They walk up to you, all big-eyed and bushy-tailed, their newly minted Caleb Williams jersey noticeably lacking any mustard stains or the faint smell of stale Old Style. Their face is full of optimism and hope. They have an eager energy about them, as if they may take off and run to their seats in any moment. You know, instantly, this is a brand new fan of the Chicago Bears.
What do you say to them? How do you prepare them to be a fan of the Chicago Bears? What advice would best ready and steady this neophyte Bears fan for the history, the glory, the pain, and the punishment that all comes packed in the baggage of a Chicago Bears fan? Do they need a cold dose of reality? Do you regail them with tales of the blocked field goal against the Packers last year, the Double-Doink, or how about the secondary breakdowns that led to Randall Cob’s 48 yard touchdown to win the NFC North against the Bears, or Daniel Manning forgetting he was supposed to cover in the Miami rain in the 2006 Super Bowl against the Colts? Is the advice, prepare for the pain? Or do you strike a more hopeful, optimistic tone? Perhaps citing the nine NFL titles the Bears have won, second only to the Packers? Or do you regale them with tales of the legendary '85 Bears? Or Lovie’s Tampa 2 defense that dominated with Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs?
So no, I wouldn’t talk about any of that. Not the decades of mediocrity. Not the painful losses. Not the what-could-have-beens. My advice to a new Bears fan would be this: don’t worry about any of that history. Even the good history, although every Bears fan has a right to take pride in this historical franchise. But there is plenty of time for that after the season. Right now, every fan should enjoy the ride, because there is no better time to be a fan of the Chicago Bears since the early 2000s, if not the 1980s.
We have a QB1. We have a well-regarded, young, exciting head coach. We have talent on both sides of the ball. And we’re just getting started on building under Ben Johnson. So dadgummit - ENJOY it. Enjoy the optimism. Enjoy this team pulling itself out of the muck and mire of years of failure to be a young, talented, ready-to-go football team.
This is a young team with a lot of young players at some of the most important positions on the football field. We have a new head coach and a new offense. There are going to be mistakes. We are going to fumble away a game or two we should have won, because of those mistakes. But have trust in what Ben Johnson is building here, and have trust in...