Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Bears stadium location search remains confusing & complex | Take The North

Episode Date: February 21, 2026

From 'Take The North' (subscribe here): The Bears stadium location search saga continues to take twists and turns after Indiana on Thursday moved forward with a bill in hopes of luring the team to Hammond. That drew responses from ... all over the place. Dan Wiederer and Mark Grote have been working the phones and bring you everything they've learned about this ongoing story. Do we still believe Arlington Heights is the front-runner in the race? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Avoiding your unfinished home projects because you're not sure where to start. Thumbtack knows homes, so you don't have to. Don't know the difference between matte paint finish and satin, or what that clunking sound from your dryer is. With Thumbtack, you don't have to be a home pro. You just have to hire one. You can hire top-rated pros, see price estimates, and read reviews, all on the app. Download today.

It's almost President's Day, and this year I've got a winning strategy for saving big. I'm skipping the phony sales and instead scoring everyday low prices on my favorite pieces from Bob's discount furniture. When I shop Bob's, I get more of what I love. More style, more storage, more comfort, more choices, even more years on that precious mattress warranty. All for a fraction of the cost of what you pay at other stores. So this President's Day weekend, stop in or shop online and see how much more you can save when you dare to compare at Bob's. 5 a.m. I'm up with a crisp Celsius energy drink. Running 12 miles today

Grab a green juice, quick change and head to work. Meetings, workshops. One more Celsius, no slowing down. Working late, but obviously still meeting the girls for a little dancing. Celsius. Live, fit, go. Grab a cold, refreshing Celsius at your local retailer or locate now at celsius.com. Bears fans, this is Take the North.

What's the reason? Duck. It's here with your hosts. Oh, these guys. Dan Weiderer. The whole key to sustaining success in this league is, to have a quarterback play that is top tier and can consistently push you down those roads. And Mark Grody. We're allowed to at this point.

Bears fans are allowed to right now dream big and predict what you want out of the season. We're going to take the North and never give it back. Logan, everybody, and welcome in to the Take the North podcast along with my guy, Dan Weeder of the athletic. I am Mark Grody of the score on this very busy day on which we are recording. on Mr. Weedsie, how are you? What do you mean, busy day? What did I miss? Well, I don't know if you saw it or not.

And maybe people are just jumping in and don't have all the deets right now. But amen, Og bog, Bamega has been released by the Chicago Bears. There goes linebacker depth. There goes a special teams guy. There goes a guy who had a couple of nice games during this bear season, Dan. What do you have to say about A. Man, Ogbogbogamiga? Including that one against Pittsburgh, clearly the biggest bear. news of the week. Clearly the biggest

Bears news of the day. I think as the Bears prepare for the new league year, they have cleared a little bit more than $2 million in cap space. That's why our audience is here tonight to understand that the Bears need to make some more moves to bolster the depth on special teams

and linebacker. Yeah, and that's going to do it for Take the North today. Great talk. See out there. Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for listen. Thanks for watching. All that stuff. No, but seriously, we are going to go in depth on the Bears Stadium. situation in this episode. Dan and I.

Yeah, yeah, I know. I don't know if you've been hearing or not, but the Bears have been looking for a new stadium for, well, maybe for longer than three years, but in earnest for the last three years of their collective lives and things are starting to

happen. So that's what we're going to talk about today. I'm looking forward to Dan and I just so people know, as we are recording this here on a Thursday, Dan and I have not spoken to each other about anything of substance. However, Dan and I have both been using, working the phones today. So it's going to be very interesting to see if our sources match and connect and hopefully we'll be able to make this

as simple as possible for people that are listening and watching because we know this is the, this is the stuff, Dan. It's not fun because let's just be honest. I mean, we're getting, we are talking, this is politics and sports mixing together. So it does get a little bit agonizing and get a little bit confusing. It gets muddy. It gets muddy is a really good word to describe. Well, I do want to preemptively apologize for all the different directions I'm going to be looking. So if I lose eye contact with you, it's because I've got like 15 different pages and notes. I've got things in my phone. I've got an index card in front of me that hopefully has some of the key point. So I'm going to have to look at a lot of different directions to make sure we provide

the information that's needed. I'm sure you're like me today where your phone is blowing up from relatives and friends and people trying to get answers as to what's real in this story, what's not real, and how to kind of interpret everything that's happened, both in Indiana, in Illinois, in Lake Forest, and now you've got to try to put all these puzzle pieces together. And so, yeah, there's a lot of different things to keep attached here. That's so funny that you say you have information on all devices and all scratches of paper. I do too, but for the people that are watching right now, what I do in those cases, I consolidate everything under these.

