Mr. Jeff Joniak

One of the energetic and exciting voices of the National Football League, Jeff Joniak enters his 8th season behind the microphone as the play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Bears.

Jeff's passion for the game and for the Bears is linked to a 23-year association with Chicago sports fans. He has hosted the Chicago Bears game day broadcasts since 1997, serves as WBBM Newsradio 780's Director of Sports Operations while maintaining his afternoon drive-time sports anchor shifts.

Additionally, Jeff hosts "The Bears Insider" radio show on WBBM with Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith each Monday night during the season. On game days, he and Bears analyst Tom Thayer co-host Bears produced television shows, "Bears Game Day Live" and "Bears Game Night Live." During the season, Jeff also writes a column for the Daily Herald, and pens his weekly "Keys to the Game" on Chicago Bears.com and WBBM780.com. Jeff and the Bears Radio staff earned the Silver Dome Award for "Best Play-by-Play" in 2006 and a 2007 regional RTNDA Edward R. Murrow Award for the Bears Radio pre-game feature "Joniak's Journal" which focused on the difficulties experienced by Bears receiver Rashied Davis growing up in California during the L.A. riots. Throughout the year, he is asked to emcee many different events related to his work with the Bears including the National Football Foundation Scholarship Awards ceremony, the Ed Block Courage Award ceremony, the annual Bears Care Gala supporting breast and ovarian cancer research and treatment programs at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, Rush University Medical Center, and John H. Stroger,Jr Hospital of Cook County, the JP Morgan/Chase Corporate Challenge, and of course the Vision in Education Award Dinner funding scholarships for The Willows Academy and Northridge Preparatory School.Jeff is also a local spokesman for companies like Sharp Electronics, AT&T, Jewel, Helzberg Diamonds, and the Resnick Automotive Group.

Before tackling Halas Hall, Jeff co-hosted the game day broadcasts for the Chicago Bulls during their championship years from 1991 to 1996. For his gripping coverage of the death of Walter Payton, he and his staff won a prestigious Peter Lisagor Award. He also won two Lisagor awards for his coverage of the NFL Draft, AP awards for his sportscasts and Bears pre-game features.

Jeff's first broadcasting job was at SportsPhone in Chicago, followed by stops at the Tribune Radio Network, Illinois News Network, CLTV, and Metro Networks where he started the sports department. It was at the old WMAQ Radio that Jeff became Sports Director, worked on the Bulls broadcasts, anchored morning drive, and started with the Bears in 1997, as co-host of the pre and post game shows.

A 1980 graduate of Hersey High School in Arlington Heights, and a 1984 Broadcast Journalism graduate of Iowa State University, Jeff will celebrate his 20th wedding anniversary in June. He and his wife Candi live with their daughters Kelly and Kaitlyn in the western suburbs, where they are parishioners at St. Michael's in Wheaton.