Chicago Bears Might Not Be As Bad As Advertised

The Chicago Bears finished the preseason undefeated for the first time since 1994. They could surprise many and not be as bad as many experts believe.

After taking a 21-0 first half lead in their preseason finale against the Cleveland Browns the Chicago Bears hung on to win 21-20. They finished the preseason undefeated. They haven’t done that since 1994 (they made the playoffs that season, by the way).

Of course, the Bears cannot carry those wins over to the regular season. On Tuesday, general manager Ryan Poles and head coach Matt Eberflus have to cut the roster down to the 53-man maximum. Then, on September 11, the curtains are raised for the regular season.

It is great to see how well the Bears are performing. Even the offense was humming on Saturday night against the Browns with extended snaps. Quarterback Justin Fields finished the first half completing 14 of his 16 passes for 156 yards and 3 touchdowns. He had a great handle on the offense.

As good as the offense looked, it raised hopes for the fans. After several seasons of watching a struggling offense, it was great to see an efficient one that found the end zone.

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Could Chicago be better than expected?

It wasn’t only the efficient offense that has the fans excited. The defense again looked great. The unit did that despite not having a host of starters in the game. Roquan Smith didn’t play any games. Against the Browns, Robert Quinn, Jaylon Johnson, Kyler Gordon, Eddie Jackson, and Jaquan Brisker all missed.

In spite of that, the defense harassed Cleveland quarterback Jacoby Brissett. They pitched a shutout before the second and third teams took over in the second half.

That wasn’t all, however. The special teams unit has done a great job this preseason. Trenton Gill showed that he could be a great replacement for the departed Pat O’Donnell. Velus Jones Jr showed some explosiveness on returns.

With all three phases of the game playing well, could this team be better than expected? Well, NFL experts expect this team to be historically bad. Former Chicago Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz went so far as to compare the offense to the 2008 winless Detroit Lions.

There aren’t many analysts who give the Bears more than three or four wins in 2022. Sure, Chicago has some good, young players but they’ll be better in the future. They won’t be ready in 2022.

However, it looks as if the Bears have the coaching staff that could help the players perform their best. Offensive coordinator Luke Getsy has the offense tailor-made for Fields’ skills.

The last time the Bears went to Cleveland Fields was getting abused. The Browns sacked him nine times in the game and the Bears finished the game with one net yard passing. Former head coach Matt Nagy made no adjustments for Fields. He had his system made for Andy Dalton‘s skills. He just substituted Fields for Dalton. That did not work well at all.

Now Getsy has Fields rolling out a lot. He has running plays set up for Fields and has him getting rid of the ball quickly. We see a completely different Fields handling the offense.

People are concerned about the wide receivers unit. However, if Fields continues to handle the new system well, his play could elevate the receivers’ play. Against the Browns, the receivers looked good. A big reason for that was Fields’ pinpoint accuracy. He threw some darts and made it easier for the receivers to make the catch.

While people keep talking about the offensive line, this unit could be stronger than expected. Having Riley Reiff block fields’ blindside is big. He is a veteran left tackle who not only can play well but also mentor rookie Braxton Jones. Jones is the future on the line. He’ll get great instruction from Reiff and will get in on some snaps. Then he’ll be ready to take over next season.

Defensive coordinator Alan Williams has the same defensive system that Eberflus had with the Indianapolis Colts, except with his own little wrinkles. We’ve seen the difference so far with how the players swarm to the ball. Whenever the ball carrier goes down, we see multiple Bears around him. Good things happen when everyone is running to the ball.

Now, this roster still isn’t one that will compete for any title. However, all these people who project two, three, or four wins are in for a surprise. We saw a completely disorganized offense last season. Additionally, the defense and special teams struggled. Despite that, the Bears won six games. With the coaching and new systems in place, the team can use six games as the bottom point.