Colston Loveland is new to the Chicago Bears. This is a young man who made his name in football first in Idaho and then at Michigan. There is no reason to believe he had any knowledge of this organization beyond the obvious fact that it is a prominent NFL franchise. Everything from its history to the current roster setup was foreign to him when the Bears selected him 10th overall in the 2025 draft. He learned plenty of things quickly from that point. The big city was different from his other football stops. Head coach Ben Johnson was tough and demanding. His quarterback, Caleb Williams, was probably the most gifted Loveland will ever play with.
Yet one truth stood far above the rest.
Everybody who supports the team, from the fans all the way up to ownership, hates the Green Bay Packers. It had been that way for decades, ever since both teams came into existence in the early 20th century. However, it took on a whole new meaning for Bears fans in the past 30 years as the Packers dominated the rivalry. It got to such a point where Green Bay expected to win every game, and often did for a while. Johnson finally changed that last season, both through good coaching and stoking that hatred of the Packers.
Now it has gotten to a point where even the youngest fans are taking up the battle cry. Loveland found that out at a youth football camp recently.
🔥 Subscribe to the Untold Chicago YouTube channel to hear Chicago legends tell stories you’ve never seen in headlines — real moments, real experiences, straight from the athletes themselves.
Colston Loveland at least understands rivalry.
After all, he was part of what is probably the most storied rivalry in college football history between Michigan and Ohio State. It wouldn’t have taken him long to immerse himself in the same mentality as the Bears. However, seeing actual children chanting their hatred for the Packers is a perfect encapsulation of how deep this goes. Most of those kids spent their earliest years watching the Bears get trampled by the Green Bay. They watched their parents endure unrelenting heartache.
So you can imagine how quickly they embraced the hate, and how much they grew to love Colston Loveland. After all, his stellar performance in the wild card round of the playoffs was a key driving force of the Bears’ epic comeback to beat the Packers. It’s little wonder his camp had such high attendance. He’s probably a hero to those kids, despite only being in his second season. Who knows how much of a fandom he’ll build if he can continue that trend of taking down Green Bay?
The future is in good hands.
Some may have worried that younger fans could not connect with Bears football the way older generations did. That video serves as proof that such concerns were overblown. The franchise’s long legacy of hating Green Bay will continue for many years to come. Hopefully, Loveland can help author a new chapter. Chicago hasn’t had a winning record against the Packers in a given decade since the 1980s. They currently hold a 10-3 lead. That gives the Bears four seasons and eight games to turn things around.
Support for this effort is higher than ever. The team finally has the talent to truly go toe-to-toe with Green Bay. Loveland is a key part of that. Their defense had no answers for him. No doubt they’re trying to craft solutions, but it may not be enough. The tight end is too talented, and Coach Johnson is too good at finding him openings. The fun is only beginning.
