Tag: Bears power rankings

Bears crack top 15 in Touchdown Wire’s way-too-early Week 1 power rankings

The Bears landed at No. 14 on Touchdown Wire’s way-too-early Week 1 power rankings ahead of two Monday Night Football showdowns. 

The Chicago Bears have started the season at 1-0 for the first time in seven years following a thrilling fourth-quarter comeback, where Mitchell Trubisky tossed three touchdowns, in a 27-23 win over the Detroit Lions.

The Bears landed at No. 14 on Touchdown Wire’s way-too-early Week 1 power rankings ahead of two Monday Night Football showdowns. Though, to be fair, they’re the lowest-ranked of the teams that won so far this week. I’ll give you one guess as to why.

In the first half, Trubisky completed eight of 20 passes for 110 yards and looked so bad, you couldn’t blame anyone for wanting head coach Matt Nagy to pull the kid and put Nick Foles in there. But then, Trubisky threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, which was a highly improbable event under any circumstances. As a result, we still have no earthly idea what Trubisky is. Perhaps the Giants can provide clarity next Sunday. Perhaps not.

While Trubisky orchestrated one heck of a comeback in the fourth quarter, where he completed 80% of his passes and tossed three touchdowns each to a different receiver, he struggled through the first three quarters with his accuracy and footwork.

Until Trubisky can prove that he can operate on a consistent basis — if he even can — there are going to be questions about the Bears, and rightfully so.

While not mentioned, the defense was certainly an area of concern for the Bears in Sunday’s win. The pass rush was suspect and the run defense clearly missed the presence of nose tackle Eddie Goldman in the middle. The Bears are going to need to find a way to generate pressure on the quarterback and find an answer at nose tackle if they’re going to be better than they were last season.

Chicago’s schedule is certainly favorable in these next three games, where they’ll face the New York Giants, Atlanta Falcons and the Indianapolis Colts. We’ll see if the Bears can establish an identity in the reminder of this first quarter.

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See where the Bears rank in Touchdown Wire’s pre-training camp power rankings

In TD Wire’s pre-training camp power rankings, the Bears ranked 18th, which is due in large point to the concerns at the QB position.

Touchdown Wire‘s Mark Schofield released his pre-training camp power rankings, where the Chicago Bears dropped one spot and landed at No. 18. Which, considering how most power rankings have gone for Chicago this offseason, could be worse. But then again, the Bears aren’t going to get respect until they earn it on the field.

Schofield discussed the Bears’ moves in the NFL Draft, praising the additions of second-round picks tight end Cole Kmet and cornerback Jaylon Johnson. Schofield believes that they can both be Week 1 starters for this team. He also noted the addition of fifth-round receiver Darnell Mooney, who generated a ton of buzz.

But the biggest question mark for everyone — be it those in Chicago or from a national landscape — is the Bears’ quarterback situation, where Mitchell Trubisky and Nick Foles will be competing for the starting job. And they’ll have only training camp reps to do so.

Look, in the end what matters for Chicago is not their 87th tight end or a cornerback they drafted in the second round, but who wins the showdown of showdowns: Trubisky v Foles: The Melee of Mediocrity. Joking aside, if they can just find a quarterback to execute Matt Nagy’s offense and make throws on time and in rhythm, they will be a much-improved team on that side of the ball.

The Bears were one of the teams impacted recently by decisions from players to opt-out of the 2020 season due to concerns over COVID-19. Defensive tackle Eddie Goldman, a mainstay up front for Chicago the past few years, decided to forgo playing in the year ahead. He is not a household name but is a factor up front for this defense, which should again be the strength of the organization. This will have an impact in 2020.

The only concern on defense is how the loss of nose tackle Eddie Goldman, who opted out of the 2020 season, will impact the defensive line. There are some guys on the roster in defensive tackle Bilal Nichols and defensive end Roy Robertson-Harris that certainly need to step up. And if nose tackle John Jenkins returns from the reserve/COVID-19 list, he’s the clear in-house favorite to take over for Goldman this season.

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Bears rank No. 24 in FTW’s NFL summer power rankings

For the Win doesn’t have much confidence in the Bears this season, which is a sentiment shared by analysts across the NFL.

For the Win’s Steven Ruiz recently released his NFL summer power rankings, where he discussed where each of the 32 teams rank ahead of training camp.

As for the Chicago Bears, Ruiz doesn’t have much confidence, as seems to be the general consensus from analysts around the league. Chicago ranked No. 24, and the quarterback situation is a big reason why.

The starting quarterback will be either Nick Foles or Mitch Tribusky, which should be enough of an explanation for why the Bears don’t rank higher. The only major addition was Robert Quinn, which was a smart signing, but there were a lot of problems areas on the roster that were unaddressed. Chicago is just treading water.

The Bears made some big moves on the offensive side of the ball starting with the addition of veteran quarterback Nick Foles, who will battle Mitchell Trubisky for the starting job. They also overhauled their tight ends room with the addition of rookie Cole Kmet and veterans Jimmy Graham and Demetrius Harris. New offensive coaches Bill Lazor, John DeFilippo, Juan Castillo and Clancy Barone are also significant additions.

As far as defense goes, the Bears addressed one of the biggest concerns with the addition of pass rusher Robert Quinn, who replaces Leonard Floyd. They also added rookie cornerback Jaylon Johnson, who will battle Tre Roberson, Artie Burns and Kevin Toliver for the starting job, as well as safety Tashaun Gipson, who will compete with Deon Bush for the starting strong safety job opposite Eddie Jackson.

