Is the future bright for the Chicago Bears this season? Over the past decade the Bears have not had too much success as their record has been 63-100 over that time period, without even having a single playoff win. They have had a rotation of not very talented quarterbacks over the years resulting in a quarterback to never throw for 4,000 yards in a single season in Bears’ history. It seems nowadays quarterbacks are expected to achieve this statline meanwhile the most significant quarterback for the Bears has been Jay Cutler.
Excitement for Bears’ fans for this season is coming from a very eventful offseason. However, this isn't the first time we have seen the Bears spend a high draft pick on a quarterback or seen a very talented offensive skill group. The Bears have always been known to have a talented defense but there was a time where the Bears offensive group looked just as skilled as one they had built this past offseason. In 2014 the Bears had Jay Cutler under quarterback, Matt Forte at running back, Alshon Jeffery and Brandon Marshall at wide receiver, and Martellus Bennet at tight end. Every single player listed were former pro bowlers besides Martellus Bennet, but he became a pro bowler that season.This resulted in last place in the division with a 5-11 record.
We have also seen the Bears miss on quarterback high in the draft. In 2017 the Bears selected Mitch Trubisky with the second overall pick. Later in this draft the Chiefs selected Patrick Mahomes tenth overall and the Texans selected Deshaun Watson twelfth overall. Is this due to selecting the wrong prospect or is this due to the inability to develop quarterbacks, or perhaps both? Even in 2021 the Bears selected Justin Fields eleventh overall to replace Mitch Trubisky and failed to develop him as a prospect.
This past season the Bears selected Caleb Williams 1st overall in the 2023 NFL draft. I don’t think there is a guarantee that he will become a top quarterback in the league given the Bears history. However, this is the most talented Bears roster that has supported a rookie quarterback. This past offseason they extended D.J Moore at wide receiver, signed D'andre Swift at running back, traded their fourth round pick to the Chargers for Keenan Allen, and even added Rome Odunze, the Washington wide receiver rookie selected at pick nine in the draft. They have a young and solid offensive line that is still developing and at times looked worse than it did due to Justin Fields holding on to the ball for too long. When looking at the defense it started to look really good once they obtained Montez Sweat. The Bears ranked 5th in total yards given up after the addition of Sweat. The Bears Defense also has a very talented linebacker and secondary core as they led the league in interceptions last season.
With the Bears on the rise and looking over the roster it’s hard to say why the Bears won’t be a playoff caliber team. The Bears have not won a playoff game in fourteen years, it seems like this season could potentially change that. A Bears quarterback has never had a 4,000 yard passing season, Williams could do that as a rookie. This team could has the potential to make history for the Bears this upcoming season. The only thing staying in their way is the tough division, the Lions look better than ever, and with the Packers on the rise with their 220 million dollar quarterback, it’s going to be difficult for the Bears. Trubisky didn't work, Fields didn’t work, who knows what Williams future is. But you know what they say three times a charm.
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