Today, the matriarch of the NFL and the Chicago Bears, Virginia McCaskey passed away at the age of 102. While not involved in the day to day operation of the team, she was the the largest shareholder of the team. Unlike every other ownership group in the league (except the Steelers’ Rooney Family), the McCaskey’s major source of cash flow is the Bears. Yes, that is a considerable amount of money, but with all of the McCaskey relatives and those of her late brother Muggs Halas whose side of the family lost the ownership fight when George “Papa Bear” Halas died, there are a lot of people’s incomes dependent on the fortunes of e football team.
This put the Bears in a unique position; unlike the other owners who were billionaires due to other holding that generate plenty of money to live on, the McCaskeys could not afford to treat the Bears like a sideline. (Perhaps the Rooney’s invested their money better than the McCaskeys did – their chief asset remains the Steelers.) Of course, the team is in the middle of trying to build a new stadium, which would have to be financed largely by taxpayer funds. While the Bears are the most popular franchise in town, it has always been an excellent political strategy to deny funds until there is no other choice.
Let me express my sincerest condolences to the family – I met her once or twice when I was an Andy Frain Chief Usher in charge of the Press Box and making sure that Mr. Halas was comfortable on his way to and from his box. She was quiet, but she spoke and seemed nice to me. However, as I have written many times here, theownership of the team may change in the nastiest family fight since the show “Succession.” Virginia’s son George is the chairman of the board and he has the reputation of being a non-football man and a not very good businessman. He will take over the ownership most likely but now, the future gets murky.
In my experience, often younger family members bristle at the lack of control they have over their own finances. Imagine having a situation where most of your income fluctuates? One year, you get, say $1 million; the next year $500,000, the year after $2 million., and you have no control over this. I’m certain there are probably grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and great-great-grandchildren who think they could generate a higher return than what the senior citizens have been able to earn.
The Bears are estimated to be worth a little over $2 billion; however, there isn’t any liquidity – unless they sell a portion of the team. They would have to put up around $1 billion at least to secure matching public funding. How do they turn that into cash? It is almost a guarantee that a sportsbook will be trying to buy its way into any new stadium and that is certainly a source of revenue, but it’s not going to be enough to finance the team’s portion, and I have a feeling that any investment such as this would have to include a percentage ownership in the team. This would be opposed if Virginia was still alive, but this is a brand-new day. The NFL probably won’t let them take out a huge loan to get the money since the loan deal is split among the other teams, so, in effect, there could be a chance, distant but a vhance that the rest of the league could be liable under the Bear debt.
That said, there is a line around the city of Chicago of billionaires who would pay anything to own the Bears. Flagship franchise; the biggest team in the third largest market in the country; membership in the most exclusive club in the country; constant media coverage. I would guess that the Bears would garne a $3 billion sale price just for the name and stature of the Bears.
It’s sad, but the Bears may now be in play.

I admit to being shocked. First by the stunning beatdown that the Washington Commanders gave to the top NFC seed Detroit Lions Saturday, which feed up the top head coaching candidate, Offensive Coordinator Ben Johnson. As the top candidate now that Mike Vrabel wert back “home” to coach New England, where he played and won three Super Bowls, there are six teams with head coaching vacancies and Johnson’s name was on or at the top of every list.
Of course, the Bears need a Head Coach and it was said that Johnson was at the top of their list, but with obvious issues – bad ownership, potential strife between GM Ryan Poles and Team President Kevin Warren, years of bad football and a rabid fan base, I was thinking that Johnson would take a pass on Chicago. Too close to Detroit who the Bears play twice per year, all of the negatives. Of course, there are a few positives: decent personnel on defense and receiver, and the jewel: last year’s number 1 overall pick Caleb Williams who showed flashes of greatness but a deficient offensive line and poor coaching limited his development.
However, this afternoon, less than 24 hours after the final Divisional Playoff game ended, it was reported by many sources that the Bears were finalizing a deal with Johnson. Considering that the Bears seemed to have every unemployed head coach and many coordinators lined up to interview for the position, I am amazed that a front office known for slow, conservative, action actually moved this fast. Johnson is already reportedly talking about have an all star set of coaches on his staff. This costs money. This would really mean for the McCaskeys would have to step out of the way of Warren, Poles, Johnson, or some subset of the three.
