I certainly won’t proclaim any kind of confidence in the Cubs’ bullpen right now, nor will I say it was absolutely unthinkable that Matthew Boyd, who was dominating and still under 90 pitches, shouldn’t have started the 8th inning. But when Boyd walked Garrett Mitchell, the tying run, to open the frame, that obviously should’ve been it for his day. Unfortunately, it wasn’t – Boyd also got to face righty Joey Ortiz, who doubled, and then Ryan Zeferjahn was pulled into a dirty inning from which he could not escape.

It really sucks that it played out that way, not only for the loss – freaking obviously – but also because Matthew Boyd was at his best until the 8th, using all of his pitches to great effect (the changeup in particular was giving the Brewers fits today). Exactly how you hoped he would look and what you hoped he could give you for seven innings.

So Boyd’s day ends up disappointment. And Zeferjahn’s recently-growing confidence takes a hit.

Things got worse from there, as Jacob Webb couldn’t hold it to a one-run game, meaning that Pete Crow-Armstrong’s homer in the 9th was … meaningless.

The Ankin Law: “Making it Personal” Player of the Game is either Matthew Boyd or Pete Crow-Armstrong, but in both cases it actually hurts to think about their day with the game winding up the way it did.

Full Box Score.

Enjoy the sights, sure, but also make sure to enjoy the sound:

Pedro Ramírez puts the Cubs on the board with a solo shot 🔥 pic.twitter.com/zbeMrLYsEX

— Marquee Sports Network (@WatchMarquee) September 7, 2026

Before the 2023 and 2024 seasons, I wrote this preseason post and predicted the Bears to go 12-5 in each of those campaigns. Obviously, that didn’t happen. Really, the opposite pretty much took place. Last season, I predicted a 9-8 performance in Ben Johnson’s inaugural season in Chicago, and, well, that didn’t happen either! As we know, Johnson’s squad went 11-6, won the NFC North, and fell just short in overtime of their Divisional Round matchup with the Rams.

So this year, I’ll naturally conduct the hype train, right?! Nope. Not doing it. We’re staying reserved, calm, and down the middle. Maybe. It’ll probably be a good season, but the schedule is tough, and replicating last year’s11-6 performance might be a tall task. Let’s try to predict some games.

Week 1: Bears at Panthers (FOX): Win

It’s the upset of the century that the Bears aren’t starting the season in primetime in some form, but I’ll take it. I really like a ho-hum Sunday at Noon kickoff against a Panthers team that has a lot of holes.

Record: 1-0.

Week 2: Bears vs Vikings (FOX): Win

I don’t really know what to expect from Minnesota’s offense this year. While their defense is always competitive and they have Justin Jefferson, I just don’t know what they’ll get from Kyler Murray. Let’s take the home opener.

Record: 2-0.

Week 3: Bears vs Eagles (Monday Night Football on ESPN/ABC): Loss

I’m not sure the Eagles will be the better football team this season, but they’ll be out for revenge after last year’s Black Friday matchup in Philly, and they’ve started fast in recent years.

Record: 2-1.

Week 4: Bears vs Jets (FOX): Win

Coming off a loss, you can’t lose to the Jets.

Record: 3-1.

Week 5: Bears at Packers (FOX): Win

I’m done predicting the Bears to lose to the Packers. Most likely no Micah Parsons in the lineup for Green Bay. They’re a different team without him.

Record: 4-1.

Week 6: Bears at Falcons (FOX): Win

Not sure who’ll be under center for Atlanta in this one, but their options aren’t great.

Record: 5-1.

Week 7: Bears vs Patriots (Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime): Win

I’m a firm believer that the Patriots are in for a big regression this season. They played no one on their way to a Super Bowl appearance and got stomped when they finally played a good team in the Seahawks.

Record: 6-1.

Week 8: Bears at Seahawks (Monday Night Football on ESPN/ABC): Loss

Seattle is going to be really good again. Monday Night Football in that environment is tough for anyone.

Record: 6-2.

Week 9: Bears vs Buccaneers (Sunday Night Football on NBC): Win

I like Tampa’s roster, but it felt like Todd Bowles lost the group a bit last season. I think the Bears will be better.

Record: 7-2.

Week 10: Bye

Can’t lose this one!

Record: 7-2.

Week 11: Bears vs Saints (FOX): Win

New Orleans is an improving roster, and I think they’ll be a better team this year. But yeah, have to win this one.

Record: 8-2.

Week 12: Bears at Lions (CBS, Thanksgiving): Loss

I really hope Thanksgiving isn’t ruined this year. But hey, it can’t be worse than two years ago, right? I just hope Ben Johnson remembers his timeouts!

