There has never been a true star quarterback for the Chicago Bears. Sorry, Jay Cutler, it’s the truth. Now, the team has Justin Fields, who is one of the most exciting prospects for the job.
As a youngster, Fields had a bad coach who called plays that looked like they were meant to hurt him. Matt Nagy, who used to be the head coach, didn’t play to Fields’s strengths. Instead, he tried to force Fields into the scheme that was already in place.
On top of that, it looked like the front office gave up and didn’t give the young quarterback any help in Year 1. Nagy was fired last off-season, which was good news for Bears fans. Matt Eberflus, who used to be the Colts’ defensive coach, took over.
Chicago started planning its future around Fields with the help of general manager Ryan Pace. People didn’t like the Bears’ risky trade for Chase Claypool during the season, but they could all agree on one thing: the Bears were trying.
After only winning three games in 2022, the team got the first pick in a draft class with a lot of high-quality players. Instead of thinking about starting over at quarterback, Poles and the rest of the team totally committed to Fields by trading down in the draft to get wide receiver D.J. Moore and a lot of future assets on top of that.
Now that the team is fully committed to building a winning team around Fields, Chicago is looking forward to the NFL season for the first time in years. Will the Bears beat the odds from bet on NFL games online and win more games than most people think they will? Well, that’s a case everyone else is guessing right now. Here are four reasons why the company is heading in the right direction no matter what.
No. 1: The Bears’ full commitment QB Justin Fields
The Bears’ decision to sign Justin Fields is the first step toward building a winning team in Chicago. Any team needs to be built around its quarterback, but Fields’ skills are rare, so he needs a unique set of circumstances to be successful.
When Chicago traded back from the No. 1 pick, the team made a long-term commitment to Fields. He is usually the best runner on whatever field he is on, and he has a good enough arm to be an equalizer in a league full of top players at the position.
The arrival of D.J. Moore to a group of pass catchers that also includes Darnell Mooney, Chase Claypool, and Cole Kmet should help Fields do better. In recent years, we’ve seen a few players take a huge step forward in their third year. Fields can do the same in 2024.
No. 2: Presence Of Brilliant Talent This Offseason
The team is much stronger now than at the end of the season. With the addition of free agents on the offensive line and draft picks on the defensive side, the depth chart finally looks like a good NFC team.
Tremaine Edmunds agreed to be the linebackers’ leader for the next four years. This gives Matt Eberflus a key defender in the middle of the team. Even though Edmunds is not the same player as Shaq Leonard, he can fill the same spot in the plan.
Fields have tools to use and a way to defend themselves. A young quarterback needs comfort more than anything, and after putting together a team around him over the summer, Chicago’s best investment is sitting pretty.
No. 3: Competing in a winnable division
Aaron Rodgers leaving the Packers and asking to be traded to the Jets was the end of the Boogeyman for the rest of the NFC North. After this big move, the division looks like it could be easy to win on paper.
Yes, I’m aware that Green Bay didn’t even make the playoffs in 2022, and that both the Vikings and Lions deserve credit for the seasons they had. Still, it’s not fair to say that one team is head and shoulders above the others.
From the outside, it looks like the Bears have the worst team, but football games aren’t played on paper. Fields have the kind of skill that can help a team stay in every game it plays. Even if the division is easier to manage in 2024, don’t rule out a jump in wins.
No. 4: Eberflus’ bringing in the much-needed stability to the team
Matt Eberflus has never been a head coach before, so his first year with Chicago is the only thing we can use to rate him. Even though the numbers don’t stand out, Eberflus brought something more than just wins: security.
After playing for the Cowboys and the Colts, Eberflus showed that he was a good defensive leader. In the Bears’ first year, the team seemed dedicated to a single goal. In contrast, the 2021 disaster was a mess of different ideas. If the young players on the team improve over the next year, Eberflus’ team could be surprisingly good in 2024.
Fields at quarterback are starting to run out of reasons, whether they are fair or not. This season will tell us everything we need to know about the past first-round picks and the team as a whole. Buckle up, because I think the long-running property is in for a bumpy but fun ride, with hopefully more ups than downs.
