Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Can Bears overhaul their defensive line like they did their offensive line last year? (Hour 4)

Episode Date: February 25, 2026

In the final hour, Leila Rahimi and Marshall Harris wondered if the Bears can overhaul their defensive line this offseason as well as they did their offensive line in 2025. After that, they explained how Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong got real about the weight of expectations in an interview with Chicago Magazine.

This hour is brought to you by Menards. Save big money at Menards. Some people like Chris Emma. That's the open. That's the entire open for Chris Emma from the Combine. Marshall's baritone makes me laugh. And so did that. This is Rahimi Harrison Grotie on 1043 The Score.

Let's go live to the Combine in Indianapolis. He joins us on Twitch. Twitch.tv slash the score Chicago. Chris Emma. How are you? What's up? How are we doing? We got obsessed with the Ben Johnson no cough, sound bite, laugh, noise from yesterday.

And then that's where Grody took it. It devolved into also using it to other words. So I'm wondering how that happens. That was Grody doing the Ben Johnson no doing the phrase some people like Chris Emma. That's right. Yeah, I enjoyed Ben loosening up a little bit yesterday. He was so locked in during the push for the playoffs. and ultimately getting there in January.

And he just, he was so focused and intense. Every time he stepped up to the podium, it was just, you felt that. So he came here to Indianapolis, feeling loose and feeling like himself again. Chris, we want to start with the breaking news that just happened that was reported. Brad Biggs reporting it earlier this afternoon. Tremaine Edmund's been given permission to seek a trade. What can you tell us about this info? Yeah, not surprised by that at all.

We heard from Ryan polls yesterday talking. He was asked about four different players who are cap casualty candidates. And Tremaine Emmons, DeAndre Swift, Colquette, DJ Moore, all in different circumstances here. He loosely committed to D.Andre Swift, along with Cole Commet, being back on this team, asked specifically about DJ Moore, along with Tremant, said, we got to see different options. And the term he used was the best combination of players, which is obviously referencing the salary cap. And they got to make a decision. I think it's been pretty clear that they intend to release Tremend.

Edmonds if they don't trade him, but this is a last resort. And ultimately, the league doesn't bluff on this. The league understands that he's going to be available in the next couple weeks, and you can sign him as a free agent. So it's probably an earnest attempt to see if Tremaine can find a suitor and if the Bears will be speaking to teams as well. But I think ultimately this will end with a release. And we know that it's a big deal that the linebacker situation is going to be one in

question between now and start a training camp because obviously with what happened with the injury to T.J. Edwards and now Tremaine Edmonds isn't going to be there. It seems like a complete reset at the linebacker position. But similarly, they've got things they need to figure out on that defensive line. What have you been able to, I guess, kind of understand from their perspective about how they're approaching, making that defensive line better? Yeah, my theory or idea has been pretty loosely that you can just replicate what you did on the offensive line to the defensive line and bring in three, four, five

new guys who really bolster that group. And I know all the talk has been about Max Krosby and Miles Garrett and all the superstar feature Hall of Fame names, but they need quantity just as much as those top tier guys. And I asked Ryan Poles about this idea yesterday. You're going to hear from Ryan Poles along with Ben Johnson

about their plan and their vision for the defensive line. So starting with Ryan Poles, can you overhaul this group the way you did with the offensive line? Yeah, I think it's always possible. Things got to come together. That mindset was there from the day I walked in. But those opportunities, the clarity that we needed wasn't all there. So we were able to capitalize on some cool situations there through trade and for agency.

I'm not sure how that's all going to line up now. I know from a cap perspective, we probably don't have enough to make all of that work on the defensive line. I do think on our D-line, I think there are some situations, mostly injury, that didn't allow that to really come together. we're supposed to. So I look forward to that happening, but we're also going to have to continue to bring challenge and then to create competition so that our defense can take the next step. Yeah, motor relentlessness, violence, explosive. And then I just want to continue to improve our defensive speed. I think we saw that a little bit, Green Bay and some of the games on the stretch.

