Bears president Ted Phillips (left) and chairman George McCaskey listen to new head coach Matt Nagy during an introductory press conference at Halas Hall in 2018. | Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images

When you are your own worst enemy, you don’t need enemies like a neighborhood news source.

The romantic, Bears’-eye view of what’s happening to the local NFL team is one of a franchise valiantly carrying on despite being under siege from evil forces intent on its demise.

The truth would like to have a word with that view.

The whole truth is that the Bears can blame themselves for everything that has befallen them, even the rumors and “reports” that seem to be estranged from reality. The organization is the prime mover in its own sob story. If there is no McCaskey family, there is no team president Ted Phillips. If there’s no Phillips, there’s no general manager Ryan Pace. If there’s no Pace, there’s no coach Matt Nagy.

If there’s no Nagy, there’s no five-game losing streak and no awful offense. And if there’s no five-game losing streak and no awful offense, there’s no sketchy reporting about an imminent firing — an imminent firing, by the way, that wasn’t.

Now, is this unfair to the Bears? Does it flippantly pardon a journalistic sin? In the narrower context, probably. To be clear, I’m not giving a pass to Patch.com. Two days before the Bears’ Thanksgiving game in Detroit, the news site reported that the team already had informed Nagy the Lions game would be his last as head coach. The story turned out to be incorrect. There are no subtleties or qualifiers to that. Nagy is still the Bears coach.

But the off-field beating the Bears are taking these days is what happens when an organization serially bumbles. When you are your own worst enemy, you don’t need enemies like a neighborhood news source. When you wear a Kick Me sign, steel-toed boots tend to find you. Then it’s open season, and in the world we live in, well, good luck with that. It results in rumors, non-stop social media abuse and incandescent stories that never should see the light of day.

Bears management refused to comment on the Patch.com story, taking what it likely thought was the high road. That left Nagy to refute his own firing. When the story took on a life and decibel level of its own, team chairman George McCaskey had to address the players and coaches, telling them there was no truth to it. But by that time, it was too late. The lame-duck coach story was everywhere, and it became the theme of the Bears’ game against lowly Detroit. They ended up winning one for their beleaguered Gipper. Yay.

This is what I mean when I say the franchise is responsible for everything that’s happened to it this season (and seasons past), even the things beyond its control. A smart organization would have quickly and publicly shot down the report about Nagy. Not these guys. McCaskey hasn’t talked with the media since Illinois became a state and Pace since Brylcreem was invented. So if their lips were rusted shut, what chance was there that someone at Halas Hall would think to send out a press release debunking the Patch.com story? Zero.

The people in charge don’t know how to do things. They think they’re being noble when, in fact, they’re being boneheads. In this case, their silence did damage to the organization and left their coach in a very uncomfortable position. Good companies don’t let that happen.

Ineptitude has been the Bears’ constant companion for years, so it was no surprise that last week played out the way it did, no surprise that such a thing would befall them. Again, they’re not to blame for the Patch.com story, but even when they don’t mean to, they aid and abet.

This season was a mess before the “news” of Nagy’s impending exit broke. Last month, when he couldn’t find a way to improve an offense that had struggled the previous two years, he gave up play-calling duties, purportedly his strength. He hasn’t been able to figure out how to get much out of rookie quarterback Justin Fields, who was supposed to be a lot better than Mitch Trubisky but statistically has been worse.

Now the season has devolved from a mess to a soap opera. Everybody’s waiting for the next shoe to drop, and if it doesn’t soon, you can be sure a blogger will report a heel hitting ground. Nagy figures to be fired after the season, and Pace should be, but Chicago, knowing the McCaskeys too well, fears the worse.

I should feel bad for the Bears but don’t. They’re not innocent bystanders. They’re not the victims of bad luck. They’re not brave souls living in an unfair world. They’re the sum of all the mistakes and bad decisions they’ve made for decades.

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Spectators watch a cock fight in 2000 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, where cockfighting remains popular. Since then, the last three states in the United States where it was legal, Oklahoma, Louisiana and New Mexico, have banned the practice. | TOMAS VAN HOUTRYVE, AP

Chicago Congressman Mike Quigley is leading an effort to get the United States Postal Service to crack down on shipments of fighting birds.

