Following a discouraging 2019 season where they went 8-8, not many are feeling confident about the Bears’ chances in 2020. Which is a complete 180 from the expectations at this time last year.
While power rankings mean absolutely nothing at this point of the offseason, it certainly shows a shift in the confidence level experts have for the Bears. And it’s not much.
The Bears landed at No. 18 on NFL.com’s post-Super Bowl power rankings, which is due in large part to their quarterback situation.
Yeah, yeah, general manager Ryan Pace said the Bears will move forward with Mitch Trubisky as their starting quarterback in 2020, but now is where it gets interesting. There are several notable free agent quarterbacks set to hit the open market, and Chicago would be very wise to copy the Titans’ strategy of last offseason: buy low on a faded name brand — conceivable options include Andy Dalton, Philip Rivers or Jameis Winston — and let the competition begin.
Ryan Tannehill saved the day in Nashville when the Titans’ own former first-round pick, Marcus Mariota, couldn’t get the job done. Pace needs to build up the offense in several areas, but the No. 1 priority is giving head coach Matt Nagy another choice behind center. “Blind faith in your leaders, or in anything, will get you killed.” And with that, I just became the 10 millionth sportswriter to quote Bruce Springsteen.
The reason for doubt this year is the same reason for confidence at this point last year. Many expected Mitchell Trubisky to take that third-year leap in 2019, but the opposite happened. Complete regression on the opposite side of the football, highlighted by the quarterback.
But there are reasons for optimism with this Bears squad in 2020. Not only are they returning the NFL’s fourth-best defense, but they’re expected to continue to overhaul one of the league’s worst offenses from a season ago.
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