Record: 8-3.

Week 13: Bears vs Jaguars (FOX): Win

If this were down in Jacksonville, I might have flipped it. I think the Jags will be a good team and have a chance to win the AFC South. But at Soldier Field, in the elements, give me Chicago.

Record: 9-3.

Week 14: Bears at Dolphins (CBS): Win

By this point, the Dolphins will be firmly in the race for the top pick in the 2027 NFL Draft.

Record: 10-3.

Week 15: Bears at Bills (Sunday Night Football on NBC): Loss

Really tough road spot. DJ Moore gets his revenge.

Record: 10-4.

Week 16: Bears vs Packers (Christmas Day on Netflix): Win

Can’t let Thanksgiving AND Christmas be ruined!

Record: 11-4.

Week 17: Bears vs Lions (FOX): Loss

There’s a decent chance this game has some pretty big division implications on the line. I think the Lions offense is a terrible matchup for a Bears defense that’s going to struggle at times.

Record: 11-5.

Week 18: Bears at Vikings (FOX): Loss

I wouldn’t be stunned if this were a game with little on the line and Ben Johnson sat a few starters.

There are plenty of shareable anecdotes from this piece in The Athletic by Dan Wiederer, but reading how the defeat still sticks with QB1 was the most relatable.

“It burns,” he said, via The Athletic. “It burns. It’s frustrating. Still.

“It still bothers me today. Every single time that play pops up. Or if the Cole Kmet play pops up, it feels like it was for nothing in a sense.”

Williams threw for 257 yards and two touchdowns in the playoff defeat. His aforementioned touchdown toss to Kmet was an all-time playoff moment that figures to be replayed from now until the end of time. But he also threw three interceptions, including a back-breaker that was intended for DJ Moore that stuck in the craw of fans all offseason long. So, because that magic moment with Kmet came in a Bears loss, the overtime-forcing touchdown pass is firmly in the Rajai Davis Zone in terms of sports highlights.

Playoff Loss Should Fuel Bears QB Caleb Williams

For what it’s worth, I love that the Bears’ quarterback sees that interception as a teachable moment. Seeing Caleb Williams’ perspective on what he learned from that miscue gives us a peek into his mind.

More from Wiederer:

In retrospect, Williams said, he believes that play can be instructive for him, particularly when it comes to his communication process with teammates.

“Yeah,” he said, “just throughout the year, with new plays, old plays, go over every single detail. If something pops in your mind, don’t hold back. Just so that when those moments show up, you’re on the same page with your guys.”

…

Still, Williams has found appropriate perspective. “You change your lens,” he said, “and you figure out it was meant to be. And that it’s going to do me good and it’s going to do us good in the years to come when we get to those moments again.”

To say that this is a big year coming up for Williams would be a grand understatement. Williams established himself as one of the league’s top rising quarterbacks last season. This year, he can cement himself among the league’s best if he can replicate his Year 2 success as a starter in Year 3.

BEN JOHNSON ON CALEB WILLIAMS: HE WANTS TO WIN SUPER BOWLS IN CHICAGO

It would be cool if Caleb Williams got to 4,000 passing yards and became the first Bears quarterback to pull off that feat. And if he can get to 30 touchdown passes, Williams can put his name in the record books once again. However, more than anything, Bears fans want to see their quarterback take their favorite team back to the playoffs and deeper into the postseason. And if Williams has truly learned from his shortcomings, who am I to doubt that he can do that?

I’ve tried not spending too much time thinking about the Bears’ playoff loss to the Rams. However, every once in a while, it crosses my mind.

What if things had gone differently that night? How would we feel about that game had Chicago won? Could the Bears have beaten the Seahawks in Seattle? Or would Chicago’s football team have suffered the same fate as the Rams? At one point during the offseason, friends and I debated if it was better to lose a close one in the Divisional Round or to have made it to the NFC Championship Game and lost in a blowout. No one can really agree on that one.

Thankfully, kickoff for the 2026 NFL regular season is in two days, while we are just six days away from Chicago’s football team kicking off in Week 1 against the Carolina Panthers. I look forward to fully putting the 2025 conversations behind us and embracing what is ahead of us in 2026.

CHECK OUT THE BN BEARS PODCAST: Apple | Spotify | YouTube

Tua Tagovailoa has been named starting quarterback for Week 1https://t.co/67barjCycW pic.twitter.com/l9QwpkUZOA

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) September 7, 2026

Tua Tagovailoa to Start For Falcons In Week 1

When I saw the first breaking news notification, my initial reaction was, “OK, but will he be the starter when the Bears play the Falcons in Week 6?” That is a fair question to ask, mind you. Tagovailoa struggled in his final season with the Miami Dolphins, and it’s not as if he made major waves during training camp. It wouldn’t surprise me if Michael Penix Jr. replaces Tagovailoa before the Bears and Falcons kick off in Atlanta. Would you be surprised?

