With the Bears starting 0-3, one of the good things that may come out of this, is that ticket prices should be lower; I still need to take my boy to a game this year. I started looking at the Broncos game on Sunday. To my surprise, ticket prices were still pretty high; I’ll wait for now. Then I received a phone call from my brother in law. He was having a birthday party for his son… at the Bears game! Heck yeah we’re in. We headed out early towards the lake on this beautiful Sunday morning.
Yes, this would be the first tailgate experience for both my son and his cousin. We got there at about 10am; it was everything you would imagine it would be. I wonder what my son really felt, walking past the dozens and dozens of cars/trucks with each of their setups. Everybody decked out in Bears gear, although there was a good amount of Broncos fans walking around. That’s cool… I really don’t have anything against the Broncos. My best memory is when they beat the Packers in the Super Bowl; you earn a place in my heart when you do that. When we got to our specific tailgate, it was beautiful. Little grill going with burgers and dogs, jalapeno poppers, some donuts, gatorade for the kids, beers and cigars for the adults; it was a beautiful thing. The boys went to an open space and tossed the football around; we just sat and BS’d. About 30 minutes before kickoff, everything was wrapped up, and we made our way to the stadium. A+ so far.
With the calendar just turning to October, it was a 50/50 chance to get nice weather; we hit the jackpot in that category. It was in the 80s, and when we got to our seats, the sun was beating down on us. We entered through the United Club, which was pretty cool too. Soldier Field was absolutely packed on this Sunday; you couldn’t tell that the Bears were 0-3. This place was just waiting to explode… one way or another. An early punt on 4th and short lead to the first explosion… of boos. When the Broncos scored to go up by a TD, more unhappy fans. But then it happened. The Bears actually looked like they knew what they were doing. 28 unanswered points meant singing Bear Down Chicago Bears 4x and unlimited high fives. With a 21 point lead, this game was in cruise control… or so we thought.
I think the Bears felt the same way coming out for the 2nd half; this game was over. Well, last time I checked, the game is 4 quarters not just 2, and… the Bears are not good enough to have cruise control as an option. Well, as you already know, everything came crashing down little by little. When a Fields fumble was returned for a TD, the game was tied. The Bears still had a chance; they drove down into FG range. On 4th and short, they decided to go for it, but were only trying to get the Broncos to jump; they called a time out. Then, they came back on the field to go for it… wtf!?!?! I’m all about being aggressive, trust me, but at the end of the 4th quarter in a tie game, and you have a chance to kick a FG and take the lead… YOU KICK THE FG!!! They didn’t, and of course, got stuffed… don’t even get me started on THAT play call. The Broncos went right down and kicked a FG. Yet, the Bears STILL had a chance. Fields 2nd mistake of the game, an INT, ended that effort. A 31-28 loss was brutal; seeing this unfold in person, after such an awesome day… really brutal.
I got no words, but we know that’s not true; I have plenty of thoughts. But first off, just happy that we were invited to enjoy the Bears game together with the birthday boy; it was a really memorable experience. With this great day ending in a tough Bears loss, well, there is a lesson to be learned in there somewhere… like how hard it is to be a die-hard fan… having to endure some gut-wrenching losses from time to time… staying positive, looking ahead… I don’t know if I’m talking about the boys, or me…. Bears down…
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