These are poster boards. They're poster boards. I consolidate as much as I can on those boards. And so that's what I've been doing about the last 20 minutes or so. So why don't we get into it here a little bit? Just some of the facts to start off. For people that are really, because I want this particular episode, as with all episodes,

to be as user-friendly as possible and to simplify as much as we can, especially with the things that are true. And that is to start off with the Illinois House Revenue and Finance Committee hearing that was scheduled for Thursday morning. This is Thursdays we're recording, but I'll just use the day so people are not confused. What scheduled for Thursday morning was canceled at the request of the Chicago Bears. And I know in our last episode, you kind of indicated that that might happen, that it's not out of the realm of possibility. The Bears requested a pause to make further tweaks to the proposed legislation that according to a spokesperson for the Illinois governor, J.B. Pritzker. Shortly after the cancellation, the Bears did release a statement.

And this is, Dan, where I will go to my phone. I can't possibly fit everything onto my poster boards. So let me read this statement. And then I'll let you react. And we'll kind of go back and forth on the information that we have. We'll see if it matches up and like I said, we'll try to make this as digestible as possible. The Bears said in a statement, quote, the passage of SB 27 would mark the most meaningful step forward in our stadium planning efforts to date. We are committed to finishing the remaining site-specific necessary due diligence to support our vision to build a world-class stadium near the Wolf Lake area in Hammond, Indiana.

We appreciate the leadership shown by Governor Braun, Speaker Houston, Senator Mishler, and members of the Indiana General Assembly in establishing this critical framework and path forward to deliver a premier venue for all of Chicagoland and a destination for Bears fans and visitors from across the globe. We value our partnership and look forward to continuing to build our working relationship together, closed quote. And this is important, too. Like, there's one more graph of facts here, Dan, and then we'll get to our facts. It's important to know in all of this that an Indiana bill to create a Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority this morning, Thursday morning.

This is the most meaningful thing of the day right here. It really is. Listen up, kids. It pushed out of the Ways and Means Committee, passing, by the way, 24-0. Shut out. Yeah, yeah. That means bipartisan. That means Republicans and Democrats getting along together, which we know in our world is not really a thing. But it means that it is likely to get passed out of the Indiana House. Then it would briefly go back to the Senate for a concurrence vote because there were amendments added today, Thursday, which outlines the structures of what it would take to build the stadium in Northwest Indiana, what the funds would look like, all of the details. of that. So as you said, Dan, extremely important to

know that part of it. That's the development here. That's the development that got everything started. The statement you read from the Chicago Bears is a bit of a flashpoint because it created, I think, the outside reaction. And there has been a lot of outside reaction today. I know your ears are open and your eyes are open to everything that's bounced around the world. A lot of conversations being had about this in ways, in my opinion, and we'll get into this and unpack it in full that have been a little bit exaggerated in terms of what actually happened on Thursday, right? I think there's people that have skipped several steps and interpreted this to mean the bears are going to Indiana.

The bears are moving their stadium to Indiana. No, they are not. As you mentioned, the Indiana House of Representatives Waysing Means Committee has gotten the authority here now to create the North. West Indiana, what is it called, the stadium authority that basically creates the mechanisms and the funding to be able to help the Bears build the stadium in Hammond near Wolf Lake, Indiana, if they so desire. Now, if you want a football analogy, because I feel like that's like almost obligatory, even though I find it a little bit trite, everybody's got to come up with a football analogy.

My personal analogy right now, this is just me, February 19th, Dan Wheaters analogy, Indiana just kicked a field goal on the first possession of overtime. Illinois is about to get the football. So now it's Illinois's chance to respond to everything that's happened in Indiana over a span of months culminating with today's sort of last step in getting that whole thing through the passageway into the point where Governor Mike Braun can rubber stamp that and when their legislative session ends, which is important to note next week at the end of February, February 27th, the Indiana legislative session adjurns for the rest of the year,

the bears have everything they need from Indiana if they choose to go to Indiana. So this is a victory for the bears. They now have cards in their hands that they haven't been able to play before. And now they are playing them. And they are pressuring Illinois to be a little bit more urgent, to be a little bit more receptive to their needs. And now it's Illinois's opportunity to respond to the demands that the bears have been looking for to be able to get the project in Arlington Heights off the ground. Okay.