While Bears opponents are on our mind, I took some time to rank the projected starting quarterbacks on the team’s 2026 schedule:

1. Josh Allen, Bills (Week 15)
2. Drake Maye, Patriots (Week 7)
3. Jordan Love, Packers (Weeks 5, 16)
4. Sam Darnold, Seahawks (Week 8)
5. Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers (Week 9)
6. Jared Goff, Lioms (Weeks 12, 17)
7. Jalen Hurts, Eagles (Week 3)
8. Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars (Week 13)
9. Kyler Murray, Vikings (Weeks 2, 18)
10. Bryce Young, Panthers (Week 1)
11. Tyler Shough, Saints (Week 11)
12. Malik Willis, Dolphins (Week 14)
13. Geno Smith, Jets (Week 4)
14. Tua Tagovailoa, Falcons (Week 6)

18 THOUGHTS ON THE CHICAGO BEARS’ 2026 SCHEDULE

There are some real heavy hitters on this list. Pro Bowlers. Guys who have thrown for 4,000+ yards. Super Bowl winners. MVPs. Playrers with their arrows pointing up. And some still fighting to keep their status as QB1. There are three quarterbacks (Allen, Maye, Goff) who checked in as top-10 quarterbacks according to ESPN’s polling of league executives, coaches, and staffers. Five others (Hurts, Lawrence, Mayfield, Love, Darnold) were honorable mentions who just missed the top 10. In case you’re wondering, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams ranked 10th.

A fun factoid about the list above is that there are five quarterbacks (Mayfield, Goff, Lawrence, Murray, Young) who were taken first overall in their NFL Draft class. In other words, Williams will face five fellow No. 1 overall picks. That should make for some fun storytelling this season.

FIND THE BN BEARS PODCAST HERE: Apple | Spotify | YouTube

Year 1 of the Ben Johnson era was everything we could have hoped for. Eleven wins. A division title. The emergence of a franchise quarterback. Glizzys for everyone. Until it wasn’t when it came to an end at Soldier Field in an overtime loss to the Los Angeles Rams.

That’s in the past now, and 2026 is here. What will it have in store for the Bears? Only time will tell, but I have a feeling we’re going to be getting ready for January football in Chicago once again. Before we get into the preview and prep for Carolina, let’s take a swing at forecasting the season for the Chicago Bears.

Week 1: Bears at Panthers

Chicago heads to Carolina to open the season, and for some reason, I feel like this one will be closer than we would like to imagine. It’s opening weekend, and the Panthers are at home. The Bears will have a target on their back. I think Carolina will keep this one close, but it’s Chicago leaving Charlotte in the win column.

Result: W 24-17

Record: 1-0

Week 2: Bears vs Vikings

Chicago heads home with a 1-0 record and beat the Vikings to move to 2-0 in this one. Again, it’s closer than we would like. Ben Johnson’s offense is going to be excellent this season, and three touchdowns are plausible in any contest on the schedule. Still, Minnesota’s defense is good, and I’ll give them three scores as well against a defense that’s going to have some early-season adjustments to make. Regardless, the Bears escape with a perfect 2-0 record and a big NFC North win.

Result: W 27-20

Record: 2-0

Week 3: Bears vs Eagles (MNF)

The Eagles get their revenge from the Black Friday loss to the Chicago in Philadelphia last season under the lights at Soldier Field. The Bears have a tough schedule, and despite what we would like, they’re not going to win them all. The defense continues to try to figure it out, and Chicago falls to Philly in a nail-biter here.

Result: L 26–23

Record: 2-1

Week 4: Bears vs Jets

After a tough loss to the Eagles, the Bears blow the lowly Jets out to get back into the win column. Johnson’s first head-to-head with his former colleague in Detroit, ex-Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn, goes to Johnson, and Chicago moves to 3-1 on the season and takes two of their three early home games.

Result: W 30-13

Record: 3-1

Week 5: Bears at Packers

Caleb Williams is 3-2 against Green Bay (including a playoff win) in his early career, and he’s going to continue to have success against Chicago’s arch-rival. Still, I have this one going to the Packers at Lambeau Field. I truly hope I’m wrong, but I think the defense is going to be a problem for the Bears in the early going, and Green Bay is going to want this game desperately after the way things played out down the stretch last season.

