On NFL Draft Night, South Shore resident David Wilson reminisced about that time the Chicago Bears played in the Super Bowl — no, not the 1986 victory when the Monsters of the Midway bested the New England Patriots. He specifically pointed to his hometown team’s 2007 Super Bowl appearance, when they lost to Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts. That year, the Bears’ Lovie Smith and Colts’ Tony Dungy were the first African-American HCs to coach in the Super Bowl.
“The first play of the game, [Chicago Bears return specialist] Devin Hester takes it to the house,” Wilson said while standing in the middle of Soldier Field. The rookie receiver became a household name after returning the game’s opening kick for a touchdown. Now, 42-year-old Hester is a Hall of Famer who was in attendance for the draft day festivities at Soldier Field.
“The killing part is, I’m on my way to my friend’s house [that night]. So I got [the Super Bowl] on the radio and so I’m listening to it and I’m in the car in front of her house,” Wilson recalled. “So I don’t get out the car until I hear that he’s scored, then I run in the house and watch it. I just knew we were gonna win the game.”
Wilson’s hope to see the Bears leave each game with a W is what unites all fans. For Black Chicago fans, particularly, they cling to the team’s resilience through their will to keep going. That’s how 49-year-old Pullman resident, Lemuel Hogue, described the city’s relationship to the Bears.
“I would say being a Bears fan is like heart, sweat and tears. I mean, we live for the Bears, you know. It might not be good all the time, but we still root for them, so it applies to everyday life,” Hogue said. “Things might not go the way we want them to go, but we still push.”
Bears fans gathered at Soldier Field on Thursday evening to watch the future of their hometown team unfold at the Chicago Bears Draft Party. With the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft, the Bears selected tight end Colston Loveland, a two-time All-Big Ten Conference selection for the University of Michigan. Rounds two and three of the draft continue through Saturday. The Bears have six more picks to build up a winning team, under new head coach Ben Johnson and ambitious second-year quarterback Caleb Williams, that will bring the city’s Super Bowl ambitions to life next season.
Hogue explained how the Bears are representative of Black Chicago culture because of their resilience.
“They might not have the prettiest things,” Hogue said with a smile, “but they work with what they got and they still play hard, and that’s what we do. That’s our mentality here in this city.”
The Bears have hosted Draft Day at Soldier Field since 2006, according to Miguel Lemus, a communications assistant for the organization. On Thursday night, fans took to the green pasture to play catch and partake in kicking the football through the goalpost.
One fan’s kick resembled that of the “double-doink,” when Bears kicker Cody Parkey abandoned 2018 playoff hopes for the team and fans during a wildcard game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
The Draft Day party cost fans a minimum of $50 to enjoy the festivities. The event was not only an opportunity for Bears fans to see which new players will join the roster, but also to observe the stadium from a player’s view. With access to the locker room, Bears fans were able to walk out onto the home turf through the tunnel as if they were QB1 getting ready to take on a rival team.
“I mean, it’s like you can feel almost like you’re a player. It just really gave you a real experience,” said Hogue, who attended the event with his two sons, ages 18 and 22. “It’s something that I’m glad I was able to share with my boys.”
Former and current Bears players signed autographs and participated in media interviews. Austin resident Deonte Jones stood in line for two hours with his brother to get an autograph from Bears star wide receiver DJ Moore.
“He’s a go-getter, man, I love how he plays. He plays with tenacity. He plays with spirit. He plays with energy. I love that,” Jones said about the Bears’ star wide receiver. As Jones spoke about growing up and watching Bears games with his family, the crowd inside Soldier Field began to shout “Green Bay sucks.” The 2025 NFL Draft, which was shown on the jumbotron at the stadium, is being hosted in the rival Wisconsin city.
“Especially because the draft is in Green Bay, you gotta keep yelling that,” Jones said. “I’m gonna lose my voice tonight.”
With full-on stadium access and photo opportunities, the event was an experience not only for lifelong Bears fans but also for newfound Bears lovers. Such is the case for Breyana Perry, who said it was her first time ever being inside Soldier Field.
“I just started watching sports, so I wanted to see [the stadium] in person,” said Perry, a 25-year-old resident of Uptown. She stood in line with her friends to play in a football skills challenge. “I plan on coming to a game when the season starts.”
Perry, who is a football novice, said she chose the Bears’ no. 1 draft Caleb Williams as the quarterback for her 2024-25 fantasy football team and came in second place. She said she plans on winning it all this upcoming season.
Jerry Young attended the event with his 11-year-old son. As a self-proclaimed die-hard Bears fan, Young said the Bears’ draft party was something he’d always wanted to attend. It was also the first time he’d been inside the stadium.
Since 2021, the Bears have made headlines for their new stadium hopes after trying to work with city officials to make improvements to Soldier Field. The team purchased the former Arlington International Racecourse in 2023 as a possible option. The organization has received pushback from Gov. JB Pritzker and Friends of the Parks for seeking public funds to help pay for a new stadium.
Young, a resident of Ashburn, spoke on the possibility of the team leaving the city. He stated that he wasn’t feeling the idea of the team leaving his hometown.
Most recently, the village of Arlington Heights reportedly hired a consulting firm to study the economic impact of a Bears’ stadium in the suburb. The Bears have stated their main focus is building a new stadium on the Lakefront and staying in Chicago. The old site of Michael Reese Hospital in Bronzeville has also been a possible site contender.
Young’s sentiment was shared by many other fans of the team, who said they’d hate to see the Bears pack up and leave.
“This is home. You know what I’m saying? This is home,” Young said. “So basically, them leaving and going somewhere else, I mean… all the fans are basically here.”
For Toya Crain, a resident of Austin who grew up watching Bears games with her grandfather, it doesn’t matter where the new stadium is.
“I honestly feel like, regardless of the place that they’re in, that has nothing to do with what they bring. So, I’m not really focused on [them] relocating to somewhere else,” Crain said. “I’m more focused on improving the team so that we have a better chance of making it into the playoffs and making it back to the Super Bowl.”
The post ‘We live for the Chicago Bears’: Black fans describe what the home team means to them appeared first on The TRiiBE.