Before we consider the issue that U.S. Rep. Mike Quigley (D-5th) phoned me to talk about last week — shipping fighting birds through the United States Postal Service — we need to wrap our heads around the general idea of animals being sent through the mail.

It is a common practice.

“They sent me a list of things you can legally mail,” Quigley said. “Poultry, honeybees, scorpions, live adult birds, which is depressing. Baby alligators, frogs, chameleons, lizards, etc.”

Which makes sense. Animals need to get to farms and pet stores. It isn’t like they can take a bus. Posting them doesn’t strike me as particularly cruel. Given the amount of time a frog spends hibernating at the bottom of a frigid lake, four days in a dark container doesn’t seem a crime against nature.

But that isn’t the problem Quigley is trying to address.

“Today we’re focused on buying, selling, possessing or receiving any animals for purposes of the animal participating in a fighting venture,” Quigley said.

Cock fights — putting two birds in a ring, with razor talons attached to their claws, and goading them to maul each other — is one of the more obscure sub-hells of sport. Illegal in all 50 states, it is still permitted in territories like Puerto Rico and Guam.

Maybe I’ve been softened up by COVID isolation, But I was happy just to be approached by somebody about something. Quigley could have been exercised about the Oxford comma, and I’d give him my ear.

Earlier this month, Quigley sent a letter to Chief Postal Inspector Gary Barksdale, asking the USPS develop a strategy to start better enforcing the 2002 federal law against shipping animals for fighting purposes.

“There have been 500 shipments of fighting birds, mostly from state-based farms in the Carolinas, some 10,000 fighting animals sent to Guam,” Quigley said. The birds are also being sent to Puerto Rico.

I wondered if there wasn’t a cultural factor here. We don’t ban horse racing, which is not a picnic for the horses either. Or boxing for that matter. Maybe we’re just cracking down on cock fighting because people in Puerto Rico and Guam like it.

“Look, I’m aware of that sensitivity,” replied Quigley. “Some of this is cultural. Well, so is domestic violence.”

Not wanting to go down that path, I asked Quigley how he got into the bird protection end of government.

“Apparently, I’m one of the go-to people now when human issues deal with animals,” he said. “People are sending more information like this to me, because I’m sponsor of big cat safety bill” — a federal law that would shut down America’s would-be tiger kings and ban private ownership of lions, too.

By now, readers may be wondering why, with the raft of unfolding disasters and major crises, Quigley is going to bat for lions, tigers and roosters.

“I’m on the intelligence committee,” Quigley said. “Working every day on hot spots and threats: Ukraine, North Korean, China, Iran. We do have ability nd resources to solve more than a few of our problems.”

Fair enough. More than birds are harmed.

“We’ve learned kids who abused animals are very likely to be violent toward humans when they grow up,” Quigley said.

When the previous president installed Louis DeJoy as head of the USPS, in a bald attempt to cripple the postal service, to hurt Jeffrey Bezos and kneecap mail-in voting, one of the unexpected side effects was on the shipment of live animals: There was a ruckus earlier in the year in New York state, which tried to ban the practice after nearly 4,800 baby chicks died after languishing in some postal facility. There were calls for banning mailing animals altogether, a practice that has been legal since 1918.

“I’m actually going to look into that, especially with the condition of the mails,” Quigley said. “It’s worth looking into. Is there a better, more humane way to do this?”

My guess is there’s not; the solution is to fire DeJoy and get the mail humming again. Though regarding cockfights, it’s hard to argue with Quigley.

“Animal fighting is bad enough,” he said. “Let’s not add to it. You put a live animal in box, with no water, no food, for an 8,000 mile journey to Guam, only to be trained to fight to the death with talons and metal claws. Let’s reduce the misery involved.”

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Cary Grove’s captains accept the trophy for the Class 6A state championship in DeKalb. | Allen Cunningham/For the Sun-Times

Four contenders vie for the top spot.

