Kevin Fishbain shares keys to Bears-Panthers matchup

0:00Kevin Fishman, Bears B. Ryder for the Athletic. He brought back the same group that was, you know, 25th in the league and pressure percentage or whatever it was in the bottom third. So, but I do think that barring some kind of surprising name and again, we know Ryan Poles will look at everything. Kevin Fishman talking Bears. Maddie Rufus, George Mckasky, Ryan Poles, Kevin Fishman. I'm Chicago Sports Radio, 1043, the score. It is Rahimi and Grody on a football Friday on 1043, the score bears and Panthers noon in Carolina on Sunday. Absolutely cannot wait. We love that Kevin Fishman is back with us for yet another season here on the score. Fishy Business is the senior writer at the Athletic covering the Bears. What's going on, Kevin? How are you, man? Thanks for being back with us. How many bears this morning, Grody? Oh my God. I'm feeling that the vibe is 10 bears right now. I can't help myself.

1:00I'm probably getting out of control. Will you settle for 10? Is that okay? I think that's plenty. Listen, listen, they're starting the season in Charlotte against the Panthers. So it's, you know, it might be, you know, the number of bears might be a little limited. This isn't like, you know, week one at home against Green Bay. That's true. So it's a good way to temper things to, you know, to pace yourself when it comes to the number of bears. Yeah, that's fair. They did beat Carolina a couple of years ago, very convincingly. I think it was an anti-dolton start then. There was the bad playoff game in 2005. There was the Eddie Jackson game in 2017. Anyway, Fishy, I loved that you asked Press Taylor, the Bears Offense Coordinator, in the press conference about the Bears very first drive. Not just because I'm interested in the first drive. I'm so interested in what the Bears Offense looks like in the first game early on in the

2:00season as we head to the next level, supposedly the next level of Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams. What are you thinking about that and what is your take on the Bears Offense early in the season or just for this first game against the Carolina Panthers? You know, I'm always fascinated by the opening drive of a game and part of it is having covered this team for so long. You think of how many times we've watched the opening drive of the game and it just sputters. And I just like always step back and remind yourself, like these coaches and players spend all week preparing for this moment for this opening drive. Last year's greatest offence was they went, like they didn't score in their first drive, the final nine games of the season. So I'm just fascinated by the philosophies of it, especially when it's the first game of the season. I thought Press Taylor was pretty interesting where he says they do all the self-scouting in the spring and they might throw some plays out, really reinvest in some things that they think they do well. And then they start game playing for Carolina and they go, wait a second, that play we

3:02threw out, we actually might want that play because it might work against Carolina's defense. So there's this kind of push and pull and then ultimately on Sunday, we'll see. And I did a little research to see how often the Bears of Scored in their opening drive in the last 25 years, only nine times. But that's actually tied for the most in the division. So everyone just can relax that first drive because it's not, it's just an opening drive. However, Grody, I also, my research told me, five of the six times the Bears have won the division this century, they scored on their first drive of the season. So think about that. Heavy, heavy, heavy right there. Mine blowing. That is a nugget, ladies and gentlemen. We have Kevin Fishbane on our segment with Kevin is brought to you by Advent. Breathe well, live better. Visit AdventNose.com. And Kevin, I do think that the importance of the opening drive is that the Bears collectively as you know, want to breathe easier as a team.

4:03They negated the need last year with all of their comeback wins to be able to score on the opening drive and have that mean something. But now when you consider even like what we saw, for example, yesterday in the Rams and Niners game, there's always, there's always an example to be drawn. There's always understanding to be had just playing with that lead that they want to play with and having that cushion. I think it is pretty crucial to the plan at least initially this season. Yeah, it's going to help everything because if they can let a Montess, Wadden Austin, Booker, a diode, Dane Boat, just pin their ears back early in the season, just to build confidence for a group that is obviously going to be under a lot of scrutiny this season. So anything you do to make it easier for those guys, you've got a secondary that's going to have a couple of guys who we never really heard of until training camp or the draft who are going to be starting makes it easier for them too. If the panthers are going to be early in the game, put into pass first situations where the pressure is going to be on Bryce Young.

5:04So you know, it's, I do think like obviously everybody wants to score early and get that lead early. But I think you're right. The way this Bears team is constructed right now, anything that this offense can do to help the defense. Again, we have to get used to that. This is the new era of Bears football where for decades it was, what can the defense do to help help out this very mediocre offense? Once now, the strength is on the offensive side of the ball and that offense is going to need to do things to make things a little bit easier for the D. And Kevin, I'm glad you started talking with diode, Dane Boat, for example, pinning his ears back or whoever on the defensive line that may be. I don't agree with Ben Johnson's philosophy in that your sac should come when you've got the lead and you're trying to ensure a stop. I think they should, they should happen at any time in a game. I think they should be able to happen when you need to stop early if you want to. It shouldn't always be thought of as a luxury item once you have an offensive lead. I think that's working inside out rather than being aggressive.