Of course, I am happy that the Bears got the number one coaching candidate. It could be a true new direction for the Chicago Bears. I certainly hope that this works out better than the last time the team made a big surprise like this was when they traded for a quarterback named Jay Cutler, and we all know how that worked out.

I know that I am old. I have never heard of many of the albums other music critics are listing on their articles. I have very few new bands, my picks are generally old favorites of mine. Those of you who have been following my missives will find a lot of the same people. You’ll find no Taylor Swift, no Beyonce. Not that I don’t like them, I’m just not into their music. So, here’s an old guy’s list…
10 Wilco – Hot Sun Cool Shroud EP: just when I thought I’d have a year without a Wilco record on the list, they released an EP this month. Once again, if you love Wilco like I do, it is a nice collection of sounds country-songs with the requisite hard noise. It was a nice Christmas present from Mr. Tweedy and the boys.
9. Green Day – ‘Saviors’: released very early in the year, this record did have me listening all year, especially without any monster singles for me to get tired of. Not exactly breaking new ground, but it was tuneful enough.
8. Vampire Weekend – Only God Was Above Us: this band’s first record in several years is less the frat boy romp that the earlier records were with a little more grown up ambition.
7. Sleater-Kinney – Little Rope: some bands I was on board from the beginning, others it takes a while for me to catch up with their music. About three records ago, I “discovered” this band (I had heard them just didn’t enter my consciousness. After that, I went back and purchased all o their records. The new one was completed in the aftermath of Carrie Bronstein’s mother and stepfather deadly car crash. The songs written after the tragedy are ruminations on grief but with guitars.
6. :Smashing Pumpkins – Aghori Mhori Mei: Chicago rock radio had been playing this record a good portion of the year, so I was well aware of this record. Once again, William Corrigan continues to try and reignite the band’s 1980s hey day. A decent attempt, but it still looks backward instead of forging into the future.
5. Elvis Costello and T-Bone Burnett – The Coward Brothers: Back in the 1980s Costello and Burnett toured together and released a couple of songs as The Coward Brothers. The pair reunited for a podcast series and 20 song CD. I admit that country is one of my least favorite genres and so, one of my least favorite Costello albums, often produced by Burnett. However, this is not as country as previous efforts and was more palatable to me.
5. David Gilmour – Luck and Strange: my love of Pink Floyd music has extended to their lead guitarist. Not as controversial as his former bandmate Roger Waters, these songs are a calm, peaceful record. At times, it was too laid back – more Sominex than rock and roll record, but the melodies did make their way into my head.
4. Pearl Jam – Dark Matter: some people really hate this band, but I have been a fan from the beginning. Now there have been some less successful records, but I liked this record much more than their other recent releases.
3. Decemberists, The – As It Ever Was, So It Will Be Again: another tuneful record from this band who I was a late convert. The old-fashioned melodies and instrumentation remains compelling (at least to me).
2. Richard Thompson -Ship to Shore: another strong Celtic flavored collection of songs that once again hit RT’s usual topics, time, love, betrayal, existential dread and romantic disappointment This is perhaps the gloomiest and most dour of his recent releases. Long may he rock.
1. The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World: speaking of gloom, orchestral angst, it must have been the general vibe that the world needed the first new Cure record in 16 years. A look at mortality and doubt, driven in part by the death of singer/songwriter Robert Smith’s older brother, it shows that this band can still provide a tuneful perspective on the turmoil filled world we live in.

This has been a marvelous year in the NFL., and with more time on my hands, I have watched a great deal of it. Even games between two bad teams are usually close with an exciting ending. There are four trends that I have noticed this season that I would like to comment on: two player issues and two issues that have changed the game (but not the stupid onside kick rule).