Eight state champions were crowned in DeKalb this weekend.

There was Fenwick as the debutante, winning its first title. Joliet Catholic, the kings of Illinois high school football, added to its state-record trophy haul.

Lockport and Wheaton North returned to glory for the first time in many years and Cary-Grove continued the Fox Valley’s recent tradition of excellence.

One thing that wasn’t settled is the matter of No. 1. Maine South entered as the top-ranked team, based on their resume. The Hawks were soundly beaten by Lockport and have lost their claim to the spot.

Fenwick had two losses during the regular season and the Class 5A field didn’t provide significant opportunities to improve its resume, so set the Friars aside.

That leaves Lockport, Wheaton North, Joliet Catholic and Cary-Grove as the contenders for the final spot on top of the Super 25.

Some years there will be a reporter (ok, probably me) that asks coaches and players who the number one team is. That didn’t happen this weekend. But one coach gave his opinion without being asked.

“We told our kids on Monday we thought we were the best team in the state of Illinois,” Cary-Grove coach Brad Seaburg said. “And I think we did everything today to prove that’s certainly a possibility if not a definite thing.”

Seaburg is right. East St. Louis was considered the best team in the state all season long, by literally everyone that does any form of rankings or spouts an opinion publicly.

Cary-Grove beat the Flyers. It was universally hailed as one of the greatest championship games in Illinois High School Association history. That only happens when a game is not just close, but is played at a high-level.

East St. Louis, loaded with probably a dozen or more future FBS college players, just could not stop the Trojans’ double option.

Cary-Grove’s full-season resume isn’t as strong as Lockport’s. The Porters defeated Bolingbrook, Glenbard West, Glenbard North and Loyola. That’s a terrific season. They also showed they were clearly better than Maine South in the title game.

But the Porters have a blemish on their resume. They lost at home to Lincoln-Way East. Starting quarterback Hayden Timosciek handled punting duties in the game but was too injured to play quarterback. That’s obviously a factor, but other teams managed to pull out victories this season while missing injured stars.

Joliet Catholic’s case is also strong. The Hilltoppers dominated on their run to the Class 4A title and have impressive regular season wins against Brother Rice, Crete-Monee and St. Louis Cardinal Ritter.

Wheaton North saved its best performance of the season for the Class 7A title game. The Falcons dominated St. Rita just a week after beating Brother Rice. But Wheaton North’s schedule has a blemish as well. The Falcons lost at Batavia in overtime in Week 3.

Clearly any of the four teams can make a legitimate claim to the top spot. But I agree with Seaburg. Cary-Grove’s performance on Saturday at Huskie Stadium proved it to me. The Trojans are No. 1.

2021 Final Super 25

With record and preseason ranking

1. Cary-Grove (14-0) 12

2. Lockport (13-1) NR

3. Joliet Catholic (14-0) 7

4. Wheaton North (13-1) 9

5. Maine South (12-2) 10

6. St. Rita (11-3) 1

7. Loyola (12-1) 4

8. Brother Rice (10-3) 3

9. Fenwick (12-2) 17

10. Neuqua Valley (10-2) 15

11. Lincoln-Way East (9-3) 5

12. Mount Carmel (8-4) 11

13. Batavia (10-1) 16

14. Marist (9-4) 6

15. Glenbard North (8-4) NR

16. Kankakee (13-1) NR

17. Warren (9-2) 2

18. Crete-Monee (9-4) NR

19. Lake Forest (10-3) NR

20. Lemont (11-1) NR

21. Glenbrook South (9-3) NR

22. Hinsdale Central (9-2) 8

23. Wilmington (14-0) NR

24. Prospect (10-3) NR

25. St. Ignatius (9-2) NR

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The Bears are 46-61 (.430) with one winning season and two playoff berths in seven seasons with Ryan Pace (foreground) as general manager — with six games left in the 2021 regular season. Bears chairman iGeorge McCaskey (background) will decide if Pace will remain as GM. | Tim Boyle/Sun-Times Media

With the Bears’ abysmal record in the post-Ditka era — seven playoff appearances and four playoff victories in 28 seasons — at some point George McCaskey has to consider that McCaskey family leadership is part of the problem.