6:05Yeah, you're, it's so much of it is game flow, so much of it is the way that Dennis Allen is going to scheme things up. And of course, these guys got to win their one-on-ones. These guys have to show everybody that they are more comfortable in Dennis Allen scheme and they are going to be able to improve off last year. Look at that defensive line is it's going to be so under the magnifying glass because of course, like that was the position we talked about all off season and you know, when the starters go out there, Kentavia Street is going to be the only new guy on Sunday. And that's not somebody who was signed down a $50 million deal either. Credit to him for going out and winning that job and playing well in the summer. But it's not like he comes in here without question marks. So look, anything that group can do early, it's just going to build a lot of confidence that if they can get after the quarterback early and just because like those guys have said to, like they've heard everything, right? Like that they know how much skepticism everybody has about their ability to rush the passers.

7:10They know how much criticism their GM has gotten for not adding a big time pass rusher this off season. So, you know, there's a chip on their shoulders and you know, now they have the opportunity to prove themselves because this is it. Like these are the guys. Maybe come trade deadline. Does Polstik is swing at somebody? We'll see. You know, if the defensive line's not playing up to what they're hoping for. But right now, you know, the organization said we're counting on you guys to be better than you were last year and to be healthier than you were last year. And now is there a chance to prove it? This segment with Kevin Fishbane is brought to you by four seasons heating, air conditioning, plumbing, sewer and electric for all the right reasons called 8664 seasons. It's a Rahimi and Grote on 1043, the score and fishbane. I think you asked about Malik Mahambad as well yesterday. What are you expecting from him? Is he really going to get a full boat of snaps at one of the corner positions on Sunday? It's a great question, Mark. Like, I mean, I would expect him to start at the nickel just because that's what we've

8:10seen most of the summer. Now, if the bears are really comfortable with Xavier Woods as a starting safety, does that mean Camel Lewis gets thrown back into that conversation? Because, remember, Camel Lewis was playing as a number one nickel until Kobe Bryant got hurt. They feel better. Is the Lewis at nickel Woods' safety combination better than Mahambad at nickel? Are they going to rotate? I actually, I wonder now that you kind of bring it up, Grote, is a rotation a good idea because that kind of can allow Mahambad to ease his way in or do you want him to get in a rhythm and not have to worry about coming out every two or three series. So that's going to be a fascinating element on Sunday and really this first month or two as the bears settle in. Like, again, I keep talking about how different this thing looks. Like, on April 1st, no bears fan except for the draft nicks had heard of Malik Mahambad, right? And certainly nobody had thought about Xavier Woods being part of the secondary. And here we are now. And those guys along with Camel Lewis could be playing some pretty major roles.

9:14And it's been a conversation topic this week that if Mahambad is in there, the panthers are obviously going to target him. The guy is competitive, he is physical. I think he's got a really good skill set. But this is tough, right? This is a good position. It's the NFL. They're going to attack him. And I think it's going to be, he's got that short memory that you always hear cornerbacks talk about. And that's going to be a huge thing for them then. And then it goes all the way back to that past rush, right? Because that past rush is going to make things easier for Mahambad. It's going to make things easier for Xavier Woods for those guys. And then the other thing too is like, Jalen Johnson and Tyrick Stevens and had really strong summers. And that also can help make things easier for everybody else. If those two guys are locking down, opposing receivers, the way they were in training camp, that can make a big impact. Well, and again, I think Kevin, you're talking about, how are they viewing this? Are they viewing this as a defense that they think is going to get stops at the light

10:15and a scrimmage or do they think that the secondary is going to have to force coverage sex? And that's part of the construction. I also want to point out, you keep track of pass, pass reps and I think snap counts. Yeah. So that's something that you're always doing on a daily basis, a game basis. I'm wondering, we talked about this earlier in our previous segment, what it's going to be not just for the secondary, but the entire defense. This might be a surprisingly even snap count for everybody who we've mentioned on the line. Are the linebackers getting a rotate in and out? How is that going to all work? We might see something very well distributed. I think back to that Rams playoff game. That was a Dennis Allen masterpiece. He put together an incredible game plan and there was a lot of guys moving in and out of the lineup. I remember like, I think I lost track. I couldn't continue to track snap counts alive for the defense because there was so many moving parts and it was really confusing staffer in the Rams and obviously the weather

