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Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
Sport
John Keilman

Why the NFL’s ‘socialistic enterprise’ means the Chicago Bears win at the bank — even when they lose on the field

Bears NFL Chicago Bears Ted Phillips George McCaskey

When the Chicago Bears lowered the lid on another disappointing season, it was easy to view them as an NFL franchise in disarray. The head coach hadn’t panned out, the general manager was a flop and the news conference put last week by Chairman George McCaskey and CEO Ted Phillips got the worst reviews since “Police Academy 4.”

But when you look at things another way, the Bears are doing just fine.

Every home game was a sellout, or close to it. TV ratings remained high. And when Forbes released its annual list of estimated team values, the Bears had shot up 16% year-over-year, to $4.1 billion. Only six NFL teams are worth more.

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