It’s all about the quarterback in the NFL, especially when the quarterback is a talented rookie capable of one day putting a struggling offense on his shoulders and lifting a wayward franchise out of the muck.

But as the Bears’ 2021 season has veered off course in Justin Fields’ first season, coach Matt Nagy’s fourth and general manager Ryan Pace’s seventh, not even the quarterback will command the entire spotlight in the final six weeks of the season.

It’s all about the owner, now.

Bears chairman George McCaskey spoke to the team last week prior to the Bears’ 16-14 victory over the Lions on Thanksgiving Day at Ford Field. But he has been silent publicly since the Bears’ end-of-season press conference in January in which he and president Ted Phillips almost sheepishly acknowledged their decision to bring back both Pace and Nagy was an unpopular one.

McCaskey usually talks to the media at least once each offseason. But not this year, with the possibility of leaving Soldier Field and the future of Pace and Nagy obvious hot topics.

So he wasn’t asked the most obvious question heading into the 2021 season: How does he define “progress” after stating that as the barometer of success when he decided to bring back Pace and Nagy?

That question looms larger than ever with the 4-7 Bears unlikely to make the playoffs, but Fields starting eight games — and possibly getting as many as six more starts when he recovers from cracked ribs he suffered against the Ravens last week.

The firing of Nagy is considered by many as fait accompli, with “Fire Nagy” chants breaking out at various Chicago-area venues. But the fate of both Nagy and Pace are unclear after last week’s chaotic episode in which it was erroneously reported that the Thanksgiving Day game against the Lions would be Nagy’s last as Bears coach — in part because it’s hard to know what George McCaskey is thinking.

We’ll find out soon enough. But until then, speculation about Nagy, Pace — and McCaskey and Phillips themselves — will continue to fester as the season concludes. All we know now is what could happen. So here are four scenarios to consider when the Bears’ 2021 season ends, or possibly sooner:

1. George McCaskey and Ted Phillips step aside.

The McCaskeys are not going to sell the Bears, at least not while Virginia McCaskey is the owner. But with the Bears abysmal record in the post-Ditka era — seven playoff appearances and four playoff victories in 28 seasons — at some point George McCaskey has to consider that McCaskey family leadership is part of the problem.

(Only three NFL teams that have been in the league throughout that span have fewer playoff victories. Only three have fewer playoff appearances.)

The McCaskeys could still retain ownership but restructure the franchise so that a president of football operations — presumably a someone with a proven history of football, management and public relations expertise — is making all football decisions, including the hiring of the general manager.

That’s no assurance of success. But better leadership alone would be an improvement — especially in a scenario like last week, when a weak crisis management plan created another embarrassing episode for the Bears organization.

2. George McCaskey cleans house — fires GM Ryan Pace and coach Matt Nagy.

This is what many frustrated Bears fans are expecting after Pace and Nagy appeared to be a singular entity — with their valued collaborative working relationship a major reason for hope that 2021 would be an improvement after back-to-back 8-8 seasons.

The Bears are 46-61 (.430) with one winning season and two playoff berths in Pace’s seven seasons as general manager. That’s a little misleading because his first three seasons were a virtual tear-down of the roster before the re-build. But two major Pace mis-evaluations have kept the Bears on the skids — trading up to draft quarterback Mitch Trubisky in 2017 and hiring Nagy in 2018.

Trading up to draft Fields in 2021 could end up being a masterstroke. But poor management of the offensive line among other personnel errors have prevented the offense from showing enough improvement to support Pace’s case.

Pace has had hits and misses, but the overall ledger is in the negative. Outside of linebacker Roquan Smith, even Pace’s biggest hits have struggled to sustain success or stay on the field — Khalil Mack, Akiem Hicks, Eddie Jackson, Allen Robinson, Eddie Goldman and Tarik Cohen among them. But his misses are forever — Trubisky, Kevin White, Mike Glennon, Adam Shaheen, Cody Parkey, Nick Foles, etc.