I want to improve our defensive speed overall. So those are some of the factors. Yeah, well, we're still going through that process right now, just free agency, there's some guys out there that we feel like could help us out. We certainly feel good about some of the guys that we currently have in the building, that they'll continue to ascend and take the coaching that

DA and the defensive staff are providing for them. But, you know, for us to take the next step as a defense, we do need to pressure the quarterback and the more consistent clip. And so that is a point of emphasis for us. I do think this draft does have some guys that could possibly help us out in that regard. But that'll be something that we got to look at, and it will be a

point of emphasis when we come back in the springtime, just how do we increase our get-off to where we can put more pressure on the queue? Yeah, we just need good football players all across the board. And so as far as I'm concerned, I don't mind so much if that's the interior rush, oh, sure, we'll take it. If that's the guy that's on the edge fits the bill, sure, we'll take that as well. But I'm not going to pigeonhole us in a saying that we have to build this roster. Ryan's not going to do the same thing either.

We just want to find some really good football players that love to play the game, that love to compete, that want to win football games, and we'll figure it out from there. I love the fact that they seem to be aligned, if nothing else. I mean, why would they not be?

But I am very much concerned about this idea that they can just go and not just through the draft, but free agency figure out how to replace the defensive line and that they're depending on players who are hurt right now. Yeah. That's the biggest issue.

Yeah. And one of my key takeaways was Poles kind of shocked back at my idea of needing to overhaul this group, saying, and he said this in a later session of, well, Austin Booker wasn't fully healthy last season. Let him be the guy you saw late in the season. And obviously, the unfortunate step back with Diobo. And you were just dealing with injuries across the board there where they weren't really able to form that group.

And Poles was like, basically, look, what we tried to be. build this thing the last couple of years and thought we had that core in place and the entries were really the big setback. So what you're understanding now is that they're trusting this group is going to really come together if healthy, but obviously they need reinforcements too. And they did not get enough off the edge. Montes Sweat needs a proper tandem. You need big run stuffing defensive tackles.

And you need guys who can defend the run, who can bull rush right through the A gap and create pressure that way. You need those guys all the way through this defensive line because defense, forced turnovers. You have a talented secondary. You've got a linebacking group you believe can play to Dennis Allen's style. But the lack of a rush and the lack of a defensive line stability really came back to hurt this team. Well, and that's why when Marshall and I looked at each other with an expression, Chris,

when we heard you say possibly five people, you know, in that unit, I don't know how they get from point A to B. I mean, is it drafting nothing but defensive players? You know, like what's the likelihood of that happening knowing the left tackle is still somewhat of a concern, as we heard Ben Johnson say. You know, each of the last two years, the Super Bowl champion, the Seahawks and the Eagles, both won in large part because of dominant defensive fronts and defenses that were able to create pressure, especially on the biggest stage, getting after Drake May, getting after Patrick Mahomes, his last two Super Bowls.

Neither of those teams had a player in double-digit sacks. They didn't have that Max Crosby, that Miles Garrett or that T.J. Watt, that dominant player off the edge who just racks up the sack totals. The Seahawks were led by two players with seven and a half sacks, I believe. was the Eagles had a leader with eight sacks the year before. So the idea is they had quantity. They had so many different guys, both interior and edge who can get after you. They had five, six different guys.

They had a dominant rotation where you weren't relying on one player to get home, though the way the bears have relied on Montes-Swed far too often. These teams, these Super Bowl champions are the last two, have had those guys deep in the rotation. You can just keep running them out. And late in the fourth quarter, when the other team's tired, These guys are fresh because you've got that proper rotation to keep rushing and to keep creating pressure. And that's how you tire these teams out. That's how you win defensively and play that kind of proper complimentary football that the bears have been lacking.

So that's the mold. And I know it's exciting to thank you about a Max Cross if you're something like that. And if you can pull off that trade, by all means, if it makes sense, go ahead. But you need quantity as well. And that's what's been missing for this group. Okay. Chris Emmett joining us from the Combine in Indianapolis. Of course, he reports on the Bears here for 104, 3, the score.

I understand you talk to some prospects today, Chris. Yeah, you start to think about that pick number 25. And it's not the most exciting term, but best player available is probably what you're looking at. Maybe it's a tackle. Maybe it's something else followed you. But this draft is deep with defensive linemen, and that works out beautifully for the Bears in this case. So there's a few different guys who really caught my attention. I talked to two of them.

We're going to start with a defensive tackle who really is intriguing to me. That's Katie McDonald out of Ohio State. Three sacks last season, 65 tackles. This is an active player to the football. He's constantly getting to the ball. Disrupted player in the running game. This is somebody who really does bullies through offensive lines. If you follow Mel Kuiper Jr., he's got Kada McDonald mocked to the Bears in this spot.

