Chicago Sports

Braxton Jones came to the Bears as an unheralded fifth-round draft pick from Southern Utah and ended up not only starting every game but playing all 1,034 offensive snaps this season.

“It’s been a really fun ride,” Jones said.

But as much as he enjoyed the ride, there might not be a Bears player more looking forward to the offseason and the chance to get better. From his very first games of the regular season, Jones identified a weakness against the bull rush that opposing lineman seized upon and never let up.

“That’s the most simple move,” Jones said. “People usually go from doing a ghost move or a cross-chops to then bull-rushing. But people started out with bull-rushing me. It will just eliminated those things and I’ll be able to open up my arsenal a little bit. So after this offseason ti will be super important. I’ve talked about it all season — I need to go into the offseason and get stronger.”

There are many nuances to developing as an NFL offensive lineman, and solving the bull-rush issue might not be a cure-all for Jones or the Bears pass protection issues. But regardless of how well he played as a rookie, Jones has to be significantly better in 2023 for him to fully establish himself as the long-term answer at left tackle and give the Bears a chance to take a giant leap to playoff contention after a 3-14 season in 2022.

Therein likes a key element to the Bears’ rebuild that often gets overshadowed — growth from within. The draft and free agency are the marquee avenues to improvement — especially with the No. 1 overall pick and a league-leading $118.1 million in salary-cap space for 2023. But player development can make a difference, and the Bears are counting on some key rookie pieces of the foundation they laid this season to be a big part of the rebuild.

Jones, in fact, was one of three rookies to start 14 or more games, one of seven rookies to start six or more games and one of nine rookies who played enough snaps to be considered candidates for a bigger role or make a bigger impact next season.

Safety Jaquan Brisker and cornerback Kyler Gordon — the Bears’ two second-round draft picks in 2022 — top that list. Wide receiver Velus Jones, the Bear’s third-round pick in 2022, was a disappointment early in the season, but finished strong.

Defensive end Dominique Robinson faded after opening with 1.5 sacks in his NFL debut in the opener against the 49ers. But he’s still an intriguing project with his athleticism and now 550 NFL snaps to build upon.

Linebacker Jack Sanborn had 54 tackles in his first five starts after Roquan Smith was traded, before injuring his ankle against the Eagles. And three other back-ups — cornerbacks Jaylon Jones and Josh Blackwell and safety Elijah Hicks — were impressive enough in starting roles to warrant a better look in 2023.

As for Jones, he’ll go into the offseason knowing exactly what he needs to work on.

“It’s not going to happen overnight, but I think it’s definitely fixable,” Jones said. “It’s not like I’m light years way from where I need to be. It’s just a combination of a lot of things I’ve never had before.”

So for Jones, his rookie season was a good start. But next year is a bigger one in terms of solidifying himself at left (or right) tackle.

“I don’t make those decisions,” he said. “But I’m here for the long run. I love the position I’m in. I think this offseason’s going to be great for me to lock down that position. I can play the biggest role in making the decision, but it’s not my decisions. But I’m going to do everything I can to get that locked down for sure.”

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The Chicago Bears players aren’t happy after the seaosn

The Chicago Bears head into the offseason with the most losses in a single season in franchise history. That’s not the way many players thought the season would go, and some players are reportedly upset about it. Head coach Matt Eberflus wanted to change the culture in the offseason. He wanted to “win” at all costs during the season.

But the Bears have not won a game since knocking off the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football in October. Instead of Eberflus’ “H.I.T.S.” system elevating the team to more wins than advertised by the national media, the Bears finished with the worst record in the NFL. As was predicted.

According to a report by Courtney Cronin with ESPN, defensive tackle Justin Jones said the Bears players will use their exit meetings to air gtheir grievanceswith the staff.

“A lot of guys feel different ways. A lot of guys are on one-year deals here, so the season didn’t go the way they planned it to. Some guys are frustrated, some guys just want clarification on certain things. You have to give them the answer they are looking for, you have to tell them exactly what it was and the thing they could have been better at. And go about the business like that.”

