Brian Urlacher had plenty to say about the Bears, the stadium drama swirling around the franchise and the way his son is carving out his own path at USC. The Hall of Fame linebacker also opened up about NIL, hard work and why he sees a lot of promise in a fast-growing nicotine pouch business he decided to back.
Urlacher made it clear he thinks Chicago’s future is still in play, even with relocation talk hanging over the team. In his view, the push away from Soldier Field may be less about a sudden exit and more about pressure on Illinois to put real money on the table for a new stadium plan.
He pointed to the land the Bears already own in Arlington Heights and said the setup is there if the state steps up. From his perspective, this is business first, and if the money and stadium support are right, the franchise can stay put without much drama.
Still, he sounded genuinely torn about the idea of the Bears leaving Soldier Field behind. He called the old stadium iconic and said he hates the thought of the team walking away from a place that carries so much history, even if the appeal of a dome and bigger events is obvious.
Urlacher also acknowledged the kind of financial incentives that could lure an owner toward a different state. He said Indiana’s tax-friendly offer and the size of the stadium package make the move look tempting, especially when a deal starts to sound like a cleaner path for the people running the team.
Beyond the stadium debate, the conversation shifted to Kennedy Urlacher, who is now at USC after one season at Notre Dame. Brian Urlacher described the move as the kind of choice a young player makes when he wants the right fit and a real chance to keep growing, not just a spot on a roster.
He said NIL has helped his son, but he was quick to stress that Kennedy is not leaning on his last name to get by. Urlacher’s tone made it obvious that pride matters here, and he wants his son to earn every snap, every rep and every bit of respect that comes with playing big-time college football.
That edge showed up when he described how Kennedy approaches the game. Urlacher said his son works nonstop, trains hard and does not want anything handed to him, which is exactly the kind of thing a former NFL star likes to hear from his own kid.
Urlacher then turned to NIL itself and admitted he wishes he had the same setup during his own playing days. He said he likes the system as long as the NCAA is not the one taking the cash, a line that fits his blunt, no-nonsense view of how college sports have changed.
He also spent time talking about his investment in Joey nicotine pouches, which he said made sense once he looked at how quickly the category has taken off. Urlacher described the pouch market as exploding and said the product stood out immediately as something with real momentum.
His explanation was practical and pretty simple. He said a lot of people around him, especially golfers, are using pouches all the time, and that the popularity was impossible to ignore once he started paying attention.
Urlacher went even further, saying the products seem safer than smoking or vaping, while also noting that nobody knows the long-term effects of vaping yet. He said the habit has spread fast across age groups, from young adults to the people he sees at home and on the course.
That kind of personal take gave the interview a loose, off-the-cuff feel, which fits Urlacher well. He is still talking like a guy who knows football, watches what is changing around him and is not shy about saying what he thinks, whether the subject is the Bears, his son’s grind or the latest trend he keeps seeing everywhere.