The comp from NFL network is DJ Reeder for a Kada McDonald. Here's some Kada McDonald. Get to know this young prospect. You know, on early downs, I can stop the running on third downs. I can push the pocket. I'm a complete player. I'll say my preparation. I believe I'm the best defensive tackle in this draft class.

I really pride myself on being consistent, you know, competitive, holding my teammates accountable. And I put it all together, you know, working on my diet, and just staying consistent, really, just doing what I got to do. I'll say my power, you know, having violent hands. I'm that guy I'm strong in the middle. You know, my high school coach said being awarded, daddy being that guy in the middle, stopping everything, being disruptive on all downs.

This is what I, like I said, I've been playing this game since I was four years old, and this is what I want to do. And, like, I want to surround myself around good people and just do good things for my team and just win Super Bowls. Yes, I'll say I model my game around physical detackles that are, like, strong in the middle. I really don't have a specific player, just guys that know how to penetrate, be game changers. saying looking at the personnel down in distance and you know I'm that type of guy I know I welcome double teams I command double teams and I'm going to free up the linebackers and whoever team decides to get me that's what you're going to get kate macdonald using my favorite term violent

anybody describing themselves as violent on defense I'm good with that and then a new term that hadn't added to my lexicon war daddy in the middle I thought that you were going to say that was your favorite no I just I need I need more violence from my defensive line than what was offered to me last year watching Bears games. How about that? Agreed? I mean, look, we've been talking for years now, but there's trying to find that dominant defensive tackle, and they've got some good, but not enough great.

Like, Dervon Dexter has been a good player, but he's not been that consistently great player. They hope they were getting. They've been looking at this for years, a free agency and the draft. And so you sit here with pick number 25, and King of McDonald might be that option for you there. Like, sign me up for that.

When you hear the Ward Daddy, that violin, and it'd be that dominant disruptive, presence. Like, this is a difference maker for that entire defensive front potentially. So an intriguing player to watch as you look toward pick number 25 there. We're talking to Chris Emma, our Bears reporter, who is live at the Combine right now in Indianapolis here in Rahimi Harrison Grotia on 1043, The Score. Chris is also on Twitch, if you want to see the scene. That is twitch.tv.tv slash the score Chicago. Now, we know that other defensive line prospects spoke today as well. What can you tell us

about some of the other names that you saw? Well, you heard Ben Johnson say, like, you just want talented football players. It doesn't matter defensive tackle, edge rusher. You just want those disrupted players that play with violence and with speed, and you can make a disruptive difference in a defense. And one of those players who's popped throughout his entire college career, an option potentially I picked number 25 is Cassius Hall and Edge Rushner out of Texas A&M. 11 and a half sacks last season, nine and a half two years ago.

They come for him from NFL Network is Will McDonald. This is a guy who did it at the highest level of college football and helping his team to that playoff. You saw how dominant that Texas A&M defense looked throughout the course of the season. Cassius Howe was a key part of that. So another guy will see if he's there for the Bears at 25, but there's a lot to like about him. Let's get to know him. Here's Cassius Howell. You know, I got it's going to come in and work every day be the same guy, every day, bring the same motor, the same energy, the same effort.

You know, I feel like I know I hold my hat on, you know, treating every drill, every play, every practice, every rep as it's my last, and I put forth my full effort, so I feel like that's what they would get for me. I feel like my best strength will be, you know, obviously my pass rushability, and along with that would be, you know, my motor and my effort on play and play out. A high motor guy, high intensity guy, you know, I try to play with as much violence and as, you know, as controlled as I possibly can. Yes, sir, you know, after, you know, just being kind of under-recruited, you know, I just always had an inclination within, you know, just the back of my mind and within my conscience that, you know, I could, you know, do this and play at the high level and I'm just blessed to be in this position to be able to have put forth that

talents this year. See, these guys know the importance of violence. That's core to me when you're talking about defense and you're trying to make the quarterback or really anyone fear for their lives when they face up against you. One of my favorite parts about these press conferences too. You know, these guys are trying to make an impression. The NFL combat, they've been training for to meet with teams, but also to meet with the media. And the very polite way they talk about trying to destroy somebody in front of them. love hearing that from Defensive Live. Yes, sir, I want to be violent.

I want to just get, I want to be a war. Like, it's great. And you get to know these players, and you get a preview of what's happening in these meetings when these teams, like the Bears do meet formally with these prospects. And I think it's 18 minutes you get with these guys. And you get a sense of the makeup of these players and the personality starts to come out from some of them. Others are more reserved.

