The Charter: A Chicago Bears Podcast

The top pick for the Bears in the 2020 NFL draft in the 2nd round was Notre Dame tight end Cole Kmet. JJ Stankevitz is joined by former offensive coordinator for the Fighting Irish, Chip Long and former wide receiver at Notre Dame turned broadcaster Corey Robinson, to discuss everything you need to know about who Cole is and what he can bring to the Bears. (1:20) - Chip Long interview/ Who are the...

The Chicago Bears had their own Michael Jordan in Walter Payton, and the 2 managed to befriend each other. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by the son of Walter Payton, Jarrett Payton to discuss stories of Walter and Michael, their roles as representatives of the Chicago sports athlete, and what both legacies mean to the city of Chicago. (3:28) - Jarrett Payton's connection to the Jordan children (5...

Chicago in the '90s was all about Michael Jordan and the Bulls, so what was it like for the other major teams during that time? Host Laurence Holmes discusses this with four coaches who led teams in the shadow of the Bulls during that time. From the Blackhawks former coach Craig Hartsburg, from the Cubs Jim Riggleman, from the White Sox Gene Lamont, and from the Bears Dave Wannstedt, all come toge...

On Friday, May 8, Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson responded to a tweet and flatly said prior to the 2017 NFL Draft the Bears did not talk to him. The tweet sent Bears fans ablaze only to find out in an interview before the draft Watson actually said that he talked to the Bears over the phone. So which is it? The NBCS Chicago Bears coverage team of JJ Stankevitz, Cam Ellis and Adam Hoge t...

The Bears drafted defensive back Jaylon Johnson with their second pick in the second round 50th overall in the 2020 NFL draft out of Utah, but what kind of player is he and can he make the impact the Bears need in his first few years? To learn more about him, host Laurence Holmes is joined by Jaylon's defensive backs coach from Utah Sharrieff Shah as they discuss all fans need to know about the ne...

The Bears decide not to pick up the 5th year option on their #2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky. What does that mean for Trubisky, is this a message being sent to him from Ryan Pace, how should fans react to the news? Host Laurence Holmes is joined by the entire NBCS Chicago Bears content team of JJ Stankevitz, Cam Ellis, and Eric Strobel as they discuss all of these questions and get into what does M...

The 2005 Bears were a sight to behold and 2 prominent players on that team come together on the Under Center podcast. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by Hall of Famer Brian Urlacher and Aftershow teammate Lance Briggs as they have a fun conversation about leading one the most dominant defenses in NFL history. (2:30) - Playing golf and being retired (6:30) - When did they know they were good at foot...

Host Laurence Holmes is joined by Dave Wannstedt and the Football Aftershow guys, former Bears Olin KrEUtz and Alex Brown as they review the picks GM Ryan Pace made in the 2020 NFL Draft. (1:10) - Overall impression of what the Bears did in the draft (5:30) - What can Trevis Gipson bring to the Bears? (12:50) - Dave Wannstedt on the Bears draft (17:17) - Is Darnell Mooney the new Taylor Gabriel&gt...

As the 2020 NFL draft wraps up, Ryan Pace has selected 7 new players in this draft. JJ Stankevitz, Cam Ellis, and Bryan Perez discuss how well Ryan Pace did in this draft, why didn't they draft a quarterback, and they grade the NFC North's draft selections. Spoiler Alert, the Packers finish last. (4:20) - Why Ryan Pace selected Trevis Gipson (14:08) - Bears think 5th round pick Darnell Mooney can...

With day 2 of the 2020 NFL Draft in the books the Bears make two selections taking Cole Kmet, tight end from Notre Dame, and Jaylon Johnson, cornerback from Utah. JJ Stankevitz and Cam Ellis discuss the Bears' selections and play sound from the press conferences of Ryan Pace, Cole Kmet, and Jaylon Johnson. (1:40) - Ryan Pace says they had offers to trade down from both spots (9:20) - Did the Bears...

In round one of the 2020 NFL Draft, the Bears did not have a selection, but it was still entertaining. NBCS Chicago Bears team of JJ Stankevitz, Cam Ellis, and the man of the hour Adam Hoge who predicted the Packers would draft QB Jordan Love, react to everything that went down in the 1st round. (1:30) - Adam Hoge takes a victory lap for his prediction (8:55) - Packers are looking at Jordan Love's...

Host Laurence Holmes is joined by Olin Kreutz and Alex Brown of the Football Aftershow as they preview the 2020 NFL Draft. They discuss what the Bears needs are, who should they target, and later on they are joined by former Bears coach Dave Wannstedt to talk about the draft as well. (3:30) - What should the Bears be looking at in the draft (10:14) - How important is this draft for Ryan Pace (12:4...