Result: L 27-20

Record: 3-2

Week 6: Bears at Falcons

As they did after the loss to Philly, the Bears bounce back here against the Falcons, this time in closer fashion, sneaking one out on the road in Atlanta to get back in the win column ahead of a huge stretch of primetime games against excellent teams.

Result: W 26-23

Record: 4-2

Week 7: Bears vs Patriots (TNF)

The Bears enter their Week 7 matchup against the Patriots having taken care of business against teams they should beat, but looking to scratch the itch against true contenders with tight losses to the Eagles and Packers. They do so on short rest against New England on Thursday Night Football, with Caleb Williams outdueling Drake Maye in a meeting of the top two quarterbacks taken in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Result: W 24-21

Record: 5-2

Week 8: Bears at Seahawks (MNF)

Chicago can’t make it back-to-back wins over the league’s reigning conference champions under the lights, losing to Seattle in the PNW on Monday Night Football. A possible NFC title game preview heartbreakingly goes to the Seahawks this time around.

Result: L 24-17

Record: 5-3

Week 9: Bears vs Buccaneers (SNF)

This one feels like it’s going to be a Caleb Williams-Baker Mayfield air raid duel, with Williams throwing for four scores as Chicago bounces back from a tough loss to Seattle, something they’ve done following each of their three losses thus far in these projections, and take a 6-3 record and solid momentum into their Week 10 bye week.

Result: W 28-24

Record: 6-3

Week 10: BYE WEEK

The early bye week was perfectly timed for Johnson’s first season in Chicago last year, and the same can be said for their Week 10 bye this season, with the team needing a reset period after a rigorous first half of the schedule that featured multiple potential playoff previews.

Week 11: Bears vs Saints

Well-rested, at home, and facing an inferior opponent for a change, Chicago comes out of the bye week landing a huge knockout punch to the New Orleans Saints. The offense thrives, scoring its most points of the season, and the defense holds the Saints to two scores.

Result: W 31-14

Record: 7-3

Week 12: Bears at Lions

The Detroit Lions swept their former offensive coordinator in his first season in Chicago, and you know he has this one circled on his calendar. Johnson gets his revenge and his first win over Dan Campbell as the Bears make it back-to-back 30-point offensive performances out of the bye week.

Result: W 30-21

Record: 8-3

Week 13: Bears vs Jaguars

With momentum and some extra rest after a Thanksgiving Day victory over the Lions, the Bears remain undefeated out of the bye week and win their fourth in a row, dating back to their victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Result: W 27-20

Record: 9-3

Week 14: Bears at Dolphins

Let the good times roll. Chicago heads to South Beach and steals a victory in overtime against the Dolphins in a sloppier-than-we-would-like victory over Miami to move into double digits in the win column for the second time in as many tries under Johnson.

Result: W 23-20 (OT)

Record: 10-3

Week 15: Bears at Bills

Chicago’s five-game winning streak comes to an end in Buffalo. The defense had been playing well, holding opponents to three touchdowns or less for a month, but Josh Allen and the Bills are a different animal, and it shows in this one. DJ Moore scores a pair of touchdowns in his revenge game, and the Bears get a wake-up call before the final stretch of the season and an NFC North threesome of contests.

Result: 30-24

Record: 10-4

Week 16: Bears vs Packers (Christmas Day on Netflix)

Christmas Day. Rivalries uniforms. Caleb Williams at Soldier Field against the Packers. He won a pair of games against the Packers at Soldier Field last season, and with a bad taste in their mouth from the Lambeau loss earlier in the season, Chicago tops the Packers by a field goal and ends Green Bay’s chances of winning the NFC North on Christmas with Williams serving as the Grinch of Green Bay.

Result: W 24-21

Record: 11-4

Week 17: Bears vs Lions

Riding the momentum of ending the Packers’ hopes of reclaiming the NFC North on Christmas, Johnson hands another loss to his former boss, and the Bears clinch their second straight NFC North title under Johnson, doing so at Soldier Field against his former team.

Result: W 27-23

Record: 12-4

Week 18: Bears at Vikings

With the NFC North clinched, the Bears are fighting for the No. 1 seed in the conference. Unfortunately, Minnesota picks up a win to close the regular season, dropping Chicago to 12-5 and putting them behind Seattle in the conference standings, with the Seahawks winning 12 games and holding the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Bears. I have the Rams winning 13 games, with the Bears’ losses to the Seahawks and to Minnesota proving costly, dropping them to the third seed in the NFC playoffs. Chicago still hosts its Wild Card matchup at Soldier Field for the second straight season with a 12-5 record and another division title.

Result: L 27-20

Record: 12-5

Go Cubs. Happy Labor Day.

