No Clever Moniker wrote:
Though loathe to never say never, I think the days of not selling out will be extremely rare in the future. As one who remembers the days of the black-outs (and trying to find someone with a directional antenna to get the South Bend station), the modernized Soldier Field has great football oriented sight lines and amenities. Not only is there enough demand to fill another 10,000 seats but I think Chicago area could actually support a 2nd NFL franchise (though it would need a suitable football venue).
Oh, I don't think the Bears are ever going to be in danger of not selling out. That'll always be taken care of. I'm just saying that the Bears' supposed hegemony over the Chicago sports landscape won't and can't last forever. Wouldn't you agree that Chicago took its foot off the gas with the Bears while Jordan was here? Would you say that the same thing happened to a lesser extent in 2003/2004 when the Cubs seemed to be on the cusp of something special (whoops) while the Bears were in sort of a lull? I mean, there's no shame in it. You can't have the volume at 10 all the time. San Francisco let up on the 49ers when they were in their recent dark age and the Giants were the story, and the 49ers a better franchise than the Bears are.
I think we saw a tiny little backlash against All Bears All The Time when the draft rightfully took a back seat to the Stanley Cup. Then again, Bears fans know that draft day is generally not a red-letter day for this organization. I'll never forget 2007. Woof.
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Molly Lambert wrote:
The future holds the possibility to be great or terrible, and since it has not yet occurred it remains simultaneously both.