So that's the next step to see how Illinois responds to that. And by all accounts, that was moving in a very positive direction all the way up through last night and maybe only hit a road bump when the Bears put out that statement that seemed to, what were J.B. Pritzker's words? He said he was surprised, dismayed, and very disappointed to see this statement from the bears that gave off the implication that they were going to Indiana, although they did circle back after that and said, no, no, no, we're not going to Indiana. We just have what we need to go to Indiana if we want to. Does all that makes sense, Grady? It does. It does. And look, we'll,

we have some J.B. Pritzker audio that we will play for you. We got, we got a good three minutes worth. So we will hear from the state, so to speak. So in full breath and full context, all of that. But we are, Dan, we are, our notes are kind of on the same page here, because it's very likely, again, that the Indiana part, it will go, the governor could be signing that bill to build the stadium in Indiana. By the way, yes, officially the Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority. I knew I had that on my scratch notes here somewhere, but we knew, we kind of both knew what it was in the language that it goes to. But it would go to the Indiana governor's just before the end of next week. So, and this is kind of recapping some of what you're saying, but maybe in different words, it does not mean that it's a done deal for,

Illinois and that the bears are moving to Indiana, the bears will not be able to, or the bears, from what I understand, the bears will not be able to commit to Indiana by the end of next week, even if Illinois, if Indiana is saying, yeah, we're good to go. It doesn't mean that all of a sudden the bear sign on the dotted line. It would mean that the bears would commit to doing all of the remaining due diligence for the site and Hammond, Indiana that they're focused on. that will take time from what I understand. The good news for people who are like,

what about the Illinois part of this, that's where they'll have time. There is urgency, but the state of Illinois then has time to put this all together. Illinois has the time right now to get things done in an expedited fashion. And if they don't move quickly, though,

the likelihood is that it would go to Indiana. So while I don't think the bears want, like if they had to flip a coin, If they had to make a choice, I think they want to stay in Illinois. But as I've been reporting for a while now, since I went to the meeting in Arlington Heights, the Indiana portion is real, and you could ask anybody in Arlington Heights about that. No, there's no question. And you articulated that very well.

I think where this gets sort of unsatisfying for the public observer is that, like, look, this is a sports story. And in sports, you usually have a side you root for and a side you root against. And in this case, I don't know that there is obvious rooting interest in what is out there, right? Like you really have three entities at work here. You've got Illinois. You've got Indiana and you've got the Bears. And there's this tug of war going on.

And so it's hard to kind of decipher and filter through all of the chaos, right, that is occurring. And some of this is natural. Like we anticipated this being a little bit messy. I think it can be sort of upsetting when you are trying to filter, you know, this, sort of public posturing and pressure from all these sides from what they actually believe, right? Like there may be two sides sitting in a room, they're talking things out, and then when they get in front of cameras and they need to get their side a little bit more momentum, they say things publicly to the masses that they didn't say to each other in a way to create posturing and

pressure. And I think both the state of Illinois and, you know, the governor and his office and legislatures and the bears themselves have have participated in this sort of this posturing this back and forth and it's part of a high stakes you know uh high scale negotiating process that they've got to go through you brought up the words due diligence very important because the bears are not ready to go commit to building a stadium near wolf lake indiana until they go do all sorts of vetting right and like that vetting process it's going to take a while this is in a in a an area that is going to need its own infrastructure improvements. It's going to need its own viability kind of logistics squared away. You're going to need to look into environmental issues.

This could take months, right? Like it literally could take months. And so when you talk about timelines, Indiana's state government had to get all this stuff done by the end of next week because they're going to be adjourning next week. Okay. They've sort of met their deadline. The next deadline is the Illinois State Legislature, which I think is in session through the end of May. the bears are hopeful they won't take until the end of May to help them get clarity on where their stadium issue is. And so some of this pressure is meant to create urgency on like, let's get our world moving along here. Don't put us on the back burner as you have for at least the last year, if not longer. And so now the timeline really is when do the bears want to have a final decision made?

They don't have, in my opinion, there is no hard and fast clock that says must be done by this date. Now, that said, Kevin Warren is said for multiple years, like time is money. And the longer you delay the start of a project, the more it starts costing you. There's a lot that goes into the timelines here. But just so people understand the various deadlines, Indiana met theirs. Illinois now has one ticking. And the bears have to kind of internally decide where they are with their patience and tolerance for the ebb and flow of all these things. Yeah.

And I got the same vibe that the bears are hesitant. I guess I'll use that word to set a deadline, but they would like the state to act with some urgency, and they have acted with more urgency, but there's more talk than action right now. And there's like a Chicago faction to this, right? Like of people that are still sort of attached to Chicago proper and averse to the idea that the bears will move anywhere outside of Chicago.

