Quinnen Jones: the Bears took a major blow at the end of last season with Tommy Thieriot’s injury. No team wants to lose a key player but for your starting quarterback to break his back, that’s… damn.
Tanner Pace: Yeah, look, Tommy came down to pre-season training camp and really gave all the guys a boost by being up on his feet. The most important thing for him right now is to focus on himself and his recovery. The Bears are all rooting for him and hoping we see him in the Alamo Stadium again at some point.
Jason Evans: So the Bears begin the season with a one-year pro quarterback, who hasn’t actually started a game in a Bears’ jersey yet, Lamar Taylor. In fact, if my stat check is correct, he’s played less than two hours in the league. How’s he looking?
Tanner Pace: For his experience and the fact the Bears haven’t been built around him, he looks good. All my guys on offense have his back.
Quinnen Jones: You mention your offense. It’s no secret that Colton Quinn, league star and split end for the Bears, had a rough year personally last year. Sadly, Quinn’s mom lost her battle with cancer a few months ago, God rest her soul. How do you expect Quinn to be playing this season?
Tanner Pace: I don’t want to comment too much on Quinn’s personal life. That’s his story to share if he chooses to. What I will say is, he’s a good guy, a top friend, he’s highly respected among his Bears brothers, and he’s got a rock-solid support system both on and off the field. He’s a professional and he’ll come out this season wanting to work hard and do well for the team, and for Mama Quinn.
4
PACE – EARLY SEPTEMBER
Out of Bounds
It’s our last off day before season proper begins and I’m discussing with my caddy which iron to use to tee off the third hole of the day. There’s a core group of Bears who play golf on Tuesdays. Mostly, the single Bears. Me, Max Kingsman, defensive end, Trent Daniels, cornerback, Omar Kubiak, flanker.
Quinn plays a round with us too when his girlfriend, Sas, is out of town on business or home with her family in New York.
We’ve lost Tommy from the group since he broke his back but we’ve acquired some new recruits for me to annihilate. Mat Krasinski, left tackle, second year in the pros. Jad and Terry, depth players, so deep they’ll be lucky to get a run out most weeks.
We’re playing in two groups of four and I’m the last man teeing off.
“You two should be hitting under par every hole this season,” I say, chirping at Jad and Terry. “You’ve got to expend your energy somewhere and it won’t be on the gridiron.”
Quinn, Max and Trent enjoy the joke as Tweedledum and Tweedledee mutter expletives.
“It’s all character building, boys,” Max says, leaning on the end of his club and waiting for me to take my shot.
I’m the offensive captain on the field and I’m playing off the lowest handicap in the group today, I’ve earned the right to torment the rookies. It’s one of my favorite pastimes.
I can’t tell if they love me or hate me. Honestly, for most people I’m sure the answer to that question changes daily.
Broadcasters have called me hot-headed, volatile, or, if they’re being favorable, the type of man who wears his heart on his sleeve. I’ve gotten better with control in recent years, since becoming captain and spending more time with Evans and Jones on our weekly pod. But a leopard can’t completely change his spots and that’s probably how I ended up suggesting to Annie Quinn that I give her driving lessons.
I went rogue but the offer sort of slipped out. Talking to her reminds me of my own mom’s struggles. And, I don’t know, something made me flash back to the spring dance at the ranch. At the way I felt watching Annie stand alone to the side of the room while couples danced around her. It chipped away at something inside me in a way I didn’t like. I get nervous when people are sad. My job is to make people happy, especially young women who’ve been dealt a fucking shitty hand.
What I’ve learned in recent years is this: the best thing I can offer anyone is myself. Whether I’m shit talking or lifting people up. I am who I am and so long as I’m not hurting anyone, that’ll be me.Hello,my fourth decade.
I hit the ball with a two iron and make it to the green, smirking after the ball. When I’m at home alone in the tub, I might ponder my golfing ability and ask myself if I’d be so damn good if I had more in my life than golf and football. But in this scenario, I choose to blow a chef’s kiss at Jad and Terry and tell them, “That’s how it’s done, boys.”
Since Quinn’s ball is the only other one that’s landed in the vicinity of the green, I get into a buggy with him and he drives us on to our next shots.
I fiddle with the Velcro on my glove like an awkward teen – suddenly feeling as if my rash offer to Annie might have been lacking thought. That my want to help her might not sit well with an overprotective brother.
But no take backs. I bite the bullet. “Hey, Quinn, did your sister tell you that I offered to?—”
“About the driving lessons?” he cuts me off, then side-eyes me. I haven’t noticed any tension for the last hour but I sense it now. “Yeah.”
Colton is the definition of a Bear. Cut him and he’ll bleed red, white and blue. He also needs to be stroked the right way to avoid his bite.
“I want to run it by you first and make sure it’s cool,” I tell him.
He hits the brake, until we’re stationary on the cart path, then turns to look at me. Two big ass men about to have a heart-to-heart. “Why d’you want to give Annie driving lessons, Pace? Are you trying to make a move on my sister? Because the lastfriendof mine she hooked up with found himself in the ER.”
I let out a short laugh, not even knowing why his words bother me. They’re expected. It’s the reason I’ve been trying to make this conversation happen since Monday.