Chicago Cubs Lineup:

1. Pete Crow-Armstrong, CF
2. Seiya Suzuki, DH
3. Alex Bregman, 3B
4. Tyrone Taylor, LF
5. Nico Hoerner, SS
6. Matt Shaw, RF
7. Carson Kelly, C
8. BJ Murray, 1B
9. Pedro Ramirez, 2B

Craig Counsell is not messing around today, with all of his extra righties getting into action. That includes Matt Shaw in right field (with Seiya Suzuki at DH), Tyrone Taylor in left (Ian Happ on the bench), and BJ Murray at first base (Michael Busch on the bench).

The first two were largely expected; the third is a little new (but maybe overdue). It’s also just plainly logical, as Busch is weaker against lefties *and* we’ve got a traditional split lefty on the mound for Milwaukee, in Robert Gasser.

vsLHH: .168/.264/.308 (.260 wOBA)
vsRHH: .289/.346/.483 (.361 wOBA)

With splits that significant, how can you not try to sneak another righty in there, right?

Milwaukee Brewers Lineup:

1. TBA

Pitching Matchup:

Chicago Cubs: Matthew Boyd, LHP

Boyd didn’t exactly dominate the Brewers last week, but he held his own: 5.1 IP, 7H, 3ER, 1BB, 3K. Unfortunately, that was not enough to help the Cubs hold on for a win, but you’d probably take the same results again today. Especially because the Cubs really should have an easier time hitting Robert Gasser than they did last week.

And I say that not only because it’s always easier to hit a pitcher you just saw recently (it’s ALMOST like replicating the third time through the order thing), but also because … they should have hit him in the first place!

But we’ll get to him in a second. As for Boyd, he had a little bump in the road a few starts back, with back-to-back stinkers against the Cardinals and Mariners. But he bounced back nicely against the D-Backs and ultimately did well enough against the Brewers like I said.

He’ll be the third starter used by the Cubs in the postseason. Let’s hope he stays healthy and sharp until then.

Milwaukee Brewers: Robert Gasser, LHP

The Cubs lineup did chase Robert Gasser after just 4.1 innings last week, leaving with three runs (two earned) on the board, but that just wasn’t enough against their most mediocre pitcher: 4.57 ERA (4.36 FIP). With Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson looming on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Cubs MUST get to Gasser early and often.

It would help, in fact, if they scored SO MANY runs that Craig Counsell did not need to use his bullpen. That’s what I’m hoping for, foolish or not.

As a reminder, Gasser has SIGNIFICANT lefty/righty splits, with righties absolutely torching him compared to lefties. Cubs also have a handful of lefty-mashers in their lineup. So … again, I say: Hit this freakin’ dude. Come on.

Broadcast Info:

• First Pitch: 1:10 pm CT
• How to Watch Today’s Cubs Game: MARQ
• How to Listen to Today’s Cubs Game: 104.3 The Score
• Matchup: Chicago Cubs (81-63) vs Milwaukee Brewers (88-56)

Cubs vs. Brewers – Key Injuries:

Cubs vs. Brewers – loanDepot Park Weather Report

Location: Milwaukee, WI
Temperature: Dome (not sure if open or closed)
Wind: Dome (not sure if open or closed)

• Happy Game Week! We’ve officially made it. A busy offseason, a newsy training camp, and a mildly entertaining preseason are officially behind us. Woo-hoo! This week marks my 10th season running the show at BN Bears. It is also my 12th year writing here at Bleacher Nation. It has been quite the journey following four head coaches (plus an interim), seven different offensive coordinators, and 10 different starting quarterbacks. That said, I’m happy you’re here. Thanks for joining us! Here’s hoping the Ben Johnson-Caleb Williams era brings us a head coach-quarterback situation that doesn’t need to be freshened up for a while.

• Arisa Pensy (Bears Wire) snags a good quote from wide receiver Kalif Raymond, who had this to say about teammate Jahdae Walker:

“Watching him going back to track practices against Tennessee, even when it’s hot and everyone’s tired, Jahdae is out there screaming, ‘I do this!’ His energy is infectious. He kept our drill going at the end of practice by making plays, and seeing that on special teams gets everyone hyped. Plus, half the touchdown celebrations coming this season? You can thank Jahdae because he sets the foundation for all the cool dance moves.”

FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA: Facebook | Twitter | BlueSky

• The 2026 Bears are going from being the hunter to being the hunted. However, Head Coach Ben Johnson insists that this is a new year (he’s right, ya know!) and is taking an approach to treating this season as if the team is back on the hunt. The mental trick of putting yourself in a hunter’s mentallity instead of retreating into the state of the hunted, is a good way to try to create motivation in the year to come. That said, you need players who carry that energy. Walker seems to be one of those types of players.