I want to start with quarterback, In the past, a newly drafted QB was evaluated very quickly. No matter whether that start from the first game of the season, are brought inn midseason, or sits the first year out to learn, in my opinion, a rookie only received about 8-10 games to be given the opportunity to show what he’s got. Some take the league by storm like C.<. Stroud or Jayden Daniels this season. The rest either become backups or busts without given the young player a fair chance or, more important, realizing that they needed to be in the right situation. My cases in point: Sam Darnold in Minnesota and Baker Mayfield in Tampa. I was never a fan of Darnold. He just never impressed me. He had a big arm, but hetook too many chances with the football and threw too many interceptions. Being drafted with the number 3 pick in the first round of the 2018 Draft, we should have known that it was going to be a disaster since he was drafted by the New York Jets, one of the most dysfunctional franchises in the league (and still is). He spent time with Carolina, nearly as dysfunctional sa the Jets, and then backup last season for the 49ers. The Vikings signed him to a one year, $10 million contract with the expectation that he would compete with the team’s number one pick in theis year’s draft, J.J. McCarthy from Michigan. McCarthy suffered a season ending injury in the preseason and suddenly, Darnold is listed as QB1. On the basis of that alone, many pundits picked the Vikings to finish last in the NFC Central, but instead, Darnold has been one of the most effective QBs in the league, currently 4th in the league in Passer Rating, and the Vikings are now 12-2 and perhaps a better bet towin the division than the injured Lions. One could say that having Darnold has much better offensive talent than the Jets or Panthers: pustin Jefferson, the best receiver in the league, Jordan Addison who is a bright star in the making, and Aaron Jones, Sr. at running back helps (and football is a team sport; the defense has been very good), Scheme is also so important. Head Coach Kevin O’Connell is a great offensive mind who has placed Darnold in a excellent scheme. So, the Vikings have a decision to make – pay Darnold like a top QB and have McCarthy sitting on the bench; or go “all in” on McCarthy, a rookie coming off a serious injury. Either way, Sam Darnold is now a hot commodity. Such a decision does not await the Tampa Bay Buccaneers – they have found their quarterback, former overall number one pick in the same 2018 Draft, Baker Mayfield. Unfortunately, Mayfield was drafted by a a franchise just as mismanaged and snake-bitten as the Jets – the Cleveland Browns. At first, Mayfield showed flashes of brilliance including a couple of playoff appearances, but when the Browns ownership signed Deshaun Watson, Myfield asked to be traded. He was traded – to Carolina and was a teammate of… Sam Darnold. Mayfield was eventually released and was signed by the Rams. With starter Matthew Stafford injured, Mayfield started five games for the Rams and showed a lot of the talent and fire like he displayed at Texas Tech. He was signed to a $4 million deal with Tampa Bay and Mayfield came into his own – leading the Bucs to an unexpected playoff appearance. So far this season, the Buccaneers currently lead the NFC South and have beaten powerhouses – the Lions, Commanders and the Eagles. Now he’s signed a three year extension for around $100 million. I have always liked Mayfield – brash, a little cocky, but not obnoxious. I enjoyed his commercials he made while with the Browns. They showed a sense of humor about him. But I applaud these two men who have been able to find their way back to the top in the NFL

As a life long fan of the NFL, there was a very sad trend in the league for the past several years – the almost complete devaluation of the running back. Running backs were the so-stars on teams behind the quarterbacks. The Hall of Fame running back list is long and prestigious: Jim Brown, Walter Payton, Emmett Smith, Earl Campbell, Eric Dickerson, Barry Sandrs, Dale Sayers and so many more. Over the past few years however, it seemed like no one placed value on running backs anymore. They were looked upon a replacablle parts – run them behind athe offensive line and if they get hurt, replace them with another back.
The old fan in me hated the way running backs were used and not paid – treated like spark plugs. Then something happened – teams were making the plyoffs behind great running backs. First was Derrick Hemry, a throwback to the big punishing runners like John Riggins and Larry Czonka. However, Henry has the speed to outrun the defense making him truly a threat for a touchdown every time he touched the ball. Agruably, no player was affected more by the depreciation of the position than Saquon Barkley. An All-American at Penn State, he forged a terrific career with the Giants, and Barkley wanted to be paid like a star. It seems tha every year there was a sticky negotiations between Barkley and the Giants. They didn’t want to pay Barkley, so he left and signed with the Philadelphia Eagles. As of now, Barkley is the NFL’s rushing leader, bringing stability and another powerful weapon to the Eagles.
It’s not just these two men. Other runners like Josh Jacobs, Kyton Williams, Bijian Robinson, Aaron Jones, and Joe Mixon are discussed for their importance on the field and to winning teams. Hsvimg grpwn up watching Sayers and Payton, I’m glad to see running backs in esteem again!

