Football

An Offseason Plea: Bigger Than The Game

Tony Martin February 21, 2020 0

I don’t like talking too much about myself in these articles, because really who cares? This isn’t one of those cooking blogs where people tell a 500-word story about themselves and then tells you how to make “authentic” Thai Iced Tea or whatever (it’s not? – ED). With that said, I

Everything Else

The Legacy of Kobe: Nuance and the Black Mamba

Tony Martin January 27, 2020 0

Kobe was a world class athlete, and a rapist. Kobe was one of the greatest basketball players on and off the court, and he was a rapist. Kobe learned foreign languages so he could speak to players on the court in their own languages, and he was also a rapist. Nuance is important, but it […]

Football

Long Journey To The Middle – Chicago Bears Position Review: Team Defense

Tony Martin January 17, 2020 0

AKA #Chuckstrong The Bears dropped from the 1st overall defense in DVOA in 2018 down to 8th in 2019, the first year under Chuck Pagano’s watch. Why is that? Was it the offense constantly trying to get off the field as quickly as possible? Was it the key injuries to certain starters, or the loss […]

Football

Long Journey To The Middle – Chicago Bears Position Review: Special Teams

Tony Martin January 16, 2020 0

Hey, Bears fans! This year sucked major ass from almost every metric that one can find. I’ve been tasked with looking at the trainwreck with special focus on the special teams unit, a task I find immensely interesting and also difficult, because damn how exactly does one quantify special teams outside of “well, they didn’t […]

Football

Long Journey To The Middle – Chicago Bears Position Review: Linebackers (or So Long, and Thanks for All The Lynch)

Tony Martin January 14, 2020 0

For the purposes of this article, I’ll be considering edge rushers as linebackers. Roster/PFF Grade/Stats: Kevin Pierre-Louis (90.5) 27 tackles, 0 sacks Khalil Mack (86.2) 34 tackles, 9 sacks, 4 forced fumbles Nick Kwiatkoski (72.6) 51 tackles, 3 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 1 interception Leonard Floyd (69.8) nice 32 tackles, 3 sacks Danny Trevathan (61.9) […]

Football

The Vault: Bears/Vikings 2018

Tony Martin December 27, 2019 0

Welcome back to the last regular-season edition of THE VAULT, my weekly column dedicated to giving you 700 or so words about a nightmare of games past. For the 4th straight season, the Bears and Vikings will clash on the final week of the NFL’s regular season, and the words I’ve seen being used to […]

Football

Week 16 – Chiefs vs. Bears The Vault: 2011 – The Worst Game of Football Ever Played

Tony Martin December 19, 2019 0

Welcome back to THE VAULT, fellow travelers on the cosmic highway that is Bears fandom. Today I’m gonna torture you by recapping a game that is in my opinion the “Worst Game of Football Ever Played.” Now, I’m not counting those 1930s slug-fests between teams named goofy things like the West Aurora Kings or the […]

Football

The Vault: Bears vs Packers, Smarch 2077

Tony Martin December 12, 2019 0

Welcome back to THE VAULT, where it’s always Week 14 somewhere. While the 2019 Bears have their playoff aspirations dangling by the thinnest of margins, we’re in here living in the past. For those of my dear readers who may not know, I am a high school History/English teacher and I was thinking about having […]

Football

Week #14 – Cowboys vs. Bears The Vault: 1996

Tony Martin December 4, 2019 0

Happy Thursday and welcome back to THE VAULT, my weekly sermon where my pulpit is a Dave Wannstedt-run sideline and my scripture is just whatever relevant pages and boxscores I can find on Pro Football Reference. Today’s Vault is a deep dive into the Monday Night Football tilt between the Bears and a visiting, defending […]

Football

Rapid Recap- Bears 24, Lions 20

Tony Martin November 28, 2019 0

Well, the Bears won. Somehow. Just barely. The local boys escaped Ford Field victorious and are now the least convincing .500 team in the league at 6-6. Are we going to spend another week and a half pretending this win is symbolic of a team finally putting it all together? The offense looked better than […]