Chicago Bears: Should the Players Refuse to Play in the Hall of Fame Game?
Published by Bob Warja on July 8, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
On August 7, less than one month from now, the Chicago Bears are scheduled to meet the St. Louis Rams in Canton, Ohio, the home of the NFL‘s Hall of Fame. But will they actually play?
Obviously, a lot has to do with the lockout and ongoing labor negotiations. An agreement with a new deal would have to be in place for this game to even be considered.
However, assuming that the two sides do come to an agreement over how to split those billions of dollars, there still would be some lingering issues with some of the Bears players about getting ready so quickly to play in a preseason game.
Now, for the fans, this would be a great event. Not only could we book a trip to see the game, but we could revel in one of our own being inducted into the Hall. After all, the sack man cometh—Richard Dent.
Well, Chris Harris is concerned. He believes that July 15 is the absolute drop dead date to end the lockout if the game is going to be played.
“Even if we report three days later, then it’s still past that date. The Bears organization, Lovie (Smith) and Jerry (Angelo) made the decision to have training camp when we’re having it because of that preseason game on Aug. 7. So that’s the amount of time it would take for us to get ready for the game. That’s how I look at it.”
Sure, many players are working out but to get ready for the punishment of an NFL game, even in preseason, is a whole different animal, as Charles Tillman pointed out.
“The only way to get in football shape is to do football things with the team.”
Well, the Pro Football Hall of Fame is certainly hoping that the game gets played.
“We’re making all plans to have the game on time. We’ve heard from both parties — the owners and the players—and they’ve expressed their desire to have the game. So, that’s our plan.”
The Hall president did go on to admit that ticket sales are lagging, but that it’s to be expected due to the uncertainty.
Personally, I don’t normally spend my money on preseason games, and even if I did, I wouldn’t want to book a trip for something that may not happen.
What do you think?
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