Chicago Sports: State of the Union, Version 9.0
Our latest look at where the Bears, Blackhawks, Bulls, Cubs, Fire, Sky, and White Sox stand today, and where they might land tomorrow.
THERE ARE ONLY THREE CHICAGO professional sports teams playing regular season games right now, those being the Bulls, the Blackhawks, and the Fire.
Yet even though they’re in action and (theoretically) fighting for postseason positions, the Bulls, the Blackhawks, and the Fire are as stagnant as the four other Windy City teams who are waiting for their respective seasons to start.
That, in a nutshell, is the state of the union. But we don’t do nutshells. We go nuts.
Chicago Sports Stuff’s S.O.T.U., is our monthly(ish) look at what we’ve seen from our franchises in the last 30(ish) days, and what the following four(ish) weeks might have in store. The whole mess will be quantified by the official Chicago Sports Stuff-O-Meter (CSSOM) score, which is compiled utilizing no algorithm, analytics, or metrics whatsoever, just my eyeballs and gut.
So let’s get eyeballing and gutting.
CHICAGO BEARS
FUN FACTS:
New head coach Ben Johnson filled out his coaching staff.
Cut defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker and tight end Gerald Everett.
Virginia McCaskey, daughter of George Halas and owner of the Chicago Bears, passed away at the age of 102.
PRESENT:
Ben Johnson wasted no time stamping his imprint on Halas Hall, hiring a collection of coaches unlike any group we’ve seen in Chicago. Some notables:
Declan Doyle, offensive coordinator: The former Denver Broncos tight ends coach is a mere 29-years-old, making him younger than 14 of the grizzled vets currently listed on Chicago’s roster.
Antwaan Randle El, wide receivers coach / assistant head coach: Johnson poached the former wide receiver from his ex-team, the Detroit Lions, giving the Chicago locker room a feisty football nerd.
Eric Bieniemy, running backs coach: The ex-NFL RB is an often-overly-hard-nosed disciplinarian, which is why he’s a boom-or-bust hire.
Al Harris, defensive backs coach / pass game coordinator: Hopefully this former Packer will be more competent than the last former Packer to grace the Chicago sidelines, justifiably maligned ex-OC Luke Getsy.
As a whole, Johnson’s lieutenants are young and hungry, unlike Matt Eberflus’ group, who performed as if they were old and stated.
One of the hallmarks of a great manager is the ability to identify and attract quality talent. It feels like Johnson has done just that.
CSSOM Score: 10
FUTURE:
It’s the NFL’s silly season, a couple of months filled with Combine evaluations, free agent rumors, mock drafts — and very little action.
If we go by what the pundits and fans have to say, the Bears will head into training camp having signed top offensive lineman Trey Smith and top defender Josh Sweat; having traded for Myles Garrett and Micah Parsons, and having dealt their way into the number two draft spot, where they’ll pick stud EDGE Abdul Carter.
See? Silly. Stay tuned.
CSSOM Score: 8
Total CSSOM Score: 18 ➡️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 18 )
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS
FUN FACTS:
As of this writing, the Hawks are 17-34-7. They sit in last place in the Central Division.
Ryan Donato leads the team in goals with 19.
Connor Bedard leads the team in assists and points with, respectively, 33 and 49.
Goalie Petr Mrazek has a record of 10-19-2 with a goals against average of 3.33.
PRESENT:
After losing 13 of their last 16, that whole, “The Hawks will be awesome when Bedard gets some help!” thing is beginning to ring hollow.
Both ends of the rink must accept equal blame: The defense and netminders have allowed 203 goals, the third-most in the league. while the offense has managed just 153 goals, the fourth-least in the league.
Head coach Anders Sorensen’s crew is in free fall, hard stop, avert your eyes.
CSSOM Score: 1
FUTURE:
Four of Chicago’s next five opponents are middle-of-the-standings dwellers, so maybe they’ll break their four-game losing streak in the next week or two. But considering they’ve allowed a total of 18 goals during said streak, one should temper one’s hopes.
Oh, breaking news: The Blackhawks won’t make the postseason.
CSSOM Score: 1
Total CSSOM Score: 2 ⬇️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 5)
CHICAGO BULLS
FUN FACT:
As of this writing, Chicago boasts a record of 23-36, putting them last in the Central Division and tenth in the Eastern Conference.
If the season ended today, the Bulls would have a spot in the Play-In Tournament
Nikola Vucevic leads the team in points and rebounds with, respectively, 19.1 and 10.3.
Josh Giddey leads the team in assists with 6.5.
Chicago traded Zach LaVine in a deal that netted them a 2025 first round draft pick, Kevin Huerter, Tre Smith, and Zach Collins.
PRESENT:
This is far from the worst Bulls team I’ve ever seen — I lived through rosters built and led by Tim Floyd and Jim Boylan — but it’s among the most frustrating, because from where we’re all sitting, it looks like the front office DGAF.
