Final Word: Chicago Bears have their identity. It has to carry them in a crucial 4-game stretch
The Bears’ identity has been to run the ball and to take the ball away. That will be what the Bears carry into a stretch of pivotal games that decides whether they’ll be in the playoff hunt.
The Bears’ identity has been to run the ball and to take the ball away. That will be what the Bears carry into a stretch of pivotal games that decides whether they’ll be in the playoff hunt.
COLUMN: Notre Dame passes a big USC test, finding the Irish Edge that can carry them to the CFP
Saturday showed Notre Dame has found its preferred style of play that not many teams can match. That’s what Notre Dame is counting on as the Playoffs begin to draw nearer.
Saturday showed Notre Dame has found its preferred style of play that not many teams can match. That’s what Notre Dame is counting on as the Playoffs begin to draw nearer.
Final Word: How beating the Commanders means Ben Johnson got the Bears to consistently believe
That’s two weeks in a row where Ben Johnson’s team has won games the Bears have historically lost. It's because he's gotten a Bears team to consistently believe they can win.
That’s two weeks in a row where Ben Johnson’s team has won games the Bears have historically lost. It's because he's gotten a Bears team to consistently believe they can win.
Don't downplay how the Chicago Bears win, but enjoy they're winning | Telander
My misgivings about kickers aside is that the Bears are learning how to win close games. They’re 3-2, and have won their last two by a total of two points. Can’t get closer than that, Rick Telander writes.
My misgivings about kickers aside is that the Bears are learning how to win close games. They’re 3-2, and have won their last two by a total of two points. Can’t get closer than that, Rick Telander writes.
Finding a reprieve from football - and the world - with a fishing rod | Telander
Since the Bears were off and the world was too much with me, a dear friend and I went fishing in Michigan. Everything was serene. For some reason, I started thinking about Tyrique Stevenson.
Since the Bears were off and the world was too much with me, a dear friend and I went fishing in Michigan. Everything was serene. For some reason, I started thinking about Tyrique Stevenson.
COLUMN: Why Saturday was near-perfect day for a Notre Dame team trying to stay in CFP talks
Perfect college football? That’s an oxymoron. The chaos is what makes the game great. Still, Notre Dame had close to a perfect day as the 3-2 Irish possibly could.
Perfect college football? That’s an oxymoron. The chaos is what makes the game great. Still, Notre Dame had close to a perfect day as the 3-2 Irish possibly could.
COLUMN: How the Chicago Cubs won their first playoff series since 2017 by using their superpower
Pick the moment where the Chicago Cubs found a spark in Thursday's win. Any of those moments were an example of the team's superpower as they won their first series since 2017.
Pick the moment where the Chicago Cubs found a spark in Thursday's win. Any of those moments were an example of the team's superpower as they won their first series since 2017.
A win’s a win, but Bears still have plenty to prove: Telander
A win’s a win, as they say. But the Chicago Bears' 25-24 victory over the Raiders Sunday in Las Vegas had the odor of defeat until, well, abruptly, it didn’t.
A win’s a win, as they say. But the Chicago Bears' 25-24 victory over the Raiders Sunday in Las Vegas had the odor of defeat until, well, abruptly, it didn’t.
Final Word: How a one-score win got a 'monkey off' the Chicago Bears' back in Vegas
A team can only learn how to win by winning games, and it's usually been the other way around for the Bears. Not this time, as Ben Johnson's team dealt Vegas an agonizing loss Bears fans know all too well.
A team can only learn how to win by winning games, and it's usually been the other way around for the Bears. Not this time, as Ben Johnson's team dealt Vegas an agonizing loss Bears fans know all too well.
COLUMN: The most important truth from Northwestern football's squeaked out win vs. UCLA
A few things can be true at the same time about Northwestern's win over UCLA. The most important development was that David Braun's trust in his players wasn't misplaced.
A few things can be true at the same time about Northwestern's win over UCLA. The most important development was that David Braun's trust in his players wasn't misplaced.
Bears’ big win over Cowboys shows money can’t buy Caleb Williams: Telander
Second-year quarterback Caleb Williams lit up Soldier Field in the Bears’ 31-14 rout of the Cowboys, fueling hopes he’s the long-awaited franchise star.
