The Chicago Bears didn’t wait long to make their intentions known after the Illinois legislature failed to pass a bill that would’ve given the team property tax and infrastructure support to build a new stadium. They made it clear that their focus is now on the Hammond site in northwest Indiana. It really is the only path forward at this point. There are no indications that the Illinois government will address this issue in the summer or fall, so it would have to wait until next spring. If the Bears did that, it would be a clear admission of defeat and remove any leverage they had. Hammond is their only option.
Most have already given up any remaining hopes that the team might stay in the state. However, some still wonder if the Bears might be bluffing even at this late stage. Indiana lawmakers don’t think so. They believe the franchise is planning to move south once the finer details are ironed out. Yet it’s important to remember who is leading this process: Bears president Kevin Warren. NFL insider Tom Pelissero provided some compelling evidence that this public announcement was a calculated play to scare Springfield into action.
Why? The same thing happened in Minnesota with the Vikings in the early 2010s.
The Chicago Bears might be deploying the same playbook.
On May 10th, 2011, the Vikings announced their intention to build their new stadium in Arden Hills, leaving downtown Minneapolis. This entire process had been ongoing since 2007, and the state had been resistant to enacting legislation to demolish the Metrodome and build a new stadium in its place. Vikings ownership decided enough was enough and began pushing for the Arden Hills plan. Pressure mounted on the government to avoid the tax increases that would’ve accompanied such a move. Their leaders went back to the negotiating table. One year later, in May of 2012, they approved funding for the downtown site.
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It stands to reason that Warren, who was in Minnesota’s front office at the time, saw the strategy work before. Why not try it again? Of course, the political situation in Illinois is significantly different. There is also the fact that the Bears don’t have an established downtown stadium site they can bulldoze. They don’t own Soldier Field, and the Chicago Park District would never agree to that. So, unless the city offers an alternate location, the only option is Arlington Heights.
Yet that also presents a problem because it would divert significant commuter revenue from the city to the northwest suburbs.
What is the Bears’ preferred endgame?
Every indication we have to this point, regardless of what they’ve said publicly, is that they want to stay in the city. Warren pivoted away from Arlington Heights back to downtown almost immediately after taking over. When that didn’t work, he started pushing Arlington and then brought Indiana into the mix. When it looked like Arlington had serious promise with the megaprojects bill, Chicago-area politicians pushed hard to get a seat back at the table, which the Chicago Bears clearly wanted, given the half-dozen phone calls the two sides had before the legislative deadline passed.
Indiana is a real option. That much is not up for debate. What we haven’t known is how committed the Bears are to going there vs. how hopeful they are that the threat of it could open the door to getting serious concessions from Illinois. Based on Pelissero’s comments, there is a strong likelihood that this is a tactic meant to give the state one last chance to show it’s willing to do something. If Illinois calls a special session or gives the team some assurance that the issue will be addressed in the fall, a resolution might be found.