Things went south after two trades by the Chicago Bears

According to Cronin, Jones mentioned the Robert Quinn and Roquan Smith trades were moves that handicapped the defense’s production. Jones, a member of the defensive line, was part of the worst front line in the NFL this season. The defensive line looked pretty bad with Quinn, but they were disastrously worse without him. And while those trades will help the Chicago Bears in the future, players like Jones risked their bodies trying to win this season after the coaching staff preached to them to buy in to the program.

There was also questionable playcalling along the way from the freshmen coaching staff. The Bears lifted their foot off the pedal in the second half when they had a sizable lead over the Green Bay Packers and were within striking distance of icing a win over their rival.

Will free agents want to sign with this staff for next season?

It’ll be an interesting offseason for the Bears. Previously skeptical players like Jaylon Johnson seemed to buy into Eberflus’ system earln in the season when they had some success. However, with many players on one-year deals, we’ll see how many of them want to re-sign for another season in Chicago after the way the dominoes fell by early January. Possible free agent targets will be looking at what’s going on with Eberflus’ culture as well.

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Houston is back at No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 men’s college basketball poll for the second time this season, while Kansas State continued its unexpectedly strong start by leaping from unranked to the verge of the top 10.

The Cougars received 34 of 60 first-place votes in Monday’s poll to return to the top after a two-week stay there earlier this season. Kansas was second and had 22 first-place votes, while Purdue fell from No. 1 to No. 3 and got the other four first-place votes after suffering its first loss at Rutgers last week.

Before this season, the Cougars (16-1) hadn’t been No. 1 since the high-flying “Phi Slama Jama” days of the 1980s.

“Every team, you just have to bring them along because they’re all different,” Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said after Sunday’s win at Cincinnati. “Our DNA remains the same, but the faces change. … As the season goes on, guys get better and better.”

Kansas State jumped to No. 11 after an impressive week with two road wins against ranked opponents under first-year coach Jerome Tang. Picked to finish last in the 10-team Big 12, the Wildcats scored 116 points at Texas then edged Baylor 97-95 in overtime.

That helped Kansas State (14-1) match its best start since the 1958-59 season, while bringing the Wildcats back into the AP Top 25 for the first time since the end of the 2018-19 season.

“We’re not trying to prove doubters (wrong),” Tang said after the Baylor win. “We’re trying to just continue to believe in ourselves. … That’s a great accomplishment for these young men. But none of that matters if we lay an egg the next game, right?”

THE TOP TIER

Alabama and Tennessee gave the Southeastern Conference a pair of top-five teams, with the Crimson Tide returning to No. 4 for the first time since spending a week there in December and the Volunteers hitting their season high at fifth.

Connecticut, UCLA, Gonzaga, Arizona and Texas rounded out the top 10, with the Longhorns falling four spots after a tumultuous week that included the firing of coach Chris Beard as he faces a felony domestic family violence charge.

RISING

No. 14 Iowa State climbed nine spots after road wins against Oklahoma and No. 17 TCU. No. 12 Xavier rose six spots after pushing its winning streak to nine games. In all, 10 teams climbed from last week’s poll.

SLIDING

No. 24 Duke took the week’s biggest tumble, falling eight spots after a blowout loss at North Carolina State followed by a narrow win at Boston College. No. 16 Miami and No. 18 Wisconsin joined Arizona and Texas in falling four spots. In all, nine teams fell from last week’s rankings.

STATUS QUO

TCU and No. 20 Missouri were the only teams to hold their position from last week.

WELCOME

While Kansas State grabbed the spotlight for the week’s new additions, the Big East added two teams with No. 19 Providence and No. 25 Marquette joining the poll. It marked the first appearance this year for the Friars and second for the Golden Eagles.

No. 23 San Diego State also returned for a second stint in the poll this year.

FAREWELL (FOR NOW)

Indiana (No. 15), Baylor (No. 19), New Mexico (No. 21) and Ohio State (No. 24) fell out of the poll, with Scott Drew’s Bears now unranked for the first time since the 2018-19 season.

