What Is the Best Rebuilding Plan for Chicago Bears After Falling to 2-6?
Remember that momentum the Chicago Bears built with a dominant win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 7? Remember the good vibes from backup quarterback Tyson Bagent winning his first professional start?
Yeah. Neither do we, because the Bears were just slapped around on national television by a 2-4 Los Angeles Chargers team in a 30-13 loss that drops the Bears to 2-6 and what's become an all-too familiar spot.
Last place in the NFC North.
Here's the cold, hard truth. The Bears are a bad football team, and the return of quarterback Justin Fields isn't going to change that. The offense is inconsistent and error-prone. The defense is porous and badly needs improvement at both the front and back ends.
The Bears were supposed to be headed in the right direction. But halfway through the 2023 campaign, they're headed exactly where they were last season—nowhere fast.
This is a team that team needs to be blown up. That needs to be rebuilt...again.
And here's how the Bears should go about doing it.
Step 1. Fire Head Coach Matt Eberflus
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Every rebuild has to begin somewhere, and they often begin with a firing.
That's where the Windy City makeover needs to begin. After two seasons in charge, head coach Matt Eberflus needs to go.
As he has since the moment he was hired, Eberflus continues to maintain a hearty level of optimism regarding the direction his team. Just recently, he told Adam Jahns of The Athletic that despite all the adversity and injuries, the Bears are headed in the right direction.
"We've had more adversity than any team in the league," Eberflus said. "I think it's important that we keep building upon that—and we are getting better. We are improving. It's going to be the fruits of our labor coming up."
However, we've heard a similar refrain from Eberflus for years, and there still ain't been no fruit.
After Sunday's loss, the Bears are 5-20 under Eberflus. Every time it appears the Bears are establishing any momentum at all, they get mollywhopped. The Chicago offense has been mostly atrocious, ranking in the bottom half of the league both seasons.
What has really been disappointing, though, is Chicago's defense—Eberflus' supposed specialty. Entering Sunday's game, the Bears were 22nd in total defense and 28th in scoring defense. That's just unacceptable from a supposedly defense-minded coach.
Most of the NFL's best teams have offense-minded head coaches. The Bears need one who can work with the team's young talent on that side of the ball.
Step 2: Draft a Quarterback...and Trade Justin Fields
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There isn't a more polarizing player in the Windy City than quarterback Justin Fields. For every supporter who points to his ability to do damage as a runner and cannon for a right arm, there is a detractor who points to his inconsistency as a passer, questionable decision-making at times and woeful record as a starter.
Come next spring, it will be time to make a decision on Fields' fifth-year option.
It's a decision that Chicago should leave to another team.
By virtue of their own struggles and an even worse season being turned in by the Carolina Panthers, the Bears are in a unique position to take a mulligan on the Fields decision. It's entirely possible the Bears will have the first two picks in the 2024 draft. It's likely the team will have a pair of picks in the top five.
The Bears can ostensibly have their choice of quarterbacks in the 2024 class. Want Fields' mobility with a better arm? They could draft USC's Caleb Williams. More a fan of pure pocket passer? North Carolina's Drake Maye could be their guy.
Who they choose doesn't matter (well, it does—the Bears need to choose well). What does is that Chicago needs to reset under center. At this point, Fields would probably benefit from a change of scenery and a coach who plays more to his strengths.
There would absolutely be interest in Fields in places like Atlanta, Minnesota and New England.
Step 3: Get Your New QB an Elite Wide Receiver
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OK, so there's a new quarterback in Chicago. Fans are excited as soon as that quarterback's name is called on April 25.
Now the Bears need to do something they didn't do for much of Fields' tenure and put weapons around him.
To be fair, the trade that brought veteran D.J. Moore to Chicago in 2023 was most assuredly a step in the right direction. But outside Moore there's...not a lot. Opposing defensive coordinators aren't losing sleep about how to contain Darnell Mooney and Cole Kmet.
The tandem of Moore and Ohio State's Marvin Harrison Jr. would be another story.
It's not just that Harrison is 6'4" and runs like a deer. Or that he's been all but unguardable the past two seasons in Columbus. Or that Harrison's father was a pretty good wideout in his own right. Partly because of that famous father and years of workouts with him, Harrison is easily the most NFL-ready high-end prospect at his position in this year's draft class.
For all intents and purposes, Harrison already is an NFL receiver. His route tree and breaks are better than quite a few guys already cashing paychecks.
A one-two punch of say Williams and Harrison would be the most exciting thing to happen during a Bears draft since Mitchell Trubisky was drafted second overall.
(Sorry. That was uncalled for.)
If the Bears can't get Harrison, a guy like Florida State's Keon Coleman—WR2 on Bleacher Report's initial big board—or LSU's Malik Nabers wouldn't be bad consolation prizes.
But in any event, Moore needs a running mate, and Chicago's quarterback needs more weapons.
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Step 4: Sign a High-End Edge-Rusher
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OK, enough with the offense. The defense needs work, too.
Entering Week 8, the Chicago Bears had fewer sacks (10) than any team in the NFL. The team didn't add to that number in the blowout loss to the Chargers. And given the Bears' issues in the secondary (that might be foreshadowing), an inability to put any pressure on opposing quarterbacks is a major problem.
The team tried the patchwork approach in 2023, with veteran journeyman Yannick Ngakoue representing the biggest addition. That didn't work even a little.
Time to get more aggressive.
Now, with the Bears investing their first-rounders on offense next year in this plan, adding an elite edge prospect is off the table. But the Bears are sitting on more cap space next season than any team in the NFL—a staggering $96 million according to Spotrac.
There are more than a few veteran edge-rushers hitting the open market in 2024 that the Bears should think long and hard about taking a run at. Danielle Hunter of the Minnesota Vikings is among the league leaders in sacks. So is Josh Allen of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Rashan Gary of the Green Bay Packers, Brian Burns of the Carolina Panthers, and Montez Sweat of the Washington Commanders are all talented pass-rushers in the prime of their careers.
It's a loaded class. The Bears are loaded with cash.
Make with the spending, and add an anchor on the edge.
Step 5: Get Better on the Back End
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Now, about that secondary I just mentioned.
It's bad. Really bad. Like 30th in the league in pass defense before Justin Herbert threw for 298 yards and three touchdowns against them bad.
To be fair to the cornerbacks and safeties in Chicago, it's not entirely their fault. Chicago's cornerbacks are young. Jaquan Brisker and Eddie Jackson are actually a quality duo of safeties, but they just can't seem to stay on the field. And when the front-seven is getting no pressure on opposing quarterbacks, there isn't a team in the league with a secondary that can hold up forever.
Much like at edge-rusher, there are some quality names at cornerback who will be looking to get paid come next spring, headlined by L'Jarius Sneed of the Kansas City Chiefs. Kendall Fuller of the Washington Commanders, Kenny Moore of the Indianapolis Colts and Chidobe Awuzie of the Cincinnati Bengals aren't superstars, but they are capable veterans who would both improve the pass defense and potentially help steady that young defensive backfield.
There should also be some interesting rookies potentially available on Day 2 of the 2024 draft, whether it's Ohio State's Denzel Burke, Rutgers' Max Melton or Clemson's Nate Wiggins.
The Bears need quality. Quantity. They just need to be better defensively, in part to alleviate pressure on a young offense.
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