Chicago Bears

The horrific leg injury Chicago Bears TE Zach Miller suffered on Sunday was so bad, surgeons were scrambling to "save his leg" ... according to ESPN's Chris Mortensen.

Miller badly dislocated his left knee while trying to catch a TD pass in the 3rd quarter against the New Orleans Saints. He came down on the leg wrong and Miller knew right away the injury was bad.

Now, Mortensen says Miller suffered damage to an artery in his leg -- and vascular surgeons have been called in to repair it.

Bears legend Mike Singletary is ALL ABOUT Mitch Trubisky ... but warns Chicago fans that things ain't gonna change overnight.

We spoke with Singletary after Mitch-a-palooza on Monday Night Football ... and the Hall of Famer told us he was genuinely impressed with the #2 overall pick.

But the bottom line for Mike ... the Bears need to let Mitch "be what he is, a rookie," which essentially means it's a growing and learning season -- not a Super Bowl contender season.

"I definitely think there’s a lot to work with."

If Mitch Trubisky isn't the Chicago Bears starting QB in Week 1, "You've got problems" -- so says Bears legend Mike Ditka.

To say Da Coach was impressed with the rookie's preseason debut Thursday night is a gross understatement ... Ditka believes it's TRUB OR CONSEQUENCES!

"What I saw out of Trubiksy for a rookie in his first game I thought was outstanding."

Trub -- the #2 pick in the draft -- went 18-25 for 166 yards and a TD after replacing starting QB Mike Glennon who went 2-8 for 20 yards and an interception.

Ditka thinks the decision is obvious ... and says Mitch made a better first impression than guys like Tom Brady and Fran Tarkenton.

Hope Jay Cutler hasn't gotten too used to the deep dish pizza in Chicago ... 'cause Tony Gonzalez says his days in Chi town are DONE ... but don't worry, Kristin C., TG says Cutler's NFL days are NOT DONE.

Cutler is out for the year after getting hurt in the Bears' last game ... and a lot of people are saying that with that setback, his time in Halas Hall is over.

The Bears looked downright terrible on Sunday -- but don't peg the loss solely on Jay Cutler ... EVERYONE in a Chicago uniform stunk ... so says Mike Ditka.

The Chicago Bears legend wasn't exactly a staunch defender of the QB when we spoke with him about the crushing 36-10 loss to the Bucs moments ago ... but he explained why it isn't fair to JUST go after Cutler.

Ditka also weighs in on Broncos QB Trevor Siemian -- "Is he the guy? I dunno. But he's the guy they got!"

Remember earlier this season when EVERYONE was saying the Bears should fire Jay Cutler and find a QB who isn't a giant black hole of suck???

Yeah, well his wife Kristin Cavallari sure does -- and Monday night she had a message for all the haters ... WHERE YOU AT NOW??

With Jay Cutler FINALLY medically cleared to play this week -- his wife, Kristin Cavallari, is suggesting that he's returning WAYYY too soon.

The Chicago Bears star missed the past 4 games due to an injury to his right thumb -- and with the Bears struggling at the QB position, Cavallari clearly thinks her husband is rushing back too quickly.

"He's baaaaack! Maybe a couple weeks before he's supposed to be," Cavallari said ... "but good luck this week, babe. Kick some Vikings-ass!"

Question is ... how bad was the injury if Cavallari is suggesting he needed even MORE time to recover?

And that being said ... can we really expect solid QB play from a guy who still may be hurt and facing a killer defense???

What happened when a smack talking Chicago Bears fan tried to fight a Jaguars fan after the game on Sunday?

Basically, the same thing that happened on the field.

In some pretty insane footage shot while people were leaving the stadium, you can see a Bears fan in a Matt Forte jersey (weird since he's a Jet now) talking all sorts of crap to a Jags fan.

When the Jags fan asks if he "gets down" -- the CHI fan socks him in the face. Brawl ensues. "Forte" gets kicked in the head. Crazy stuff.

We called cops to find out if anyone got arrested and the short answer -- no.

We're told police were contacted about a battery in progress that sounds like this particular fight -- but by the time they got to the area, they couldn't locate victims or witnesses.

Cops say a battery victim did file a police report later that day -- but the report was so vague and "offered no details" ... so it's unclear if that guy was in this fight.

A bunch of drunk guys on a bachelor party weekend thought it would be funny to dress the groom up like Mike Ditka on Friday and go to Ditka's steakhouse in Chicago.

Turns out ... BEST. IDEA. EVER!!!

The bachelor, David Barnett, lives in Florida -- but his buddies threw the party in Chicago so they could party during NFL Draft weekend. Barnett's also a huge Bears fan.

And because every bachelor party needs drunken buffoonery ... the guys made Barnett dress up like Da Coach for their dinner at Ditka's.

As fate would have it, Mike was actually in the restaurant that night ... heard about his boozy doppelganger ... and came over for a face-to-legendary-face meeting.