And you hear from some of these players who just aren't really comfortable being themselves in this kind of setting. But one player I got to talk to, I don't unfortunately have audio for this is Zion Young out of Missouri, who is just a character. And you really get a sense of this guy is bubbling with personality, but is also ready to beat your teeth in if you're an offensive lineman. And he's a raw prospect, but he's somebody with a ton of potential for the NFL. I wish I could get some audio from him. But he was really impressive. Yeah, just the takeaways from him.

And then also, you know, I know he spoke about being Luther Burden's teammate at Missouri, too. So that seemed like a good connection there. Yeah, and you get a reference from Luther Burden. If you're Ryan Poles and you're exploring Zion Young for pig number 25A, this draft really sets up just beautifully for the Bears. And you talk about the term best player available and matching your needs with the talent and the board. The Bears are going to get a very talented player who falls to them at 25,

who happens to fit a spot on this roster that they're trying to fill. So this is a great situation to be in it. Obviously, you want to be picking at the bottom of the draft. want to be doing that year after year. And for my perspective, it's nice not sitting here saying, what are they going to do with the number one pick? Do they need this quarterback? Are they going to trade down to the top 10?

You're sitting there at the bottom of the draft feeling really good about your position long term. And this draft sets up favorably to keep reloading the cupboards. He is, Chris, Emma. He is the Bears reporter for 104-3, the score. And he is on with us from Indianapolis side of the NFL Combine, where we're trying to figure out what are the Bears going to do at number 25? but Chris, as you illustrated, hey, it's good if you're looking for defensive help up front

because line, edge, whatever, this is a deep draft class. I'm curious, what do you think that the Bears might be looking for if not that or left tackle at 25? Is there another position you could even envision them taking at 25? Maybe. Probably not. I would bet pretty strongly on the idea of it being a detackle and edge rush or an offensive tackle. I think it just sets up

the way this draft is going to fall to them at 25 and what they have with those needs. At this point I'd be surprised if it wasn't that, but you never know. Weird things happen in the draft, so I think it's a great situation for the Bears to be in. And now, if you want to turn it to Free Agency in a couple weeks

too, when you talk about it specifically that D-line, I mean, you can start looking at some of those veteran edition, some of these guys one or two-year deal, short-term players, whether it's a guy like a Khalil Mack or a Camp Jordan, toward the end of their career who can be still a productive player and a leader for that group. And then you're not worried about throwing out your camp space and your flexibility moving

forward. Ryan Poles is being very cautious. I think that was the tone you took away from yesterday when you heard from Ryan Poles. He does not want to blow up their flexibility. He understands the idea of this window is wide open for them. They want to pay their young quarterback like a franchise quarterback if he deserves that, which he certainly seems to be on track to be. They understand that this is a long-term thing.

This is not a win now. go all in window in 2026. I think this is going to be a very kind of quiet offseason, if you will. They got to make some moves to get under the cap, of course. But this is going to be a prudent offseason with the long term in mind. Prasemma, thank you so much for reporting from the combine. Anything else that you've heard that you want to let us know about? I don't know any NFL discussion that seems to be dominating the day that's more league focused than Bears focused.

No, one quick little note. I know we talked about it yesterday. George McCasky and Kevin Warren are both here in Indianapolis. I think there's kind of wonders. I don't know if they're at the state house. I've encountered both of them here throughout the hallways. So I can say soundly that they are here in Indy and they are part of the Bears Brass. We now go live to State House, Chris Emma, who's across from the Statehouse.

So you have seen them, but they haven't spoke. They've not spoken. I don't believe either them will. That's my understanding. But they are present and they are part of the Bears brass here. you so much, Chris. We appreciate the time. Are you on with the morning or the afternoon show later today? I don't believe so. Okay. Well, we are happy you were there and thanks for joining with us. We look forward to your reports throughout the NFL Combine. Thanks, Chris.

Take care. That is Chris Emma from Indianapolis. And I've gotten this news on Twitch. This is pretty great. Just wanted to let you know it was my friend's wife who chirped at Ryan Poles at the pool in the Cayman Islands. This is on Twitch from Mandy Dak. I'm reading it. Go ahead. I tried to convince him to call in or have her call, but they don't want to. I do have the screenshots of the text. He sent me Saturday.

