Socking Dingers at Wrigley, Kyle Long Co-Signs QB1, Raiders Spending Bonanza, and Other Bears Bullets – bleachernation.com

This looks like one of those days where everyone is going to put up their out of office messages at 2 p.m. and I wouldnt blame ANYONE.

A nice reminder that theres no fun like fun at the ol ballpark:

Heres the thing about Justin Fields hitting monster dongs onto Waveland Avenue: Its freaking awesome. The Bears have a fun quarterback. And that is so sweet!

Heres some free money for the NFL: Play a Bears-Packers game at Wrigley Field. Just one. Make it a special occasion. Call it a throwback game. Just dont make them wear hideous throwbacks or leather helmets. What will be lost in ticket sales will be made up by TV ratings and brands shelling out crazy money for advertising in the game. Youre welcome, NFL.

There was no denying that this Bears franchise was needing new energy coming into this season. And sometimes, it takes outside-of-the-box thinking to get to that place. To that end, I would say that using one of the teams OTA days for a team-building activity at the best baseball stadium in the country is a creative way to bring guys together. Kudos to Head Coach Matt Eberflus, who said he had been planning this date for a while. Good thinking, coach.

Now, once the Cubs season is over, I fully expect the North Side Nine to play some flag football at Soldier Field. Or perhaps they can play at the Arlington Park property the Bears are purchasing. Good luck defending Jason Heywards 6-5, 240-pound frame in the slot. That guy pretty much catches everything and has the Gold Gloves to prove it.

With that being said, I dont want to take too many targets away from Darnell Mooney, who is on the cusp of WR1 status:

If you have the ability to exercise just a hint of patience, the payoff could be spectacular. Yet another way-too-early NFL mock draft has the Bears connected to Ohio State wide receiver prospect Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who Mark Schofield has going eighth overallto Chicago. For some perspective, the Falcons had the eighth pick in the 2022 NFL Draft and chose USC receiver Drake London. Atlanta made London the first receiver off the board in this class, which gives us an idea of what the Bears could be looking at value-wise when it comes to the pick. Also? Lets keep in mind that the Falcons went 7-10 en route to getting the No. 8 pick. In other words, we could be in for some turbulence in the year to come. But the juice could be worth the squeeze.

Kyle Long a former Bears standout with a baseball background gave his stamp of approval for Chicagos QB1:

While offensive linemen are on our mind, Brad Biggs (Tribune) reminds us that this game of musical chairs the Bears are playing in the trenches is part of an open competition ahead of the season to come. Were far too familiar around here with coaches saying there will be open competitions, but not actually going through with them. And I think the Bears suffered with complacency in some areas. So, with that being said, Im digging the willingness to give everyone a fair shot at winning a role on the team. Even still I have my concerns about Teven Jenkins a second-round pick last year who many were projecting to be a first-rounder possibly falling out of favor. Then again, if he is as good as we think he can be, hell show it in practice and on the field.

As if the receiver market wasnt already bananas, the Las Vegas Raiders gave Hunter Renfrow (not the Brewers OF with a similar name), a two-year extension featuring $21 million in guarantees and is worth up to $32 million. A nice chunk of change for a seventh-round pick who grew into a Pro Bowl talent. Its been a wild offseason for the Raiders, who have a new coach and GM, brought in a new star receiver, poached some Bears along the way, and spent gobs of money in the process:

All this spending and the Raiders might be the third best team in that division? And thats no knocking the Raiders. That figures to be a good ball club next year. Its just that the Chiefs, Chargers, and Broncos will make that division hard to escape from with double-digit wins.

Some good perspective to keep in mind:

Ex-Bear in the CFL alert:

And here come the interviews:

Notcool, dude:

What a wild one in South Bend:

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Socking Dingers at Wrigley, Kyle Long Co-Signs QB1, Raiders Spending Bonanza, and Other Bears Bullets - bleachernation.com