While the Bears didn’t make any splashes this offseason, they also made some moves in-house to retain guys like Eddie Jackson (who signed a massive four-year extension), inside linebacker Danny Trevathan (who signed a three-year extension), defensive end Roy Robertson-Harris and defensive back Sherrick McManis among others.

Outside of Halas Hall, no one has confidence in what the Bears can accomplish this season. And that won’t change until Chicago proves it on the field.

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Bears land at No. 17 on Peter King’s post-offseason power rankings

While some have the Bears pegged as one of the worst teams in 2020, Peter King thinks they can make the playoffs – if things go right.

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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Bears fall in NFL.com’s post free agency power rankings

Following the early wave of free agency, not many have the Bears pegged for a bounce-back year, as evidenced by NFL.com’s power rankings.

Following a disappointing 2019 season, no one has much confidence in the Chicago Bears. Except maybe themselves.

Even after this early wave of free agency, where the Bears signed pass rusher Robert Quinn and tight end Jimmy Graham, as well as traded for quarterback Nick Foles, not many have Chicago pegged for a bounce-back year.

Which is evident in NFL.com’s post free agency/trade power rankings, where the Bears dropped five spots to No. 22.

The Bears did what everyone expected, bringing in a veteran name brand to compete with Mitch Trubisky. That veteran is Nick Foles, the former Super Bowl MVP who endured a nightmarish (but very lucrative) one-season stint with the Jaguars. Trubisky will likely enter training camp as the presumed starter, but holding off Foles will be much more difficult than fending off Chase Daniel was a year ago.

Put it this way: There’s a very good chance Foles ends up starting more games next year than the former first-round pick hypothetically ahead of him on the depth chart. The Robert Quinn signing was … fine. The move to bring in 33-year-old Jimmy Graham, who did next to nothing with Aaron Rodgers throwing him spirals, makes you wonder if GM Ryan Pace will ever figure out the tight end position.

The criticisms are no different from what we’ve heard over the last few months. The Bears didn’t make the quarterback position significantly better with the addition of Nick Foles, who will battle with Mitchell Trubisky for the starting job.

Chicago’s offense continues to be plagued by the tight end position, which is key in Matt Nagy’s offense. So it hasn’t helped that Bears tight ends were collectively among the worst in the NFL last season. Bringing in Graham, while na upgrade, doesn’t exactly cure their tight end woes.

Surprisingly, offensive line wasn’t mentioned as an area of concern. While the Bears added former first-round pick Germain Ifedi, who will likely compete for the starting right guard job, some of the same issues remain.

Ultimately, any questions surrounding the Bears are regarding the offense, not the defense. Until Chicago can find stability on offense, they’re going to be battling criticism and other NFL teams in their pursuit of a return to the playoffs.

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Bears drop in Touchdown Wire’s mid-free agency power rankings

There’s not much reason to assume that the Bears’ abysmal offense will suddenly flip a switch, which is why they fell in the power rankings.

Coming off a disappointing 2019 season, there aren’t many that feel confident about the Chicago Bears’ chances in 2020. And they’re justified in that belief. Which is why this offseason is so important to shoring up their roster.

The Bears got better on defense with the acquisition All-Pro pass rusher Robert Quinn, who will patrol the edge with All-Pro Khalil Mack, and the re-signing of inside linebacker Danny Trevathan in free agency.

But they also lost some key contributors in inside linebackers Nick Kwiatkoski and Kevin Pierre-Louis, as well as safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and defensive tackle Nick Williams.

The Bears have added some depth on defense and special teams, with the signings of outside linebacker Barkevious Mingo, cornerback Artie Burns and strong safety Jordan Lucas.

But defense wasn’t the overwhelming concern for the Bears. It was their offense.

Chicago has spent free agency addressing some needs on offense — including acquiring quarterback Nick Foles and signing tight end Jimmy Graham and offensive lineman Germain Ifedi. But there’s not much reason to assume that the Bears’ abysmal offense will suddenly flip a switch.

Which is part of the reason why the Bears fell in Touchdown Wire‘s mid-free agency power rankings, clocking in at No. 18.

Previous ranking: 16

Key additions: QB Nick Foles, DE Robert Quinn, TE Jimmy Graham, OLB Barkevious Mingo, CB Artie Burns

The biggest question facing the Bears this offseason was how to handle the quarterback position. After general manager Ryan Pace traded up in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft to select Mitchell Trubisky, that gambit seems to have failed. Trubisky regressed last season, and Bears fans have been clamoring for someone to at least push Trubisky for the job next year.

That player might just be Nick Foles, who is a good schematic fit given his experience in West Coast systems such as Matt Nagy’s. The Bears needed to trade for him and take on his contract, so it is clear that Pace knows he has just a few cards to play as the pressure builds around him.

Quarterback will continue to be the talk of the offseason, even after general manager Ryan Pace brought in competition for Mitchell Trubisky in Nick Foles.

There’s no denying that the Bears got better at the quarterback position, as Foles presents an actual threat to Trubisky’s starting job and hasn’t been brought in simply to be another coach in the quarterbacks room.

But until the Bears find stability at quarterback this season, don’t expect them to rise considerably in power rankings.

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