I knew about it, and as soon as I heard it was Mexico, I said, nah, that was in Cayman. If you missed it, Ryan Poles said that one of the Bears fans came up to him in the Cayman Islands and asked him about the stadium. I can't stop laughing. Can't escape bears talk even when you leave the country on vacation. Man, our Twitch mob, that's where it's at. Between the suggestions for the sleuthing today out of the text and Twitch lines, I feel like we're really doing a good job with the team reporting efforts.

Thanks to everybody involved. Twitch.tv slash the score Chicago 312, 644, 67, is our number. How about we get a little baseball talk in? There was a massive article that came out in Chicago Magazine talking to Pete Crow, Armstrong about many things, including the discussion of a possible extension. So we'll get into that next. Lela Rahimi, Marshall Harris, Mark Grody, Rahimi, Harrison Grody on 1043, The Score. You make mention that competition. Are you competing against Pete from 2025?

Yeah, every year. Even when I was like looking to break with the team and all that stuff, I was never trying to compete with Cody Bellinger or Mike Talkman. I think it's always, you know, been me versus me. And I think I get the most out of that mindset and approach to the game entirely. So, yeah, I mean, I'm definitely trying to be a little bit better than who I was last year. There's a lot to do there. That was Pete Crowe Armstrong. This is Rahimi Harrison Brody on 1043 The Score. And there was an article that came out in Chicago Magazine by Wayne Dres. and it was entitled,

Welcome to the show. And Peekra Armstrong is just smiling from ear to ear. There's some fun pictures of Peacrow Armstrong and this is well. There's one where he's posing like he's in one of the team showers and he's wearing a Cubs chain of himself. It is safe for work just in case you're wondering. It's not that kind of shower article. I don't know.

There's bare chest in that. A little bit. There is. Then there's Pete balancing on a bat, which he does pretty well. He's like balancing on the bat standing up while he's leaning with one arm. Then there's Pekker Armstrong again with a bat,

just posing like he's taking a selfie with a bucket of balls behind him. So this is a pretty extensive article. It doesn't just cover the pulled quote which I think a lot of people have latched on to which says, I love Chicago more and more. The people are great. aren't just baseball fans who go to the game like Dodgers fans to take picture and whatever.

They care. And while I do think that I appreciate him acknowledging the differences between his home of L.A. and where he lives and works now in Chicago, I think there might be a bit of showmanship with some of the comments. There's also the discussion surrounding the extension that I think was pretty valid. That was toward the latter part of the article. Dres wrote, Crow Armstrong is set to make $820,000 in 20206 with performance bonuses that could push well over a million.

That's remarkably low for a budding superstar. But recent contract extensions signed by Young Outfield stars Corbyn Carroll of Arizona, Jackson Merrill of San Diego, for example, offer a baseline for what a long-term deal can mean for Crow Armstrong. And he's quoted saying, none of that is top of mind. I play the game because I like beating other people. The money will be life-changing regardless.

I would like to get a fair deal so I don't blank the market up. Now he doesn't say blank. I want to look out for the other centerfielder who have to go through the same process, which is why I'm glad Cubs Management and my agents are figuring out how to do this. So he acknowledges the extension. He has the quote about the Dodgers in there. And then there's also some funny stories and anecdotes that we can get to. What were your takeaways from the article?

Well, one, I like his kind of realistic look at the whole salary thing. He addressed it straight up. He didn't, you know, say we're not going to talk about that or anything like that. He was very open in this article. It felt like bearing his soul a bit. So shout out to Wayne for getting him into that comfort level where he could get some of these answers out of him. Remember, this is a guy who turns 24 next month. He is relatively young.

I would say he is mature beyond his years. because of the way he's approaching everything. He seems to be soaking in knowledge. And he talks about his approach also. I like the self-deprecation self-admitted, but I also like that he admits he pressed too hard at times last year because of the expectation of PCA is out there,

PCA better do something. It's me. I'm PCA. and how that affected him and his approach, right? Like, that's genuine stuff. The time in the mirror kind of got me a little bit. Oh, yeah, we should read that quote. Because, first of all, there's a point where you're going to giggle. When he says, I spend a lot of time in front of the mirror.

And then he's like, ask my mom. Pete, we didn't need to ask your mom. Yeah. But he talks about why, you know, with his, with trying to figure out where to hold the bat that's the most comfortable. It's essentially working on his stance and his swing. But what I find funny about that is, yeah, please, please commit to muscle memory what you need to be doing.