Well, that's going to happen. And so like this sort of fight for like, they bears need to be in Chicago. Like that ship is sailed. That's not happening anymore. It's Hammond, Indiana or Irelandton Heights. And so, you know, whatever's happening with people that need to kind of, again, do some political posturing to make their constituents happy, you know, are going to have to decide how long they want to play that out before they get in the ring and play the actual game that's being played at present. Here's another thing we kind of alluded to this idea before.

But it's my understanding that if, let's say, both Illinois and. Indiana come up with what are considered to be fair proposals? Like, where do they go then? Basically, the way, yeah, the way, yeah, maybe we do talk to the same people, then. The way it was put to me specifically is, Brody, they own the land in Arlington Heights.

So, and I was even told that even if it cost a little bit more for the bears to go, and I'm talking a little bit, I don't talk about something gargantuan. They don't want to get ripped off. they would still give the benefit of the doubt to Arlington Heights. And that makes sense to me. Nobody really wants to move out of the state, but if they have to do it, they'll do it. I agree with you on that front.

I don't think the bears are hell-bent on finding the best deal. They're hell-bent on finding a fair deal that works with the plans that they have in mind. In Arlington Heights, again, 326 acres of property that they already own, 326 acres of property that they're ready to build on as soon as they get what they need from the Illinois government. And you and I have talked now for several weeks about the two biggest boxes that you need to check to stay in Illinois. The first one is this mega projects bill that was supposed to have a hearing on Thursday in Springfield. And that got obviously canceled and delayed. And when that starts to get momentum, that's going to give the bears the opportunity to kind of negotiate their tax liability on that property in Arlington nights.

The second thing is the infrastructure promises. And it sounds like in recent days that the state government has been. much more enthusiastic about supporting that part of the project. Estimates out there north of $800 million, like $850, $860 million worth of infrastructure improvements, roads, sewers, utilities, all the things that go along with huge projects. It seems like the state is ready to kind of play that game with them. So that's a big box that you could kind of check in pencil. And now it's can you get this mega-projects legislation moving in a way that gives the Bears'

confidence. And to the bear's point, they're not going to do anything based on your word, right? Like they need things in concrete that says, this is going to get done, this is what it's going to offer us if we start this project. They're not in a position to just take a leap of faith that, you know, your word is good, Illinois state government. You know, they need concrete promise. And if that starts to move in that direction, well, I think Wolf Lake will kind of recede and go to the background. But again, that's in play for the bear. and that they now have everything from the state of Indiana that they would possibly need to make that move. I just thought, and you correct me if I'm wrong on this, there was a lot of stuff flying around social media today,

video reaction, posts, stuff that wasn't founded in reality that was sort of implying and contextualizing this as a done deal. The bears are gone. They're gone from the state of Illinois. And I just, I'm like, man, like it's okay to take a breath and try to understand what's happening before like telling people stuff that's erroneous and that that's just erroneous they're not gone from Illinois there's plenty of time now for a response that response has to come but I don't know there's there were just characterizations that I felt were not congruent with the information that I had which sounds like it marries up with a lot of the information you have it does and I got to the point today where I just stopped I stopped reading listening like watching just because I was like all right I'm going to

be confident and comfortable enough in the information that that I'm getting here. And to your point, Dan, like something that was stressed to me and probably to you too is that the fact that they're doing, as we've now said is for a third time, the due diligence factor that the bears need to do with Indiana before they can, you know, literally, you know, crossing the T's, dotting the eyes, all of that kind of stuff. What was stressed to me is that gives Illinois time. Does it give them, should they, does this give them a chance to like take the week? No. a week off or get lazy with it or anything like no it it does while the bears are doing that they would accept mail they would accept phone call still from from the state of of illinois so yeah that that

definitely marries up um and i did want to throw this out there two little two little timeline things the the illinois house and senate are in session three days next week and then out for a stretch of time for a stretch of weeks here where they're not back until the last half of March. And so that's a timeline element here where I think the Bears would prefer to see some sort of action here before the middle of next week. Otherwise, it kind of goes on pause for a while. Again, we've said several times here. The Indiana session is still in session through the end of next week.

Well, we're going to meet down in the state capital of Indiana at the Combine next week. And I was joking with my colleague, Kevin Fishpani of the Athletic, that like we may have to divert from the convention center where all the football stuff. what is going on to go cross the street and go three blocks over. No joke. No joke, man. But I think what's going to happen down there next week is all sort of just a formality of getting everything that was agreed to today, you know, formally passed. But anyway.

