After a productive offseason, the Chicago Bears are ready to bounce back from their 3-14 record in 2022. The Bears have added key players on both sides of the ball to help make them a competitive football team.
The big story of the year is quarterback Justin Fields. How will he do in his third season with the team? If Fields does well, this team will have a bright future and the sky will be the limit. If he struggles, there will be an additional hole to fill next offseason.
Buy Bears TicketsBefore their Week 1 matchup with the Green Bay Packers, let’s take a look at where the Bears stand in various power rankings around the league.
Bears Wire
Ranking: 21st
Author: Brendan Sugrue
Author’s take:
A lot is riding on Justin Fields’ ability to take a massive step in Year 3, but the Bears should be improved overall after their dismal 2022 season. General manager Ryan Poles added top playmakers at multiple positions and this team should be competitive on Sundays. Whether that leads to wins or not is another question.
Our take:
It’s all in the hands of Justin Fields. A good amount of pieces have been put around him, with more to come in the coming years. This team will go as far as he will take them. This offense will only be as competitive as their quarterback makes them.
NBC Sports
Ranking: 21st
Author: Mike Florio
Author’s take:
They’ll rise as far as Justin Fields can take them.
Our take:
After a 2022 season that saw Fields turn into Superman on the ground, Bears fans are expecting that again, but this time in the air. Teams can only go so far, and the top teams have strong quarterback play. Fields will need to have a good season for this team to be competitive down the stretch.
NFL.com
Ranking: 26th
Author: Eric Edholm
Author’s take:
Justin Fields’ preseason work was fine, albeit brief. But with Fields due for a possible extension next offseason, everyone knows how important this season is to determining his future with the Bears, who are waiting for him to turn the proverbial corner. GM Ryan Poles recently said he needs to see more steps in his QB’s development. “Want those sack numbers to come down, interceptions to come down, make good reads, protect himself, just see him take that next step,” Poles said. The dream, of course, would be for Fields to make a Jalen Hurts-esque leap from Year 2 to 3. Their second-year numbers actually compare quite favorably, although Fields’ sack rate (14.7% last season to Hurts’ 5.7% in 2021) and interception rate (3.5% last season to Hurts’ 2.1% in 2021) truly are concerning outliers until proven otherwise.
Our take:
The comparisons the Jalen Hurts are great, but Fields will have his own path to greatness, or lack thereof. Fields has the potential to have a breakout, Pro-Bowl season, similar to Hurts’ 2022 season. But let’s be realistic, the Eagles are built as a much better football team than the Bears. Not to take anything away from Hurts, of course.
CBS Sports
Ranking: 27th
Author: Pete Prisco
Author’s take:
They will be better this season, but I think their real push will come in 2024. The offense with Justin Fields will make strides in the passing game.
Our take:
Something that has been said, but not by enough people. The 2023 season will be better, but 2024 will be the Bears’ real push. They still have holes that need to be addressed. Only so much can be addressed in one offseason. As long as the offense makes a jump, fans will be happy and excited for 2024.
Bleacher Report
Ranking: 29th
Author: BR NFL Staff
Author’s take:
The Chicago Bears were the NFL’s worst team in 2022, but rather than use the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, they dealt it to Carolina for a package of selections and a new No. 1 receiver in D.J. Moore.
How improved the Bears are in 2023 will hinge largely on Justin Fields’ improvement as a passer in his third season.
Head coach Matt Eberflus told reporters that while there’s still work to be done, he’s pleased with the progress the former Ohio State standout has made in the offseason.
“He’s in a good spot,” the coach said. “We’ve spent a lot of time and attention on what we needed to this offseason. We’re excited where we are. We’ve got work to do. We’ve got a lot of work to do still.”
Moore is hardly the lone new face in the Windy City. The Bears added depth in the backfield in D’Onta Foreman, revamped the off-ball linebackers with the additions of Tremaine Edmunds and T.J. Edwards, and added pop to the pass rush with the signing of veteran edge-rusher Yannick Ngakoue.
For all the improvements the Bears made in the offseason, though, Chicago still appears to be the worst team in the NFC North on paper.
This is a team that should be worried less about the postseason in 2023 than just gaining a measure of respectability.
Our take:
Some key players for the future are here. There are still some untouched holes that will be addressed later on. On paper, this offense will be much improved, but the defense still has gaps. Of course, they still have to play the games – anything can happen. There’s still work to be done, but fans should be pleased with a 7-10 or 8-9 season.