While the running back position has become important again, the kicking game is very strange. Today’s kickers are attempting and making 50+-yard field goals at a 70% rate. Field goals over 50 yards were rare. The NFL record for longest field goal by Tom Dempsey of the Eagles was 53yards for decades. Today, kickers are making 56, 57 yard kicks like they are nothing.
However, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. First, in order to kick a football that far, it has to leave the kickers foot at a very small angle – too much energy in height pays in length. With these balls sailing barely over the linemen’s heads (and the fact that many linemen are now 6’5” and taller or have unbelievable vertical leaps) long kicks are easier to block. More problematic is that while kickers are making longer field goals, shorter field goals and even extra points are no longer gimmes. There have been kickers this season who had a better success percentage from beyond 50-yrds than less than even 40 yards. Friend and astute sports watcher Tony Swanagan wrote “ kickers still feel the pressure. To some degree, they feel it more than in past generations, when coaches frequently figured that any kick beyond PAT distance was a crapshoot.” Sounds right to me.
Finally, I just find it interesting how much more coaches are going for it on 4th down. “Conventional wisdom” had always been to only go for it generally inside the opponent’s 40-yard-line. Now, not only are adventurous coaches like the Lions’ Head Coach Dan Campbell going for it on their side of the 40, but sometimes even deeper in their own zone.
I wonder how long these trends will last.

This was a harder exercise than in most years – I didn’t see as many films as in previous years, despite the fact that I did attend Toronto this year. Then again, I did see a few films that didn’t deserve being ranked. This year may be a bit more controversial than in previous years, and, if it weren’t for 2023 lauded movies that did not open to theaters in January, this may have been a best 8,…
10. Joker: Folie a Deux – after the billion dollar earning first film, there was no way that the studio weren’t want a sequel, and director Todd Phillips and star Joaquin Phoenix complied with the contract. Adding Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, the result was an anti-comic, comic movie – no fights, musical numbers that were in Joker or Harley’s minds, tis film was even more of a character study than the first one. Many critics have said that Phillipa was giving a big middle finger to the audience, but I think they were wrong – they gave the middle finger to the studio, and even killed off Phoenix’s Joker at the end. I appreciated the audacity of it.
9. Megalopolis – people were split by this film, a decades long dream project from the iconic Francis Ford Coppola. Some were reluctantly positive; many others felt that the film sucked. I appreciate Coppola pushing the outside of the envelope, especially with Twixt (rereleased and renamed B’Twixt Now and Sunrise) which was a very bad film. Megalopolis on the other hand had more ideas than running time – stuffed with a mashup of Ancient Rome and Futuristic New York City, the story of a battle for the future of “new Rome” between ambitious and brilliant city planner and artist (played by the always great Adam Driver) and Mayor Franklin Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito, also consistently excellent). As I said, this is not a crowd film, it is an artistic vision – a film to be watched and rewatched and discussed. Most of the naysayers were looking for another Godfather or Apocalypse Now. The master has moved past that now.
8. Deadpool and Wolverine – a comic book film for adults with the always foulmouthed Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) teaming up with Wolverine who “died” in the fine Logan film from 2017. Besides the broad comedy, this film expands on the idea of multiple universes where people who have disappeared or died return. Not exactly a Marvel movie, but it expands on the concepts introduced in the second Doctor Strange movie and take the final step in bringing the X[Men ins together the X-Men universe into the MCU (now that the House of Mouse has gobbled up Twentieth Century Fox). I am not a Deadpool fan in the comics, but I do find Reynolds’ take on the character and movies very funny.
7. Quisling: The Final Days – I always seem to end up at TIFF with at least one nazi/World War II Drama or documentary and 2024 was no exception. However, this is a very different WW2 film, it is the story of Norway at the end of the war after five years of occupation. The Nazis installed Vidkun Quisling as head of state and he instituted cruelties like his German masters. Quisling is about to go on trial for treason, but the authorities send in a novice priest to try and get him to confess, repent of his sins before the obvious end of the trial. Gard B. Eidswold plays the title character with episodes of pride, fear of death, and stubbornness to never give the captors what they want. A fascinating film.