Yeah, and we should point out, too, another important thing in all of this that we're talking about on November 23rd against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Amen on Bogd Mugman. I had 14 combined tackles. Do you remember that game? I do remember. It was a great interview with him at his locker. Yeah, he was a most.

I'm going to miss. H.T. is going to have to find somebody else to fill that role on special teams. Yeah, I'm glad we got back to that because that clearly is. Sorry to get off topic on the stadium. We wanted to get back to the main topic, which is Ogbach-Mabwe. But we gave you guys 20 minutes of free stadium talk. I'm one of those people who will happily eat steak and eggs any time of the day. Breakfast, dinner. It's technically midnight, but I'm still hungry. Doesn't matter. There's just something unbeatable about a good steak hitting a hot pan. That immediate sizzle. The smell filling the kitchen. and then topping it with a fried egg where the yolk is deep yellow and just barely runny. Unreal. Pure protein heaven. That's also why I love having Omaha steaks on hand. The steaks are incredibly tender, super flavorful, and cook evenly, whether I'm searing them on the stove top or throwing them on the grill. It's that steakhouse quality bite at home.

Omaha Steaks has everything from their fan favorite filet mignon. Yes, the USDA certified tender one to burgers, chicken, pork, seafood, and even fully-cooked comfort meals like beef pot roast or meat lovers lasagna. For nights when you still want high protein, but zero effort. Get 50% off the world's best everyday protein. Go to Omaha Steaks.com for 50% off sitewide during their semi-annual sale. And for an extra $35 off, use promo code T-bone at checkout. That's 50% off at Omaha Steaks.com and an extra $35 off with promo code T-bone at checkout.

Terms apply. See site for details. Right now, get up to 20% off select online storage solutions. Put heavy-duty HDX toads to good use protecting what's important to you. solid impact-resistant design prevents cracking, and the clear base and sides make items easy to find, even when the totes are stacked. Find select online shelving and tote storage up to 20% off at the Home Depot to organize every room in your home, from your garage to your attic. Visit Home Depot.com.

How doers get more done. America leads the world in medicine development. It matters. We get new medicines first, nearly three years faster. Five million Americans go to work. because we make medicines here at home. And not relying on other countries keeps us safe. But China is racing to overtake us.

Will we let them or will we choose to stay ahead? When America leads, America Cures. Let's tell Washington to keep us in the lead. Learn how at AmericaCures.com. Pay for it by pharma. I have a little tidbit on the governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker. But why don't we, Dan, unless you object. Why don't we listen to what Governor J.B. Pritzker has had to say about this entire day and updating us on the stadium.

And then we'll react to it. And I'll tell you, give you a little bit of information that I got today in regards to Pritzker's real opinions. If they're not fully expressed here, I will add that. And does that sound good to you, Dan? You ready to hear it from the gov? Representative Weederer concurs. The weed man concurs. All right.

Here is the governor of Illinois, J.B. Pritzker. let me start with the fact that it was a surprise to us. The Bears actually, yesterday, we completed more than three hours my team did of discussions with the Bears. Very positive discussions. And indeed, mostly agreed on a bill that would move forward this morning. But they asked us not to move forward with it this morning because they said they wanted to tweak a little, a couple of items in the bill, which were things that we were working with them on. And so to have a statement put out by the Bears, now they're saying to us that that statement is not some confirmation that they're moving to Indiana, but rather that Indiana had asked them to say that they're going to move forward with the negotiations in Indiana. But I have to say it's very disappointing to hear that they would put that statement out, but not say anything about the advancement that's been made in the state of Illinois. But, you know, we're waiting to hear from the bears what they'd like to do next. Do you feel like this is kind of almost like an auction between the two states? Like, do you think they're playing this or do you think they're really serious cutting in? Look, I've set out some principles for what it is that the state of Illinois should do.

I want to protect the taxpayers of Illinois. I've said from the start we are not going to build a stadium for them. We do infrastructure. There's a lot of infrastructure needs that they would need, both in Indiana. They would need it, but here in Illinois. and also that we need to make sure that we're building into this affordability for people so that they can maybe afford to go to a game or afford to pay for things at the game. We want to make sure that we're protecting the consumers and taxpayers of the state. So those are just some of the principles that I've laid out.

