Bears running back Matt Forte wants a new contract and, given his performance since joining the Bears, he can certainly make the case for it. more ›

As more information trickles out and more jurors come forward to discuss their time served during the Blago Corruption Trial we're learning more and more about what happened behind closed doors. Perhaps the most eyebrow raising news of the morning is that CBS 2 has apparently outed the holdout juror: Jo Ann Chiakulas, a retired state employee for the Illinois Department of Public Health and previously a director of teen counseling for the Chicago Urban League. CBS 2 notes that the CUL was run by former Blago press secretary Cheryle Jackson but that Chiakulas left before Jackson took over. Still, there's plenty more left to uncover from this even as Chiakulas remains silent. One juror speculated, "If it wasn't for that one lady, we'd have had him convicted on probably 80 percent of (the indictment)." Despite this, her fellow jurors refused to criticize her for holding out. Cynthia Parker said, "Everyone's entitled to their opinion, and I respect that. She did very well and she was a very strong person." more ›

When most of the Bears hit the practice field for the first time on Wednesday, one player was very noticeably absent. Kick return extraordinaire Devin Hester was nowhere to be found in Bourbonnais. He's decided to hold out of training camp until he gets a new contract. He's entering the third season of a four-year deal he signed after being drafted in '06. more ›