CONFERENCE WATCH

The Big 12 and SEC each had five ranked teams to lead the country, followed by the Big East with four teams. The Atlantic Coast Conference had three, while the Big Ten and Pac-12 each had two.

The American Athletic, West Coast and Mountain West conferences along with the Colonial Athletic Association each had one ranked team.

THE TOP 25

1. Houston (34 first-place votes) 16-1

2. Kansas (22) 14-1

3. Purdue (4) 15-1

4. Alabama 13-2

5. Tennessee 13-2

6. UConn 15-2

7. UCLA 14-2

8. Gonzaga 14-3

9. Arizona 14-2

10. Texas 13-2

11. Kansas St. 14-1

12. Xavier 13-3

13. Virginia 11-3

14. Iowa St. 12-2

15. Arkansas 12-3

16. Miami 13-2

17. TCU 13-2

18. Wisconsin 11-3

19. Providence 14-3

20. Missouri 13-2

21. Auburn 12-3

22. College of Charleston 16-1

23. San Diego St. 12-3

24. Duke 12-4

25. Marquette 13-4

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Off to one of the best starts in school history, Illinois cracked The Associated Press Top 25 women’s basketball poll for the first time in 23 years on Monday.

The Illini (14-3) are ranked No. 24 in their first Top 25 appearance since Nov. 27, 2000. It’s been a remarkable turnaround under first-year coach Shauna Green. The team was 7-20 last season and just 1-13 in the Big Ten. Illinois hasn’t had a winning season since 2012-13.

“It means a lot. I understand how far we’ve come in a really short time,” said Green, who came to Illinois after a successful run coaching at Dayton. “Most of the kids weren’t alive the last time we were ranked. I was a sophomore in college.”

South Carolina remained the No. 1 team, garnering all 28 votes from a national media panel. The Gamecocks have been No. 1 for 29 consecutive weeks. They were followed in the poll by Stanford and Ohio State, which rallied to beat Illinois on Sunday.

UConn moved up one spot to fourth. The Huskies had their game against DePaul on Sunday postponed when they had only six scholarship players available because of injuries.

LSU moved up two spots to fifth. It’s the first time the Tigers have been that high since Dec. 14, 2009, when they were also fifth. LSU (16-0) is off to the best start in school history, besting the mark held by the 2002-03 team that won its first 15 games.

South Carolina, Ohio State and LSU are the only remaining unbeaten teams in the country. The Gamecocks and Tigers meet on Feb. 12 in South Carolina.

Indiana, Notre Dame, UCLA, Maryland and Utah rounded out the top 10. The Utes lost their first game of the season, falling at Colorado last Friday.

The Illini, who haven’t made the NCAA Tournament since 2003, ended a 14-game losing streak last week to Northwestern. That gave Illinois 14 wins in its first 16 games, which was the best start ever for the school. Its losses have come to Indiana, Ohio State and Delaware.

“If you would have told me in the summer we’d be up 17 at Ohio State and have a chance to win I’d tell you were crazy,” Green said. “Perspective changes really quickly. (Getting ranked) is something we got to be happy about, Be proud of it, It has to motivate us even more.”

Villanova also re-entered the poll this week coming in at No. 25. The Wildcats had a five-week run in the poll earlier this season.

St. John’s and Creighton fell out of the poll.

RISING BEARS

Baylor moved to 3-0 in the Big 12 after knocking off then-No. 17 Oklahoma and No. 21 Kansas last week. Caitlin Bickle was a big reason why, posting double-doubles in both games. The Bears moved up five spots to No. 18 in the poll this week.

THE TOP 25

1. South Carolina (28 first-place votes) 16-0

2. Stanford 16-1

3. Ohio St. 17-0

4. UConn 13-2

5. LSU 16-0

6. Indiana 14-1

7. Notre Dame 12-2

8. UCLA 14-2

9. Maryland 13-3

10. Utah 14-1

11. NC State 13-3

12. Iowa 12-4

13. Virginia Tech 13-3

14. Arizona 14-2

15. Iowa St. 10-3

16. Duke 14-1

17. Michigan 13-3

18. Baylor 12-3

19. Oklahoma 12-2

20. Gonzaga 16-2

21. Oregon 12-4

22. North Carolina 10-5

23. Kansas 12-2

24. Illinois 14-3

25. Villanova 14-3

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Chicago Bears executive Ian Cunningham is already on the radar as a general manager candidate

Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles and his staff have a big offseason ahead of them as they clinched the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft and have a lot of cap space to work with.