We have made a lot of advancement in that conversation with them. So again, I'm surprised, dismayed, very disappointed. at what I saw in a statement. Again, the bears post that have said, well, we didn't really mean that they're moving to Indiana, which is kind of the implication of it. But it's apparently not true. During yesterday's conversations, I presume,

their attorney for the president, right? No. And in fact, they had their other lead. Warren chose not to be in that meeting. And indeed, they had instead one of their other leads who's been in every conversation with us as well. She's terrific representative for them. And we trust her.

And we had eight people in that discussion involving the legislators, involving the governor's office, involving the bears and their representatives. And so, again, lots of progress, but a surprise this morning to wake up and see that statement. Last question on this. Is this San B, feeling much like a lot of this time? Bears this last season where Illinois just made the fourth forward comeback. I can't tell you what's going to happen in the end here. I've been a Bears fan for a very long time and I wanted them to to perform, stay, play here, continue to believe that that's the best thing for them. I believe they

understand in their hearts that that may be the best thing for them. But, you know, we'll see what it is that they end up doing here. But we were waiting to hear from the bears what they'd like to do next because they've essentially stopped things in their tracks until we hear more. It's Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Dan, I'll let you take the first crack at what you just heard over the last three minutes or so from the governor of Illinois. Oh, I'm glad we listened to that in full. I had listened to it earlier today. Obviously, there's the sentiment where, again, we talked about the statement that the bear has put

out and the governor's public reaction to that may be different than it was privately, but in the minimum, it is a reaction, right? And it is, what is this statement that you're putting out that puts us, kind of paints us in a negative light. And then he paints it as the bears coming back and be like, oh, yeah, I didn't mean. It's like, you know, like when you send a text to one member of your family and they accidentally screen grab it and send it to another member of your family and then you're like, well, I wasn't intended for them.

And then all of a sudden you've got to explain what you really meant. And no, no, I didn't mean that, but I meant this. And I hope everybody's able to come for Christmas. right? Like it just kind of gets a little bit awkward in parts. But like I did think you heard some optimism in Pritzker's voice there and in the idea that like they both both sides plan on circling back with one another to figure out what the next steps of this process are. Yeah. And I get it. So use words like surprised and dismayed and the taxes part is real. The taxes, he mentioned that and what it's going to mean for taxpayers. That is important. I'm

interested in that as well. Yeah, I got something on that in a minute. So don't, don't let me get off this topic. All right. I'll get you to that. Let me just fill in a couple more things. The fact that he said, and we kind of covered this too, he said he's upset about the lack of talk from the bears about the advancement that has been going on with Illinois, the supposedly good communications that have been happening. I'll just say that I think that maybe the reason the bears have not been as, you know, big on what has gone on in Illinois. is what we were just talking about. They want action as opposed to words, right?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then one other thing, and this is, this is something that I was told today through a source that the man from whom you just heard, J.B. Pritzker, apparently is pretty motivated person to get this done in Illinois, in Arlington Heights, but that he is getting more heat, more pushback from the House and the Senate. So for whatever it's worth,

And it comes down to all of those representatives, not the governor telling everybody what's going to happen. But for whatever it's worth, I think the governor wants to get this done. Oh, I've got some thoughts that I can't say on this particular podcast there about the power that a governor could wield if he wanted to be a total. Oh, like if he wanted to be like, I'll do this. If you don't do this, I'll do that. Or just, I'm just going to do what I want and screw all you. But regardless, a couple things. The bears are, I'm coming back to that in one second.

The bears are the rope in this tug of war, right, between Illinois and Indiana. And so they, by the nature of the game, they've got to kind of play to both sides here. The danger in this here now, like I think as we're recording this podcast on Thursday evening, there's like a meeting in Hammond with the mayor, like a press conference where that side now is going to up the pressure on the bears. Right? Like, oh, you just put out the statements. So now we're going to tell everybody, we're going to tell all our constituents that you're coming, right? And now we're going to up the pressure on you to actually come since we've gone through all these lengths to sort of lure you here.

And you have shown interest in being lured. And so now the bears are sort of like in that phase where it's like you've committed to the invite, but you're kind of mean like, I think I'm going to make it. And they're like, no, no, no, we've already told people that you're going to be here. And so now there's that part of pressure that they're going to have to navigate as it goes through that. in terms of this this tax burden that is often brought up but very rarely contextualized like the bears currently are paying more property tax on the vacant land in arlington heights than churchill downs was paying when they were running a racetrack there so this idea that the bears are like trying to broker a deal for themselves that's going to screw taxpayers blows my mind because ultimately

if they get this legislation passed that they're seeking almost certainly that they're certainly they're going to negotiate with the local municipalities and end up paying into the, you know, the taxes there at a rate three times probably what they're paying currently there at a rate more than three times what was being brought in when the horses were running on the track out there and Churchill Downs is paying that. So it's not like they are seeking to avoid paying taxes on Arlington Heights. And I think that gets sort of lost in the conversation sometimes. they're just trying to get a rate that's like closer to 10 million a year than 180 million a year, which is a non-starter to get the project off the ground to begin with.