But I hope the person you need to ask the most about this is still the Cubs hitting coaches. The coaches and they're talking about him going through what he went through last year was pretty interesting to me. I think his explanation though, like here's a quote, for instance, where he talks about the struggles after the All-Star break. He said, quote, that's the stuff that keeps me up. It's never because I went O for four that I can't sleep. It's always because I'm embarrassed. Yeah, I pointed that out too and wrote it down.

And I don't throw my stuff all around and spaz out to show people that I give a bleep. What it shows is that it's still something I need to work on. So maybe when I talk about like the self-introspection, like the self-reflection and him kind of being self-aware, and you wonder if the self-awareness, if that has him in a more positive place than if he was less self-aware. And his explanation show me that he's not like some team throwing a tantrum. It's more just the way that he channels his frustration with himself. I think the thing is, I was that I don't know of a person who would say there's not a, a chance that's detracting from your overall performance in a game. You know, like, I understand being frustrated.

And there's a lot of baseball players who will take their aggressions out on a cooler or something like that behind the scenes. Well, John Melley, the fact that he jokingly refers to PCA as quote unquote, The Hulk. Yes. And this line right here, not because he possesses otherworldly strength, but because he's still trying to figure out when to turn green and when to just be Bruce Banner. Well, and I got the reference, and I wrote it down too because I thought it was notable,

but getting back to the idea of just calming yourself down a little bit during the game. You know, that's something that's been brought up a couple times on our station. And I know Matt Spiegel talked about it. Well, Wayne Dres is going to join Spiegel and Holmes this afternoon at 325 if you want to check it out. He is the author of this article. He does great work. And in the meantime, just being self-aware enough and being able to, open up like this is a good sign, I think, but how are you going to adjust that part of your game?

How are you going to adjust how the league adjusted to you? He's very aware that he had a poor second half of the season. When I say second half, I just mean the time after the All-Star break. He's aware that he couldn't get on base. I think he's aware that he has a very high chase rate to the tune of the third highest in the league last year. So while he tries to balance all that, who does he want to be as a hitter? He was also volunteering. They followed him to volunteer at the Jason Hayward Baseball Academy. And he did say Jordan when the kids asked him, LeBron or Jordan.

So he gave the right answer. You wrote that down, didn't you? I didn't have to write it down. That one I knew off the top of my head. But there were also like really cool as sides in there, for example. His defense is so good that Nico Horner said he has to recalibrate how much ground peak pro Armstrong can cover when it comes to how he plays defense in front of him at second base.

That's crazy. But I love it. I also liked when Malley talked about last year on the whole. I know we break it up until the first half and the second half

because there was such a slide after the All-Star break. This quote right here, if he can repeat every year what he did last year, that's one hell of a career. But there's more in there. And I think that's what Pete's ultimate

frustration is, understanding he wants to be better than he was last year. He probably just wants to take what he did in the first half of last year and do it for an entire season. That's easier said than done, by the way. That's what we're hoping. We're hoping it's not just, oh, he had this incredible first half of the year in 2025.

And there are some really fun asides in there too as well. Like when he talks about going on vacation and people keep asking him if he's an influencer. He doesn't know why while he's wearing incredibly expensive. expensive clothing, like chrome hearts. Well, that, I read that and I reread it. I was like picturing Pete Gorhamstrong in street clothes. And I kind of get it. He's not like a big dude.

And so you're from California. You look like you are somebody. And people want to know. And that's the difference between 26 and 2005. In 2005, you might ask, are you an actor? In 202026, you ask, are you an influencer? Well, and what's funny is asking if he's an actor isn't far off base when both his parents were. Exactly.

And as far as the Dodger fans, I think, yeah, if you're sitting with Pat Sayjack, say, and Mary Hart, you know, who by the way, go to a lot of Dodgers games. There's a reason I brought up their names. I understand the corporate nature of the money that is in the, you know, in the lower bowl. But there's definitely some authentic fans who care in that ball. ballpark. You just might not be hanging out in those parts of the ballpark. You know, if you're behind home plate, that's a little bit different clientele for Dodgers Stadium than say the outfield.

Let me ask you this. Because he is Pete Carr Armstrong, because both his parents' actors, does that mean maybe he was sitting where maybe the quote unquote real fans were not when he went to Dodgers games? Because he went to the famous private school, Harvard Westlake, for example. Exactly. Yeah. Maybe the experiences are a little

different. There's less of that. in what he experiences when you go to regularly field because those fans are, I mean, we know it is in the outfield anyway. It's bleachers. And bleachers are bleachers or bleachers are bleachers. Well, and I think the bottom line is you can say all that stuff and that's great. What are you doing to help your cause at the plate? What are you doing to be?

