During an offseason where it’s popular to bet against the Chicago Bears finding any semblance of success, there are a few that are banking on the Bears doing as well or even better than they fared in 2019.
Peter King revealed his post-offseason power rankings, and the Bears landed at No. 17 — behind NFC North foes Minnesota (No. 11) and Green Bay (No. 12). Still, it’s a far cry from predicting Chicago will be one of the worst teams in the league in 2020, which several analysts have claimed.
King is confident that the Bears defense will return to its 2018 form, given the addition of Robert Quinn to the pass rush and the return of Akiem Hicks from injury. That, and he believes Chicago will get adequate quarterback play that should help fix the offensive woes.
Regardless of the outcome of the QB competition—my money is on Foles—the Bears have to forget Trubisky’s head space and roar into a winnable, manageable season. Chicago doesn’t play a 2019 playoff team in its seven games before Halloween, and by the time a killer November (Saints, at Titans, Vikings, at Packers) rolls around, the quarterback dilemma should be solved.
I’m more bullish on the Bears than many, in part, because the defensive front should be as good as it was in 2018, when Khalil Mack and Akiem Hicks led a marauding front; now Robert Quinn (11.5 sacks in 14 Dallas games last year) is a third force to offense to worry about. In 33 games of the Nagy Era, the Bears have allowed 18.1 points per game, and there’s no reason to expect that production to go away. If the quarterback’s a B-plus player, the Bears could ride a favorable schedule to the playoffs. That’s a big if.
King is one of the few analysts to predict a potential return to the postseason. And given Chicago’s dominant defense, if the offense is just good enough, suddenly playoffs doesn’t seem like such a stretch.
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