There’s a new Chicago Bears documentary premiering Wednesday, November 27 at 9:30 PM CST on Comcast SportsNet. “Bears Classics” will be a new, one-hour series that chronicles season-defining games from select eras in Chicago Bears history.
The debut airing will go back in time to Monday night, October 16, 2006 when the Chicago Bears faced the Arizona Cardinals. The famous “THEY ARE WHO WE THOUGHT THEY WERE” Dennis Green rant game. The four episode series will be narrated byBill Kurtis. Comcast SportsNet’s Chuck Garfien is the documentary series writer/director and Willie Parker is the series producer.
The first episode of Bears Classics (entitled “Night of the Ridiculous”) will take viewers back to that memorable “Monday Night Football” game in October of 2006. The Chicago Bears were off to a 5-0 start that season, but endured some early season struggles offensively. These struggles were exposed to a prime time MNF audience watching the Cardinals take advantage of those problems by taking a 20-0 lead into the half. However, thanks to some highly-motivational halftime speeches in the locker room, the Chicago Bears defensive and special teams units were the ones who came up big as they combined for an unforgettable second-half performance, highlighted by Brian Urlacher’s 25-tackle showcase, a forced fumble that led to a score, and Chicago Bears rookie Devin Hester’s stunning 82-yard punt return TD that propelled the Bears to a 24-23 victory. This unexpected Chicago Bears victory also struck a nerve with Cardinals Head Coach Dennis Green, as his “They are who we thought they were!” post-game press conference rant added to the lore of this remarkable moment in Chicago Bears history.
In addition to the expert narration by Kurtis, among the numerous Chicago Bears players/media/execs interviewed in this first episode of Bears Classics include candid and honest discussion from the following individuals:
· Brian Urlacher (former Bears linebacker)
· Lance Briggs (Bears linebacker)
· Charles “Peanut” Tillman (Bears cornerback)
· Rex Grossman (former Bears quarterback)
· Muhsin Muhammad (former Bears wide receiver)
· Olin Kreutz (former Bears center)
· Kurt Warner (former Cardinals quarterback)
· Scott Player (former Cardinals punter)
· George McCaskey (Bears Chairman)
· John “Moon” Mullin (CSNChicago.com Bears “Insider”)
BRIAN URLACHER on center Olin Kreutz addressing the team at halftime: “I remember halftime. Olin Kreutz stood up and we were like ‘what’s going on here?’ Olin said ‘we’re gonna win this f-in’ game’…then he was yelling ‘WE’RE GONNA WIN THIS F-in’ GAME!”
BRIAN URLACHER on his 25-tackle performance: “I didn’t feel like I was getting blocked, and if you watch the film, I didn’t get blocked a lot. There were times when they had guys on me, but I didn’t feel like I was getting blocked a whole lot in the second half.”
OLIN KREUTZ on Cardinals Head Coach Dennis Green’s infamous post-game rant: “I think that’s what made that game legendary was just his comments after the game…I mean he went crazy.”
LANCE BRIGGS on Green’s post-game rant: “It’s a moment I think will outlive everyone. Years from now, we’ll look back and say moments in sports history, and you’ll see Denny Green. And not only will you see what he said, but they’ll show that game.”
Comcast SportsNet will also re-air this episode of Bears Classics on Saturday, December 7 at 9:00 PM and on Wednesday, December 11 at 11:00 PM. Details regarding December’s premiere episode of Bears Classics will be announced in the coming weeks.
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. He’s also an analyst for multiple news talk radio stations across the country; with regular weekly segments on NBC and Fox Sports Radio. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks) and RSS Catch him Tuesdays talking Illini and Northwestern for KOZN 1620 The Zone, Fridays talking Chicago Bears for WAOR 95.7 The Fan