And as he put it, you know, he talks about having the self-discipline to be a better teammate. That's what really matters the most. and if he focuses on that and how to harness his energy in a way that produces more at the plate and produces more plate discipline, we're going to see a better version of him hopefully more consistently,

which is the key to any athletic performance this next baseball season. For Pete, they need him. And when I say they need him, I don't mean he has to carry anything on his back because he shouldn't have to because of the other players that he's playing alongside.

This is a Cubs team that has a lot of money invested into its offense. They have All-Star and Gold Glove caliber players at many different positions, and you're just one of them. Would Pete love to see himself take a step for it? Of course. You want to keep trending upwards until you hit some type of plateau a la Alex Breggman, for instance. But in the meantime, he shouldn't be putting more pressure on himself in the vein that it seems like he did in the back half of last year.

Well, and just like when Modus Buzellis told us about hanging out at recognizable restaurants in town, you know, PCA's still doing a lot of that. And I appreciate that he's still trying to enjoy the city while he's got that balance of, you know, pre-Cubs 2016 before those guys could go anywhere and then they get hounded anywhere they're at. You know, the other side of that was also like the come-up where you got to enjoy your life in your career and being yourself in the city, you know, before you get too famous. I think he's already there. Based on the stories of the camp that he went to, based on how he was treating in Japan,

based on how he was treated at the All-Star game, I think PCA has already arrived. It's just a matter of how long are you going to stay on that top tier of baseball fame, is what we'll call it. I guess another question is, are you going to dye your hair blue again? That makes you stand out in a crowd. Yeah, maybe you don't dye your hair blue again because you might get, you might get hounded everywhere you go. The blue-haired kid strikes again.

That's still the funniest, Pat Murphy. The blue-haired kid. Yeah. Love it. Friend of the score, Pat Murphy. So if you want to check it out, like we said, Wayne Drace will be on the afternoon show, so that'll be a great interview with Spiegel and Holmes.

He did a very in-depth article about P. Carr Armstrong in Chicago Magazine, and it is entitled, Welcome to the Show. Coming up next here on Rahimi Harris and Grody, I swear Dwight Howard is a theater geek trapped in a basketball player's body. I think that's been confirmed. Let's examine further. Next. Rahimi Harris and Grody.

Spares tight end, Cole Kamet. Cole, welcome to the party, pal. Well, thanks for having me. I heard it was a big day. So naturally, I dropped everything I had going on today. You've complained a lot through the years about not being able to hear the score on the 670 AM dial when you're inevitably cruising around downtown. And now that we have an FM signal call, you can now hear the score all day, all the time, all you want.

You can hear all the Bears hot takes you want. Well, that's perfect. I'll make sure I blast that in the locker room. Beautiful Blas! Rahimi Harris and Grody, Midday's Tindle 2. On 104-3, The Score. This is Rahimi Harrison Grody on 104-3 The Score. Is this Slam?

What is this? It's the vapors. Oh, my God. Well, I'll be taking an L on that one, guys. That's all right. This is Rehemi-Harrison Grody. 104-3 The Score.

Ray Diaz, Tyler Buterbaugh, helping me out with the music, Marshall Harris, as well. And this is some pretty funny audio that we have come across. isn't it? Sometimes you want the behind the scenes, the backstage, as Mark Grady tells us, let me tell you something. When players are done playing in e-sport, all of a sudden, they want to tell you all the secrets,

all the stories from yesteryear. And, well, sometimes you get a tip and then you follow up on it, you get what we got here. Yeah, this is not a secret per se. But it is pretty ridiculous. Dwight Howard and Stan Van Gundy. Back of the day, Dwight Howard used to ruin Stan Van Gundy's pregame speeches when he was with the Orlando Magic. Listen in. Now, coach, my last question during that time in that team, I got an inside source.

And I need you to confirm this if it's true or not. That said, you used to get pissed at Dwight Howard during your pregame speeches because he would just constantly fart while you were trying to get the guys going. Confirm or deny, coach. You know, I would confirm, actually. I knew it. I knew it was true. That's disgusting and awesome. Dwight could goof around and have fun.

