There’s not a lot of confidence in the Chicago Bears heading into the 2022 season given concerns on offense and defense under a new regime.
The biggest concern surrounds second-year quarterback Justin Fields, who’s coming off a rocky rookie season and is expected to take a step forward in his development. But there’s plenty of criticism being thrown the Bears way for how they’ve approached this offseason.
While there are other teams with young quarterbacks going all-in on offense, general manager Ryan Poles has played it conservative as he’s tasked with rebuilding the roster as a whole. There’s a lot of confidence in Luke Getsy’s offense to help take Fields to that next level, even if the roster isn’t the most attractive.
The Bears’ biggest adds at wide receiver were with Byron Pringle in free agency and Velus Jones Jr. in the third round of the NFL draft. They join a receiving corps where Darnell Mooney is the only proven commodity. There hasn’t been much change on the offensive line with the exception of the addition of Lucas Patrick to offset the loss of James Daniels. But there’s still a glaring hole at right guard.
Simply put, the bar is low for Chicago in 2022.
CBS Sports’ Jason LaCanfora believes the Bears are one of five teams that are in for a rough ride in 2022. And concern for Fields’ development is once again at the center of that belief.
Do they have a discernible direction? They are basically rebuilding, except, well, don’t you dare ask about Robert Quinn after they shipped off Khalil Mack. Justin Fields has been handed a crap sandwich in terms of skill players around him and the offensive line for that matter. Not sure I would be inspired by the hires they have made, especially given the way things ended with the last regime. Not much there, but an awful lot of hopes and prayers.
Is there anything this team seems to be poised to be particularly good at? Has ownership gotten anything of note right anytime recently? What are their strengths? Generally, the Bears just leave me dazed and confused and I don’t see much reason to expect anything less than a limp and tepid-at-best season from them. Even in the suspect NFC. Maybe they scratch out five or six wins. Godspeed.
The good news is the Bears face three of the other teams on this list during the 2022 season in the Houston Texans, Atlanta Falcons and Washington Commanders. Chicago has one of the easiest schedules in the NFL this season, which could ultimately save them from disaster. Although it’ll likely still be a rocky road ahead.
