Good news Chicago! We finally have Bears games to look forward to (almost) every week for the rest of 2019! The team took the field Thursday night for game one of the Bears preseason against the Panthers. Unfortunately, the Bears lost 13-23, but there were plenty of positive takeaways from the game. For a breakdown on last night’s game and everything Chicago sports, here is your weekly update.
Football – Chicago Bears Games Are Here!
The Chicago Bears played in their first preseason game at home this past Thursday night against the Panthers. While the team ended up losing last night’s game, winning in the preseason isn’t a huge deal. Plus, there were plenty of positive takeaways from last night that show promise for the future. For starters, the Bears rookie running back David Montgomery looked incredible and scored the Bears’ first touchdown of the season with a 7 yard run in the 2nd quarter. Starting quarterback Mitchell Trubisky played very little and only handed the ball off three times. A lot of the starters on both of the offensive and defensive sides of the ball didn’t see any playing time, but this is expected in the preseason. One of the key focal points from last night’s game was the battle between kickers Elliot Fry and Eddy Pineiro. At the end of the first half the Bears were looking at a 43-yard field goal attempt — a distance the team knows all too well — and Elliot Fry put it right up the middle of the uprights. Pineiro was 1-2 on his field goal attempts. He missed his 48-yard attempt but connected from 23 yards later in the game. Of course, if neither Fry or Pineiro pan out, there are plenty of back-up kickers around the league who put up a show last night *cough* Kaare Vedvik in Baltimore *cough*.
The Bears preseason will continue next week with a match-up against the Giants!
Upcoming schedule: Training Camp – thru August 11th | 2nd Preseason Game – August 16th
Baseball – The Cubs & Sox Have Great Weeks
The Chicago Cubs played some impressive baseball at home this past week. After sweeping the Brewers last weekend, the team went 2-1 in their home series against the A’s, which finished off with a 10-1 win at home on Wednesday night. Last night saw the Cubs take on the Reds in Cincinnati, beating them 12-5. It was a good win for a team who recently has been under fire for their performance in every ballpark but Wrigley. It was even reported this week that the team has gone as far to bring their white-colored home jerseys on their road trip. While they can’t wear them in games, they’re hoping they help the team stay hot!
The team will continue their series with the Reds into the weekend. They will follow it up with two more away series next week in Philly and Pittsburgh. We certainly hope the home jersey magic continues to work like it did last night! The team won’t be back in Wrigleyville till the 20th.
The Cubs aren’t the only Chicago baseball team to have a good start to August. While the second half of the MLB regular season hasn’t been kind to this team, they managed to pick up 5 wins this past week. Interestingly enough, the team only had 4 wins for the entire second half prior to last night. It’s a good thing the White Sox are back on the right track, and while there’s still no chance we make the playoffs, we weren’t trying to tank THAT hard.
The White Sox will head into the weekend with a home series against the A’s that begins Friday night. The team will begin next week hosting the Astros on Monday!
The Sox also announced their inaugural beer fest, set to hit Guaranteed Rate Field on September 14. Check in with UrbanMatter for ticket information and more details!
Upcoming schedules: CHC @ CIN – 8/9-8/11, @ PHI – 8/13-8/15 | CWS vs OAK – 8/9-8/11, vs HOU – 8/12-8/14
Basketball – Dwayne Wade Mentors Coby White
While the NBA manages to have one of the most followed off-seasons in all of professional sports, this time of year is quiet, especially with FIBA World Cup coming up. Luckily, we have more Bulls news for you than we did last week!
Chicago native and former Chicago Bull Dwayne Wade hosted his mentoring camp, “The Invitational” for the second straight year. Wade’s purpose for this camp is to help young NBA players develop their talents both on and off the court, with important wisdom on his knowledge of the game, finances, and lifestyle as a high profile professional athlete. White undoubtedly took full advantage of this camp as a rookie in the league.
Other news involving the rookie point guard this week involves reports that he is choosing between Adidas and Jordan brand for a shoe deal. It’s always great news to hear when big brands are interested in young rookies. We can’t wait to see the kicks that come out of it!
Upcoming schedule: 1st Preseason Game – 10/7 vs MIL
Hockey – The Blackhawks Are Primetime Television
This past week it was announced that the Chicago Blackhawks are an NBC exclusive. While this won’t impact how the team plays at all, a league-high 12 Blackhawk games will be nationally televised on NBCSN this season. It may not be the biggest news in the world, but it shows there’s still enough talent to bring in an audience. Plus, after the strong off-season the team has had, it’s likely they’ll be back in the playoffs after missing it the past two years.
Upcoming Schedule: 1st Preseason Game – September 6th
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Featured Image Credit: Chicago Bears