The Chicago Bears are one of the most discussed teams in the NFL right now, and for good reason.
The Bears have been especially busy this offseason, making some big moves in free agency and stealing the show at the NFL Draft.
Of course, most of the attention in Chicago is centered around incoming rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, who the Bears took with the No. 1 overall pick.
Williams is considered a generational talent by some, and he has an impressive stable of weapons at his disposal.
All of that has Rich Eisen thinking that Chicago could make a very deep playoff run.
The Bears have only made two playoff appearances over the last 13 years and have not won a playoff game since January 2011, so any sort of postseason success would be a major deal in the Windy City.
Are the Bears Being Overhyped?
That begs the question: are we overhyping the Bears?
The answer? Probably.
Let’s face it: we have no clue how Chicago is actually going to play in 2024. Sure, the Bears look good on paper after adding wide receivers Keenan Allen (via trade) and Rome Odunze (via the draft), not to mention signing pieces like running back D’Andre Swift and tight end Gerald Everett in free agency.
But the fact of the matter is that Williams is a rookie. He will almost certainly experience some growing pains. Not every first-year quarterback is going to be C.J. Stroud. Plus, the Bears have a first-year offensive coordinator in Shane Waldron.
Not only that, but Chicago has some holes on its roster that it did not fill this offseason.
For example, the Bears finished second-to-last in the NFL in sacks this past year, but they have done nothing to address the issue. As a matter of fact, they have subtracted their second and third top sack-getters from 2023 in Justin Jones and Yannick Ngakoue (Ngakoue is actually still available in free agency).
On top of everything else, Chicago plays in a very tough NFC North division. The Detroit Lions were one half away from going to the Super Bowl this past winter, the Green Bay Packers are considered dark horse championship contenders by some and even the Minnesota Vikings will be pesky.
Realistically speaking, the Bears should just be happy with making the playoffs in 2024.
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