Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show
Lou Canellis: Packers' reign of success against Bears must end Saturday
08 Jan 2026
Chapter 1: What is the significance of the Bears-Packers wild-card matchup?
I was kind of surprised to see how few times that's happened in the postseason. So I think it's pretty cool. And I've been saying since I got here, I mean, the vision has always been let's have home playoff games at Soldier. And I'm just I'm proud of our guys being able to bring that vision to life this year. And hopefully we can come out and make our fans proud here this weekend.
That's Ben Johnson talking about the upcoming game Saturday night against the Packers. And he would normally be joining us on our Circus Sports hotline, but he's live in our studio. Of course, we broadcast live from the Scores Hyundai Studios, brought to you by your local Hyundai dealers. Happy to sit with Fox 32 sports anchor himself, Luke Kanellis. Come on, man.
Chapter 2: How does Lou Canellis feel about the game being on Saturday instead of Sunday?
Is it only Thursday? On Monday, I was hoping it was Saturday. That's the thing. I'm so happy this game's on Saturday and not Sunday. Let's get to it. Let's get to it. And now we're 48 hours plus out, and I'm just like, can we get there already? And are you happy that it's Saturday night? Yes. When you know the city, not only Soldier Field, but the city will be lathered up.
Chapter 3: What are the broadcasting dynamics for the Bears-Packers game?
oh that part of it too like the videos that everybody was posting after the win people out and about watching the game with friends whoever family such a busy night the last time to do it on a saturday night again i feel like amazon prime was probably wanting the same kind of atmosphere that fox got and fox 32 gets to broadcast the game which is fantastic It's great.
Fox 32 made the call at the beginning of the year to buy the Amazon Prime package, which at that time was one Thursday night game. Actually, it wasn't even Thursday night. It was Black Friday against the Eagles. So we had the game and obviously did great for the Bears.
But at that point, beginning of the season, Sean O'Hare, who makes the programming calls at Fox, he didn't know if the Bears were going to have the type of year that they had. So we knew we had the Black Friday game. And it ended up being a monster matchup against the defending Super Bowl champs. And then you see that it's going to Amazon Prime.
I remember when the schedule came out on Sunday on NBC at halftime. And I said, Amazon Prime, man, I think we can get that game again. So it's so big for us. Layla, let me just go back real quickly, because obviously I was blessed to be part of that 1990s. Bulls championship run for eight years.
And I can't tell you how many times I'd finish up a Bulls game, and I would be so ecstatic and just honored to be at those games sitting with Neil Funk and John Paxson and Tom Borwinkel and whoever was calling the games with us back then, Derek Dickey, who has since passed away. And I would sit right next to Phil, and I mean the United Center or the Chicago Stadium was electric back then.
But in the back of my mind, there was a place called Melvin B's on Rush Street, for those listening, next to the Hunt Club. And I used to hear about how all the bars were going off. And I'd say, man, that would be cool to be in the bar watching the Bulls go to a championship.
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Chapter 4: What role does Jordan Love play in the Bears' strategy against the Packers?
And I know it's going to be great again on Saturday in this town. I will be in studio excited about doing the postgame show because we're doing a pregame show, 1230 to 2, early because Fox has its own pregame show and then the Carolina Rams game. And then immediately after the game, I know you guys are doing a postgame show. I listen when I can to Olin and Pat and Mully.
But we're also doing one on TV where we're going to carry Caleb and Ben Johnson together. and locker room reaction thanks to Cassie Carlson. So it's a big night on Saturday. The city will be up for grabs. That's the environment. I mean, to have it twice. And what's funny is we joke a lot about broadcast crews being biased, and a lot of it isn't jokes. You know, there are some biased crews.
I get that. A lot of times it happens here. I feel like it was... In the Bears' favor the last time. You know, you guys got to host Tom Brady and Kevin Burkhardt and Aaron Andrews and Avli. And here's Kevin Burkhardt talking about the struggle of the 4,000-yard season for a Bears quarterback in the ensuing game. And I'm like, wait a second. It's like they're one of us.
Chapter 5: How important is the Bears' running game for success in the upcoming game?
How do they understand this? Like, this is the exact opposite of being biased against the Bears. They're in this. And they talked about how much fun it was to be a part of that Saturday night game, too. I sat next to him at dinner on Saturday night when they came in, and I said, that pass from Williams to DJ Moore, where does that rank? And he said, best call I've ever had.
He said, it's just ā it was unbelievable. And I said, what I loved about Tom is ā you felt his emotion. There was nothing where, you know, Hey, Caleb didn't do this or Caleb didn't do that. He called it one of the great plays that he has ever seen.
