Roger Goodell is not ready to let the Chicago Bears’ stadium search become a one-state story.
After team officials spent August sounding as if Indiana was the clear next move, the NFL commissioner made it plain Wednesday that the door is still open in both directions. Speaking after owners met in Atlanta, Goodell said the league continues to view Hammond, Indiana, and the Bears’ Arlington Heights property as the two active possibilities.
“There’s no specific timetable from my standpoint, other than we know that they are looking at the alternate groups, Indiana or Arlington Heights,” Goodell said.
He went a step further and made it clear he wants both states to stay in the game.
“We want to make sure that Arlington Heights and Illinois have an opportunity, as well as Indiana, to put their best foot forward.”
That matters because the Bears had been talking like the decision was already tilting south. President Kevin Warren called Hammond the “sole focus.”
Chairman George McCaskey also framed Indiana as the path ahead. Illinois infrastructure bills stalled, while Indiana put tax money on the table.
Still, Goodell said he has remained in touch with Illinois officials, and he brushed that off as part of the normal course of doing business.
“I’m involved in a lot of stadium efforts,” he said. “It’s not unusual for me to be involved in conversations with either public officials or others.”
The bigger picture is easy to see now: Chicago itself appears to be fading as a long-term answer, even if Soldier Field remains the team’s short-term home. The real decision is whether the Bears land in an Illinois suburb or cross the state line into Indiana.
Arlington Heights still has the emotional pull. The Bears control about 326 acres there, and Mayor Jim Tinaglia continues to talk as if a deal could still come together before time runs out.
Governor J.B. Pritzker, meanwhile, says the team still has not delivered a finished bill since June.
Indiana is selling something different: certainty. Hammond offers property-tax help and infrastructure money, and the Bears’ board has already voted to pursue that site. One Hammond parcel still needs more environmental work, but another is already considered build-ready.
Goodell did not put a date on any of it. He did not choose a state, either. He said he will keep listening.
“There are important decisions, not just for the communities but for teams and the NFL,” he said.
That is where things stand: the Bears want a dome, mixed-use revenue, and a new skyline. Illinois wants to keep the franchise.
Indiana wants the tax base. And Goodell is making sure neither side can claim the race is over yet.
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