Chicago Bears legend Jim McMahon says medical marijuana has been a "godsend" -- and has helped him get off the prescription pills he's been using to treat pain from his football career.

McMahon told the Chicago Tribune that he had been taking 100 Percocet pills a month to treat pain for his shoulders, neck and arms ... but switched over to weed when medical pot was approved in AZ (where he lives) in 2010.

"[The pills] were doing more harm than good," said Jim ... who also suffers from early onset dementia, headaches and depression.

Former Chicago Bears star Jeremiah Ratliff says he has NO MEMORY of wishing death on the children of Bears staffers ... but he's not exactly denying it either.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Bears security called police on October 21st to report that the star defensive lineman went berserk after being cut -- saying, "I am the devil" and wishing staffers' children would die.

But Ratliff's agent has now issued a statement saying, "Jeremiah has no recollection or memory of saying anything that has been reported in the police report."

Not exactly a denial.

Chicago Bears lineman Jeremiah Ratliff went berserk the day before he was cut from the team -- saying, "I am the devil" and telling staffers he wanted their kids to die ... this according to the police report.

According to the report, obtained by TMZ Sports, Ratliff walked into the Bears facility on October 21st claiming he needed to get his stuff and told someone, "He felt like killing everybody in the building."

Cops say he gathered his belongings and left the property without further incident ... only to return later that day.

According to the report, Ratliff told someone, "I am the devil" and "he wished staff member's children would die."

One Bears official told police they had concern for the safety of Bears staffers -- and warned cops they believed Ratliff owns multiple firearms.

Bears officials told cops that Ratliff was not allowed back on the property and asked for a police presence until the staff left.

TMZ Sports spoke with Karl Walldorf, Deputy Chief of the Lake Forest PD, who tells us, "Since the day of the call, he has not been back to the facility and they have had no further problems."

... you got to get the hell up outta here!

The Bears cut defensive lineman Jeremiah Ratliff on Thursday, but it sounds like things got really nasty 24 hours earlier when he got tossed out the door.

Ratliff, a veteran Pro Bowl player, got into a heated discussion with Bears GM Ryan Pace on Wednesday, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The "animated exchange" reportedly went down AFTER team security was called to throw Ratliff's 6'4", 287 pound ass out of the team facility.

TMZ Sports spoke to several Bears sources who said they had no idea Ratliff had been cut ... so, seems like the argument went down well after the locker room cleared following Wednesday's practice.

Former Chicago Bears quarterback Erik Kramer shot himself Tuesday night in an attempted suicide ... but survived ... and is currently recovering in an L.A. hospital.

Kramer -- who played 13 seasons in the NFL -- was discovered by law enforcement in a motel in Calabasas around 8 PM, according to NBC. The extent of his injury is unclear.

The 50-year-old's ex-wife Marshawn told NBC News Kramer has suffered from depression for years ... which she believes is a direct result of the hits he took during his time in the league.

"He is a very amazing man, a beautiful soul, but he has suffered depression since he was with the Bears. I can promise you he is not the same man I married."

Ray McDonald's parents are adamant their son did NOT attack the mother of his child ... claiming he's a good man whose NFL career has been destroyed by his accuser's lies.

Labrina McDonald tells TMZ Sports she and her husband have spoken with Ray since his domestic violence arrest and he says there's a WITNESS who can prove McDonald never laid a finger on his accuser.

"[Ray's] personal driver witnessed everything that happened. He never touched her."

As we previously reported, Ray's ex-fiancee claims McDonald was drunk and aggressive toward her and their baby during an incident early Monday morning.

But Labrina says her son was NOT the aggressor -- adding, "Ray is never going to hit a woman. He may say some stuff to piss them off, he may kick them out of his house. But he'd never lay his hands on them. We didn't raise him that way."

Ray was arrested for a second time on Wednesday for violating a restraining order when he returned to his ex's apartment. McDonald's father tells us bluntly, "He should not have been there."

Ray's dad says the family knows the reality of the situation -- that Ray will likely never play in the NFL again -- but it could be the best thing for him.

"He can move on from football, develop a business mindset like my wife and I have. He'll be okay. He's going to be successful. He comes from a great family."

Former NFL superstar Brian Urlacher clearly believes Roger Goodell treats the New England Patriots like they're above the law ... and Deflategate is the definitive proof.

Urlacher was hanging with Jay Glazer at their Unbreakable Performance Center in West Hollywood ... when we asked how he felt about President Obama joking about the scandal yesterday.

That's when the former Chicago Bears star attacked the issue with biting sarcasm.

"That didn't happen right? I thought it went away. No one ever got fined for it right? I haven't heard anything since the Super Bowl."

Urlacher proceeded to explain how the Falcons and the Browns got in trouble for far less serious infractions ... yet the Patriots have yet to face ANY consequences for the alleged cheating scheme.