And the one thing about that crew is at least when you get them in a situation, like I was fortunate to be in last Saturday where you're having dinner with the guy with the entire team. And it's a whole crew. They bring 20 to 25 people. They bring producers, directors, cameramen, um, There's no, like, walls. Everyone's just kind of shooting it out there over dinner.
And to feel their excitement calling the Bears game. So Burkhardt said to me, who do you like out of the AFC? And I said, I'm rolling with Buffalo.
Chapter 6: Who are the key players in the Bears' offensive line?
He goes, ah, bad call. I saw him against the Eagles. And I said, no, I think this is Josh Allen's time. He doesn't have Patrick Mahomes in the way anymore. And he said, no, I don't see it. I said, well... Who's coming out of the AFC then? Because it's so wide open. I said, are you going to sit and tell me Denver? Denver with Bo Nix and that young team? And he didn't say that.
You know who he called? Jacksonville? Houston Texans. Yeah, that's right. He said it's the best defense in football. When they were 0-3, I put money on them to win the division. Didn't win, obviously, because Jacksonville held on late. But those two teams both red hot right now. But Houston with that defense.
Chapter 7: What concerns do the hosts have about Ben Johnson's play-calling?
Yeah. That's the kind of defense that has Bears fans jealous, right? Because that's what they're accustomed to if their team is good, is having a defense on that level. And with C.J. Stroud as the quarterback making just enough plays, you feel like they can have a sustained run. Well, what's funny is all three of us picked Buffalo then. That was my preseason pick, was Buffalo against the Rams.
It was my pick even before Mahomes wasn't invited to the playoffs. It was time. And I don't just say that because of the odds. I felt like it was time. And given the gauntlet they had of a season and a playoff last year, it just felt right. But the funny thing is about Houston, they switch offensive coordinators. You know, famously fired their OC in the offseason.
And that offense just looked terrible to start to the point where I had lost any faith in them at all. performing the way that I thought they were going to perform throughout the season. To have this kind of comeback, yeah, that's wild. I find it very interesting that Kevin Burkhardt said that.
I'll tell you what, when they picked up Daniil Hunter, the fine past rusher that was in Minnesota, that's when I said to myself, ooh. They're going to have a really good defense.
Chapter 8: How do injuries impact the Packers' chances against the Bears?
And Clowney as well. Is Clowney in Houston? I haven't seen enough Houston Texan footballers. Jerry, I think the Cowboys briefly picked up Clowney, right? Yeah, I knew that. But who was the other? They got another pass rusher. Well, Hunter was in the top. Wasn't he in the top five in sacks? Yeah, I mean, he was right up there. He really pulled that defense together for Houston.
Anyway, obviously their defense is terrific. Hunter is third. third in the NFL in quarterback sacks. He was a guy that I was hoping the Bears were going to get before they went out and signed Daiwa Dangbo. See why you do that, Lucy. I know. We're all in a good mood here. You're probably thinking of Willie Anderson. We're all feeling good.
Hey, man, as we get into our Bears discussion, Marshall, it's a big deal. It's a big deal on Saturday. You better put pressure on this guy, and if you don't sack him, you better at least make him feel uncomfortable in that pocket, or he will pick you apart. So how is that not...
and you tell me if this is your biggest concern, but it's my biggest concern is I feel like Jordan Love, because of how good he's been. in general, and the fact that he's taking care of the football all season long, minus a two-interception performance against the Broncos team you were just talking about, I just don't have any confidence that they can move him off the market.
I think he can be back there as a statue and be effective. I'm not too old to remember that first matchup and what he was doing with his guys at the line of scrimmage having clear advantages going down the field. He's been terrific this year. And I remember at the beginning of the year, I was watching a lot of preseason games
and guys were saying, this guy is going to be in the MVP talk at the end of the year. And I'm like, wow, I don't see it. I mean, I think I've seen enough of Jordan Love over the last few years, and I don't think he is an MVP-type quarterback. He proved me wrong. He really proved me wrong when healthy, and that's where I needed to give him the benefit. When healthy, he's been pretty spot on.
And my biggest concern for this game is, is the Bears running the football. To me, that's the priority. That is most important because they may get into a shootout with the Packers, and I don't care if it's sleet, snow, rain, and 25 degrees on the lakefront. It could be a shootout, but the Bears need to run the football, control the clock.
and get behind what I think is the MVP of this team, and that's terrific offensive line with those three guys in the middle, and I'm not taking anything away from Darnell Wright or Ozzie Trapillo or Theo Bennett when he was out there, and maybe even they throw Braxton Jones out there for a couple of snaps. Apparently.
Those guys that go guard, center, guard, Jackson, Tooney, and Adalman, they're the MVPs. I couldn't agree more. We were asked the question, well, we create the questions on Five on It, and Ray asked the question yesterday, who was the biggest acquisition for the Bears in the offseason?
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