And so I've just always been kind of blown away by the pushback that's like, oh, they're going to screw us out of property taxes that we need in this area and in this state to do what we need. They're hoping to pay their fair share, and they're likely going to pay three times more than what was being paid there previously. before they own the price. Yeah, I don't think that it's necessarily the taxpayer is getting screwed, but I do think that they want more details on exactly what. And I know that's a complicated exercise. Like how will it literally affect what you are paying for when it's tax time

and all of the little things that go into that? So while there are people who are like, oh, they're going to screw us over, there's no way we're doing. I think people are entitled to be concerned, about that part of it? I mean, it has happened in the state of Illinois and people have gotten screwed before. And I know that's not what the bears are shutting out to do, but let's not act like it won't affect people's pocketbooks. I think the concern is real and understandable. I think that there is an obligation probably from both Illinois and the bears to message this better to

assuage those concerns a little bit. They make people a little bit less anxious about what is, you know, a very popular sentiment now. Like, why am I going to give money to fund these rich billion? owners, right? And there just needs to be a better system in place to explain to people how it will actually impact them and how it won't. Because I think sometimes the fear factor supersedes the reality. And that's where the discussion kind of gets off the rails. And it creates some of the resistance to what has made this very frustrating process for all sides, where this thing is dragged out. Like the bears of, I think we're almost three years to the day beyond the close. beyond the closing of the property?

Is that right? That was this past Saturday or Sunday, one of those two days. Okay. So like that's a long-ass time. And that was, you know, that was almost two years past the point when the bears originally bid on the property. And so this is like almost a half decade old now in terms of this saga. And you're still trying to communicate some of the basic parameters of what you're after

after all that time in a way that allows the people that matter to understand kind of kind of what you after. I did also think it was notable there from Pritzker, just talking about kind of not only protecting the taxpayer, but protecting the consumer and trying to make sure there's language that there's affordability for people that want to go to a Bears game or a concert or a Final Four. They can actually go do that at this new, you know, Megaland that may come into existence if everything ever moves in the right direction. Powerful doesn't just happen. You have to make it happen. So the moment total wireless offers a free Samsung S25FV with Galaxy AI.

When you switch to total 5G or 5G plus unlimited three month plan, you take the network as powerful as you. With unlimited 5G data that won't slow you down. Now that's a total power move. Visit your neighborhood total wireless store. Device taxes and fees may apply. Requires new activation on a total 5G unlimited three month plan or higher. External port in and ID verification.

Available only in total wireless stores. Limited to four devices per account. Hey, this is Richard Deich, the host of the sports media podcast. If you're interested in what's happening with all the places where you can the sports. The sports media podcast has you covered. I've been turning down interviews all week. Hoda Copy reached out, Oprah, George Stephanopoulos. So I said no. I was booked on the Dyche podcast before the Taylor Swift phenomenon. I must live up to my responsibility. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

What's good, y'all. It's Vaughn Miller, Super Bowl MVP, Sagmaster, and now your host of Free Rain. This is where NFL meets real talk. Every week, I'm bringing you inside the game from locker room stories to league-wide headlines. You want football IQ locker room insight and real conversations with the people shaping the league. Welcome to Free Range with Von Miller, where nothing is off limits and every down counts. New episodes every Wednesday. Listen and follow Free Range with me, Von Miller, wherever you get your podcast. Amen, Og, Bog, Baniga.

Again, if you're just tuning in, is no longer a bear. But we can report that the Bears did, as we suspected, promote Jeff King to the assistant GM spot replacing Ian Cunningham, which means to me, Dan, that they'll be trying to usher Jeff King out the door as soon as possible so he can get a job just the way they treated Ian Cunningham. The day he walked in the door, we were hearing about his opportunities around the rest of the league. And God bless Ian Cunningham. He's got a new job at the Falcons GM, as we know.