With Justin Fields hopefully being the solution at quarterback, the Bears can look to build around him and turn this thing around. But Poles may have to build this roster without his right hand man — Ian Cunningham.

According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the Tennessee Titans have put in a request to interview Cunningham for their general manager opening:

They will also interview Glen Cook of the Cleveland Browns.

Cunningham was brought to Chicago by Poles as an assistant general manager, as the two have developed a close friendship. Eventually Cunningham will get a job as a general manager, as it seems VERY likely it will be sooner or later.

The other thing to note is that the Bears will NOT receive a draft pick if Cunningham is hired this offseason by a team. League rules state he must be with an organization for a minimum of TWO years to qualify for draft compensation if hired.

This wont be the only interview Cunningham gets, either.

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When Nick Olson held his first practice as Amundsen’s head football coach in 2015, 12 players showed up.

The Vikings were coming off six consecutive losing seasons and were in the Inter-City, the lowest tier of Public League football.

When Olson held a fumble drill one day, he had to explain to players with no football background what a fumble was.

The Vikings went 1-7 that fall and started the next season 0-3. But they ended the year with a six-game winning streak and haven’t had a losing season since.

Next fall, Amundsen will move up to the highest level of Public League football when it debuts in the newly reconfigured Red North.

”This year we made a statement,” said Olson, whose team went 7-0 en route to the Red North-Central title in 2022 and was 7-3 overall. ”It’s time to move up.”

Public League officials have overhauled the conference structure for the second consecutive season. Last fall there were two top-tier Red sections, the South and North, with six teams each; five second-tier Red sections with eight teams each; and six Blue sections with six to eight teams each.

The Red sections played under the same IHSA playoff-qualifying rules as the rest of the schools in the state, and the Blue teams were ineligible for the state playoffs. Next season, there will be three tiers — Red, White and Blue — with all 16 Red teams eligible for the state playoffs. The top four teams in each of the four eight-team White sections will be IHSA-eligible and the four Blue sections again will be ineligible for the state playoffs.

Amundsen joins Lane, Clark and Curie in the Red North. Defending city champ Simeon, Morgan Park, Brooks and Perspectives will make up the Red South. The other Red sections are the Central (Kenwood, Phillips, Hyde Park and Urban Prep) and the West (Taft, Westinghouse, Young and Bulls Prep).

Getting to the top tier of Public League football is the latest indicator of Amundsen’s rising stock. The Vikings never reached the IHSA playoffs before 2018 but have qualified every year since (except for the pandemic season, when the playoffs were canceled).

In 2022, they had their most competitive postseason showing, losing 35-21 to Harlem in the first round of Class 6A.

There are other markers of the program’s progress, as well. While there are still inexperienced players learning football on the fly, there also has been an infusion of talent from the North Side Youth Football program, which is based at Welles Park.

And when Amundsen holds open houses for prospective students, Olson now winds up talking to 20 athletes interested in football instead of three or four.

North Side Public League teams long have played in the shadow of South Side powers such as Simeon, Morgan Park, Kenwood and Phillips. But Olson and Amundsen take inspiration from the recent strides taken by Taft and Lane.

”We aren’t selective enrollment, and we don’t have 2,000 kids [in the building],” Olson said.”[But] we talk about those teams: ‘If they can do it, why can’t we do it?’ ”

The Vikings will have a number of spots to fill because of graduation, including that of elite receiver Adam Muench. But they have seven returning starters, decent numbers in the program — there were 29 freshmen in 2022 — and a motivated coach.

”The ultimate goal is we want to compete against the best,” Olson said.

Next season, they will.

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Quarterback Justin Fields estimated his hip was around 80 percent when the Bears decided to shut him down last week.