Second-year quarterback Caleb Williams lit up Soldier Field in the Bears’ 31-14 rout of the Cowboys, fueling hopes he’s the long-awaited franchise star.
Final Word: Why Ben Johnson earned his first Chicago Bears win in the most satisfying ways
Just for the first couple of days this week, before the Bears move on to Las Vegas, the team can take solace in how the coach that was hired to make the Bears a winner did so in one of the most satisfying of ways.
Just for the first couple of days this week, before the Bears move on to Las Vegas, the team can take solace in how the coach that was hired to make the Bears a winner did so in one of the most satisfying of ways.
Two games in, the Bears’ big rebuild looks alarmingly familiar: Telander
The Chicago Bears’ disastrous 52-21 loss to the Lions has fans questioning rookie coach Ben Johnson, quarterback Caleb Williams, and a defense that looks hopelessly overmatched.
The Chicago Bears’ disastrous 52-21 loss to the Lions has fans questioning rookie coach Ben Johnson, quarterback Caleb Williams, and a defense that looks hopelessly overmatched.
Final Word: The Chicago Bears will take more time to correct under Ben Johnson than originally thought
Of all the lessons Ben Johnson learned Sunday, it’s that patience is the biggest virtue. He also learned that this Bears’ reclamation project will take time, whether he likes it or not.
Of all the lessons Ben Johnson learned Sunday, it’s that patience is the biggest virtue. He also learned that this Bears’ reclamation project will take time, whether he likes it or not.
The 2025 Notre Dame football season evoked the ghosts of 2016 instead of 2024, and might be over
Saturday’s heartbreaking 41-40 loss to Texas A&M felt like a Notre Dame season of old, but the wrong kind. Think 2016 instead of 2024. Now, dreams for the 2025 team might be unattainable.
Saturday’s heartbreaking 41-40 loss to Texas A&M felt like a Notre Dame season of old, but the wrong kind. Think 2016 instead of 2024. Now, dreams for the 2025 team might be unattainable.
Column: Behind the game off the court the Chicago Sky lost publicly during their season finale
The Chicago Sky lost to the New York Liberty night’s season finale. That was not the game that mattered. The game we saw was a cold war that became public where Sky fans chose a side.
The Chicago Sky lost to the New York Liberty night’s season finale. That was not the game that mattered. The game we saw was a cold war that became public where Sky fans chose a side.
Why Ben Johnson's much-awaited Chicago Bears debut was like a pie in the face | Telander
Watching the Bears' loss to the Vikings was like walking through a bakery, sampling cakes and cookies, then having a shaving-cream pie jammed in your face. What a stone cold bummer.
Watching the Bears' loss to the Vikings was like walking through a bakery, sampling cakes and cookies, then having a shaving-cream pie jammed in your face. What a stone cold bummer.
Final Word: Not even Ben Johnson can escape growing pains with the Chicago Bears in a MNF collapse
It was the same ol’ story, song and dance for the Chicago Bears on Monday night, which was a perfect reminder that not even Ben Johnson can escape the growing pains.
It was the same ol’ story, song and dance for the Chicago Bears on Monday night, which was a perfect reminder that not even Ben Johnson can escape the growing pains.
The Swift and Kelce era shows the power of sports and entertainment colliding: Telander
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship isn’t just about romance, it’s a billion-dollar collision of sports and pop culture that’s reshaping how we view both the NFL and celebrity power.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s relationship isn’t just about romance, it’s a billion-dollar collision of sports and pop culture that’s reshaping how we view both the NFL and celebrity power.
Michigan’s cheating, Northwestern’s hazing, and the business of college football: Telander
Herewith, a snapshot of two football coaches--and, by extension, a look at the wildly-popular, high-pressure, chaotic and financially gigantic world of college football itself. (And dare we say, corrupt world?)
Herewith, a snapshot of two football coaches--and, by extension, a look at the wildly-popular, high-pressure, chaotic and financially gigantic world of college football itself. (And dare we say, corrupt world?)