The Bears are rebuilding a rebuild of a rebuild, and it was clear that Justin Fields was going to have a tough rookie year.
Ex-coach Matt Nagy even refused to think of the idea of Fields beating out Andy Dalton to start the season. The positive would be that if he survived the rookie season and then the front office brings in enough help to get him going in Year 2.
What they did wasn't bad, but it's not all that good either. Matt Eberflus is a defensive-minded coach. New GM Ryan Poles warned Bears fans that the team would build through the Draft and avoid big-money players in free agency.
He stuck to that plan.
While they did get Lucas Patrick, they watched Allen Robinson II and James Daniels head to greener pastures in LA and Pittsburgh. They also traded Khalil Mack to the Chargers for two picks, one of them being a 2nd round pick in this year's Draft that they used on Jaquan Brisker. He and Kyler Gordon were their first two picks—both being on defense. It's not a wrong approach, since they had a good pass defense last season, allowing the third least passing yards.
Also, they didn't want to overpay players they think are not worth big contracts, even if they could have helped on offense a bit. They took a "take the best guy available" approach in the Draft, even if it meant that the only offensive guy they chose in the first four rounds was Velus Jones Jr.
Those make sense, but it would look bad if Fields doesn't progress. He's the clear-cut starter, and it's now up to him to make the leap to improve his passing game.
There are also questions regarding the offensive line, and Poles made it a focal point in the offseason, which wasn't surprising because Fields was among the most sacked quarterbacks last season. He wanted an O-line that is lighter and faster. Patrick and Cody Whitehair appear to be the locks at their respective positions, while Sam Musipher moved over to the right guard. With Larry Borom getting first-team reps and the team favoring Braxton Jones before signing Riley Reiff, this could leave Teven Jenkins as the elephant in the room.
The strength of the Bears offense is their ground game, Fields included. David Montgomery had two solid seasons in a row, and Khalil Herbert showed he is starting-caliber. The O-line has to be better in terms of run blocking, consdiering they gave up 58 sacks last season. Jason Peters and Germain Ifedi left alongside Daniels, so Fields is not going to have a lot of time for protection, and he doesn't really have a lot of weapons outside of Darnell Mooney and Cole Kmet unless there are people who believe in Byron Pringle.
Coaching changes can spark a team as well. Nagy's time was clearly up even before the start of last season. Bringing in Eberflus can get a new spark for the team, especially on defense. The Bears will be happy this season if Fields plays as advertised.
Draft Picks
Round | Pick | Position | Player | College |
2 | 39 | CB | Kyler Gordon | Washington |
2 | 48 | S | Jaquan Brisker | Penn State |
3 | 71 | WR | Velus Jones Jr. | Tennessee |
5 | 168 | OT | Braxton Jones | Southern Utah |
5 | 174 | DE | Dominique Robinson | Miami (OH) |
6 | 186 | OT | Zachary Thomas | San Diego State |
6 | 203 | RB | Trestan Ebner | Baylor |
6 | 207 | C | Doug Kramer | Illinois |
7 | 226 | OT | Ja'Tyre Carter | Southern |
7 | 254 | S | Elijah Hicks | California |
7 | 255 | P | Trenton Gill | NC State |
Key Losses
DE Khalil Mack: Traded to Chargers
DT Akiem Hicks: Signed with Buccaneers
WR Allen Robinson II: Signed with Rams
OG James Daniels: Signed with Steelers
QB Andy Dalton: Signed with Saints
DT Bilal Nichols: Signed with Raiders
TE Jimmy Graham: Unsigned free agent
RB Tarik Cohen: Unsigned free agent (Torn Achilles)
ILB Alec Ogletree: Unsigned free agent
SS Tashaun Gipson: Unsigned free agent
OT Germain Ifedi: Signed with Falcons
OT Jason Peters: Unsigned free agent
RB Damien Williams: Signed with Falcons
Key Additions & Extensions
C Lucas Patrick: 2-year deal
WR Byron Pringle: 1-year deal
DT Justin Jones: 2-year deal
ILB Nick Morrow: 1-year deal
CB Tavon Young: 1-year deal
TE Ryan Griffin: 1-year deal
DE Al-Quadin Muhammad: 2-year deal
WR Equanimeous St. Brown: 1-year deal
QB Trevor Siemian: 2-year deal
OT Riley Reiff: 1-year deal
RB Darrynton Evans: Claimed off waivers from Titans
Biggest Questions
Can Justin Fields break out in his second season?
What can Bears fans expect of the offensive line?
Who will step up on offense to help Justin Fields?
How will the defense fare under Matt Eberflus?
How much better will David Montgomery be?
Schedule
Week 1: Sunday, 9/11, vs. San Francisco 49ers, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 2: Sunday, 9/18, at Green Bay Packers, 8:20 PM on NBC
Week 3: Sunday, 9/25, vs. Houston Texans, 1:00 PM on CBS
Week 4: Sunday, 10/2, at New York Giants, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 5: Sunday, 10/9, at Minnesota Vikings, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 6: Thursday, 10/13, vs. Washington Commanders, 8:15 PM on AMAZON PRIME
Week 7: Monday, 10/24, at New England Patriots, 8:15 PM on ESPN
Week 8: Sunday, 10/30, at Dallas Cowboys, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 9: Sunday, 11/6, vs. Miami Dolphins, 1:00 PM on CBS
Week 10: Sunday, 11/13, vs. Detroit Lions, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 11: Sunday, 11/20, at Atlanta Falcons, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 12: Sunday, 11/27, at New York Jets, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 13: Sunday, 12/4, vs. Green Bay Packers, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 14: BYE WEEK
Week 15: Sunday, 12/18, vs. Philadelphia Eagles, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 16: Saturday, 12/24, vs. Buffalo Bills, 1:00 PM on CBS
Week 17: Sunday, 1/1, at Detroit Lions, 1:00 PM on FOX
Week 18: 1/7 or 1/8, vs. Minnesota Vikings, Time and network TBD
Projected Starters
1 RB 3 WR 1 TE Offense
Position | # | Player |
QB | 1 | Justin Fields |
RB | 32 | David Montgomery |
WR | 11 | Darnell Mooney |
WR | 13 | Byron Pringle |
WR | 12 | Velus Jones Jr. |
TE | 85 | Cole Kmet |
LT | 78 | Riley Reiff |
LG | 65 | Cody Whitehair |
C | 62 | Lucas Patrick |
RG | 67 | Sam Mustipher |
RT | 75 | Larry Borom |
Nickel Defense
Position | # | Player |
DE | 99 | Trevis Gipson |
DT | 95 | Khyiris Tonga |
DT | 93 | Justin Jones |
DE | 94 | Robert Quinn |
LB | 53 | Nick Morrow |
LB | 58 | Roquan Smith |
CB | 33 | Jaylon Johnson |
NB | 25 | Tavon Young |
SS | 9 | Jaquan Brisker |
FS | 4 | Eddie Jackson |
CB | 6 | Kyler Gordon |
Комментарии