Bears legend Brian Urlacher talks team's likely move, USC son's college career

Brian Urlacher is calling his former team's bluff.

The Chicago Bears have gone on record to say they are moving from the Windy City to Hammond, Indiana, announcing in June that they were "advanc[ing]" their stadium project in the city.

But Urlacher is still holding onto hope in at least staying in the state of Illinois.

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"I think that was still a ploy to try to get the state of Illinois to do something more than what they’ve done, which is nothing," Urlacher said to Fox News Digital recently. "The Bears bought the land in Arlington Heights. They have that there, ready to go. They just need a little bit of funding from the state to build the stadium.

"I just cannot see the Bears leaving Illinois. It drives me crazy. And I don’t want them leaving Soldier Field, honestly. I wish they could work something out to keep them there, but they want a dome, they want Super Bowls, they want Final Fours. They want all that big stuff. I get it. I just hate the fact that they’re leaving Soldier Field. That place is iconic."

"I understand Indiana is offering them some great deals tax-wise — $2.5 billion to build the stadium. That’s a big deal. As a businessperson, which the owners have to be these days, it makes sense to go. Unless Illinois comes through with something, I don’t see them staying there," he added.

Perhaps Urlacher's son, Kennedy, can be a Hammond legend – he is currently a safety at USC after playing his freshman season with Notre Dame. He played in the national championship with the Fighting Irish, but it was time to move on.

"NIL has been great for him," Urlacher admitted. But the Urlachers also knew Kennedy would be a starter with the Trojans.

Perhaps the last name helped Kennedy get some more money, but Dad said Kennedy wants to earn everything on his own.

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"I’ll tell you what he does: He busts his a--. I don’t care what his name is. His name could be Johnson. It doesn’t matter. This dude plays hard. He works his tail off, man. Every time I call him, he’s working out, he’s doing something. He doesn’t want anything given to him because of his last name. That’s not why he wants to be where he’s at. He wants to be there because he earned it, because he busted his a-- and he got there..." Urlacher said.

"He wants nothing because of his last name. He wants it because he earned it."

Urlacher said, despite not liking what NIL has done to college sports, that he obviously wishes he played in the era. "As long as the NCAA doesn’t get the money, I like it," he said of athletes getting paid.

But the Hall of Famer is making up for lost time by investing in Joey nicotine pouches.

Joey has 36 different flavors, and Urlacher knows that the "pouch space as blown up."

"Everyone I play golf with, everyone I’m around, they’re always switching out these pouch things. I had a chance to invest, and it was a no-brainer for me," he said. They sent me the deck, and I was like, 'This seems like a home run.'

"It’s definitely safer than smoking or doing the vape stuff, because they don’t know the long-term effects of vaping," he said, expressing his personal opinion. "But the thing that’s crazy is how fast it’s caught on. Everyone does them. My daughter brings her friends over, and all three of them take them. I’m like, 'Whoa, she does them, too.' You can’t tell. They’re in their mouths. I’m like, 'Damn, everyone’s doing these — girls, guys.' The younger generations are really big on them. But I think I notice it the most when I play golf and every guy in my group is changing one every three holes. I’m like, 'Damn, these are a big deal.'"

Although the FDA has authorized nicotine pouch products for sale in the U.S., health experts warn against the effects they can have, particularly on younger people. A recent nationwide study published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology also suggested that smokeless alternatives could increase the risk of serious eye diseases compared to quitting nicotine altogether.

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