11:17was on the bare side to give them the ability to do that. So, certainly D.A. is capable of putting that together and keeping these guys fresh and keep them moving. But lay it to your point, I'm very curious to see what a Jordan Vanderburg snap count looks like in his first NFL game. Do we see a more base defense with Demarco Jackson in it, linebacker? How much rotate is going to go on on defense? Is diode dang going to play more end or more tackle? And how are they going to rotate those guys? Is it a jammery chroma? Get some reps. It's one of the last guys to make the roster after a really strong summer. So, yeah, that will be a really good tell of what these defensive coaches think of what they've got to see who's the one. You want your Montez sweats to be playing the most of that defensive line and that's going to be a big thing. You want sweat to be playing a high percentage of snaps. You want him to be, have the most opportunities to make an impact play because he's your guy

12:18up there. Mr. Fishbane, will you do the honor of telling us who is going to win this game on Sunday and if you have a score and if you have a why, we would love that as well. So Grotee, I actually picked the Panthers and part of the reason is I collect the picks for the weekly mail band that everyone reads Friday morning is at the athletic and everybody sent me their picks and they all pick bears. We can't all pick the bears. Three point. This is for week one. Don't let somebody else tell you what to do. You're taking the hit. No, this sounds like Kevin. This is a door philosophy. That's fine. Yeah. I had it. I wrote it. I'll own it. I'm panthers 29, bears 26. Okay. I mean, like, you know, I'm no idea. Week one is crazy. The Raiders beat the Patriots in a week one last year. It's just weird things happen.

13:18So and I'm also curious about the humidity factor and just how the bears, you know, how ready they're going to be for that. Yeah. To be playing in Charlotte in September is going to be in the low 90s out there. But yeah, I, I, I, I, I'm okay with, you know, being on an island, but is it anything going to happen in week one? Nothing would surprise me. I guess the only thing would surprise me if the bears like, you know, lose 21 to 3 or something. I expect the bears to put up a lot of points this year. Good for you. Good for you. Good for you. I mean, it's not easy to pick against the bears in the world in which we live and the critiques that in the criticisms that all come our way. So I think that's a ballsy move by you. You will have to deal with Dustin Rhodes. I don't know if you've been here and him. He's basically even threatening. I'm just going to say it. Bullying and threatening anybody who thinks they might pick Caroline. Like, he went after Gabriel Mirrors. I'm a threat to pick Caroline and to win the game as well. So just steer clear of Kevin or of Dustin Rhodes.

14:20Okay. I'm just warning you. Good to know. Panthers got a good offensive line. Really good front seven on defense. They gave the Rams a run for money in the playoffs last year. It's a road game. Week one. My other fun fact of the week, guys, this is the 15th week one road game for the bears in the past 44 years. Okay. And only the second time they've been favored on the road in week one. And do you have the other penny chance? What was the other? I do. And this is going to lead to a lot of bears here, Grotey. You know, on the other time, 2006, my friend. Oh, we all know what happened that year. Well, well, well. Oh, that is great. Maybe the Packers 26, nothing and then went on to the Super Bowl. Oh, my God. Yes, they did. You know what, Kevin, just for that, you just got yourself 8.5 bears for the segment that you have performed. There you go. Bears. So the numbers and histories on the bear side here. I love it. You're not talking he comes before you go because.

15:21I'm a little nervous. Cubs, they still play. Is it very season? Okay. When you've been talking about the high and something. I don't know. I saw his pen it and it just reminded me. I don't have a lot of my mind today. I don't have my. Yeah, it's coming up here. I mean, 1984 World Series, the Cubs, by the way, were not in the 1984 World Series. Oh, he just found some of the reveal. I don't see. I don't need that childhood trauma back in my brain. Steve Garvey in the San Diego Padres. Kevin get out of here. Go home. See you later, buddy. All right, PCA for MVP. Bye, Kevin. Hot take. Bye guys. Kevin Fishbane, senior writer at the athletic covering the bears. Host of the breaking in with Kevin Fishbane, a Chicago sports media podcast. Actually, just a sports media podcast. He goes beyond. Follow that man. If you're new to Kevin Fishbane, follow him now because you get all those good nuggets for him at KF Fishbane. And on Instagram too, at Kevin Fishbane. We return. How about Drew Breeze giving it vice to bears quarterback Caleb Williams?

16:23We will explain next on Rahimi and Grody on a football Friday. I want to four three of the score.