The Charter: A Chicago Bears Podcast

With all the craziness of COVID-19, the NFL is still proceeding with signings and that means the Bears are still in the market for some help at the QB position. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBCS Chicago Bears writers JJ Stankevitz and Bryan Perez as they debate should Andy Dalton be Chicago Bear. (1:30) - Describe Mitch Trubisky's 2019 season (8:00) - Is Dalton the right choice for the Bears?...

The 2019 Chicago Bears had a lot of issues which resulted in a subpar season, one of which was the offensive line. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBCS Chicago's Bears reporter JJ Stankevitz to discuss what were the issues for the poor line play, and how can they fix it for the 2020 season. (1:45) - Could the Bears land Trent Williams from Washington? (5:15) - Evaluation of the Cody Whitehair an...

Mitch Trubisky didn't have a great season last year. But after looking at all the available options for the Bears this offseason, is Mitch still the best path to win a Super Bowl? Host Laurence Holmes and JJ Stankevitz discuss and debate what should the Bears do this offseason at the most important position. Should Bears fans be more cautious before being willing to give up on Trubisky? (1:54) - A...

Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBCS Chicago Bears writer Bryan Perez as they discuss the most important and interesting things about the 2020 NFL Combine for the Bears. They get into what teams get wrong about the Combine, and some realistic free agent options for the Bears. (1:29) - Ryan Pace needs to get this off-season right (5:30) - What teams get wrong about the NFL Combine (8:24) - Bigges...

NBCS Chicago is celebrating Black History Month with special episodes to discuss the impact of the black athlete in sports. In the final episode of the series, Laurence Holmes is joined by his "Football Aftershow" teammate and former Chicago Bear Alex Brown to discuss, making coaching in the NFL more diverse, is the Rooney Rule helping, and the common practice of moving black quarterbacks to other...

Bears GM Ryan Pace and head coach Matt Nagy spoke to the media live from the NFL Combine and talked as much as they could on solutions to the problems that plagued them this past season. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBCS Bears reporter JJ Stankevitz from the NFL Combine to discuss what the plans are for Mitch Trubisky and the quarterback position, and how the new CBA could affect what the Bea...

When a guy gets Sylvester Stallone, Guy Fieri, and Al Pacino in the same room you have o discuss why and how. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NFL insider Jay Glazer to discuss how crazy Jay's career has been, plus an added bonus of Kyle Long stopping by for added fun. (2:33) - Jay Glazer's MMA style training schedule (7:00) - Kyle Long joins the podcast (10:14) - Stories of Jay's work with his V...

NBCS Chicago is celebrating Black History Month with special episodes to discuss the impact of the black athlete in sports. Chicago Sun Times feature story writer Evan F. Moore sits down with former Blackhawk and analyst for NBCS Chicago Jamal Mayers to discuss being a black athlete in hockey and what he's doing to help grow hockey in non traditional hockey communities. (3:00) - Why was it importa...

NBC Sports Chicago Bears reporter JJ Stankevitz returns to the podcast after a long time off and joins host Laurence Holmes to discuss his thoughts on how the Bears season ended and what they need to do going forward. (1:48) - How much Bears did he watch at the end of the season (5:00) - What is the future of Mitch Trubisky look like? (9:40) - Could Case Keenum be the free agent answer for the Bea...

Host Laurence Holmes discusses what does it take for a team to win a Super Bowl with Chicago product and 2 time Super Bowl champion David Diehl. They also discuss his ties to Chicago, his extensive Jordan collection, and what he would do if he fixed the Bears. (3:10) - His connection with Brother Rice High School (6:20) - Blocking for Eli Manning during the Super Bowl runs (10:27) - Is Mitch close...

Bears offensive lineman Kyle Long just retired from a long career in the NFL and who better to give him advice about what's next than his older brother Chris Long. Host Laurence Holmes sits down with Chris Long as they discuss the difficulties players face after they retire from the NFL and his relationship with his brother former Bear Kyle Long. (3:10) - Chances that Chris Long gets a Nobel Peace...

Host Laurence Holmes is joined by executive producer of Sirius XM Mad Dog Radio and Bears fan Bill Zimmerman to discuss which team is the actual Bears. Is it the high flying offense and top 5 defense of 2018, or is the disappointing and underwhelming 2019 team? (2:06) - Best and worst part of the 2019 Bears season (4:30) - Which season is the real season? 2018? 2019? (5:30) - Is Mitch good? (8:15)...

NBCS Chicago is celebrating Black History Month with special episodes to discuss the impact of the black athlete in sports. To start the series Laurence Holmes interviews former Cub, now baseball analyst Doug Glanville as they discuss his experience in baseball, and the change that black athletes have brought in baseball. (0:53) - The legacy of Black history and sports (5:47) - Should an athlete s...

