2014 Chicago Bears Offseason Thread

[rawaction]

6 nationally televised games if you count the Thanksgiving Day game. That the max?

 

No max for national tv. 5 is max for primetime games.

[rawaction]

4 straight primetime games in Green Bay. And I believe the 09 opener was in GB on SNF when Urlacher broke his wrist.

[UMFan83]

Back to back Thursday games is odd.

 

Very odd. I thought there was a rule that teams couldn't play 2 Thursday games in a year. Much less back to back

[jersey cubs fan]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

[UMFan83]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

[jersey cubs fan]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

 

CBS also got both Saturday games in DEC (at the same time).

[rawaction]

Brady and Rodgers have never started a game against each other?

[treebird]

Brady and Rodgers have never started a game against each other?

 

and yet they both have california connections. INTERESTING.

[Guest]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

 

That is no longer the case.

[JonJayCutler]

Weeks 2 through 8 are just brutal, worse than the 2012 HOU/SF/SEA gauntlet. Of course teams change from year to year, but I don't see any of those teams regressing much from last year. Maybe Carolina? Atlanta will be better though. Could easily be staring at 3-5 heading into the bye.

 

BUT... I think if we can somehow make it through Week 10 @ GB at 5-4, we'll be in good shape, as I'd be disappointed with anything less than 5-2 in those final seven.

 

Of course history has shown that predicting outcomes in April is rather pointless, but it's too damn fun.

[jersey cubs fan]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

 

That is no longer the case.

 

Just for Thanksgiving and Saturday??

 

Every other CBS game involves an AFC road team.

[gscool89]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

 

That is no longer the case.

 

Just for Thanksgiving and Saturday??

 

Every other CBS game involves an AFC road team.

Redskins/49ers are on CBS this season as well on a Sunday. There's a new flex thing, I have no clue how it works.

[Mark Priors Calves]

The NFL wanted as many eyeballs on good matchups, so there's exceptions to the conference tie-ins with Fox and CBS. I think it starts this year.

[Soul]

Wow, I didn't know this was going to happen

[RynoRules]

Weeks 2 through 8 are just brutal, worse than the 2012 HOU/SF/SEA gauntlet. Of course teams change from year to year, but I don't see any of those teams regressing much from last year. Maybe Carolina? Atlanta will be better though. Could easily be staring at 3-5 heading into the bye.

 

BUT... I think if we can somehow make it through Week 10 @ GB at 5-4, we'll be in good shape, as I'd be disappointed with anything less than 5-2 in those final seven.

 

Of course history has shown that predicting outcomes in April is rather pointless, but it's too damn fun.

 

If we are 4-4 after the first 8 weeks we should be happy. That's a nasty run.

[Guest]

Bears/Lions is listed as CBS. That is odd, usually TDAy features one AFC team at DET/DAL to play on CBS, right?

 

Yup. Very bizarre that they did this. Perhaps that was one of the reasons there were so many delays. CBS is contractually obligated to feature an AFC team in its broadcast.

 

That is no longer the case.

 

Just for Thanksgiving and Saturday??

 

Every other CBS game involves an AFC road team.

Redskins/49ers are on CBS this season as well on a Sunday. There's a new flex thing, I have no clue how it works.

 

Yep, saw it on Twitter earlier explaining why Lions-Bears is on CBS.

[gscool89]

The Bears open up as 6.5 point favorites against the Bills. (yes, this is a thing already) Edited April 24, 2014 by gscool89

[Soul]

Kind of ridiculous

[Guest]

Weeks 2 through 8 are just brutal, worse than the 2012 HOU/SF/SEA gauntlet. Of course teams change from year to year, but I don't see any of those teams regressing much from last year. Maybe Carolina? Atlanta will be better though. Could easily be staring at 3-5 heading into the bye.

 

BUT... I think if we can somehow make it through Week 10 @ GB at 5-4, we'll be in good shape, as I'd be disappointed with anything less than 5-2 in those final seven.

 

Of course history has shown that predicting outcomes in April is rather pointless, but it's too damn fun.

 

[expletive] that. We'll be better than those teams other than maybe the 49ers. Foxborough always seems tough to win at, though.

[Guest]

Saw this on another board, don't know how true it is, but apparently if Shea is really running a 4.5 40, that would make him one of the fastest LB in the league and the fastest on the team.

 

Bostic 4.61

Greene 4.71

Lance Briggs draft 4.75

 

Urlacher ran a 4.57 at the combine.

[Guest]

Really sucks the 49ers game is a night game. Plus tickets will be super expensive since it's their first game at the new stadium.

[Butterscup1679666578]

The Bears open up as 6.5 point favorites against the Bills. (yes, this is a thing already)

 

this seems like easy money (i'm bad at betting)

[Mark Priors Calves]

Regarding the networks and conference affiliation:

 

If you’re an NFL TV nerd, you know Chicago and Detroit, as NFC teams, should be on FOX if the game’s not a prime-time Thursday, Sunday or Monday game. But the new NFL TV contract calls for the league to be able to move up to seven FOX games to CBS annually, and up to seven games from CBS to FOX for the good of the overall Sunday schedule as the season goes on. One proviso: There must be an equal number of games flexed from one network to the other. Right now, four FOX games are going to CBS, and only two are slated to go from CBS to FOX. So Katz must come up with at least two more to migrate away from CBS.

 

Here’s how it helped this year’s slate: Look at Week 4. CBS was weak in the early 1 p.m. Eastern Time slot with Buffalo-Houston, Tennessee-Indianapolis and Miami-Oakland. Meanwhile, FOX had a gangbuster early schedule: Green Bay-Chicago, Detroit-New York Jets, Tampa Bay-Pittsburgh and Carolina-Baltimore. “We looked at it and said wait a second,” Katz said. “FOX has Green Bay-Chicago at 1, and they could take that game to a lot of places. That’s a huge game. They had two other good games. Then Carolina-Baltimore … Steve Smith playing his old team, a big storyline there. What kind of distribution will Carolina-Baltimore get if it stayed on FOX?” Katz estimated 15 to 18 percent of the country would see that game. “So we crossflexed,” he said. On CBS, Katz believes 40 percent of the country will see Carolina and Baltimore. “That’s better for our fans,” he said. Obviously, the NFC is the stronger conference now, with more attractive teams. It helps the NFL to have more attractive games move from FOX to CBS.

 

Here’s another one: Washington-San Francisco will be the CBS doubleheader game (the late Sunday afternoon national game on CBS) in Week 12. Why? FOX already has a slew of strong games, including Green Bay-Minnesota and Detroit-New England, and the late game would be seen only in home markets because it’s not a FOX doubleheader week. The Washington-San Francisco game might be seen by 70 percent of the country now, instead of 20 percent.

[Banedon]

Well this isn't premature at ALLLLL.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/124472/nfl-nation-how-will-your-team-finish

[jersey cubs fan]

Well this isn't premature at ALLLLL.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/124472/nfl-nation-how-will-your-team-finish

One sub .500 team in the NFC, three 12-4 teams in the AFC West.