“I could’ve [played],” he said Monday, “but I don’t know if I would’ve played my best game.”

He didn’t have a vote.

“Actually it really wasn’t up to me,” he said. “The trainers, they didn’t want me playing. Yeah, I couldn’t be out there.”

Bears head coach Matt Eberflus said Wednesday the Bears would hold out Fields for the finale because of a hip strain discovered by an MRI. He said trainers ruled Fields out, which made any coaching decision moot.

Coincidentally — or not — the Bears weren’t motivated to win their season finale because they were chasing the No. 1 overall draft pick. They landed it when they lost to the Vikings and the Texans beat the Colts.

Fields lost a chance to make history as the greatest rushing quarterback of all time. He finished the season 64 yards shy of breaking Lamar Jackson’s record of 1,206 rushing yards, set in 2019.

“That’s a rushing record — I’m a quarterback,” he said. “I mean, of course it would’ve been really cool to have. … If there was one record I’d like to break, of course that would have to be a passing record.”

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Blackhawks prospect Jakub Galvas used to call himself an offensive defenseman. Now, at the Hawks’ urging, he calls himself a defensive defenseman.

The undersized 23-year-old — listed at 5-11 and 161 pounds — always has faced an uphill road to the NHL. Even after impressing in a six-game NHL stint last winter, he still does. If he can complete the transition to defensive defenseman, the road might not be quite as steep.

”I got a lot of feedback from the coaches last season,” Galvas said. ”I want to play a lot, so I have to listen. It is what it is. But I like it. . . . I’m more responsible. I’m not jumping every time if I see my ‘D’ partner might go to support our offense. I just have it in my mind: defense first.”

Points still are flowing in for Galvas; in fact, they’re flowing at an even faster rate than before. He has 17 points in 32 games this season at Rockford, compared with 20 in 59 last season. He’s tied for 13th among AHL defensemen with 16 assists.

Still, he’s focused exclusively on defensive improvement. He tries not to leave the slot in his own end, and he pays closer attention to opposing forwards’ movements. His skating is his best attribute — at his size, it needs to be — and he’s working on intricate techniques to improve it even more.

”His skating abilities are going to be his bread-and-butter defending,” Rockford coach Anders Sorensen said. ”He’s smooth.”

Galvas’ biggest problem might be the surplus of other talented defensemen in the Hawks’ prospect pipeline. Isaak Phillips, Ian Mitchell and Filip Roos have played NHL games this season, and Rockford teammates Alec Regula and Alex Vlasic are also ahead of Galvas in the pecking order.

He’ll be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights after this season, and his future — while bright — is not quite clear.

”I’m still believing,” Galvas said. ”It’s tough to see that other guys were already called up. . . . It’s hard to not think about that. But I have to just focus on myself, and maybe something can be changed soon.”

Good news on Dach

The shoulder injury that forward prospect Colton Dach suffered during the world junior championships wasn’t as bad as it looked. It won’t require surgery, and he will return this season — maybe in the next month or two.

Meanwhile, Dach was traded Saturday within the Western Hockey League from Kelowna to Seattle, where fellow Hawks prospects Kevin Korchinski and Nolan Allan also play. The Thunderbirds are 28-5-2 and only should get better with Dach, who has 17 points in 14 games this season.

”It wasn’t something [where] we went in and said, ‘Hey, let’s just target Chicago prospects,’ ” Thunderbirds general manager Bil La Forge said. ”But having a comfort level with the organization makes it a little bit easier. It’s a happy coincidence.”

Kane sits again

Patrick Kane missed a second consecutive game Sunday because of a lower-body injury and will undergo treatment this week, coach Luke Richardson said.

He seems on track to play Thursday against the Avalanche.

”It’s going to be the wear-and-tear and banging of the game we’re concerned [about],” Richardson said. ”If it catches the wrong way, like it did a few nights ago, then . . . we’re without a forward and he’s probably going downward in progression. A couple of more days this week is really going to make a difference.”