• If you want to know more about the playcallers around the NFL, this ESPN piece has a good rundown as it sets the table for the upcoming season. It includes this anecdote about the Bears’ head coach:

Johnson is one of a few head coaches in the NFL who installs his own run game, a unit that ranked third (144.5 yards per game) during his inaugural season in Chicago. QB Caleb Williams set the Bears’ single-season passing record (3,942 yards) in his first year working with Johnson, which coincided with significant operational changes on offense. In 2025, Williams was under center at the fifth-highest rate in the NFL (49%), and the offense ranked No. 2 in play-action usage (32%) and 10th in motion before or at the snap (65%).

• Cronin also notes that the Bears used play-action on 31.7 percent of the team’s dropbacks. Only the Los Angeles Rams (35.5%) did it at a higher clip.

• Detroit Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell on quarterback Jared Goff: “I mean, he is massively underrated. This is a quarterback that plays the quarterback position—he knows how to play quarterback. When you gotta have it, [he] can stand in the pocket, make an accurate throw, an accurate read, and that’s what the quarterback position is. And he’s a rare breed of man.” (Sports Illustrated)

• With running back Josh Jacobs’ future with the team uncertain, the Green Bay Packers need someone to step up and take carries. Marshawn Lloyd, a 2024 third-round pick who was a college teammate of Bears QB Caleb Williams, could be one to watch. “I’m ready to play as much as they want me to play,” Lloyd said, via the team’s official website. “I’m excited. It’s a dream come true playing for the Packers, so however much carries I get, however much they put me in the game, I’m ready to go.”

• Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio goes inside Harrison Smith’s last-minute deal to return for another season with the Minnesota Vikings.

• NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has reportedly received a four-year extension. This will keep him running the show through the 2030 season. What will happen first: The expiration of Goodell’s contract or the Bears getting shovels in the ground on a new stadium project?

FIND THE BN BEARS PODCAST HERE: Apple | Spotify | YouTube

• Have you checked out The Hobby yet?

• The Chicago Cubs did not finish the sweep of the Miami Marlins on Sunday. But the Philadelphia Phillies lost, too, so the Cubs’ 1/2-game lead in the NL Wild Card standings remains intact. Michael Cerami previews Chicago’s upcoming series with the Milwaukee Brewers.

• Frank Nazar highlights are featured in Tab Bamford’s BN Blackhawks Bullets.

• NBA Commissioner Adam Silver needs to rethink everything before the league’s ownership chaos gets worse, writes Alex Kirschenbaum at BN Bulls.

More Bears From Bleacher Nation: Go Ad-Free | Subscribe to the BN Newsletter

But the money getting thrown around in the league has been enormous. As of this writing, the Blackhawks are the only team in the league to sign multiple players to contracts north of $9M per this offseason. However, since the start of the summer we’ve seen 12 new contracts written with an AAV of at least $9M. That number doesn’t include new contracts for Blue Jackets center Adam Fantilli or Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier, who are both still waiting for a new deal. If/When the Ducks sign Gauthier, they’ll join the Blackhawks in having two players making more than $10M per season; they matched Leo Carlsson’s $18M AAV offer sheet from the Flyers.

While Byram and Cale Makar are the only new $10M AAV defensemen this summer, that doesn’t mean money wasn’t spent on the blue line. And, as we’ve talked about previously, the Blackhawks have a long list of players to get signed next summer. Perhaps no player on the Blackhawks’ roster has likely benefitted more form this summer’s skyrocketing salaries than Wyatt Kaiser, who will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer.

Wyatt Kaiser’s Blackhawks Contract Market

Kaiser is entering the second year of a two-year contract that carries a modest $1.7M AAV. He appeared in a career-high 77 games last year and saw his ice time climb to 19:37 per night. I will note that his ice time climbed to an average of 20:53 per game in 20 appearances after March 1 last year. It was his first full season in the NHL, and Kaiser established himself as an NHL regular.

Which makes this coming season an important one for both Kaiser and the organization.

He’s still fairly young; Kaiser is still three NHL seasons away from unrestricted free agency. That’s something to keep in mind when we start talking about his next contract. The trend for many young defensemen — and forwards for that matter — this summer has been to sign a contract that either takes them up to their UFA summer or one year into UFA. Kaiser’s UFA summer would be 2030.

Which is also a noteworthy timeline because of the reports of planned NHL expansion to Texas in 2029. I previously wrote about how an expansion draft could impact the Blackhawks’ roster construction in the coming years. They will need to start planning for which players might be exposed to an expansion draft in three years when the next wave of contracts start coming.

