OT Poll: Based on the Bears discussion

[rocky_warrior]

I wanted to stay out of the Bears / Bears fans discussion (since it was targeted to Packer & Viking fans), but I'm now curious where people on the board stand.  Based on that thread, it may seem that most here dislike the bears & their fans.  However, I have a gut feeling there are a lot of quiet (read - not obnoxious) bears fan on this board. 

Guess we'll find out.

Note: I'm not asking if you think the Bears have any chance on Sunday, just your opinion of them...

[TallTitan34]

I'm not a big football guy (I'm a baseball and basketball guy), but being from Illinois I've always supported the Bears.  Living in Wisconsin, however, has increased my support of the Bears due to my dislike of Packer, Brewers, and Bucks fans.   

[IAmMarquette]

Living in Wisconsin, however, has increased my support of the Bears due to my dislike of Packer, Brewers, and Bucks fans.   

That's weird, Titan, because going to Marquette and living with all those Bears, Cubs, Sox and Bulls fans has made me am even bigger Packers, Brewers and Bucks fan. 

[JetCityWarrior]

Not from Wisconsin or Illinois and I can tell you that both fan bases are about equally as bad, but for different reasons.  With Chicago fans it's the air of superiority or deservedness, with Green Bay fans it's how 'special' their team is...blah.

One thing's for sure, as a majority, both fan groups think their teams are better than they really are.

[MUEng92]

I have a bit of a split personality on the issue of Chicago teams.  I have been a Cub fan since the age of about 5 and a Packer fan shortly after that.

I have to agree with Jet's comments regarding the Chicago air of superiority.  Although, we Cub fans have an air of superiority based on the fact that we are still fans even though the team has sucked are whole lives (and I can say "whole lives", because they basically have sucked during the lifetime of all currently living people!).  Yes, twisted thinking, but it works for us.

From the other side, I am a partial Packer season ticket holder, I have a Brett Favre autographed GBP Yearbook on my office wall, I even married a woman from Green Bay.  But, even I get sick of the coverage of the Packers.  Even though the Packers were good many years ago, I am pretty sure they were not a one team league.  There were other teams back then, so Green Bay doesn't have a monopoly on history.  Plus, even I have been sick of the local and national media talking about Brett Favre like he is on par with Pope John Paul II.  He has been a great football player, but come on.

In the end, I guess "enjoy in moderation" applies to all things except MU basketball and...well lets just leave it at that.

[77fan88warrior]

I am an 88 grad as the moniker indicates. During my four years at MU the Bears beat the Packers 7 of 8 times. As a Bears fan I was shocked by the Packer fans behavior when they beat the Bears in 1984.
I enjoyed the the next three years of Packer beatings very much. The Packers stunk and Forrest (cheap shot)Gregg gave Bears fans a real reason to hate the Packers. The Bears looked like a dynasty and turned out otherwise. Charles Martin definitely aided the Bears in not having their starting quarterback for the playoffs and possible Super Bowl run. Can you imagine if someone body slammed Brett Favre like Charles Martin slammed McMahon? I will admit that the Bears were a cocky bunch and it reflected on their fans. The city of Chicago hadn't won a championship since the early 60's and the fans were excited. I think the Bear fans are much more subdued compared to 85.I refrained from commenting on the other thread based upon subject.  I didn't want to substantiate the accusations and I think the Bear fans did a good job of not hijacking the thread.I also can tell you that every Bears fan I know has nothing but respect for Favre. There are two things we don't like about Favre. Kicking our butts for a lot of years and hearing about his retirement every year. The NFL isn't as exciting as back then due to free agency. The overpowering teams of the past are gone. Teams can turnaround quite quickly.I don't think fans invest as much in their team emotionally or I am just getting older. I just laughed when the Packer fans sent all their email crap after they beat the Bears in the last game of the season. We must not forget that the big city vs. small city inferiority feelings permeate this rivalry like NY vs. Chicago.

[IAmMarquette]

There are two things we don't like about Favre. Kicking our butts for a lot of years and hearing about his retirement every year. The NFL isn't as exciting as back then due to free agency. The overpowering teams of the past are gone. Teams can turnaround quite quickly.I don't think fans invest as much in their team emotionally or I am just getting older. I just laughed when the Packer fans sent all their email crap after they beat the Bears in the last game of the season. We must not forget that the big city vs. small city inferiority feelings permeate this rivalry like NY vs. Chicago.

The retirement talk is not (entirely) Favre's fault. The sports media drums up a lot of that stuff in an attempt to attract more viewers/readers/listeners (and more power to them). Favre's "problem" is that he answers retirement questions the way he answers everything else: honestly. So he doesn't know if he's coming back. The only people that should be affected by that are Favre, his family, and the Green Bay Packers. What good is it for Wisconsin sports media outlets to begin every discussion with speculation on Favre's possible retirement? It's a bit like how ESPN makes a big deal out of every little thing TO does. So he argued with his position coach. Who cares? I'm sure he's not the only one who's ever done so, but they believe (regardless of the popular opinion) that everyone wants to hear every little piece of information regarding Favre (or TO). One of the big stories in Green Bay over the last few weeks was Favre cancelling his country club membership in Green Bay. This is news? Give me a break.

[AlumKCof93]

I've lived in Chicago all my life (except for 4 years at MU) and am a fan of each Chicago team.  I watch every Bears game I can, yet somehow don't have nearly the passion for them than I do for my other rooting interests.  I don't know why, except that the media goes so overboard (and many fans) that it turns me off.  So I will be watching the Marquette game on Sunday and checking in on the Bears instead of the other way around.

By the way, I do follow the Packers and have liked Favre until the past year when we made his retirement a point of discussion by not making up his mind and then calling a press conference when he said he still hadn't made up his mind. 

[77fan88warrior]

I agree with you IAM about the media. The media makes it distasteful for everyone.Take for instance, ESPN being the biggest opponent and promoter of Bobby Knight.

[downtown85]

Not from Wisconsin or Illinois and I can tell you that both fan bases are about equally as bad, but for different reasons.  With Chicago fans it's the air of superiority or deservedness, with Green Bay fans it's how 'special' their team is...blah.

One thing's for sure, as a majority, both fan groups think their teams are better than they really are.

I think fans most often believe their team is better than they really are.  It comes with being a fan. 

However, as to whether these teams are special, one just has to look at the history to know that.  These two teams have been playing each other since  formation of the NFL.  The Packers have never moved  from Green Bay and the Bears moved and change their name only once, in like 1917, from Decatur, IL to Chicago.  The rivalry between these two teams has got to be one of the longest and bitterest in professional sports.  Each generation of players and fans remembers something that one guy did to another whether it is a fan to a fan or a player to a player all the way back.  I particularly remember Charles Martin's "hit" on Jim McMahon in the 80s.  I, being a Bear fan, can remember plenty of cheap shots from Packer players against Bear players but cannot really remember much the other way around.  Maybe that is just part of being a fan, too.

Anyway, such events and many classic games stretch back for nearly a century with the teams having to play each other twice a year.  There are many years when one team is much better than the other but I do believe that Bears vs. Packers is one of the most hardly fought games by both teams in any given season.  The history and the rivalry is really at another level that most AFC teams will never have.  I just don't get all that excited about the face of the "new expanded" NFL with likes of the Tampa Bay Bucs, Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers or whatever they are.   It seems to me to more of a business than something special.   The Packers and Bears are something special, even though I hate the Packers.  GO BEARS!