t Jenkins started last season on ir and that Nate Davis had some personal issues going on that had him uh you know limited and away from the team for the first couple of weeks last year that right there is an improvement uh I think they also are playing a team at home in the Titans who they should beat and that's helpful at this time last year there weren't many teams in the NFL worse than the Bears on paper or otherwise this year that's different and you know you know I don't I hate to make too much out of the opener but if you can't beat the Tennessee Titans at home uh I I you know it may be a long season I think they'll just fine though will Levis had a 58.4% completion percentage last year in the NFL that was worst in the league he was three and six last year any thoughts on how you think the Titans offense may try to attack the Bears defense you know they have you know a new head coach and Brian Callahan and and and Brian's dad bill is their new you know offens or offensive line coach so uh it's going to be different than uh than what will Levis did last year uh if I were them I would uh I I'm not sure I'd throw it's dumb as that sounds when you look at Jaylen Johnson uh on one side and Tyreek Stevenson on the other and Kyler Gordon and his ability to Blitz uh and you know then you combine that with Kevin byard who you know I think is you know has a chance to be the heart and soul of this defense just personality wise and and a healthy jquan brisker and you know brisker is not always healthy uh man that might be the best defensive backfield in football and uh or you know it certainly can be by the middle the season um I wouldn't want to test anybody uh if I were throwing especially if I was Will Levis you know the next week when they see CJ strad I think I'll have a different opinion but will Levis may find himself a little overmatched there yeah Lev's boom robust style last year may certainly open up some opportunities for the Bears he was J C he was Jay Cutler I I thought he was Poor Man's Jay Cutler in college I think he's four man's Jay Cutler in the NFL um and uh that might actually be a little insulting to Jay yeah I I I would agree although Jay probably wishes he had the physique of Phil of will Lis are you on record of a uh of a prediction this year have you done that for the Sun Times yet I have I've got him at nine and eight I think nine and eight with a rookie quarterback playing well would be a massive jump and far more uh uh far more important than just the two win differential between this year and last I think playing in the NFC North the Bears are going to have a really tough go of it especially in the second half of the Season you know presuming that the Packers stay healthy and that the Lions stay healthy um if so I think there's a chance they could go nine and eight finish third in the NFC North and still be a playoff team like that's not out of the realm of possibility uh you know the Packers last year were a playoff team at nine and eight um and if that's what the Bears do and if Caleb keeps showing constant Improvement um I think that this year has a chance to be a very good launching pad for the future um you know I know people who pick them uh to go you know 10 and seven or 11 and six I just got to see it first as you mentioned I've been doing this a long time here and uh I'm not e I'm not quick to jump in with two feet so I'm not going to the Bears make the playoffs if and I'll answer it first I think the Bears can make the playoffs if they can go two and two with the Packers and the Lions now maybe that means that they lose to the Packers twice and they they beat the Lions twice but if they can split inivision in the those matchups with the rest of the schedule with the way it sets up very favorably especially with Sam darnold in Minnesota I think that they can I think they have a chance to get to the playoffs if they go two and two how would you answer that question yeah I think that's a great place to start I'd also tell you that you know they beat up on the Lions pretty good at home last year and they probably should have won the game in Detroit too so the lions are one of those teams that I think they match up well against anyway uh which gives them a chance you could argue that the Bears played the Lions better than anybody until the San Francisco 49ers beat them um you know at least in the second half of last season uh yeah that's a good place to start I think uh they play well if uh their offensive line can stay healthy I know that that's a boring answer but that's I think that's the case I would even argue to you that you know if something happened to Caleb and he had to sit a month the way Justin fields did last year I think Tyson be's in position to to keep things very steady um let's put it this way I don't think Tyson bent would be the worst quarterback in the division if he were the starter right now so um to me me that uh gives me some comfort uh you know you want to see Caleb get better you want to see him get those reps so he can start building that Rolodex but uh to me this is all about offensive line uh Health if they can keep if they're upright they'll be able to keep him U right and uh that'll be good for everybody you think Ryan poles could move Tyson B beun for a pretty decent draft pick maybe but I don't know how that helps them I mean if the NFL has shown us anything in the last two or three years it's that you need a backup quarterback who can start and win you games and uh the Bears kept Tyson and did not add a veteran this offseason because they're convinced that Tyson can start and win them games he went two and two last year as the starter I think he's much better this season I think he's got much better players on his side of the ball than he did last season you know could they get a second or third rounder for maybe if they found the right team but you know if you're trying to win games this year and that's what the Bears are doing he's more valuable on your team uh you know I would hate to have the Raiders third round pick and you know have Austin Reed have to come in and try and win me a game tys you know this is what for decades people wanted the Bears to do that they never did which was uh draft and develop quarterbacks to have some depth and to step in and help the ball club and now that they've done it I would be in no rush to get rid of him at all I think that um I think he's more valuable here than what they could get for him Patrick thanks for your time I I I don't think that the Bears are Super Bowl bound this year I I do think they're on the C of a new era uh and I think that it's all with what's about to happen under Center yeah the word we've been using around here is not a word I've used a lot uh at how Hall and fun it's the word fun they are going to play relevant games uh past Thanksgiving they are going to have an offense that uh does some interesting things and uh all of that'll be uh something we couldn't say about the last couple years Patrick thanks for your time hey thank you