6. The Fire Inside – a film I saw at TIFF that is opening Christmas Day in U.S. theaters. This is a true-life sports story but from a woman’s perspective. It the tale of Claressa Shields, who has held many titles in women’s professional boxing and mixed martial arts. Her story begins in the blighted city of Flint, Michigan as she sneaks into a local gym, where the owner, Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry, probably best known for his appearances in the American Godzilla movies and Bullet Train) takes her under his wing. Ryan Destiny plays Ms. Shields as a driven young woman facing all of the issues about being a young black female (boys, school) along with the difficulties of poverty (funds for training, drug addict mother). The film builds up to her appearance in the Olympic Games.Written by Oscar Award winner Barry Jenkins, and directed by Rachel Morrison, best known as a cinematographer for films like Fruitvale Station, Black Panther and Mudbound, for which she was the first woman ever nominated for an Academy Award in Cinematography. This is a very good film that tackles the cliches but doesn’t feel like you’ve completely seen it all before.
5. Dune, Part 2 – the second part of Denis Villeneuve’s marvelous vision of Frank Herbert’s iconic novel. It is difficult to determine whether Timothee Shalomet is playing Paul Atreides as an confident messiah, a youngster becoming a man, or a vapid nonentity. Villeneuve has expressed his vision to show Atreides as eventually a villain. It is an immersive worldbuilding experience. I wonder if the director will direct the next part which shows the downfall of the messiah.
4. Furiosa: A Mad Max Story – I have loved all of the Mad Max films and an origin story of the heroine played by Charlise Theron in Mad Max: Fury Road. Anya Taylor-Joy plays te future varrior who is trying to get back to her home. Chris Helmsworth (Thor films) takes the opportunity to join the Australian franchise as another over-the-top villain trying to capture the Wastelands. While not as strong story-wise as some of the other films, it is still a wonder of vehicular mayhem.
3. Conclave – I wanted to see this film from the time I first heard about it because the film was directed by German Edward Berger who directed the excellent “All Quiet on the Western Front,” the Winner of 4 Oscars including Best International Feature Film. I saw it at TIFF two years ago and I loved it. A very different film, a mystery without a murder; the Pope is dead and Cardinal Lawrence (the always excellent Ralph Fiennes) is charged to organize and lead the conclave of cardinals who will vote on the next Pope. Candidates come to the fore and there are different front runners as the proceedings drag on. It is a beautiful looking film although the “mystery” as to the next Pope will be is not as shocking today as it would have been decades before.
2. American Fiction – as I alluded to earlier in this piece, my top 2 picks are films that premiered on the festival circuit in 2023, but since they were not released in theaters until after the start of the year (when I saw them), and I didn’t list them last year, they are fair game. First is American Fiction, a hilarious satire written and directed by Cord Jefferson from the book written by Pulitzer Prise Winniner Percival Everett (“James”). Jeffrey Wright take an unusual lead turn as Thelonious “Monk” Ellison, an African-America author whose books are not stereotypical stories of the Black urban male experience. Upset at the attention that books about gang leaders and thugs sell, he writes a parody of the genre including creating a false identity of the author. Very funny with a sincere hope that Mr. Wright gets more starring roles to go along with his supporting appearances.
1. Origin – directed by the superb Ava DuVernay (“Selma”), this is the story of Isabel Wilkerson (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor) who had been an investigative journalist looking to branch out into books. Eventually, she travels around the world to tell how chaste systems have been used against African-Americans and how the racism perpetuated on Black people for 400 years in America was appropriated by the Nazi in the build up to the Final Solution, and going further back to the system in India. It is entertaining with a story about the people in the writer’s life, and thoughtprovoking. My best film of the year.
With an asterisk – at TIFF, I saw a very dark comedy called Riff Raff about a retired criminal whose past comes back to haunt him on New Year;s Eve. With a cast that includes Jennifer Coolidge, Gabrielle Union, and legends Ed Harris and Bill Murray, this would have easily been in my top two, but as of this writing, there is no release date in America. Worth finding when it comes out.
So that’s it folks for another year. I plan on making it to Toronto again in 2025 and I very much look forward to Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu released at Christmas. Hopefully, I’ll see you at the movies!