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The NFL season started, how many of you even noticed?
I can’t remember the last time I was more captivated by the Chicago Cubs than watching the Chicago Bears season opener. And against the Packers, mind you. But that is the case this season, and will be for a solid month of the NFL regular season. The Bears still have their fans, but Chicago is still a Cubs’ town this September.
To be brutally honest, I think I’ve started talking about the Bears’ season shortly after the MLB trade deadline the past four or five years. I would occasionally flip over to the Cubs to see the score, but Bears football would take president on a Sunday. That’s not going to be the case this year. I’m hoping to not fully invest a Sunday into a Bears game until sometime in November.
This week alone features a four-game set with the Pirates followed by three with the Cardinals. It might be even more amazing to try and find the last time the Cubs and Pirates were playing a meaningful game in September that wasn’t for the higher draft pick. Instead, the series will go a long way to decide who’s hosting the one game Wild Card playoff.
Per usual, September is still a chance to see some of the Cubs young talent. But instead of it being September call-ups in meaningless games, its several Rookie of the Year candidates and key pieces of a team that has defied the experts in making their run at the postseason a year early.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m still excited for the Bears and the NFL season. But it’s hard to slide the Cubs to the back burner with this team. The excitement level building within Wrigley is contagious. Clinching the “playoff” spot–meaning one of the two Wild Card spots–will be exciting, but that’s not what the Cubs are settling for. They’re looking to bring playoff baseball back to Wrigley Field, and to keep it there for a few weeks.
Sorry Bears, I’ll keep an eye on you though. If at least for my fantasy team. Fantasy football waits for nobody. Not even the Cubs.