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The order for the top 18 picks in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft is set, with the Chicago Bears picking No. 1 and the Houston Texans picking No. 2. The Texans’ dramatic Week 18 victory allowed the Bears to sneak into the top spot. Will Chicago keep this pick or trade back? Will the Texans choose their signal-caller of the future with their selection? The Bears and the Texans are followed by the Arizona Cardinals at No. 3.

Several teams have the opportunity to make big moves, as there have been six trades involving first-round picks. The Texans, Seattle Seahawks, Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles are in line to have two first-round selections. This year’s Round 1 will have 31 picks as the Dolphins were stripped of their selection for tampering violations. The Los Angeles Rams, New Orleans Saints, Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers also will not have a first-round selection. The Denver Broncos don’t own their own first-round selection but will have one from a trade that sent outside linebacker Bradley Chubb to the Dolphins in a deal that included the 49ers’ 2023 first-round pick.

The 2023 NFL draft will take place at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, home of the Kansas City Chiefs, with the first round slated for April 27. Rounds 2 and 3 will take place April 28, and Rounds 4 through 7 will be April 29. The draft will be broadcast on ABC, ESPN and the ESPN App.

Check out the top 18 picks below, with Nos. 19-31 projected from the ESPN Football Power Index (FPI), which projects the order by simulating the rest of the season 10,000 times. (Team write-ups below have been updated from December)

There will be plenty of quarterback-needy teams looking to trade up to the Bears’ No. 1 spot. A year after not having a first-round selection, Chicago could come away with multiple firsts by trading back, allowing general manager Ryan Poles to address needs at defensive line, wide receiver and offensive line. The Bears rank last in the NFL in sacks (20) and pressures (96). Bolstering their pass rush is priority No. 1, and if it doesn’t come by signing free agents, they could find that help atop the draft. — Courtney Cronin

The Texans’ rebuild is stuck in the mud. Why? Because they’re searching for their quarterback of the future and –with Lovie Smith fired after Sunday’s game — a new head coach. There was optimism before the season that Davis Mills could become the long-term answer, but he was benched after 10 starts (and 11 interceptions). After backup Kyle Allen struggled through two starts, however, Mills returned as the starter in Week 14. Going into this draft, Houston must find its franchise signal-caller to give its rebuild any legitimacy. — DJ Bien-Aime

First, it’ll depend on who’s making the pick — will it be longtime general manager Steve Keim or someone else? Keim has been the GM since 2013. Arizona will have a plethora of needs in the first round, and sticking to its “best player available” philosophy hasn’t always benefited the team. This draft will be about making quarterback Kyler Murray happy and giving him more options to work with, whether that’s an offensive lineman or an offensive weapon. If that doesn’t happen, the discord behind closed doors will continue, especially as Murray gets set for rehab and surgery for the season-ending knee injury he suffered in Week 14. — Josh Weinfuss

The Colts have drafted two quarterbacks in the first round since 1998: Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck. With their need at the position as dire as ever, look for a heightened focus on the passers in this class. The Colts have other issues to sort out — such as who will be their coach going forward — but there is no debate about the critical situation at quarterback, given Matt Ryan‘s age (37) and performance and the unproven status of Sam Ehlinger. — Stephen Holder

The Russell Wilson trade has general manager John Schneider and the Seahawks sitting pretty. With the Broncos at 5-12, the first-round pick they owe Seattle lands at No. 5. Picking that early gives the Seahawks a rare chance at adding the impact defensive lineman they badly need up front, but they’d also need a quarterback if they let Geno Smith walk in free agency. Seattle also owns Denver’s second-round pick, meaning it’s likely to have three top-40 picks. — Brady Henderson

Ever since he arrived in Detroit, general manager Brad Holmes has shown an eye for draft talent, picking gems such as fourth-round receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, who is off to a record-breaking start to his career. There will be tough decisions made in this draft, and the Lions likely will have to address quarterback and cornerback. Yes, Jared Goff is having a great season, but Detroit needs to secure young talent at that spot, and the secondary is its largest need on defense. — Eric Woodyard

o Ranks: Kiper >> First-round grades >>o Full ranks >>