3. Ryan Pace fires Matt Nagy, stays as GM.

This is arguably the most plausible scenario. It would give McCaskey the change that would prevent Bears fans from storming Halas Hall or talking boycott. And it would spare McCaskey and Phillips the chore of finding another general manager — their third in 10 years after firing Jerry Angelo after the 2011 season and Phil Emery in 2014 — which is not their strength.

The best argument for Pace is based almost entirely on potential — he addressed two of his biggest offensive issues in the 2021 draft with Fields and offensive tackles Teven Jenkins and Larry Borom. But he hired Nagy, drafted Trubisky, has a defense that is aging quickly, has injury issues, salary cap issues and doesn’t have a first-round draft pick in 2022.

Pace is a capable general manager who could win big in optimum conditions — the Buccaneers’ Jason Licht had a worse history as a GM before striking gold with Bruce Arians and Tom Brady. But Pace’s luck really has to change in a hurry.

4. Ryan Pace and Matt Nagy both stick around.

For Bears fans, the doomsday scenario. It’s unlikely that McCaskey instructed Nagy to start Fields, as has been reported. But it wouldn’t be that far-fetched that McCaskey told Nagy he values having a young quarterback in place more than a playoff berth with Andy Dalton.

And if that was the impetus for Nagy’s decision to go with Fields, it’s possible that if Fields continues to make the improvement he showed against the 49ers and Steelers when he returns from his injury, that could fit McCaskey’s definition of progress.

It’s not likely, but possible. At Halas Hall, anything is possible.

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Chicago’s Black population has fallen for a generation — can anything be done to bring people back to Black neighborhoods like Englewood? | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Community leaders in Greater Englewood and Austin think a concerted effort to close the gaps in homeownership, wages and life expectancy between Black and white Chicagoans could stem the city’s loss of Black residents.

Anthony Simpkins remembers when the Greater Englewood neighborhood was a thriving Black community with more than 100,000 residents and a commercial strip that rivaled downtown’s shopping district.

“It was one of the most active commercial strips in the city of Chicago, and then — over decades — that all deteriorated,” said Simpkins, president and CEO of Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago.

“The mall was demolished, and there were literally hundreds and hundreds of properties — both homes and apartment buildings — that were torn down, and all that remains are the swaths of vacant land.”

In the past 10 years, the exodus of Black families has continued in Chicago, which was once a prime destination for Black Americans fleeing the violence and racism of the Jim Crow South. West Englewood and Austin have lost the most Black residents in the past 10 years, according to the 2020 census.

The Chicago Sun-Times shared the stories of Black Chicagoans who had left the city and how their lives improved — but is there a way to stop this 30-year-decline in population?

Community leaders say in order to bring Black residents back, the city must devote more resources to closing gaps in homeownership, wages and life expectancy between Black and white Chicagoans, though admittedly it will be no easy feat.

Simpkins said there has been “significant investment” happening in Greater Englewood in the past six years, and he hopes people will notice the positive change happening already.

That includes the opening of Englewood Square retail center at 63rd and Halsted streets — home to a Whole Foods Market, a health clinic and clothing stores. The city also has helped create affordable housing, with the new Montclare Senior Residence of Englewood, 6332 S. Green St., and Hope Manor Village Veterans Housing, 6002 S. Halsted St. And in May, the city advanced a $20.9 million plan from developer Keith B. Key Enterprise to bring more affordable housing along Halsted Street.

Simpkins said those investments should be celebrated, but homeownership is truly the way to bring residents back to Greater Englewood, which includes both the Englewood and West Englewood community areas — and Chicago at large.

“Homeownership is critically important when you are talking about a neighborhood like Englewood because homeownership not only removes blight and improves the neighborhood sort of physically, it also is an opportunity for families to create generational wealth since that is the main driver in America for families to do so,” he said.

Boosting homeownership also drives up the neighborhood’s density — key to a thriving community, because homeownership increases foot traffic along the neighborhood’s commercial strip. There can’t be one without the other, Simpkins added.