Let’s look at some comparable players and contracts that were signed this past summer when thinking about Kaiser’s next deal with the Blackhawks.

I’m going to throw out all of the contracts given to players on the other side of their age-30 season because that’s a clear component of the comparison set. Kaiser will play his entire 2026-27 season as a 24 year old. These are the six new contracts written this past summer that will likely be considered when Kaiser and his agent, Ritchie Winter, chat with the Blackhawks’ front office about his third NHL contract:

• Šimon Nemec, Calgary — 5 years, $7.25M AAV
• Pavel Mintyukov, Anaheim — 5 years, $7.2M AAV
• Jamie Drysdale, Philadelphia — 4 years, $6.5M AAV
• Braden Schneider, NY Rangers — 1 year, $5.5M
• Ryan Shea, Pittsburgh — 5 years, $4.00M AAV
• Mario Ferraro, Winnipeg — 3 years, $4.00M AAV

I will note that Mintyukov and Nemec are younger (22), so the long-term play makes sense there. It’s also noteworthy that Nemec, Shea and Ferraro signed their contracts with new teams this summer (Nemec was traded). Drysdale was previously traded from Anaheim to Philadelphia in the deal that landed Cutter Gauthier for the Ducks.

Getting back to the Blackhawks’ roster construction and being mindful of a potential/likely expansion draft, we need to keep in mind that the Hawks will also need to negotiate a new contract with Artyom Levshunov and Sam Rinzel in the coming year. This likely shapes up as a more important season for both of them; they’re both former first-round picks with high expectations. The arrival of Byram should help shelter their usage a bit this year, but they are both skating for a significant raise on their second NHL contracts.

We also need to keep two other defensemen in mind when considering the term for Kaiser. The Blackhawks have more left-handed defensemen on the roster and in the system than their three available lineup spots, which gives us some pause. Xavier Villeneuve, the Hawks’ top pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, is headed to Boston University this season but could be in the mix for an NHL spot in the next 2-3 years. And Kevin Korchinski, another former first-round pick, just signed a modest two-year deal for his second NHL contract.

Looking forward, another strong season as a second-pair defenseman skating around 20 minutes per game could see Kaiser’s value in the $5M range on a contract with enough term to take him to unrestricted free agency in 2030 — which would also have him under contract for an expansion draft in three years.

The good news is the Blackhawks’ payroll isn’t in a bad place and a number in that range isn’t going to hurt the overall program. The long list of young skaters who will need new contracts will likely see some young guys taking mutually beneficial bridge deals that, again, put the Blackhawks in position to continue matriculating some of their top prospects to the NHL level and also gives the Hawks a good idea of their roster whenever that expansion draft becomes a reality.

Commissioner Adam Silver is so focused on maximizing franchises’ bottom line, adding two expansion franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle, overseeing the WNBA’s search for its next commissioner as it too expands, and creating his long-promised NBA Europe affiliate league that it really feels like he’s been steamrolling a lot of the issues clearly hurting the game.

New Owners, New Problems

It all starts with this new wave of owners. Four NBA franchises have been sold since the start of 2025 — and two of those clubs (the Los Angeles Lakers and Minnesota Timberwolves) have already been sold twice!

Both the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics’ new owners approved lopsided blockbuster trades to ditch their own All-NBA superstars, in their primes, rather than pay them bank-breaking maximum salary contract extensions. While Dallas came under fire for offloading Luka Doncic not even a full year after he brought the Mavericks to the 2024 NBA Finals, Boston has somehow managed to pretend that it flipped that same series’ Final MVP, Jaylen Brown, to a division rival because of some analytics flaws.

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia is struggling through flimsy financial woes of his own. His mortgage company is currently underwater.

The Portland Trail Blazers’ new controlling owner Tom Dundon has come under fire for crying poor after buying the club at a $4 billion valuation. Dundon has already slashed and burned his way through the team’s front office, banning two-way players from playoff road games, and undercutting then-interim head coach Tiago Splitter. Of course, the reason Splitter had assumed an interim head coaching role in the first place is that Hall of Fame point guard-turned-head coach Chauncey Billups had been indicted in a federal gambling probe.

Dundon is currently holding the team hostage, as he petitions the city of Portland to use public funds in service of renovating Rose Garden Arena. While Portland greenlit $120 million in public money, Dundon has yet to agree to terms on a new deal — all while ripping the city as being anti-business, potentially (this is speculation by yours truly) as a pretense for a relocation.

And that’s before we even get into the craziness of the two Los Angeles franchises.

