(670 The Score) Ahead of kickoff of the Bears' wild-card game against the Eagles on Jan. 6, a fired-up Brian Urlacher joined fellow Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus in taking to the field to get the Soldier Field crowd amped up. And in the aftermath, there was Urlacher leaving the stadium disappointed like so many fans.
The Bears fell in heartbreaking fashion to the Eagles, 16-15, after kicker Cody Parkey's go-ahead field goal in the waning seconds hit the goal post, the crossbar and bounced out. It ended a turnaround season in Chicago and left the city crushed.
Despite how it ended, Urlacher is choosing to see the positives of the 2018 campaign for the Bears.
"At first, I was like everyone else: 'The kicker blew it. The kicker blew it,'" Urlacher said on the Mully & Haugh Show on Wednesday morning. "But that's not the case. Our best part of our game was on the field to win the game. We were up by five and they had the ball, so our defense is out there. And we think we have a really good chance to win, right? That's our best phase, that's our defense. Should've never let them score. Easier said than done.
"Immediately, I started thinking about how great the season was. You got to look at all the positive things that came out of the season. It's tough when you lose a game that way to do that. But no one put us in that game. No on had us winning that division. All the things they accomplished last year, you have to be proud of what that got you."
Among the positives that Urlacher found in the Bears' season was the development of second-year quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. Urlacher has said all along that he sees the talent and potential in Trubisky, but what impressed him the most this season was the way he led the Bears.
"The way he handles himself," Urlacher said. "You watch all of his interviews and win, lose, whatever, he's the same. When they win or when they lose, he always talks about what he could do better -- 'What I didn't do. I could've done this. I could've done that.' And he never talks about his teammates in a bad light.
"That's a guy I want leading my team. As a quarterback, you are one of the leaders of that team. That's just the way it goes at that position. So, just that part of it, I'm so impressed with the way he handles himself.
"Him and (Matt) Nagy together for a while is going to be good combination."
Urlacher doesn't anticipate major changes in the Bears' defense as it switches coordinators from Vic Fangio -- now the Broncos' head coach -- to Chuck Pagano. He sees the similarities of their 3-4 schemes and believes that should help prevent any drop-off.
As for the Bears' opening as inside linebackers coach, Urlacher said he wouldn't be a candidate.