Research from the Institute for Housing Studies shows predominantly Black census tracts in Chicago saw a loss of homeowner households from 2010 to 2019. The number of owner-occupied households in Black neighborhoods dropped 13.6%, compared to a 2.8% decrease for the entire city.

Despite the decrease in residents, Bradly Johnson said he has never felt more hopeful about Austin’s future, particularly because of collaborations between various community organizations.

Johnson, director of external affairs for BUILD Inc., said Black residents have been leaving not just Austin but the entire city for opportunities elsewhere, while others want to get away from violence. Still, he points to a 70-page quality-of-life plan for Austin that he and other community organizations worked on as an example of how the West Side community can move forward.

The plan lays out ideas ranging from a manufacturing training center to helping residents get better-paying jobs to training parents to become involved in local school councils.

“If we could create the opportunity to do something creative to increase homeownership and access to homeownership, to new business development and incubation, education and also help Black residents get a foothold in the trades, which are pretty much homogenous because of the unions and historically how they are set up,” Johnson said. “If we could address those things, I think that you’ll see a turnaround in the Black population.”

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Yolanda Anderson and her family left Austin after their iconic pink and white Victorian home was sold earlier this year. Anderson said her family left their beloved house after they were unable to secure funds to do the extensive renovations needed at the Austin property. It’s one reason why Black residents have left some Chicago neighborhoods.

Sharif Walker thinks collaboration between organizations is how communities like Austin begin to see quality of life improve for Black residents.

Walker, president and CEO of Bethel New Life, said his non-profit organization, which provides affordable housing for seniors, worked with other organizations to create a community garden that produced fresh vegetables. Walker said they also teamed up to do cooking demonstrations for the seniors in their buildings.

It’s one step toward reducing the life expectancy gap between Black and white residents in Chicago, Walker said.

Black residents in Chicago on average live 71.4 years, compared to 80.6 years for non-Black city residents, according to a report released earlier this year by the Chicago Department of Public Health.

Nicole Acree, 29, grew up in Austin but moved to Atlanta to start her professional career. She has deep ties to Chicago’s West Side and would like return there one day to bring the arts and music programming she thinks is necessary to help younger generations thrive.

“I want people to realize that what we have could truly be magical if we all come together as one city, not just multiple sides; but if we come together as one city, we could really change some things,” she said.

Jesse Howe and Andy Boyle contributed to the data analysis for this report.

Elvia Malagon’s reporting on social justice and income inequality is made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust.

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Saturday night, the Chicago Bulls hosted the Miami Heat and fans got a glimpse at what might unfold should these teams meet in the playoffs down the road. A day after a convincing win over the Orlando Magic, the Bulls ran into a difficult task. The Heat provided the Bulls with one of their toughest […] Playoff preview between Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat was intense – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & MoreRead More

At least one person was killed and 22 others wounded in shootings in Chicago since Friday evening. | Sun-Times file

A person was found shot to death Saturday night in Avalon Park on the South Side.

At least one person was killed and a 16-year-old boy among 22 others wounded in citywide shootings since Friday 5 p.m.

In the weekend’s only fatal attack so far, A person was shot to death Saturday night in Avalon Park on the South Side. The male, between 18 to 35 years old, was found under a viaduct about 7:30 p.m. in the 8100 block of South Anthony Avenue, Chicago police said. He was found with a gunshot wound to the head and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said. His name hasn’t been released.
In nonfatal attacks, A 16-year-old boy was shot while buying drugs in Humboldt Park Saturday afternoon. The teen boy walked into a residence to buy drugs about 6 p.m. in the 3300 block of West Beach Avenue when two males pulled out a gun and shot him, police said. He was struck in the leg and drove himself to Swedish Hospital in good condition, police said.
About three hours later, a man and woman were walking in the 6900 block of South Campbell Avenue when they were both struck by gunfire, police said. The woman, 32, was shot in her foot and the 37-year-old man was shot multiple times in his chest, arm and leg, police said. The man was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where he was in critical condition, and the woman was taken to Holy Cross Hospital, where she was in good condition, police said.

At least 19 others were wounded by gunfire in Chicago since Friday 5 p.m.

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