Last month, former Lakers owner Mark Walter sold the team after just a year — while being investigated by the Department of Justice for possible financial fraud. The Dodgers could be next, while Walter is furiously scrambling to ditch his stake in Chelsea FC. Los Angeles was valued at $12.5 billion in the deal to an ownership group “led” by Josh Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger, a $2.5 billion uptick. With both Lakers ownership situations, sovereign wealth fund money could have been possibly more involved than any of us know, with Iger acting as something of a figurehead.

On Friday, Pablo Torre of Pablo Torre Finds Out revealed that Walter sold Johnson control in a life insurance company, EquiTrust, and subsequently took on $350 million in debt from Walter’s TV holding company American Media Productions, which runs SportsNet LA and has broadcast rights to the Dodgers and Lakers.

SportsNet, of course, pays the Dodgers — a team in which both Walter and Johnson have a stake (although Johnson’s is a small share) — for exclusive broadcast rights, per JD Jean-Jacques, Matthew Termine, and Sam Koppelman of Hunterbrook. EquiTrust also has over $100 million invested in a fund run by Johnson and his partner Eric Holman (who is the current governor of the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks), JLC Infrastructure. The Hunterbook reporters note that EquiTrust claims these are unaffiliated investments, and suggest that this winds up being seen by regulators as an improper disclosure.

Not to be outdone, Jeanie Buss is suing her five siblings for trying to sell their family’s remaining stake in the Lakers franchise.

L.A. Clippers owner Steve Ballmer has been fined $30 million and banned from his own arena for a year due to his involvement in a scheme to circumvent the league’s salary cap and funnel extra money to all-star Kawhi Leonard under the table. The Clippers have also been docked five consecutive first-round picks, from 2029 through 2033.

New York Knicks ownership also sued the owners of the Toronto Raptors, claiming that an ex-Knicks employee brought “proprietary information” with him to the Raptors. New York, claiming Silver couldn’t be objective due to his relationship with Raptors owner Larry Tanenbaum, took things beyond arbitration and into the courts. The two sides eventually settled.

The new owners need to keep maximizing profits, so naturally ticket prices are rapidly increasing, too.

Adam Silver Can Still Save the NBA

If placating these owners and allowing team valuations to inflate with apparently flippant regard for who’s buying said teams aren’t enough, Silver also doesn’t seem particularly preoccupied with what has happened to his game. He himself doesn’t appear to think watching full games is even necessary anymore, calling the NBA a “highlights-based sport” with a nod to its virality on social media.

The game itself has changed drastically since its ’80s and ’90s heyday. The David Stern-era mandate to police hand-checking starting in 2004-05 has created a scorers’ league, artificially boosting cumulative game tallies and individual players’ output. It’s not unfair to speculate that Michael Jordan would have averaged 45 points a night in the modern NBA. Flopping, of course, has been a direct beneficiary of these generous foul calls. Individual defense has taken a qualitative nosedive during the regular season, creating the highlight-friendly league Silver wants.

A too-punitive hard cap, forced into the new CBA by ownership, has been artificially depressing player wages and forcing the kinds of cost-cutting trades that have seen Luka Doncic and Jaylen Brown get moved pre-emptively.

Still, Silver bringing Ballmer in line (while essentially letting Leonard off the hook with a mild $700K fine and no suspension, likely to appease the NBPA) suggests that he can be assertive with owners when needed. Before these wild ownership moments in recent years, Silver had been stewarding a pretty entertaining product — and the playoffs even now remain an upset-heavy blast, for the most part.

It may behoove Silver to rethink who gets to buy teams. It may be time to embrace a public ownership option, as The Guardian‘s Claire de Lune and ESPN New York’s Ty D. Butler recently discussed.

“I’ve always been a huge proponent of the Green Bay Packers model, where it’s publicly owned,” de Lune observed. “These really are public assets in a lot of ways. Almost every single arena for an NBA team has some level of public funding, public investment. Taxpayers are subsidizing teams either almost entirely or to a great degree in most cases. It really is a public thing.”

Henry Abbott of True Hoop wonders if the harsh Ballmer penalty was at least in part a move made by Silver looking to regain his handle on the league. He may have a point there.

The NBA is flush with unbelievable, undeniable talent. But the game has changed, with a new emphasis on generally uniform, pace-and-space offenses predicated on 3-point shooting.

There are issues on the floor — all fixable, starting with more closely aligning regular season foul allotments to the kinds of calls made in the postseason.

But the biggest problem, right now, might just be this ownership chaos. Adam Silver has managed to specifically keep Clippers owners in check since assuming commissioner duties in 2014. Can he extend that kind of steely-eyed resolve to the rest of the NBA soon?