And God bless Jeff King, who's deserving of this opportunity. he has been with the Bears since 2015. So it's a long time now. What would that make that? 11 seasons now that he's been with the team and joined in the scouting department under then general manager,

Ryan Pace, yeah, way back then and has climbed up through the ranks. He's become a trusted confidant for Ryan Poles. He'll slide over into that chair right next to him. You know, like the similar to the promotion of Press Taylor, it gives you continuity, it gives you somebody that you really trust in that role. And so I think

Jeff is, again, more than worthy of this opportunity. And I think that there will be some knocks on his door if the Bears continue to have the success that they've had recently because he's very well regarded. Obviously, a former player, eight seasons in the league with the Panthers and the Cardinals as a tight end. A little small nugget from my own personal background. When I was covering college basketball on Tobacco Road in ACCC country back in the mid-2000s, Jeff was playing on the Virginia Tech basketball team. And so I covered multiple games of. Jeff King power forward in the ACC. So that's an interesting little footnote all these years later, almost 20 years later.

Wow. Well, I'm always impressed with, especially in football, with employees that are regarded well by multiple regimes. You know what I mean? Like to survive Ryan Pace and then to Ryan Pals. Yeah, they've been through some stuff, right? Like during that time. He knows where the bodies are buried, man.

Right. Yeah. Yeah. There's a handful of those people where you're like, man, I would love. to read your memoir one day, you know, because you've seen a thing or two. And he was, by the way, he was the director of player personnel for the Bears, directly before. It's since 20, 24. So they'll need another one of those.

I would argue that that job might have been even more important than the job he's going to do now as the assistant GM, which is wholly important, which is wholly important, but it really is more just being the pushback guy, the second voice in the room to Ryan Poles, obviously, which is what Keanningham did really well. Right. some reshuffling and we'll kind of get a feel for where that heads. And that'll be another good topic next week for those who speak in Indianapolis, which is, you know, I'm really looking forward to having that time with Brian Poles and Ben Johnson next week and getting kind of caught up on things. By the way, you know, another footnote to this. The Bears have announced their coaching staff, right?

We know the promotion of Press Taylor. We knew Eric Studsville came in to replace Eric B.N. And now you've got Will Lowing as an offensive analyst. And Isaiah Ford comes in as an offensive quality control coach. so now all your pieces are in place and you're ready to go attack the offseason according to are we ready to end this podcast here dan or unless there's anything else here did we do we cover everything we wanted to with the stadium you can well the stadium yes but you missed the uh top 10 list of ahman ogmong bemiga's best special teams tackles during

well shit are we just going to table that for next week i guess yeah you know it's the off season we got to save a little bit let's spread it out let's let's put that in the notebook and we'll get all of that out very soon. Fine. Fine. Fine. I'll wait. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's got to start somewhere and it started with Amen. So we hope you've enjoyed the, this is our episode 449, Amen, Og, Bog, Bamega. We finally, Dan, we've been talking about doing an Amen Ogbog, Bog, Bamega episode. We've been talking about this on and off the podcast for, for two years. Two, three hours. Three days. Let's get out of here. I hope.

you guys have enjoyed this. It's a fluid situation. Some things will change and we will do our best to inform you of what's really going on with the Bears like we always do on the Take the North podcast. And so for Dan Weiderer of the Athletic, by the way, go to the athletic right now. If you want to read about all of this, the in-depth reporting from Dan Weiderer, I believe it was Kevin Fishbane and John Greenberg as well, Dan. Is that right? I didn't give any of the John was a contributor as well. Yeah, we've made some updates to the version that was posted this morning, as you naturally do in situations like this. There's a lot to digest. Yeah, so definitely read what they are writing in the athletic. I know that they are always informed, as you just found out on this podcast. For our executive producer, Adam Stizinski, I am Mark Grody. We'll be talking about this on the score forever, starting on Friday on Rahimi Harris and Grody, right after our guy, one of the

founding fathers, David Haw, from Mali and Hogg. It's a crack at talking about that, which I'll look forward to as well. I am Mark Grody. Thank you so much to everybody for listening and watching the Take That Art podcast. Great talk. See out there. Thank you, everybody. Good, best. Studies show that 100% of everybody in the world wants to curl up indoors and do nothing because it's so darn cold out there.

That's why many people are turning to bompas, whose pillowy plush slippers and warm rino wool socks have been said to be the most comfortable in the history of feet. Bombas products have been found to boost coziness by up to 1 million percent. Okay, enough fake statistics. But could Bomba socks and slippers really be the cure? Go to bombas.com slash audio and use code audio for 20% off your first purchase. That's BOM, BAS.com and use code audio.