And I remember having a talk with him once, and I said, Dwight, I need you to be more serious, you know, when we're preparing. And he said, Stan, I've got it all. I know what you're saying. I said, and he did. Dwight's by far the smartest big guy I've ever. coached. I mean, and it was part of his greatness. And I said, no, no, I know you've got it. But then

you're distracting these other guys that don't necessarily have it. We need to focus in more on what's going on. And Dwight understood that. And things started to change. But, you know, he was just a fun-loving guy. Dwight seriously was like a childlike enthusiast of life whenever I covered him in Houston. That is courtesy of run it back on fandle TV. That was Chandler Parsons asking Stan Van Gundy if it was true. And my first thought was before I heard it was like, oh yeah, that's got to be true. That's Dwight Howard.

I think this is what makes Dwight Howard relatable to those of us who took a class where we already knew the subject matter. And so you get bored and you start class clowning. That's me, the class clown. I know it's hard for you to picture now because I'm very much more serious now. But no, it is not hard for me to picture. I am way more serious than I used to be. You are, but that's life. Yeah. But you still have the joie de Viver, as we like to say, the joy of life.

So what I'm saying is Dwight Howard was simply bored. So he had to entertain himself as to not fall asleep. And so what's a little broken wind between friends, between teammates? What's a little broken wind between friends and teammates? They cannot be replaced. Not that telling them. Oh. Right.

Yeah, there's no question about it. The Alan Niro. Not with a serious, not with a serious response as it goes on, though. Had to play it off, man, you know? That lasted way too long. But, like, what discredits a speech or a comment better than that? Anything?

Not much. Not much. But he's right. And now with the alternate party response to the state of the Union, dress. Wow. Back to you. That's timely, actually.

I think the thing that Dwight had to understand, and which we all understand as we get a little older, is like, yeah, it was simple for you, but it's not that simple for everyone else. And what you're doing is actually distracting the people that this, that really need to comprehend what I'm telling you right now. That was the message from Stan Van Gundy. And I get it, because I'd be looking at, I would be just, as a class class, you were literally distracting people from doing what they're supposed to be doing because you already know

why are we on another lesson right now why are we talking about this teach me something i don't know that's a real thing that's a real for some people that's a real thing oh no i get it i get it that's better than just entertaining yourself because then you have another person to go down with when they get mad at you absolutely you ever passed a note in class of course okay you play tick-tac-toe in class. Just pass Tick-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-T-O back and forth. Yeah.

I get that for sure. To keep myself awake, I would sometimes write lyrics to songs. Like, songs that already existed just to see if I could remember, I could remember the entire lyrics. I can't imagine kids with these smartphones and tablets and whatever else now.

Like, that's why when they say ban them, I was like, yes, please ban them. First of all, I want kids to be able to interact with each other normally, you know, talk, do stuff like that. Yeah. if you missed it earlier, so we had ahead of a very busy couple of days regarding the

Bears Stadium discussion, Jeff Buckholtz, the WBBM News Radio Political Editor was in earlier on our show at 1125 and he spoke to J.B. Pritzker after the first meeting was postponed between the Bears and the state legislative

it was the Ways and Means Committee when discussing the pilot bill that they want to do to put fourth. So I said, oh, you know, you were at a phones and schools meeting and appearance for Governor Pritzker. And I'm like, is this the phones and schools ban? And he said yes. So he tried to talk about, you know, the importance of not allowing phones to be in schools. But then enforcing that requires effort and more people and things of that nature. Just reminds me I would be

on my calculator, just doing random things on a calculator because I was so bored in math class. Oh yeah, if you had a TI 83 and above, you could definitely play some video games on your calculator. But I don't know that Dwight Howard would be doing that necessarily in the pregame huddle either. The fart noises, though, I could see that easily. I feel like Dwight Howard's still playing basketball overseas somewhere. Very well could be. Yeah, he was doing that for a few years. Passing gas overseas?

Passing gas overseas. I wonder if he's doing that. I wonder if he's doing that. You got to read the room. Better to read the room than smell the room. That's the lesson. A sarcastic fart drop, though, is pretty good. Just be like... And I was looking for a bowl bin and a win over Navy might get them an invite. The Huskies at 6 and 5 on this season. That's an actual drop. There's no way that one was real. That made my stomach hurt. That made my stomach hurt.

that was a little too much. So now I've got to disinfect this work surface because I did the stick my tongue out thing. So while I take care of that... Oh, those aren't real? Oh, I thought that was the genuine thing. Okay. Very funny. Marshall Harris.

Very funny. Coming up next, time for Lawrence Holmes and Matt Spiegel.