The LaVine trade, while necessary, didn’t improve the team, nor did it unclog their salary cap situation, nor did it land them any notable draft capital, nor did it solve their roster balance issues — all of which tells us that the top brass either doesn’t care or doesn’t think.
CSSOM Score: 2
FUTURE:
Like the Hawks, the Bulls are plummeting down, down, down, having dropped 11 of their last 15. Unlike the Hawks, though, the Bulls are in a league that honors mediocrity, and barring a hot streak by the Brooklyn Nets — a team in nearly as much disarray as Chicago — Billy Donovan’s bunch will be heading to the Play-In Tournament for the third consecutive season.
The scary thing is that this team has enough talent to sneak out of the Play-In and into the for-realsies postseason, where they’ll be promptly be annihilated by the buzzsaw Cleveland Cavaliers.
Right now, the franchise’s sole goal should be landing a high draft pick. It isn’t. Sigh.
CSSOM Score: 2
Total CSSOM Score : 4 ⬇️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 7)
CHICAGO CUBS
FUN FACTS:
Signed four veteran relievers to minor league deals: Brandon Hughes, Trevor Richards, Brad Keller, and A.J. Puckett.
Inked 40-year-old first- and third-basemen Justin Turner to a one-year deal.
Undefeated in seven spring training games, with six wins and a tie.
PRESENT:
The Cubs have owned spring training.
Their +24 run differential is tops in the league, they’ve scored seven-plus runs in four of their six wins, and the bullpen looks smashing. So hope springs eternal.
Then again, a scary-good preseason doth not a scary-good regular season make, so expectations must be tempered. That said, let’s enjoy it while we can.
CSSOM Score: 7
FUTURE:
Baseball minds way better than mine have the Cubs winning somewhere in the neighborhood of 86 games, but their high-flying spring has one dreaming of 90-plus wins and a Central Division title. Or at least a better finish than the Cardinals.
Opening Day is exactly one month from today, so LFG.
CSSOM Score: 5
Total CSSOM Score: 12 ⬆️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 9)
CHICAGO FIRE
FUN FACTS:
Lost their opening match of the season in Columbus by a score of 4-2.
Their next four matches pit them against D.C. (home), Dallas (road), Toronto (road), and Vancouver (road).
PRESENT:
It wasn’t super-nice of MLS to send CFFC to Ohio for Opening Day. That said, Homegrown hero Brian Gutiérrez showed out, managing a pair of goals. But his brace wasn’t enough to overcome a lousy defensive showing in which the Crew’s Diego Rossi punched in a couple of first-half scores.
We’ll probably be seeing these sorts of results — nice individual performances, crap work across the pitch — for the rest of the calendar year, so get used to it.
CSSOM Score: 1
FUTURE:
Three of the Fire’s next four matches are against non-playoff teams, so it’s possible the club can get out of the first month of the season with their noses above water. Not their whole heads. Just their noses.
Or they can play down to the competition — something they’ve done consistently over the last five seasons — and head into April winless.
CSSOM Score: 1
Total CSSOM Score: 2 ➡️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 2)
CHICAGO SKY
FUN FACTS:
Acquired 28-year-old guard Ariel Atkins from Washington.
Acquired 32-year-old guard Rebecca Allen from Connecticut.
Signed 29-year-old guard Kia Nurse.
Signed 36-year-old guard Courtney Vandersloot
PRESENT:
You can’t say the Sky turned over their roster. But you can’t say the Sky didn’t turn over their roster.
Give Sky GM Jeff Pagliocca props for putting his foot to the gas. The flurry of trades and signings over the last four weeks demonstrates something Chicago sports fans rarely see out of their front offices: Aggressiveness.
The Atkins deal — which cost Chicago the number three pick in the 2025 draft — was simultaneously low- and high-risk. In terms of on the court, that’s a no-brainer: The former Texas Longhorn is a reliable option, having averaged ten or more points in each of her seven years in the league.
Financially, however, it’s a toughie. Adkins is in the final year of her contract, and will be looking for a huge long-term deal after the season. If she leads the Sky back to relevance, great. If not — and if they can’t or don’t want to re-sign her — well, Pagliocca pissed away a top-three pick for a rental.
But at least they’re trying.
CSSOM Score: 6
FUTURE:
On paper, the Sky now has a top-shelf offensive backcourt, with a solid collection of outside shooters. In theory, this will open up the paint for Angel Reese, and if Reese has some room to operate, that’ll be a huge problem for the rest of the league.
It appears they’re pivoting to win-now mode, as only two of their players are under 25 (Reese and Kamilla Cardoso), while five of their players top 30. So it’s now or never.
But at least the “now” should be fun.
CSSOM Score: 6
Total CSSOM Score: 12 ⬆️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 5)
CHICAGO WHITE SOX
FUN FACTS:
Lost all five of their Spring Training games.
That’s pretty much it.
PRESENT:
Seriously?
CSSOM Score: 0
FUTURE:
Again, seriously?
CSSOM Score: 0
Total CSSOM Score: 0 ⬇️
(Last month’s total CSSOM: 2)