The 2020 NFL draft will be different this year and the process has been just as unusual. NBCS Bears insider JJ Stankevitz is joined Jeremy Chinn, Broc Rutter, and Joe Gaziano to discuss how different this process has been, what do they expect to bring to an NFL roster, and share their stories on how they got to this point in the draft process. (1:30) - Southern Illinois University safety Jeremy Ch...

The 2020 NFL Draft is this week and the Bears could use help in a few positions. So who should they take? NBCS Chicago's Bears coverage team of JJ Stankevitz, Cam Ellis, and Adam Hoge discuss what position should be targeted and who the Bears should be looking to grab in this year's draft. The podcast is also joined by draft expert Josh Norris of Rotoworld and NBC Sports to give the national persp...

With the coronavirus pandemic changing the modern world, the NFL is changing the draft format and has opted for a virtual draft. But how does changing the format so dramatically impact the Bears? Host Laurence Holmes is joined by former Bears coach Dave Wannstedt to discuss the changes that will be made in the draft, his thoughts on Trubisky vs Foles, and thoughts of who the Bears should be keying...

As the NFL draft approaches, fans have questions on what the Bears will do. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by JJ Stankevitz as they take fan questions about the draft, the QB competition, and other Bears topics. (1:35) - The draft is going to be weird (4:00) - Bears offense is missing some nasty-ness (8:40) - Trubisky is at a disadvantage heading to training camp (12:40) - Can the Bears find a dee...

With the NFL trying to operate as normal, they have opted for a virtual draft this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Host Laurence Holmes, JJ Stankevitz and Cam Smith discuss does this change the strategy in drafting for the Bears. Later on, they get into Ryan Pace saying there will be an open competition at quarterback with the addition of Nick Foles. (1:34) - How will the NFL execute virtual dr...

The Under Center Podcast unites with the Chicago Sun-Times' Halas Intrigue podcast for a star studded event. Host Laurence Holmes and JJ Stankevitz are joined by Patrick Finley, Jason Lieser, and eventually, Mark Potash as they discuss the competition at QB for the Bears and the seemingly differentiating opinions about Trubisky between GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy. (1:51) - Are you surpri...

Filling in for host Laurence Holmes, JJ Stankevitz is joined by Cam Ellis and Adam Hoge to discuss what the Bears are doing at the quarterback position. They discuss was Nick Foles brought in to compete for the starting job and is this the push Mitch Trubkisy needs to get him to the next level? Later on, in the pod they get into a NBCS Chicago Bears Rewind game that will be on tonight when the Jay...

Former Bears special teams assistant coach Brock Olivio, who is currently quarantined in Rome, joins JJ Stankevitz to talk about what life is like in Italy during the COVID-19 lockdown. They discuss what he is doing to keep busy and stay sane, as well as one of the bright sides of the quarantine. Plus, Brock talks about how American Football is getting a foothold in Italy, as well as what it would...

Olin Kreutz joins the podcast to discuss the new additions to the offensive line, if the Bears will commit to the run in 2020, and how the Nick Foles and Mitchell Trubisky competition will play out this season. Plus, Olin explains why the 2020 season might feel a little like Last Chance U, and how the potential lack of an offseason program will impact the Bears. (1:18) How will Germain Ifedi fit i...

During the opening week of the NFL season, there were a lot of moves made. Tom Brady signs with the Bucs, the Texans trade DeAndre Hopkins for a bag of peanuts, and Eric Ebron signs with the Steelers for less money than the Bears signed Jimmy Graham for. Host Laurence Holmes, JJ Stankevitz, and Cam Ellis discuss all the NFL news, the Jimmy Graham signing, and discuss is Nick Foles actual competiti...

The Bears have been active in the early parts of free agency and made the move to trade for QB Nick Foles. What does that mean for Mitch Trubisky? Why did Ryan Pace make Nick Foles the target over other QBs? NBCS Chicago Bears writers JJ Stankevitz and Cam Ellis discuss all of this plus get into the thinking that went into other Bears moves. (1:42) - Nick Foles was the perfect Bears move (6:40) -...

The Bears have made a couple of key moves as the NFL offseason starts, the most notable of which is a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars for quarterback Nick Foles, seemingly bringing some competition for number 2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by former Bears Lance Briggs and Alex Brown of the Football Aftershow on NBCS Chicago as they give their thoughts on the trad...

The NFL is conducting business as usual and the new collective bargaining agreement between the NFL CEOs and the players has been agreed upon meaning players can be signed and business can be done, but with all that out of the way, what does it mean for the Bears. Host Laurence Holmes, JJ Stankevitz and Cam Ellis discuss and give you the details of the new CBA that affect the Bears, and they discu...