Former Chicago Bear Kyle Long sits with host Laurence Holmes as they do a deep dive into his career as a Bear, why he left football, why he will never wear another uniform, and what he plans to do in post football life. (3:18) - When he decided to leave football (6:39) - Why he won't wear another uniform (7:56) - What's next for Kyle Long? (11:20) - How Olin Kreutz helped him when he was on IR (14...

The football season is officially over as the Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl champions and quarterback Patrick Mahomes wins MVP. Who better to talk to about Mahomes than longtime agent to NFL stars and the current Super Bowl MVP, Leigh Steinberg. Host Laurence Holmes was joined by Steinberg in Miami to discuss why teams missed on Mahomes, the current state of the NFL, and the ongoing issues of...

On the final day of Super Bowl week from Radio Row in Miami, host Laurence Holmes is joined by a guy that plagued the Bears and Bear fans for years, former Green Bay Packer wide receiver Jordy Nelson. Jordy and Laurence discuss what it's like living on a farm, what is Bears/Packers week like for the Packers, and his favorite game he ever played. (Caution to Bears fans, you may be triggered) (1:40)...

If you didn't know, there are a few local ties to this year's Super Bowl match-up of the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers. Host Laurence Holmes talks with former Bears now Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub, former Northwestern quarterback now Chiefs quarterbacks coach Mike Kafka, and former Bears kicker now Niners kicker Robbie Gould to discuss their ties to Chicago and what...

In a special episode, host Laurence Holmes is joined by Bears beat reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times Jason Lieser as they give you the REAL inside look into what covering a Super Bowl is all about live from Radio Row in Miami. No X's & O's talk just pure fun and stories from two experienced NFL reporters. (2:10) - Jason Lieser relives times from his time in Miami (4:10) - What Radio Row is li...

A special 300th episode for the Under Center podcast. For today's podcast for Super Bowl week in Miami, host Laurence Holmes has two separate discussions with two great guests. Kevin Clark and Robert Mays of the Ringer join the podcast to discuss why the Chiefs and Niners are in the Super Bowl and what the Bears are missing that's holding them back from a Super Bowl. Part 1 with Kevin Clark (2:19)...

Laurence Holmes is joined by NBC Sports NFL analyst Chris Simms live from radio row in Miami as they try to fix the Bears. They also discuss what the Bears can learn from the San Francisco 49ers and their head coach Kyle Shanahan. (1:57) - How to fix the Bears/Trubisky (6:54) - What would he tell Mitchell Trubisky (9:24) - What people don't understand about Khalil Mack (11:44) - Kyle Shanahan is a...

Host Laurence Holmes is live in Miami from Radio row for Super Bowl Week. Laurence is joined by WGN's and the late great Chicago Bear Walter Payton's son, Jarrett Payton as they discuss his father's impact on the league, losing his father in comparison to the Kobe Bryant's tragic death, and how the current Bears can improve. (3:10) - The impact of the Walter Payton Man of the Year award (6:33) - C...

Ryan Pace has now been the Bears general manager for five years and it's now time for a review. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBC Sports Chicago's Cam Ellis, Slavko Bekovic, and Eric Strobel for a round table discussion on if the Ryan Pace era is going well. (1:27) - Review of Pace's five years (6:40) - Bears never drafted a decent offensive lineman (14:10) - The John Fox era of the Ryan Pace...

Dave Wannstedt joins host Laurence Holmes to discuss his friend Jimmy Johnson getting the nod to join the ranks of the all-time great coaches in the Hall of Fame. Later on, Dave discusses the Bear great Jimbo Covert getting into the Hall and what does Dave take away from the recent Bears hires mean. (2:01) - Watching Jimmy Johnson getting into the Hall of Fame (6:10) - Seeing Jimmy Johnson getting...

Host Laurence Holmes is joined by NBC Sports Chicago Bears writer Bryan Perez and NBC Sports writer James Neveau as they discuss the Bears moving their training camp from the Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, to the Halas Hall practice facility in Lake Forest. (2:04) - Reactions to the Bears (7:00) - Fans are losing with this move (11:30) - Bourbonnais community will be affected by this m...

The Pace Bowl has come and gone and football fans everywhere are better for it, except Bears fans. Host Laurence Holmes is joined by Ben Heisler (@bennyheis) host of the Awful Announcing podcast, to discuss 51-31 shootout of Watson vs Mahomes, and the draft that will forever connect the 3 quarterbacks. (1:32) - What it was like to watch Watson vs Mahomes live (4:30) - Weird that the Chiefs down 3...